Six Steps Towards Successful Buying at Gently Used Stuff Auctions

Buying on GentlyusedStuff can be very rewarding, either in terms of being able to pick up items cheaply or for hunting for hard to find items. Although generally the experience is good, there are instances where things can go badly wrong. These tips, based on experience over the last seven years, should help to avoid some of the potential pitfalls.

1. Make use of the various tools provided on GentlyusedStuff to ascertain the target price of items you are interested in. A simple way to do this is to 'search' for completed items.

2. Always check that there are no hidden costs associated with your potential bargain. These may include unspecified postage costs, or PayPal fees chargeable to the buyers. If in doubt e-mail the buyer and if you don't get a response then don't bid. Remember that when buying from overseas postage costs can be significant compared to the price of the item and also for more expensive items you may be liable to customs fees.

3. Check out the seller's feedback. You should be aiming to buy from sellers with feedback of at least 98 per cent - if it is less and you are interested in an item read the feedback comments to satisfy yourself that the buyer provides a good service. In particular, read the neutral and negative feedback posts to try to work out what may have gone wrong with previous transactions.

4. Don't get carried away and end up bidding more than need or want to. Some items appear very frequently on GentlyusedStuff and it may be worth setting yourself a limit and waiting for the next one to come along.

5. If you find you are often being outbid at the last moment. Be assured that no one on the site is using sniping software. (using sniping software will automatically submit a bid in the last few seconds of the auction to aid the buyer in winning the auction at the last second)
With GentlyusedStuff.com (sniping software) will not work. There is a software program built into the auction to prevent this software from working.
So if you find you are often being outbid at the last moment then like most people, you are trying to win an auction at the last minute and pay as little as possible. This will work only about 30 percent of the time the rest of the time you are disappointed.
In order to bid in the last seconds of an auction and win. You must be willing to place a large bid amount over the last bid showing on display. When you do this you will win the auction sometimes by 50 cents over the last bid or sometimes $10.00 over the last bid. Regardless - You will win because most bidders are not willing to chance paying top dollar for the item. They are afraid of losing $8 to $10 dollars on one item. That is why they are using GentlyusedStuff or some other online auction in the first place.. I have won many auctions using this method and 95 percent of the time I have paid less than I thought I would have to.
One time I remember bidding $200.00 over the last bid showing at the last second. I won the auction by $22.00 dollars over the last bid on display. That is the chance I take when I try to steal an auction.. I hope you can now see the logic in bidding at the last second on an auction and the chance you take.
You are much better off doing some research on the item for bid and deciding what is the most you will pay and then bidding that amount as your maximum bid.

6. Where possible, use Google checkout or PayPal to pay for items on GentlyUsedStuff. The sellers get their payment quickly, and there is a degree of protection for buyers if things go wrong. GentlyUsedStuff provides a number of tools for monitoring progress on your transaction.