when listing their items on eBay.

For example, some sellers would insist on the highest possible price for their items. Others would be interested in simply getting rid of their items as quickly as possibly, even if it means selling very cheaply.

As a beginner it helps therefore, to understand the different types of listing formats on eBay.

This article provides you with such an overview. Hopefully, it will assist you in deciding which format would be of greater usefulness to you on the eBay site.

One of the keys to having the greatest success with your sale, involves selecting the best selling format for your item. There are several types of listings on eBay. For our purposes, we will consider only the three below.

• Auction-style Listing

• Fixed Price Listing

• Classified Ad

Auction-style Listing

You receive bids on your item and sell to the highest bidder.

You can also include a Buy It Now price in your auction, which  lets the buyer purchase the item before the listed end date. Using the Buy it Now allows the buyer to make the purchase without all the usual ‘hassle’ of bidding, being outbidded, having to bid again, causing the price to keep going up, etc.

Items can be listed singly, or by lots.

Your listing appears in the eBay category (or categories) you choose and in search results.

Duration, Fees and eBay Services

• Auction-style listings can last for 1, 3, 5, 7, or 10 days. Real estate auctions may also run for 30 days
• You’re charged an Insertion Fee to list your item
• You’re charged a Final Value Fee after the sale
• There are fees for optional features and upgrades
• You have complete access to eBay services such as Feedback and Problem Resolution

Reserve auctions are for sellers who don’t want their items to sell for less than a certain price.

The buyer will be informed  if their bid does not meet the reserve price you set. They will then have to bid again if they want the item. If no-one is  willing to meet your price, then the auction is cancelled, and you keep the item.

Fixed Price Listing

You list your items at a set (fixed) price, so buyers can purchase right away (with no bidding).

There is an interesting twist to fixed price auctions, called the Best Offer. You can include the Best Offer option in your Fixed Price listing and choose among buyers who contact you and negotiate their highest offer.

You can offer one item or multiple items for sale at the Buy It Now price anytime during the listing.

Your listing appears in the eBay category (or categories) you choose and in search results.

Duration, Fees and eBay Services

• You can list for 3, 5, 7, 10, or 30 days, or Good ‘Til Cancelled. Good ‘Til Cancelled renews automatically every 30 days until the item sells or you end the listing.
• You’re charged an Insertion Fee to list your item.You’re charged an Insertion Fee every 30-day period for Good ‘Til Cancelled listings
• You’re charged a Final Value Fee after the sale
• There are fees for optional features and upgrades
• You have complete access to eBay services such as Feedback and problem resolution

Classified Ad

Advertise on eBay just as you’d use a traditional classified ad.

You state a price and the buyer contacts you. You then handle  the transaction personally.

Duration, Fees and eBay Services

• Most run for 30 days with the option of Good ‘Til Cancelled. Good ‘Til Cancelled Insertion Fee is charged every 30  days.
• Real Estate ads can run for 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, 30, or 90 days
• Fees vary by category
• No access to eBay services such as Feedback and Problem Resolution

As mentioned earlier, there are other listing formats on eBay. However, for the beginner, the above information would serve as a useful enough introduction.

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Anger is a natural human emotion.

Whenever someone or something (that is, something external or internal) interferes with, or affects an individual in a negative manner, it can cause that individual to become angry.

This anger is considered a normal response to such a situation. It is an emotion experienced by all, children and adults alike. Anger is even considered healthy. In fact, a certain amount of anger is necessary to our survival.

When people become angry they may express it in different ways. These ways may range from complete withdrawal, silence, and illness, to intense, violent, verbal or physical outbursts.

It is believed that anger of itself is not a problem. Rather, the problem is the mismanagement of anger.

The mismanagement of anger is a serious source of troubles, and sometimes catastrophy in all aspects of our relationships and quality of life.

Anger management is about about controlling anger. Anger management is about reducing the emotional feelings and the physiological activity caused by anger. It is about learning to control these reactions.

One of the first steps to controlling anger issues it admitting that a problem exists in the first place.

This is somewhat difficult for some people to do. Often, something may happen to set a person off on a course of anger. Those individuals, who have a hard time admitting to their anger and accepting responsibility for their actions, tend to resort to blaming.

They are usually very quick to place the blame for their outbursts of anger on someone or something else. The faults are never to be placed at their doorsteps.

The solutions to their problems would arrive much faster, if they were to admit first and foremost, that their actions and reactions are just what they are – based on anger.

Individuals like these would benefit tremendously from a few sessions in anger management.

People who have a hard time accepting that they have this problem, suffer further by preventing themselves from seeking the help they really need. Continuing down this path of constantly becoming angry and striking out, leads eventually to greater and greater problems.

Without anger management, such an individual eventually experiences great losses. These losses may include loss of friends, family, employment, social status, even loss of his own identity. In extreme cases, even loss of life can result.

When this anger absorbs a person’s life, making him fierce and destructive, the problem is truly big. This is so because, not only does the anger destroy that person, but it negatively impacts everyone and everything surrounding him.

such a person needs to be made to understand that anger management is not meant to be any form of punishment. It is not meant meant to be demeaning in any way.

On the contrary, it is designed to help him experience a better quality of life. Anger management is designed to provide methods which prevent him from becoming angry as often or for remaining angry for so very long.

There are various sorts of anger management strategies and programs in existence. These programs are structured to address different people, children, adolescents, adults, couples and families etc.

Anger cannot be eliminated. However, through anger management, the individual can move forward, closer to long term happiness and a richer, healthier life.

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As mentioned in one of my earlier articles, it is wiser to buy on eBay first, before trying your hand as an eBay seller. This way you get a better feel for the eBay process.

With this in mind, it is very important for every first-time eBay buyer to take note of a few important ideas. These 5 points will help you, the eBay buyer avoid becoming a victim of any eBay scams.

• Know about the item listed on eBay first.

• Avoid bidding on international item listings.

• Always check the seller’s feedbacks before bidding.

• Look for specific qualities and details in the listing.

• Establish contact with the seller.

1. Know About The Item Listed On

eBay First

As an eBay buyer, you should try to have at least a basic understanding of the properties of the item.

This way, you would have an idea of what to look for in the description. In other words, if you, the buyer, haven’t the faintest idea of the properties of the item you wish to purchase, you are placing yourself at the mercy of unscrupulous and misleading eBay sellers.

Use all your previous knowledge of the item. Also do some research on other websites (like google.com or msn.com) for the same item . Compare the description in the eBay listing with those on other sites.

2. Avoid Bidding On International

Listings

You should avoid the international item listings at first. As a first-time eBay buyer, you might be more likely to encounter different types of problems there. Of course, as your experience grows, this would become less of an issue, because you would be better able to deal with all possible problems that might arise.

3. Always Check The Seller’s

Feedbacks

Before Bidding

Wnen you check on the seller’s feedbacks, you immediately gain a better insight into the trustworthiness (or risk factor) of the transaction.

It is usually advised that a positive feedback rating of 95% or greater is a good signal. If you find many recent negative feedbacks, then this is not a good indication.

Make sure to read the negative feedbacks. Determine for yourself whether or not they give you genuine reasons for concern. Observe also, the type of responses made by the eBay seller. Do the seller’s defenses or explanations appear accceptable?

Keep in mind too, that there are times when some eBay buyers, for one reason or the other, leave negative feedbacks that are NOT justified.(To read my article on that problem Click Here).

If  however, there are many complaints of a similar nature, then that’s good enough reason for you not to take any chances with that eBay seller.

Personally, for a number of years, I have been using an excellent piece of software that makes this feedback search much easier/faster than using the normal eBay channel.

Why? Sometimes on the eBay site you have to check through hundreds of  feedback  comments, only looking for negative comments, to decide if you trust the seller.

This software, (Feedback Analyzer Pro), saves you a tremendous amout of time by quickly extracting all the feedback comments into separate lists: positive, negative or neutral (or all together).

4. Look For Specific Qualities

And Details

In The Listing

Observe the starting price

Research prices elsewhere (on other websites) for the item being offered by the eBay seller. For example, if it’s a brand name item, and it is being offered at a ridiculously low price by the seller, be careful. It may or may not be authentic!

There are instances where genuine items may be listed with very low starting prices. This is sometimes used by eBay sellers as part of a bigger marketing strategy (list-building, feedback increase etc). This will be dealt with in another article.

The idea is, however, to stay focussed and use good judgement.

Look for pictures

You are better off seeing lots of pictures. If there is no picture (or very few), beware.

That might be a clue that the item may have some sort of defect.
Remember that the next best thing to having the actual item in your hand for scrutiny, is the availability of pictures (the more, the merrier).

The absence of pictures can also be an indication of the slipshod manner in which that eBay seller operates. Consider whether or not you’d want to do business with an eBay seller who approaches his marketing in that type of half-hearted manner.

The payment, return and refund policies of the seller

Make sure that the method of payment required by the eBay seller is protected. This helps you avoid possible scam or fraud.

The sellers should have some sort of recognition or identification seal like ‘Paypal Verified’ within the auction listing.

It’s highly recommended that at this stage of your ebay experience, you pay through Paypal only. Joining Paypal is very simple and free. Of course this method of payment can be changed later if you so desire, but it might not be necessary.

Shipping and Handling terms

Some auction listings actually state that shipping and handling information will be emailed to the winning bidder. That’s a no-no!

Remember, when you start bidding on an item, it means that you have agreed to the terms and condition set out by the seller. Understand the shipping and handling policy clearly before committing yourself. If not, it would be more difficult later for you to offer any convincing argument in the event of a dispute.

The return and refund policy

As an eBay buyer, you should know the seller’s return and refund policies before placing your bid. This reduces any conflict in the event that you should wish to negotiate a return/refund.

Look for a clear description of this policy in the listing. If there is none stated, ask the seller for it (see #5 below).

Make sure you get the refund policy in an email from the seller. This way, you would have documented proof. If the Ebay seller has no refund policy, do not bid on the item.

With a bit more research, you might well find an identical item being offered by another eBay seller, who has a policy of no-questions-asked refunds.

5.Establish Contact With The Seller

By all means, you should establish contact with the seller.

It always helps to clarify doubts first before moving forward to the actual bidding. This is also a good opportunity for you to observe how promptly (or not) the seller responds to queries.

You can contact the eBay seller by using the ‘Ask seller a question’ link in the listing.

However, there is no need to feel overwhelmed. Bit by bit the pieces will fall together within your mind.

Please feel free to leave a comment on this article. Peace!

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This article is by no means going to exhaust all the possible factors involved in starting out as an eBay seller. However, it should serve as a start towards your understanding of some of the basics involved in preparing yourself mentally for what could turn out to be a totally exciting way to spend your time and make some money.

Well, you’ve made your decision to start your eBay activities. You’ve become a member and are ready for action as a seller on eBay. There are  several  things you should be aware of before blindly heading out and calling yourself a seller.

Where should I begin?

Firstly, it is advisable for you to make a few purchases on eBay before attempting to sell anything. This gives you a better feel for how the website works. That, however, is content for another article, which I will be dealing with very soon. For now, we’ll focus on your first venture into selling on eBay.

You should ask yourself the question: what will I sell? Most experienced eBay sellers would tell you that it would be much better for you to sell items that you consider your specialty, instead of selling just about any and everything you happen to lay your hands on.

The main reason? Individuals (buyers) interested in those particular products will return to you over and over, trusting in you as a tested and proven source.

It would be difficult for you to develop this type of loyal and trusting followers if you simply sell a variety of things randomly.

When  thinking about what to sell, there are several considerations you should make. Avoid selling things on eBay that you know nothing about. If you attempt this on eBay, it becomes very easy for prospective buyers to recognize your lack of knowledge in that particular area.

You’ll almost certainly have a difficult time writing effective descriptions too. This leads to very frustrating experiences, and remember, your eBay experiences can be totally enjoyable if you approach your stuff correctly.

Really, What Should I Sell on

eBay?

You might think you’re not into any real specialty, but if you pause and use your imagination for a while, you’d be sure to come up with fascinating ideas. You should try making a list of things like:

• What types of things do I usually enjoy buying?
• Which websites do I like to visit most of all, and why?
• What are my favorite past-times?
• What are some of the interesting things that I have easy access to?
  
• What do my friends/family usually tell me I’m good at?
  
• What products would I particularly enjoy providing to customers?

Questions like these go a long way towards helping you discover (or rediscover) your real interests.

In addition to this, try mentioning it to your family and friends.  They are usually in an excellent position to point out to you, some of your areas of strength. After a while, you’ll actually begin wondering how is it that you didn’t think of these before.

Then from the list of things you have knowledge about, you should then think about which those things you could actually obtain at a reasonable enough price to resell profitably.

Are they suitable enough for listing on eBay? (Later, I’ll publish an article on items that are banned on eBay).

Are they small and light enough for my postage and handling to be relatively cheap and convenient? (You don’t need to be unnecessarily burdened when it’s time to make your trips to and from the post office.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that your choice of items are too weird. As you go along, you’d understand more fully that there’s a market for almost everything on eBay, including many items that you’d have a hard time selling from a regular shop or store.

Trust me…there are some really weird items for sale on eBay.

Matters of Tax and Legalities

Once you begin earning enough money, you ought to know that you’re going to have to start paying tax. If your decision is to sell on eBay on a full-time basis, it is highly advisable for you to register as a business. This would be gone into in greater detail in future articles.

Relax and Let It Flow

Everything will not always run smoothly with your eBay experiences.There are going to be times when you become upset for different reasons when you sell on eBay. Always remember that many little setbacks are in fact helpful towards preparing you for much greater successes.

Remember also that the most successful sellers on eBay are the ones who not only enjoy it, but the ones who learn how to stick at it regardless of whatever happens.

However, in the event that you do decide to discontinue, then the start-up costs are so minimal that you won’t really have lost anything. You would have gained some experience, though.

Once you’re ready to start selling on eBay, you would certainly need to know about the various types of auctions. That way you would be able to better decide which ones you would like to use in order to sell your items.

As mentioned earlier, I will be posting articles going into much greater details about some of the issues mentioned here. It will be well worth your time revisiting this site from time to time and leaving your comments regarding the usefulness of these articles.

Feel free to also mention topics you would like some more information on. I would be very willing and happy to oblige.

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password

You should create a User ID that reflects something unique about you – but do not use your email address. Then click the button to the right to check availability.

This determines whether or not your chosen  User ID has already been taken by someone else, or not. You must also pick a “secret question” and “secret answer” to provide extra security in case you should ever forget your password.

You are provided with the links to eBay’s User Agreement and Privacy Policy. You are then also advised to read and agree to these terms, and to confirm that you are at least 18 years of age, before moving on to the next step in the registration process.

Next you would check your email.

Correct Email Address Is Very Important

eBay would send you a “Complete Your eBay Registration” email in order to verify the email address you provided them during registration. You would receive this email almost immediately after completing the first step.

This is very important because email is the primary means of communication between buyers and sellers on eBay.

Simply follow the instructions within the message and click on the “Activate Now” button in the email to confirm and complete your eBay registration.
Congratulations!

You are now a registered eBayer.

When you successfully complete and confirm your registration, eBay shows you a welcome screen. To get started buying and selling, just click the “Get Started” button in the email.

A Quick Recap

Below, you can find a useful recap of what you just read above, and in the Part 1 article I published before this one:
This checklist helps you to remember the most important points about becoming an eBay member.

Registration basics:

• Click on the register link at the top of most eBay pages.

• Enter basic information.

• Choose your User ID and password.

• Agree to Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

• Get a confirmation email from eBay.

If you found this article helpful, you are welcome to leave a comment. You can bookmark this site and inform your friends who are interested in registering on eBay, but find the process a bit intimidating.

Leave a comment also on what other eBay articles you would wish for me to publish for you. Thanks.

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step by step.

Let us begin the registration

process.

While anyone can browse the millions of listings available on eBay, in order to buy and sell there, you must be a registered member. Registration on eBay is very easy, and it’s free. You must have a minimum age of 18 years, however.

Actally, eBay states that unregistered guests can make up to two Buy It Now purchases without registering. However, in order for you to get the full advantages of eBay, you must register.

If you register using a free Web-based email address (such as Yahoo! or Hotmail), you must place a valid credit card number on file to verify your identity. Your card will be used for identification purposes only and will not be charged.

Credit Card Info Is Not Compulsory

If you don’t want to place a credit card on file, you need to register with an email address from a company or paid Internet Service Provider, such as AOL, or become ID Verified. (This is no problem, have no fear).

This is to verify your identity so others can be confident in dealing with you just as you can be confident in the other person’s identity. Your personal information always remains private on eBay’s secure servers.

To begin the registration process, click on the ‘Register’ link on the homepage or at the top of most eBay pages.

You will be required to enter some basic information about yourself, like your name, address and such. Pay close attention to using the correct email address because it would be needed in order for eBay to contact you during the registration process.

eBay needs to do this in order first to verify that you have submitted a valid email address to keep on your profile.

Next, you would create your eBay User ID and Password. This is the ID that you would be known by, among your fellow eBayers. Your email address must not be used for this purpose.

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eBay was born over Labor Day weekend in 1995,
when Pierre Omidyar, a computer programmer, wrote the auction website code that he ran from his home computer.

Omidyar had spent Labor Day weekend writing the code for eBay, which was then-called AuctionWeb.It was one of the first websites of its kind in the world.

The name ‘eBay’ comes from the domain Omidyar used for his site. His company’s name was Echo Bay, and the ‘eBay AuctionWeb’ was originally just one part of Echo Bay’s website at ebay.com.

The first item sold on eBay was a broken laser pointer, for $14.83.

The transaction closed in September 1995. Omidyar was experimenting with how equal access to information and opportunities affected the efficiency of marketplaces. As a test he posted a listing for a broken laser pointer, which to his amazement sold.

Omidyar then contacted the winning bidder to ensure he realized the item was broken. The buyer responded. . .

“I’m a collector of broken laser pointers.”

At that moment, Omidyar immediately realized that he was on to something very, very big indeed.

eBay’s Core Principles

From the very beginning, Omidyar built eBay around what remain the company’s three core values; a belief that:

• People are basically good

• Everyone has something to contribute

• An open environment brings out the best in people.

Relying on trust seemed to work remarkably well. The web site quickly became extremely popular, as sellers came to list all sorts of odd and varied things and buyers actually bought them.

The site had been designed from the beginning to collect a small fee on each sale, and it was this money that Omidyar used to pay for AuctionWeb’s expansion.

With revenue topping $10,000 in June, the company hired its first employee. Soon after, Jeff Skoll was hired as the first president of the company and Pierre Omidyar left his day job to work on eBay fulltime.
It was at this point, in 1996, that eBay launched the Feedback Forum to let buyers and sellers rate each other and make buying and selling safer.

Today, Omidyar’s hobby is known as eBay, the world’s largest online marketplace – where practically anyone can sell practically anything at any time. It’s an idea that Business Week once called “nothing less than a virtual, self-regulating global economy.”

eBay Gets Its Name

In 1997, Omidyar changed AuctionWeb’s – and his company’s – name to ‘eBay’, which is what people had been calling the site for a long time.

He began to spend a lot of money on advertising, and had the eBay logo designed. It was in this year that the one-millionth item was sold (it was a toy version of Big Bird from Sesame Street).

Then, in 1998 – the peak of the dotcom boom – eBay became big business, and the investment in Internet businesses at the time allowed it to bring in senior managers and business strategists, who took in public on the stock market. It started to encourage people to sell more than just collectibles, and quickly became a massive site where you could sell anything, large or small. Unlike other sites, though, eBay survived the end of the boom, and is still going strong today.

1999 saw eBay go worldwide, launching sites in the UK, Australia and Germany. eBay bought half.com, an Amazon-like online retailer, in the year 2000 – the same year it introduced Buy it Now.

eBay And Paypal

eBay went on and bought PayPal, an online payment service, in 2002. PayPal enables any individual or business with an email address to securely, easily and quickly send and receive payments online. Acquired by eBay Inc. in October 2002, PayPal builds on the existing financial infrastructure of bank accounts and credit cards and uses the world’s most advanced proprietary fraud prevention systems to create a safe payment solution.

Today, PayPal is a global leader in online payment solutions: It has 149 million registered users and is accepted by millions of merchants worldwide – on and off eBay. PayPal’s 2008 global total payment volume of $14.4 billion accounted for nearly 9 percent of worldwide eCommerce.

eBay And Skype

Skype was also acquired by eBay Inc.in October 2005.

Skype is the world’s fastest-growing Internet communication company that has revolutionized the way people talk online. With more than 309 million registered users as of early 2008, Skype allows people everywhere to make unlimited voice and video calls online for free using its software.

In addition to eBay’s massive continued success as the world’s leading auction website, these two critical acquisitions have made eBay Inc. a global leader in online payments and communications as well.

With a presence in 39 markets, including the U.S., and approximately 84 million active users worldwide, eBay has changed the face of Internet commerce. There are now literally millions of items bought and sold every day on eBay, all over the world. In 2007, the total value of sold items on eBay’s trading platforms was nearly $60 billion – that’a lot of laser pointers. This means that eBay users worldwide trade more than $1,900 worth of goods on the site every second.

The benefit to consumers is absolutely clear: eBay provides an open trading platform where the market determines the value of items that are sold. Over the years, the site has become a cultural barometer of sorts, providing a view into which objects consumers want most at any time.

Please feel free to leave a comment regarding your opinion of this article.

Bookmark this site and come again soon for more informative articles on this fantastic site called eBay.

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Please accept my apologies.

A few days ago, my website crashed.

I had to uninstall my entire blog

and reinstall.

I’m very busy at present putting everything

back in place.

It really hurts.

Please bear with me.

I will be back shortly!

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