So many problems can be avoided by checking for basic information before you bid, knowing what you are looking for and knowing the danger signs to avoid. Frequently people dive into eBay without checking to see how deep the water is.  Yes, it's fun, it's easy, you can find things that are not available anywhere else, but you should also take care to understand what you are bidding on and with whom.

This guide is based on the contents of my Me page, which in turn is based on several years as a eBay buyer, some well spent time on the Community Message Boards , and some unfortunate experiences.

Know What You Are Bidding On

This might sound silly, but people often get into trouble because they have no idea what they are buying.  Do some homework on the item, and don't buy in haste unless you are very familiar with it.  You could easily find yourself buying an item that is incomplete, incorrect, damaged or re-furbished if you can't tell the difference between the correct product and an incomplete, fake or altered one.

Do Your Homework

Avoid dissappointment with an item or seller that stems from your own lack of knowledge about the product. Doing some research before you bid can not only help you avoid an item with a potential problem, but it lets you know what to expect when you open that package.  If you're reading this now, then you already have a powerful tool at your disposal that can help you find out what you need to know.  Search engines like Google give you the power to read about what you are buying before you buy a surprise.

Is the Item complete?

Printers for your home computer don't come with a printer cable, but they should have a power cable. How available is the thing you're looking for? If the item is still available in retail stores, you actually may be better off getting it there than at auction.

What is included? All accessories that came with the item when it was sold in the stores, such as cords, adapters, and parts still there?   If something sold originally with another item, and you expect to get the other item as well, make sure it's included before you bid. 

Is it what it's supposed to be?

Can you tell a counterfeit Kate Spade handbag from a real one?   There is a healthy number of auctions for items which are not what they claim to be. Pirated music, videos, counterfeit handbags, collectibles and memorabilia.  Sometimes the seller is quite unaware they are selling something which is not the real McCoy. Sometimes a seller will use 'keyword spamming' to drive buyers looking for a similar item to their auctions. And unfortunately, sometimes they are perfectly aware that they are selling you a counterfeit at genuine or near genuine prices.

Carefully Read the Auction

Every auction should contain a clear description of the item in question. Take your time and read the whole auction and make sure you know the following:

Item Description

You did your homework right? The devil is in the details.You'll need to know what it is, if it's a set, if it's damaged, how many, color, size measurements and content. This is the meat of it - you don't want to click in haste only to find that the vintage cookware you just bought doesn't have the lids, or the collectible beanie toy has no tags.  While there are sellers who don't include enough information, there's just as many who do, but do not over look the seller's description of their item in your haste to click and bid.

Shipping Details

How much, when will the seller ship and what method of shipping they will use. If they don't include this information, ask and receive a clear answer before you bid. Some sellers lower their auction price compared to other sellers, but raise their shipping cost. Always include the cost of shipping when considering if you're getting a deal. If you need the item in a certain time period ask if it's possible before you bid and be prepared to possibly pay more for a faster shipping method. Shipping is not something that should be negotiated after you win!

Payment Options

Know the seller's payment terms, including both the method and acceptible time in which you can make a payment. If a seller doesn't accept your preferred method of payment, don't think it's something you'll negotiate after the auction closes.  Attempts to negotiate can result in a unpleasant transaction for both the buyer and seller. Pick sellers who cheerfully accept the method you are comfortable using to pay them. Not everyone takes PayPal, nor should they have to.

Read the seller's Feedback

The time to read a seller's feedback is not after something goes wrong!  This is the absolute number one way to avoid a bad transaction, and exactly what feedback is for! If you're a buyer, the feedback you should treasure is that which the sellers receive for past performance, not what sellers give you when you buy from them.  Frankly, if you buy on your account, and don't sell, the feedback you receive really doesn't matter that much.

The seller's feedback should be the first thing you look at when you  view an auction page, and it's how you determine who to buy from. 90% is great if you are scoring a test. 95% is miserable when you are sending someone your hard earned money. Even the 98 percentile sellers are on shaky ground in my book.

Do not however accept that 100% feedback is a gaurantee of eBay perfection. An unusually high number of mutual withdrawals is a sign of an eBayer trying to gloss over repeated bad behaviour (negs) in their profile by negging their trading partner in return, and offering a mutual withdrawal.

When you read feedback look for a pattern of behavior such as comments from buyers about:

• Poor packaging causing damaged items
• Slow shipping
• Poor communication and/or failure to respond to e-mails
• Poorly manufacturerd product

There are tools out there that can help you filter through the feedback profile of a potential seller.

• Go to www.toolhaus.org to check the feedback of any seller you wish to do business with. This tool allows you to view the seller's feedback sorted by negatives, neutrals, positives or mutual withdrawals.  It allows you to jump right to any problem issues without wading through possibly dozens of pages of positive feedback to find how the seller responded to a neg one month ago.
  

Remember also that sometimes the feedback the seller leaves for others tells you a great deal about their auction habits! Foul language left in feedback by the seller, hurled insults or name calling make a seller look unprofessional and can give you forwarning about how they handle a problem that arises during trading.

Know What to Avoid

Now you know what you're buying, and you know about the value of a seller's feedback, you should know what to avoid.  There are many pitfalls out there for the unwary buyer. Most of them can be avoided by taking your time and thoroughly reading both the auction and the seller's feedback.  So if you're considering an item listing, what are the possible warning signs you should look for?

Low feedback numbers, high ticket item. 

Unscrupulous sellers looking to scam buyers will 'buy' feedback in penny auctions and when they have a few positives under their belt set up shop selling high-fraud ratio items: Computers/parts, cellphones, laptops, big screen TVs, videogame systems, MP3 and Video players - all the most popular electronics.  Usually they are too eager to put out their shingle to wait and you can still see the auctions they earned all their positive feedback with - as buyers, not sellers.  Time is their enemy, so the suctions are short-term and the item is one that is currently in high demand, such as the latest electronic gadget in time for Christmas sales.

Seller's history is only as a buyer.

Alone perhaps not significant, but someone who has spent the last three years on eBay buying fly fishing gear and Kiss The Cook aprons is unlikely to suddenly put up several high-ticket high-demand electronics, computers, cameras, big-screen TVs or motor-sport vehicles on short term auctions. There's a decent chance that an account with that kind of history offering that kind of merchandise is hijacked. Avoid them.

Private Feedback.

A seller hawking wares in high demand who has private feedback is just a bad deal all around. Throw your browser into reverse - FAST.  Don't even bother asking the seller why their feedback is private, because for you, the buyer, there is no acceptible reason a seller can give you for this.

Stock, Absent or Bad Photos

If you are dealing with a seller who carries multiples of the same items for sale, then it does not make sense to always have a photo of the very object being sold. If the seller has only one, and it is in a high-risk category, hit your back button immediately. Unclear photos are almost as bad as no photo at all.  Remember this is the age of digital photography - sellers should be able to get a digital photo of decent quality for the auction. People who either dont have the item, or have the item in not so good condition will hide behind stock or poor quality photos every time. Someone who is claiming to sell a PC, but shows a picture of the box it came in is also a scary seller. Proceed with caution.

Vague, Confusing, or Non-Existent Description

Aside from the seller's feedback, this is the second most important thing buyers should read.  A description should tell you exactly what it is you are buying. If the description disagrees with the auction photo, if it is vauge, or lacks detail, this is another warning. Conversely, if the description looks like it got pulled right off the manufacturer's website but does not contain specific information about the very item you are buying (condition, age, refurbished, new) stay on your toes! Ask questions before you bid. If the answers are unclear or not given, do not bid.

"Not responsible for items lost or damaged in shipping"

Actually, to some extent, they are. There is no difference to a buyer between a seller who did not ship at all, and a seller who shipped an item that disppears in the postal system. If you see this in an auction listing know that the seller will not be pleased if your item never reaches you and you attempt to get your money back. This is also a pretty common term among perfectly honest sellers, so it's never a red flag on its own.

Western Union, BidPay, Money Order only, Cash

If these are the only payment options on expensive, or high fraud items, you should probably look elsewhere.  Sometimes, the listing may include PayPal as an option, but an attempt to pay that way is met with some excuse why the seller's Pay Pal account is not working right now, meaning they intend for you to use one of the other non-refundable methods. As of Jan. 15, 2006, this practice is also against eBay policy.

Unanswered Questions

 If the auction looks pretty good, but there are details not made clear, ask questions of the seller. How much is shipping/handling? Know before that first bid. If there are contradictions in the listing, remember this isn't Sears. The seller can make mistakes and can't be forced to give you the better deal. Ask about these issues up front - If the answers are ambiguous, hostile, evasive or don't come at all, don't bid. Don't do that to yourself! Remember that some sellers lower the auction price and raise the shipping cost. If it isn't stated, you could wind up paying WAY too much.

Fantasy Fees

Buyers do not have to pay extra for using PayPal. If a Seller accepts PayPal but doesn't want to take credit cards that way, it's also a violation of the eBay and PayPal user agreements and a red flag to be wary of. Compare their shipping fees to others selling the same item - Know that being charged a little bit more than shipping costs is not a sin. Know that being charged a LOT more for shipping can be avoided. If the S/H charges are looking too steep just dont bid!

The Off-eBay Sale

A question to the seller, or an initial bid is met by an offer from the seller to stop the listing and continue the transaction via e-mail. Continuing in this manner cuts you off from any form of protection offered by using eBay, and some from PayPal. If you are crazy enough to pay for this without using PayPal, the fraud ratio just skyrocketed. Please note that it's perfectly safe to contact a seller about an item that has already closed and ask if they can list it again due to your interest. Bid as normal on the new listing and everybody's happy.