What are your Ebay rules?

[realitytrip]

 

First off.... as a new member here can I say that I really like it here, but that the constant arguing over the state of the comic industry is getting OLD. Everyone is set in their views (which is fine) but this pointless bickering is tiring. If you must do it, please confine it to the threads which concern it. There is entirely too much thread hijacking going on around here.

 

Ahem. Now to my thread. I find myself browsing ebay a lot, looking for random cool books I don't know about or for crazy deals. It is really too easy to get sucked into bidding for stuff I don't want. Now this certainly isn't the case for me when books get up to "silly" money, but too many books at 10-20 bucks each really adds up. So I have imposed some ebay rules on myself to keep myself sane and keep a roof over my head.

 

1) Have a limit at all times. I have a definate price ceiling above which I will not bid, except for three books, and that is usually not an issue, cause those books never show up!

 

2) If it looks too good to be true, it probably is. Buying raw books, I am very worried about hidden restoration.

 

3) The smaller the picture, the bigger the question mark.

 

4) Have a set price before the snipes begin. I try to stick to this, it is hard sometimes, but most of the books I go after show up fairly regularly and I would rather win an item outside of a sniping war.

 

5) Feedback is important. It is not the end all be all, but a seller selling a 500 dollar book with a stamp size picture and a -2 feedback is not getting my bid.

 

6) I try to track sales of books to give me an idea of scarcity and price. I know you guys recommend GPAnalysis, but I don't (usually) buy CGC books. Any programs out there that just track books?

 

7) This one gets my pocketbook in trouble, but if I see a run that looks good by a seller, I will search all of their other runs, which has brought me some nice books. Gotta love VF-NM runs at econo prices. I feel so dealerish.

 

8) Buy stuff I want to own and NOT just to sell. I am not a dealer, and I sell very few books. Many times I have to tell myself that I am only thinking of bidding on a book due to price and that is not a book I want or would enjoy owning. This helps me avoid buying "hot" books or books that I feel are overvalued.

 

9) MOST IMPORTANT - enjoy myself. Laugh at NM listings that look G-. Boggle at CGC book prices. Thrill to the hunt for hidden treasures overlooked by other bidders. Try to match ebay ids with people here.

 

So.... what are your personal ebay rules? Please share!

[spideyfan-migration]

Welcome aboard.

 

Some of my personal rules include:

 

1) Getting high resolution scans on any book over $20. I can’t believe some of the Ebay auctions with books in the hundred’s and thousand’s of dollars with stamp-sized scans. And they sometimes call them VF/NM or better!? I believe even CGC’d books require larger scans.

 

2) Good communication on part of seller. Before a bid, I always email a seller with requests of additional scans, postage amounts, or other questions. If seller does not reply or in a prompt period (24 hours), I usually don’t bid. If they take the effort to try to win a sale, what could happen when the money’s sent and there is a problem with the item(s)?

 

Peter

 

[jbud73]

Um, never purchase a big ticket book for a first purchase off a seller. This one is sometimes hard to stick to. I mean if its Darth, or lighthouse (they frequent the boards) and a few others you feel you know them better than any feedback could explain. But usually I try out the seller with a $10-$25 book and draw my analysis from there. This rule has really really saved me in the past.