Dear eBay Queen;
I listed a very rare book on eBay yesterday and put a high “Buy it Now” price on it. I am not sure how much it may be worth to someone who really, really wants it. I put a BIN price of $399.98 and a reserve of $125. I'd be happy to take less if someone emailed and offered to BIN for $250. Admittedly, the BIN is kind of pie-in-the-sky wishing, however I do have the much lower reserve prominently displayed on the listing.
I received this question today: “Is this a mistake or is this book really 399.98? Thanks”
Would you even bother to answer this question? If so, would you just write that it's not a mistake without any explanation for why, or would you explain that it's a very rare book? I couldn't find the book on Google, Bookfinder, Biblio, Amazon or Half.com. There is one old listing from a few weeks ago on eBay, but that book is not in as good of condition as mine is. There are no real price references for me to go off of on pricing.
Diana
Dear Diana;
When it comes to eBay questions, I try to answer everyone, no matter how odd or out of line they may be. I think it’s important to try to answer all potential buyers questions. When you do this, you validate your buyer, and get a personal opportunity to “sell” your item to them. I admit some buyer’s questions could be answered if they would just read the eBay ad, but I try to look at all questions as the opportunity to sell my eBay business, the item and myself.
I would email the person back, and let them know where you bought your book, and the research you did to figure out it was rare. If you have any background on the author, or insight into why it is such a rare copy I would include that also. You may just sell your book at the “Buy it Now” price.
Dear eBay Queen;
I sold a lot of 58 children’s series books on eBay. They sold for $72.90 plus shipping. I shipped them out last week. Yesterday I received a message from the buyer saying they received all the books but 2 of them. I have an uneasy feeling about this, considering this person is also a seller of books. Don’t you think this is odd? I know I shipped them all. What should I do?
Book Seller
Dear Book Seller;
That is very odd. When this happened to me, I double-checked my wrapping area, and the shelf where I stored my items. I found my missing item, right on my wrapping table under some newspaper. If this happens to you, email your buyer and tell him your sending them right out.
If you have looked everywhere, and know beyond a shadow of a doubt you sent the books; then offer to partially refund his money. I know you are suspicious of him, and I would be a little bit too. Since there is no way to prove either of your cases, it is best to error on the side of the buyer. When there are multiple items involved, take the end price ($72.90) and divided it by the number of items they purchased (58). Since he did not receive 2 of the books, I would refund him $2.52, which ends up being $1.26 per book. I think this will keep your buyer happy, and shouldn’t affect your bottom line.
I know this type of problem can really make a seller wary of other eBayers. Try not to let this get you down.
Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 270092150814 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page). Breyer Horse collectibles have always been a hot item. Check out this auction for a Breyer Test Proud Arabian Mare Horse by Bainbridge. SOLD $4349.99 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270092150814
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