Reputation in online buying

This business runs on reputation and if you get a bad one, your image on the online auction site will be damaged, possibly beyond repair. Many buyers won’t do business with you. In the worst case, you can be suspended from the online auction site.
Retracting a bid is considered serious and it is strongly advised that you do not to do it unless under extreme circumstances.
You may retract an online bid under exceptional conditions like:
i) You accidentally bid a wrong bid amount. For instance, you bid Rs.9950
instead of Rs.995. But this doesn’t hold good if you want to make a small change to your bid amount, people will, take it harshly.
ii) The item description of something you’re bidding on has changed a lot.
Sellers will sometimes add to the description of an item. If this changes,
bidders will sometimes withdraw their bids.
iii) You cannot verify the seller’s identity, or she won’t respond to any of your
questions. Even though this is sometimes accepted by sites as a legitimate
excuse, you really should figure all this out before bidding, not after.

They can’t make you buy it-true. However, online auctions sites
expect the bidder to fill out a form explaining the reason for the withdrawal.
If you absolutely must retract, do it before the auction is over to reduce the
damage. It is unfair to leave the seller hanging after the online auction is over. Even if your explanation is accepted, it will go into your feedback profile and make
future sellers and buyers wary of dealing with you.
A seller may always refuse to sell to any particular person, and needs no
reason for her refusal. You might find this happening to you a lot if you decide
to retract your bids.

Similarly reputation is of utmost importance for online sellers, once damaged there would be detrimental effects on the business. Since regular, experienced buyers buy mostly after seeing the feedbacks on the seller any negative feedback will be damaging for the seller's business.

So ,deal fairly every time you trade on online auctions, since bad reputation spreads like a forest fire as in the real world market,albeit at a more rapid pace.
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Kinds of auctions

There are different kinds of auctions, about which it is important for the buyer and seller to know. The typical auction is the nice straightforward kind of winner-takes-all.
However, there are special auctions, and one kind in particular is critical for
any seller who wants to reach the top pinnacle in the auction business.
Here are of the few different kinds...

1) Reserve Auction
I have already explained this kind of transaction in my previous post. Reserve auctions are a very small minority and are usually reserved for higher-priced items.

2) Dutch Auctions
Dutch auctions are vitally important. They are the key to substantial
income generation! A Dutch auction is one in which the seller offers more than one of the items she is selling. For example, if you have 25 pens to sell, you can create 25 different listings, or you can put them all in a Dutch auction.
Sometimes it is appropriate to create single listings. Other times, Dutch
auctions are the way to go. There are different strategies for either approach...
i) Rules -- On most sites, brand new traders cannot participate in a Dutch
auction. This restriction isn’t to pick on the “new kids.” It’s
because it takes some skill and practice to manage them.
There can be no reserve price in a Dutch auction. There is no proxy bidding,
either. The winners in a Dutch auction purchase the item at the lowest
successful bid.
Take the following example:
Let’s say that X is auctioning 10 pairs of socks, with an
opening bid of Rs.5. If 10 people (or less) bid Rs.5, no problem. They all get a set of socks. But what if 16 people bid on those 10 sets of socks. We can have the following scenario:
Buyer A - Rs.13.50
Buyer B - Rs.12.75
Buyer C - Rs.12.25
Buyer D - Rs.11.80
Buyer E - Rs.11.00
Buyer F - Rs.10.43
Buyer G - Rs.9.10
Buyer H - Rs.7.50
Buyer J - Rs.5.00
Buyer K - Rs.5.00
Buyer L - Rs.5.00
Buyer M - Rs.5.00
Buyer N - Rs.5.00
Buyer O - Rs.5.00
Buyer P - Rs.5.00
Buyer Q - Rs.5.00
Buyers A to K get the socks. J and K got the socks, and
buyers L to Q did not get them, when they bid as much as J and K. It all has to do with the chronological sequence. The first buyers who bid a winning
price are the lucky ones.
Now for the tough question. What does everybody pay for these socks?
The price is based on the lowest successful bid which in this case was Rs.5.
Therefore, everybody pays Rs.5. Yes, you read it correctly. Everybody! Even though Buyer A bid Rs.13.50, she only has to pay Rs.5. For now, just be aware that Dutch auctions are something you want to master. They are the source of super profits.


3) Reverse Dutch Auctions
Reverse Dutch auctions are sometimes found at specialty sites, but they are
not very popular. In a reverse auction, the price begins dropping at specified
intervals. The buyer’s job is to figure out when the price is acceptably low.
Wait too long and someone else will buy the widget.
It is similar to a Dutch auction, however, in that everybody will buy at the lowest price. However, you had better be willing to pay whatever you have bid. Be sure of your bid -- don’t hope or expect the price to drop because it may not.
So far, this doesn’t seem to be an especially popular format. I have yet to talk to anyone who has participated in such an auction.

4) Restricted Auctions
Restricted auctions are usually for “adult” auctions. To even look at the items in restricted auctions, the site requires credit card information which means the browser must be 18 years old.

5) Private Auctions
In a regular auction, the identity of the bidders is available for all to know. In a
private auction, this isn’t the case. There are usually two reasons for a private
auction...
1) If the item is very expensive, the bidders may not want the world to know
that they can afford a Van Gogh.
2) In the case of adult auctions, the bidders may not want anyone to know they
are bidding on a particular item.

But Dutch auctions cannot be private.

Bidding process and strategies

The more you know about the online auction process, the more effectively you will sell. The better you know your customers, the more successful you will be in your online business. In short, you need to know how your customers feel and behave. You have to get into your customer’s mindset.

The Bidding Process

Each item will show to have a minimum bid.

If you could match this bid, two things happen.

1. The auction site asks you to review your bid
2. Then it will ask you to give your password and user ID.

In a short time, you will receive a confirmation e-mail from the auction site.

Remember, there is no charge for bidding.

Bid Increments

There are bidding increment guidelines of auction sites which have to be followed. For example if an item is quoting Rs. 190, you cannot bid it for Rs.191. You only win if you have the highest bid when the auction closes. One great feature of Internet auctions, however, is that they will notify you if you are outbid and by how much.

Proxy bidding

This is an interesting feature of auction sites. Suppose you have a game collection to be purchased and you are desperate to have it and are willing to pay up to Rs.2500 for it. At this point, though, the bidding is only Rs.1200.

Thanks to proxy bidding, all you must do is click “proxy bidding” below the minimum bid amount and enter your proxy bid of Rs.2500. The computer will bid for you. Whenever your arch-rival bids on your game, the computer will automatically bid the next accepted amount for you. And each time the computer bids for you, it notifies you via e-mail. Your maximum bid is a secret. When and if the price exceeds Rs.2500, the computer will not bid any longer.

Here's how bidding on eBay works:

1. When you place a bid, you enter the maximum amount you're willing to pay for the item. The seller and other bidders won't know your maximum bid amount.

2. eBay places bids on your behalf starting with the next bid increment for the auction. We'll bid as much as necessary to make sure that you remain the high bidder (or to meet the reserve price). We'll keep bidding for you until bidding reaches your maximum amount.

3. If another bidder has placed the same bid before you or a higher maximum bid, we'll let you know that you've been outbid so that you can place another bid if you want. However, if no other bidder has a higher maximum bid at the end of the auction, you win the item even if your bid doesn't go as high as your maximum bid. You could pay significantly less than your maximum price. This means you don't have to keep coming back to re-bid every time another bid is placed

Reserve Auctions

A reserve is a price below which the seller will not sell and the amount is kept secret during the auction. One reason online sellers do this is to have a lower insertion fee to pay. Another reason is to create interest on the part of the buyers.
A downside to this kind of auction is that most buyers shun it since they get bugged off if the price they bid doesn’t meet the reserve price.

Bidding Strategies
Really serious online auction players and collectors develop winning strategies to make sure they get the items they are craving and they manage to buy items that they can then resell for a nice profit.

Here are a few strategies to consider:-

Strategy #1 Don’t bid high and early. If there are several people who are determined to acquire the item that you want, you will only be forcing the price up and up. Wait until closer to the end to make a determined series of
bids. When you are selling, you will see this happen again and again. Many buyers wait until late in the game to bid just because they don’t want to run the price up.

Strategy #2 -- A few paise more can make the difference. Most buyers bid in nice, round numbers like 5.50 or 10.75. But those who study the auctions learn that a few paise more can make a difference. Instead of bidding Rs.10.50, bid Rs.10.53. Sometimes these few paise will be a difference between winning and losing.

Strategy #3 Use the two window strategy. In the event of a bidding war, really serious bidders use this strategy to acquire a treasured item. First, make sure your clock is set to the time of the auction site. You wouldn’t want to miss out on your treasure because you lost track of time. You can open 2 browser windows (press the Control (Ctrl) and N key together will open a second window on your browser). You can use one screen to bid and the other to watch a flurry of last minute bids. To keep up with the bids, keep hitting the reload or refresh button on your computer. In this way, you know what all your opponents are doing. If you use this tactic, be aware that it takes precious seconds to fill in your ID and password so have that part of your screen filled in to save time.

Strategy #4 – Be patient. This is the fine art of waiting (also called as sniping in online auction lingo) until the last possible second to defeat the current high bidder. Be prepared, though. You may be on the wrong end of a such a strategy as well. Some people go to the extent of keeping alarms to alert them of in the ending seconds of the bid, but nonetheless effective.

So make use of these strategies and some of yours and try making some really good deals at online auctions.

For more information do visit this link:-
http://pages.ebay.com/help/buy/bidding-ov.html

Buyer beware

I have seen a lot of sites promising to give a lot of information/tips on trading on e-Bay but at the end of it all I have found them to be bogus and scams. Over here I am trying (through my blogs) to inform the viewers about some real hard facts. No round-trips of my sites,no bogus claims or books to be sold. Here is a follow-up of my previous blog where I had told a few things about why you should buy first at e-Bay and then start selling. Here are a few guidelines for making payments through PaisaPay in e-Bay:-

PaisaPay for Buyers

Benefits of paying through PaisaPay

• No fees - absolutely free for buyers!
• Pay instantly using your credit card or make an online bank transfer and receive the product faster, thus eliminating the hassle and delays of cheques and demand drafts.
• Make fast, assured purchases, and get your money back if the seller does not deliver the item. You can also claim up to Rs. 50,000 under the eBay Buyer Protection if the item delivered is not as described.
• Increased safety in online payments: All transactions paid through PaisaPay are protected till you receive the item. If you don't receive the item within the specified delivery time, you can file a refund claim. PaisaPay will investigate and refund the money to you including the shipping costs.
• Convenience of EMI payments: You can pay for an item in 3 or 6 monthly installments by using your ICICI bank credit card through PaisaPay.
• Enhanced and simple tracking of your buying activity: You can use “My PaisaPay” to track your PaisaPay transactions. You can stay updated on information like shipping details, payments, and refunds, along with key action points, alerts and reminders.
• Get discounts with eBay Gift Vouchers: If you have received an eBay Gift Voucher , you can redeem your vouchers to get great discounts while paying through PaisaPay.

How to pay using PaisaPay?

· Check if the item is available on Auction or Fixed Price

· Read the Item Description thoroughly

· Check the accepted payment methods / shipping charges and warranty policy.

· If you have any questions about the item, click on the Ask Seller a question link and clarify your doubts.

Once you make the payment you will receive a confirmation through email. You can check the status of the PaisaPay transaction in your “My PaisaPay”. You will also see the payment confirmation in your My eBay as a yellow bar below the transaction.

After having an overview of how to make payments on e-Bay let us get back to how to go about getting to know more about the goods we are purchasing. In previous post I’d given some hints for the same. But you might need more diligence while doing purchase since there are unscrupulous sellers as well who would craftily hide certain details from you. What if you have questions that aren’t answered by the item description? In that case you can always contact the seller if you don’t totally understand what you are getting into. Whenever you see an item for sale, you will also see a phrase that says “ask seller a question.” It is the buyer’s responsibility to be very clear.
What if your bid wins an item and you discover that it’s something you don’t like? Unfortunately, in that case you didn’t ask any questions before you bid so it’s tough luck and you will have to go on with what you get.

The point of me teaching you buying lessons in my posts so far was to allow you to get a real experience of doing business in e-Bay. You can do your buying by purchasing a low-priced item and thus start your first lesson in becoming an effective seller.

Since I wrote this blog some updates have been made at PaisaPay features. You can access them at the following link:-http://www2.ebay.com/aw/in/200807171437152.html

Buying goods online

The things mentioned in this series of posts (this one and before and after this one) attempt to enable you to make good deals on the net by letting you know how to:

• write powerful ads and listings

• figure out your costs so that you sell at a profit

• master record keeping

• arrange shipping and handling

• accept payment

• build traffic

To become a good auctioneer, you must start by buying something because you can’t sell effectively if you have never bought. After you find a new supplier, you never auction their merchandise until you have ordered at least one item from them. If their service is awful, or their merchandise is not what is expected its better to know it. Its always better to know this before than to have a bunch of angry customers attacking you.

You can search items at e-Bay’s search engine (the search box located at the top left of the site) by the items name as well as by the following criteria:

iii) By seller -- lots of serious auction sellers use this search method to keep

themselves informed about their “competition.” Personally, I think there is so

much opportunity in the auction business that there is very little reason to be

concerned about what others are doing.

iv) By the bidder -- this can be a very powerful way to learn your niche. If

you discover someone in your field who really knows her stuff, you might want

to follow her around for a while and see what he’s doing.

There are some softwares which surf the web for shoppers called as ShopBots and AuctionBots will search an item for you. Their biggest advantage is that they aren’t limited to only one site. Those robotic softwares instantly compare prices for thousands of items on as many sites. You simply type in what you are looking for, and they will go to many different sites to find what you are seeking. Right now, bots specialize in simple price comparisons, which tend to drive prices down and steer commodity buyers to e-retailers that can live on narrow profit margins.

Some of the best known Auction Bots are...

http://www.vendio.com/

http://www.auctionwatchers.com/

http://www.bidxs.com/

But there are some drawbacks of bots like they might be a little complicated to use for novice users, and it might take some time to get the desired results.

Some of these bots also provide real price comparisons, including tax, shipping, handling,etc. which may turn a good deal into a bad one. Bertelsmann’s DealPilot.com, which tracks books and CDs, is the first to offer such comparisons.

A few bots link to online reviews as well, but these links can be hard to follow and the volume of data quickly can be overwhelming.

You may make serious buying errors after you learn the process, you will also learn how to be a more powerful seller. Here are some tips…

1) Item Description -- Obviously it is the buyer’s responsibility to know what

he is buying. If you have any questions, ask the seller.

2) Item Condition -- There are “grades,” which refer to condition.

The grades are...

i) Mint or MIB (for Mint-in-Box) -- this is a never-used item, still in its original

container, complete with directions. In other words, perfect.

ii) Near mint -- the item is perfect but it no longer has the original packaging or

the packaging is less than perfect.

iii) Excellent -- has some minor wear but is very close to perfect.

iv) Very good -- has minor defects

v) Good -- looks used, with defects

vi) Poor -- is barely collectible at all, heavy damage, heavy use

3) Transaction Terms -- You need to know the details of the transaction...

i) What is the seller’s refund policy if the item is damaged?

ii) How long will it take to get your purchase?

iii) What are your payment options?

iv) Who pays for shipping (almost always the buyer).

v) Who pays for insurance, if any?

4) Seller profile -- The most important thing you can do is to know who you

are buying from. eBay, for example, has an elaborate system of seller

feedback.

i) Wait until the transaction is complete before you comment. Don’t be too

hasty to give negative feedback (there are only specific circumstances where

feedback can be withdrawn).

ii) You can’t leave feedback for yourself.

iii) Don’t ever threaten others with feedback. That’s a quick way to get thrown

off the site.

As a buyer, you have the responsibility to use feedback fairly. If you don’t, you

may be on the receiving end of some pretty tough criticism when you are in the

seller’s role.

6) Financial limits – Don’t over-bid for an item. Set your limit and stick to it unless there is an absolutely compelling and rational reason for doing otherwise.

Buy It Now

In e-Bay when you see the Buy It Now icon next to a listing or see a Buy It Now price listed on an item page, you can get that item right away without waiting for an auction-style listing to end.

To purchase an item with Buy It Now:

1. Decide whether you're willing to buy the item for the Buy It Now price. Please remember, shipping and handling charges are not included in the Buy It Now price. You may need to contact the seller to determine the total price of the item.
2. Click the Buy It Now button at the bottom of the item page and enter your User ID and password.
3. You'll need to choose a shipping method. Then, you can choose among the payment methods offered by the seller (PaisaPay, cheque, demand draft, Cash on Delivery, and Buyer Picks Up & Pay).
4. Pay for the item or commit to pay.
5. The seller ships it to you.

Tip: If you see an item has both a Buy It Now price and a bid price listed, it means you will need to act quickly! The Buy It Now price is available until the auction price has exceeded a price threshold or until the reserve price has been met.

Note: To qualify to use Buy It Now as a buyer, you must have one of the following:

• Have feedback greater than or equal to zero

If you don't qualify when you click the Buy It Now button, you will be asked to do one of the above to qualify. Once you have met one of the above requirements, the listing will end automatically and you will be the winning buyer.

Geting a payment after selling your items online through e-Bay

Before I give you some tips for trading your goods online it would be beneficial if you could understand the payment method used at e-Bay.
The details given here are applicable for getting payments when you make a deal through e-Bay only.

PaisaPay for Sellers

Registration with PaisaPay is absolutely FREE. All you need to have is a valid bank account in any of the “PaisaPay supported banks”. Once you are registered with Paisapay, the Paisapay logo automatically appears as a payment method in all your listings. PaisaPay is a mandatory payment method and will appear automatically in all your listings. Benefits of receiving payment through PaisaPay Easier and convenient PaisaPay remittances: Earlier PaisaPay would send you a demand draft for the amount in your PaisaPay account every 7 days. With the new PaisaPay, your payments will be transferred to your PaisaPay account online as soon as the buyer confirms receipt of the item. Online Remittance: Twice a week, PaisaPay will transfer your remittance online to your bank account. So no more hassles of depositing demand drafts and waiting for clearance. Your bank account will instantly receive your money. Enhanced tracking of PaisaPay transactions: With the new PaisaPay, you will have the use of two features that will form the hub of all your PaisaPay transactions: My PaisaPay: While you always tracked your eBay activities from your My eBay, a new section titled “My PaisaPay” will help you keep track and take action on all your PaisaPay transactions. My PaisaPay will be available from the left-hand navigation panel of My eBay. Transaction Details Page: Tracking all the items bought by one buyer has been now made simple. You have a comprehensive information page for each PaisaPay transaction. This includes order details, shipping information, action points, refunds, and current transaction status. How does a PaisaPay transaction work? Step 1: Buyer pays for the item using PaisaPay (credit card or online bank transfer). PaisaPay confirms the payment and advises you to ship the item Step 2: You ship the item and provide shipping details (courier name and airway bill number) in your My PaisaPay. Note: If you do not enter shipping details within the specified timelines, your payment will be refunded to the buyer. Step 3: Buyer receives the item and confirms to PaisaPay that the item was delivered. Step 4: PaisaPay transfers the payment to your PaisaPay account, which is sent periodically online to your registered bank account. Important action points to remember. Enter the shipping details: After the buyer has paid for an item, be sure to provide details of shipping within the timelines. If you miss this deadline, PaisaPay will treat this transaction as unsuccessful and refund the buyer’s payment. Meeting delivery deadlines: After providing shipping details, a delivery deadline will be available on the Transaction Details page. You must ensure that the item is delivered to the buyer before this deadline. If the item is delivered within this timeline, the buyer’s payment is transferred to your PaisaPay account, which will be remitted to you after the buyer confirms receipt of the item. If the item does not reach the buyer within this deadline and the buyer informs PaisaPay, PaisaPay will investigate the case and refund the buyers payment. Request for shipping / delivery time extension: If there’s a possibility that you may not be able to ship / deliver the item within the specified shipping deadline, you can request the buyer for a time extension. Be sure to request for a time extension before the deadline to enter shipping details. Provide proof of delivery to PaisaPay: When the delivery deadline is over, PaisaPay will request the buyer to confirm whether the item was delivered or not. If the buyer confirms that an item was not delivered, PaisaPay will initiate a refund. However, if you have shipped the item and the buyer has accepted the delivery, you should contact PaisaPay immediately. PaisaPay will investigate the case and accordingly refund the buyers payment or remit the amount to the seller. What are the important timelines to remember? Action For delivery within India For international deliveries Entering shipping details Within 1-7 days of buyer's payment confirmation Within 1-10 days of buyer's payment confirmation Dispatch Time Extension Max 23 days Max 23 days Delivery Time Extension Max 8 days Max 8 days Delivering item to buyer Within 1-10 days of entering shipping details in My PaisaPay Within 1-21 days of entering shipping details in My PaisaPay Buyer confirms item was received / raises item not received refund claim Within 5 days from end of delivery deadline Within 5 days from end of delivery deadline Seller Disputes a buyer refund claim Within 5 days from the end of the buyer confirmation deadline Within 5 days from the end of the buyer confirmation deadline Charges for receiving payment through PaisaPay To receive online payments, PaisaPay charges a processing fee of 4% of the total payment value on online bank transfer and credit card payments (excluding applicable taxes).

Earning through online selling

Online money making is not only limited to earning through ads in your site. There are ways to earn money from the items stored in your closet i.e. if you want to. IF you are interested in making a few good bucks from the unused stuff that you can sell online go on with the following :
STEP number 1 -- Register. There are three requirements for registration...
1) You must be 18 years old.
2) You must provide a credit card number. Buyers pay nothing to
the auction sites. Only sellers pay charges.
3) You must have a valid e-mail address.

STEP number 2 -- Choose your User ID.

STEP number 3 -- Pick your password. For safety’s sake, auction sites
recommend the following safeguards...
• Never give your password to anyone
• Don’t pick anything obvious.
• Change your password if you think anyone else might have it.

STEP number 4 -- Agree to have a personal page. eBay, for example, has
created “About Me.” page facility for their members.

Here is what you can do with a personal Web page...
• Create a storefront for yourself.
• Show off your fabulous finds.
• Display your items up for bid.

STEP number 5 -- Provide your credit card number. The fees for selling an
item are very minimal. In fact, selling on an auction site has to be the biggest
bargain in town. Sellers are charged an insertion fee when a product is
placed for auction. If it sells, they are charged a final value fee, based upon
the final price of the item. Each seller receives an invoice for the previous
month’s fees.

Here are some ideas, guidelines given by eBay on what online trading at eBay means.

eBay is a marketplace - a platform where sellers and buyers can meet and trade. eBay never sees, takes possession of, inspects, or authenticates any of the goods for sale. Therefore, you should follow the guidelines provided below and always apply the same common sense to online transactions that you do in your everyday life offline.

1. Use of our guidelines and your common sense will help you trade safely

* eBay provides a feedback system, trust & safety advice and openly available information and tools - we recommend you make use of this advice and tools to make informed trading choices. You need to use all of this information together.
* Always apply the same common sense to online transactions that you do in your everyday life offline.
* Learn the ropes from experienced buyers and sellers on the member-to-member chat boards.
* To be protected by eBay's safety measures including the Buyer Protection Program, it is essential you always complete your transaction on the site - do not trade outside of eBay with people you meet at eBay.

2. Review a member's eBay reputation - eBay Feedback

* In the spirit of providing openly-available information, eBay members can leave Feedback about a transaction after buyer or selling. This Feedback is posted on each member's Feedback profile and is a key indicator of your reputation.
* Checking the seller's Feedback rating and positive, neutral and negative comments provided by other members of the eBay community can help you evaluate the seller's previous trading history and gain an understanding of their reputation.

3. Get to know your Seller



Learning more about your seller helps you make informed choices about your purchases:

* Review the seller's feedback rating score and positive, neutral and negative comments provided by other members of the eBay community to evaluate that seller's previous trading history.
* Review other items the seller has previously sold to assess the overall quality and type of items this seller usually trades.
* Many sellers have an “About Me” page or eBay Shop you can visit to read about their selling practices and contact details.
* Contact the seller to learn more about them and the item. Ask questions about the quality and condition of the item, return policies, postage costs and accepted methods of payment.
* Be wary of sellers who try to entice you to trade outside of eBay (e.g. before the listing ends, or afterwards if you are not the high bidder). If you trade outside of eBay, you will not be protected by eBay's safety measures including the Buyer Protection Program.

4. Know what you are buying

Knowing more about what you are buying helps you make a confident and informed decision:

* Research your desired item and its fair market price both off and online.

* Read the item description and the seller's terms and conditions carefully, including payment options, postage costs and return policies.
* Closely examine photographs to assess an item's condition.
* Ask the seller specific questions about their selling policies and the quality and condition of an item - especially if a description or photo is not clear, and wait for satisfactory reply before bidding or buying.
* Remember, there are great buys on eBay but if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Do your homework.



5. Pay Smart!



Sellers on eBay offer a range of payment methods with varying levels of protection. Always apply the same common sense to online transactions that you do in your everyday life offline.

* Select a seller that offers a payment method you are comfortable with using to add to your peace of mind.

* Credit cards with chargeback facilities add security but it is important you check with your credit card provider on the level of protection provided.

* Member-to-member payment services like Paymate and PayPal protect your bank account details from being seen by others. Additionally, some member-to-member payment services like PayPal offer additional protection programs for eBay purchases.
* For additional security, eBay recommends the use of a reputable escrow service, like TradeSecure, particularly for amounts over $350. For a small fee, escrow services hold a buyer's money in trust until the buyer has had the opportunity to receive, inspect and approve the item.
* Question a seller who will only accept money orders or instant cash transfers such as Western Union as these may be harder to trace or be reimbursed should anything go wrong. Bidders and buyers should be especially cautious if one or both of these are the only payment methods accepted by the seller. Exercise caution if the payment address differs from the item location.

6. What to do if something goes wrong



It is rare that something goes wrong with a transaction, but if it does, there are several options available to you:

* Contact your trading partner and try to resolve the problem. Most buyers and sellers are honest and reliable, and often the cause is a simple misunderstanding or lack of communication.
* Request the sellers' contact details and give them a call to discuss.
* If resolution can't be found, a third party mediation service such as Squaretrade might be the answer.
* Remember that your credit card provider, online member-to-member payment services or postage insurance may help to recover funds lost in a transaction. Make sure you understand the policies of payment provider you are using and the time frame in which you can file a claim.
* Additionally, eBay's Buyer Protection Program can provide for a payment of up to $350.
* Consider contacting the police. You can be assured that eBay assists law enforcement officials in their investigations of any suspected criminal activity when appropriate.



Protect your online accounts

* Exercise caution when receiving communications from outside the eBay community.
* Watch out for “spoof” e-mails. A spoof email may appear as though it has come from a trusted company (including eBay) - if in doubt, do not click on links from emails.
* If you receive a request to update your personal information and you do not feel comfortable about the source of the email, do not click on any links provided in the email - simply open a new browser, type www.ebay.com.au, sign-in, and use the site map to navigate the site.
* Never give out credit card or password details. In the same way that you never tell anyone, even the bank teller, your PIN number, you should always protect your private information, including passwords.
* Select a secure password that is a combination of letters and numbers to protect your account information - never choose an obvious word such as 'password', your email address, your name, your family's names or birthdates.
* Regularly check your account and preferences to make sure there is no unauthorised activity.


More insights on this subject will be there in my next blog.
So try to get rid of those things in your attic or closet which might be of more use to others and in the process make some quick buck.

For readers who like reading business literature books here's a link to one of the book summaries that I have written:
http://www.shvoong.com/books/management-literature/1770359-beating-street/

Earning money online

This time I thought about sharing some of my views and information on earning money online.
Since this is a craze now-a-days with some people, I thought I could provide some insights on earning money online to interested people.

Some people dream of working online from the comfort of your home; at their own time.
Internet was earlier the great source of knowledge and information but at present era one feature has added it. Now a days internet is more popular for its money making quality than previous specialty. There are numerous jobs and work that can be done online and these are the great source of easy and fast.

There is a lot of online earning opportunity for part time jobbers, network marketers, net surfers and home workers to earn additional money from any comfortable place or home. You can earn big money through online working without leaving your main or present job or work.

Online research is emerging as a good opportunity. If you've used search engines to look for specific information, you'd know how tiresome it is to sift through the junk before you arrive at what you want.

Knowledge or information based services that require you to use your experience or skills are a good way to make money. Some sites hire your services for their clients; others put you in touch with people who need your services.

There are services like Google Answers that save surfers the hassle of searching themselves. Surfers post queries on computing, shopping, entertainment or food, and Google's team of online researchers get cracking on the information requested. You can set the price for your answer on the basis of the work involved. Three-fourths of the price goes to the researchers. Responses are rated by the people who request the information, while registered users offer comments.

There are many ways of online earning some people do online jobs on the other hand some runs online business for making money. If you are interested to online income then there are huge opportunities for you.

There are companies like AskDownUnder which hire online researchers to offer Web search and information services to their clients.


There are lot of other sites offering the opportunity to earn some money by outsourcing work from people who can work online.
More about this in my next blog.