EBay for Dummies (16 page)
Authors: Marsha Collier
Tags: #Electronic Commerce, #Computers, #General, #E-Commerce, #Internet auctions, #Auctions - Computer network resources, #Internet, #Business & Economics, #EBay (Firm)
Be sure the item’s working parts are indeed working.
Most G.I. Joe action figures from this period have cracks on the legs and arms, but the joints should move, and any cracks should not be so deep that the legs and arms fall apart easily.
Ask if the item has its original parts.
Because you can’t really examine items in detail before buying, e-mail the seller with specific questions relating to original or replacement parts. Many G.I. Joe action figures are rebuilt from parts that are not from 1964 to 1969. Sometimes the figures even have two left or right hands or feet! If you make it clear to the seller before you buy that you want a toy with only original parts, you’ll be able to make a good case for a refund if the item arrives rebuilt as the Six Million Dollar Man. Chapter 7 has plenty of tips on how to protect yourself before you bid, and Chapter 16 has tips on what to do if the deal goes bad.
Ask if the item has original accessories.
A G.I. Joe from 1964 to 1969 should have his original dog tags, boots, and uniform. If any of these items are missing, you will have to pay around $25 to replace each missing item. If you’re looking to bid on any other collectible, know in advance what accessories came as standard equipment with the item, or you’ll be paying extra just to bring it back to its original version.
Know an item’s value before you bid.
A 1964 to 1969 vintage G.I. Joe in decent shape, with all its parts, sells for $300 to $400 without its original box. (Mint-in-box Joes can sell for thousands of dollars.) If you’re bidding on a G.I. Joe action figure on eBay and you’re in this price range, you’re okay. If you get the item for less than $300, congratulations — you’ve nabbed a bargain.
If you have any questions, ask them
before
you bid.
Check collectors’ guides, research similar auctions on eBay, and visit one of eBay’s category chat rooms.
Making the grade
Welcome to my version of grade school without the bad lunch. One of the keys to establishing value is knowing an item’s condition, typically referred to as an item’s
grade.
Table 5-1 lists the most common grading categories that collectors use. The information in this table is used with permission from (and appreciation to) Lee Bernstein.
Grading is subjective. Mint to one person may be Very Good to another. Always ask a seller to define the meaning of the terms used. Also, be aware that many amateur sellers may not really know the different definitions of grading and may arbitrarily add Mint or Excellent to their item descriptions.
Table 5-1 Collectibles Grading Categories | ||
Category (Also Known As) | Description | Example |
Mint (M, Fine, Mint-In-Box [MIB], 10) | A never-used collectible in perfect condition with complete packaging (including instructions, original attachments, tags, and so on) identical to how it appeared on the shelf in the original box. | Grandma got a soup tureen as a wedding present, never opened it, and stuck it in her closet for the next 50 years. |
Near Mint (NM, Near Fine, Like-New, 9) | The collectible is perfect but no longer has the original packaging or the original packaging is less than perfect. Possibly used but must appear to be new. | Grandma used the soup tureen on her 25th anniversary, washed it gently, and then put it back in the closet. |
Excellent (EX, 8) | Used, but barely. Excellent is just a small step under Near Mint, and many sellers mistakenly interchange the two, but “excellent” can have very minor signs of wear. The wear must be a normal, desirable part of aging or so minor that it’s barely noticeable and visible only upon close inspection. Damage of any sort is not “very minor.” Wear or minor normal factory flaws should be noted. (Factory flaws are small blemishes common at the time of manufacture — a tiny air bubble under paint, for example.) | Grandma liked to ring in the New Year with a cup of soup for everyone. |
Very Good (VG, 7) | Looks very good but has defects, such as a minor chip or light color fading. | If you weren’t looking for it, you might miss that Grandma’s tureen survived the ’64 earthquake, as well as Uncle Bob’s infamous ladle episode. |
Good (G, 6) | Used with defects. More than a small amount of color loss, chips, cracks, tears, dents, abrasions, missing parts, and so on. | Grandma had the ladies in the neighborhood over for soup and bingo every month. |
Poor (P or G-, 5) | Barely collectible, if at all. Severe damage or heavy use. Beyond repair. | Grandma ran a soup kitchen. |
Finding More Research Information
Experts have been buying, selling, and trading collectible items for years. But just because you’re new to eBay doesn’t mean you have to be a newbie for decades before you can start bartering with the collecting gods. I wouldn’t leave you in the cold like that — and neither would eBay. You can get information on items you’re interested in, as well as good collecting tips, right at the eBay Web site. Visit the Category-Specific Discussion Boards in the Community area. You can also search the rest of the Web or go the old-fashioned route and check the library (yes, libraries are still around).
Keep in mind that there are truly several prices for an item. The retail (or manufacturer’s suggested retail price — MSRP) price, the book value, the secondary market price (the price charged by resellers when an item is unavailable on the primary retail market), and the eBay selling price. The only way to ascertain the price an item will go for on eBay is to research completed auctions. Later in this chapter, I give you the skinny on how to research a completed auction.
Searching sites online
If you don’t find the information you need on eBay, don’t go ballistic — just go elsewhere. Even a site as vast as eBay doesn’t have a monopoly on information. The Internet is filled with Web sites and Internet auction sites that can give you price comparisons and information about cyberclubs.
Getting professional info from Terapeak Research
If you become an eBay fanatic someday, you may find yourself praising the genius of an amazing service offered by eBay and Terapeak. Terapeak Research allows you to research pricing further back than the 14 days of completed listings that the normal eBay search allows. If you come across a special or very old item, and there are not many on the site, you can use this tool to find how much the item has sold for in the past few months.
As with most of eBay’s special features, there is a charge to use the service. But the price is right, and you only have to pay for the service as long as you need it. They have several levels of search: from 7 to 90 days. I recommend using the 30-day search because in my (not so) humble opinion, 90 days is an eternity in Internet time — what sold well three months ago may be worth bupkis now.
Your home computer can connect to powerful outside servers (really big computers on the Internet) that have their own fast-searching systems called
search engines.
Remember, if something is out there and you need it, you can find it right from your home PC in a matter of seconds. Here are the addresses of some of the Web’s most highly regarded search engines or multi-search-engine sites:
Google (
www.google.com
)
Live Search (
www.live.com
)
Shopzilla (
www.shopzilla.com
)
Yahoo! (
www.yahoo.com
)
The basic process of getting information from an Internet search engine is pretty simple:
1. Type the address of the search-engine site in the Address box of your Web browser.
You’re taken to the Web site’s home page.
2. Find the text box next to the button labeled Search or something similar.
3. In the text box, type a few words indicating what interests you.
Be specific when typing search text. The more precise your entry, the better your chances of finding what you want. Look for tips, an advanced search option, or help pages on your search engine of choice for more information about how to narrow your search.
4. Click the Search (or similar) button or press Enter on your keyboard.
The search engine presents you with a list of how many Internet pages have the requested information. The list includes brief descriptions and links to the first group of pages. You’ll find links to additional listings at the bottom if your search finds more listings than can fit on one page. (And if you ask for something popular, like
Harry Potter,
don’t be surprised to get millions of hits.)
Always approach information on the Web with caution. Not everyone is the expert he or she would like to be. Your best bet is to get lots of different opinions and then boil ’em down to what makes sense to you. And remember —
caveat emptor.
(Is there an echo in here?)
Many people out here on the West Coast buy cars on eBay. (Could it be because cars are way more expensive here? Maybe.) If you’re researching prices to buy a car on eBay, look in your local newspaper to get a good idea of prices in your community. Several good sites are on the Internet. My personal favorite is
www.nadaguides.com
. I’ve had many of my friends (and editors) visit the various sites, and we’ve settled on this one because it seems to give the most accurate and unbiased information.