Advice needed regarding ebay

[Shoshie]

I was approached by a fellow ebayer who saw my auctions regarding doing a custom paint job for him. He would send me his miniature and I would paint it. I\'m interested but not sure if there is a safer way to go about it. Ebay says that you should avoid doing off site transactions. Does anyone else have any experience in this area? Is there a way for me to make a private auction for him so it\'s still an ebay transaction? Any advice is appreciated.

 

[Chern Ann]

Well, just take the figure and 50% up front, and 50% upon completion before posting. That way you\'re covered even if he doesn\'t want it in the end.

 

[evil tendencies]

I usually refuse to take commissions other than in person. Too much can go wrong, and I prefer looking the person in the eyes before I decide to trust them.

Other folks here are better at this, but here\'s some basic advice:

Use Paypal for the money transactions, and keep a hard copy of your proof of shipping/ receipt. The fraud protections of Paypal should ensure that there is no monkey business with the payments, and your shipping receipts should cover you when it comes to showing that you upheld your end.

 

[darklord]

ebay says that because they dont want to miss out on fees.

always use paypal then your both covered - if he is supplying the mini then he\'s trusting you somewhat.
yes you can set up a private buy it now for the agreed price - send him the link then its just a normal ebay transaction (make sure they have already approved the finished work though)
after you have done a bit for them you can always skip ebay in the future if you wanted to save 10%

 

[alextheartist]

Yup, always use paypal

 

[miniDrake]

Some tips.



1 Always use Palpay coveres both you and the seller, though their policies faver the buyer more than then the seller.

2. Always send items Recorded Delivery.

3.First time commissions asked for %50 upfront.Can drop this once you get to know them and trust them.

4. Never rush work out if you give a deadline and can\'t make it tell the client they will understand and be thankful that your not just flinging things out the door.

5. Best and last tip on first time commissions push the level of painting up to a higher level and tell the client its a little bonus for first time clients.This works a treat and most of the time you will get repeat work from them and a added bonus is that sometimes they decide to get other stuff painted to the higher level with means more money for you.

 

[ScottRadom]

If you\'ve got the mini, then they\'re the ones trusting you.

My opinion on commission is that if you get burned, the worst you\'re out is some fo your own time that you spent doing something you love.

Course, if it\'s a bigger project or something you should talk to them abotu deposits and such. But I think that realistically for first time buyers, you\'ve got someone who is trusting that your skill level is consistent to what you\'ve put up on eBay, that you\'ll complete the mini, and that they\'ll get something worth while in the end.

Personally I INSIST on not getting any form of payment until the customer has the mini in hand, and that they\'re satisifed. I\'ve only been at it for about 6 months but so far after about 30 mini\'s I don\'t have a single bad story to tell about doing business that way.

 

[NGArtStudios]

Originally posted by ScottRadom
If you\'ve got the mini, then they\'re the ones trusting you.

My opinion on commission is that if you get burned, the worst you\'re out is some fo your own time that you spent doing something you love.

Course, if it\'s a bigger project or something you should talk to them abotu deposits and such. But I think that realistically for first time buyers, you\'ve got someone who is trusting that your skill level is consistent to what you\'ve put up on eBay, that you\'ll complete the mini, and that they\'ll get something worth while in the end.

Personally I INSIST on not getting any form of payment until the customer has the mini in hand, and that they\'re satisifed. I\'ve only been at it for about 6 months but so far after about 30 mini\'s I don\'t have a single bad story to tell about doing business that way.

I agree with Scott on this one. Most people who go through the trouble of commissioning a paint job are not out to screw you over. If it does come down to it, the worse that can happen is you have a painted mini to throw on eBay. I also don\'t take any payment upfront. That is of course if the client is sending the mini in question. If I have to go out and buy the mini then I ask for the funds to purchase it. Once the mini is done I am sure to take good pictures and get the clients approval, I then await payment (whether by PayPal or Money Order, don\'t ever take personal checks)> Once payment is received I send the mini back out to the client.

 

[nels0nmac]

I have doen the odd bit of commission work from time to time and on the whole it has gone well. The one time I had a problem was when I bought and painted up 2 squads of Ultramarines for a client. They were all chatty up until the point where I sent them the final pics. Didn\'t hear a thing... it was like they dropped off the face of the earth. Maybe they thought that I would immediately put them on Ebay where they could get them cheaper. Either way I kept them for a few months, put them on Ebay and got more than if the commission had gone throughlol
My advice... get payment before sending them out.

 

[Legacy Account]

I got LOADS of work through Ebay auctions in this way. It was a welcome side effect for me. Never had any problems at all - payment through Paypal on completion of the paintjob and photos emailed to punter.

If they don\'t cough up, you slap the mini on Ebay

 

[Shoshie]

Great responses!

These are all great responses. Thank you!

I posted back to the ebayer wanting the commission and showed my interest. I haven\'t heard back yet so I\'m wondering if he changed his mind or found someone else.

 

[JesterzUSMC]

You could get an agreement form, and have them fill it out and fax it back to you.

That would help get you started on what he wants and provide a starting point for your painting.