How to Purchase Kaleidoscopes on eBay

by Kaleido Wonders for eBay's largest selection of Kaleidoscopes

Buying kaleidoscopes on eBay can be a great experience if you learn how to do it right.  Unfortunately, its easy to be disappointed if you don't know some of the information shared below.  You'll find that much of this information will translate to buying almost anything on eBay, however I am gearing this toward kaleidoscope purchasing.

Learning the Terminology

First thing you'll want to do is familiarize yourself with kaleidoscope terminology.  See my guide kaleidoscope terminology for an easy and quick reference.

Find the Listings

Second thing to do is to find the listings.  The majority will be found under the category of  Collectibles/Science & Medical/Optical/Kaleidoscopes .  However, you will find kaleidoscope in the following categories as well, Toys, Antiques, Pottery & Glass, and Home & Garden.  You can always do a general search for kaleidoscope, however you'll end up with many items that use kaleidoscope as a descriptive term vs. the actual item.  It may be helpful to develop several searches that bring the results you want and save them as your favorite searches for easy reference.  Once you save a search you can have eBay e-mail you when new items are listed or use the link to manually check the searches yourself.

Make sure that you include store items in your search.  Your general search will not display store listings unless the search results has fewer than 30 items in its return.  To include store items in your search results, find the options in the left column to include store items & check that, then click the search at the bottom of list.  To find store items only, scroll to the bottom of the search results page and click the link for additional buy it now items.  This may be another search to include in your favorite searches.

Evaluate the Seller

Once you find a kaleidoscope of interest check the sellers feedback rating and length of time on eBay.  Its rare that I'm willing to purchase from a seller who has a feedback rating of 98% or less.  Of course, if they have a relatively low feedback number of feedback their percentage could be easily knocked down by one negative.  So you need to put it into perspective of what was said in the comment and what the sellers follow-up to it might be.  It's also helpful to look at the experience and rating of the buyer who left the negative, as well as what kind of feedback they leave others - there may be a pattern of someone who doesn't read listings closely or can't be pleased.  Often looking at the feedback a seller leaves for others, especially in response to a negative, can reveal a great deal about the professionalism of the seller.  Also, its good to be wary of sellers who have a pattern of mutual feedback withdrawals, it could be a red flag.

How knowledgable is the seller about kaleidoscopes?  Look at what the seller is selling by using the link to see other items.  If the seller isn't selling kaleidoscopes regularly, they may not be able to represent the item fairly in the listing simply from lack of knowledge.  Additionally, they not be familiar with how to pack the item safely for shipping.  Even if the item is insured, its disappointing to spend time purchasing and not receive the item in usable condition, let alone having to spend time filling out claim forms, often I've lost money since the seller didn't proprerly insure my itme to cover shipping & handling. 

Unfortunately, I've learned this information the hard way as a buyer.  It is generally  safest to buy from an experienced seller who is knowledgable about kaleidoscopes, knows how to proprerly package and insure them, and has a clearly stated return policy.  Buying from a seller with a clearly stated return policy can save you a lot of headaches and disappointment in the long run.  Sometimes it may be hard to put a dollar value on these things, but chances are you will learn from experience the merits of working with an experienced, knowledgable and professional seller.

Reading the Description and Terms of Sale

If the seller passes the test of someone you're willing to do business with, read the item description carefully and inspect the pictures closely.  If information is scant and the pictures are blurry, don't be afraid to ask the seller a question.  It will be most useful if you ask specific questions.  This should serve two purposes.  First, you'll hopefully get your questions answered and second you'll learn if the seller communicates.  If a seller won't respond to your question before a sale, it could be indicative of communication problems to come after the sale. 

Typical questions that I may ask if the information is not in the listing include:

If it's not a toy, who made the kaleidoscope?

What is the condition of the kaleidoscope?

Are there any imperfections, defects, scratches, etc.?  If so, the location on the item and the size of imperfection etc.

If they've given a vague description of an item as being in xxxx condition, and little other info, I may ask what xxxx condition means to them.  Condition is often subjective, so its good to clarify.

If shipping and handling isn't listed, I request a quote for what it will be to ship to my zip code.

I find it useful to keep a ruler by my computer so when a measurement is given in a description I can easily visualize what the size is.

So now you should have enough information to decide if you want to proceed.  Make sure you read the entire listing and are willing to abide by the sellers terms of sale (TOS).  Personally, I steer clear of sellers who are negative in their TOS saying things like if you aren't going to pay don't bid, etc.  Also, if a sellers listing has a lot of spelling or grammar errors, I have to wonder about the accuracy of the description.  Occasionally we all make mistakes that go unchecked, but a sloppy listing could be an indication of how they operate their business as well.

Determining the Value

Next you'll want to evaluate what you're willing to pay.  If you've never done a completed item search, now is a good time to learn.  On any page of search results you 'll find a column of options in the left margin.  Check the one that says completed items and hit the search.  This will bring up the completed listing for the last 2 weeks.  This should give you a sense of what similar scopes have been selling for.  You'll need to remember that condition of an item will influence the price.  Also items that are harder to find or are no longer being produced will command higher prices.

Ultimately, you'll need to decide what something is worth to you personally.  For me, that includes the purchase price plus the shipping and handling.  There can be a wide spread in what different sellers will charge for s&h.   Some of us purchase packing materials and or recycle clean packing materials.  Personally, I don't care to use newprint or shredded paper as packing material - both can be messy, ink from newsprint can get on the item, and shredded paper can add unnecessary weight.

Remember that some of the advantages of shopping on eBay are the convenience of shopping from home and saving on gas & time from not needing to drive to a store.  Another great bonus is that you get easy access to a variety of items that may not be  available where you live.

Bidding, Buying and Best Offers

The easiest and most straight forward purchase will be a buy it now item (BIN) either shown in the core search results that are known as fixed price listings or if you're smart enough to know how to search stores, you'll find many BIN items.

Next are BIN items that have the option of a best offer.  Best offer is an opportunity for the buyer to try and get an item for the most they're willing to pay, but less than the BIN price.  In the kaleidoscope category, at the time of this writing, eBay does not allow counter offers or a buyer the chance to submit a second offer if the first was turned down by the seller. 

Please resist the urge to send a best offer for an item at a ridiculously low price, you're wasting your time and the sellers.  Personally, I'm delighted to have people visit my store, but I certainly can't afford to entertain best offers of 10% of a BIN price, that's a request for a 90% discount.  So submit best offers, but use a little common sense.

Finally, there are the auction listings.  You'll need to wait until the end of the auction to know if you get the winning bid or not.  Don't make the mistake of thinking that just because there's not much or any bidding on an item that you'll get the item for a song.  Sometimes you'll get lucky and you will.  More times than not, most of the bidding will take place in the last 10 minutes to the last couple of seconds of the auction.  So how do you use this knowledge to your advantage? 

You have 2 choices.  I'm not going to try and influence you on which is best for you, it seems to bring out strong feelings among buyers about which is best.

Choice number 1 is to put in a bid early using the eBay proxy system that will raise your bid by one bid increment over the next bidder until you reach your maximum bid is reached.  Make sure that you place your highest bid that you're willing to pay.  It will only be pushed up if someone else is willing to pay more than the previous bid and even then it will only increase to one bid incredment above the other bidders highest bid.

Choice number 2 is to snipe.  Sniping is waiting until the last seconds of an auction to place a bid.  This can be done manually while sitting in front of your computer, the down side is you need to be at the computer when the auction is ending or you can use an automated snipe program, some are free and some charge.  The disadvantage of sniping is that if your bid is too low to win, you usually won't have time to submit a higher bid to try again to win.  Some people see it as an advantage in that if there hasn't been much incentive for the early bidders to increae their bid to their true maximum, thinking they've got no competition, a sniper may swoop in and get the winning bid.

In the end, whoever is willing to pay the most will win no matter when the bid is made.  If for some reason there's a tie for the highest bid, the earliest bid will win.

After the Sale

Shortly after the sale you should receive an invoice for the item, unless its a BIN with immediate payment required - then you are expected to send a payment immediately through Paypal.  Perhaps you'll want to consider shopping more with this seller to save on shipping and handling since many sellers will combine this on multiple purchases.  If uncertain, ask before buying.

The buyers terms of sale will usually say the time frame in which they expect payment, if its not stated, the default is 7 days.   If you're considering buying more from the seller and are waiting to see if you 'll win an auction, its polite to send an e-mail to let the seller know of your intentions.

The sooner you pay for the item the more promptly you'll receive it.  If for any reason you need your item within a certain time frame, be sure to check with the seller before purchasing to be sure that they can accomodate you.

After you receive your item, inspect it.  If you have any questions about it, first refer back to the listing description and if that doesn't answer you questions, contact the seller via e-mail or via phone.  Communication is key to resolving any questions or concerns.

Hopefully you're delighted with your purchase and will leave positive feedback for your seller.  Feedback is strictly voluntary, but is helpful to everyone so that they may anticipate what their experience may be like with a trading partner. 

Many sellers wait to leave feedback for buyers until they receive positive feedback from the buyer.  The reason for this is that it assures the seller that the buyer is happy with their purchase and they can now consider the transaction complete.  Also, many sellers use automated feedback programs that only leave feedback in response to feedback received. 

Summary

If you're not familiar with kaleidoscope terminology, educate yourself with our guide. Find the listings, search like an expert.  Evaluate the seller, is this person someone you feel confident trading with?  Read the listing description and terms of sale carefully to determine if you want to proceed.  Ask questions if necessary.  Determine the value of the item by checking closed listings and be aware of what the item is worth to you personally.

Depending on the listing type, buy it now, submit a best offer or determine your bidding strategy.  Continue shopping with seller or pay for your item.  Inspect and enjoy item upon receipt.  If you have any questions, contact the seller to give them an opportunity to resolve them.  Leave positive feedback for your seller.

Please visit our store Kaleido Wonders for eBay's largest selection of kaleidoscopes.

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