buying on ebay

[idesign]

This thread is intended

for anyone looking for fragrances on ebay. There are some great deals to be had, but also some rip-offs. I'm sure

that I'll forget stuff, so additions are very welcome.

A lot of it is common sense, but with some experience you

can fine tune your strategy. So, in no real order...

- Keep in mind that these are auctions, and are driven by

the dynamics of an auction.

- Look at the seller's feedback and the total number of feedbacks. This is obvious.

If you see "Power Seller" next to their name you're pretty much assured that they're ok. You can also plug the

seller's ID into this site to get info.

http://www.toolhaus.org/

- Know what the "going price" is

for what you're interested in. Again, obvious. If its something rare or hard to find you might have to research

and watch for a while to see what the market is demanding. There are things that I want out there, but no way will

I bid until I see at least a couple of those items sell, and at what price.

- If you see something what you want,

DON'T BID! Instead, use the "Watch" feature and track it on "My ebay". Bidding early just drives the price up,

especially if there are several bidders. Sit back and watch the action, don't be tempted to join in the fun.

Remember, this is an auction, and has unique dynamics. Its too easy to get caught up in the action. Your own

desires will come into play in any auction, so be ready to deal with emotion vs money. Which leads to...

-

Decide your max bid price and bid as late as possible. This will keep ebay's proxy feature from constantly bidding

the item up when someone else bids. I've had some fun waiting until the last seconds and placing a bid. A fast

net connection helps if you try that.

- Auctions with good pictures and good descriptions with lots of detail are

best. But don't shy away from someone cleaning out grandma's attic with no clue as to what they're selling. If

you're informed, you can get a deal, many people ignore those amateur auctions and don't bid.

- Ask the seller

any question you might have before bidding. They always respond and might steer you for or against their

auction.

- Fragrance... the more popular the product the greater chance of bidders pushing the cost up to actual

retail. Also the greater chance of getting a knock-off. Your chance of getting a great deal on a popular fragrance

is pretty slim, but not impossible. In most cases though, you can still get a better deal than the

smell-pretty-girls at the mall, but you miss out on schmoozing. which is a lot of fun. You can always hang out

there and test though.

- Fragrance... Don't be afraid to buy used products. Many people buy or get a bottle as

a gift and don't like the scent. The fuller the bottle is the better of course, esp with older perfumes. Air,

light and heat are the ememies of any perfume/cologne. I'm a vintage fragrance addict, both men's and women's

scents. You have to be careful and patient, but good buys can be had. Your own desires will come into play in any

auction, so be ready to deal with emotion vs money.

- Miniatures... this is a great way to try a new scent for

less money. Samples are another good way to experiment. There are lots of those on ebay.

- Shipping costs...

always, always look for this. Some ebay sellers are very reasoble, some are not. One strategy is to buy more than

one item from a seller and ask if they combine shipping costs. Most do, but some do not, which is basically a

rip-off driving up the price.

I'm sure there are more strategies and tips, but this is what comes to mind.

Please feel free to add anything from your experience.

[Rbt]

Something else: some people can't

spell (like me). If you search for a product, try using a variety of terms, abbreviations, and possible

mis-spellings (or try fatfingers.com). I've gotten some great deals on eBay because the seller made a typo in his

listing and the auction didn't show up in the searches otherwise. Also some sellers mis-catagorize the products so

don't just rely on doing a catagory search.

And be patient! Items can get "hot" and sell for insane prices for

a while, then drop off to near nothing a short time later.

One last thing: eBay isn't always the best price.

Use some of the shopping bots to check other sites and sources.

[idesign]

Excellent Rbt. I alwyaz serch

that way. Always set your search for "All Categories".

Exactly! Patience is indispensable, I've seen a frag go

for over $100 one week and less than $50 the next.

[belgareth]

When it comes to high end

computer equipment, be careful. The prices are not very good, really. And they are kind of running a scam. They

don't really have the product on hand. What they do is list the item in the hopes of getting enough buyers to

finance a large scale purchase to meet the price point. They may hold your money for several weeks, until you really

complain, then refund it and claim there was some error.

Before buying any new computer equipment like servers

and such make them confirm they have it in stock and ready to ship. You'll be surprised how many will not even

answer that question. You can almost always find the equipment elsewhere at better prices and you won't be dealing

with some of the fly by night groups that haunt EBay.

[bronzie]

Great post idesign and thanks

for the url link, seems to work pretty well, Ebay is one of the great marvels to come out of the internet, a lot of

good stuff floating around on ebay at decent prices, but there are alot of scammers too, using a variety of methods

to increase their bids and end price, some sellers are just plain fraudsters, as well as some buyers. I know quite a

few tricks with ebay.

[idesign]

Great post

idesign and thanks for the url link, seems to work pretty well, Ebay is one of the great marvels to come out of the

internet, a lot of good stuff floating around on ebay at decent prices, but there are alot of scammers too, using a

variety of methods to increase their bids and end price, some sellers are just plain fraudsters, as well as some

buyers. I know quite a few tricks with ebay.

Ebay really is amazing, but you certainly have to be careful

like you said.

Ok, now give us the tricks!

[Rbt]

That warning about high-end computer

equipmenta can apply to most anything. I also like to buy DVD's on occasion (especially those that aren't yet

available in stores in the US...). You can start to tell some sellers are waiting to get enough orders in to place

an order to their distributor as they have to buy in large lots to make it worthwhile.

I also like to opt for

sellers who include a photo/pic of the *actual* individual item(s) they are selling and not some "stock" photo. I

always try to include a pic of what I'm selling to at least give some credence the the fact I have it in hand. At

one time with the Sony PS/3, eBay *required* sellers to have both a pic of the product AND a pic/scan of the actual

purchase receipt (as the only way to get them to sell was to buy one after standing in loooong lines....) to prove

they actually had the product.

[idesign]

Electronics are one of the few

things that I would not buy on ebay. Great deals can be had locally if you look and wait. Agree with you guys that

there's too much risk.

Rbt's absolutely right about having an "actual pic" of the auction item. Some things

like frag samples are not that big a deal, but for most things a real pic is essential.

[koolking1]

considerably

over the years. When I first started selling there it was fantastic. I realized that often the item I was selling

didn't matter any more, it was the ability to win that drove the bidders, much to my delight. One day I got a call

from a gentleman who was representing this woman in Alabama. He was trying to help her out of a financial problem.

She had spent a few thousand with me and a few thousand with several other sellers to the tune of 60K. He wanted me

to voluntarily return her money. It would have been nice of me to help but I wouldn't/couldn't. You get capital

not to blow it but to replenish inventory.

But, as IDesign points out, "wait till the last minute to bid"

has taken hold and for me, as a seller, that does hurt. As an indicator of financial health, I'm not selling much

in the USA, most of my sales are now in China, Canada, and Hong Kong, Americans just aren't spending much anymore,

they just don't have the money. And, that hurts me too. eBay just reduced listing fees for sellers. I wish they

would go the traditional auction route and charge both buyer and seller a small amount. Between eBay's fees to

sellers and PayPal's fees, it's tough to make more than a small profit.

[idesign]

Exactly right, ebay has changed

and is more expensive to use for a seller. Many sellers are padding this into shipping costs and achieving some

lost profit there. A lot of items are becoming so competitive (like electronics and DVDs) the margins are low

everywhere.

In the very early days there were still a lot of people who were not comfortable with it, or any

online merchant. That was really really fun.

Another thing that ebay has done, is give anyone with computer

access a place to find a value for that "ugly-ass" '29 Bugatti in grandpa's barn that you just inherited. From

Poukgeepsie to Portland, everyone's learned how to read.

I agree KK, a traditional auction fee arrangement would

make it much better for sellers and buyers both. Ebay will never do this though because they don't want to be in

the position of having to collect on both sides.

Buying/selling "commodity" type items is much different from

"collector" type items. If there is a general fair market value that is knowable, there is less of a chance of

getting a great deal. On "collector" type items there is still a real auction environment, ie "only worth what you

can get someone to pay".

Cars are a good example. I've sold 3 and bought 1 car on ebay motors. For a car which

is late model, there is pretty much the NADA/Kelley price which roughly guides prices, and you have as good a chance

of getting your best deal locally if you're savvy. OTOH, a 1986 Alfa is a different animal. I tried to sell that

exact car locally and after 3 months put it on ebay. I got $500 more from my ebay buyer after 7 days than my best

local offer in 3 months.

Great comments guys... keep 'em coming.

[koolking1]

the old adage, "he

who gets there first, wins". I don't think any of the other online auctions have ever come close to eBay's

success. One of the greatest virtues of eBay is the ability to find something you really want or need - if it

exists, it's probably for sale there.

A scam to watch out for is a buyer who wants a part: car part,

computer part, radio part. They buy the whole thing and return it for not working as claimed after they have

removed and kept the part they want.

[bronzie]

idesign, some of my tricks are

just plain immoral (not illegal by the way) with a big advantage over others, if you have an msn or if we could chat

in private, no problem, you sound like a good bloke.

but I really cant disclose much in details much over the

forum

if bel wants to pass on my email over to idesign, that would be fine with me

[koolking1]

What can one expect from a lawyer.

[idesign]

The idea of "Immoral ebay

practices" conjures up a Far Side type of image with some guy wearing his first-cousin's underwear posting with his

p___....

For the record, I post auctions fully clothed.

Thanks for keeping the forum

"clean" bronzie.

[bronzie]

good one idesign, I just

saw that your a moderator or may I say modulator! ok bad joke! immoral was probably a bad word to use, a better way

to say it is being;
non-scrupulous

the tricks are just that, tricks, you don't actually deceive

anyone

Hi Koolking, good to see you buddy...

[koolking1]

how's life

"down-under"? I've been looking at Tasmania as a place to retire to.

[bronzie]

Koolking, I have been living in

Europe for the past 3 years, but my guess the big southern land of Oz is still there, they have problems with water

shortages due to a drought, but apart from that Australia is a great place to live, low crime, good food, clean air,

and a lot of nature and space, if that is what you want, the cities on the east coast have a buzzing lifestyle, if

your looking for a place to take it easy, tasmania is pretty nice, a lot of wilderness, very green, a very clean

state, low crime, etc, the only thing about it that I personally dont like is the weather, tasmania is the coldest

place in Australia, but if that doesnt bother you, its a Great place.

There are a lot of places in Australia that

dont have much population and are a good place to retire, up north is a fishermans paradise, if thats your thing,

do a google search, there is a Ton of info out there. Your American right? the state of Queensland is very

Americanized, there you will find cow boys and USA style country music festivals to rival anything in the States. My

guess, is that you could integrate with the locals very easily up north. Tasmania on the other hand is very

traditional English, more so than any other state in Australia. It is illegal to practice Soddomy in Tasmania!!!! so

if someone is gay, they might have a problem... its a very conservative State.

If you need any other info

that you cant find over the net, let me know....

Real estate prices vary a lot in Australia, my guess is that is

a major thing when looking into where to retire. You really need to do your home work with that one.

[belgareth]

Good to hear about the low

crime rate. My 17 y/o daughter is planning on going there for her senior year as an exchange student.

[idesign]

good one idesign, I just saw that your a moderator or may I say modulator! ok bad joke! immoral was probably a bad

word to use, a better way to say it is being;
non-scrupulous

Ahhh... you're a lawyer? I'll

call you if I get busted for "non-scrupulous modulation".

Back to ebay tips. #15 - Don't buy from any seller

named "bronzie".

[bronzie]

Bel, you have a 17 yr old

daughter? when doe she turn 18? Maybe you can arrange a coffee meeting, I am kidding dude!!!!!!!!! dont

shoot...

Yes, Australia has a relatively low crime rate compared to the USA, we dont have a gun culture like you

guys have, etc, but you still need to take precautions, there are areas in the main cities that you should not be

walking say at 1am on a Saturday night, especially if your female. Australian men, like the English tend to drink

alot on the weekends, a normal average nice guy during the week, can turn out to be a real jerk after drinking,

especially if he is in the company of his other drunk friends.

Oh, and if your daughter needs a body guard, let

me know, I have an Australian security licence, still valid, and have served in the military! she will be safe with

me, no doubt!

Kidding again.

[belgareth]

The gun culture isn't the

problem here. The failure of the legal system is the problem with high crime rates. If you check the statistics,

areas with high legal gun ownership have lower violent crime rates, almost always.

Oh, and don't worry. I

wouldn't shoot you. Knives are much better for dealing with such problems...Aside from the fact that she has almost

8 years of marshal arts training now. You kind of have to pity the first guy to ever really bother her. She has good

judgment so I'm not especially worried that she would date a lawyer anyway

[idesign]

Aside

from the fact that she has almost 8 years of marshal arts training now. You kind of have to pity the first guy to

ever really bother her. She has good judgment so I'm not especially worried that she would date a lawyer anyway

Pphhhfftttt!! That's the sound of at least $2.oo USD of good Belgian Ale spraying onto the computer

screen! Too funny.

to teaching a teenager to take care of herself

to the lawyer joke.

bronzie, you have to be used to it by now...