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Thread: How to get the most out of Ebay

  1. #21
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Quote Originally Posted by Jak. View Post
    I am setting up the insurance and have selected "optional". It now wants a dollar amount. Is this what they pay or how much it covers? If it is how much it covers, what should I do it for? Most items are $10 to $40, so should I do the value?
    http://www.usps.com/insurance/welcome.htm

    Fee . . . . . . . . . . Insurance Coverage
    $1.70 ................ $0.01 to $50
    $2.15 ................ $50.01 to $100
    $2.60 ................ $100.01 to $200
    $4.60 ................ $200.01 to $300
    $5.55 ................ $300.01 to $400
    $6.50 ................ $400.01 to $500
    $7.45 ................ $500.01 to $600
    $7.45 plus $0.95 per $100 or fraction thereof over $600 to $5,000.
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  2. #22
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Quote Originally Posted by Getsickanddie View Post
    http://www.usps.com/insurance/welcome.htm

    Fee . . . . . . . . . . Insurance Coverage
    $1.70 ................ $0.01 to $50
    $2.15 ................ $50.01 to $100
    $2.60 ................ $100.01 to $200
    $4.60 ................ $200.01 to $300
    $5.55 ................ $300.01 to $400
    $6.50 ................ $400.01 to $500
    $7.45 ................ $500.01 to $600
    $7.45 plus $0.95 per $100 or fraction thereof over $600 to $5,000.
    OKay thanks. I set up an auction basing it a lot on Dahcmai's (yours really looks great). I provided the information on shipping costs, insurance, certification, etc. Hopefully the transactions will go a lot smoother than they have in the past, ie not knowing how to ship and always having the chance to get screwed. It also looks nice and giving more information may cause more bidders. Thanks Dahcmai, Getsickanddie, and Afro!

  3. #23
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Ok, to make sure they get it is actually pretty simple.

    Do one of two things and it's up to you on which one you like.

    1. Registered mail - It's slow as shit, I'll warn you now. I once had a large package of 7 sets get tied up in Brazil's Customs for 2 months because not only was it a package and customs people get leary about the whole big box of unknown things, plus it was registered and that means it gets signed by every single mail guy it touches hands to. Ok, that's pretty abnormal, but it goes to show. Most of the time it takes about 3 weeks for even a letter.

    Registered mail is the perfect way to make sure something arrives though. They have to sign for it. No saying they didn't get it. You can even find out who signed for it.

    If you want to make sure it gets there and there's no disputing it, this is the way to go. I don't send much this way myself, but I will do it for a Black Lotus or Mox or some such for sure if it's a foreign country.

    2. Delivery Notification - My personal fav. It's simple enough, but only works in the US. You get a number and you can go to USPS.com and see where that package is. I like to send a message to people and give them the tracking number, it makes them feel all safe and stuff.

    Problem of course is it doesn't work for foreign countries and well, face it, the US is hurting for cash so sending stuff overseas is the way to go right now. (I just sent out around 50 auctions worth and 2 were US addresses).

    To be honest the mail isn't that bad. I've never had but one item lost and I decided to bite the bullet on it and eat the cost. It was worth it to save face and keep that 100% rating. After all this time and no one had said they didn't get something I figured the guy was telling the truth. It was Spain after all. Spain has a shitty postal system. Sorry if you're from there, but it's true.

    Oh and one thing, there's a size requirement on Delivery Notification. So if you want to send one card or so, use a bubble mailer. It has to be bigger than this little card they try to put it through to check size, so stick a bunch of wadded up paper or packing peanuts (preferably) inside so it will be too big for the sizer and you can get Delivery Notification on it. Or use a box like VCR tape size.


    I'll write that primer when I have extra time. Luckily I type fast, but I like to proof-read a lot. There's a ton more I can tell you. I have spreadsheets I use to add up costs and fees (makes it really easy for friends cards), pre-made HTML crap I typed up so you don't have to type up junk every time, and a bunch of other stuff I bet people would like to have. Listing something takes me about oh...2 min, 40 seconds. I'll show you how. It's not too hard once you know some of the tricks.

    I don't claim to know it all, but at least I can get you a heck of a start. I'm still trying to figure out those weird programs people use to make those fancy pages.



    @Jazzycat - Sorry I had to go back and reread some stuff. I don't get on here to often really. In answer to your questions.

    1. I forgot how much the store was, but It think it was around $15 a month. I have so much crap go through anymore I totally miss the charge for it and don't care anyway. Keep in mind if you set one up though that they charge you for every single item you have in there each month. So if you have some junk sitting there every month, it's eating you penny by penny.

    I check occasionally to make sure I have the lowest price and if I don't I lower it or pull the item off if I can't match what's already out there. I tell ya, I'm amazed Troll and Toad hasn't messaged me about undercutting them by a few pennies every time. I must piss them off. $19.95 to their $19.99. So mean, but hey it works.

    2. Combined auctions are all well and good and it really does get more bids, though watch your prices for shipping. People like to scam any amount they can get away with. Don't go free or you'll end up with a guy who will outbid everyone trying to get a deal. I'm still testing different amounts trying to balance it out so people get a decent deal without cutting me deep if they get a lot at once.

    4. Hmmm, well that's a tricky one. It's a matter of hitting it when it's hot. I like to wait for extended season for a lot of stuff. Strange how that format affects prices but it does. I swear there are people that literally sell off collections to buy into whatever format is being played at the pro-tour. I am sitting on a pile of Ravnica duals right now waiting for extended to start and then I'll list them. Just pay attention and look them up occationally and when they are hitting what you want, sell, sell sell. I guess it's like stocks.

    @ Anusian - Best days Not real sure on that. I have decent luck with stuff ending on Sunday night at around 7-11pm. That's me though. It's weird but Wednesday isn't bad either.


    The Europe thing - They pay more. Flat fact anymore. I'm starting to get orders from Japan now and that's new. Scary how the currency is affecting things. If I'm unsure about someone's unconfimed address, I just message them and ask if that address is correct. They don't mind answering that.

    The taxes and import fees. Yeah, I know Germany and a few other countries have that. One cute thing you can do is ship stuff in an envelope and it bypasses the fees and taxes. No charge for letters. I sell a lot of sets so there's not much I can do about it. I'm not going to lie about it. I've had plenty of people try and get me to do it, but If I'm filling out some customs form, I'm telling the truth. I have no idea what happens if you lie on it, but I don't want to know what happens if you get caught. Now if it's someone you know or someone you can trust, send it as a "gift", there's a box to check for that and there's no duty fee on that.

  4. #24
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Awesome. Someone sticky this?

    I need to probably ship overseas, but I am just hesitant because I am still trying to learn about shipping in the US. I may try it soon.

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  5. #25
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Oh yeah, here's something I do to buy things to sell.

    Try bidding on foreign areas stuff. I'm actually trying to pick up some Ravagers right now, I bet I get them cheap since I hit up the Singapore guys.

    I bid occasionally on stuff that looks like a scam on purpose. As long as it's a real card, I'll give it a shot. I got a pile of Arabian Night stuff once for like $12 and it had a Juzam, Ali, and a Library in it because the guy had feedback for crap. Did the same for some betas. Ended up making a 800% payback or so on it. I couldn't beleive some of the stuff people actually sent out to me. I don't expect to get a lot of them and just watch the days before I file with Paypal to get my money back. Occationally I lose some money, but I make way more than I lose. It's a gamble, but it pays off a lot.

    Collections are great sometimes if they don't list much of anything important. Add up what you think you could get out of it and take off 30% to be sure. Bid that much. I do it a lot. You won't win many, but the ones you do are gold. That's the key to Ebay, learn to walk away from a deal. I laugh when I see people get into bidding wars.

    I don't have a storefront to buy cards so I'm just buying from Ebay.


    Oh yeah, spell stuff wrong when searching. It's amazing how many times people will spell things like this. Mox Emereld, Mox Paerl, Beserk, Ancestrall recall, and such. Shaharzad alone is good pickings. You'll be surprised, but I'm not the only one who knows that stunt.

  6. #26
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Thread cleaned up and stickied. Excellent posts, dahcmai.

  7. #27
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Okay, so this guy bought a set of Chrome Moxen from me probably around two months ago. I sent them out certified so he would have to sign for them. It protects me so I used it. He messages me about a month ago saying he didn't recieve them. I asked if he got a postcard or anything telling him to pick it up. He said yes so I thought it was over with. Two weeks ago he messages me again saying he hadn't recieved them and told me to help. I asked again if he went to go pick it up. Of course, he says no. Now, I got the package back because he never picked it up. I message him asking me if he would like me to send it again and how much I would need for him to pay me for shipping. He responds by saying he would like me to ship them again. I ask for payment and haven't been answered for four days. What do I do? I really just want to sell these and be done with it but this guy is difficult. Is there a certain time I have to wait until I can relist them?

  8. #28
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Could someone please tell me how to use the buy it now option? I just got started and for some reason the buy it now option was virtually impossible to find when I created my first listing. I tried to use ebay's help section, but the options they told me to use were completely non-existent.
    The unicorns were the most recognizable magic the fairies possessed, and they sent them to those worlds where belief in the magic was in danger of failing altogether. After all, there has to be some belief in magic--however small--for any world to survive. --Terry Brooks--(The Black Unicorn)

    Team Unicorn: Majestic bringers of doom and destruction. Need proof? Ask and you shall receive....
    Quote Originally Posted by Hanni
    On another note... is this a joke thread or what? The deck doesn't seem all that bad but the short deck description seems like your making a joke and there is no detailed card descriptions at all. There is also a post on the Proven Forums discussing that this deck beats everything and autoloses to ATS and I'm a little in the dark here. I sense sarcasm but the deck doesn't seem all that bad...

  9. #29
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    When you get to the section that says at the top in yellow "Choose how you'd like to sell your item" It's right next to the spot where it says to put in the price you want.


    As for the guy who didn't pick up the package, send it again. He's a tard. You're going to meet plenty of those. If he still doesn't pick it up, then charge him for the next send and add a little for your trouble. Be clear to them. Some people are serious idiots, you'd be surprised when they get a slip that says they have something at the post office to pick up they seriously don't know what to do. It's truly scary how dumb people can be. I'd message him and tell him he only has so many days to pick it up since the post office isn't going to hold it for him forever.


    Thanks Bardo. I'm slowly compiling all of this stuff into one long post that should answer everything you could want to know other than third party programs since I don't use those.

  10. #30
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    What if he doesn't pay? Not that 3 bucks is a crazy large ammount, but it will still end up being a waste of my time and money. He hasn't contacted me in over a week. If he doesn't contact me, is it bad to not ship?

  11. #31
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Well, that's up to you really, though expect to get some bad feedback if you don't ever get it to him. He'll remember eventually even if he doesn't post it right away. If he paid through paypal, you kind of have to get it to him or it really is your fault. You could always just send it with a Delivery Notification so you know it arrived and it can sit on his doorstep for as long as he likes then, you don't need to do anything else. It's probably cheaper to send packages that way anyway.

  12. #32
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    I just wanted to pass this on, from a teammate of mine who had a bad experience insuring cards with USPS:

    They have an awkard run-around policy towards "collectables"

    After it happened the guy at the post office told me a couple of things. First off he said that when I first mailed the cards and was told to establish a value for the insurance the person at the time was supposed to notify me that what he called "baseball cards" and other collectables are capped at how much they can be insured for. He went into detail but confused the fuck out of me so it might now make sense to you guys because it didn't to me. He used pokemon cards as an example and said something like they don't cover appreciated valued of collectables and when they reimburse you for something they pay the store front value. He used a pokemon card example and said that like if he had a $50 pokemon card (he said pokemon cards so much after correcitng him i wanted to hit him) and it got lost that the post office won't pay me $50 bucks but the value of actual pokemon card...so like the cost of a pokemon card booster pack. (like under 5 bucks right?) for that edition. I tried explaining him how magic cards work and how they are individual rares from different sets that have their own value (LIKE ALL FUCKING COLLECTABLES). He just repeated whatever robot response he gave me. I started getting agitated and told him it doesn't make sense because they know collectables can gain value, and their value can be established because there are magazines, websites, etc that give you an idea of how much they are worth. I also told him that he's fucking wrong because I know people who lost magic cards and got the office to reimburse their money back. I told him according to his logic all old coins are worth only their printed value and old comic books are only worth the 15 cents that say on the cover. I also told him that it also doesn't make sense because I didn't ship booster packs I shipped lose cards. He kept repeating the same thing and I lost my cool and just flat out said that he was retarded and that no other post office operates like this and he responded about how they all follow the same policies and some other jive. I told my friend the story and he said just go file at a different post office and I went to the one by my school but they sent me back to the one in my town where I mailed the package from.

    I'm pretty certain that the whole system doesn't work like that and this guy is an idiot or he was giving me trouble. I kept calling them and going back enough where I got a rep and their responses to me were just worse and worse and more unforgiving. I filed a complaint and figured that this post office was run by people with foam helmets and i would try the internet and find a way to go above them. But when I wanted to do more but my brain couldn't even wrap myself around all the different fucking departments, numbers, and mail addresses at the postal website, then talking to people who kept collecting my personal information and having to retell the same fucking story multiple times over and over and nothing happened I got fed up and felt my sanity is worth more. I hate dealing with huge organizations like that because I can never figure out where to start or how to approach the situation and always get fucked. I felt overwhelmed by how massive they are and figured that I just got ate up in their bullshit system.


    I originally didn't make a thread about it or go into detail because I think it HAS to be just the post office in my area because I'm pretty sure the rest of the universe isn't as retarded as them, like it can't be possible like they have to be wrong it doesn't make any sense, and because I felt it was mostly my fault too for not handling the situation. I know that the situation was still salvagable after my cards were lost and I dropped the ball and rolled over instead so I was kind of embarassed about that too (my friends gave me massive amounts of shit for it too)

    So you get an idea of what you might have to go through with them. I'd deal with UPS if you're selling anything >$50 or so.

  13. #33
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    It might be just your guys who do that. I had lost a Moat in the mail once and got the money back no problem.

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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Here's a good tip. I'll show you step by step how this works.

    Ok, here's one auction for a playset of Phyrexian Dreadnoughts.

    Clicky

    Looks like it's going to go for around $120 or so. Maybe more. The guy doing this one knows what he's doing. Free shipping, nice bonus, but not needed really. It looks good I guess. Nice looking page though. Better than I can do. I really need to learn how to use Auctiva (that's the pretty page maker).

    Anyway, He has a good rating, a nice set of pictures and spams crap about paypal giving a guarantee. Good job to this guy.


    Now I caught this one and I hope it's not one of you. He obviously didn't read this thread. If it does happen to be one of you, well, I hope I teach you something so you get the most for your money next time around.

    This particular guy has low feedback so he's going to get less for what he's selling anyway. Goes with the territory. I don't mind bidding on these since I'll just file quick with paypal if he decides to give excuses and not send.

    I bid on these and won. Now see if you can see why I got these so cheap. Yeah, I picked up a set of Dreadnoughts for $53.82. Not too shabby. Especially since I just showed you what a decent price is.


    Auction 1

    Auction 2

    Auction 3

    Auction 4


    I got them separate, but that's ok since he offered shipping combined for 4 cards for the same price anyway. That's a nice bonus and I actually do read to see if people do that. Nothing worse than paying $2.00 shipping 4 times over.

    No flashy page, but that's ok. Not much talk about the card itself. Not too good. Only some stuff about the shipping. He doesn't even mention if that card in the picture is the one you get or some random pic he got off the net.

    All of his feedback is from buying on top of it. That's scary to people who read into feedback. At least buy a few things and get your feedback over 20 before selling, it helps a lot. Single digits make people nervous. Most people won't bother to look and see if it was done by selling or buying, but everyone notices how high it is and if it's all good or not.

    He does list condition at least, but really needs to give a little more detail if possible. Not a big deal but it helps.

    Ok, other than the stuff I listed did you notice why I got it so cheap?






    Read that title again.

    MTG PHYREXIAN DREADNAUGHT


    What's wrong with that?

    Dreadnought is spelled with an "O". Ouch. Costly spelling mistake.


    I literally have email notices set up to mail me for when people spell things wrong. You'd be amazed at how many people do.

    I have bought plenty of Mox Emerelds, Beserks, Bazaar's of Bagdad, and a few choice things that are commonly spelled wrong like I spelled here. Baghdad has an H if you missed it. I get that one a lot. Notice I have two Bazaar's in my store, guess how I got them.

    Now Ebay will correct your spelling for the most part when searching, but not when you sell. Spell it bad enough and the search engine will ignore your auction alltogether.


    Something to remember.




    Quick last note:

    I bid twice on these for a reason. I typically bid once to bait in bid schilling. Bid schilling is where you have a separate account and bid on your own items to raise the price up. Ebay frowns on it quite hard, but some people still try it. Anyway, the first bid was the minimum. If I get outbid quickly or a overbid and then retracted, I know I'm getting schilled and avoid it like the frigging plague.

    At the last day I raise it up to what I really would pay. Explains why I do that. It's a good practice to be in.

  15. #35
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    This is just a what if scenario because shipping confirmed costs a lot more and takes a lot more time. I really hate doing it on stuff that costs $50 or less. Anyway, I have perfect feedback (100%) and I offer insurance, what would happen if he says he never got them?

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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    I have a question about shipping from the United States to Europe.

    I'm selling off a few dual lands and a playset of Force of Wills right now and I've been asked the question "How much to ship to country X" several times (right now the auctions list US shipping only). With US shipping I typically just use toploaders and bubble mailers for < $50 and delivery confirmation for anything > $50.

    How do you ship internationally with the equivalent of delivery confirmation? When I ask at the post office, they quote me a price of nearly $30. UPS is even more expensive than that. I'd like to take advantage of whatever selling protection is offered by paypal (to avoid having to pay for insurance) and it looks like I need to be able to confirm shipment and delivery. Is there an inexpensive way to do this? Any thoughts?

    Thanks!

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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    There's no good way to send international. If there is I haven't found it.

    Registered is good, but slow.

    You can do this like i do and it's kind of cheesy, but it works out in the long run. I charge too much for international shipping. Sad to say, but it's true. It's only about $2 more and sometimes less. I save the money I have left over to account for the times when someone's mail is lost and I just pay it out of my own pocket. At least then I can offer a guarantee on everything to make it and not feel bad about it. Kind of like insuring myself.

    I've only had to pay it out once so far on a set, but it's a nice piece of mind to have that little insurance handy to do so. I don't spend the extra I take in until I need it for times like that.

    If it's really expensive (like a Lotus or such), I'll go ahead and front the cash for UPS or FED-EX. It's like $50 so keep it in mind if you go that route. Then you get a tracking number.

  18. #38
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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Firstly, I don't have a store.

    Is there a way to have a BIN and a regular price, where you charge shipping if someone wins the auction but do free shipping if they use BIN? I can't figure it out and I think it is a nice way to reward people who are willing to pony up.

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    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    The only way to do it is to not list the shipping in the auction itself where it places it in automatically. You can mention how much it is, but make it so they have to type in the amount they are paying. It's a pain, but it can be done. I just tell people, I'll refund it. It's easier.

  20. #40

    Re: How to get the most out of Ebay

    Quote Originally Posted by dahcmai View Post
    I literally have email notices set up to mail me for when people spell things wrong. You'd be amazed at how many people do.

    I have bought plenty of Mox Emerelds, Beserks, Bazaar's of Bagdad, and a few choice things that are commonly spelled wrong like I spelled here. Baghdad has an H if you missed it. I get that one a lot. Notice I have two Bazaar's in my store, guess how I got them.

    how do you get notices from ebay for things ?

    yeah, I got a playset of bloodstrained mire the other day for pretty cheap.

    what store, I dont see a link.

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