Being a seller is a lot of responsibility, and sometimes you might feel like youre not doing everything you should be. This simple checklist will help you keep on top of things.

Have you found out everything you possibly could about your items? Try typing their names into a search engine you might find out something you didnt know. If someone else is selling the same thing as you, then always try to provide more information about it than they do. Do you monitor the competition? Always keep an eye on how much other items the same as or similar to yours are selling, and what prices theyre being offered at. Theres usually little point in starting a fixed price auction for 100 when someone else is selling the item for 90.

Have you got pictures of the items? Its worth taking the time to photograph your items, especially if you have a digital camera. If you get serious about eBay but dont have a camera, then you will probably want to invest in one at some point.

Are you emailing your sellers? Its worth sending a brief email when transactions go through: something like a simple Thank you for buying my item, please let me know when you have sent the payment. Follow this up with Thanks for your payment, I have posted your [item name] today. You will be surprised how many problems you will avoid just by communicating this way.

Also, are you checking your emails? Remember that potential buyers can send you email about anything at any time, and not answering these emails will just make them go somewhere else instead of buying from you.

Do your item description pages have everything that buyers need to know? If youre planning to offer international delivery, then its good to make a list of the charges to different counties and display it on each auction. If you have any special terms and conditions (for example, if you will give a refund on any item as long as it hasnt been opened), then you should make sure these are displayed too.

Have you been wrapping your items correctly? Your wrapping should be professional for the best impression: use appropriately sized envelopes or parcels, wrap the item in bubble wrap to stop it from getting damaged, and print labels instead of hand-writing addresses. Oh, and always use first class post dont be cheap.

Do you follow up? It is worth sending out an email a few days after you post an item, saying Is everything alright with your purchase? I hope you received it and it was as you expected. This might sound like giving the customer an opportunity to complain, but you should be trying to help your customers, not take their money and run.

Being a really good eBay seller, more than anything else, is about providing genuinely good and honest customer service. Thats the only foolproof way to protect your reputation.