Ebay Help Site

Homepage:
The eBay site is laid out quite simply and is fairly easy to use, although if you're not used to surfing the Internet or shopping sites the homepage may seem confusing and crowded. When you first go on the site you can see the homepage which has a white background, with the logo in the top left corner, a search engine and all the main links (e.g. the categories, My eBay and Help).

If you've been on before it will show recent activities, which you can hide, although it will probably reappear next time you log in. Personally this kind of annoys me as I'd much rather go to My Ebay and see what is there properly than have it show random things on the homepage, but I guess some people will find this a useful feature.

The homepage also shows a number of deals and has adverts the homepage looks really busy and makes the site look more confusing than it actually is, but it's something you get used.

As I already mentioned, there is a search engine on the homepage. This allows you to search for items on the site. It has a drop down menu at the side so you can select the category, which is often helpful. The search engine works really well.

Below the search engine is a list of categories. Clicking these will show you a list of other categories within that category, which is a great way to find something if you don't know the actual name of it or want to search for a range of things. E.g. if you want to search all video games. When you click on a link it then takes you to all the auctions under the category.

Links:
From the homepage you will also notice links in the top right hand corner. The first is Buy, which basically allows you to find an item. The second is My eBay. Here you can see all that you are selling, buying or items you are watching. It also has links to your account details and more. This is the main section you will use on the site.

After that there is a link saying Sell. This gives a link to listing an item as well as help pages about it. The next link is Community. This leads to a forum where you can ask and answer questions. If you can't find the answers you want this is a great place to go to for help. Next to this link is Contact Us, which is used for contacting eBay. The final link is Help. This leads to a massive help section which tells you pretty much all you need to know on buying and selling.

If you use the Internet all the time like I do eBay is quite easy to use and navigate around. For anyone who doesn't use computers much it could take a while to get used to the layout and what all the links are. I wouldn't say the layout is exactly simple, but there's a lot to do on the site and they've tried to make it as user friendly as possible. With a plain white background, blue links, black writing and certain areas in a light grey it's easy to read everything and won't hurt your eyes.

Auctions:
Once on the auctions there are options down the side to narrow your search down. E.g. By setting price limits or only looking for new items. You can also use the drop down menu at the top of the auctions to select how you wish the items to be displayed. So if you want the cheapest item you can select to show the lowest price first. You also have the option to look at all items, auctions only, or Buy It Now listings so you have plenty of choices and a good chance of finding the item you want.

When you find an item you can bid on it or, in some cases, buy it, but I'll explain more about that below in the part about using the site as a buyer.

Becoming a buyer:
To become a buyer all you need to do is sign up for an eBay account and a Paypal account. There are other paying options, but it usually means waiting longer and having less come back if anything goes wrong. A lot of sellers will only accept Paypal and eBay strongly recommend you use it, although that's hardly surprising as it's the same company. Still, Paypal is the quickest and safest way to pay for items on eBay.

About Ebay:
Ebay sells everything, from art to video games. They have rare items, imported items and things you can find anywhere. Prices vary a lot, from a 1p auction start to hundreds of pounds, depending on the item and what the seller wants for it. You can win any of these items.

As I already explained, there is a search engine and many categories. This allows you to find the item you want. Once you get used to searching you'll find you can find what you want a lot quicker and get more exact results.

Auctions and feedback:
Once you find what you want you can view an auction and you can see all the details of an item. If that is what you want you can bid on it. Bidding is simple. You either put in the price it states below the box or you put in the most you are willing to pay. When you do this it will go to the price stated unless the other person has put in a higher bid, in which case it will automatically keep bidding for you until you outbid them or reach the limit you placed. Don't forget that some items will also require you to pay postage too. The cost of this is stated below the current bid and is added on to the final price of the auction.

You can always bid again later if you get outbid. If your bid is the highest you win the item. The system is very simple, even for those who don't shop online.

You can add any item to your watch list which can be viewed under My eBay. You can see what the current bid is at and it's a very useful feature. Under My eBay you can also see the items you have bid on.

For items you've won you can leave feedback for the seller, which is very useful and is helpful when you are searching for items as you can check the seller is reliable and trustworthy. Feedback is optional, but as both a buyer and a seller feedback is very important and I'd recommend leaving feedback for every purchase and hopefully the seller will do the same.

Problems:
Things can go wrong when buying off eBay and you have to read descriptions very carefully, but so far I haven't had any massive problems. I once bought a phone charger that didn't work and had to be replaced. The second failed too so I got a refund. It didn't cost me any extra for a replacement and I got refunded with no problem. The seller replied to my email telling them about the problem and was happy to sort it. While some sellers may not be quite so willing to do this it does prove there are some good sellers out there. Course, it would have been better if the product had worked, but this is the only time there has been a problem. Other items I've bought have often been better than expected and generally posted quickly.

You also have to be careful of scams too as some sellers will add extra cost to the postage or never post the item you have bought. You should always be careful when buying online and read everything properly and check people's feedback so you know the item should be what you want. Make sure to read Ebay policy on returns and what to do if things go wrong as well so that things can be sorted quicker and easily and you won't end up out of pocket or with an item you didn't want.

Becoming a seller:
To become a seller you have to set up a sellers account. This isn't as complicated or time consuming as it sounds. You can set it up pretty fast and there is a step by step guide on the site under Help. It basically allows eBay to set up your account and make sure everything is ok for you to start selling. Once it is set up you won't notice any difference to your eBay account other than in My eBay which shows the list of items you are selling. While it sounds like a whole new account it is just merged in with your buyers account.

How to sell:
To sell an item you have to go through a wizard. You can go through quick sell which allows you to set up auctions faster, or advanced sell where you get all the options to be able to add the most detail possible to your auction. I prefer the advanced sell.

As I say, this is a wizard - it guides you through each step of setting up the auction. You start by adding the product title and choosing a category and then you can add photos, a description, set the price and more. Depending on the item depends on what other options you get. For example, with books you can select whether it is a hardback or paperback and the genre. The main layout is the same no matter what you sell so once you've added one item you'll easily be able to add the rest.

The auction then goes live for people to bid on. You can view it at any time and, within reason, have the option to revise your listing. Once the item ends you can either relist it if it doesn't sell or post it to the winner once they've paid.

Fees:
For everything you sell you have to pay fees. You may also have to pay fees if your item doesn't sell if you select certain options such as an image gallery for photos of your items or a higher starting price on your auction. You have to pay to list the item, although if you have a start of under 99p and are a private seller you can list it for free. You also have to pay a fee if the item sells. These fees vary depending on the item and end price, but the fees are all listed on the Help section.

On the plus side eBay sometimes do free listing days or weekends where you can list items for free. However, this is for auctions only not Buy it Now and you still have to pay the final fee is the item sells.

Feedback:
As with buying you can leave feedback which allows you to know which buyers you can trust and means buyers know they can trust you. When setting up listings you can place limits so that people with bad feedback can not bid.

Ebay is great for buying and it's good for selling certain items. It'd be better with lower fees when selling, but other sites charge just as much, if not more. Just remember to follow the advice above and you should find some great deals on Ebay from sellers you can trust and be able to sell some of your items that you no longer want.