IT'S ALL ABOUT or in THE FEEDBACK RATING A+++
Written: Jun 09 '07 (Updated Apr 11 '09)
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Update: Jan 17, 2009
A seller can not leave you negative feedback? How long has this been going on? As a seller I would want to know if I had a deadbeat bidder on my auction. I rely on feedback both buying and selling. I use to be able to block members with an overall Negative score or Zero Feedback. I wonder if that's change. In my high dollar autions I made Zero feedback member email contact info before bidding or be cancelled. Worked for me.
If there wasn't a feedback rating how can you trust them? Ebay members rely on feedback that allows both buyers and sellers to rate each other with positive, neutral or negative feedback and is limited to 80 characters. It's enough to cover an experience but not enough to allow wars to erupt as they can in our Epinions comment sections. Anyone receiving feedback may also provide a simple answer or comment to that feedback. You don't have to leave feedback but it's always appreciated and sometimes demanded from some members.
I won't tell you how to buy or sell or how to navigate through the Ebay site, but if you want to buy something or want to sell something, Ebay is the place! It's been a rewarding experience for me and my family. They've all enjoyed the surprises as well as the weird stuff we've bought and sold. The most fun auctions and the real ones are the "No Reserve" and start at a $1.
Rarely I'll have a garage sale, it doesn't always work out that well, I'm always annoyed at people asking "WILL YOU TAKE a $1 FOR THIS?" My answer is: "IT'S YOUR'S FOR FREE, ENJOY". "$50 bottle of perfume" with a $5 sticker on it, paid $50 for it. Oh well, it was kinda old stuff anyway.
I've been on ebay since the early days, May 1998 when they were just another newbie dot com. I remember when there were no categories, just about 20,000 auctions of things from CD's to collectables of all sorts. I was hooked from the start and would not hesitant to take advantage of the goods offered at ultra low prices. I learned early on about a members feedback rating and discovered you may have problems with anyone with negitive feedback. This holds true today as I've had experiences with members with few transactions and less than a 100% positive rating. When buying you are protected with transactions up to a certain dollar amount and more so when you use the Paypal feature. You need to check with both as they may change their policies.
As a current Ebay member with a 100% positive rating, with over 2,000 transactions, I make every effort to keep that 100% positive factor, if your an honest seller, a timely payer, and don't make up excuses. We all make mistakes but if you visit the site and browse any category, read some of the feedback ratings from buyers and sellers transactions that were NEGATIVE, you'll see the facts and problems to avoid!
As a buyer I stay away from the obvious "RED FLAGS": Too many negative feedbacks from buyers, the seller does not respond to the "Ask The Seller A Question" (via email), the shipping price is not mentioned or DOES NOT have the "SHIPPING CALCULATOR" in the ad, a very helpful tool! You may want to avoid these auctions if the seller does not respond, give them at least 24 hours, not everyone is able or can respond or watching their auctions towards the end.
Only a few times have I had a bad experience buying an item on Ebay. Both times Ebay support resolved the issue making my transactions as a buyer 100%, either money refunded, or the product in hand. This could take 30 days or more to resolve. On other occasions some of the sellers I had issues with took the product back and refunded the auction amount minus shipping. One example was for a pair of shoes that were advertised as new but the description said "WORN ONCE-TRIED ON-WRONG SIZE" It turns out they were worn about a month! The seller had a 100% rating, they were sent back and I was refunded the auction amount only! Just keep this in mind when you buy something just consider the shipping both ways, normal policy unless the seller advertises otherwise. So for for the most part it's been a good experience as a buyer. There's so much help with customer support, even forums, and a toll free number for most members in good standing.
For the beginner selling on Ebay can be a simple process and also time consuming depending on your abilities. It's most important to state the facts as to what your selling in your description and add photos as needed, from 1 to 20 or more, fees add up as you increase your level of service Ebay provides easy ways to sell your item, even for a novice or beginner. You can even practice with an auction, even see the fees before you post it. Keep in mind the "Final value fees". Ebay's fees are continually rising along with everything else, it's still a good way and sometimes the best way to sell.
ONE THING THAT DISTURBED ME:
I stumbled into an auction that was what I considered "Inappropriate". An auction selling templates for drilling into a safes (Opening a Safe) with a Magnetic Drill. Not one safe, but multiple templates for a Magnetic Drill and these would cover about 15 or so safes! Having my shop recently burglarized and having one of my Magnetic drills stolen, I was searching for a Magnetic drill on Ebay and found this auction. I simply use a magnetic drill for hole drilling into metal plate. IN MY VIEW this type of product (drill templates) is for "LOCKSMITHS ONLY" and should not be available on Ebay or to the general public! I notified Ebay and they said it fell into the category of "Inappropriate" or "Lock Picking Devices" category and the listing would or should be removed. It remained. The sellers comment using the "ask seller a question" response was "If I buy it on Ebay I can sell it on Ebay".
With all the things we can buy and sell on Ebay, and I enjoy it so much, it can be both rewarding and profitable, and maybe just the one time disheartining. Overall, both selling and paying for auctions is very automated, especially with Paypal linked to an auction.
I can't say enough about the positives with Ebay, they are #1 for a lot of people. It's an extra income for some or an entire Enterprise for others. For me it's buy some, sell some and have fun. The things for sale locally that allow you to pick up the item gives me a slight edge on the other bidders that are further away and have to pay for shipping. Some sellers don't allow local pick up and jack the shipping way up for extra profit and to avoid certain fees, you can easily spot these auctions.
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? pc''s monitors speakers air-saw
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Epinions.com ID:
walkerpkw
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 in Computer Hardware, Cars & Motorsports |
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Location: Granite Bay California
Reviews written: 68
Trusted by: 68 members
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