Greetings to all from the Buyers View Point.

 Well,  Christmas, was no problem, plenty of merchants, plenty of competitive prices to compare. This is a great opportunity Ebay Gives, Compare, Decide, Take a Look At Feedback, Look For Signs of Negatives, Items Shipped Out Late, Also, Items Never Shipped.

That is Where I took FEEDBACK as Judge. Too Many Negatives, I stayed clear of, for a Holiday Gift.*Possibly New To Ebay, Not Savy Enough to Know The Holiday was right Now, Not Next Year. Another Consideration, We all love to go into a store, that has many items, not to travel far, same On Ebay. The More Items, With A Shipping Discount Offered Is Fabulous, Like Going Into A Large Department Store That Has It All, and really would love to cater to your needs, get back to your questions as soon as possible. Naturally Most People are working, so you should get an answer to your question within a 24 hours.

• There Are Several Steps With a Transaction:
• Bidding, After Comparing, Make Sure You Compare That Shipping Bill, With Great Rates With The Post Office, With Priority Flat Rate Boxes, There Should Be No Problem. Ask The Seller Why the item weighs 6 ounces, lives 20 miles away, why shipping this $5.00 item is $12.00? Steer Clear of the Nonesense that they have to buy a box, tape, and go to the Post Office, need money for gas. The Post Office Delivers Shipping Boxes, FREE, Yes, Also You Can Set a Daily Pickup Service With Your Local Post Office, they will be there, everyday on time. So The Remaining $6.00 is in their pocket, and it's not fair. Take that number $6.00 off each person they sell to, and Look, Are They Selling Shipping, Or Product??
• Remember Most Savy Ebay Buyers Look For Discount Shipping, I do. Why Pay for 3 items all going to the same address?? Ask Them For Combined Shipping, If they are Smart, and Want Your Business, and Repeat Customer, They will offer you a Great Discount. If Not Move On .....
• Plus Sales, are so much a part of the Selling Technique, and as Human Nature Has It~ We all buy the plus sale. example. Grocery Store, You are Purchasing Shrimp, You want the shrimp cocktail sauce Right NEAR The Shrimp**. On Your Way Out, you are in line, and looking through the magazines, there is one on Cooking, Perfect, Your In a Food Store, You Buy It, Also. **Another Plus Sale is have the purse to match the handbag, or the color Jacket with the Hat and Gloves To Match, This is Your Savy Seller, Wise.
• Paying ~ Please Open Up a PayPal Account for the 92 % of Shoppers on ebay. To Clear a check is said to be 7 days, plus mailing time, plus mailing time. During The Holidays, It's caught in the Shuffle of Post Office Blues, of Christmas Cards, Invitations, and all Those Coupons From Major Department Stores, With Invitations, You Just May Use, They Offer Online Shopping, With Free Shipping, If you spend over $50.00!! Now, That Is A Deal!
• Offer Free Shipping on the Second Item, if its going into a flat rate box, and fits. That's a KeyWord to Me. Next, .....
• You Finally Get Your Item You Purchased, It's wrapped with no bubble, no tissue, and just not cared for, it also has the tags this Buyer Forgot to Remove, when they caught this on sale, Well Your Upset You, Of Course... Take Time to buy Labels That Say Congratulations, Thank You, Send A Thank You Card, Handwritten Signature, Include a little package of Popcorn, or if it's Spring, Seeds to plant. How Thoughtful, When Your Tulips Bloom,  you will think of your seller. When you are heating your popcorn, and it smells so yummy in the Microwave, You Will Say, "WoW,  I like that Seller. They will be back, not for the Popcorn, but because you went the extra inch for them.
• Also, Simple Idea, Include Their Shipping Invoice, on the outside of the package, if possible in a holder, or inside, but not next to the item purchased. Why? Sellers are in a hurry to ship, can get mixed up on your item, with someone else. This Will Verify This Person Is Getting This, and I already have their TRACKING LABEL PRINTED with it.
• Yes, don't keep them guessing, where their item is, Especially if they waited for 7 or 10 days for the auction to end. Maybe they Did Not Feel Like Bidding, many don't want to be caught waiting, when they are the only bidder, or there are 30 bids, because they started this item as one penny. Have This Item Boxed, And Ready To Ship!!!
• Go the Extra Yard, buy your shipping labels, that stick on, you can also show them how much you paid for shipping, it's tracked in paypal, or with the Post Office. They Keep One portion, also for record keeping. Simple, Also after they Pay, Let them know in an email, within 24 hours, their item is ready to go, it's packaged well, and give them the tracking number, it's so polite, and they see the extra TLC, and Your A Super Seller, Regardless of Your Star* If It's Fragile, Make Sure You Purchase Those Inexpensive Labels That Say Handle With Care in Bright Red, Use Several, not just magic marker. Another Idea, is Purchasing Labels, with your Store Name, or Seller ID, that stick to the box, bag, etc. Let It Remind Them, You Thank Them as soon as the postman drops the package off. They will say Thank You Too!! You can have these made to Say Please Leave Feedback, Thank You Again, etc. They will now know, how much you care about your online business, or even hobby.
• Feedback, should be left, Since they have already left this for you, It Finalizes YOUR TRANSACTION, and Says Thanks You.
• If you have a problem, not happy, Don't Jump the Gun of A Negative, or Neutral, Whatever that may really be for? Contact them, Most Sellers, will give you 7 days to return the item, and get a full refund. These are the sellers who stand behind their product, 125%, Know their product, when listing it, and Want You To Be Happy, Negatives Are So Horrifying to a Selller, this is their Reward, besides their money they made on the item, not shipping. Once a negative is left, it just generates More Negativity, and We Have Bigger Problems In Life, than that. Life Is Just Too Short. Think Positive While Listing, Think Positive, While Packaging, We See, the dirty newspaper, or linen that you used for shipping. I once got an item in a dirty sheet!! Repulsive, Very!! I did question it, they felt it was a great way to ship. Wrong~Go to a Furniture Company Nearest You, They will be thrilled to get rid of bubble wrap, they have tons of it daily.
• If you merchandise that is mildew and damp, Please, I have encountered This Also. I emailed the person, and since I had nothing great to say, I left no feedback, they will find out in the long run, if You Don't Like Moldy, New With Tags, Pajamas, why would your buyer?? Sellers should keep their items that are up for sale contained, and away from the element of water, and mold. It Was Just Worth Throwing Out, and Never Going Back, to this person, eventually they lose many sales, with lack of feedback, and then the angry negatives begin to appear.
• Have you every purchased from an ebayer, who feels they are invincible, since they are a PowerSeller? Please, do not get me wrong, it takes hardwork and dedication to get 10 positives, let alone in the thousands. I began only trying to purchase from the "Hot Sellers"... I had one that felt invincible, my Christmas Present, showed up after mid January, I paid Priorty, which is 2-3 days. So How Do You Pick Your Seller, If there is a calculator, you can pick by nearest to you, and shipping should be cheaper, and reasonable* Look for This Feature Ebay Gives Us To Shop With* (Nearest).
• Look for PayPal, and ask if they track items, I always try to buy insurance, since they will be reimbursed by the Post Office, if your hesitant. PayPal Gives You The Extra Mile, by following up on your claims also, and you can even call them and discuss how to create your own personalized with logo, Pay Now..
• some other hints, tidbits, and thougts, I have encountered, or know of. Did You Know Only 1 out of 5 Transactions End with a Feeedback? Never hound your customer for your feeback. You can generate a generic letter, that you send, Just To Follow Up On Your Purchase, This Does Help, they may be very busy. This is why I suggest using good supplies for shipping, possibly if your selling intimate items, using tissue paper, and sending a small sachet, inside a plastic baggy, some people don't like scent. Just Go THE EXTRA YARD. They will remember you.
• How can you lose a sale in a second, when they read down, and it says this seller Requires Immediate Payment, This Turns Me Off, as a buyer, Give them a time frame, in your listings. Also, Don't Hide The Handling Fee ~ Include it, or mention it. This is to cover ink, paper, gas money, and any other expenses, they have put into their business.
• One other item, someone lists fine jewelry, and does not have the weight.Another is you know they did not weigh the item for shipping. Majority of good sellers will say Yes I Own a Scale, and I Use It, Always.

Well I think I have basically covered some of my happiness, and downfalls on ebay, and some Good Points To Look For, while purchasing. *Sellers should also be aware that We Are All Looking For Great Deals, Go a $1.00 lower, than you have researched, and go with SHIPPING THAT IS ACCURATE. It urks me to find that a small box which weight 3 oz. and went media mail cost me $10.00!!, and the shipping WAS HIDDEN, UNTIL I CHECKED OUT!!

Let them know what shipping is, also give Your Buyer, Just a Bit More Credit, They Are Here For You, And It Should Be The Same All Around.

Have A Great Day, Hope This Helped.