State of the Sport Ebay Hobbies - 2009/01
My eBay goof
I didn't pay attention to the "Confirm Bid" screen. The adrenaline started to flow and this little auction had gotten really exciting. If I had to explain my goof to Sweet Diedra (my wife), I would not only have been the target of her wifely wit, but she would also have been justified in bidding $61 on some Tupperware auction. Drat!
Some other bidders had found the propeller lot and were waiting for the final minutes to pounce. Lucky for me, THERE I WAS, the big-time experienced eBayer, swooping through cyberspace, looking for bargains on model airplane items.
The eBay Web site is loaded with hobby items that sometimes go for rock-bottom prices. It's not that I'm a cheapskate; it's just that—okay, I'm a cheapskate! Buyers love a chance to win an auction item for a low price, and sellers love it when prices are bid through the roof. That's why eBay uses an auction format.
Suddenly I spied a batch of old rubber-powered propellers. Some were balsa, some were plastic—right up my alley and listed under Toys rather than RC, so maybe nobody else would find them. (The Free Flight (FF) and Control Line (CL) stuff is listed under RC on eBay; deal with it.)
I carefully decided that $15 was my limit on this lot, but I bumped it up to $16.09 to stay ahead of the "round-number" bidders. I confidently typed in my price, knowing that eBay would open my bid at 99¢ and use the rest only if needed to overcome other bidders. With practiced ease, I clicked "Enter" and watched as my account was updated to show the $61.09 bid. Sixty-one dollars? Yikes! I must have transposed the digits and then didn't pay attention to the Confirm Bid screen.
The price rose to $29 before time mercifully ran out. Okay, it could have been worse. I used PayPal (an electronic alternative to paper payment methods such as checks and money orders) to settle my bill and vowed to be more careful next time. It is possible to retract eBay bids under extraordinary circumstances, but "being a doofus" is not covered.
A few days later, the propellers arrived from a dealer who never knew how much money he almost made. We finished the transaction by leaving positive feedback for one another so that eBayers can consult our records before they do business together.
eBay and the hobby marketplace
The auction format is only one factor that has helped eBay—called "The World's Largest Online Marketplace"—grow quickly since it was created in 1995. The federal government has largely kept its hands off and winning bidders seldom pay tax on interstate transactions. Pure capitalism and an understanding of human nature have given the online auction business $59 billion yearly in gross sales. Shippers have profited, dealers have profited, and our hobby has benefited.
Despite its 276 million registered users, there are still plenty of people who have never ventured into the vast global marketplace of eBay. Out of roughly 113 million item listings at any given time, using "model airplane" as a search term usually brings up about 4,000 auctions. Bidders can narrow searches by brand names, aircraft names, or other terms to find a specific item or kit. The site divides aeromodeling stuff into categories for electric, gas, helicopters, etc. A search for bargains can be fun and challenging, because sellers who are not modelers often incorrectly categorize hobby listings.
How hobbyists use eBay
How you use eBay depends on what you want to accomplish. I love to acquire old kits and accessories on the cheap, and I’ve even made money reselling items to other modelers. Engine collectors do lots of business on eBay. If you collect a certain brand of kit or a favorite aircraft, eBay provides a shopping venue that didn’t exist a few years ago, when old hobby items ended up in garage sales or trashcans.
If you want a particular model or accessory that is no longer in production, eBay is the place to find it. New and used items are listed side by side, and browsers can get a good idea of what the going price is on any given hobby product. I’ve seen current production kits go for more than the retail price to buyers who evidently do not check on such things before bidding.
Auction strategies and timing
As with any auction, decide beforehand how high you are willing to bid. Don’t get sucked into a bidding frenzy—this is exactly what the seller wants. Topping someone else’s bid can get expensive—especially if they want to do the same to you.
- The big action happens on weekends, when many people are home to watch the beginnings and ends of seven-day auctions. Final prices are usually a bit lower in auctions that end on quiet weekdays.
- Auctions that end during major sporting events or holidays often bring lower prices, since many bidders are occupied elsewhere. This can be an opportunity for buyers and a pitfall for sellers.
- Conversely, dealers like to list auctions during bad weather, because bidders are stuck indoors at the computer, pushing the bid button.
Feedback and community
The eBay feedback system has undergone revisions. Because of some sellers’ retaliatory use of feedback, the system now allows buyers to leave positive or negative comments for a seller, but dealers can leave only positive marks for their customers.
Feedback points are a vital record of an eBayer’s conduct, and having a low feedback score makes it harder to buy or sell. The new changes are controversial, and some sellers have threatened to move to other auction sites.
The Web site is so vast that certain sections have become unique communities. I sometimes recognize familiar eBay names bidding against me, and I know that it is a modeler with interests similar to mine.
Shipping and packing
Sweet Diedra is familiar with the Tupperware and craft section. She says that Tupperware bidders are used to paying high shipping charges, while craft purchasers expect much lower rates.
Model hobby auctions sometimes request only the postage charge for shipping, and the seller supplies the packaging material for free. I recycle boxes or make them from cardboard salvaged from broken-down corrugated cartons to keep shipping charges low on my auctions. Model kits need long shipping cartons and plenty of packing material. Boxes can be reused or custom-made from salvaged cardboard.
Larger dealers can't always keep shipping charges low, so small-time sellers sometimes have an advantage. Watch out for dealers who sell an item for $1 but ask $75 to ship it. If there is a problem, they may refund the purchase price but not the shipping fee.
Getting started: Tips I learned the hard way
- Know what you're buying. The auction item's description and photographs will give you clues, but you take a bigger risk if you are unfamiliar with the item. For example, I once bought an old Scientific Sky Master kit for $10; it came with a genuine paulownia-wood propeller that was worth much more than the rest of the kit. The seller didn't know that and missed out on a bigger profit.
- Accuracy counts in an auction description. Good sellers describe their items in exact terms so buyers are pleased and not surprised. A product that differs substantially from the description is grounds for a formal eBay dispute. Know the grading terms for your item and try to see it through a purchaser's eyes. And please use the spell checker—auctions with misspelled words make the seller look like a doofus.
- Use the site's tools. Feedback ratings let you use other people's experiences to judge whether an eBayer is a flake or a gem before you deal with him or her. You can ask the seller a question about an auction; the answer can tell you plenty about the item as well as the seller. The site also has a dispute-resolution system. Although I have been pleased and frustrated at various times, it is much better than small claims court for interstate issues.
- A deal is a deal. Follow through even if you get clobbered. I love to win an auction for the lowest of opening bids, but as a seller I've occasionally had to take my lumps on a low final price. A disappointing ending bid is no excuse for shoddy service. If I win an extremely low-priced auction and the seller comes through, I make sure to leave exceptionally glowing feedback comments.
- A word about email. Brief email messages almost always look harsher than intended and are notoriously prone to misinterpretation. Write your email with a soft tone, and never send a "flame" message without letting it cool for a rereading. I make a habit of ending with "best wishes, Dave" to make sure the reader knows I want to be friends. Clear punctuation and spacing help comprehension.
- Time is of the essence. Keep an eye on your email messages and respond quickly. Once the auction ends, get things moving. If the post office delays a package, it is great to be able to show that you mailed it promptly. Quick payment and fast shipping are frequently mentioned in good feedback. Have items prepacked if possible—I've found a self-inking address stamp saves time and writer's cramp.
- You'll meet a nut eventually. Most people who use eBay are reliable, and my experience is that aeromodelers are the best of the best, but sooner or later some goofball will make trouble for you. Irrational demands or groundless complaints are irritating, but don't let it spoil your fun. The feedback system limits the amount of damage any one person can do; habitual troublemakers don't last long.
Final thoughts
All in all, eBay is a business resource. There are those who don't follow the rules, but most do. It's practically a free-market space, or what some people might call the "black market." Stories have been told about copyright fraud and items stolen out of a club member's trailer that were seen on eBay soon thereafter. Always practice the "let the buyer beware" rule.
Thanks to the good old American entrepreneurial spirit, modelers have the hobby shop they have always wanted. Granted, eBay isn't the same as walking through double doors off Main Street, but this virtual store's shelves are constantly stocked with items that are fresh from the factory or recently unearthed from someone's dark closet.
A trip through the model listings on eBay, or any other auction source, will captivate a user of any age. The community that has been spawned from this resource is a proud membership of people, such as that of the Academy of Model Aeronautics.
Dave Gee [email protected]
Sources:
- eBay
- www.ebay.com
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
