We recommend that you learn to buy on eBay. Each time you need to purchase something—
a toner cartridge or a book, pens and paper, a CD—begin your online search at eBay, and buy
from an eBay merchant. There are three important reasons to do this:
You’ll find great deals on eBay.
You’ll learn to understand the system from the buyer’s perspective, and in general get
more comfortable working with eBay.
You’ll boost your feedback rating.
As a new merchant, you’re at a real disadvantage—with no feedback, you’re an unknown
entity. But you can get feedback by making purchases through eBay, and then asking for
feedback. Thus, you should get into the habit of making all your online purchases through
eBay—you may even save money, and you’ll build a better reputation as a seller.
Understanding the Selling Formats
You can sell through eBay using several different formats, as shown in the following list:
Auction The most common form of eBay transaction
Has the potential to get a high price
Preferred by many eBay buyers
Has low listing fees
Seller can set a reserve price (for an additional fee)
Fixed Price Involves no bidding—either someone buys or they don’t
Often leads to quicker sales
Convenient for customers who want to buy quickly and move on
Good for listing multiple items
Combination—Auction
and Buy It Now
An auction that can be cut short if someone meets a fixed price (We’ll
discuss this a bit later.)
