If you’re active eBay seller or simply a person who sells used stuff from time to time on the World’s largest auction platform, you have probably heard a lot of rumors about recent problems facing majority of eBay sellers.

The main issues has always been increased listing fees, final value fees + PayPal fees. More recently eBay announced that sellers no longer will be able to leave negative feedback for buyers. Leaving sellers in a powerless position.

So is it really that eBay? Is auction era coming to the end? What will happen in the next 5 years? Well, I’m not a oracle but one thing is for sure – eBay is here to stay! For long time… Unless some major player takes it off the scene, I can see no reason why eBay should lose it’s popularity.

Yes, eBay constantly increases selling fees and for many people this causes a lot of problems. But they do not appreciate what eBay has gave to them in return – easy to use trading platform with unreal traffic levels, automated tools and free publicity. Is it still not enough for you? For a measly 15% (on average, insertion fee + final value fee + PayPal fee) you can start selling your stuff in front of millions of potential buyers. Try to achieve that with your own online shop, not talking about brick and mortar store.

You know why eBay increases fees? Because they can afford to do that! There are simply so many sellers on eBay that by increasing fees eBay don’t lose anything at all. Even more – they earn more money! At the end of the day, it’s not a charity organization. eBay is a multi billion company, do you really think they don’t know what they’re doing?

And lets not forget about customers. O.k., I agree that by not letting sellers leave a negative feedback to buyers, eBay has showed their ignorance and even Power Sellers can’t do much about that. It’s a shame. Can’t see the real reason behind this as buyers have always been more protected than sellers.

Here’s why – buyers do not care much about negatives. If they’re using eBay solely for purchasing goods but not selling, they do not care about having a negative feedback from the seller in return. Of course, unless their feedback goes below 95% at which eBay can simply suspend their accounts (not sure though if majority of eBayers are aware of this).

So my predictions are that eBay won’t go out of business simply because a lot of sellers are not satisfied with new listing fees, selling rules and feedback blackmail. Why? Because the same old supply & demand rules applies to eBay the same way as in any other market. If there will be significant loss of eBay sellers, prices will go up and many sellers will come back.

Not talking about increasing number of buyers & sellers joining from Eastern Europe and other parts of the World, where previously eBay was not accessible (because of PayPal’s limitations).

The Primera LX500 color label printer comes in two flavors: the LX500 and the LX500c with the main difference being that the LX500c includes a built-in guillotine label cutter. The Primera LX500 has a retail price of $1295 while its LX500c sibling retails for $1395. As you likely know, discounts off the list price are periodically offered.

These compact, full color label printers are manufactured by Primera Technology who sells the LX500 directly to consumers as well as authorizes other business and technology providers and distributors to resell or distribute them through the Primera Partner Program. Thus, you have multiple options for finding the best price on a LX500 color label printer.

When searching for the best deals on the Primera LX500 and LX500c, you’ll notice that many resellers follow Primera Technology’s lead as far as pricing goes. When Primera Technology discounts the LX500, resellers often match their prices. Thus, deals are plentiful. However, there’s more to consider than price along including the cost of shipping in the continental United States of America. DuraFast Label Company offers the best price on the Primera LX500 and LX500c, free ground shipping to the continental USA, and several other advantages that no one else offers. Here’s a look at why DuraFast Label Company is the best place to buy the Primera LX500.

Primera LX500 Price

DuraFast Label Company currently lists the LX500 selling price $1225 + free shipping and the LX500c selling price $1325 + free shipping. These prices are about $70 off list price.

Additional Savings

In addition to offering the LX500 and LX500c at the same discounted price as Primera Technology, DuraFast Label Company accepts PayPal, Amazon Pay, PayPal Credit, American Express, Visa or Mastercard.

With the special promotional discount code, LX500, DuraFast Label Company offers the following:

• Free ground shipping in Continental USA

• $250 in free labels ($150 at time of printer purchase and $100 for printer review after purchase)

• 30 days premium technical support

• Free setup, installation support

• Free 1-hour Bartender label design tutorial so that you can design and print your labels

Knowledge and Accessibility

Many resellers sell the LX500 and LX500c color label printer on marketplaces such as Amazon and eBay where pricing and shipping varies by seller. The best LX500 deals are not necessarily on these sites. Even when the price is the same, you cannot talk to the sellers to answer any questions you may have about the Primera LX500/LX500c color label printer and how it works. Plus, many of the resellers do not offer any returns or support for the product. Once you purchase the printer, you are on your own.

The benefit of buying the Primera LX500 from DuraFast Label Company is that DuraFast’s sales consultants use the Primera LX500 every day, so they can answer your questions and address your needs. Plus, after you buy the Primera LX500, they will even help you set it up via the telephone, walking you through connecting it, installing the printer driver, and using Bartender Lite label design software to design and print your labels.

In summary, the best place to buy the Primera LX500 or LX500c label printer is DuraFast Label Company, which has the best price along with these additional benefits:

• 15-day return policy. Once you receive the printer and find it’s not for you, you can return the printer for a refund, less shipping charges. You will be responsible only for the shipping charges both ways and the cost of any consumables (ink and labels) that you have used.

• $250 in free labels. Start by using our special discount code (LX500 or LX500c) at the time of purchase to receive your first $150 in free labels. Approximately two weeks after we ship you your LX500 printer, we will send you an email asking you to submit a product review on the printer you purchased from us and any other accessories like the labels. If you submit a rating on the LX500 and leave your feedback, we will give you another $100 in free label credit. You can select from our large section of LX500 labels. We have matte and high gloss paper labels as well as synthetic labels for great durability like polypropylene (matte and glossy) and polyester labels (white, clear, gold, and silver). We also have name badges and tags.

• 30 days of free premium support. Once your printer arrives, we will help you set it up and start printing your product labels.

Many resellers offer a discount off of the list price along with free shipping, but none come close to the added value offered by DuraFast Label Company who goes even further by offering the best price on the Primera LX500, free shipping, up to $250 worth of free labels with your purchase, a generous return policy, free setup and installation, and 30 days of premium support. DuraFast Label Company also has competitive prices on Primera LX500 ink cartridges. Spend less and get more when you buy Primera LX500 color label printers from DuraFast Label Company.

Depositing Money

Depositing money for an online casino is very simple. Simply deposit money through your credit/debit card. Most online casinos prefer Visa.

You can also use alternatives to credit cards similar to PayPal. The most popular ones are SolidDebitCard.com, InstaDebit.com and UseMyWallet.com.

If you live outside of the United States, you can also use Neteller or a number of other companies.

All of these companies are similar to PayPal except they allow you to use your deposited money for online casino play.

Withdrawing Money

There are number of options for withdrawing your winnings.

1. By check – often times there is a fee if you want your money by check. Anywhere from $15-$30. Often there is a minimum withdrawal amount (usually $50). You’ll have to wait for the check in the mail so it may take a week to a few weeks.

2. Alternative to Credit Cards – as mentioned above, SolidDebitCard, InstaDebit, UseMyWallet and Neteller all allow you to withdraw your casino winnings to that account. Then you simply deposit that money into your bank account.

I prefer SolidDebitCard as you will receive an actual card in the mail that will allow you access to that money from any ATM. It’s nothing more than a prepaid debit card. It’s safe and secure as it is not linked to a bank account.

If you withdraw your money from the casino to your SolidDebitCard there will likely be a small transfer fee (usually around 3%). The ATM you withdraw from may also charge you a fee.

3. Wire Transfer – The online casinos can also wire transfer money directly into your bank account. There may be a small fee but I’ve also seen online casinos give you a 10% bonus if you use wire transfer.

Buying books online is the trend these days as it is convenient to do so and most online bookstores offer books at cheaper price than regular, physical bookstores. Some of the reasons books are cheaper online are because online stores do not need to rent a large area to display their books. Their books are stored in a warehouse whose rent is much cheaper than a prime shopping space in malls. In addition other costs such as the need to hire cashiers, security guards and costs of damaged books due to browsing are not present. Hence, which such cost savings, books can be sold more cheaply online. Generally customers can expect 20-30% discount from normal bookstores’ prices.

Convenience is also one aspect of online book shopping. When you are looking foor a particular book, you can simply enter the book title in the searchbox and if the book is available online, it will be displayed on your monitor within seconds. Prices, availability and book reviews are also displayed. This is unlike going to normal bookstores where you need to go to a certain book section and tilt your head 90 degrees trying to read the titles on the book spines. Yes, of course you can ask the staff but it will still take seconds than what could be done online. In addition, going to bookstores also require transportation cost and your time. While online bookstores charge you for shipping fee, most waive these charges if you purchase a minimum number of books or if you hit certain book purchase value.

With the improvement in technology, purchasing books online is also becoming more secure. You need to check if your bookstore has SSL certificate issued by reputable digital certificate companies such as Verisign or GeoTrust. If the website has SSL, you can be sure that your account information such as password, email address and home address are safe from hacker attack. Credit card payment processor of the online bookstore must also be reliable. Choose websites that have PayPal payment processor as PayPal is the world’s leading internet payment processor companies with millions of trusted websites worldwide using it. You can be sure that your book-buying experience is a safe one with PayPal. Alternatively, some online bookstores also offer non-card payment options such as bank transfer or check payment. Use this option if you are not convinced of entering you card details online.

In addition, book selection online is normally better than your local bookstores because some online bookstores can forward your book order directly to many suppliers. Once they received the books from the suppliers, they ship the books to you. This way, online bookstores reduces the need for inventory and at the same time, able to source so many book titles for you.

Shopping for books is now widely accepted worldwide. However, you must ensure that the bookstore is credible and reliable so that you can be sure that your books does arrive and do so on time.

Selling old stuff is the talk of the town these days. You can hardly walk past a coffee shop without hearing someone telling their war stories. This old vacuum hauled in 100 bucks for someone; that old laptop computer brought in $250 – and it wasn’t even working. Still, if you are about to sell Alienware notebook computers or any the type of laptop online, you have to know the rules of the game. Here are 5 tips on doing it right.

1. Give only a brief glance in the direction of people you know. People that you know might mention they are looking for a used laptop, or maybe someone they know is. Does this seem like the way to go if you want to sell Alienware notebook computers secondhand? You might end up getting more of a hassle in this fashion than if you were dealing with strangers. Besides, what if something happens after it is already sold? Will they expect you to be responsible?

2. Use the community website on your own terms. The community websites are like the nicest people in the world: they have nothing but good intentions, but sometimes cannot help but drive you crazy. What can you do to avoid the hassles? Make the buyers come to you. Don’t travel to be disappointed, plus don’t deal with anyone who seems a little off. In the case of these websites, they usually are not worth it.

3. If going to the online marketplaces, avoid auctions. The online marketplaces were once upon a time the best way to sell Alienware notebook computers and any other laptops. The fees were low, the seller had some power and it all happened so quickly. That was then; this is now. Today’s eBay leaves sellers out in the cold if an unreasonable buyer wants to call foul when no offense has been committed. In fact, a buyer can do whatever he or she pleases. Negative feedback for buyers has been completely eliminated. They can no longer do wrong, even if they do wrong.

4. Don’t use PayPal. PayPal is like eBay’s buddy in the ‘protect buyers at all costs’ game. Who loses when this game goes awry? The sellers do, naturally. You can sell Alienware notebook computers and find yourself without the money after you mail the computer to the auction winner. Who says it’s all right? PayPal will happily freeze the funds and never release them, as long as the buyer says no. Is this protection or the disaster waiting to happen that it usually is?

5. For the easy way out, opt for the professional buyers. If you need to sell Alienware notebook computers and get the deal done in a matter of days, you can use one of the professional buyers instead. The advantages are obvious. They do not have the poor judgment that many buyers do. They run companies looking to close deals and make customers happy. In this case, they offer the best solution to sellers.

Etsy is relatively inexpensive as compared to other online stores. It is absolutely free to open a storefront, provided you link a valid credit card to your Etsy account for any billing fees incurred which are due monthly. Unlike other sites, which charge you a flat per month rate just to have a store, Etsy does not.

They do charge a small “per item” listing fee (at the time of this article, only twenty cents per item), which allows you to list an item for sale which stays on Etsy for four months. Included are five photos of your item. If you list multiple quantities of one item, you will pay per item twenty cents each. Therefore, in your item listing if you have five quantity multi-colored crocheted blankets for sale, will cost you $1.00 to list. Many sellers try listing one item at a time, and re listing the item later if it sells.

In addition to listing fees, there are selling fees. Currently these are only 3.5% when your wares sell. (at the time of this article.)

Overall, if you do your homework, the pros are these fees are some of the lowest in the industry and the site is very easy to use. The cons however, is understanding how many sellers are on Etsy, and how to make your item stand out. Being a successful seller will require work and knowledge of how the site works. Using the online Etsy “How Selling Works” guidebook and learning from their blog “The Storque” will give you plenty of tips and tricks to make sure you know the ins and outs of selling. The “Quit Your Day Job” articles found in their blog will explain tips and tricks from top sellers to increase sales.

The only other fees you would incur are those from PayPal, if you choose to use them as a viable payment option. If so, for any monies received from buyers, PayPal would take fees out, directly in your PayPal console.

There are optional services for promoting your wares on Etsy. These would include specialty showcase slots which normally start at $7 per item, per slot. For instance, if you purchase a Thursday night jewelry showcase, you will pay $7. Other showcases range slightly higher and are often referred to as “Main Showcases”. In the past Etsy has also been known to offer print ad discounts to sellers, but these are few and far between. Any options that are being offered can be found in the “Promote” section of your shop.

If your item doesn’t sell in the first four months, there’s an optional re listing option, which will again, cost twenty cents per item, and last you another four months. Your description and item info including photos will all be saved and re listing is as easy as a touch of a button.

Currently, Etsy allows you to sell handmade products, supplies for crafting, or vintage items (their definition is any item over twenty years old.)

The first thing you will want to do is research. Check out other sites on the internet that are selling what you are and see how they network. Don’t run out and pay someone to create a website for you, consider blogging first. The best thing about blogging is that it’s free and very easy to set up and maintain. Start with Blogger or WordPress, these sites are free and have lots of templates to choose from and detailed instructions on how to get started.

Next you may want to consider setting up a Twitter account. It’s also easy to use and you don’t have to tweet everyday. It’s all about the networking. You can follow others who have similar interests and send direct messages to others who are looking to buy what you are selling. Getting started may take awhile but soon you will find that people will begin reaching out to you and sharing your information.

Another thing to consider is free online websites that will allow you to post pictures of your products and sell them at no cost to you. My Crafty Spot is a site that you can upload photos at no cost to you and they help advertise too. If you want buyers to pay online consider signing up for a PayPal account. It’s free and easy to use too. You can place a PayPal button on your blog and ship out items to your customers.

If you need a reason to get out of the house you can find local networking groups to help you either learn more ways to promote yourself or connect with others who know people who would be interested in buying what you are selling. You can order free business cards from www.vistaprint.com. This site has lots of templates to choose from and the first 250 cards are free. Hand them out at each event or send them with every purchase so that the buyer doesn’t forget about you.

It’s simple to get started getting the word out about your products. And what’s great is you can do it all from your home and online. Free is the key word for all of these sites. Everything you make is all yours. Get online and start promoting yourself and your products and have fun while your doing it.

The credit card companies lobbied for laws governing online gambling with credit cards, although one would think that people would be the ones hesitant to their credit or debit cards online.

The main reason behind the shift in laws is that too many people have made it a habit to create debt that they cannot repay. Lawsuits have pardoned the debt, paid lawyer fees in full and left credit histories untouched. This is good for the people in debt, but bad for the credit card companies who end up losing a lot of money.

Response from Credit Card Companies

Charge card companies have decided to exact stricter regulations regarding credit balances by amending the terms and conditions surrounding receiving a card. Now you find higher interest rates incurred for particular transactions, so hopefully the user thinks twice before creating debt in certain ways.

Avoiding Financial Difficulty

Many people struggle with gambling addiction and online gambling with charge cards make it easier to spend large amounts of money than when gambling at a land-based casino. Many land-based casinos even advise players to leave their cards at home, so that they are not tempted to spend more than they can afford. Visiting online casinos makes this discipline even harder because generally you access these games from home. It is best that you then have someone you trust take responsibility of your credit and debit card while you play so that you do not end up making rash decisions regarding your money.

What Does the Law Say?

Some countries and states have designated areas where gambling is legal and those where it is not. This means that you could easily be breaking the law when pursuing online gambling with credit and debit cards. Online gambling is already illegal in the United States of America and this has led to interesting convictions in courts whereby credit card companies are being persecuted for allowing the activity to take place instead of the player for gambling online.

No More PayPal

You can no longer use PayPal as a direct payment option for online gambling and the majority of accredited online gambling sites have removed any mention of PayPal. This means that players do not have the option of transferring money from their MasterCard or Visa to PayPal accounts in order to gamble online.

Credit institutions each have their own policies regarding online gambling with credit cards and it is best that you familiarize yourself with those that apply to you and your credit card company. American Express, for instance, offers credit services managed independently from other banking institutions, while MasterCard and Visa is affiliated with many different banks around the world.

If you still want to use your credit card for online gambling, some casinos have developed a method that bypasses PayPal and the credit card bans against online casinos. Simply put, you use your credit or debit card to buy a “gift card”. You then use the gift card in the online casino, and MasterCard, Visa or other card company sees a purchase for a gift card.

What To Do When you need tickets for a show that starts in 5 minutes

It’s 8:45pm right now.

The show starts at 9:00 pm.

You don’t have tickets.

What do you do?

Craigslist.com

CL, as its known in the community, is your portal for tickets in a crunch.

The primary advantage of CL is that you can post tickets with short notice, and

sell/buy them quickly. Its the cheapest source of tickets.

Be careful about CL.

There is so much fraud in CL that is make the US government look honest.

Be careful.

Follow the tips here, and you won’t get robbed. I’m embarrassed to admit it, but

I’ve gotten robbed for $600 of U2 tickets. Me of all people got robbed, and I

know a little about tickets. So when I say follow these tips, I’m really

serious!

Tips on How to Buy Tickets on Craigslist

1) Always use paypal for items under $1,000, and mark them at

goods. If they aren’t marked goods, then you aren’t protected. If the seller

tells you to code it different, tell them no deal.

2) If you can met the seller in person, all the better. Paypal is still

preferred, but cash is okay.

3) Always get a phone number. One in which you get the person over the phone. If

you get the voice mail, think about FRAUD!

4) If you get e-tickets, use paypal and have made voice contact with the person.

5) Never, under any circumstances, use a money wire. Money wires companies like

western union have several loop polls for criminals to get money when they

aren’t the person listed. Trust me. Western Union is a swamp of fraud.

6) If the price seems lower than market value, it’s fraud. The only exception to

this rule is the time. If the show is in 5 minutes, sellers get hungry. If you

are the buyer, the time is an issue, use that as leverage. Most sellers would

rather get some money than lose it.

7) If you are meeting a person up for a ticket sale of over $1,000 in cash, be

careful that it is not a robbery. Make sure to meet in a public place. The buyer

should always pick the place. Just be careful. I bought some backstage passes

for coachella last year for $1,500, and we met at Starbucks. I also took a

picture of the car the seller was driving, with his plate number. If you can get

his DL#, all the better.

8) Be careful of “always”. That a sure sign its wrong, haha!

Seriously, though, if you follow the tips listed your odds of getting robbed go

way down!

For more concert

tips, get out The Concert Goer

It’s important to remember that eBay is like an online flea market or swap meet. There will always be someone trying to sell things that most people wouldn’t touch. The trouble is that online, when you can’t physically view the merchandise, so these people can be a little harder to spot. Here are some tips to make your eBay experience more enjoyable and safe.

Know Your Seller…

This, by far, is the most important research you must do before placing your bid on eBay. Getting to know a little about your seller before you bid on their item will make for a much smoother purchase.

1) Review the seller’s feedback and member profile.

Check the seller’s eBay feedback before you make a bid. The feedback rating will give you a good idea about the trustworthiness of your trading partner. One or two neutrals or negatives can be overlooked due to the fickle nature of some buyers, however if a trend of poor service or item quality comments is visible you may want to avoid the seller entirely. If a seller has no feedback or negative feedback, contact the seller before bidding to get a feel for their customer service.

2) Ask the seller questions.

Email the seller with questions by clicking the “Ask seller a question” link. If you have won an item, you can request the seller’s contact information to get more information.

3) Review the seller’s policies on shipping, payments and returns.

Shipping and handling – Review shipping and handling charges before you bid, and ask to have your item shipped and insured in a traceable manner. Avoid sellers who either won’t disclose or charge exorbitant shipping charges.

Payment – Consider paying with PayPal or with a credit card, as most offer 100% consumer protection. Be careful when sellers only accept one form of payment, especially when the seller requests cash. NEVER PAY WITH CASH and use caution when paying with cash equivalents such as wire transfers.

Returns – Examine the seller’s return policy carefully before you bid. Contact the seller before you bid with any questions about the return policy. Some questions you might ask include how long do you have to return the item, who pays shipping and handling, and under what circumstances can you return the item.

Know your item…

Read the description fully. Most misunderstandings result from buyers not carefully reading the item description in the auction listing. Use caution if the price is significantly lower than similar auction items. If the price seems too good to be true, it probably is. Review the item condition, whether it is new or used, and any damage described.

Be realistic when purchasing used items. People have different definitions of quality and condition. Remember, just because the seller says the item is in “like new” condition, doesn’t mean you will feel the same way. A 25 year old item is likely to have some wear and tear so don’t be overly critical of the item when you receive it. Take the condition of the item into account BEFORE you place your bid.

Use PayPal…

Take advantage of PayPal for safe and fast funds transfer between you and the seller. PayPal is eBay’s preferred way to pay. It is a system that lets anyone with an email address securely send online payments using their credit card or bank account. eBay members can use PayPal to quickly and easily pay for all the items purchased on eBay. PayPal’s industry-leading fraud prevention measures make it a safe way to pay online.

When you’re shopping on eBay, look for items that are covered by PayPal Buyer Protection. With it, you get free protection of up to $1,000.00 USD on your purchases. To determine if your item is eligible, look for PayPal Buyer Protection in the Seller Information box on the View Item page.

The more that you know about your seller and the items that you are bidding on the safer you, as a buyer, will be. Spending some time doing research before you place your bid will help to ensure a positive buying experience.