- First and foremost, do your research before bidding on an item. To make an informed decision, you should do your own research before deciding how much you’re willing to pay for an item.
- Don’t start with your maximum bid. Rather, start with the minimum amount you’re willing to pay. When someone outbids you, increase your bid. Never place a bid that you’re not willing to pay. Before bidding or posting, please READ the details of our GROUP RULES post, found in the "Featured" section of the group.
- Have fun, but don’t make irrational decisions. Many times, bidders get caught up in bidding wars and place higher bids just for the sake of winning, then experience buyer’s remorse because they overpaid.
- Starting on January 1, 2022, eBay is required by the IRS to report any sellers that receive $600 or more in sales for the year. eBay also charges a 12.55% commission on the complete sale price including taxes. Our fees are cheap in comparison.
- Shipping can be expensive. But, shipping costs can also be negotiated and split between buyer and seller. Most times, sellers don't mind because they are getting an item sold. You should negotiate this before bidding. Either by contacting the seller through a private message or directly on the auction post. It is not mandatory for sellers to include shipping costs in their starting bid. It is up to the seller if they want to include shipping or not.
- Adding parcel "Tracking" to shipping is important. It protects both the buyer and the seller. The buyer receives shipping confirmation and is able to track the parcel. The seller receives delivery confirmation therefore buyer cannot say they never received the parcel.
- On eligible items that you've bought online that don't arrive, or don't match the seller's description, PayPal's Buyer Protection may reimburse you for the full amount of the item plus postage. Buyer Protection can cover your eligible online purchases, on any website, when you use PayPal.
- Place a note in your personal calendar to remind you of your auction end time. This will help you remember to check your auction at that time. If your item received a winning bid, you need to contact the buyer right away. If your item hasn’t sold, you need to take the auction post down right away. Doing all these things improves everyone's auction group experience.
- Promoting your auction in our sister group CANADA Ty Beanie Buy Sell Show is encouraged. Copy and paste your Ty Storage Wars auction post link to make your promotional post in CANADA Ty Beanie Buy Sell Show.
- Turn on Post Notifications. If you’re watching an auction lot and want to stay informed of the bids being entered, turn on Post Notifications. You’ll be sent a notification when a comment is entered for that post. Turn on Post Notifications by tapping on the top right-hand corner of the post and selecting “Turn on Notifications for this post”. None will know you are watching this lot and when the time is right you can add your bid. Entering a comment on a post automatically turns on post notifications.
- A reserve price is the lowest price you’re willing to sell an item for. By using a reserve price, you can set a low starting bid for your auction and boost interest in your item without the risk of selling your item for less than you think its worth. When you set a reserve price, bidders will see that you have a reserve price in place. You have the option to disclose or not to disclose the amount of the reserve price. If the highest bid at the end of the auction is below the reserve price, you have the option of not selling the item.
- Start with a low starting bid. It takes some nerve to post your lot with a starting bid of a few dollars, but it pays off. Every time someone bids, your auction post moves up to the top of the group page. So the more interest, the more exposure. When lots don’t get bids, it’s often simply because the starting bid was too high to spark bidders’ interest. Successful sellers typically set the starting bid at 35% of the item’s value, intending to eventually get 12 to 16 bids per item, and reach 80% to 100% of market value. For example, a lot with a market value of $100, starting bid of $35, and a minimum bid increase of $5 will reach a bid of $115 after 16 bids.
- Answer questions when there is a lull in bidding. Often people will ask questions about the item. It’s important to answer them, but waiting to answer until there hasn’t been any activity on the auction post for an hour or more will boost the post back to the top of the group page.
- Think about the schedule of the people who will bid on your items. If you post your item at 2:00 am on Saturday, your final bidders will need to be up at 1:59 am on Sunday to fight for it. Some good times for posting auctions are on the weekends, between 10:00 am and Noon EST, and between 7:00 pm and 9:00 pm EST.