Best Way to Shop on eBay

Most everyone has some idea of what they are looking for before they hit that big high speed internet highway. If not, then eBay is a great place to shop either way.  Its like the biggest tent in the world with every kind of item for sale under it. You won't even have to worry about how to dress, or how to style your hair, you can just sit back and shop til you drop!

If you know what you want, use eBay's search box, it's simple and very user friendly. Use words that you think others will use, after all, so many of us do think alike. If you are searching for Italian charms, use words more specific to what you might be interested in. For example use, cat italian charms, heart italian charms, shamrock italian charms, etc. The search will bring you many different types of cat, heart or shamrock italian charms from many different kinds of sellers. Some of these sellers only sell Italian Charms, while others (like myself) sell many other items as well and you can browse them in our stores. If you don't know what you want and just want to browse, eBays has so many catagories you can look through. Just find one and click!

Okay so now it's time to browse the many pages that were brought up in that search. eBay helps cut through this by offering a small drop down menu box in the upper right hand corner of a listings page. You can search many ways, examples are, time ending soonest (good for auctions), lowest price first (which is great for Buy it Now), there are just a few offered. I like the lowest price first, its my choice and usually works for me.

Bidding on items, oh my how scary and exciting is that! Some prefer this way to shop because they like the rush, the excitement of waiting til that very last minute to see if they won!  Its not as hard as it looks nor scary at all once you make that first bid. To me its like playing the game, The Price is Right. Pick a price for the item you are bidding on, set that price as your first bid and do nothing more. eBay does the rest for you and you won't pay the price you bid from the beginning unless someone else has bid against you and raised the items price that high. If its more than you can afford or wanted to spend on that item, once it passes your first set bid amount, you are out of the game, nothing gained, nothing lost. If there was no other bidder, no reserve price, and the items opening bid price was $1.00, then you won that item for $1.00 even though you might have placed a bid price of $10.00. Wow! what a score!

So now you find that item you just have to have or have needed for a while now. Maybe it's from an eBay store owner or just a seller on eBay. I really don't have a preference here, even though I am a store owner on eBay. I have bought from many on eBay and not everyone had a store, all eBay sellers are here for the same thing, to sell, whether it be brand new or something this person has no need for anymore.

Feedback is an important part of eBays community, it shows the way we interact with others and how we are treated and treat others. Bear in mind though, that sometimes no matter what you do, you just can't win or please everyone. So take the time to read a sellers feedback, see what others do compliment or do complain about. Maybe it's not something that would bother you or not as important to you as it was to this person.

Communication, it's very helpful and important to me on eBay. Ask questions from a seller if you are not sure of something in the items description, or you do not understand the sellers shipping policy. Every seller lists items differently, some list lower price, higher shipping, higher price, free shipping. To this I just say, see what you want, know that its a good price for you (price & shipping combined) and feel confidant in making the purchase!

Read, read, read, that fine print. Once you commit to buy on eBay its a commitment to follow through with the sale and make payment. Sellers work hard here listing items almost daily in stores, kind of like keeping the shelves stocked in a store. For the most part sellers are very fair here, of course there is always an exception to every rule, so read, read, read that description to make sure there is nothing hidden that you won't find out until its too late.

PayPal, its a safe way to shop these days, its my first choice as a seller and buyer on eBay. It protects both sellers and buyers and makes the transaction that much smoother and a peaceful experience knowing sellers do not obtain your personal credit card, or bank information. Money Orders are good too, but bear in mind they slow down the sale a bit and if you need that item in a hurry, sending a Money Order won't help. Sellers are encouraged to wait for Money Orders to clear their banks before shipping out any orders.

Whether you chose to Buy it Now or Bid on items, eBay is a fun, safe way to do it all. Just remember to use your head, have some idea of what an item should cost and what you are willing to pay.  Read the description for the item and sellers polices on payment, shipping, returns, etc.  The go ahead and make that purchase with confidence and trust. Before you know it, you will be a pro at shopping here, and maybe you too will write a guide or review one day for others to read.

You can find sellers or stores by name using eBays advanced search right next to the standard eBay search box.

 

If this guide was helpful to you in any small way, please vote yes at the bottom of this page, thank you Misty