Questions about Ebay? (1 Viewer)

[DaveF]

Pressing that button does nothing for me. I emailed eBay, as it makes no sense.

Regarding shipping: I plan to charge whatever USPS or UPS says is the price. Hopefully the shipping system adjusts for the buyer's location so I don't have to charge the maximum it could cost to ship cross-country. I think I've got a box and spare packing materials to use, so no extra charge for that.


Further exploration and I found the "advanced" editor that allows HTML and figured out its preview mode. This seems more useful.

 

[DaveF]

Thanks, all, for the tips. I got my listing created, tuned up, and online now. Here's hoping for a successful auction!

 

[sestamuch]

That and some items just need more care when sheeping, for example an engine would require some properly packaged way of getting to the buyer in one piece, and that may not be just the cost of the package itself, but the work involved in it.

 

[DaveF]

My auction has been live for 48 hours (since Sunday afternoon) and it has no bids. It's a 7-day auction. Is this a bad sign?

I could understand that this item might not have strong appeal right now, but others of its kind have sold recently for fair prices.

 

[TravisR]

In my experience, no. I think when people see that there's 5 or 6 days left on an auction, they just think "I'll check it out in 4 or 5 days and see what it's at". If similar items have sold recently and you have a good opening bid and fair shipping, you should get a similar price.

 

[Matt^Brown]

Agree! I never bid on an auction until there are just a few days left.

 

[nolesrule]

Yup. The earlier people bid, the higher it'll drive the final price at the end of the auction. Not as good a scenario for sellers, but it's better for the buyers.

 

[DaveF]

Thanks for the encouraging words. I need them, since my Craigs List ad isn't doing anything either. (But it's a high priced, niche item.)

 

[roygrady]

I usually don't bid until the last minute or so (sniping).

 

[juda]

lol same with me, it really depends on the product but i guess sniping is a little harsh

 

[DaveF]

My auction just ended. All the action happened in the last five minutes. The final price is about half that for the same item in recent days. But I'm glad it sold for anything at all.

I was selling a Tivo S2, which is almost obsolete with the HD transition upon us. So I'm excited it sold for anything at all. And won't go into a landfill just yet.

Any tips on wrapping up the sale? I've got the item packed; I need to get the buyer's shipping preference and payment, I gather.
Now if I could get a CraigsList buyer for my kitchen sink

 

[gene c]

If the buyer is paying for shipping then let him/her decide. If you're paying, you decide. I like FedEx Ground. Their shipping/copying locations (ex Kinko's) are an easy in/out and the prices are as good or lower than the rest.

 

[DaveF]

Thanks. I provided shipping options in the auction so they can select and pay accordingly. I was puzzled by the mixture of auction page info and the "invoice" option. It must be that payment hasn't been made yet, so the shipping option hasn't been selected yet.

I sent a note to the buyer thanking them for the purchase and noting that I'm ready to ship once payment is complete.

 

[DaveF]

Successful auction, product paid for and delivered to the buyer. It was delivered 3 days ago, and I've received no feedback from the buyer. This is my first sale and (positive) feedback would certainly be very beneficial. I believe I was an excellent seller with prompt shipping and emails at each step giving status and tracking number.

Am I supposed to do their feedback first? Should I contact them and (politely) ask for feedback?

 

[nolesrule]

It's fairly common for the seller to leave feedback first, as they are the ones who leave feedback based on payment received and cleared, which obviously comes before the item is even shipped.

When I am the seller, I always leave feedback as soon as I ship out the item.

When I am the buyer, I always leave feedback when the item has been received AND after the seller leaves feedback.

 

[Eric_L]

I always start my auctions at $1 - even on my car. I figure the more people who see it the better - and lots of people will look at a car for $1. I've not had a bum deal yet.

You can always cancel an auction if it goes poorly - but I've never had to. I could even imagine it is fun to sell to someone who low-balls it just imagining how excited they are on the deal - and lets face it - for a good deal to be made - each person has to give a bit more than they hoped and get a bit more than they thought.

 

[DaveF]

I've running my second auction and have a new question.

I received an offer to cancel my auction early and sell to a buyer for his offered price. I'm looking for eBay's policy on this behavior. I'd think this is a FAQ but I"m not finding it in eBay's help.

 

[DaveF]

Ah, I found I could chat with an eBay rep. They said this is an OK thing to do.

I asked:

Hello. I have a live auction, with 48 hrs remaining. I've received an offer for the item if I cancel the auction early. I'm unable to find eBay's policy on this behavior in the Help section. Can you explain it?

They answered:

Okay, you may end the listing early and list it again as buy it now with an amount equal to what you have agreed on. Then give the item number to that buyer, ask them to search on the site and click Buy It Now button

 

[TravisR]

EDIT: Oops, I misread the post.

 

[nolesrule]

Yeah, that way ebay will still get their cut of the selling price (and a second listing fee, I believe). Of course they'd want you to relist it with a Buy It Now in order to complete the transaction.

On the other hand, that way you would have a third party record of the sale in case the buyer is fraudulent.