Jim 'Griff' Griffith

Getting Ready for eBay Live!
by Jim 'Griff' Griffith
eBay Staff Member

Q: Hi Griff,

We finally made the decision to attend eBay Live! in hopes it can provide us with information to be able to take our business to the next level. As I looked over the long list of activities we could participate in at eBay Live!, we became somewhat overwhelmed. If you can make some recommendations we would be extremely appreciative.

A: Good news! There will be an actual Education Center booth at eBay Live!, staffed by education consultants. They will help attendees select appropriate workshops, seminars, and discussions for the three days of eBay Live!

In the meantime, I suggest you scan through the agenda and activities scheduled for eBay Live! 2005. Reading the course descriptions for available classes and workshops can help you determine which ones to attend. Identify the areas of your eBay selling that you want to learn more about, and then pick courses or workshops that can help you achieve this goal.

You can also get some helpful advice about making the most of your eBay Live! experience from members who've attended the event in previous years.

When you arrive at the venue for eBay Live!, swing by the Education Center booth and talk to one of our helpful education consultants. They will be happy to make recommendations for any slots you are unable to fill in your day.

Remember to leave some time for the fun stuff! See you at eBay Live!

Regards,
Griff

Q: I am about to sign up as a new member on eBay. I want to start by buying items. Eventually I hope to start selling items and even open an eBay store. Thinking into the future, I have thought of what I think is a good eBay identity. However, during the registration process, I noticed that your eBay identity cannot be the same as your email address.  Why is that? 

I thought it would be convenient for buyers to simply add @aol.com to my identity when they need to contact me.  

Thanks for taking the time to read and answer my question.  

Regards,
Maureen

A: Hi Maureen,

First off, welcome to eBay! The policy on choosing a User ID states that you cannot use an entire email address as your User ID. eBay is constantly working to provide a safer trading experience for our members, and this policy is part of that endeavor. Having your email address as your User ID could potentially expose your email address to email harvesters that sell email addresses to spammers and fraudsters.

As a result of this concern, we have decided to no longer allow User IDs that are an email address, a URL, or a “look alike” for either. You can use the first part of your email address (before the "@" sign) as your User ID as long as it isn't in use as someone else's eBay User ID. Try it and see if it is available.

Your buyers will always be able to contact you through the Ask Seller A Question link on your listings. This sends an email to the email address you provide on registering with eBay.

Alternately, you can also type your email address into your item description, though I don't recommend doing so because this could also expose your email address to the public, including email harvesters.

Regards,
Griff