E-Bay has done so much for collectors in every spectrum that it is hard to pinpoint any specific area of items. However, I want to take a few moments to guide you in collecting books on E-Bay because E-Bay has brought about a venue of collecting that allows even the most ingee-challenged collector to quietly and quickly put together a library of their particular taste quickly and affordably.
First of all, do your homework before bidding. If you are looking for a first edition of Children's literature, (like Tom Sawyer for example), first go to a dealers site like ABE. Find out what year the actual first editions were printed, what they look like, what print mistakes were made, etc. Then go to E-Bay. I guarantee you can find that book that was listed for thousands of dollars at a dealers, for far, far less from an individual here on E-Bay. A lot of people buy items and sell them on E-Bay. I do the opposite. I buy antique bookson E-Bay and sell themin my retail store. Yes, there is that much difference.
Next, ask questions. Never be afraid to ask questions. Most sellers here on E-Bay are only too happy to answer your questions. If you aren't sure that the book they have for sell is the one you want (sometimes the seller isn't sure either), just email them and ask them for pertinent information points regarding the book that you learn from the dealers sites. (ie. how many print plates are in the book, how many pages does it have, is the word 'garbled' misspelled on page 277, etc.) Also, ask for pictures! If the listing doesn't have a picture that depicts a specific area of the book, or page of the book, just ask the seller for one. Most sellers are happy to get you one. If they aren't, then watch out.
The 3rd thing you need to do is check feedback. Always, Always, Always check feedback. After you are sure, they are selling the item you want, click on the feedback number icon of the seller and review a page or two of their recent fedback. Keep in mind that there are instances where a seller can't help getting a negative gement, but watch out for the ones that have gements in their fedback like "shipped diferrent item than sold to me", and "claimed authentic 1857 copy, but was recent facsimile fake" or "I paid 4 weeks ago and still haven't seen my item". That type of feedback usually (but not always) indicates a problem seller and you have to rationally weigh the odds of a good deal going sour before biding. The main thing you need to remember is that 95%, or more, of the folks here on E-Bay selling items are good honest people selling goods and services at a fair price with no intention of doing any wrong to anyone. There is a rotten apple in every bushell, but that shouldn't deter you from eating apples. Just check the apple before biting in.
4th and final, BIDDING. (Yes, the funnest part of E-Bay). Now, you found your item, your sure it's the right item, the seller looks great in the feedback profile, and you got your mouse rolling on the table with that index finger itching to start clicking. WAIT! Do you want to BID on the item, or do you want to WIN the item? Early bidding can cost you hundreds of dollars. Put that book on your watch list and wait until the very, very last second to hit it. Ealry bidders can go head to head for days jacking the price up and up. Thefolks that wait until the last second and "snipe" their bids, are the the folks that consistently win items and consistently get the good deals that E-Bay is all about. Now, (very important) you have no idea how high of a proxy bid the current bidder has. You waited until the last second to bid, so you likely won't have time to bid twice before it ends. BID HIGH! Put your bid in for the max you are willing to pay for that item and do it one time. WHAM! Concurrently take out the high bidder and surprise the heck out ofthose other snipers that were trying to snipe a last second cheapskate bid. They'll be smacking their monitors, fumbling with their keyboards andgritting their teeth as they try to figure out what happenedwhile simultaneously trying to enter another bid in the 2 seconds left on the screen. It's not possible, my friend, you're going to be smiling quietly while the other sniper will be evolving into a Griper Sniper. He sat there and waited until thevery end of the auction and blew it bidding too low. HA! Man, that's the good stuff!
Just remember the golden rules and you'll do fine. Always do your homework! Ask Questions! Check feedback! Bid smart! OH, and NEVER EVERlet em' talk you into doing the deal outside of E-Bay. When the cat's away, the mice will play. And they'll be playing with your money! Enjoy E-Bay and enjoy collecting your books. E-Bay is a fun place that has moved mountains in the world of collecting and can move mountains for you, too, if you do it right.
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