eBay advice - Have a look here

[Virgil]

Got a question about Best Offer feature. You know, once in a while you see huge BIN price and that another button nearby. So, does anyone had luck talking down the price or do the sellers put it up for a show? I never used one, only seen that offers were rejected by a seller.

[Electroluver]

^^If you make an offer, be prepared to purchase it for that amount.

I know there are a lot of honest people on the web, but there are a lot of scammers too. One of my eBay customers claimed they didn't recieve the goods and were deceptive with Paypal. They even used the good name of Vintage Synth when they offered me a deal outside of eBay (make sure to read Paypal's terms of service)

Now, I've got a problem with a guy who claims it "wasn't as described," even though I'm using a 14mp camera close ups 360 degrees and blown up using imageshack. Give me a break! It's buyer's remorse and my time is precious.
95% of my customers are really satisfied with their purchases and I'm happy they're making music, be well. It's the 5% of scammers/remorse j**k which might lead to problems.
As a buyer, I've routinely met with success on Vintage Synth. If someone asks me for a Roland Juno 106 and it's only playing 5 voices, then that's the deal. Otherwise, they better wait until it's repaired.
When it goes on eBay, then I'm selling proper gear, nothing broken or "not as described."
That's my rant.

[plikestechno]

thanks synthacon, some good tips there. how about the inexplicable rises in postage? this morning i won a eml200, about 5 days ago i contacted the seller for postage costs to Australia from the states (as recommended by the seller). it was going to cost about $200uninsured, $230insured, appx 20kg ( i was given the exact UPS quotes just so you know ) well, whatdya know? the shipping would now be over 300 bucks cos he was gonna double box it, he didn,t think it was gonna fetch as much blah,blah...so whatdya do ? paypalebay dont give a
s**t about postage, seems you havent got a leg to stand on if postage is not in the listing..

That's acutally a very good price. I'm surprised. WIll have to keep UPS in mind for larger items overseas. Usually larger items I only ship to US and Canada.

Firstly, your lucky that someone would even be willing to ship an EML 200 to Australia so I wouldn't b***h too loud.

Secondly, pissing and moaning about the shipping price to sellers is one of the reasons why so many sellers have their auctions USA only now. People whining to have it shipped USPS, whining to have it devalued to sneak it past customs...then being all too quick to file a paypal claim for the full amount if anything goes wrong. I'm in Canada, I totally understand about expensive shipping and customs and brokerage fees but it costs what it costs. And on really expensive items the brokerage is so minscule it's not worth commenting on. I've bought a few things recently, including an EML 100, and the cost of using UPS is low compared to not having the item. I'm just glad they allowed shipping to Canada.

Shipping is totally nuts now but we have no one to blame but ourselves and our online buying addiction. Most national post offices have lowered the limits to the point where you have to use couriers for anything decent sized. A buddy in the states told me that not too long ago he could ship a clavinet via USPS to the UK for about 60 bucks. Those days are long gone, friends. USPS probably wouldn't accept a clavinet now nor would it be anywhere close to 60 dollars.

[plikestechno]

^^If you make an offer, be prepared to purchase it for that amount.

I know there are a lot of honest people on the web, but there are a lot of scammers too. One of my eBay customers claimed they didn't recieve the goods and were deceptive with Paypal. They even used the good name of Vintage Synth when they offered me a deal outside of eBay (make sure to read Paypal's terms of service)

Now, I've got a problem with a guy who claims it "wasn't as described," even though I'm using a 14mp camera close ups 360 degrees and blown up using imageshack. Give me a break! It's buyer's remorse and my time is precious.
95% of my customers are really satisfied with their purchases and I'm happy they're making music, be well. It's the 5% of scammers/remorse j**k which might lead to problems.
As a buyer, I've routinely met with success on Vintage Synth. If someone asks me for a Roland Juno 106 and it's only playing 5 voices, then that's the deal. Otherwise, they better wait until it's repaired.
When it goes on eBay, then I'm selling proper gear, nothing broken or "not as described."
That's my rant.

Selling on Ebay is a last resort for me now. Sellers have no rights anymore. A customer can return an item for whatever reason they want which Ebay likes to use as a device for attracting buyers.It's buyers remorse city and with the fluctuating price of synths it seems to be getting worse.

Outside of Ebay, it's buyer beware, the only reason you can get a refund is for not receiving an item. If somebody sends you a tracking number and has it as backup the item is yours. As a seller, if you don't have a tracking number they automatically side with the buyer. A device paypal uses to get people to use Ebay. They're the same company after all. And if you paid personal for something you might as well have sent a cheque or cash.

That's why it's important to report bad sellers in forums.

[plikestechno]

Got a question about Best Offer feature. You know, once in a while you see huge BIN price and that another button nearby. So, does anyone had luck talking down the price or do the sellers put it up for a show? I never used one, only seen that offers were rejected by a seller.

Very rarely you get an amazing deal if someone lists something they don't know the value of with a number off the top of their head or if they need the money quickly or badly.

But 99% of Best Offers are a joke and they only offers they'll accept are 90% or more of their BIN price.

As far as best offer goes I just figure that it never hurts to ask but don't get bent out of shape if it is (almost always) rejected.

Like electroluver says if you submit a best offer, and they accept, you have to buy it or risk getting an unpaid item strike. If your offer is accpeted it's like BIN basically so make sure you actually want it.

[Electroluver]

Outside of Ebay, it's buyer beware, the only reason you can get a refund is for not receiving an item. If somebody sends you a tracking number and has it as backup the item is yours. As a seller, if you don't have a tracking number they automatically side with the buyer. A device paypal uses to get people to use Ebay. They're the same company after all. And if you paid personal for something you might as well have sent a cheque or cash.

That's why it's important to report bad sellers in forums.

The buyer lost the case.
He mentioned he's done this before a few times, so it didn't help him. Seriously, this was a non-issue, I sold him a mint synth.

[treezyz]

best ebay advice is don't buy stuff on ebay, unless their is absolutely no other option for the item.

[supermel74]

best ebay advice is don't buy stuff on ebay, unless their is absolutely no other option for the item.

Ebay is probably the safest place on the internet for buyers.

[Aaron2]

But 99% of Best Offers are a joke and they only offers they'll accept are 90% or more of their BIN price.

Very true. In fact, sometimes the only best offer they'll accept is more like 95% of the BIN price. That ticks me off.

Personally, I don't play that game. I give potential buyers room to negotiate if I have a BIN price and accept best offers. The BIN price is typically my "this is what I'd like to get in an ideal world" price. But my bottom line is sometimes up to 20% lower than that.

If you're going to accept best offers at all, you should at least make it a real negotiation. You're not really negotiating if you'll accept nothing less than 95% of the BIN price. That's just ridiculous.

[national theatre]

Heh, I remember this Best Offer auction for one of those toy samplers, a Yamaha VSS. The seller was asking some crazy price, around 150 euro if I remember correctly... so I sent a reasonable offer (can't remember how much it was but of course it was subtantially less) and they replied with a counteroffer for 149,99. Worst part is someone actually bought the keyboard... I mean you can get a proper Akai for that price!

[sol-bass-rec]

I recently offered $1200 for a Poly Evolver Keys. It expired. What are they worth?