Brian McGregor's |
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UK
The newsletter for buyers and bidders on
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This latest issue is now also available online at
http://www.workwinners.com/newsletter/040723.htm
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In This Issue
In this edition I include a long article about secure
trading on
eBay. This is because I have had
several emails recently from
readers seeking advice in this
area, and it is an issue about
which I believe something should be
done.
1. News and Views
2. Secure trading - or downright fraud?
3. The value of photographs on your auction
4. Software and ebook Selling on eBay - Clarification
5. Someone's auctioning what? Unusual items currently
available
6. Finally
7. My Products Catalogue
=============================
Inspirational quote of the day
"Desire is the starting point of all achievement, not a
hope, not
a wish, but a keen pulsating desire
which transcends everything."
Napoleon Hill
=============================
Brian McGregor speaking - you receive the
Newsletter because you have bought from me or enquired about
my
auction items on eBay or QXL.
If you do not want to receive this newsletter, the only one
dedicated to eBay
email to
unsubscribe@workwinners.com
=============================
1. News and Views
a) Will the
It has been announced that eBay
Prices on auctions from
effect on all categories except
cars, motorcycles and boats.
As you know, the Reserve Price feature enables the seller to
put
a hidden minimum price on an
auction.
Whilst there is an additional fee for using a Reserve Price,
it
allows a seller to ensure their
item does not sell for a price
lower than that which they are
prepared to accept.
According to eBay's announcement, "This change is
designed to
help the small number of sellers in
Reserve Prices to be even more successful. There is strong
evidence that Reserves restrict the
bidding activity on an item.
eBay research has shown that
sellers who don't use a Reserve on
their listings experience a 34%
higher sell-through rate than
those sellers using Reserve."
If strong evidence exists that Reserves restrict bidding
activity
(in
eBay world. Watch this space.
I reserve my judgement. Do you get it? Reserve?
Oh never mind.
b) A Question of Knowing How
I've been asked by a number of subscribers about how they
can
make their auctions more
presentable. The only way you can
achieve this is by using HTML
coding.
Now, not everyone wants to learn HTML (and I don't blame
them).
So, here are some free auction template resources you might
like
to investigate. You don't need to
know any HTML to use them:
Auction templates to make your auctions look professional
without
knowing HTML. Includes a useful
tutorial of how to get the
template into your auction.
www.deadzoom.com/auction-template
Very easy to use auction template system.
www.tupics.com/freead/create.pl
A service in which you complete boxes on screen, and the
resulting auction is displayed back
to you, together with the
HTML code. A small advert for Tupic appears at the bottom of your
description, but it gets you up and
running with a nice layout
very quickly.
A lovely piece of software, EZ Ad, which enables you to
create
good looking auction pages without
knowing HTML. Also includes
free hosting for up to 400
pictures.
www.auctionsupplies.com/templates/
A range of pre-designed auction pages, into which you paste
your
own text and picture URLs.
That lot should keep you out of mischief for a while!
c) What a Question?
I had an unusual question from a correspondent the other
day. I
was asked how to close an eBay
account.
It seemed to be a fairly innocent question, and I assumed I
would
be able to respond pretty quickly.
But it took quite a bit of
digging to come up with the answer.
So, if you are a disgruntled eBay user, or you wish to
remove a
dormant eBay User ID of yours, this
is where you go:
http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/account/closing-account.html
d) Update from the last edition
With reference to my oil painting marketing business
mentioned in
the last edition of the newsletter,
there is an update.
Michael Aspel rang me up and
requested a fee for his unsolicited
appearance in my article!
I said, "You should be glad at this stage in your
career to get
some free publicity mate."
Michael said, "What do you mean at this stage in my
career?"
I replied, "Well, you have to admit you're in the
twilight zone
as far as show biz is
concerned."
He clearly objected to this and retorted, "If that's
how you
feel, you'll be hearing from my
solicitor."
So I said, "Maybe we shouldn't be too hasty. What fee
are you
looking for?"
Michael mentioned a sum, which of course I'm not obliged to
disclose.
However, being an honourable guy, I can tell you the fiver's
on
it's way.
And Michael promises he'll send the change by return.
For those of you who don't have a clue what I'm talking
about,
you need to go to the last edition
of the newsletter, and check
out the item headed "I hope
Vincent doesn't turn in his grave".
You can see it here:
http://www.workwinners.com/newsletter/040630.htm
=============================
2. Secure trading - Downright fraud
In this section on secure trading, I am going to take a
serious
look at the issue of fraudulent
trading.
First, let me share with you an email I received recently
from a
reader:
*********
Hi Brian,
Just something to remind people of perhaps in your
newsletter,
sellers beware.
This happened to me twice in the same day.
Basically people buy your items (usually in a large qty)
then pay
with PayPal.
Fine you say, but they ask you to send them to a
different address than PayPal gives you. People must be made
aware that this leaves you with no
protection and usually
indicates fraud.
So I did a quick crosscheck - eBay location
location
Then again - eBay location
deliver to
I didn't send the items and sure enough two days later the PayPal
payment was reversed for one of the
transactions.
So please remind sellers to be wary and to never send to
locations that don't match with
eBay or PayPal locations or you
will lose your goods and your
money.
Regards
*********
Thanks to Jon for this reminder for all of us to be careful.
This example is one of the two ways criminals try and get
you. If
you are a seller, they will
"pay" you, and you ship the goods.
You then find out their payment isn't real.
The most used trick here is to pay you via PayPal. You're happy
because you see the payment in your
PayPal account. So, you ship
the goods. After you have confirmed
the goods have been shipped,
the buyer then contacts PayPal and reports you for defaulting on
delivery. The first you know about
this is when PayPal email you
to tell you they have taken a
"disputed" payment from your
account. You're left with a problem
to sort out, and your goods
are on their way to your buyer who
has paid nothing.
If you are a buyer, the simple fraud here is that you make
the
payment but don't receive the
goods. There are two favourite ways
the fraudster can get you here. First,
if they have hijacked an
eBay account they will have
acquired all the excellent feedback
of the person they've "taken
over", and your suspicions are
reduced. You assume this seller is
the person with the eBay ID in
front of you, so you pay by cheque
or PayPal - or by Western
the payment goes to. (If you use PayPal, the seller will empty
their PayPal
account before you have time to become suspicious of
their non-delivery)
If the amount is particularly high they could suggest you
protect
yourself by paying via escrow. As
the escrow process is new to
many eBayers,
they helpfully propose an escrow company they've
used a few times before. When you
check out the website of the
proposed escrow company, it looks
impressive and official, so you
go ahead and pay your money to the
escrow company. For the
seller, this is the end of the
transaction. They've got your
money, but you won't be getting any
goods. Their escrow company
is also fraudulent, along with
about 90% of all escow companies!
I am always concerned to hear of decent people who have lost
money on eBay due to criminal
activities of the few.
I am also concerned by eBay's apparent lack of emphasis on
this
matter. Their justification seems
to be that it only arises is a
tiny fraction of completed
auctions. I heard an eBay spokesman
recently on BBC Radio 4 say that
less than 1 in 10,000 of
auctions are affected by some kind
of fraud. This works out at
0.01%.
This may not sound like a high percentage, but it's
everything if
you're the one caught up in it!
Also, if you extrapolate that
percentage into numbers of auctions
affected, the figure becomes
both alarming and unacceptable.
In eBay's Quarterly Report for the quarter ended
they state that there were 332
million listings. If this
quarterly figure is converted to an
annual number by simply
multiplying by 4, we get around
1,300 million listings per year.
Given that approximately 50% of listings conclude with a
successful sale, this means that
650 million transactions are
completed annually.
Now, we apply the 0.01% to the number of successfully
concluded
auctions to find out how many
transactions are, according to
eBay, affected by fraud.
The number we arrive at is 65,000
auctions per year. That's 1,250
per week, around 180 each day.
And each one of these cases represents an individual who has
their life turned upside down as
they attempt to find their way
through the eBay and/or PayPal customer service fog, try to
contact other impacted buyers or
sellers, try to talk sensibly to
their bank, and deal with a police
service who can fob them off.
The last mentioned isn't surprising, as the knowledge of the
average PC of internet fraud can
probably be written on the back
of a sergeant's stripe.
And this all takes time. While it's going on, the fraudster
is
probably moving on to their next
victims with apparent impunity.
Or, at the very worst, they have the inconvenience of eBay
suspending their account. Oh horror
upon horror! That must be
really worrying for the thieves.
They have to go to the bother of
setting up a new eBay ID before
they can carry on stealing from
people.
Unfortunately, eBay appear to downplay this as not being a
serious issue.
No wonder my own email box has more and more anxious eBay
members
seeking advice in this area. And
it's no surprise to me that
there is a growing backlash against
eBay by members who are
unhappy about eBay's apparent
disinterest in this area.
So, given the size of the problem.
What can be done about it?
All that we as users can do is to be extremely vigilant and
cautious in all our eBay
activities.
Here is a list of practical steps, in no particular order,
which
buyers and sellers can take to help
avoid becoming the next
victim.
Hopefully you are already aware of some of these. It doesn't
necessarily follow that if one of
these applies the auction or
person is fraudulent. But if you
use your head, and build up a
view of the overall transaction
based based upon a number of
these factors, you will reduce your
chances of getting conned.
a) Stock photos and descriptions.
Because they don't have the item they are
"selling", some
fraudsters use a stock photograph
of the item. And they will
probably use the manufacturer's
product description too. So,
stock photos and no original
description might be a sign. Search
for other auctions by the same
seller, and see if they are brazen
enough to advertise the same item
more than once.
b) A price too good to be true often isn't true.
A fraudster wants your money quickly, so you may find they
offer
to close their auction early with you
as the "winner" having bid
a price which you know to be
somewhat of a bargain. Why would
anyone close their auction early if
the price hadn't reached
market levels? I'll give you one
guess.
c) High value or high volume, newly registered sellers.
Although the vast majority of new sellers are genuine and
honest,
be cautious of buying from people
selling high value items in
bulk, very early on in their eBay
career. This pattern isn't
quite normal. Think back to your
own first sales. You would have
been tentative, and probably have
tried single, low value items
initially. So, a new seller fitting
this profile may be someone
who has perhaps been previously
suspended and has registered
another ID.
d) 1 day listings.
Although 1 day listing are used by genuine sellers who have
more
than one item or who want a
quick sale, unfortunately this
duration is attractive to
fraudsters too. They sometimes use a 1
day auction duration to gain a
quick sale before their actions
can be reported and acted upon. So,
be extra wary on auctions
with 1 day listing.
e) Invitations to trade off eBay.
This is a classic ploy of fraudsters. Having made some kind
of
contact with you, or you with them,
they will invite you to
purchase or to sell off eBay i.e. withour using eBay's auction
services. The attraction here to
the fraudster is that they can
drive the transaction along the
lines they prefer, whether that
be escrow, PayPal
etc. Another reason why trading off eBay
is
not a good idea is that you have to
keep your own formal records
of the transaction, and you forfeit
any cover from eBay buyer
protection and PayPal
buyer protection. Plus, and this might be a
minor point, but you will not be
able to leave feedback to let
others know your experience with
this seller/buyer.
f) Payment methods with no recourse.
Fraudsters prefer to chose payment
methods in which the buyer has
no protection, like wire transfers
where the buyer has no way of
tracing where the money is going.
are a favourite and should be
totally avoided. Postal orders are
similar though they are a popular
payment method among the
genuine sellers as they require no
clearance time. Bank transfers
and cheques can only provide the
possibility of your bank
investigating the details of the
account the money was
transferred into. For the best
protection use Paypal and fund
with a Credit Card, although there
are limits on this which you
should check out with PayPal.
g) Unusual sales pattern.
If your seller's feedback indicates that they normally deal
in
collectables, DVDs or other
specific items, be suspicious that
they are suddenly listing laptops,
plasma TVs or other high value
items. This change may indicate
that this seller's account has
been hijacked.
h) Bad english
gives you a pointer.
Some fraudsters operate from abroad but pretend to be in
they aren't particularly adept at
the english language they might
use a translation tool like Babelfish to creat their emails
to
you. So, watch out for emails that
are not good english. In
itself, it doesn't prove anything,
there are plenty of genuine
eBay sellers for whom english is not their first language. But it
might add to further evidence you
have.
i) Location Location
Location.
In the case of lazy fraudsters you might find their
locations
don't match up. By that I mean the
auction says the goods are in
the
say,
you contact these seller you will
receive an excuse as to why the
item is not in the
person. In short, if an auction
says the item is in the
the seller says that it is not, I
would avoid the auction. And
don't forget to cross check with
their PayPal account, and see in
which country this resides.
j) Avoiding the question.
Beware auctions that carry a message asking you to contact
the
seller via a given email address as
opposed to via 'Ask seller a
question'. This could be an account
hijacker trying to prevent
buyers from 'Asking the seller a
question'. They want to stop
this from happening because such
questions will be routed to the
real account owner.
k) eBay can vouch for me.
A warning about a relatively new tactic
used by fraudsters. If
you are proving hard to land as a
buyer/seller, they may claim
they can get eBay to email you
proof of their validity so that
you can trust them. eBay, of course, will never do this. The
email sent out, however authentic
looking, is fake and is
designed to get you to part with
your money.
l)A PayPal
warning.
There are fraudsters who use stolen PayPal
accounts to accept
payments. To lower the possibility of this, you can
check if
your sellers location is one of PayPals permitted countries by
clicking here:
http://www.workwinners.com/nlr701.htm
m) Passwords.
Never have the same password on your eBay and PayPal accounts. Or
indeed on any other financial or
personal site. Change your
passwords every 30-60 days on both
eBay and PayPal.
n) Escrow.
If your seller asks to use escrow, and proposes an escrow
company
they've used before, this is an
indication they are fraudulent.
There are many fake escrow sites which will take your money
fraudulently. The only escrow site
recommended by eBay is
http://www.escrow.com.
An alternative in the
o) Pointers in feedback.
Try to read the positive feedback as well as the
negative. Read
the way your seller responds to
negative feedback as this will
often give you an idea of how the
seller will react if something
goes badly wrong. If the seller is
offering high value goods, be
wary if their feedback has been
built up quickly from low value
purchases. Also, if the overall
rating is good, but there are a
disproportionate number of
negatives in recent days/weeks, this
might indicate the account has been
taken over.
p) Credit Card payment.
For high value items, or for
amounts of money you can't afford to
lose, make sure you pay by credit
card which has online fraud
protection. This will give you some
recourse if the seller is
fraudulent. In this context, paying
via PayPal is not the same.
PayPal do have a buyer protection
scheme, but there are criteria
which the eBay auction has to satisfy
in order to qualify. Even
if the transaction qualifies, PayPal's standard protection has a
maximum value of £250. Note that payment by debit card provides
zero protection.
q) Telephone check.
If this is a high value item, use the Ask the seller a
question
link, and request they email you
with their telephone number as
you have a few questions about the
auction. Any reputable seller
will give you a telephone number to
call. Call it, and see if you
get through to the genuine seller.
That's all in my list. If you have any further ideas on how
to
prevent fraudulent transactions on
eBay, please let me know and I
will promote these through future
newsletters.
If you believe you've spotted one of these fraudulent
listings,
or you're involved in a fraud
auction here are some steps you
need to take:
1) File a complaint with eBay Rules & Safety
immediately:
http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/contact_inline/
2) In order to be considered for eBay's Buyer Protection
Program,
you should immediately submit a
complaint via email to
ukbuyerprotection@ebay.com.
Read about the Buyer Protection Programme here:
http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/confidence/items-fraud.html
3) Find the other party's contact information. You can get
all
their eBay registered contact
details here:
http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/confidence/know-seller-contact.html
4) Locate and Contact the perpetrator's trading standards
office
via the local authority area in
which they live.
5) Contact your local police
6) Contact the police in the area of the perpetrator
7) If you still get nowhere use the small claims court (it
can
sometimes work to fill in the paper
work and send a copy to the
seller, giving a deadline to pay up
or you will file the claim
with the court. Don't forget to
claim expenses and time taken
chasing this.
You can process the claim online here:
https://www.moneyclaim.gov.uk/csmco2/index.jsp
Some Auction Fraud Resources
Fenton Smith's Site listing Fraudulent Escrow Services
Dreadful American website name, but some interesting real
stories
of fraud on eBay. Note, you have to register to read the stories.
http://www.eBayersThatSuck.com
AuctionBytes Fraud Forum - one of AuctionBytes excellent forums.
Here you can read about many real live examples of fraud on
eBay.
http://www.auctionbytes.com/forum/phpBB/viewforum.php?f=28
In the next edition of the newsletter, I will be taking a
long
hard look at the subject of spoof
or scam emails associated with
eBay and PayPal.
=============================
3. The value of photographs on your auction
Photographs can be a vital ingredient to a successful
auction.
According to eBay, 83% of buyers skip auctions without
images.
Also, gallery image pictures with multiple thumbnails
increase
listing conversions to sales by 10%
to 15%.
Plus, eBay say supersizing photos
increases final sales value by
24%.
Here are some pointers for you to consider:
> Photos convey to the buyer informational and emotional
values
that impact the purchase decision.
And buyers want image clarity,
colour accuracy, detail and
multiple views.
> Use a solid non-conflicting background to emphasise the
item.
> Use natural light if possible and take pictures early
or late
in the day when lighting is best.
> Isolate the object by removing clutter around or behind
the
item.
> The background colour should be chosen to make the
object stand
out and command attention. Try
different background colours until
the desired effect is achieved.
> Focus carefully and use the macro mode for close-up
pictures.
> Use a tripod to prevent camera shake and blurred
images.
> Use of the camera timer to release the shutter can also
reduce
camera shake.
> Resize images and adjust pixel count to reduce time
taken for
uploads and downloads.
> Keep the file size small (use 1 mega pixel level for
pictures).
Use of eBay Picture Service is an ideal option for new eBayers.
=============================
4. Software and ebook Selling on eBay - Clarification
In the last edition, I featured a package of 60 ebooks and 20
software titles which were
available complete with Master Resale
rights.
I have been asked by several readers to clarify the term
Master
Resale rights, as it has apparently caused some confusion.
It
seemed some people didn't believe
that the offer could be
genuine.
To clarify - if you acquire our ebook
and software package, this
is what Master Resale rights give
you:
a) The right to sell the whole package to others, and keep
all
the profits.
b) The right to sell products from the package individually
or
grouped in any way, and keep all
the profits.
c) Your own website from which you can offer for sale the
whole
package.
d) Selected single web pages from which you can offer for
sale
individual products.
e) The right to sell the whole package and/or individual
products
on eBay.
f) The automatic transfer of Master Resale rights to your
buyers.
In other words, you are also offering the package with
Master
Resale rights.
So your customers get the right to sell the package on the
website provided, and on eBay, and
to transfer Master Resale
rights to their buyers.
I hope this has clarified the position satisfactorily. No,
it
isn't too good to be true. It's for
real!
If you wish to review the contents of the ebook and software
package, you'll find it all here:
http://www.workwinners.com/rd11.htm
=============================
5. Someone's auctioning what? Unusual items currently
available
Nothing surprises me when it comes to internet auctions.
Amuse
yourself with some of these
beauties ...
If you live near
http://www.workwinners.com/nlr702.htm
Hmmm. If anyone at eBay reads my
piece on safe trading, I might
need this pronto!
http://www.workwinners.com/nlr703.htm
In fact, I might end up in this....
http://www.workwinners.com/nlr704.htm
I wonder how long it will take eBay to pull this listing? Not
sure if they have a sense of
humour.
http://www.workwinners.com/nlr705.htm
Don't look at this one while your
eating. You have been warned.
http://www.workwinners.com/nlr706.htm
Disclaimer - I have no association with any of the sellers
of the
above items.
=============================
6. Finally
If you are changing email addresses soon please put a note
on
your calendar to send a blank email
to:
newsletter@workwinners.com
after you get your new email
address.
I don't want to lose touch with you!
If a friend sent you this newsletter, you need to send a
blank
email to:
newsletter@workwinners.com
That way you can get your own copy next time!
Increasingly, email filters are preventing genuine email
communications such as this
newsletter from reaching subscribers.
If you use any method of checking on your email, and you
wish to
continue receiving the newsletter
you may need to include my
email address in your safe list, whitelist or address book.
Thank you for continuing to take my newsletter - I hope it
gives
you as much enjoyment to read, as
it does me to write.
Regards
Brian McGregor
Editor - "
====================================
7. My Products Catalogue
All the following are original products, services and
opportunities written and created
by myself.
"The eBay Formula"
How to sell successfully on
time.
http://www.workwinners.com/rd01.htm
"
Twenty Six genuine
http://www.workwinners.com/rd02.htm
"Sourcing DVDs, CDs and Videos at Trade Prices"
Where and how to buy DVDs, CDs and Videos at trade prices,
and
how to sell for profit.
http://www.workwinners.com/rd03.htm
"Sourcing and Selling Electrical Products for Big
Profits"
Where and how to buy Widescreen TVs, DVD players and VCR
players
at trade prices, and how to sell
for profit.
http://www.workwinners.com/rd04.htm
"Sourcing Maternity Clothing and Baby Needs at Trade
Prices"
Where and how to buy at trade prices.
http://www.workwinners.com/rd05.htm
"Sourcing and Selling Jewellery for Big Profits"
Where and how to buy jewellery at trade prices, and how to
sell
for profit.
http://www.workwinners.com/rd06.htm
"Sourcing Mobile Phone Accessories at Trade
Prices"
Where and how to buy mobile phone accessories at trade
prices,
and how to sell for profit.
http://www.workwinners.com/rd07.htm
"The Streetwise Buyer's Guide to Radar Detectors"
Don't buy a Radar Detector system until you read this.
http://www.workwinners.com/rd08.htm
Oil Painting Marketing Business
Become my partner in this pleasant money-making venture.
http://www.workwinners.com/rd09.htm
Your Own Software and ebook Sales
Business
Valuable software and-in demand ebooks
you can sell on eBay, plus
through your own website which you
receive with the package.
http://www.workwinners.com/rd11.htm
See the whole catalogue here:
=============================
"
weekly.
In each issue you'll get ideas on how to make the most of
buying
and selling on eBay sites from a
If you would like to unsubscribe please use the link at the
bottom of this email.
Finally, be assured that your email address will never be
shared
or sold - ever!
=============================
Copyright Information
Copyright © 2006 Brian McGregor. All rights reserved.
No part of this newsletter may be copied or published
without
prior permission, but do please
forward it to your friends and
colleagues as long as you keep it
in its entirety. Brian
McGregor, as publisher, disclaims any liability for the use
of
any information contained herein.
We further claim no
responsibility for the legality or
accuracy of any advertisements
or articles. It is the reader's
responsibility to practice due
diligence in any product or service
acquired based on information
contained in this newsletter.
To unsubscribe, send a blank email to
unsubscribe@workwinners.com
=============================
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