tips for bidding on ebay
Tips for Bidding on Ebay
Most of us are aware of the internet auction site ebay, located at ebay.com. And who hasn’t browsed its available items, seeking a nice discount on a long-desired treasure? It’s a fun visit, and can be even productive if you bid on an article and win. However, only one person can win per offered item, the person with the highest bid. Here are a few tips to better your ebay experience:
- Set up an account first of all! You can’t bid if you don’t have an ebay account. (Nor can you sell.) And then don’t forget to log in!
- Read the sellers’ comments regarding the conditions of their items. When looking through the choices, obviously you will want to compare prices of like items. But you will want to note whether something is “like new” or “still in box” or “fair”, etc. You may not mind a much-used hammer, but you certainly don’t want to pay top dollar for it if you can get a brand new one of the same kind.
- Check the cost you will pay for shipping. Not all sellers send the item to the winner for free. Compute the shipping fee along with the price to get the true price you will pay. Compare the fees of shipping- the fees will vary.
- Control yourself when bidding! If you bid on something, and then another bidder tops your bid, you might want to outbid the competition, “just because.” However, be aware of how high the bids may be climbing. Step back from the bidding war for a moment to ask yourself, Do I really want to pay that much? Maybe you can find a similar product featured by another seller offered at a lower price. (The lower priced item may have cost more initially than the object upon which you bid, but then the excitement of the bidding war might have made your pick a lot more expensive now than before.)
- Be certain you can afford what you bid if the bids are escalating by leaps and bounds. It may be wiser to drop out from the contest for this particular thing.
- Watch for the last few hours of the auction. As the finale nears and the time for the item’s auction is almost up, you can try to put in a last-minute bid. If you can time it right, your competitors won’t have time to outbid, and you then will win the object. Yay! Claim your prize and do a victory dance!
- Pay the seller if you win in a timely fashion!
Okay, go find something you like on ebay.com and place your bid!Tips for Bidding on Ebay
Most of us are aware of the internet auction site ebay, located at ebay.com. And who hasn’t browsed its available items, seeking a nice discount on a long-desired treasure? It’s a fun visit, and can be even productive if you bid on an article and win. However, only one person can win per offered item, the person with the highest bid. Here are a few tips to better your ebay experience:
- Set up an account first of all! You can’t bid if you don’t have an ebay account. (Nor can you sell.) And then don’t forget to log in!
- Read the sellers’ comments regarding the conditions of their items. When looking through the choices, obviously you will want to compare prices of like items. But you will want to note whether something is “like new” or “still in box” or “fair”, etc. You may not mind a much-used hammer, but you certainly don’t want to pay top dollar for it if you can get a brand new one of the same kind.
- Check the cost you will pay for shipping. Not all sellers send the item to the winner for free. Compute the shipping fee along with the price to get the true price you will pay. Compare the fees of shipping- the fees will vary.
- Control yourself when bidding! If you bid on something, and then another bidder tops your bid, you might want to outbid the competition, “just because.” However, be aware of how high the bids may be climbing. Step back from the bidding war for a moment to ask yourself, Do I really want to pay that much? Maybe you can find a similar product featured by another seller offered at a lower price. (The lower priced item may have cost more initially than the object upon which you bid, but then the excitement of the bidding war might have made your pick a lot more expensive now than before.)
- Be certain you can afford what you bid if the bids are escalating by leaps and bounds. It may be wiser to drop out from the contest for this particular thing.
- Watch for the last few hours of the auction. As the finale nears and the time for the item’s auction is almost up, you can try to put in a last-minute bid. If you can time it right, your competitors won’t have time to outbid, and you then will win the object. Yay! Claim your prize and do a victory dance!
- Pay the seller if you win in a timely fashion!
Okay, go find something you like on ebay.com and place your bid!
Tips by:
Elizabeth A Kuntz
Since most of the action happens in the last seconds, you should watch several auctions before you bid. You can watch items by clicking on the Watch-List. This lets you come back later and see what they actually sold for.