Consumer Interactive LLC
Online auction sites prove to be very much advantageous for those people who are looking for reasonably priced goods on the internet. Online auction sites like eBay have literally thousands of products on display on their websites to buy and sell. Online auction sites act like a middleman or an intermediary between buyers and sellers of goods. They charge a small commission amount whenever an item is bought or sold by the buyer and the seller respectively. Online auction sites prove to be beneficial for both parties as the seller can post his item on the site and also get a good price by selling the article to a much bigger audience than he has in his home town. Also the buyer can get a good deal on the product that he buys as the product is offered at lesser, more competitive prices.

As we have seen over the last few years, online auctions have proven to be a boon for global buyers and sellers. It is not necessary for the buyers and the sellers to be in the same city or even in the same country. A person in Australia can sell an item to a person in England or vice versa. An online auction site breaks all the barriers of a traditional market place where a buyer and a seller had to meet personally.

All that a buyer or a seller has to is register on an online auction site like eBay. Registration is normally free. The seller has to put up a display and description of the item that he wants to sell. For example if he wants to sell his year old dvd player then he has to place the item under the category of electronics which maybe further categorized into DVD players, etc. If the seller can post an image of the product, then it would be easier to sell and it is better for the buyer. The seller then has to give a description of the item(s) he wants to sell. For example if he wants to sell a DVD player then he will mention the manufacturer, the year of make, the model number, and any other special features of the DVD player. Next, he will have to post a minimum price at which he wants to sell his DVD player.

A buyer will visit the category of the product that he wants to purchase. He will be able to view the details of the product that he wants to purchase. If he is interested in the product, he will place a bid. There maybe many potential buyers who place bids on a particular product. There is a last date and time which the bids are placed. On the last date, the buyer with the highest bid gets to purchase the product. The buyer can pay the seller through credit card or international check or even ebay’s own PayPal. The seller will ship the product to the buyer and the auction company and payment company takes their commission. This is normally how an online auction works.

Though online auction sites are a great way to buy and sell goods they come with their own risks. An online auction site is just an intermediary between the buyer and the seller. It does not hold itself responsible for any disputes between the buyer and the seller. The buyer should normally pay through credit card as it offers additional protection in case of a dispute. Also, both the parties should keep all important documents of correspondence printed and kept in a safe place unless the transaction is completed. Many auction sites do have programs to identify those buyers and sellers with integrity and to eliminate those who do not.