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Bubble wrap, bubble wrap, and more bubble wrap! If you are intending to keep in good graces with your buyers, and build your reputation, you must pack your items securely! I've made a few purchases myself where I was quite disgusted upon receiving my items lazily thrown into an unpadded envelope or empty box. The fact that really got my goat was that I had been charged a good amount more than the actual shipping cost for an item just carelessly thrown in a box. At least put some newspaper in the box!

Pack your items like you would expect to receive them. Would you be happy receiving your purchase without any protection? Take pride in packing your items, especially if they are fragile, by using new boxes, padded envelopes, bubble wrap, newspaper, shipping tape, packing peanuts, and anything else you can use to keep that item secure.

But, all of this extra packing stuff will cost me an arm and a leg! Don't be alarmed by this because most of your packing materials can be gotten for free. You can get free boxes from www.usps.com or your local post office. This does limit you by only letting you ship priority mail and flat rate, but most people don't make a fuss over this. I've had more positive remarks about how fast my shipping is since going completely to priority mail. Plus, I'm not out any money on boxes! Try not to reuse cardboard boxes. Once a box has been used, it is more likely to get damaged through transit because it has worn down from prior use. If you do have to purchase a box, add that cost to your shipping as a handling cost. Most people who are serious bidders will not complain about a modest handling cost. Don't go overboard with handling costs by trying to make up for your listing fees. This is dishonest, and illegal according to eBay's rules.

Newspaper is a good box filler, and it's pretty much free. Your best bet for packing is bubble wrap. Buy this at a bulk retailer like Sam's or Costco. This keeps your cost down. The even better way to get bubble wrap and other packing materials is by searching your local Cheapcycle group. You will find many people actually giving away bubble wrap, packing peanuts, and such for FREE! Go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ Cheapcycle_Groups/ to find your city's group.

In the end, it's all about the presentation that the buyer gets when he opens that purchase from eBay. Make it like Christmas for him, and present a well-packed intact item, and you are sure to get repeat business!

Learn more about this author, Emilie Grace.
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