I’m catching up on blog articles since, being between Christmas and New Year’s, everyone else in the universe is thinking about anything but hiring me. It’s a momentary thing, next week’ll be crazy again. I’m enjoying the quiet and doing things like reorganizing, planning for the New Year, catching up on exercise, and…yes, finding things to sell on Ebay.

I’ve been an Ebay seller for nearly a decade. Some years back I even had an Ebay store and bought/sold things regularly. I have nothing but positive comments from my buyers, and I do enjoy still finding tidbits out there to put out for sale.

I refer to Ebay as “The international mecca of fair market value.” What does that mean? It means that Ebay buyers are looking for deals on things they might get elsewhere (but pay a higher price), or they are looking for things that they can’t find anywhere else. I’m surprised at some of the things I sold where I made MUCH more than I ever thought. Take for example, The ‘Body by Jake’ Stomach cruncher chair that my wife just HAD to have while home sick watching infomercials. For a while we tried it, and of course eventually it turned into a place to hang our coats and/or collect dust in the garage. This was one of my first items I ever listed and I figured that if I got ANYTHING from it, it would pay me just to get it out of the house. This was after I tried pawning it off on the local Goodwill and Salvation Army stores who said “No way!” When the auction was all over, I actually ended up selling the thing for about $110, which was more than we paid for it. Shipping it was not easy, but at least it was out of the house! The same went for a ridiculously ugly pelican made out of stamped tin that we once got as a ‘white elephant’ Christmas gift. I sold it for $20.

That being said, some of the collectible items I had in my possession sold for incredibly dismal amounts of money. Go figure! It just depends on what the public wants at any given time.

For the most part, there are secrets to successful Ebay listings, even though you never know what you’re going to end up selling your items for. Here’s a hint, if you don’t want to sell your item for LESS than you think it is worth, DON’T LIST IT!! Here are a few other Ebay tidbits with regard to a more potentially positive selling experience:

• NEVER list your item for auction for what you think it is worth, or for its current retail value! Yes, that’s a crazy strategy, but very true. Unless you have the ONLY one of the item you’re selling, start the bidding out low. I always start my auction bids  at .99. Why? Because it attracts attention. Believe me, if your item is worth MORE than .99, the bids will come. You can however set a “Buy it Now” price (for a small fee) to coincide with your auction bidding in hopes that you’ll get what you think your item is worth (Here’s another hint: Don’t count on it…Especially in this economy). You don’t necessarily have to use my listing strategy, but make sure you set your price accordingly to entice potential bidders. I have had items sit there at .99 until 2 minutes before the listing closed, only to have a final crazy bidding war and make bank! I have sometimes lost out, but rarely, and sometimes you might have to be willing to lose a few to gain a bunch, but this strategy has always worked for me.
• That being said, if you did make a wholesale purchase of items and you have a fixed cost, take your chances on a “Buy it Now” listing rather than an auction. If you’re going to boldly go into the Ebay retail business, DO YOUR HOMEWORK! There are a lot of scammers out there who will sell you items at what they say is “wholesale” that you can’t GIVE AWAY on Ebay. Also learn what your competitors are doing and how they are selling similar products.
• NEVER end an auction on a Sunday! Also, try to end your auctions in the late afternoon or early evening. You want to make sure your auctions have the best chance for last minute bids. Ending your bids in the morning or during the early part of the afternoon (or on weekends) when buyers might not have access to Ebay can kill your potential profits. TRUST ME, I learned this the hard way!!
• Have a customer service policy in place. Do your best to ship within one business day of receipt of payment, and state any return or exchange policies clearly and distinctly. Be friendly, polite, and professional in your responses to buyer inquires, and respond ASAP.
• Accept overseas bids. I’ve made PLENTY of $$ off of the Canadians! I have also shipped products literally all over the world to places like Paris, Luxemborg, Tokyo, Brazil, and Russia (yes, RUSSIA!). Foreign buyers tend to pay more, especially for items that cannot find in the states. HINT: Limit your payment options from foreign buyers to Paypal only. This way you have recourse and you are protected! Don’t accept a foreign check, you don’t know where it’s been or where to cash it…If it can even be cashed!
• On that note, make sure you accept Paypal as a payment option. Yes, like Ebay, Paypal takes a piece of the action as well, but again, you are protected with recourse in case of any issues, and you don’t have to worry about waiting on someone to mail you a payment, and/or if that payment will clear. With Paypal, your money is as good as in the bank.
• Beware of the extras that Ebay will ding you on. You can easily get nickled-and-dimed when listing your product with extras such as adding more photos, highlighted listings, bold listings, etc. My experience is in the long run, it hasn’t made that much of a difference in what I ultimately sold my products for. However, if you have an Ebay store and you’re in it for the long haul, you might have to consider your competitive advantage against other stores selling similar products. Mostly with regard to these tips, I’m speaking to the casual Ebay seller and not the Ebay Pro.

Buying tips:

• Beware of getting caught up in the bidding frenzy. Bidding can almost be like a drug, especially if you REALLY want the item you’re bidding on. Set your maximum price, and if you don’t get it, look around for another one as there probably is one out there.
• I NEVER bid until 2 minutes before the auction ends. If I want something that is for auction, I will add it to my watch list, then pounce within 2 minutes of the auction’s closing. Why? I catch a LOT of bidders off guard that way. This doesn’t mean I win every auction, but I do all right! Plus, the earlier you place your bid, the earlier other bidders will notice your strategy. If you come out of the blue last minute, they usually don’t know what hit them. Again, set your maximum price that you will pay, and walk if the bidding goes over your budget.
• Check the seller’s feeback rating before you make your bid. If they have a lot of negative comments, beware of their customer service style. I did have only ONE instance where I wanted the product more than I cared about the seller’s feedback and got stung. Don’t do that!! Pay attention.
• Also, if you did receive lousy service, let the seller know and give them the opportunity to fix the situation BEFORE leaving negative feedback. It’s just the cool thing to do.
• On that note, make sure you leave feedback. Feedback begets more feedback, and the more positive ratings you have, the more trusted you will become as a buyer and a seller.

So there you have it. Just some bits and pieces to think about. Questions? Zap me a message!

Cheers!

Your Web Guru