Purchasing on eBay survey
Summary: The discussion titled 'Purchasing on eBay survey' includes interactions between lotzofuniquegoodies, mrdutch1001, 2nd-time-around-jewelry, marnotom!, grann-4629, ypdc_dennis, and zephyr135, but no details or substantive content are present in their posts. The thread seems to revolve around a survey related to purchasing on eBay, though no specific opinions, experiences, or insights are recorded.
What would be your deal breaker when it comes to making purchases on eBay? Do you still or did you ever make purchasing on eBay a thing or is it a last resort? Do you purchase from Canadian sellers only?
- Item price
- Shipping cost
- Combination of above
- eIS vs regular mail service choices (intl. located items)
- Item location
- Combined shipping options/lack there of
- Lack of communication from seller
Thoughts, comments please.
10 comments
zephyr135
·3 months agoeBay has become mostly scalpers now for many electronics. So prices are not as competitive.
Buyer protection, eBay’s unpaid item policy is abused by fraudulent sellers and gets your account locked. Meaning if you encounter more than 4 scams within one year, you get locked and can’t appeal(my situation right now).
ypdc_dennis
·4 months agoI've been buying and selling on ebay for over 20 years, so it's a place I'm comfortable with buying from.
eBay is a place I will look at for items that are not time sensitive (3 or more weeks for delivery is okay). For fast, I look locally first (online/in-store).
When I search on eBay I look at price+shipping to see if there something of value (and I often compare those costs with alternative venues -- amazon and local stores to see if the eBay price is a good choice). For stuff that is not quite a good deal, I'll put on my watch list to see if it gets an offer or price reduction in the future.
My first preference is Canadian sellers (especially if it's an item that might have customs clearing issues), but am quite willing to buy from worldwide.
For USA purchases I only buy direct if the seller has a history of shipping to Canada, otherwise my preference is eIS with everything prepaid. eIS can be very inconsistent when it comes to processing times. But I find the tracking is reasonably laid out to follow the different stages to and from the hub to me. Although, newcomers will find the "signed by individual" [at the hub] confusing/worrying.
For the UK have never had any problems with GSP -- usually much faster than the USA eIS.
Combined shipping -- nice to have, but most of the stuff I buy is one at a time. But if I am interested in several items from the same seller, combined shipping can make or break a buying decision.
Seller communication -- some sellers are dead air when I have a question, that drops their chances of making a sale to me.
Seller feedback -- I check negatives and neutrals to see if the issues are ones that are of concern for me (some buyers can be a bit clueless with their complaints).
grann-4629
·4 months agoI just thought of another reason why I have seen items I want, put them in my Watch List, then changed my mind after doing a little research. I am currently buying television series on DVD, the older the better. I have learned that most of the time, the series' I am looking for can be found on YouTube or Prime, saving me the cost of buying them.
My first 'vetting' was for a series that I was looking that is being listed for very high prices by many different sellers (4x what it should sell for) - I was willing to pay a premium for it but checked the 'tube' first. All episodes are there in broadcast quality! The series has also recently shown up on Prime!
I have noticed that the decreasing eBay prices on some tv stuff follow the introduction of that stuff on streaming services - sellers probably notice the decline in sales for these items.
grann-4629
·4 months agoI buy from Canadians only, except for one item from the US that I could not pass up.
Shipping costs, whether 'actual' or profit-making from most US sellers, especially those using eBay's hub system, deters me from buying from my Southern friends.
Item prices for the stuff I buy vary all over the place, but generally cheaper from Canadian sellers due to the currency exchange rate.
Communication with a seller is usually not required except when the dreaded feedbacks are exchanged, but it is fun sometimes. I've 'met' a few new friends on eBay, including you.
Please keep us updated on your survey.
marnotom!
·4 months agoI buy a handful of items off of eBay annually, generally from Canadian, US, and UK sellers, under this ID and another one. (Usually the decision of what account to use is a reflection of what Google account I'm logged into on my browser at the time.) Electronics, small musical instruments, CDs, clothing, and collectibles are my jam.
Some of my items I've purchased have been handled by the US GSP (never the UK GSP) or eIS. I've had no issues with either system for the items I've purchased. If I feel an item I'm looking at is a poor fit for the system, I simply move on to another listing, just as I probably would if the seller were offering express shipping for a small, inexpensive item.
My "deal breaker" depends on the type of item, how much I want or need it, and its availability elsewhere, as well as a general sense of what the seller's like to deal with. I'm more forgiving for hard to come by items than, say, clothing, a category that's so saturated that it's pretty easy to find the same thing or something pretty similar from another seller.
Apologies if this answer seems rather vague, but there's a lot that goes into my decision to make a purchase online, particularly on a site like eBay, but the decision-making process isn't the same for every single item I buy.
2nd-time-around-jewelry
·4 months agoI used to buy quite a few things on eBay from the US in the past. That was when us Canadian sellers were paid in US dollars & I could pay out of my PayPal account in US dollars. Now with the terrible exchange rate on our Canadian dollar & the high shipping costs through EIS, I rarely buy from the US. I still buy from Canadian sellers but it is usually to source lots for my online selling business.
mrdutch1001
·4 months agoHave purchased very little on eBay over the past 15 years and have not purchased anything from the USA during that time...10+ years ago purchased items from an eBay seller in China which was my last purchase from outside Canada... and my last eBay purchase >2-1/2 years ago was from a Canadian seller.
My main go-to-site for purchases is Amazon, but have purchased the occasional item from Temu.
I rarely even consider eBay anymore for making purchases>generally eBay is the last place I'd look> 99% of anything I "need" or "want" can be purchased elsewhere for less $ and often far superior, not just for quality, but for all aspects of the transaction, to what is available here on eBay.
mrdutch1001
·4 months agoran out of edit time so this is a correction to my comment above> 1 purchase from the USA in the past 15 years and that was the purchase a few years ago now, of a couple of childrens wood puzzles, our own product that we had handmade many years previous when we had a woodworking business(these puzzles had been sold in Ontario at one of the summer craft shows where we had been vendors).....and yes that USA purchase cost me a little more $ with the shipping coming from the USA, but the items had a personal connection and were unused, still in original sealed packaging, and were being bought back to give to our newest grandchildren.(we sold the woodworking business about 17 years ago so no longer had the equipment, supplies or any of the merchandise)...and it was just by chance that I happened to come across that listing here on eBay.
lotzofuniquegoodies
OP4 months ago@mrdutch1001
The only purchases I make now on eBay are from Canadian sellers where speed is not critical, letter mail is an option or to use supply coupon. I haven't bought anything from a US seller going on 3 + years. GSP was a nightmare. eIS was mega grief and not worth the costs. The 1 item that did go through took 35 days to arrive. Yikes. Flashbacks.
The buyers and sellers I have spoken to over time have reported the same, almost verbatim. Why, from years ago I was on the bandwagon for a filter to remove eIS when in search mode.
mrdutch1001
·4 months agoOh, I guess I did forget to mention that prior to making that above mentioned purchase from that USA seller(who was utilizing the predecessor to the now eIS), I asked the seller if I could have the package shipped directly to me through USPS and the seller obliged, so the shipping cost was somewhat less and the package arrived safe & sound in a timely manner.