EBay for Dummies (5 page)

Do you solemnly swear to . . . ?

During the registration you’ll be asked to check the boxes that say you agree to the eBay User Agreement and Privacy Policy. At this point, you take an oath to keep eBay safe for democracy and commerce. You promise to play well with others, not to cheat, and to follow the Golden Rule. No, you’re not auditioning for a superhero club, but don’t ever forget that eBay takes this stuff very seriously. You can be kicked off eBay or worse. (Can you say “federal investigation”?)

Be sure to read the User Agreement thoroughly when you register. So that you don’t have to put down this riveting book to read the legalese right this minute, I provide the nuts and bolts here:

You understand that every transaction is a legally binding contract. (Click the User Agreement link at the bottom of any eBay page for the current eBay Rules and Regulations.)

You agree that you can pay for the items you buy and the eBay fees that you incur. (Chapter 8 fills you in on how eBay takes its cut of the auction action.)

You understand that you’re responsible for paying any taxes.

You’re aware that if you sell prohibited items, eBay can forward your personal information to law enforcement for further investigation. (Chapter 9 explains what you can and can’t sell on eBay — and what eBay does to sellers of prohibited items.)

eBay makes clear that it is just a
venue,
which means it’s a place where people with similar interests can meet, greet, and do business.

When everything goes well, the eBay Web site is like a school gym that opens for Saturday swap meets. At the gym, if you don’t play by the rules, you can get tossed out. But if you don’t play by the rules on eBay, the venue gets un-gymlike in a hurry. eBay has the right to get state and federal officials to track you down and prosecute you. But fair’s fair; if you click the appropriate box on this page, eBay keeps you posted by e-mail of any updates in the User Agreement.

If you’re a stickler for fine print, click the links provided on the registration page for all the
Ps
and
Qs
of the latest policies. The User Agreement is vital to your success on eBay.

Before you can proceed, you must click the two check boxes, indicating that you really,
really
understand what it means to be an eBay user. Because I know that you, as a law-abiding eBay member, will have no problem following the rules, go ahead and click the I Agree to These Terms button at the bottom of the page. You’re transported to a screen stating that eBay is sending you an e-mail. You’re almost done.

The next step is confirming your e-mail address, which I cover in the next section.

It must be true if you have it in writing

After you accept the User Agreement and Privacy Policy, eBay takes less than a minute to e-mail you an activation notice. When you receive the eBay registration activation e-mail, be sure to print it, and don’t delete the e-mail — save it somewhere special.

With your confirmation number in hand, head back to the eBay Registration page by clicking the link supplied in your e-mail. If your e-mail doesn’t support links, go to this address:

cgi4.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll

After you reconnect with eBay and it knows your e-mail address is genuine, you’ll be heartily congratulated with an eBay e-mail. It’s time to start shopping!

If you don’t receive your eBay registration confirmation e-mail within 24 hours, there was most likely an error in your e-mail address. At this point, the customer-support folks can help you complete the registration process. Try visiting the Contact Us link on the eBay home page. They are always happy to help.

If for some reason (even a late night watching the
24
marathon is a perfectly acceptable excuse) you incorrectly type the wrong e-mail address, you have to start the registration process all over again with a different user ID (eBay holds the previous ID for 30 days). If you run into a snag, you can click the Contact Us button to reach Live Help. See Figure 2-3 for one of my previous Live Help discussions.

Getting to know you: Optional information

When you’re a full-fledged, officially registered member of the eBay community, you may see an eBay pop-up window, giving you the option to provide more information about yourself. These optional questions allow you to fill in your self-portrait for your new pals from eBay.

Although eBay doesn’t share member information with anyone, you don’t have to answer the optional questions if you don’t want to.

The following points show you the optional questions eBay asks. You decide what you feel comfortable divulging and what you want to keep personal. eBay asks for this information because the company wants a better picture of who is using its Web site. In marketing mumbo-jumbo, this stuff is called
demographics
— statistics that characterize a group of people who make up a community. In this case, it’s the eBay community. Here is the optional information you can provide:

Gender:
This first choice gets right down to the basics; some people find it a good test of whether the requests for information seem too personal. (eBay will no doubt figure it out anyway when they see what items you search the site for!)

Annual household income:
Fill this in if you want to (eBay states that this info is kept anonymous), but I think this information is too personal. If you’re not comfortable with providing it, skip it.

Your highest completed education level:
Again if this is too personal, leave this area blank.

After selecting your responses from the drop-down box, you can click Submit. If you’re not in the mood right now, you can click the Answer Later link. (This pop-up box reappears for your response later in your eBay dealings.) If you don’t want to answer any demographic queries, click the Please Don’t Ask Me Again link at the bottom of the pop-up window.

If somebody you’re in a transaction with requests your info, you get an e-mail from eBay giving you the name, phone number, city, and state of the person making the request. Keep your information up-to-date. If you don’t, you risk being ejected from the site. See Chapter 15 for details.

A Quick Word about Passwords

Choosing a good password is not as easy (but is twice as important) as it may seem. Whoever has your password can (in effect) “be you” on eBay — running sales, bidding on auctions, and leaving possibly litigious feedback for others. Basically, such an impostor can ruin your eBay career and possibly cause you serious financial grief.

As with any online password, you should follow these rules to protect your privacy:

Don’t choose an obvious password, such as your birthday, your first name, or (especially!) your Social Security number. (
Hint:
If it’s too easy to remember, it’s probably too easy to crack.)

Make things tough on the bad guys — combine numbers and letters (use uppercase and lowercase) or create nonsensical words.

Don’t give out your password to anyone — it’s like giving away the keys to the front door of your house.

If you ever suspect that someone has your password, immediately change it by going to the following address:

https://scgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll

Change your password every few months just to be on the safe side.

Don’t use the same password for eBay and PayPal.

A Not-So-Quick Word about Choosing a User ID

eBay gives you the option of picking your user ID. Making up a user ID is my favorite part. If you’ve never liked your real name (or never had a nickname), here’s your chance to correct that situation. Have fun. Consider choosing an ID that tells a little about you. Of course, if your interests change, you may regret having too narrow a user ID.

You can call yourself just about anything; you can be silly or creative or boring. But remember, this ID is how other eBay users will know you. So here are some commonsense rules:

Don’t use a name that would embarrass your mother.

Don’t use a name with a negative connotation, such as
scam-guy.