Ebay Buying/SellingDiscussion Thread (1 Viewer)

[cineMANIAC]

I searched but couldn't find a thread dedicated to the Buying and Selling experience of Aftermarket platform Ebay. I started this one in the hopes of generating friendly discussion about the ins and out of the Ebay experience; This thread is NOT for posting or talking about individual items you purchased or would like to purchase or for search inquiries. There's probably a public forum on Ebay itself (I haven't checked) but I thought it would be nice to have a discussion here since I've been with this community much longer than Ebay

OK, so I recently started selling on Ebay and have quickly familiarized myself with the platform and it's rules. One thing that has baffled me, though, is the fact that one of my recent auctions shot way beyond the Buy It Now price and I actually got a very good price for it - well above the "Buy It Now". Naturally I'm happy but what the heck was THAT about? That buyer could've saved himself the extra dough and just grabbed the item at the advertised Buy It Now price. Aren't there algorithms that prevent buyers (or sellers for that matter) from paying more than the advertised price?

 

[usrunnr]

It may have depended on how long the buyer wanted to wait to purchase the item. If he was in a hurry, "Buy It Now" was the way to go. If he was willing to wait and bid lower, he might have got it at a cheaper price. However. once a bid has been made, "Buy it Now" goes away, and the the bidding continues. That might explain why the buyer paid the higher price. It's a kind of gambling in a way. Hoping no one else bids, you starts lower than the "Buy it Now" price. Per eBay, "Buy it Now" must be listed at 30% above the starting price.

 

[cineMANIAC]

It may have depended on how long the buyer wanted to wait to purchase the item. If he was in a hurry, "Buy It Now" was the way to go. If he was willing to wait and bid lower, he might have got it at a cheaper price. However. once a bid has been made, "Buy it Now" goes away, and the the bidding continues. That might explain why the buyer paid the higher price. It's a kind of gambling in a way. Hoping no one else bids, you starts lower than the "Buy it Now" price. Per eBay, "Buy it Now" must be listed at 30% above the starting price.

Interesting bit about the "Buy It Now" price going away if someone bids higher. The buyer would have to be really desperate to acquire the item to actually bid higher but another bidder who may be just as interested may also "one-up" them so, yes, it's a gamble. I've had a couple of bidders reach out to me to cancel bids because they overbid. I find that a bit hard to swallow. Changed your mind? Maybe, but you don't overbid on high ticket items. You watch the auction like a hawk but you don't mistakenly overbid.

Deadbeats are also becoming an issue. Can I block people from future auctions for failure to pay?

 

[usrunnr]

In an auction there is a "starting price" and a "Buy it now" price (if the seller likes). So it is possible for a buyer to purchase at "starting price" which is lower than the "Buy it now" price (if no one else bids).

It is also possible for a seller to list an item for a set "Buy it now" price with no auction at all. The seller may also accept "offers". The seller may also have a minimum price.

Many possibilities.

YES YOU CAN BLOCK PEOPLE FOR FAILURE TO PAY. eBay used to keep a record of this, called strikes, but I don't think they do any more. I never give a deadbeat a second chance to bid on my items. They are permanently blocked from bidding or even contacting me. If a bidder asks me to remove a bid, I'll do it, but they will never have a chance to bid again on any of my items.

Why all this? I've been burned to many times.

 

[JohnRice]

Yeah, if you have an auction with a "Buy Now" option, once anyone places a bid the buy now price disappears.

 

[usrunnr]

There are also different rules for professional sellers who purchase "stores" on ebay to sell their items. I know little about that.

For us amateurs, eBay is presently giving us 250 free "listings" per month. Final Value Fees for sold items amount to 13 to 15%. eBay also discounts shipping costs for USPS and other shipping methods if you use their services.

Professionals pay for their "stores"/"listings".

 

[cineMANIAC]

I really have no interest in becoming a "Professional" seller. I'd have to offer premium shipping services/Next Day Air. In my experience most folks are perfectly happy with Media Mail. I've been very lucky with regards to shipping times. Most of the orders I've sent out via Media Mail have been delivered in a week or less. My buyers are happy.

 

[JohnRice]

I used to sell a lot of stuff on eBay. I mean, 15-20 years ago. The last stuff I sold it was noticeable how much "buyers" had deteriorated. In one case, a guy bought several DVDs, and I gave a shipping discount for buying multiple items. Then once the auctions were over, and he had already received the shipping discount, he sent me an email that simply said "Discount please". So, I gave him a bit more of a shipping discount, but he wanted me to also discount his purchase price. When I responded that he made the bids which means he agreed to those prices, he turned into a petulant child and refused to pay for anything. What sucks is every one of those DVDs had other bids, but in the end none of them sold since he outbid everyone else and then refused to pay the price he bid. I stopped selling on eBay after that.

 

[Bryan^H]

I had two deadbeat buyers last year. The second time it happened E-Bay stepped in and gave me my next sale with no deductions. Gladly I listed one of my most expensive items, and E-Bay took nothing from the sale. It was great.

Also had a buyer try to scam me. Said he never got his package. Proved him wrong, and he dropped his case, but man was I angry. He got a great deal, I even threw in a bonus item from the goodness of my heart...and he tries to scam me.

Garbage people out there, scary.

 

[cineMANIAC]

Some scary stories. I don't have any horror stories yet but I fully expect to encounter a bad apple or two at some point. Hopefully it won't be for a big ticket item. I may retire too if it gets really bad. Actually, I'm a little worried about taxes next year so I may end up closing shop to cut my losses. I've never owed the IRS money but next year I may have to take out a small loan :-(

 

[usrunnr]

I used to sell a lot of stuff on eBay. I mean, 15-20 years ago. The last stuff I sold it was noticeable how much "buyers" had deteriorated. In one case, a guy bought several DVDs, and I gave a shipping discount for buying multiple items. Then once the auctions were over, and he had already received the shipping discount, he sent me an email that simply said "Discount please". So, I gave him a bit more of a shipping discount, but he wanted me to also discount his purchase price. When I responded that he made the bids which means he agreed to those prices, he turned into a petulant child and refused to pay for anything. What sucks is every one of those DVDs had other bids, but in the end none of them sold since he outbid everyone else and then refused to pay the price he bid. I stopped selling on eBay after that.

There is also something now called Second Chance to cover instances when that happens. The second place bidder gets the item for their high bid. I'm sorry to hear this happened to you. I've had people buy two of something, break one of them and demand a refund for the broken item. Now I ship Priority mail for breakables because then the Buyer can file a claim with the post office. Not me.

 

[Desslar]

I would really like to sell off about 200-300 comics that I don't have space for, but those deadbeat stories are concerning, especially because you can't really accept returns for comics (as they are likely to be beat to hell by the time they get back to you.)

 

[usrunnr]

I would really like to sell off about 200-300 comics that I don't have space for, but those deadbeat stories are concerning, especially because you can't really accept returns for comics (as they are likely to be beat to hell by the time they get back to you.)

I'd give it a shot though. VERY CAREFULLY describing the condition of each one, very specifically so that a buyer cannot come back and say it wasn't as described. That is the only way I know of that eBay will step in, refund the buyer, and charge the seller --- if you have not accurately described the item.

And you can put in the listing that you don't accept returns. Hope this is helpful.

 

[Bryan^H]

I would really like to sell off about 200-300 comics that I don't have space for, but those deadbeat stories are concerning, especially because you can't really accept returns for comics (as they are likely to be beat to hell by the time they get back to you.)

I've had good success selling my comics. The buyers have all been happy.

It takes a lot of effort for buyers to "scam" you, especially when you have proof of shipping (tracking #, date etc.). The deadbeat buyers isn't a thing really, just relist, and it will most likely sell for the same if not more the next time. And like I said E-Bay has started to make things right if you get a non paying winning bidder more than once.

 

[usrunnr]

I had two deadbeat buyers last year. The second time it happened E-Bay stepped in and gave me my next sale with no deductions. Gladly I listed one of my most expensive items, and E-Bay took nothing from the sale. It was great.

Also had a buyer try to scam me. Said he never got his package. Proved him wrong, and he dropped his case, but man was I angry. He got a great deal, I even threw in a bonus item from the goodness of my heart...and he tries to scam me.

Garbage people out there, scary.

You are very lucky. I've never had ebay step in like that.

 

[TravisR]

I've had good success selling my comics. The buyers have all been happy.

It takes a lot of effort for buyers to "scam" you, especially when you have proof of shipping (tracking #, date etc.). The deadbeat buyers isn't a thing really, just relist, and it will most likely sell for the same if not more the next time. And like I said E-Bay has started to make things right if you get a non paying winning bidder more than once.

I've don't remember ever having a major problem selling comics (or DVDs and Blu-rays) but it's been a few years since I was regularly selling things there and I've heard that eBay has become a nightmare for sellers in the last few years.

 

[Dick White]

I used to sell a lot of DVDs on eBay, but that was a very long time ago. As the value of DVDs dropped significantly, it just wasn't worth the effort to pack and ship them. Also, PayPal started changing the rules and charging for what used to be free, even before eBay took them over. I tried selling some at a flea market, but even with prices below what they were selling for on eBay, I had little success. So I'm pretty much stuck with a lot of duplicates and older versions.

I have a pretty large collection and I quit buying and started renting because of space issues. Now, like most people, I am streaming most of what I watch. I liked being a collector, but at my age (82), I realize that I won't live long enough to watch even the ones I haven't watched once, much less repeats. And I could be forced to downsize at some point. I have thought about trying a garage/yard sale, but you get a lot of deadbeats and thieves showing up at those. So I may give eBay another try before long. Just don't know if I could make myself part with them at the prices I could get there and go through all the work. I'd like to pass them on to my kids and grandchildren, but most of them don't even have DVD players now. Maybe I should just put them on the porch and let someone steal them.

 

[usrunnr]

I used to sell a lot of DVDs on eBay, but that was a very long time ago. As the value of DVDs dropped significantly, it just wasn't worth the effort to pack and ship them. Also, PayPal started changing the rules and charging for what used to be free, even before eBay took them over. I tried selling some at a flea market, but even with prices below what they were selling for on eBay, I had little success. So I'm pretty much stuck with a lot of duplicates and older versions.

I have a pretty large collection and I quit buying and started renting because of space issues. Now, like most people, I am streaming most of what I watch. I liked being a collector, but at my age (82), I realize that I won't live long enough to watch even the ones I haven't watched once, much less repeats. And I could be forced to downsize at some point. I have thought about trying a garage/yard sale, but you get a lot of deadbeats and thieves showing up at those. So I may give eBay another try before long. Just don't know if I could make myself part with them at the prices I could get there and go through all the work. I'd like to pass them on to my kids and grandchildren, but most of them don't even have DVD players now. Maybe I should just put them on the porch and let someone steal them.

I hear what you are saying, and I understand. I still sell some DVDs on ebay that I have upgraded to blu and 4K. But it is certainly true that there is less of a demand. Also as we age we need to downsize. Otherwise someone will do it for us when we aren't able. Or worse yet, just trash everything when we are gone. I give plenty of DVDs (and books for that matter) away to friends.

One option is in a will or trust, leave them to a specific library or charity. Don't even think about worth, just that you are helping a charitable organization out with a donation. I'll bet others on this forum have additional suggestions about this. I'd be interested in the response.

 

[DaveF]

I used eBay to sell used electronics up to about 5 years ago. I quit. Fees kept going up. The effort to list an auction was increasing. Dealing with shipping was always a hassle. And the value of my time was going up. It wasn't worth it anymore for me.

I used Facebook's marketplace to sell my Pioneer Kuro two years ago. It was like CraigsList, but easier for me. It worked out well.

It's no longer worth my time and energy to try and get $150 for some random thing in my house. Now I'm more apt to just give stuff away using our neighborhood FB page.

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

I never sell anything on eBay because I don't trust PayPal with my bank information.

I buy lots of small items e.g. plumbing parts even though they may be higher on eBay than Amazon, since I refuse to pay for "Amazon Prime". At least I can usually wrangle free shipping on a $5 part via eBay.