Lanarkshire Philatelic Society

BUYING AND SELLING ON THE INTERNET

If you want to join the internet revolution, buying and/or selling stamps, here’s a few tips which we hope will be of some help.

Ebay          www.ebay.co.uk or www.ebay.com

  …..is probably the most well known and largest of these global websites which provide a forum for buyers and sellers to meet in order to conduct business.

Getting Started.

First you will need to register with the website if you want to buy or sell. As members use aliases it would be a good idea to choose an alias (User ID) and password beforehand. You will also have to give your name, address, telephone number and email address. These will remain confidential and will only be given to any buying or selling partners in order to conclude deals.

If you wish to sell you will have to give a valid credit card number to get started.

Bidding and Buying

Once you have your alias (User ID) and password you can start buying or bidding.

When you find an item you want be sure to look closely at the scan or scans of the item and also its description, if you want to bid or buy, just fill in the boxes at the bottom of the item description. It’s that easy!!!

However, before you decide to bid or buy an item it’s a good idea to checkout the seller. Each member has a feedback rating which is displayed alongside their alias, if this is a high number it will be pretty safe to do business. If you click on this number it will take you to the member’s ID page where all his or her feedback is displayed. This will give their latest feedback comments and you can also see what they have been selling recently by clicking on the item ID numbers.

By placing a bid on the site you will be bound by the rules of the site and as with all auction houses, placing a bid is a binding contract, so be sure you really want the item before finalizing your bid. Also checkout the seller’s terms and conditions and postal charges if any.

Failure to send the money and conclude the deal will result in a warning from Ebay and negative feedback. Three warnings and you will be barred from using the site. If you have negative feedback other sellers will be reluctant to do business with you.

Satisfied with your item?

You have received your item through the post and it’s just what you want. Let the sell know you’re happy by leaving positive feedback. You will find this facility on your ID page, just click on your alias or feedback number. Remember to be fair in your comments. The seller will also leave you feedback according to how quickly the deal was concluded.

Dissatisfied with your item?

Although you have entered into a binding contract, most sellers offer a money back guarantee. Contact the seller by email telling him that there’s a problem. You will usually find that you’ll both come to a mutual understanding and a refund or a substitute item will be available. 

Don’t go in and leave negative feedback then look for a refund, as by leaving feedback you are effectively concluding the deal, albeit unsatisfactorily.

Selling an Item

Selling is also very easy, just go to the selling page and fill the item’s description and other details in the selling form. Be sure to have a scan of the item. Very few stamps or covers sell without a picture. When you scan your stamp or cover save it as a “jpg” image. There will be a browser so you can add the image to the description. Once you have gained enough feedback points you will qualify to use the site’s selling tools which will make it a lot easier to list items off line then upload the all at the same time. This is particularly welcome if you don’t have a broadband connection but are paying for a dial up connection.

These are the basic steps to follow if you want to get started with Ebay or any other site as they all follow the same format. Want to check out what I have listed? Just click here!

Good luck and happy bidding!

Terry Woods.