Since Jan 2004 for me ... and what a ripping good time I've had.
I'm an Ebay buyer, not a seller. I did sell a few things when my brother's wife established her home business and sold things on Ebay, so I gave her stuff to sell. Almost all of it sold too, so it must have been good stuff. People try to sell a lot of cheapy made-in-China Walmart junk on ebay, but I've always gone for hard to find vintage items, so buying on Ebay has been great for me.
Gosh, I remember the days when I was paying everybody with money orders. I did that for about three years because I was consolidating my debt and paying it off. But never once, did I have problem. It wasn't hard work really, it was just a matter of staying organized. Everybody always got their money and I always got my stuff. But paying with money orders kept me focused and improved my communications skills with sellers during that time. There were a few people back then who wouldn't take money orders. I simply contacted them, assured them that they'd get payed quickly and emphasized how much I wanted to win their auction. They always came back saying 'yes' so I learned good communication could open doors with reasonable sellers on Ebay.
Eventually I got a PayPal account which made purchases so easy and quick, that I actually began to neglect my previously organized tracking methods. I was poncing on things without first balancing my finances. But I adjusted as needed and made it through. For me, Ebay has been great. Now, I admit the situation is better nowadays for the buyer than the seller. I read all these posts about how aggrevated sellers are with Ebay's policies, so it's impossible not to recognize that there are issues Ebay should change to benefit sellers more. But that's not my world. Buying stuff I like is ...
Yay
