The Internet has become one of the most popular places to buy and sell. Its popularity is primarily due to the flexibility and ease of carrying out transactions. It is as easy to buy or sell a simple inexpensive toy as a luxurious automobile. Internet companies have provided users the necessary tools for efficient trading in both an auction-style and fixed-price format. These companies facilitate online payment between the buyer and the seller, by giving sellers the convenience of credit card acceptance, and providing buyers the ease to pay more quickly than writing a check or filling out a money order. These easy payment methods combined with their variety of trading options have made eBay and uBid the preferred places to trade for millions of Americans and people all over the world.

E-Bay

E-Bay has grown tremendously over the last few years, and is the leading online marketplace for the sale of goods and services by a diverse community of online consumers. E-Bay has an excellent reputation, and it is the preferred shopping place for millions of people. On E-Bay you can buy or sale almost anything, quickly, conveniently, and cost effectively.

Selling

It is always a problem to find a way to sell items that you no longer use. Most people hold a garage sale in such cases, but the downfall with garage sales is that most of the shoppers expect to purchase the items at ridiculously low prices. Although you might want to hold a garage sale for your less valuable items, we recommend you sell your valuable items on the Internet. If you have never done this before, eBay is an excellent place to start. With world wide client base, your items will get the exposure they need. The old record collection that you no longer listen to could be a collector’s item for someone else. By looking at prices of similar items on E-Bay you might have an idea of how much your item is worth. E-Bay offers several options to sell items: You can choose from either an Auction-style or Fixed-price format. The auction style allows the interested buyers to bid on your item, and you the seller can set a minimum selling price for your item. The Fixed-price format, as the name implies, allows you to set a fixed price for your item just like in a store.

How to advertise your items

The most common way to advertise items for-sale is to provide a picture and description of the item. You can scan a picture or upload a digital picture. If the box of the item you want to sell is available, you might want to scan the picture on the box, or look for a picture of the item on the manufacturer’s website to cut and paste. Describe the item. Try to be as honest as possible. Indicate the age and condition of the item. Sometimes telling the potential buyer the reasons why you are selling the items will inspire confidence.

Buying

You will find that eBay is also a convenient way to access thousands of familiar brand name products, new or used, at bargain prices. You can find almost any product on E-Bay for much less than at your neighborhood stores. E-Bay’s search engine allows you to search for any product or items available for sale. You can sort by seller, bidder, store, or even specify the price range that you would like to pay. If the item is available, the search results will indicate how many are available, and the seller’s name.

Buy it now

"Buy it now" is an option offered by E-bay for customers who prefer to buy items at a fixed price without having to wait for the end of an auction. It also gives sellers a convenient method to sell their items fast at a specific price. Items listed with "Buy it now" can also be sold at auction; however, once a bid has been placed the opportunity to "Buy it now" ends.

Live Auction

Live auction offers you the opportunity to bid on one or several items. Just like any other auction, the person who places the highest bid buys the product at that price. Unlike other auctions, E-Bay’s live auction is active for a time limit. The time left to bid on an item is displayed down to the second. Once the time expires, the auction closes. Live auction provides buyers with real time Online Bidding on items from all over the world. It empowers auctioneers with the capability of extending their sales to millions of potential customers. Buyers gain easy access to exclusive brand name items with the convenience and comfort of bidding from their home or office.

Trading with confidence

Doing business on E-Bay is simple. However, before you start, there are a few rules and tricks that you might want to know. To trade on E-Bay you must first register. Registration is free, and it provides a safety net for the buyer. It discourages dishonest people from selling or holding auctions. If there is any complaint about a seller, a bad rating will be associated with his name, and he can even be excluded from doing business on E-Bay If you are unsure of the seller, send him an E-mail and ask him questions regarding his products. Look for dishonest clues in the seller's response.

Here are a few safety tips:

• Before buying from a seller, look for his ratings. Avoid buying from sellers that have a bad rating or no rating at all.

• If possible, buy your items from a reputable source. Some big merchants, like CompUSA, hold their auctions on E-Bay
  

• Find out the maximum amount you would like to pay for the item you want, before you bid.
  

• A few minutes before the end of an auction, open at least two screens on your PC, and always have a slightly higher bid than the last bidder ready to go and just waiting for the Enter key press. Use your other screen to see the last bid placed on the item.

U-Bid

Another highly practical site where items can be bought and sold is uBid. Like E-Bay, buyers can opt to buy an item at a fixed price or elect to bid on an item at auction. Note that the rules for auctions on U-Bid are different than those of E-Bay. On U-Bid, an auction is final if no bid is placed within two minutes of the specified expiration time of the auction. For example, if an auction is scheduled to end at 10:00 AM, and a bid is placed at 9:59 AM, the auction will go on overtime. The auction will keep on going into overtime until no bid is placed for two continuous minutes. There are additional rules regarding auctions on U-Bid, so we recommend that you become familiar with these rules before engaging into the auctions.

Whether you chose to buy an item at a fixed priced or you opt to participate in live Internet auctions, you will have a hard time finding an item at a cheaper price elsewhere. The reason is simple: E-Bay and U-Bid do not carry the overhead that your local stores do. They do not carry inventories, they are simply a service provided to the sellers. As a result, you can save up to 70% on brand name items. It's unlikely that you'll find similar savings in any stores, or an easier way to expose your items to a potential buyers. So, whether you're buying or selling, be sure to check out E-Bay and U-Bid today.

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