Zero feedback buyer. Am I being unreasonable????

Tibbie's_mum

Before I start, don't all shoot me down at once!!!!

I am selling an item on Ebay, starting price is £14.99 (which is high for my junk, I mean quality merchandise), there is also 31 people watching it and the auction still has 3 days to go.

My problem is, the person who has open the bidding (only 1 bid so far) has zero feedback and has only just registered today. As I've had previous bad experience with a zero feedback buyer, I tend to cancel any bids in this situation on lower value items especially if they've only just registered.

My question is, am I being unreasonable? I know we all had to start somewhere but I'm concern that this could look like shill bidding later on down the line.

Many thanks for any advice.

Browntoa

set your preferences to only allow bids from people who have made more than zero posts

greenstreetprince

no reason why someone would see it as shilling, they haven't bid on any of your other items so there's nothing in that.

there is always this concern with newbie buyers and sellers alike, but as you say, everyone has to start some time, drop them a message through ebay and see if you get a response.

frivolous_fay

Browntoa wrote: »

set your preferences to only allow bids from people who have made more than zero posts

I think you mean more than zero feedback, but this option won't work unless they don't have a credit card on file.

IMO, yes you're being a bit unfair - and bear in mind that a 0 feedback bidder will still push your price up, and may not necessarily win. If you get cold feet nearer the auction end, you could cancel their bids then, IF they're still in the running. As they've bid early, they obviously don't subscribe to bidding late, and max!

steviebabes

I wouldn't worry too much about this, chances are they have registered today just to bid on your item. Give them a chance, ebay needs new genuine bidders.

Contains_Mild_Peril

Yes, I think you are being a bit unreasonable, and possibly shooting yourself in the foot, since chances are they will put the price up without actually winning the item, and if they do win, they might be a perfect customer. We all started at zero. If you're concerned, you could always send them a tactful message explaining that you've had problems with new buyers and asking if they would mind taking a few moments to confirm that they're still interested in the item and stating their intended payment method. Bear in mind they might not look back at it until near the end of the auction, so if you get no response for a while, don't do anything hasty.
With 31 watchers already, it sounds very likely that you'll have several bids.

mykidsmum_2

hi, I had the very same situation a few weeks back, buyer registered the day they bid and they won the auction for £45, paid straight away ,left feedback when item arrived no problems. I have sold to a few '0' feedback buyers and I find if anything they are keener to pay right away etc because they want to get their feedback score started!.
hth

gromituk

frivolous_fay wrote: »

As they've bid early, they obviously don't subscribe to bidding late, and max!

Not obviously at all - the best tactic is to get the first bid in, and then bid max at the last minute.

barvid

You might also want to bear in mind that they'll be new to the whole eBay process so may need some hand-holding through the process of how to pay etc. It's second-nature to experienced buyers and sellers, but I've sold to newbies who've struggled and got things wrong through no real fault of their own.

Tibbie's_mum

Many thanks for all your replies.

Although not so stressed about it now, I'm still going to keep my fingers crossed that all goes well.

Being pregnant, having chronic toothache and 2 under fives to look after has made me rather pessimistic and negative.

Thanks again

alooof

if you've got 31 people watching and 3 days to go, there's going to be more activity on it
most of my items are buy-it-nows and you'd be surprised at the number of zero or below 5 feedback buyers i get - at high prices too.
i normally expect them to not pay but they always do. of course its different for auctions and there are a lot of fake bidders, so to be safe maybe email the guy and see if they're sincere?