Online Auction Tips: Best Practices and Mistakes

Every auction has a description of the item that you are bidding on. Sometimes the descriptions are very sketchy and the pictures somewhat blurry. Sometimes the descriptions are clear and precise. But even a clear, concise description does NOT indicate that it is accurate.
This is not a problem which solely pertains to online auctions, sellers of all types sometimes tend to exaggerate. (They are, after all, trying to make money by getting you to buy their product.) It is also possible that a seller may just be wrong in what they state. I read descriptions all the time which indicate that common coins are "RARE." I've read descriptions indicating that coins are "ERRORs" which are obviously the result of wear or damage after the coin left the mint. Are these folks lying? I can't say that. I can say, however, that they are WRONG!

Sometimes you find a Seller with excellent feedback ratings. Surely this is a trustworthy seller! Anyone Who Had a Negative Experience Would Say Something, Right? Not Always.
I am somewhat leery of feedback ratings. Many times I have read where a seller bluntly states that he does not want to see any negative feedback. I have heard stories of retribution against buyers who leave negative feedback. I know people who "didn't spend much" and decided not to leave negative feedback because it was too much trouble!
I personally avoid sellers with poor feedback ratings. And I don't ever expect people to have perfect ratings. Some customers can't be pleased no matter what the seller does. But I do look for sellers with very high feedback ratings. I know a gentleman who runs a substantial eBay business who tells me he won't deal with anyone who has less than 99% positive ratings -- preferably above 99.5%.

An embarrassing personal story here! I purchased a coin from a seller and was exceptionally pleased with it. The price was good, the communication with the seller was great. I called the shipping "lightning fast."
But when I clicked the link to characterize the sale, I clicked the negative option.
The seller was very professional and understanding in pointing out my error, and I quickly made a correction. But at least in that instance negative feedback existed for about a day for a very positive transaction. I told the seller that I hoped I had not caused him any trouble, and I promised to be much more careful in the future.

And Buyers really can be unreasonable. They don't read the descriptions. They don't read the terms. They get "buyer's remorse. And for some reason they blame the Seller. That's not fair!

For the most part, I look at feedback as a whole, rather than relying on single instances.

It seems that many people believe that they will never need to return a purchase they make. Either that or they believe that they will be able to return a purchase for a full refund any time they want. That's just not true! Anyone who makes a purchase on eBay needs to understand his rights and his obligations when it comes to evaluating the product and making a return if it is necessary. If you don't follow the rules that are set out, you just may be stuck with a purchase that you just plain don't want! And don't forget to look at who is responsible for return shipping. More times than not the unhappy buyer gets stuck with the cost of shipping the item back.

Online auctions like eBay are about the closest thing in existence to open markets. The rule of thumb is actually the same as it has been in free market enterprise. "Caveat Emptor." LET THE BUYER BEWARE.

Sellers are sometimes unscrupulous. Sellers are sometimes well-meaning in their descriptions but WRONG. Services like PayPal tend to even the playing field somewhat. Whereas with an Electronic Funds Transfer when the transfer is made, the money is pretty much gone, PayPal has a Buyer Protection policy.

According to PayPal, an item may be covered by PayPal Buyer Protection if:
* You purchase the item on eBay.
* You use PayPal to pay for the item.
* You correspond with the seller using the email address associated with the seller's listing (make sure by using the Pay Now button when the eBay listing ends).
* The seller's listing is for a physical item-services and intangible items aren't covered.
* You file only one claim per PayPal payment.
* You open the case no later than 45 calendar days from the date of your PayPal payment and - if you need to - escalate it to a claim no more than 20 calendar days after you open your case.
If PayPal finds in your favor, you may be reimbursed for your claim. If you receive a refund, it will be credited to your PayPal account.

One of the worst thing that a buyer can do is enter the bidding process for an item in the last ten minutes of the sale with no real plan and no real limits. It is very easy to get caught up in the excitement and throw caution to the wind to get that item that he "just can't do without." Why?

First, other folks do the same thing. Often people will watch as an auction approaches its ending time and then attempt to bid at the last minute. Chances are good that you are bidding against several people doing the same thing.

Second, software packages exist to place bids at the very last moment. This practice is known as sniping. The sniper enters a maximum bid into the program and lets the program monitor the progress of the auction until the pre-set time to place a bid. This is often in the last minute of the auction. Sniping programs are faster than you. That's just a simple fact. Go up against one of these programs and try to beat it by entering a high price at the last moment hoping that the sniper's high bid is usually a bad, bad, bad idea. Getting into the excitement of a bidding war, whether against a live opponent or a program will almost always ensure that you pay more than you wanted to.

Set a limit. Have a plan. If it doesn't work out, it just wasn't meant to be!

The maxim in numismatics is Buy the Book Before You Buy the Coin. In other words, do the research before you shell out cash! Whenever you are dealing with an auction of any sort you should have a good idea about an item's value before you bid. That's especially important with an online auction!

I spoke with a coin dealer, asking him whether he sold coins online. He looked at me intensely and shook his head back and forth very slowly.

"Art, I have enough trouble making a living at shows and in my shop. I can look a buyer in the eye and get an idea whether or not he knows what he's doing, and if he's new to the hobby I can try to steer him in the right direction. A collector making a bad decision because he doesn't know the market hurts us both. He'll never come back to me. He'll probably tell his friends. And it costs me money! If a shopper comes to me, and he doesn't know what he's doing, I try to educate him. If he won't listen, sometimes I just don't sell to him.

But online, he gets excited. He places a bid. He wins the auction, but just isn't happy. And all H*** breaks loose. There are no winners there. I want knowledgeable, reasonable buyers. I'll probably never have the case where I sell the coin that I bought for $100 for a $1000 profit, but that's okay with me."

I agree!

This is really similar to Number 6, but this time we're talking about an unscrupulous seller who takes advantage of the system. Online auctions don't stand for that! It's not in their best interest for paying customers to feel cheated. They will frequently work with you. eBay lists some examples where their Buyer Protection Policy can come to your aid.
* You received a completely different item. For example, you purchased a book and received a DVD.
* The condition of the item is wrong. For example, the listing said "new" and the item has clearly been used.
* The item is missing parts or components (e.g., camera kit was supposed to include a tripod, but you didn't receive it.)
* Item defective during first use: The first time you tried to use the product, it didn't work (e.g., HDTV did not turn on).
* The item is a different version or edition than the item displayed in the listing.
* The item was described as authentic but isn't.
* The item is missing major parts or features, and this was not disclosed in the listing.
* You purchased 3 items from a seller but only received 2.
* The item was damaged during shipment.

"f we agree your purchase is eligible, we'll reimburse you via PayPal ... for the full purchase price of the item (including any applicable sales tax) plus original shipping costs. If you're opening a case because the item doesn't match the description, you'll typically need to pay for return shipping."

Think about it! They might be making the same mistakes you are! Other folks can be uninformed. Other folks can get caught up in the excitement. Other folks can lose money just as easily as you can!