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Article Series:
Small Business Guide To Buying Items:
eBay Auctions
eBay
Auction Buyer’s Tips and Tricks
by Jeff Cohen
eBay isn’t just an auction and a marketplace:
often it can feel quite a lot like a game. Like any game, you
can get ahead if you think strategically, using your head to
outwit the other buyers and get the best price. Here are a
few things you can try.
Shop
in the Summer
This is simple, but effective. Summer is the quiet season
on eBay – almost everything sells for less. While everyone
else is out enjoying the sun, invest a little time to find
some real bargains.
Beat
Them by a Few Cents
Outbid people by a few cents instead of a few dollars – if
they don’t check back before the auction ends, then you will
be the winner. To avoid people using this tactic on you, though,
always bid strange, hard-to-guess amounts instead of round
numbers.
Play
Dirty
If you know when the auction ends, you can get in there at
the very last second and outbid your rivals. The chances are
that they won’t have the time to sit in front of the auction
waiting for it to end – as a rule, he who stays wins. If someone
else does retaliate at the end of the auction, though, try
not to get carried away in those last few seconds and end up
paying too much!
Take
Risks
This is a strategy for the braver eBay buyer. All of the advice
you will see for eBay beginners tells you to buy items that
have good pictures, clear descriptions, trustworthy sellers
and all the rest. If you’re brave, why not take a risk and
do the exact opposite?
Many buyers won’t want that item from the seller with a feedback
rating of 5, no picture and a one-line description. If you
take a calculated risk and bid anyway, you might be able to
make a tiny bid and win by default. There are people on eBay
who make their living from winning auctions like these, taking
good pictures of the item, writing a good description and then
reselling it at a huge profit. Be careful, though: do this
for long enough, and you will inevitably lose your money at
some point. It’s especially unwise to try it with very high-value
items.
Avoid
Bidding Wars
There are few things on eBay that are so rare that you’ll
only see them once and never again. There are usually quite
a few sellers who have an item. What’s more, they will generally
have more than one to sell, even if they haven’t listed them
all at once. Always check your seller’s history to see whether
they sell your item all the time – and if they do, then wait
for the next one instead of bidding to the skies.
# # # # # SolveYourProblem.com : 2007
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