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| − | =Introduction=
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| − | [http://www.ebay.com eBay] is the world's largest online auction site. With millions of buyers and sellers conducting transactions every month, this site has become a major source of automotive parts, tools, books and memorabilia for many people across the globe. The automotive business on eBay has grown large enough that the website has created a separate section for it called [http://www.motors.ebay.com/ eBay Motors].
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| − | Due to the staggering number of items available on eBay, combined with aggressive marketing techniques used by sellers, a buyer can easily become overwhelmed while sifting through pages and pages of results, majority of which have little or nothing to do with the item the buyer is searching for.
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| − | In order to make the customer experience less stressful, eBay has dedicated a page with tips on narrowing the search results to just what the buyer wants. The tips can be found at [http://pages.ebay.com/help/search/advanced-search.html "Using advanced search."]
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| − | =What You Will Learn=
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| − | This article will serve as a tutorial for those who are not familiar with using some of the advanced features for searching on eBay. These techniques can also be used to search for information on all search engines found online ''(Google, Yahoo!, Bing, Ask.com, etc)''. All tips provided by eBay will be covered in a step-by-step format, complete with images. The search techniques will be demonstrated in the general [http://www.ebay.com eBay] site, as well as [http://www.motors.ebay.com/ eBay Motors].
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| − | =Searching=
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| − | ===Basic Searching: Very Broad Range of Results===
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| − | [http://pages.ebay.com/help/buy/contextual/search_tips.html General Search Tips Page] by eBay.
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| − | ====eBay: General Site====
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| − | [[File:EBay Main Page.JPG|border|center|750px]]
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| − | ====eBay Motors====
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| − | [[File:Main Page eBay Motors.JPG|border|center|750px]]
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| − | ''More Coming Soon.''
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| − | ===Advanced Searching: More User Control With Some Assistance===
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| − | According to the eBay website, the '''''Advanced Search''''' is a feature you can use ''"to narrow your search to specific sellers, locations, price ranges, and more. You can also use it to find completed items, eBay Stores, or other members. Once you've got a search you like, you can save it to use again."''
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| − | ====eBay General Site: Accessing the Advanced Search Page====
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| − | To access the Advanced Search page
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| − | - Find the search box at the top of the web page.
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| − | - Look for the word ''"Advanced"'' to the right of the ''Search'' button. Click on it.
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| − | - The Advanced Search page will now appear.
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| − | ====Advanced Search Categories====
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| − | *'''Keywords''' - This where you type in keywords that are related to what you are searching. Depending on what you are looking for you, you can either start with broad terms and then narrow them down, or be as specific as possible from the start.
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| − | *'''Exclude keywords''' - If an item is offered in several variations, this would be the place to remove the unwanted variations. For example, a C5 Corvette came with both an LS1 and an LS6. If you are trying to search for only one ''(LS1, for example)'', then type in ''LS6'' into this box to exclude all results with ''LS6''.
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| − | *'''Category''' - This is a drop-down menu that allows you search within a specific category on eBay.
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| − | :''Save this search to My eBay'' - If you look for the same item with the same search parameters every time, you can save your search parameters to your eBay account so you don't have to select or type them in on this page every time you do a search.
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| − | *'''Search including'''
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| − | :''Title and description'' - The search will match the keywords you specify with those found in titles and descriptions.
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| − | :''Completed listings'' - The search will match the keywords you specify with those found in listings that are already completed ''(auction ended, item sold, etc)''.
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| − | *'''Price''' - You can specify within which price range you are searching.
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| − | *'''Buying formats''' - eBay offers three different formats for listing an item. Depending on your criteria, you can select one or all three different formats.
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| − | :''Auction'' - Limits search results to auction listings.
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| − | :''Buy It Now'' - Limits search results to items available for immediate purchase.
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| − | :'' Classified ad'' - Limits search results to classified ads.
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| − | *'''Show results'''
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| − | :''With Paypal accepted'' - If you want to pay using Paypal, then check off this option.
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| − | :''Listings (end / start time)'' - If you want to see listings that will close in a particular time frame - from 1 hour to 7 days - then you can specify it here.
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| − | :''Number of bids'' - A useful option if you want to search for items with few bids.
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| − | :''Multiple item listings from'' -
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| − | :''Items listed as lots'' - If you are looking to buy more than one of the same item and want a package deal, then check off this option.
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| − | :''Sale item'' - Items on sale or reduced prices.
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| − | :''Best offer'' - Often times a seller will post a price and allow buyers to make offers. If you would rather make an offer instead of a bid, use this option.
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| − | :''eBay Giving Works'' - If you want to buy from a seller who donates a portion of the sales to charity, check off this option.
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| − | :''Shipping options''
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| − | ::Get It fast - Seller ships item within one day of the payment being cleared.
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| − | ::Free shipping - use this to search for sellers that offer free shipping.
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| − | ::Local pickup - If you need an item quickly or don't wish to wait for or deal with shipping, you can use this option to look for local sellers who offer pick up.
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| − | :''Items near me'' - You can use this category to search for items within a particular distance of a zip code or a popular city.
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| − | *'''Location'''
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| − | :''Only show items:''
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| − | ::From preferred locations
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| − | ::Located in
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| − | ::Available to
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| − | *'''Currency''' - This option allows you to select a specific currency from a drop-down menu.
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| − | *'''Sellers'''
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| − | :''Only show items from:''
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| − | ::Specific sellers - If you are only interested in purchasing from a specific seller, or avoid one, you can list the name here.
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| − | ::My saved Sellers list - If you have a dedicated list of sellers you buy from and only wish to purchase from them, you can use this option.
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| − | ::Sellers with eBay stores If you only want to deal with sellers with eBay stores, check off this option.
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| − | ::eBay Top-rated sellers - Use this option if you only want to do business with sellers with high ratings.
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| − | ::eBay Outlet sellers - If you are searching for outlet deals from sellers who specialize in it, select this option.
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| − | *'''Sort by''' - Drop-down menu that allows you to sort the search results beforehand, i.e. ''Best Match'', ''Price + Shipping: lowest first'', etc.
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| − | *'''View results''' - Drop-down menu that allows you to specify how you want the search results displayed: All items, Photo Gallery, and Show item numbers
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| − | *'''Results per page''' - Drop-down menu that allows you to specify how many results you want to see per page.
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| − | ====eBay Motors: Accessing the Advanced Search Page====
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| − | To access the Advanced Search page
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| − | - Find the search box at the top of the web page.
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| − | - Look for the word ''"Advanced"'' to the right of the ''Search'' button. Click on it.
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| − | - The Advanced Search page will now appear.
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| − | ====Advanced Search Categories====
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| − | *'''What are you looking for?'''
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| − | *'''Vehicle make'''
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| − | :*''Vehicle model''
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| − | *'''Vehicle year'''
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| − | *'''Transmission type'''
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| − | *'''Enter keyword or item number'''
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| − | :''Search title and description''
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| − | :''Show completed listings only''
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| − | *'''Items near me'''
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| − | *'''Sort by'''
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| − | *'''Results per page'''
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| − | ''More Coming Soon.''
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| − | ===Boolean Logic: Limiting Search Results using Search Operators: Full User Control===
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| − | ====Quotes: " "====
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| − | :'''''What is it?'''''
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| − | :Using quotes in a search limits the results to only the word or phrases placed in the quotes.
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| − | :'''''How Do I Use It?'''''
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| − | :Depending on what you are searching for, wrap key words and/or phrases in quotes to narrow down the results.
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| − | :''Example:'' '''''"1995" "Impala SS" "LT1" "Hotchkis TVS"''''' ''or'' '''''"1995 Impala SS LT1 Hotchkis TVS"'''''
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| − | ====Asterisk: *====
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| − | :'''''What is it?'''''
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| − | :Described by eBay as "a wild card operator", the asterisk is used to find all items that begin with a certain word. The one rule to using the asterisk is that it cannot be used at the beginning of a query; there must be at least two characters before it.
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| − | :'''''How Do I Use It?'''''
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| − | :''Example:'' Piston* will list results that include anything word that starts with piston: ''piston, pistons, pistonrod, pistonring''
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| − | :''Example: 199* Dodge Viper will list results for all Dodge Vipers ''(cars and parts)'' for Dodge Vipers models 1990 to 1999.
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| − | ====Parentheses: ( )====
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| − | :'''''What is it?'''''
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| − | :Parentheses work as an OR operator.
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| − | :'''''How Do I Use It?'''''
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| − | :If you are looking for an item that could be described one of two or more ways, or came with two or more features, the put the descriptors in parentheses, separated by comas.
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| − | :''Example:'' '''''4th generation Camaro (LT1, LS1)''''' will list all fourth generations Camaros for sale with either both ''LT1'' or ''LS1'' in the title.
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| − | ====Minus Sign: -====
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| − | :''''What is it?'''''
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| − | :The minus sign works as a NOT operator. Using the minus sign in a query removes specific keywords.
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| − | :'''''How Do I Use It?'''''
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| − | :''Example:'' '''''2005 Mustang - V8''''' will list all results ''(cars and parts)'' for a 2005 Mustang without ''V8'' in the title.
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| − | ====Combining Operators: ( ) * - " "====
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| − | :''Example:'' '''''2005 Mustang - (V8, Manual)''''' will list all results ''(cars and parts)'' for a 2005 Mustang without ''V8'' and ''Manual'' in the title.
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| − | :''Example:'' '''''200* Mustang - (V8, Manual)''''' will list all results ''(cars and parts)'' for Mustangs made between 2000 and 2009, without ''V8'' and ''Manual'' in the title.
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| − | :''Example:'' '''''200* Mustang - (V8, Manual) (Black, Red)''''' will list all results ''(cars and parts)'' for Mustangs made between 2000 and 2009 in black or red, without ''V8'' and ''Manual'' in the title.
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| − | :''Example:'' '''''200* Mustang - (V8, Manual) (Black, Red) "California Special"''''' will list all results ''(cars and parts)'' for Mustangs made between 2000 and 2009, without ''V8'' and ''Manual'' in the title, but will include either "Black" or "Red", and ''California Special'' in the title.
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| − | ''More Coming Soon.''
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| − | ===Member Suggestions===
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| − | ''Coming soon.''
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| − | =Reference=
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| − | [http://www.hotrodders.com/forum/sick-ebay-203293.html sick of ebay]
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| − | :Thread on [http://www.hotrodders.com Hotrodders] forum that inspired this wiki article. It began as a venting session and quickly became filled with lots of good tips and tricks from members.
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| − | [[Category:General hotrodding]]
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