How eBay Selling Works

1. A seller lists an item for sale: A seller’s listing includes text descriptions and, preferably, photos of the item up for sale. The seller chooses to sell the item at auction (in which the highest bidder wins) at a fixed price using eBay’s Buy It Now feature or a combination of an auction with Buy It Now (adding Buy It Now to an auction-style listing costs $0.05–0.25).
2. Potential buyers bid on the item or buy it at a fixed price: When the listing ends, the item is sold to the buyer who placed the highest bid or the first buyer who chose to purchase the item at the fixed Buy It Now price. If no one bids or uses Buy It Now, the item doesn’t sell and can be relisted.
3. The buyer and seller communicate: eBay sends an email with payment and shipping information to the seller and winning bidder.
4. The item ships: Once payment is received, the seller ships the item to the buyer.
5. The buyer and seller leave feedback: Both parties give each other positive, negative, or neutral feedback once the transaction has been completed. Each eBay user has a numerical feedback rating that provides other users with a quick assessment of the reliability of that eBay buyer or seller.