How do we take back the pleasure of Online Shopping ?

In the beginning the concept of a venue to Buy & Sell new and used items at many times lower prices than you could elswhere, was All Good !
Not only have people made tons of money from doing business on eBay but initial investers made a nice profit that hung in there and believed that this was the future of Merchandise Transactions for those that truly enjoy Shopping Online. But as Greed reared its' Ugly Head and saw an opportunity for these Golden Grounds, what is it really like to do business on eBay today?

I've taken the time to read countless stories and compliants about Fraud, Scams, Spoofs, HighJacking, etc. on eBay's Trust & Safety Discussion Board. it's truly unreal how much time and effort is spent with the sole intent of ripping someone off with seemingly little regard of the consequences, if any in being discovered. As one User of  eBay said to me, "All they do is change their User ID and start all over."

There are many links provided by not only eBay but also experienced Buyers & Sellers to educate the masses on how to spot and avoid unscrupulous Parties with hopes of making huge profit on the unsuspecting Buyer mostly but in some cases Sellers as well. Although new Ways & Means methods are being constructed each day with the hopes of tricking you out of your money. 

Emails & Websites that for all intensive purposes, appear to come from eBay or an associate partner for secure payment transactions, PayPal. Also everything is in place in order for one to have an enjoyable Buying & Selling experience with one little problem.  It has gotten to a point where, you have no idea who you're talking to when you initiate or respond to an eBay User. Sure you have Fraud Prortection on your Credit Card and Security Measures connected through your Banking information along with your Sixth Sense tuned in. But what a hassle we have to endure just to buy that Vintage Stained Glass Lamp that's suppose to be authentic.

So is eBay as much fun and safe as it once was?  Heck no it isn't and never will be again until the governing bodies of the many countries that allow their citizens to participate in online activities start reviewing the laws and restrictions they currently have regarding fraud and piracy practice and either revise them to protect more effeciently or get serious about enforcing them with strict or severe consequences upon conviction. 

Using good common sense is always going to be the most important Safety Tool one will ever have. The old adage "If it's too good to be true, then it probably is."  should always be your initial guide in contemplating a purchase.  I'll give you an example :

I was interested in searching on eBay for a particular musical instrument hoping that I could maybe buy one of these at a lower cost than what Store Retailers typically sell them for.  In my area, there were no listings in the local periodicals, so eBay was my obvious next best hope.  One such item struck my attention with a Buy It Now offer of $800 USD.  For those not aware, Buy It Now offers are those that the Seller is willing to extend to you if you wish to purchase the product at the Buy It Now price and therefore circumvent the normal Auction process and possibly not win the item.

A couple of issues tipped me off that something was very wrong with this Auction.  Here's where Common Sense kicks in, first and probably foremost, being aware of what these instruments normally sell for in new condition is around 6 times the Buy It Now price of $800 USD if not more. So why would anyone in their right mind sell this for that price ?  Of course you are looking for a deal right  ?  And that was the Deal of the Century for the unsuspecting Shopper but come on already, I've heard of, "It fell off the truck" but I guess it also fell off the truck that stole it from the truck it fell off.  Now you don't want to contact the Seller and say, "Hey what's up with this price, why so low ?" for fear that maybe it's being sold by someone who found it in the attic of the house they just bought and never did any research to find out what it was.  Ok maybe that was a little stretch of the imagination and a poor one at that but if it's legit, you don't want to educate the Seller that they could sell for a lot more and get it.  However I did find myself scratching my head for several minutes trying to make sense out of this asking price. 

If that were not bad enough to make me steer clear, something else caught my eye and solidified that hollow cold chilling feeling of Bad Moon Rising over here, Red Flag is a flying high. There were 9 or 10 Bidders sitting patiently waiting for the Auction to end in 6 Hours and the increments of their bids were pathetic.  Bidder #1 offered $100 USD, while Bidder #2 offered $115 USD, all the way up to the highest Bidder who was hoping to cough up a whopping $575 USD and take the baby home.  You do recall me mentioning that $800 USD was stupid low for this item ?  Oh come on please, $100 USD ?  The Chair you would use to sit at it cost more than that.  So (and I know you've already figured this out) why would nine or ten people who I'm guessing really want this instrument, make ridiculous offers like this instead of simply clicking the Buy It Now button and taking it away ?  If you were to purchase this product at $800 USD, that would have been such a great deal that you would have the right to brag about it for years to come and nobody would believe you. 

Many years ago, I was taking my son to see the Empire State Building in NYC.  Along the way, we encountered your normal Street Hustlers performing a Three Card Monty which seemed to draw a fairly large crowd of onlookers.  Somehow, I found myself up front watching this guy slide these cups back & forth and asking the eminent question, "Find the Ball and take it all ! " and all it would cost me to take a stab at guessing the location was $50 USD.  I thought I whispered to my kid the whereabouts of the obviously nowhere on the table, probably in his pocket Ball but they must have heard me and now this guy is looking me straight in the eyes and telling me for $50 USD I'm in and the pile of money displayed is mine for the taking.  Not being totally street saavy but no idiot either, I scanned the crowd a bit to read the vibes going around and then I spotted the Tell.  At first you distinctly got the feeling he was doing a solo gig but all of a sudden, this young lady standing in the crowd said, "He just wants you to show that you have the money to cover the bet" and then another guy from the opposite side, echoed the same sentiments in similar words. Ah, he's not working alone at all, these people and maybe more were Plants in the crowd for God Knows what reason. So that was enough for me to grab my kid's hand and pull him away from that scene.  All this guy had to do was keep these people quite and he might have pulled it off on me but I realized there was more than what met the eye in more ways than one. 

Now I'm not suggesting that each of the Bidders were part of a scheme or scam but again as I said, for the price to take it away, any real Bidder would have done so immediately.  And last but not least, the Seller was requesting that if you wanted to Buy It Now, you could do so by emailing him directly at his personal address and basically leaving eBay out of it.  Never ever make an arrangement through private email to purchase an item outside of eBay.  Why you ask, because if you do and get taken for your money, you are no longer protected by eBay's Trust & Safety Policies and greatly lessen your recourse ability to recoup your loss.

So our technological advances that increasingly offer conveniences that have all but rendered the 'Look in eyes with a handshake' while doing a deal has become an Endanged Species.  I'm sending my hard earned cash to some guy who says he lives sometimes thousands of miles away from you and you are required to send your money before they send the item you just bought.  Trust plays no part in these transactions other than the actual trust we have in our security measures through money transfering institutions in hoping they will recover any loss of funds should that be required. 

Conclusion, I will continue to browse and buy on eBay with the only true weapon I have, my good judgement.  Check things out before you make radical moves.  Put your normal habit of impulse buying to bed because once you've stepped up and made that deal, the item is yours. 

1. Is this something you really would like to have ?

2. Does the Seller have a good and strong history of smooth transactions ?

3. Is the Seller usually forthright in discribing the actual condition of the item ?

4. If using PayPal, are you using a credit card with a high limit and low balance ?

5. Did you ask the Seller good questions about the item through eBay's contact utility before your purchase ?

6. Did you avoid contact through private email outside of eBay ?

7. Are you giving enough time to resolve any issues prior to leaving Feedback ?

8. Are you attempting to buy something for a price you know is extremely low for what it is ?

9. Did you thoroughly research the item before placing a bid ?

10. Did you print and store as much of the transaction material and interactions as possible ?

Lastly and it is so important that I didn't wish to give it a number, did you take note if this item is being discribed " As Is " or not ?

Well that's it for my rant of the day, I wish all good buying with hopes that your experiences are always positive because actually there are more honest people doing business on eBay than not.  Problem is, it only takes one or two that scare potential Buyers away.  If you don't feel comfortable about anything at all, contact eBay and tell them your concern.  They do a great job at getting to the bottom of issues because their reputation is at stake as well.