DOING YOUR HOLIDAY SHOPPING ON EBAY.

DOING YOUR HOLIDAY SHOPPING ON EBAY.
BY: KIRSTEN HAWKINS
most people do far more shopping in the holiday
season than they do for the rest of the year -
AND NOW YOU KNOW HOW TO USE EBAY, WHY NOT DO IT
there? if you know what kind of thing your
friends and family like then ebay's categories
ARE IDEAL PLACES TO GET IDEAS. PLUS, YOU WON'T
have to fight your way through the holiday rush
when you're getting everything posted to you at
HOME!

buying presents for people.

here's how i do it: think of the last thing the
person you're buying a present for bought for
THEMSELVES. TYPE IT INTO EBAY'S SEARCH ENGINE.
now take a look at which category it's in, and
click the link to look at everything in the
CATEGORY. STRAIGHT AWAY, YOU HAVE A HUGE LIST OF
things that they're probably be happy to receive
- and if you know them well, you should have no
TROUBLE PICKING THROUGH TO FIND SOMETHING REALLY
special.

LOOK AT THEIR EBAY HISTORIES.

if the people you're buying presents for use
EBAY, AND YOU KNOW THEIR EBAY USERNAMES, THEN
you can take a look at what they've been buying
to see what they might want. to look at a user's
HISTORY, JUST CLICK `ADVANCED SEARCH' ON THE
main page, then find a member on the left-hand
menu. type in their username and you should
REACH THEIR USER PAGE, COMPLETE WITH ALL THE
item numbers of things they have bought. just
paste any item number into the ebay search box
TO SEE WHAT THE ITEM WAS. THAT SHOULD GIVE YOU A
few ideas!

SHOP IN ADVANCE.

it's a bad idea to use ebay for your holiday
SHOPPING AT THE VERY LAST MINUTE - PRICES WILL
be high, and items might not turn up in time.
every year there's a present that children want
SO MUCH THAT ALL THE SHOPS SELL OUT, AND IT
starts appearing on ebay at a premium. parents
then pay hundreds of dollars and still don't get
ONE IN TIME FOR THE BIG DAY. DON'T FALL INTO
this trap.

REMEMBER YOU'RE IN SILLY SEASON.

the holiday season is peak time at ebay - loads
OF PEOPLE ARE THERE, AND THEY'RE OFTEN
inexperienced, bidding things up far higher than
they should. try not to end up paying far too
MUCH FOR AN ITEM JUST BECAUSE IT'S THE LAST ONE
that would turn up in time, or because everyone
else is bidding too high. you should always know
WHEN TO CUT YOUR LOSSES, STOP BIDDING AND JUST
go get something from the shop instead.

HAVE FUN!

don't take ebay too seriously - treat it like a
GAME, AND DON'T BE TOO DISAPPOINTED IF YOU LOSE.
it can sometimes feel like gambling, but when
you get that really rare and special thing in
THE POST, IT'S ALL WORTH IT.

that's it for our series of emails about buying
ON EBAY: I HOPE YOU LEARNED SOMETHING, AND GOOD
luck in your ebay future. by now, though, you
might have started to think it would be
INTERESTING TO TRY SELLING A FEW THINGS ON EBAY
yourself. well, you're not alone. go ahead and
sign up now for our emails about selling things
ON EBAY. SEE YOU THERE!

about the author:
KIRSTEN HAWKINS IS AN EBAY AND INTERNET AUCTION
enthusiast from nashville, tn. visit
http://www.auctionseller411.com/ [2]for more
GREAT TIPS ON HOW TO MAKE THE MOST FROM EBAY AND
other online auctions.

circulated by article emporium [3]
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