TO BID OR NOT TO BID? (ebay.co.uk)

Member Name: Parsley

Product:	ebay.co.uk
Date:	29/12/00 (401 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: LOTS OF STUFF OFTEN GOING FOR BARGAIN PRICES & YOU CAN ALSO FIND THE COLLECTABLES YOU'RE LOOKING FOR!

Disadvantages: NONE SO FAR!

I thought I would have a quick look at ebay.co.uk after a seeing a recommendation for it and I’m glad I did, it’s so good it’s got me hooked! Ebay is an auction site where you can buy and sell items on the net. I’ve never been to a real auction, but this is very exciting and all the bidding takes place in your own home! It’s very easy to use and navigating the site is simple.

HOW DOES IT WORK?
Ordinary people and some traders put various items on the site to be sold at auction to the highest bidder. The auctions are given up to 10 days to run (the seller selects the length of the auction) and anyone who has registered with ebay can make bids for it.

EBAY SELLS ALMOST ANYTHING (apart from few exceptions - nothing illegal is permitted!) They have a whole list that you can check before you sell.
The main headings are Antiques & Art, Books, Films & Music, Coins & Stamps, Collectables, Computers and Games, Dolls & Dolls Houses, Jewellery & Gemstones, Photo & electronics, Pottery & Glass, Sports, Toys, Everything Else. Under each of these categories are many other sub-categories, so whatever you’re looking for, it is easy to find. If you like model trains or want an autograph of your favourite star there are hundreds available on this site! Many items are added every day so it’s worth keep looking if you are after something in particular.

SAFEGUARDS FOR YOUR PROTECTION
As soon as I got to the site and before I registered I had a good look around to see how it all worked. I was a little nervous as to whether I could be ripped off by anyone or not, However, ebay have built in several safety guards to try to prevent anyone from being swindled. Which is a great confidence booster. These safety nets are as follows:-

* Firstly you have to register with ebay to be able to bid or sell anything and registration is confirmed by e-mail.

* Every ebay buyer is covered by free insurance,
so if you do not receive the goods you have paid for or the quality of them is less than expected you are insured. There is a limit of £120 minus a standard £15 fee. But this is very reassuring if you are bidding a large amount of money.

*They also have what they term a "safe harbour" which comes into play when things go wrong such as fraud, trading offences and illegally listed items etc. This is to protect everyone from fraudulent use of the site.

*They also have "square trade" where they try to arbitrate between buyer and seller if there is a problem.

*There are a whole list of e-mail address to contact if the need to do so arises. These are for alert of fraud, illegal listings etc. etc.

*There is a feedback forum where you can both view (and later write) comments on the buyers and sellers. It’s very re-assuring to look and see if the person that you are dealing with has many positive comments after their name. It lays your mind at rest that you are dealing with someone genuine. It also means that bad sellers (not that I have seen any so far) will be given the appropriate feedback to warn other potential bidders.

That is the nitty-gritty, but on the whole, the people who use the site are genuine, but it’s nice to know that you are protected should the worst happen. The whole site has been very well designed to protect the users.


OK - SO HOW DOES IT WORK?

It’s very easy, you need to register to use the service, but this is free and only takes only a few moments. You have to confirm your membership after receiving an e-mail then you are free to use the site.

You can bid for anything you want (as long as you have the money!) and It’s very easy. Browse the main list to find what you are looking for - you can use their search engine, but I find it easier to look through the main lists to find things. Once you have selected your category it brings u
p the items available. If you like the look of something - click on it and it will give you a full description of the item and there is often a picture or two of the item. If you like what you see it’s very easy to bid - all you have to do is to put your bid amount in the box, press enter and then confirm your bid. This is good as if you make a mistake it gives you a chance to correct it. You also have to confirm your bid with your password (although if you are already signed in - you won’t have to type it again.) If by any chance you make a mistake and bid for something by mistake or manage to put the wrong amount, you can actually retract your bid - but they don’t like you to do this and you can only do it in an extreme case (you will have to read the rules if you need to do it!)

Anyway, once you place your bid it will either say "Congratulations - you are the high bidder" or "Sorry you’ve been outbid by another bidder" You can then either keep increasing your bid until you win or you can walk away. If you are the current high bidder you can still be outbid even at the last minute, so it’s a very good idea to keep an eye on all the items you are bidding for. Ebay very conveniently have a "watch this item" link which can add the item to the special "my ebay page".

The "My ebay" page is brilliant and very useful, it has a full listing of all the products you have made a bid for (and you can view anything you bid for that ended in the last 30 days) It keeps a full list of end dates of the auctions, the current price, your maximum bids etc. Bids that you are winning are in bold green & those that you are losing are viewed in red so you can tell at a glance how your bidding is going. There is also a running total of how much your bids amount to so that you don’t go over budget!

I started to bid on the first night, as I found a few things that I wanted. It wa
s really exciting and there was an air of suspense - would I win the items or wouldn’t I? The items I bid for were all at rock bottom prices so I wondered if I would lose the bids. I had to keep checking my PC to see how they were doing. The auctions are several days long (up to 10 days) and anything could happen after you make your bid. I have won some bids and lost others at the last moment, so the suspense keeps you hooked. I have had some great successes including an Avent Steam Steriliser worth £40 which I got for only £5.21 (including postage). I have also won bids on a Swiss Army knife (£2), a baby hand & footprint moulding kit (£4) and a pair of baby trainers (£0.50). As my bids are hardly breaking the bank I’m really having a bit of fun and getting a few bargains in return.

As well as buying, I also decided to try and get rid of something that I don’t quite know how I ended up with in the first place. Somehow I acquired an autographed Cliff Richard biography (1967). I don’t want it, but I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of it because it’s been signed! so I put it up for auction - I haven’t had any bids for it so far - perhaps no-one else wants it either and I will have to pay someone to take it away! Never mind!
To list an item various charges apply, but you can list an item with two pictures for as little as 30p. The charge depends on the type of listing you use, you have to pay extra for putting a reserve price on the item and you can pay for bold listings etc. The prices are all laid out very clearly so that you can’t make a mistake. The other thing to be aware of it that once you sell an item they take a small cut from the sale.

Anyway, go and try ebay, it’s great fun, you may get a bargain or something you have wanted for ages - it’s very easy to do and I would recommend it to anyone. Happy bidding!

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