Buying from sellers that provide the best service is crucial to your success as a buyer. A seller can't pick their buyers but you can pick your sellers. It is a highly competitive market. There is no need to deal with sellers that make it hard on you. So take a tip from Santa and make a list of who is naughty and nice. By keeping a list of both good and bad sellers you can eliminate problems before they happen. Some of this knowledge of who is good and who isn't will be learned the hard way. But by doing a little research you can detect some before you deal with them. Checking feedback is a very good way to detect possible problems before they occur. Admittedly this can be time consuming, but a few minutes spent now can avoid days and weeks of frustration once you deal with a bad seller. Keep in mind that the sellers who sell the most can hide their bad habits with a high percentage rating. Also keep in mind that some buyers will leave bad feedback for little or no reason. I have seen many instances where a buyer leaves a negative for a mistake they (the buyer) admit to making.  Learn to spot these people and discount what they say. Look for trends. Does a seller seem to always take a long time to ship an item? Are they rude in their comments to buyers (a sign of a bad attitude)? Do people have a hard time getting a refund? Do they sell items that are out of stock? Maybe they have a problem of sending the wrong item. Do people have a hard time communicating with them? There are third party programs that allow you to call up only negative or neutral feedback for a person. Ask around and you can find the URL's for these. These are just some of the reasons to avoid such sellers. Keep their names on a list and have it handy when you search for an item to bid on. That good price being offered may not be such a good deal.

On the other hand, there are sellers that go out of their way to provide good servive. These are the people you want to do repeat business with. Look for sellers that ship quickly and make sure their items are securely packaged for safe arrival. Ones who answer their emails and are polite when doing so. Maybe they send along a Thank You note with the item. Do they show confidence in their operation by leaving feedback first? Again these are just some of the quaities to look for in a good seller. Bidding on price alone will gaurantee you run into trouble along the way. So keep these sellers on your list also. Be sure to put them on your Favorite Sellers list also. A little time now will save you many headaches in the future, not to mention wasted money. Who needs the aggra-vation?

The more you shop, the harder it is to keep these lists separate in your head.  Write it down and keep your list handy. Keep it on your word processor so if you loose it, you can always print out another one.  Show your appreciation for these people. Pay for the items you win in a timely manner. Give them your best feedback comments as soon as you receive the item and inspect it. A Thank You note by email would be nice too.

Success in buying or selling on Ebay doesn't just happen. It is the result of taking time to do the job right. Happy trouble free shop-ping the Ebay way.