Please do not over-pay when it comes to the actual price, or shipping!

It seems as the holidays approach, we get in the buying mood to get ready for that special occasion.  Unfortunately, sellers know that you're on a set timeline, and some will take advantage of this situation.  By all means, I'm not saying that all sellers are sharks, but, let's help eachother keep sellers honest.

1.  Read reviews.  Find out if the product you're looking to bid on, is worth it.  Make sure others who have bought this item recommends it.  Often enough, things will get marked down because it's a low selling item because of it's quality, sellers  buy them, and re-sale them for the origional price.

2.  Shop around.  You will find great deals on Ebay, no questions about that, however, there are those on here that take advantage of the fact that quite a few on here assume that if its on Ebay, it's the best deal around.  Check around on the internet, and more importantly, your local stores.  You may find the same item for the same price on here, without the shipping costs.  I'm not trying to take away business from Ebay, but merely trying to help keep things honest, and to keep buyers from being scammed. 

3.  Beware of excessive shipping costs.  Read Ebay's rules about this topic, and do NOT stand for it.  When you see an item with a, "Buy it now," price of 1 cent, and shipping cost of $29.99, alert Ebay.  Keep these sellers from not just scamming you, but scamming Ebay.

3.2  Feel free to use the option of looking for sellers in your area.  This is a great feature when looking for larger items where shipping costs may be a decisive factor on wether or not you could afford the item.  Communicate with the seller, and ask about local pick-up if it's not mentioned in the description.

4.  Always look at the seller's other items.  If you notice an auction ending in 5 minutes, and you're not positive if this is exactly what you want, or, if the price is too high, see if there's another auction, either from the same seller, or from others, and assure yourself that you have time to make a wise, educated, decision, that won't leave a sour taste in your mouth if you find out that you were scammed. 

5.  Check the seller's rep.  Beyond feedback, also check to see how long they have been on Ebay, and find out if they have had problems with ending auctions early/retracting bids. 

6.  This is a very important one.  Contact the seller.  When you find interest in an item, always contact the seller of an item.  Even if you know a lot about the product, find another question to ask, and see how long it takes for them to reply, and how they reply.  The answers you get, and the quickness of the reply, gives a lot of information about hwo the seller will finish the transaction if you are the winning bidder.  If it takes several days for a reply, assume that it wil take several days for an auction to be processed.  If they're sloppy in their response for example, if you ask, "What are the dimensions of this cabinet," and the reply is, "Big," assume details in things such as packing will be rushed as well.

If we all work together, know the rules of Ebay, follow them ourselves, and make sure others follow the same rules, it will help keep Ebay a safe and fun shopping experience all year round.

Sincerely,

jus06