Tips for Shopping on eBay

eBay auction of online marketing services 2 support the Cancer Council

2006-04-03T17:06:00.000-07:00

Okay this post is a bit different from the normal stuff that goes on in this blog, but I thought I'd give it a special mention.

My boss's girlfriend has been diagnosed with cervical cancer, and it was a big shock to their family and friends. My boss's shock lead him to come up with a crazy idea involving his company, Freestyle Media, to support the Cancer Council.

Freestyle Media is offering up its services of our entire Online marketing agency for a 24-hour period from Midday to Midday on consecutive days to build you whatever you like.

So, if you want a Web site for your company, family, school, anything or search engine optimise it, build a banner campaign, write an online marketing strategy, Freestyle Media will build it in 24 hours, and will not sleep until it’s finished.

Basically, Freestyle Media's entire team (15 full-time staff) will work with whoever wins the auction for a full 24-hour period, to produce anything to do with online. They plan to work in shifts to make sure that no stone is left unturned.

ALL funds raised will be donated to the Cancer Council.

If you want professional web services, but never got around to it, now's the best time because you'll also be supporting a great cause. Also, if you know of anyone that has been looking for web development or online marketing services, please feel free to send them an email with a link to this blog post.

Aucion ends on the 13th of April 06, so get your bids in now.

For more info go to http://www.24hourwebteam.com

Did you know you could get carports on eBay?

2006-03-16T18:04:00.000-08:00

That's right! You can get parts of homes on eBay.

I was so used to shopping for small consumer items such as clothing and jewelry that I didn't think about carports.

I think that it's great that people can sell stuff like carports. My boyfriend's sister sold her carport, awning, kitchen cupboards and benches, and a hot water heater. It means that someone else can reuse it and that materials aren't wasted. Her house was going to be demolished anyway.

You'll get a great bargain! Let's say it cost about $1,000 to install a car port. You might be lucky enough to find one on eBay for about $400.

So if you ever think about buying parts of a house, try checking out eBay. You'll be surprised at what you can find.

Report counterfeit sellers in Australia

2006-02-15T05:31:00.000-08:00

If you're living in Australia and you have come across an Australian seller on eBay, or elsewhere, that sells products that you know are counterfeit you can now report it.

Just go to www.counterfeit.com.au and submit a report to the private agency.

It's just a shame that a private investigation agency has to be proactive and run this kind of operation rather than the police. It just reminds me of the indifferent attitude I got from the police when I reported a counterfeit eBay seller to them.

I haven't reported anything to counterfeit.com.au. If you do, please share your experience with us.

Fraudsters, scammers and fake auctions on eBay

2006-02-15T03:53:00.000-08:00

Have you ever come across a deal on eBay that looked too good to be true? Well, I hope you didn't end up bidding on it!

Yes, scammers, fraudsters, whatever you want to call them, make money by posting up fake auctions on eBay. Their user ID looks legit, they have a "real" name, but their feedback looks a bit suss. It's hard to explain how you can tell when the feedback is suss. They may have only one, or none.

They will post up an auction that seems too good to be true. It'll be a highly desirable product, with lots of extras for a great starting price. If you see stuff like this, make sure you ask the seller a question. The question could be anything. It's the response you want to see.

If the seller is a scammer, they will ask you to complete the sale off eBay.

Why would they do that? So that there's no real record of the transaction. Because there's no record, you won't be able to dispute it.

The seller will also give you a great offer to buy it outside of eBay. For example, my boyfriend enquired about an SLR camera, with grips, lenses, flash, and tripod. The seller was willing to offer that for $1,000. He thought it was a bargain, but felt really uneasy when the seller asked to complete the transaction outside of eBay. He was also asked to pay using Wire Transfer, and provide his passport or drivers license so that the seller could pick up the payment. BIG NO!

He also noticed that the seller had limited the auction to a 1 day auction. Talk about pressuring you into paying for the "good deal". There's also no time for eBay to close down that auction because it'll be too late!

Don't get caught up in the possibility of a good deal when you can tell something fishy is going on.

Make sure you ask the seller a question, check their feedback, and probably even have a chat with some people on eBay's community forums. Due diligence and missing a "good deal" is better than losing your money, and possibly even your identity.

Claim money received for my eBay counterfeit clothing case

2006-01-31T05:03:00.000-08:00

Just a quick update!

I got my payment from eBay for my claim against the seller who sold me the fake counterfeit Diesel rip offs (read "Designer brand labels... are they for REAL? 5 simple buying tips".

It took close to eBay's estimated 45 days to see my money in my PayPal account... but it came.

Using Chargeback to get your money back

2006-01-31T04:42:00.000-08:00

Remember my story about not receiving items from a seller who had private feedback? If not, you can read it the post "Private (hidden) feedback ... what are they trying to hide?".

Well guess what? After a month of following up with this seller through email for a refund (the phone number entered in their eBay account wasn't correct!) I managed to get my refund. But no, it wasn't the selller who refunded me the money; it was my credit card provider. I waited until I realised that the seller was not going to honour their word of a refund to me.

I used my credit card's chargeback facility to recover the full amount. If I went through PayPal's dispute process, I would have to pay a processing fee of $25 (US).

So, I got refunded my money in about 6 weeks from filling in my form with my bank. The time it takes for the chargeback process to complete will be different for every bank.

I'm glad I was able to recover the full amount this time. Although it was a lot less than the money I could have lost in the counterfeit clothing debacle discussed in "Designer brand labels... are they for real? 5 simple buying tips".

It's unfortunate that the seller's eBay business did not work out. I wish them better luck with their other, and future, business endeavours.

Safe payment options! Which one to choose? Make sure your ass is covered.

2006-01-19T23:30:00.000-08:00

So you've taken the plunge to buy something on eBay. You notice that you have quite a few payment options available to you. PayPal, PayMate, direct deposit, wire transfer etc etc ... and the list goes on for a little. Which one are you supposed to choose? Which one is the safest?

Let's go through the most popular eBay payment methods one by one.

PayPal - This is my favourite payment method. It's fast and easy and it allows you to pay with your credit card without giving your credit card details to the seller. All you do is register with PayPal and your details will be stored with them.

Each time you win an auction and check out, you may be able to choose the PayPal option. You'll be taken to PayPal where you log in and confirm the payment details before making your payment.

Since PayPal is an eBay company, PayPal has a similar dispute resolution process as eBay. If you purchase an item on eBay using PayPal, you will be required to use PayPal's dispute resolution process instead of eBay's in order to get your money back.

It's also possible for you to use your bank's chargeback facility to reclaim your money through PayPal.

As with online banking, make sure you do not click on any links in emails that look like they're from PayPal. If you need to verify your PayPal account details, open up your web browser and enter the PayPal web address.

PayMate - I haven't used this payment method before, but it looks fairly similar to PayPal. I'm not sure of their security and dispute resolution methods. Please leave a comment if you've used this method before. Everyone will appreciate it.
Direct Deposit - This option allows you to deposit money into the seller's bank account. You'll get the bank account details on eBay, or your seller will send them to you. You then go to any branch of the seller's bank and make a deposit for the amount of your purchase. You can also deposit through Internet transfer (next in the list).

This is a convenient way if you want to pay by cash. The only problem is that you will have to trust that your seller will refund your money. There is practically no way to get your money back if the seller doesn't want to hear from you.

Internet Transfer - If you have your seller's bank account details, you can transfer money into their bank account using your bank's Internet banking facilities.

This option is great because you don't have to leave the home. It does, however, have the same issue of trust as the direct deposit option.

Wire Transfer - This is different to Internet transfer because you will be using a service such as Western Union. It's very unsafe and is used predominantly by sellers who want to steal your money.

Be careful when you're dealing with sellers who use this payment option only. If any other options are available, such as PayPal, please use that instead. I will tell you a story in relation to wire transfers in my next post.

Money Order - This is very Aussie based. You just go to your local post office to purchase a money order under the name specified by the seller. Make sure to post your Money Order with the item number or your eBay ID on the back, with a print out of your invoice. It will take longer to process your payment if you don't provide this information.

Please make sure you spell their name correctly because the seller will have to present identification in order to get cash from the post office for the Money Order.

If you have any problems where you need to get your money back, you will have to trust that the seller will refund your money.

If, however, your Money Order is lost in the mail you can apply to Australia Post in writing to issue a replacement. You will be required to show your receipt, serial number, money order tab, or the payee's name, amount, date, and post office it was purchased.

See Australia Post's Terms and Conditions for details.

Bank Cheque - This is standard. Just go to the bank to purchase a bank cheque. This is fairly expensive since banks usually charge an additional $5 to write a bank cheque. This method also takes up to 3 days for the seller to process. So you'll be waiting a fair amount of time to receive your items.

Make sure you provide a print out of your invoice with your cheque to the seller. If you have any problems, the only way you can do anything about it is to call your bank. Make sure you keep the cheque stub attached to the bank cheque.

Personal Cheque - Most sellers will not provide this payment method.

Cash - This method is only advised when you're picking up the item. Do not send cash by mail. When paying with cash, you will have to trust that your seller will refund your money if something goes wrong.

Escrow - I haven't used this method either, but is used for high-priced items because the fees to the seller are high. Fees to the seller are around the $30+ mark.

What happens is you will have to sign up to the escrow service provider that the seller is using and you pay the escrow site after you've confirmed the details with the seller. The escrow service provider (such as Escrow Australia) holds your payment until you receive your items. You tell the escrow service that everything is okay, and the escrow service sends your payment to the seller.

Even though I haven't used this, it is recommended when purchasing items over $400.

I have been happy using PayPal and Internet Transfer to pay for eBay auctions. They're very easy to use, fast, and convenient.

I also have another story to share with you about using the charge back facility to get a refund from PayPal for the seller who didn't send me my items.

That's a lot to digest in one go. I hope that helps you with your eBay shopping.

Don't hesistate to let me know of any other payment methods you've come across that you would like me to review. It would also be great if you could share your experiences.

Winning an auction without a computer

2005-12-20T16:42:00.000-08:00

Don't you hate it when you really want to bid for that must have item, but the time the auction ends clashes with that wedding you just HAVE to go to?

There are heaps of people getting into some sniping (pronounced sneye-ping) action... but what is it?

Sniping involves entering the details of the item you would like to win with a sniping website or software. This sniping website/software will put in your maximum bid in the last few seconds.

All you have to do is set up an account that contains your eBay details with the Sniping website/software.

Then each time you want to win an item, just whack in the item number and max bid.

PowerSnipe is packed with features such as sniping, searching, and setting up bid groups to allow you to bid on the same item from multiple sellers until you get the price you set.

You can check out their features by going to their website.

Don't sit in front of a computer pulling your hair out! Snipe your auctions so you can spend quality time with your family and friends!

News Flash! There is good in all this madness

2005-12-13T15:16:00.000-08:00

Just updating you on what's happening with the counterfeit Diesel case.

eBay have been extremely efficient and helpful in following up my dispute and claim. It has been resolved in my favour.

Let's just say that this would all have been a lot easier if I had taken the correct precautions in the first place.

BNWOT... MIMP... What the FAQ? Please explain!

2005-12-12T21:58:00.000-08:00

There's limited space for Ebay sellers to enter an eye catching title for their items on sale.... so they make the most of it by putting in these acronyms to explain as much as possible, in as little space as possible.

What the hell do they all mean?

Well, Ebay has written up a lovely little webpage explaining what they all mean. You can visit the page by following this link.

I hope that page makes it easier for you to shop on Ebay :)

Private (hidden) feedback ... what are they trying to hide?

2005-12-12T21:19:00.000-08:00

Ebay allows it's members to hide feedback comments while only displaying their feedback scores. The reason is that not all Ebay members are sensible. Rude Ebayers can leave comments that shatter a responisble Ebayer's reputation. So it's understandable why some people will choose to hide their feedback comments.

Then there are also those not-so-honest people who use this feature to hide feedback that can help buyers make informed purchasing decisions.

Ebayers can determine the following just by looking at past feedback comments:

Can this seller be trusted?
How has their service been in the past?
Do they respect their customers?
Have past issues been professionally resolved?
And more.

My boyfriend has avoided purchasing from a seller because his replies to feedback comments, and feedback left for others were very rude and disrespectful.

Anyway, no one is perfect, so there are some really good sellers and buyers who may have one or two neutral or negative feedback comments. Ebayers can generally be trusted as long as their overall score is high and there aren't any accusations of fake stock being sold.

Here's a link to Ebay's help file on using private feedback.

My Story

I bought some items off an Ebay seller who hid their feedback comments. I was too trusting and didn't look into why the seller may have hid their comments.

Guess what happened? I purchased and paid for 4 items off this seller, and after all that the seller unregistered themselves from Ebay! I waited a week after I paid for the items to see if they had delivered the items. Nothing came.

Boy was I fuming! There was no explanation from them about why they were unregistered from Ebay.

I then took some time to find out how many items this seller had sold in the past 2 months and found out that they had sold 53 items in the last month, but had only 13 feedback comments to their name.

That did not match at all!

After some asking around, I found out that this seller didn't deliver items won by a majority of other buyers! Buyers who have paid by net bank transfer or direct deposit are finding it impossible to get a refund, and some have given up.

I'm in the process of trying to get a refund from this buyer and hope I do not have to wait too much longer.

Designer brand labels... are they for REAL? 5 simple buying tips

2005-12-08T00:25:00.000-08:00

This topic has brought up many stories on the Ebay discussion board, and many stories of disappointed buyers. This post will discuss measures to take when purchasing new brand name clothing on Ebay.

I bought a heap of so-called "Diesel" clothing hoping to start up an Ebay business by reselling them. Naive little me purchased them without consulting anyone. Had I searched around on the Net, I would've realised that there are heaps of Diesel fakes on Ebay, and many stories to boot. I'm currently trying to claim some money back after having lodged a dispute with the seller, and escalated the dispute to Ebay. I won't go into details here for privacy reasons.

So, with all these fake brand name clothing on Ebay, what is one supposed to do to save themselves from getting ripped off? Here are some basic tips:

Don't purchase the items without having done the following; even if it does seem like that auction with 5 minutes left will land you with a great bargain. HOLD BACK if you don't like taking risks or putting up with nasty surprises!
Check the seller's feedback. The seller should have a lot of positive feedback. I'll arbitrarily set 98% positive feedback points as a minimum.

If there is any negative feedback take the time to browse through the seller's feedback to see what the buyer's responses are. Think twice, or avoid the buyer, if there has been any feedback stating that the items purchased were fake.
Ask the seller whether they're fake or not and where they got their item(s) from.

Some will know they're selling fakes, some may be naive and not know at all, and some will be honest and are really selling an authentic item.

Sellers who get their clothes from any Asian country will most likely be selling fakes.

Some people may have just managed to get a real bargain at designer clothing sales, received them as gifts, selling a second hand item, or selling off their ex-partner's clothing. Who knows!
Give the head office of the label, or one of the retail stores a call or an email.

Politely ask them if they could help you in determining whether an item for sale is authentic. It may be possible for them to determine the authenticity over the phone. They will also most likely be able to tell from the photo posted on Ebay if you provide them a link to the item description.

I contacted Diesel in Sydney, and all the staff there were magnificent in helping me determine the authenticity of the clothing I purchased. If only I had done it before I bought the items!
Visit Ebay's discussion forums and ask people for their second opinion.

There are a lot of experienced Ebayers who may be able to help you out.

This is a link specifically for the clothing, home & lifestyle discussion board. You will need to log in to post a topic or join in on a discussion. Other discussion boards are available by following this link.

Those are just 5 main things you should do before purchasing a brand label off Ebay if you are after authentic items, and not cheap rip offs.

I know there are people out there who couldn't care less, and would rather buy the fake stuff and support illegal activity that stems way beyond manufacturing imitation clothing.

Here's a link to an old SMH article about cracking down on sellers of counterfeit clothing written in 2002, and makes some good points.

Please excuse me for bringing up terrorism, but I want people to see the extremities of buying fake clothing:

"On July 16, 2003, Interpol Secretary General Ronald K. Noble warned the House of Representatives Committee on International Relations that there is growing evidence of a link between terrorist financing and intellectual property piracy, including piracy of copyrighted CDs and DVDs, and counterfeit clothing, computer software, and cigarettes. Noble presented Interpol documents indicating that a wide range of terrorist groups, including AlQaeda, Hezbollah, Chechen separatists, ethnic Albanian extremists in Kosovo, and paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland, have profited from the production or sale of counterfeit goods."

Source: Intellectual Property & Technology Law Journal; Clifton Oct 2003 15; 10 p. 21-22 (Available on ProQuest.com, requires login; or visit your local university library).