Easy Overview for Beginners Bidding on E-bay

You've heard of E-bay on TV, the Radio and from word of the mouth. You've logged on and searched through some items. Some you may have wanted to bid on. So why aren't you? For many E-bay is still a mystery, a place to search at products others are selling but never bid on themselves. Registering is easy and so isn't bidding. Still not convinced? Here's a simple overview to help you out.

Register- If you register with a free e-mail account such as hotmail.com or yahoo.com you will be asked to provide some ID. Such as a credit card or debit card number. Your account isn't charged. Don't want to use a credit or debit card? If you have an e-mail from your Internet Service Provider, many times you can use that e-mail and be all signed up. This is because with free e-mail accounts other e-bay users can't be sure if you'll suddenly disappear without paying. But if you use your ISP, they can contact them if there's a problem. Next you use your user name and password. Then your mailing address. After confirming this items you will receive an e-mail to activate your account. Once you click the link in the e-mail you can log into your e-bay account and start looking around.

Once you have found an item you can start bidding. Always check the price, shipping and the item. It's also a good idea to check out the sellers feedback to help ensure they aren't a scam. Don't bid and then ask a question expecting them to answer you before the bid is over. Always feel secure before bidding ! Then depending on how many days you have left before the bid closes, you wait. If you win you get an e-mail telling you won and how to proceed with payment. Many sellers on e-bay prefer to have payment by Paypal. If you don't have a paypal account you can get one @ http://www.paypal.com Others who allow checks always wait before the check clears. If you're buying an item as a gift and you're on a time budget, paying by check can delay the expected delivery date.

The time you have to pay for your item is explained on the bid page. You may be able to have combined shipping if you order more than 1 item from someone. Sometimes you are required to pay for insurance. Once you pay and received your item, you can leave feedback on the quality of the product and your experience with the seller. They may also leave feedback on you, the buyer. Pretty simple and it can be fun!