Archive for July 22nd, 2010

Dear eBay Queen:

I was at one of your all day eBay classes at the Olathe Library not too long ago. You told a story about an antique you’d mailed to someone and once they received they were not happy with it. In that story you mentioned that you marked your item with a special pen, so when they sent the item back you knew it was your item. When I went to Staples to ask about a pen like that they looked at me like I was crazy.  The only thing they had was a counterfeit pen for money. Is that the same thing or am I looking for something different?

Thanks, I appreciate your help! I’ve enjoyed “playing” on eBay, but have found the postage and/or finding mailing boxes to be my biggest challenges so far.

~Sondra

eBay member – sondraonline

Dear Sondra;

I believe what you are looking for is a UV pen.  These are the same pens that are used for detecting counterfeit money.  I’ve always bought my UV pens on eBay, because some sellers carry a pen that is a UV pen on one side and a light (to check the UV mark with) on the other.  These range in price from .99 cents to 13.99 from various sellers. Here’s a video on how it works: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmZz_mM3BCY

Postage and packaging can be a daunting job.  If you have any specific questions regarding those topics, I would be happy to answer them.

Dear eBay Queen:

I purchased a HUGE lot of vintage quilts, quilt tops, patterns, and sewing items from one of those storage auctions.  I’ve been selling this stuff for a month or so, without any problems.  I make sure that I take plenty of photos and describe the item correctly.  However, that did not save me from this problem!

I sold a beautiful appliquéd quilt top on June 27^th.  They paid for it and I mailed it off on June 28^th.  The quilt top did not have a flaw or stain on it.  Here’s the email I received from the buyer today.  Please tell me what I should do, because I’ve never had anything like this happen.

“So, I received my quilt on July 3^rd, but I did not have time with the holiday and vacation time to contact you.  I can not believe this thing is in the condition it is in!  Where is the back? Where is the stuffing?  Where is the stitching?  I paid a lot of money for this quilt, and I expected it to be a REAL quilt.  What kind of scam are you running?  This is my 25^th eBay purchase, and I’ve never felt so cheated!  What are you going to do about this?”

So eBay Queen what should I do?  This woman is apparently certifiable. I have not emailed her back yet; I am waiting to hear what you have to say.

John; Springfield MO

Dear John:

Your buyer is upset because they didn’t read the title or description.  They thought they were getting a quilt, and not a quilt top.  This kind of thing happens frequently on eBay.  I wish I had some really good advice to give you when it comes to dealing with buyers that do not read the item descriptions.  Almost every eBay seller I know has this type of problem at one time or another.

In this situation I would double check to make sure I sent the right item, once I knew she had the correct quilt top, I would apologize and offer a refund once the item was sent back.  I know that some people would disagree with this, after all, the buyer made the mistake; but I like to think that if I make the buyer happy they will come back and shop on eBay.  In the current climate of eBay you can still be “right” and receive negative feedback with the potential of having your stars dinged.  This is something to think about when dealing with buyers.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item: 250661220971 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): It’s hot outside! How about a vintage thermometer? Check this one out: COPPERTONE PAM 1957 THERMOMETER RARE WITH LITTLE GIRL SOLD: $1425.00  http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250661220971

Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com.