At 01:48 PM 2/18/2001 -0400, Andrew "Frugal" Dacey wrote:
>Mark Dapoz wrote:
>
>> If an international search is used, all eBay items in all countries will
>> show up (assuming you don't limit the search scope).
>
>Yes, one of the things you can do with searching is limit where the item
>is located and/or where it's availible to. Usually, I never use the
>location. But, I always limit by where it's availible to since I'm in
>Canada. That way, I'll only see items from people that are willing to
>ship to Canada.
Andrew:
You shouldn't necessarily do that -- some of the most interesting auctions are
for equipment which the original lister said they'd only ship to the U.S. If
you contact them by e-mail, they frequently change their mind. (I'm watching
one such auction right now, and the seller has already said that if I'm the
high bidder, he'd ship to me.)
I don't know why so many U.S. sellers are reluctant to ship internationally --
I've found the difference in hassle to be mostly negligible whether I'm
shipping to the U.S., Canada or elsewhere, and when you consider that it's more
likely you'll find a bidder elsewhere in the world who's willing to pay top
dollar (because the item is probably less available outside of the U.S., which
is the biggest and richest market for used gear), the difference in additional
bids (thus driving up the final price) is probably well worth the extra hassle.
Besides, what's the additional hassle? You *still* have to package the item
properly, and you *still* have to lug it to your nearest postal outlet. So you
have to fill out a couple of forms, big fat hairy deal. As for the additional
shipping charges, most international bidders already know they're going to have
to pay more.
The most "exotic" destination I've ever shipped to is Israel. Now *there's* a
country where it's hard to do an eBay transaction to! Their banking system is
a shambles, and they're constantly "exchange-starved" when it comes to
international currencies, money orders, etc. The guy I was doing business with
had to send me U.S. currency notes via FedEx (not allowed, but what FedEx
doesn't know won't hurt them), and I had to go to the local Thomas Cook office
and send him change -- he couldn't send exact change -- in Israeli New Shekels
(actual bank notes, *not* a money order!). He was willing to absorb all
additional costs, because he was *desperate* for the item -- it was me, or
nothing. (In the end, I split the difference on some stuff, 'cause I felt
sorry for him -- for instance, I didn't have to send him change, but I did
anyways. He was pretty grateful.) In the end, his bid was almost $100.00
higher than anyone else's for the item in question (an old Atari Portfolio [one
of the original "palmtop" computers]). It was worth it.
Garth
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