Wow I wish I would have known about this site before my garage sale! If you are one of those people who always has to have the latest gadget then eBay's new electronics buying site may be your new best friend. The time and effort it takes to sell your used electronics on eBay or Craigslist typically does not make it very profitable. How nice is it to go to the Instant Sale Site and select a few options, see the price you are being offered and sell. Yes, you aren't going to get rich selling your used electronics this way but unless you are a neat nick with a lot of spare time, it beats the alternatives.
I will definitely be trying the site out the next time I have an old cell phone or gadget like my i Touch that has been replaced by the newest gadget I just had to buy. I definitely suggest checking out this site.
So you have finally taken the step to sell something on eBay. Maybe its some of your kids used clothing. Maybe its an antique that you inherited but don't have that perfect place for. Whatever it is that you have decided to sell will have to in the end, be shipped to the winner. Shipping can be a confusing and troublesome process for those who haven't had much experience.
So what is so complicated...
First you have to decide which shipping company you want to use. There is USPS, UPS, FedEx, Dhl, and various others.
How do you decide?
Well I always go by cost, but that isn't always easy to figure out. You have to know what shipping options to offer your buyers before you list your item so it takes a little investigation by you to know what shipping service will work best for you.
eBay does some of the work for you with their shipping calculator but they only offer you prices for USPS and UPS. So it won't tell you the prices for FedEx, DHL, or other shippers. Even so, it does a good job. Here is on one eBay user had to say about the eBay shipping calculator:
How many times have you won an auction only to wait ... and wait ... and wait
to complete the transaction because the vendor did not include his S+H costs?
FRUSTRATING ISN'T IT ???
I believe that most sellersdon't usethe available shipping calculator because they are afraid that they will be short-changed on their shipping and handling costs.
I have used the shipping calculator on ALL
of my listings since DAY ONE. IT WORKS !!!
I only use USPS priority shipping with delivery confirmation.
All that you have to do is click the Calculated tab instead of the Flat cost tab to open the shipping calculator menu.
I assume that you have a postal scale? (readily available on many eBay listings - search: Postal scale)
By simply showing the weight, (including packing material and the box) and your nominal handling charge, the correct shipping and handling charge will be available to potential buyers prior to bidding.AND will automatically be added to your final invoice.
As I stated, I always ship delivery confirmation and I always add .50 as a handling charge for that purpose.
If you prefer to ship parcel post (why??) or if you prefer to give your buyers the option of parcel post, you can do that also.
NO PROBLEM !!
Other choices are Media mail, Express Mail etc
Believe me, you will save time answering questions about your shipping costs and your buyers will appreciate your efforts.
Give it a try !!
Sorry to say, but in my opinion, the only reason NOT to use the shipping calculator is because
you are one of those HIDDEN SHIPPING COST RIP-OFF VENDORS.
You know, the ones who give eBay a black eye.
Sell a 99 cent item and charge $29.99 for shipping...SURE !!
BE AWARE THAT EBAY IS CRACKING DOWN ON YOU GUYS AND GOOD RIDDANCE.
This is a nice but slightly dated video on the shipping calculator:
My personal advice is to use the shipping calculator and occasionally check the prices for shipping with other shippers. If you find that shipping is cheaper with another carrier on a consistent basis, start using them and just tell your eBay customers that you ship with that other service but still use the calculator for estimates. I found that customers really like getting a little money back as a refund if you can get the shipping for less. I had customers write me really nice feedback because I refunded them $1.30 in shipping.
If you have kids and they wear name brand clothes you should be selling their used clothes on eBay. There is a small fortune to made on eBay if you list correctly. Certain brands like Gymboree, Nike, and boutique brands sell for almost new prices. I sold my daughters clothes after she outgrew them on eBay for over a year and was making back almost all of what I paid for the clothes so I was practically dressing her for free. I have learned some techniques that helped me make money selling my kids used clothes:
Start by searching closed eBay auctions for the type of clothing and sizes you have to sell. This gives you and idea of the price these items are selling for. Also you can see if a certain day or time is showing more profit. I found that auctions that closed on Thursday evenings were the most profitable for me to sell my daughters clothes on. I guess more moms with baby daughters shopped at that time. Not sure what human psychology is behind it, but it does mak a difference. Here is how to search for the closed auctions:
On any page of ebay you will now find a search input at the top right corner of the page. Just below this you will find "Advanced Search". Click this link.
Now, in order to get a listing of completed items you will first need to search the current open items. Fill in your search parameters and click the "Search" Button.
Once the list comes up, scroll down the LEFT hand edge of the page and you will see more search categories and "SEARCH OPTIONS". In this area you will find a check box next to "Completed Listings". Click this box and an check mark appears in it.
Scroll down a bit further and click the "Show Items' Button. You will now get a listing of CLOSED items which are still on the system. Keep in mind that this search option only goes back 30 days. You will not see any auction older than 30 days.
Once you figured out about how much to expect to make off your items, decide how you want to sell them. I suggest selling clothing in bulk or lots which is just selling groups of items together instead of one piece of clothing per auction. Unless you have a very high value item it is always better to sell your items in a lot in my opinion. The reason I say this is because of how expensive shipping is. A buyer doesn't want to pay $6 in shipping for a $10 shirt. By selling a large lot of clothing you are giving the buyer a better shipping value. They will pay the $14 shipping for 10 shirts more readily. This will increase your bids as well. I would offer priority shipping and size my lots by the amount of clothes I can fit in the flat rate priority box. There are three sizes so you can sell different amounts based on what shipping box you are using.
When selling in a lot, have a theme. Sell clothes that are the same size, gender, and style. Sell clothes that are for the same season. Don't mix winter clothes and summer clothes together. Also if you can put clothes into outfits and sell them, the buyers seem to bid more. Its less work for busy moms to buy complete outfits than have to bid on auctions for all the separate pieces of clothing. On the other hand if you have a bunch of the same type of clothing like shorts an auction of multiple pairs of the same type of item does well also as long as you aren't selling duplicate items.
Organization is key so give yourself a room to spread out and group the clothes you are going to sell. Once you have decided what clothing you are going to sell together, you move to inspection. Look over each piece of clothing in very good (natural preferred) light.
I found this advice site and thought I would pass it along. It says a lot of the same things I have already said but says it different. Sometimes it takes hearing things in several different ways before it sinks in for me personally. Also, the more I hear something, the more likely I will be to try it. So here it is:
eBay announced in January it was going to reduce its fees. Now with March 30th quickly approaching those promises will soon be making it more affordable to sell on eBay. Starting March 30 the upfront cost of selling on eBay will be dramatically reduced for sellers of all sizes with eBays lowest Insertion Fees ever. Whether you’re running a business or selling to earn extra cash, choose from a range of options designed to make your selling easier and more profitable. So all of you procrastinators, me included, get your stuff ready to sell.
eBay may have finally figured out that sellers will just go find another venue if they keep raising prices. There is a ceiling to the profits you can make per seller. For eBay to make more money, they need to bring in more buyers and sellers, not make it more expensive to sell. Good job eBay, keep up the rational thinking.
Just when you think that eBay has learned its lesson and has stopped trying to dominate every aspect of e commerce, they go and launch their new classifieds site Kijiji. So I guess if you are a Craigslist seller like me and millions of others, you can now also list your products on Kijiji. We will see how successful this site ends up being but eBay seems to be having more success these days with their e commerce pet projects like Stub Hub than eBay itself. Maybe if they lowered their selling fees and lifted some of the restrictions they have placed on selling items, they would see business return.
eBay is still a great place to sell your products, don't get me wrong. I just wish eBay was the same as when I started selling in 2000. All business changes though, that is the nature of the beast. Check out Kijiji and let me know what you think. Should Craigslist be scared? I guess we will have to wait and see.
I was doing a little research on alternative auction sites tonight and came across a site started right here in Southern Oregon. OnlineAuction.com is a modestly popular auction site. It certainly doesn't have the business that eBay enjoys but, it is only one of many auction sites popping up on the internet trying to win a piece of the frustrated eBay sellers who are looking for a better alternative. Some other auction sites are:
I don't receive anything for advertising these sites. Its just for your information. You should check out the other auction sites because you may find they offer more for the money and may fit your goals better than eBay can.
Do you have books, cds, and dvds sitting around your house you want to sell? Or maybe you even have some old VHS movies or records that have been gathering dust in your garage. If this sounds like you, you have until March to list on eBay for dirt cheap. Sell all your books, music, movies, and dvds for only 5¢. That is a good deal, and my advice for today.
So after taking a break for awhile I am going to venture back into the world of online sales. I am really debating on how much I am actually going to use eBay this time though. It seems like it is becoming increasingly difficult to make a profit on eBay selling regular products. eBay is so full of sellers, selling the same thing. Homemade and one of a kind items seem to be the ticket. I am opening my own store where I will be selling swords and blades. I will probably use eBay as a way to advertise and get business. I will also be relying on eBay to show myself as a reputable seller since I have a great feedback score there. I changed my eBay ID to Dantotsu (which is the name of my new store). Sounds more like a sword store than Toria's Treasures. I will again start updating this blog. I still believe a lot of good advice can be found in my previous posts if you are new to this blog.
It has been awhile since I have written anything. I still have my eBay store but I have cut out most of my products for the time because I started having some problems around Christmas. Since I am primarily a drop-shipper I was having many orders that were back-ordered or even discontinued when I went to order them. I changed my strategy quite a bit. I have cut my suppliers down to two who I know are better at keeping items in stock and communication. They are also super quick shippers. I will be auctioning off all of my remaining stock that I have at my house in a couple of weeks. I will start all of these auctions for .99.
With the market slowing right now I am really trying to attract international orders as much as I can and PayPal just made it much easier to take international payments without putting yourself in danger of losing money. I will be posting more in the future but wanted anyone who follows my blog to know that I am still in business and while it has been tough the last couple of months, I am not planning on giving up, but instead I am rethinking my strategy.
I have been selling on eBay since 2000 so why I am not new to the business scene, I am still pretty green. This year I decided to apply for my business tax # and take my hobby to the next step.
So I set up shop on eBay because I am familiar and so far it's going well. eBay business is tough with the fees and the small profitability of most items so I am branching out. I will set up a site on freewebs and maybe also on eCrater and see if I can't get some profit going.
I will try and update my blog with my struggles and any advice I obtain along the way. Maybe I can help some poor soul from making some of the mistakes I have.
Wow I wish I would have known about this site before my garage sale! If you are one of those people who always has to have the latest gadget then eBay's new electronics buying site may be your new best friend. The time and effort it takes to sell your used electronics on eBay or Craigslist typically does not make it very profitable. How nice is it to go to the Instant Sale Site and select a few options, see the price you are being offered and sell. Yes, you aren't going to get rich selling your used electronics this way but unless you are a neat nick with a lot of spare time, it beats the alternatives.
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