Tips on Using Ebay Confidently

We’re in Charlottesville, far away from Calypso in Deltaville. Friends have texted us photos of our baby, still riding comfortably in her slip, thank goodness. We’re interpreting the governor’s restrictions pretty stringently, not leaving the house except for essentials - a visit to the boat doesn’t feel essential as much as we’d love to be down there.

What are we doing?

Getting rid of things. Specifically, we’re selling a bunch of stuff - old unopened workout programs, unused boat parts - on Ebay. We buy things there too, to be clear; many of the components of our new battery system have come in small envelopes that cost $1.51 and $7.97. Electrical bits seem to be easy and affordable on Ebay.

But how do we sell and not get hosed? How do we know that what we’re buying is from a trustworthy source? We’ve got a few guidelines that might be helpful to you.

As a seller

Make sure you know what other like items have sold for. It’s all fine and dandy to think your widget is worth $100 because that’s what you paid for it, but if all of those widgets that have sold recently went for $20, you might rethink your money goals.

Write up your listing as exactly as you can. People type in search terms, so misspellings can hurt you. If you’re selling something new in the box, say that! You can add all kinds of information in the description (which is different than the title) so don’t miss that.

Remember that you’re writing a contract. Don’t want to ship out of the US? Don’t let your listing say you do. Don’t want to take returns? Make sure to note that.

Take good photos and lots of them, showing front and back.

Be careful with your shipping options and spend some time picking what you’d like to offer. You can, of course, offer free shipping; all of my auctions have been buyer pays shipping.

You can set a Buy it Now price as well as a starting point for an auction. Ebay will suggest a price to start - it’s generally close. A lower starting price will likely get you more offers.

When you’ve sold? Make sure you print that shipping label (printing through Ebay will often save you money) and package up the item as soon as you can. You want that positive feedback!

As a buyer

Make sure you know what the price is from a regular source. Check at your local hardware store, If they have a website, or on Amazon. Check Defender and Jamestown Distributors. Just because an item is on Ebay does not mean it’s a good price; knowledge about what something “ought” to cost is helpful. We’ve seen used items on Ebay go for less than a brand new one would set you back from other sites.

Check what previous auctions have gone for. On the left hand side, scroll down to the section “show only” and click “sold items”. You’ll get a glimpse quickly of what actual items have actually sold for, which can help you figure out what might be a good price.

See on the left?

Check the seller rating. Ebay sellers get rated by actual buyers, and you can see at a glance the number as well as the quality of the responses. It’s not a star level rating, but a percentage of positive ratings. You find this rating when you click on an item you’re looking at - over on the right, you’ll see the seller’s name and rating. Clicking on the seller name gives you even more detail. If I’m buying something that costs $1.51, I’m less worried than if I’m buying something that costs $151.

When you win? Pay promptly and wait for the mail!

Note: There are tricks you can employ to bid automatically and be alerted when an item you want comes on the market, but that’s Jeremy’s wheelhouse, not mine. Sorry.

Ebay has been a great place for us to sell some of our old gear as well as find coveted items at a good price. It takes a little bit of time both as a seller and a buyer, but hey. In this pandemic, what else do we have but time?

Besides. We need to offset some of last month’s gear spend, right?