eBay 101: Getting started

This is a guide for the absolute eBay beginner. You have heard of eBay, maybe you even know someone who uses it but you have never dared to use it yourself or have the first idea about how to go about doing it. Well, read on and all that will change.

What is eBay?

eBay could be described as the worlds largest flea market, a global auction house, a bargain hunters paradise or a refuge for scammers. It is the largest online marketplace in terms of users and therefore it has the widest selection of goods on offer. Sellers offer everything from the brand new to the old and worn. If it's for sale, it's probably here.

What does it have on offer for me?

Ok, let's say you wanted to buy a shiny new HTC Diamond smartphone. First, open http://www.ebay.ie/ in a new tab or window. Next locate this bar:


...and type htc diamond as shown. Hit enter. I got 50 matches, how about you?

Notice the .ie at the end of the address. This means that it is eBay Ireland. What that means is that the site is optimised (in eBays opinion, not mine) for Irish sellers. Prices appear in euro, shipping defaults to "to Ireland", Irish eBay Shops are given priority and so on. This is useful but actually there is a problem: it cuts out a lot of people who are quite happy to sell to you at low prices! Try the other varients such as ebay.com and ebay.co.uk to find more deals. For example, ebay UK was showing 62 hits for me on the same search as above.

I see something I want. How do I buy things?

You need to sign up for an eBay account, have an email address, have a credit card and 99% of the time, a PayPal account.

That should keep you busy for now. If you want me to cover something in particular in the next installment, leave a comment and I'll do my best.