New eBid User

[jkbmjp1]

I am new to eBid and I wanted some basic information about how eBid works. I have been a long time Ebay user and I am no longer going to be selling anything on Ebay due to an Ebay buyer scam and dispute which Ebay protected the buyer and close the case.

Does eBid work the same way as Ebay where you can buy and sell items?

In basic terms, what is the return and refund policy for sellers?

How does eBid handle disputes between a buyer and seller?

Can I choose between being a buyer and seller?

Any other related information would be helpful.

[rocks2dust]

It works the same in many ways. It has some nice features that you won't find on the majority of other sites. eBid allows you to both buy and sell on your account.

Return and refund policy depends on the policy you specify (and you definitely should include that in your "All-about-Me" page, in each listing, and in your Store if you decide to get one). Be aware, however, that whoever you choose to process payments (Paypal, credit card merchant account, etc.) almost certainly has their own policy to which they require you to adhere. Your account will come with a "Blackball" list so that you can block accounts whom you don't want to be able to bid or buy your items. In addition, if you notice obvious fraud, you can contact support to have them investigate and ban scammers.

eBid has less traffic than some other major sites, so some things take longer to sell. Auctions have less competition, so put the starting price at the minimum you can accept (which should be what people do on other sites to avoid selling at a loss). Buy Now can have as-good or better results than auctions, as many potential customers want instant gratification these days. There is no huge advertising budget at eBid, which is why they can afford to keep their fees low, so you'll have to promote your listings wherever you have opportunities (put links into your signatures on social media posts where permitted, use things like pinterest, forums such as this, etc.). When listing a "Buy Now" item, it is best to have it expire in 7-14 days (you can have listings auto-relist up to 10 times, so it doesn't create extra manual relisting) to keep your item appearing fresh in search engines. I'm sure I've missed a lot, and others here will chime in with more tips.

[jkbmjp1]

Thanks for the information. For the most part eBid sounds like it is similar to Ebay. I typically use PP to send and receive money. In terms of R&R policy, Ebay- of course- trumps...no pun intended....the sellers intentions. I don't know if eBid has the same policy where they can overrule the sellers decision on accepting or denying any returns.

I notice eBid has a few Seller accounts. Can I choose the "free" account and still be able to sell items?

[kodakfish]

You can sell on the basic seller account but the cost is an extortionate amount of 5% . As stated eBid does not have quite the footfall of the bay [ neither do we have big box stores or masses of Alibaba sellers undercutting everyone ].But the more people we can get selling the more footfall we'll have. As a hobby seller I am getting reasonable prices and averaging more sales than I did on the darkside - but atm am selling more than I did over there. If you decide to upgrade to seller+ then as long as you have the right info input your items will get uploaded to google shopping. The help section [ with videoes etc] is good for the basics.
Another great thing now is eBid does not charge for them to handle the cash transfer [even if you use a different payment option - which I hear eBay will be doing soon] Yes it's a pain sharing auctions on social media - but as ebay hide some items it would be sensible if all auction sellers did that anyway
info on account types/fees here https://www.ebid.net/uk/help/fees-and-charges/

[Policequilts]

I have returned back to my membership account here after eBay's mandated managled payment and that they think your items for sale is actually there's.

eBid is not Amazon, eBay or Etsy and does not have the traffic volume.
BUT. . . . It is your "shop" and you are in charge of it with a few exceptions (prohibited items)
You can determine to accept returns or give discounts or . . . . . .

Make sure you fill out the "About You", "Policies" and such to give yourself a more professional seller.

Please don't go and do the 100% free option where you use the "list" option. (It looks bad when searching and these sellers use list and there is no picture to look at until you click on the listing).

Any fees 5% or less, I am more than happy to pay.

You will need to promote your items through social media.

Personally, using auctions on eBid (on the US side) is not worth it because of not having all the traffic. Also, if you are promoting your items, when the auction ends and doesn't sell, you will need to relist it and the "item number/link) will change with the new promotion)

I know that have my membership that I can do auctions, Buy it Now, or Good until Sold.
With having a shop, I can have "good until sold" (not a good option. Will cause listing to fall on search pages), but I can choose to have listing run 30 days and then automatically repost up to 10 times. I can use Pinterest and the item number will remain the same and I can keep promoting my item for a longer time period.

[theElench]

In addition to the advice already given I would add the following.

Consider how many items you plan to sell, are they in well populated categories or ones where there are few listings at present? Are they "quick sellers" or niche items that will take a while to find a buyer?

While the advice already given is all good, it is offered by long-term sellers who have built their inventory (sometimes 1000s of items) and strategy over the years they've been here.

Are you going to do the same? Or do you have small numbers of niche items? If so consider the options fully. Research the categories you will use and the competition you will face in them. Kodakfish has given you the link to "Fees and Charges", read Section 2 carefully, particularly the bit about "Platinum Listing". It gives most of the advantages of Seller+ on a pay-per-listing basis (5c per listing + 5% FVF). You don't get the free shops or free auto re-lists but if you don't have much to sell do you need them, particularly if what you are selling will be easy to find in an under-populated category. Nor do you have to worry too much if your items are at the bottom of a search with only a couple of pages of results.

I've been here for seven years, never got around to up-grading from Seller, built my listings in a category that had about twenty listings when I started and now has over 200. I still sell a few items on obay but this year (for the first time) am also selling more here than there.

One other tip that no-one has mentioned yet. The search here is not slanted to give prominence to "New in a box" quick selling items, or rigged to give prominence to "Sponsored" listings. It relies on Key Words and works well. I've checked some of my longer ad. titles and searched for every Key Word singly and in every combination I could think of. I've found my listing every time,(increasingly so are buyers) so try to get as many Key Words in your titles as you can.

Something else that is, I think, bringing buyers here -- they can browse. One reason I'm buying less on obay is it's getting so difficult to do that over there. As a collector I'm not interested in what an (alleged) intelligent search "thinks" I'm looking for, which is always the most common approximation. I'm looking for the unexpected, rare item I've never seen before which on ebay is hidden precisely because it is rare and has no sales history.

Good luck.