Is e-bay incredibly complex to anyone else??

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A

Accipiter22

Banned
Feb 11, 2005
7,942
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the thing with pay-pal, setting that up, the different kinds of auction....it seems incredibly complex, how does ANYONE use it?
 
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rsd

Platinum Member
Dec 30, 2003
2,293
0
76
Apparently a 100,000 nigerians who are barely computer literate have figured it out...
 
pontifex

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
Originally posted by: Accipiter22
the thing with pay-pal, setting that up, the different kinds of auction....it seems incredibly complex, how does ANYONE use it?
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you think ebay is complex? wtf?
so how does it make you feel when "100,000 nigerians who are barely computer literate have figured it out" and little old ladies know how to use it?
 
MichaelD

MichaelD

Lifer
Jan 16, 2001
31,528
3
76
:confused: It's really not any more difficult than setting up an account on any other website or paying a CC onine. You put in your personal info, payment info and that's it.

What IS a little complicated is the "creating your advertisment" process. It takes awhile to get used to. My advice is that anytime you have the option of viewing your progress so far, do so. Don't click "Post my ad" until you're satisfied with it.

I've been selling on EBay for a few years now (buying for much longer) and except for the as$holes that don't leave feedback, my experiences have been pretty positive.
 
T

trmiv

Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
14,670
18
81
A few years ago my uncle had used a computer like twice and was basically scared of them. Now he's an eBay seller with over 2700 feedbacks. You can do it.
 
A

Accipiter22

Banned
Feb 11, 2005
7,942
2
0
how the heck are you supposed to handle shipping costs and all that though?? you don't know how much it'll cost to ship until after the person wins, and they already won it at a set price...
 
R

Reckoner

Lifer
Jun 11, 2004
10,851
1
81
Originally posted by: Accipiter22
how the heck are you supposed to handle shipping costs and all that though?? you don't know how much it'll cost to ship until after the person wins, and they already won it at a set price...
Click to expand...

Search for similar items and see what type of rate they're charging
 
MichaelD

MichaelD

Lifer
Jan 16, 2001
31,528
3
76
Originally posted by: Accipiter22
how the heck are you supposed to handle shipping costs and all that though?? you don't know how much it'll cost to ship until after the person wins, and they already won it at a set price...
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That is a good question. You've bought stuff from Newegg and other etailers, right? Most times (unless it's heavy) it costs less to ship the item you bought than you paid.

For example, if I sell you a hard drive, assuming I already have packing materials and a box, I could ship it via USPS priority mail for about $7 or so. Packing materials aren't free; even TAPE costs money. That's why I save every box, styrofoam peanut and bubble wrap I get when I buy stuff. I turn around and reuse it.

Many EBay sellers rip you off for shipping;it's a very common technique to squeeze more money out of the buyer. But the astute seller (ME!) sees that BS a mile away and goes somewhere else.

If you see a product selling for a ridiculously low price (especially a "Buy It Now" auction) chances are the shipping is outrageous.

I've found that by charging very reasonable shipping fees, my items sell very quickly. Be an honest seller and you'll sell your stuff. :)
 
nboy22

nboy22

Diamond Member
Jul 18, 2002
3,304
1
81
It's not really complex.. the words you are searching for are, "A pain in the ass." You could find me on any day of the week procrastinating putting an item for sale on ebay... I'd rather sell here on the anandtech for sale forums.
 
pontifex

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
Originally posted by: Accipiter22
how the heck are you supposed to handle shipping costs and all that though?? you don't know how much it'll cost to ship until after the person wins, and they already won it at a set price...
Click to expand...

are you being serious or is this whole thing a joke?

go to the shipper's website. they have shipping cost estimators there. enter dimensions of the box and weight and presto, estimated shipping price.
 
MichaelD

MichaelD

Lifer
Jan 16, 2001
31,528
3
76
Originally posted by: nboy22
It's not really complex.. the words you are searching for are, "A pain in the ass." You could find me on any day of the week procrastinating putting an item for sale on ebay... I'd rather sell here on the anandtech for sale forums.
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Why would u rather sell here? To avoid fees? I prefer the protection of using EBay and PayPal. Many folks have horror stories, I know. But if you do it RIGHT and protect yourself, you're good to go.

About 6 months ago, a very BIG reseller of car audio gear on EBay tried to rip me off for almost $400.

I tried to work it out w/them, but they were blatantly playing me for a fool. I filed a dispute w/PPal. They NEVER responded to the dispute until after I won and got my money back. They said "You didn't need to do that...we would've refunded your money."

Yeah, right. :roll:
 
R

Ramma2

Platinum Member
Jul 29, 2002
2,710
1
0
First off, you don't NEED a paypal account. You can do business by check or money order, and have the buyer mail you a payment.

Second, take your item, box it up and weigh it. Go to USPS.com or UPS.com or FedEx.com and use a shipping calculator to get some ideas on what it costs. Make an estimate from that.
 
LtPage1

LtPage1

Diamond Member
Jan 15, 2004
6,311
2
0
Took me 30 seconds to figure out in 7th grade, when I tried to sell the Jokers out of a pack of cards. :D My friend was the only one who bid, and the bastard refused to pay me.
 
J

jagec

Lifer
Apr 30, 2004
24,442
6
81
Originally posted by: MichaelD
Why would u rather sell here? To avoid fees? I prefer the protection of using EBay and PayPal. Many folks have horror stories, I know. But if you do it RIGHT and protect yourself, you're good to go.

About 6 months ago, a very BIG reseller of car audio gear on EBay tried to rip me off for almost $400.

I tried to work it out w/them, but they were blatantly playing me for a fool. I filed a dispute w/PPal. They NEVER responded to the dispute until after I won and got my money back. They said "You didn't need to do that...we would've refunded your money."

Yeah, right. :roll:
Click to expand...
I feel a lot safer selling here, to someone with some REAL dealing history, than on ebay. You can pick your buyer, here. If they don't have enough real feedback, you can refuse to sell, or insist on payment first. It's just a better system. Plus, it's free.

Ebay/Paypal "protection" is an illusion. They do jack for the most part. True, you can get ripped off here, but you can play conservative and reduce the risk way below that of selling to a random bidder on ebay. And there's no illusion of security that causes you to take risks, and then get screwed, like on ebay.
 
J

Jeraden

Platinum Member
Oct 9, 1999
2,518
1
76
Originally posted by: Accipiter22
how the heck are you supposed to handle shipping costs and all that though?? you don't know how much it'll cost to ship until after the person wins, and they already won it at a set price...
Click to expand...

Judging by most of the auctions I see on there...
Figure out what the maximum amount you could possibly charge for shipping before you get a guilty conscience, then add a dollar. For example:

A dvd, hmm... $5? Thats not too bad. $8? That's kind of high. $10? Omg, thats a friggin ripoff, who the hell would pay $10 to have this dvd shipped to them? ...
Ok, I'll make it $11 for shipping then.
 
jadinolf

jadinolf

Lifer
Oct 12, 1999
20,952
3
81
Originally posted by: Accipiter22
how the heck are you supposed to handle shipping costs and all that though?? you don't know how much it'll cost to ship until after the person wins, and they already won it at a set price...
Click to expand...

Buy a scale and look up the rates on the Internet.
 
Y

Yossarian

Lifer
Dec 26, 2000
18,010
1
81
Originally posted by: jadinolf
Originally posted by: Accipiter22
how the heck are you supposed to handle shipping costs and all that though?? you don't know how much it'll cost to ship until after the person wins, and they already won it at a set price...
Click to expand...

Buy a scale and look up the rates on the Internet.
Click to expand...

Better yet, sign up for a one month trial at stamps.com. They give you a 10-lb scale and some free postage.

Use USPS Priority Mail for small stuff, they will ship you the boxes for free.

There are a couple ways to charge for shipping. You can set a flat rate, which I usually set as the highest Priority Mail rate for the weight. Or you can use ebay's built-in shipping calculator to give people a rate based on their location. It allows you to add on a S&H fee that your customers won't see.

Ebay is only complicated the first time you use it because there are a million options to wade through.
 
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