When I first saw this link, I almost passed it by thinking that it would be some guy asking me for $149.95 to hear his tips. Well, I am glad I clicked. When I first started my ebay store (that's now closed) a few years ago, I had no idea what I was doing. I tried looking for information through Google and all I got was garbage...it was pretty frustrating. I ended up teaching myself a lot of lessons and the store was profitable, although way too time consuming.
Enough about me. The tips that Skip McGrath put together are good for buyers and sellers. Listed below are a couple of his 99 that I wish I knew before starting on ebay.
5. Avoid Fraud on Large PurchasesOk, so there you have 3 of his 99 tips. It's pretty good stuff. Visit Skip McGrath's, 99 Tips for Buying and Selling on eBay for the rest.
Given the millions of transactions that occur each month, fraud is actually rare on ebay but it does exist. The most common type of fraud on eBay is a seller that offers an expensive item for sale at an unbelievably good price. When you win the item the seller asks to be paid in cash, cashiers check or money order. You send the money and then the seller disappears.
Demanding a cashiers check or a money order only is a red flag. Never bid on a large purchase if the seller will not take Paypal or a credit card. Always check the seller's feedback and how long they have been registered on eBay.
Most fraudsters set up an eBay account, run a few quick expensive auctions, get the money and either disappear or are kicked off of eBay as soon as they are discovered. Be especially careful if the seller is located outside the U.S.
12. Use the .02 or .03 rule.
Most people bid in even numbers. If the bid increment is 50 cents, make your bid .52 or .53. This way you will just outbid someone by a few cents instead of a large increment. This is very important when sniping (see next item)
14. Use Ending Today
When searching eBay listings and categories, it can become very tiresome because there is so much out there. If you’re just browsing for stuff to buy, then select a category, and select Ending Today. Items ending in the next 24 hours will be highlighted in red. Here's a tip to find great bargains. Look for items ending after midnight. There aren't as many people up after midnight and those auctions tend to get fewer bids. If you don't want to stay up that late, use BidSlammer to bid for you.
