Monday's Retail Madness

Here's the dilemma: you want great fitting/good quality workout clothes/equipment but you don't want to pay a lot of money. Solution- eBay! Finding clothes and equipment on eBay is simple and you can get great stuff at a minimum cost. For instance, a recent eBay search for "nike" revealed a great pair of Nike sneakers for only $20.50! Here are a few tips for shopping on ebay:

1.) Remember eBay is a bidding process, which means that during the bidding period (listed with the item) others can attempt to bid higher on the item. This of course means that when you place a bid on an item you will not necessarily get to purchase the item. Sometimes the seller is willing to forgo the bidding process and will list a "Buy It Now" price, which means you can just click on the item and purchase it as you would normally do with an online retailer. Otherwise, if you want to win an item you have to think about strategy. Normally you will be requested to put in the highest bid you are willing to pay for an item. You have to consider what other people might be willing to pay and then try to outbid them. Each time you place a bid, the price of the item goes up incrementally by a dollar but at the end of the bidding process, the person with the highest maximum bid wins the item. Readers, do you have any tips and stragies for how to win an item on ebay without paying too much?

2.) An important consideration when purchasing equipment or clothing on eBay is quality. There are a couple of ways to ensure quality. First, most items are accompanied by a photograph, which gives an indication of the quality and condition of the product. Second, most products also given an indication of the condition of the product, e.g., used, never-been-worn, like-new, etc. But because the seller is inputting these descriptions, its important to ensure that the seller is reputable. eBay offers seller info which provides feedback on the seller by percentage. A seller with 100% positive feedback has a great reputation based on the reviews from purchasers. Additionally, a potential purchaser can read feedback left by previous purchasers from this seller. Finally, the seller's contact details are usually provided so it is possible to contact the seller if you have any questions or require further information about the product.

3.) Find out the return policy. Find out if the seller accepts returns if you are dissatisfied with the item.

4.) Have a PayPal Account. Most sellers only accept payment through PayPal so it is necessary to set up a PayPal Account. The good news? Its easy and free!

5.) Check out eBay Buyer Protection. This program will cover the cost of the item and shipping if the item does not arrive or the item is not as described. A few caveats: first, the item has to qualify for this protection so its important to find this out before making the purchase. Second, a buyer must go through a process of contacting the seller first to resolve the issue, then contacting eBay and finally after a seven day period of trying to resolve the problem, eBay will determine if it will cover the item based on the items qualifications.

So if you are looking for some new things for spring... Happy Bidding!