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More and more people are participating in online auctions, the world's largest "flea market." Whether you collect pez dispensers, or want to sell some that are gathering dust in your attic, online auctions are the place for you! It's fun to browse, and it's easy to buy or sell almost anything, from teeny trinkets to sleek sports cars. After reading these few tips, you'll find yourself going once, going twice and positively "sold" on using online auctions. FIND WHAT YOU WANT Surf some of the popular auction sites, like:    Ebay    Amazon    Bidnow.com    Collecting Nation    NoBidding.com    Boxlot    gmbid.com Browse through categories. (Caution: this can be mighty addictive!) Or, search for something specific, like "red wool sweater." Items up for bid will include a description, the name and location of the seller, the current bid price, and often includes a picture of the item as well. HOW TO BID Look at the item's current bid. Decide your maximum bid. (This is kept confidential). You can use proxy bidding that will slowly raise your bid incrementally automatically, until it reaches your maximum bid. If no one matches your maximum bid or bids much higher, you may win the item for much less than your maximum bid. The auction site will notify you whenever you've been outbid, and will send you an e-mail message congratulating you if you win. Buyer and seller should communicate immediately to go over details, such as shipping and insurance costs, preferred payment method, mailing address, etc. HOW TO PAY Buyer is responsible for item cost plus shipping charges. Pay by check, money order or use an escrow service provided by the auction site. The escrow service will hold your money until you receive your item and then it will pay the seller. These are especially useful for very expensive items. You can also use a service (such as Amazon's 1-Click) that will automatically charge your credit card and deposit it to the seller's account. HOW TO SELL Fill out appropriate information such as the item's category, description, etc. Determine the starting price for your item. You can put in a reserve amount. This means you are not willing to sell the item unless a bid meets or exceeds that amount. (The reserve price is kept hidden from prospective bidders.) Contact the winner within 3 days after selling the item, with your preferred payment method(s), your mailing address, etc. WHAT ARE THE FEES? You pay no fee to browse, bid or buy. If you want to sell an item you'll pay a small insertion fee. This is typically linked to the starting or reserve price you've indicated for that item. (Expensive items have larger insertion fees.) Sellers also pay a small, fixed percentage of the final amount of the item's winning bid. SAFETY TIPS Once you've bought or sold something on an auction site, you can receive feedback from the sellers/buyers you deal with. Auction sites allow the online community to view sellers and bidders' "ratings" and the comments they received. If you are buying an item and see that the person selling it has multiple positive comments, you can feel better about your transaction. If you see negative comments, you might consider not bidding, or consider paying through an escrow service or other service supplied by the site. Generally, most transactions go without a hitch. That's why the online auction world has exploded so dramatically! You're now ready to work your way around an auction site, see what's out there for you, or even sell something! print this lesson | back to lesson main page Register with an auction site and make a bid!