Last time, we covered five things you should never do when selling Pokemon cards (with eBay as the backdrop). But a transaction is a two-way street. You have the seller, and you also have the consumer.

Because the phrase “the customer is always right” is so prevalent in America, people have a habit of thinking the buyer should never bear any responsibility whatsoever, but that couldn't be further from the truth. (That's also why I think that particular proverb is absolutely terrible.)

So, what are some things a customer should never do when buying Pokemon cards?

Here are five.

Don't ask stupid questions

Someone once said that there was no such thing as a stupid question, but that person was wrong (another awful proverb). The reality of the matter is that there are some questions that are stupid.

I'll give you an example.

As a consumer, don't message a seller on eBay and ask things like, “What is the lowest you'll take for this Pokemon card?” Why would you ask that question when there is literally a price listed for the item? And if there is a “make offer” option on the listing, then why not just make an actual offer rather than messaging the seller asking them what their lowest price would be?

Trust me when I tell you this: it's annoying, and most sellers either a.) will message you back saying that they won't go any lower than the list price (or to make an offer if applicable), or b.) won't even respond at all.

Do you go to Walmart or Target, grab a bunch of Pokemon products, go to the register and ask what would be the lowest the store would take? No, so why do you think you should be able to do that on eBay or any other online selling platforms?

Avoid asking these types of questions so sellers don't avoid you.

Don't back out of deals

Let's say there is a “make offer” option on the card or item in which you are interested, and you decide to put forth an offer. The seller chooses to accept your proposal. Now, the ball is in your court to actually make payment for the item.

Honor the deal and do it.

Don't be one of those people who makes an offer, and then when the seller accepts, you say something like, “Hey, can you cancel? I thought this was a different card.” Or the best excuse: “Hey, my son/daughter/nephew/niece/goldfish was playing on my phone. I didn't order this. Please cancel.”

We all know that you just had buyer's remorse and decided to weasel out of the deal. We know that your 6-year-old child didn't get a hold of your phone, go on eBay, search for that exact card and then make an offer on it. It was you, and you're just choosing not to keep your word.

If this sounds like you, change your ways. No one is believing your story, and no one is going to want to deal with you.

Don't neglect titles and descriptions

Folks, if you see “NON-HOLO” in the title, don't message the seller after you purchase the item saying, “Oh, I thought this was holo.” It was right in front of your face the whole time.

This goes for descriptions, as well. Don't expect a mint condition Pokemon card if the description clearly states that the card is in excellent (which is another term for lightly played) or played condition.

I understand we are now in a society where instant gratification is the primary objective and people don't like to read anymore (which is pretty ironic considering I am trying to reach those very same people with this piece), but do yourself and the seller a favor by actually taking the time to read what he or she is saying about the item they are trying to sell.

There could be very important information about that individual item that you are missing, so take seven seconds and read.

Don't badger the seller about shipping

This is another good one.

There are far too many buyers who ask sellers too many questions, particularly after they purchase the item (more on that in a second). Right now, I am just going to focus on shipping.

Don't buy an item and then message the seller an hour later asking them when they are going to ship. Many of us sellers have seriously had customers buy from us on a Saturday night and then message us on Sunday afternoon asking if we were going to ship the item. (I'm not talking about sellers who hang on to items for a week or two without shipping them. That's different.)

Or even better, when a seller does ship the item, and the buyer proceeds to bombard the seller with messages about how long the shipment is taking while the item is in transit. Here's a little news flash for some of you: the seller is not in control of the post office (or whatever parcel service that is handling the shipping). They are not driving the mail truck. Once the item is out of their hands, they cannot control how long it takes to arrive in your mailbox.

So please: don't pester the seller with a million and one questions in between your purchase and delivery of the item.

Don't ask questions after you purchase an item

This is a big one: if you have any questions about a particular Pokemon card's condition or just a general question about the item, make those inquiries before you click “Buy It Now.”

Don't purchase an item and then go and ask the seller for more photos. That's silly, and it's not going to do anything but frustrate the seller. Do your research beforehand to avoid any unnecessary headaches.

This may seem like common sense to many of you, but believe me: there are people who engage in this type of behavior. Instead of examining all of the photos and reading the description prior to purchase, they'll get trigger-happy and buy the item and then start asking their questions.

I do understand that, sometimes, you may feel like you want to see more photos of a particular item, especially if it's expensive. That's perfectly fine as long as you do that before completing the transaction.