- Your bid is a contract. Bidding is not a game. If you do not intend to buy, don't bid.
- Do not bid on the first item you see. Do a little research. Someone else might have it listed for less or with a lower BIN. Track the item and any others finishing at the same time using "Watch this Item" to see selling trends. However, if you DO bid on the first item you see, keep in mind that retracting a bid because you found it cheaper elsewhere is against Ebay's rules.
- Do not trust the picture, it maybe somebody else's picture which the Seller has copied. Read the description carefully. Make sure it does not say, "design may vary." Check for size and colour. Make sure if it's new or used. Look to see if the description says the item will be "pre-sales" which means the seller does not have the merchandise in stock but has 30 days in which to ship to you. Look for descriptions of flaws, imperfections and/or damage.
- Read the terms. Find out which forms of payment are accepted and that you qualify for them. Will there be any delay in shipping if you pay by cheque etc.
On High Value items like laptops and computers be especially wary of Sellers offering payment by Wire Transfer/(Western union) ONLY. This is a Major Scam Area. If the Seller does offer other payments but when you close the bid insists on Wire Transfer be extremely wary. Do not assume you can combine shipping or dictate your own shipping preferences on multiple bids.
- Many sellers may place restrictions on Buyers with a low feedback rating and may not take bids from someone with no feedback or minus rating. Some sellers will not ship Internationally. Make sure you are eligible to bid on this auction.
- Find out how much the seller charges for shipping and if the item will be shipped immediately.If the postage is not there then use "Question for Seller" to ask the Seller politely what it is. If you get no reply then err on the side of safety.
- Check the seller's feedback. Do not buy expensive items from sellers with excessive negatives or who have no feedback. Check the feedback for an overall pattern. Do a lot of the complaints say the same thing? For instance, if a seller has a lot of complaints about the quality of his packaging, you might want to purchase insurance. Remember, a lot of sellers get retaliation feedback from deadbeats, so be sure to keep that in mind and look for patterns.
- So you are going to bid, do not nibble early at the listing it will only put up the price. Bid as late as you can as close to the end of auction and put in your maximum bid. If you cannot be there at the end, consider using a Sniping tool its legal and remember the highest bid does win irrespective of what the anti snipe brigade thinks.
Won the Bid:
- Contact the seller within three days but as near to the End of Auction time as possible giving them your name and address and preferred payment method. Use the Bid Number and Description as the e-mail Subject Title, this will help to separate individual Bids Do not rely on the Seller contacting first, it shows the Seller that you are keen to get on with the sale and it sets off the transaction on a good footing. Most sellers will contact you, but if they don't and do not respond to your e-mail, send an e-mail to them through Ebay's "Ask Seller A Question" feature.
DO NOT SEND OFF PAYMENT until the Seller has established contact with you . You are not in control of the Auction, the seller is.
- Read the seller's confirmation e-mail and understand it. Even experienced buyers are guilty of not doing this one. Do not assume that every confirmation e-mail is alike as each Seller has a different approach to Selling, read it.
Sellers usually include information that is necessary for you to complete the transaction. A lot of times they also ask for some information from you. Don't just send your payment with PayPal and ignore the confirmation e-mail.
Always put your address in the Remarks box if you are making any form of electronic payment irrespective of whether you have sent it in an e-mail.
If you are sending a cheque, PO or cash (usually at your own risk) ALWAYS put your Bid number, Bid Description and your address on a piece of paper and PUT THAT in the envelope. The Seller is not a mind reader so give them a fighting chance
- Ask the Seller if they can use a Certificate of Posting to cover you if the item is below £27 as you will be able to claim if it is "lost in the post". If it is above £27 then you should seriously look at getting it insured or sent by Special Delivery. Too many buyers spend £160 on an item, but won't cough up the extra £3 to insure it. Believe me, you will kick yourself if something happens. If you're not sure if you want insurance, ask yourself this question. "Will I be upset if this item arrives damaged or doesn't get here at all?" If your answer is yes, BUY insurance. If the seller does not offer it, ask for it.
- Be patient. The mail system especially Overseas sales have slowed down in many areas since the terrible events of 9/11. It may take longer than you expect for your payment to reach your seller and of course our Royal Mail is also slow in some parts of the UK.
- Ask politely, never threaten if you want to check on the status of your order, send a polite e-mail to your seller asking for the information you need. Do not send ten e-mails over a weekend and then get angry when you get no reply. Many people do not work on weekends, so your mail will not be read until Monday if they work in an office
Do not threaten your seller with negative feedback if they do not respond as quickly as you would like them to as they can report you to eBay for Feedback Offences. The negative feedback will be returned by a more highly experienced rated Seller who probably has more standing in the eBay Community.
- If there is a problem, stay calm and friendly. Most sellers are human and are doing this for fun. They have not been trained to deal with angry customers and will likely become angry themselves and unwilling to work with you. Again, do not threaten negative feedback if things are not worked out
- Leave appropriate feedback. Do not blame the seller for something that was outside of his control. Avoid misleading feedback. A positive that states something took a long time to get to you (when the postmark clearly proves the item was shipped immediately) is misleading, and therefore not really a positive. It's not the seller's fault it took a long time to get to you.
- Never harass a seller for feedback. Many sellers are busy and leave feedback in batches. You are likely to get a negative or at the worst reported to eBay for Feedback Offences.
Where most sales go through ok it is always best to e-mail the Seller that you have received the item thanking them for the Sale and say that you are leaving them Positive Feedback. They will get a double reminder to post your feedback i.e. your e-mail and your feedback.
- Do not be afraid of retaliation feedback. Good eBayers investigate feedback when they want to buy something. They know when someone has left you a negative out of revenge and they will not hold it against you. Feedback is the primary means of protecting buyers from fraudulent (or just bad) sellers. If you withhold a neg out of fear, you've allowed that seller to get away with it, not just to you, but to the next guy that wasn't warned off by your feedback.
- If you have a question about the item, the seller, feedback, shipping, terms or anything else, ask BEFORE you bid.
- Finally, keep ALL e-mails appertaining to the Bid until you have received the item AND you get Feedback from your Seller or in the case of dispute, until it is resolved. This is the only evidence of your transaction with this Seller so keep all data safe until you are happy that the sale is fully completed to your satisfaction.
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