The Way To Discover and Purchase Wonderful Postcards on eBay

As a power seller of postcards on eBay with a 100% positive feedback, I have written down some simple but relevant points which I consider may be useful to collectors of postcards devoted to the field of deltiology, wanting to buy quality postcards on eBay. I have listed some pointers which buyers should look out for to decide if a dealer or seller of postcards is honest and nice.

Hope you can use the information below to add to your own personal judgment while purchasing purchasing decisions for postcards. Some basic things to look out for in a honest and nice seller or dealer of postcards are as follows:

1. While purchasing postcards which a collector desires, one of the most important feature is the condition of the postcard. A honest dealer will provide high clarity photographs of the front and reverse of the postcard and provide a detailed written description about the condition of the postcard, clearly mentioning about any fault present on the postcard. If a seller has words such as “please look at the posted photo to figure out the condition of the postcard” then there is reason for you to be careful. Most of the times the uploaded photos of the postcard are too small or of low resolution and makes it difficult for the buyer to look for any faults such as creases or nicks.

2. Does the seller guarantee a full refund if customer is not satisfied with the purchase? A good seller will provide a ‘no question asked policy’ and offer an unconditional 30 day full money back return guarantee.

3. Tit for tat is the normal way of life. However as far as leaving a feedback on eBay is concerned, the seller must always leave a feedback first, and not wait for the buyer to leave a feedback to reciprocate the same. When a seller leaves a feedback first it means that the seller is sure that the quality of the product which he is selling will be exactly the same as has been indicated in the listing.

4. Is there a detailed description about the condition of the postcard? If you find wordings such as ‘a picture speaks more than a thousand words, so please look at the posted photo of the postcard to decide the condition’ be wary about such sellers. Most of the time minor faults are not visible on the posted photos of the postcards, as the photographs are usually enhanced which reduces the visibility of faults. A honest seller would give a detailed description about the condition of the postcard highlighting any crease, nick, tear, aging, soiling in the description about the condition.

5. Beware of dealers who derive a chunk of their profit margin by charging excessive shipping and handling fees. Also look for sellers who allow you to bundle up multiple purchases and give you a shipping discount by allowing combined shipping.

6. Look for sellers who also post a photograph of the reverse or back side of the post card. The back side of the postcard also has a lot of relevant information which is very desirable to the collector. If a postcard is postally used there could be a stamp with a fancy cancel; postage due stamps etc. Secondly the postmark or cancellation may be an interesting piece of postal history. Additionally ancillary, auxiliary, censored markings too could be present. Last but not the least the postcard may have been written by a famous person or mailed to an important person which would make it an interesting collectible. If there is no photo of the reverse side, you would be missing out on all these exciting features of postcard collecting.

7. Does the seller communicate promptly and courteously with the buyer ? A good seller will reply promptly to any queries posted by would be buyers, or answer any questions raised by buyers. Is the sellers reply, courteous and accommodating in the correspondence.

8. There is ‘more’ to a postcard then meets the eye. That ‘more’ is revealed by looking at the reverse side of the postcard and could consist of postal history, interesting ancillary, auxiliary, censored markings; colored postmark, fancy cancels, rare stamp variety such as a coil stamp or with color variation; hand written correspondence from or to a famous person etc. Therefore preferably buy from sellers who also post a photograph of the reverse side of the postcard for you to study.

9. Does the seller overcharge for the shipping? Do they allow combined shipping price discounts? Avoid sellers who charge very high unreasonable amounts for shipping.

10. It is always nice to get a confirmation about the precise nature of the product you are buying. For example if you are buying a vintage postcard you do not want to end up receiving a reproduction or if you are buying a real photo postcard you do not want to receive a printed/gel postcard. Make sure you buy postcards from dealers who go the extra mile by providing you with a written guarantee to back up what they are selling by writing words such as ‘Guaranteed Vintage Postcard’ or “Guaranteed RPPC”.

I hope these salient features highlighted by me will come of use to you while making your buying decisions. I invite you to check out my store on eBay where I have thousands of postcards from USA and from all over the world.

The article author is a collector of post cards and stamps and runs a store. To learn more you may check the postcard gallery for various types of Real Photo Post Cards, Topographical postcards from U.S.A. and from across the world, Greetings Post Cards etc.