Beginner’s guide to shopping on eBay
Online shopping is probably the most convenient way to do shopping. From the comfort of your home, you can order whatever you want to buy, and have it delivered in a couple of days. Not only that, you can also land some great deals and offers, if you search carefully.
One shopping website that allows all that is eBay India. The way eBay works is that it has on board a huge number of retailers, who set up ‘shops’ to sell the products. When you search for a particular product, what you get is a whole bunch of sellers offering the product, at different prices. Just like how you would find it in a market with every store offering a different price, eBay just allows that to happen under one roof.
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Before buying any product, search and compare the prices different sellers are offering. Also, some sellers mention the shipping charges over and above the price of the product. Do the math and work out which one works out cheaper.
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We would strongly advice you use eBay’s Paisa Pay payment method – credit card, debit card, cash cards or net banking. This is because eBay ensures that the payment does not reach the seller till the time you confirm that the product has been received. In case you go back and complain to eBay that the product hasn’t been received, or there is some dispute regarding condition, quality etc., the seller will be a little more proactive in finding a resolution for you. That won’t really be the case if you used offline methods like bank draft, direct to account transfer etc., and eBay will also not be able to refund the payment to you.
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Certain products are available on interest free EMI’s on the credit cards. The general offer tenures are 3 months or 6 months. However, be advised to look out for what is called the “processing charge”, something that your bank will levy on the transaction. It is a one-time fee.
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When buying on eBay, you should always prefer buying from a seller, who already has a Power Seller rating. The way the ratings thing works is that when you confirm the receipt of the delivery, you are asked to rate the seller on 3-4 parameters. The ratings as filled up by all the users combine together into one final score. Beyond a certain threshold, the seller gets the highest reputation. You can be assured of good service majority of the time, when buying from a Power Seller.
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Some sellers may have listings from products not officially launched in India. These listings have the term “dealers’ warranty” mentioned, since there will be no official warranty from the company’s side. In that case, you will have to ship the product back to the seller in case something goes wrong with it. We suggest you always pick up products that have the official warranty from the brand. Unless you really need that phone for all the flaunt value that currently may exist!
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