To Ebay or Not To Ebay

I have been asked to put up a post on Ebaying. You see, after our garage sale was over, I took stock of the items that were worth Ebaying (oh, yes, there are things not worth the time it takes to even bother putting on there) and listed several things.

For about seven years I've been on Ebay, first as a buyer then as a seller as well.

Is it perfect? No. But it's pretty good and I've learned a few things along the way.

First, there are some things worth doing. Some not.

Here's a few things I've learned. If it helps you, great.

• List a bunch of stuff at once if you can. There is a certain amount if time invested in getting stuff listed. So if you can save a little time by doing many things at once, it's slightly more satisfying. Also, when people look at your listing, they'll also see links to other things you have for sale so that may increase your stream of potential buyers and increase the final sale amount. Any little bit helps, right?
• Take pictures of the actual item, don't put up a stock photo. I, as a buyer, like to see the real item I'm getting. If its something like a Pottery Barn quilt, then sure, put up a stock photo so somebody can see what it would look like all purdy made up on their bed, but have the REAL ITEM YOU'RE SELLING as your first photo. I think it also helps the integrity of the listing, because you can't fluff up how awesome something is in the picture, what you see is what you get.
• List things so that the listings begin and end during the work day (like if you're in the Central time zone, make sure things are listed around the middle of the day, then East Coasters and West Coasters are all up and at 'em). Why? Well, snipers. Meaning, there are people who watch listings and don't bid on them until the last second. If you're a night owl and you're putting stuff on Ebay at midnight, you're gonna lose a lot of snipers. If your listings end at a reasonable time of day, you might get some great last second bidding going on.
• What is worth listing? In the time I've been selling things here and there on Ebay, I have found certain things are worth selling. Anything where I'm only going to make a buck profit - not worth it. Good things: name brand childrens' clothes, large lots of childrens' clothes (all the same size, brand doesn't matter), electronics (especially old video games or previous builds of things), collectibles, brand name toys (if you have a Dora umbrella or something that got used once and is super cute and no one would be able to buy it at a store anymore, go ahead and list that sucker....somebody will buy it)
• What is especially worth it? The highest return on my $$ is Hanna Andersson clothing. It is nice, Swedish clothing that is pretty expensive as far as casual kids' clothes are concerned. But the quality is so good and it's organic cotton that gets softer and doesn't fade when washed (and that European red dye NEVER runs!), that it's kind of better when used than new. Everybody who has Hanna clothes for their kids knows this so the Ebay sales of Hanna stuff is INSANITY. I had an outfit (playdress and matching leggings) listed on Ebay that cost $60 retail when I bought it, I made something like $54 for it on Ebay. WHEN IT WAS USED. Trust me...go watch a couple Ebay auctions for Hanna Andersson stuff and you will be shocked. I had some things listed and a lady emailed me the same day I listed them, wanted two outfits and offered to pay me $90 for both outfits if I pulled my listings and shipped them to her right away. You can't make this stuff up. So, if you haven't bought your kids any Hanna Andersson stuff ever, do it, because you'll just about get your money back when you resell it on Ebay.
• How long to list? Use 5-day or 7-day listings. That is plenty long. If you do 5-day, though, make sure the auction ENDS on a weekday (for those middle of the day people who you need bidding it up...on the weekends, people forget).
  
• Where to Ship? I limit my listings to United States only. It's time-consuming enough already without opening up to an entire planet of figuring out shipping expense. Of course, there are ALWAYS people who ignore the information in the listing and either email you asking, "hey, will you ship to Canada/Germany/etc?" And then, like happened to me last week, you have people who live in another country, like the Philippines, and go ahead and bid then win your auction. *sigh*
• What about Shipping Expense? On things that are parcels, I go to the post office and have them weighed and have them figure up the cost for Priority and Parcel. Then I add $2 for shipping supplies and the gas expense of what ends up being two trips to the post office to do all this shipping stuff. I put right in my listing that I add that $2 and why and if the person thinks that is unreasonable that they SHOULD NOT BID on the item. I also start most of my listings at 99 cents, so they're still coming out waaaaaay ahead. If I'm sending little tiny video games, or other items that are small and I can buy small padded envelopes and the shipping amount is going to be very little, I make it free shipping because Ebay will promote your item more with a big "Free Shipping" bubble on your listing. I'm not going to lose my shirt by shipping everything free, but some things it's worth it. And, make insurance optional, some people believe in it, some people think it's a waste of $$$, but they're paying for it so it shouldn't make any difference to you.
• What do I say about the Items I List? Describe the hell out of them. If it's clothes, put everything about the condition of it, because especially if it's used, people want to know just how used it is. If the fabric has some pilling, don't neglect mentioning that. If it's a bit faded, mention it. If your kid only wore it twice and the thing looks like new, mention it. And put everything from the tag...how to wash it, what it's made of, sizing, etc. Describe a lot. I do not offer returns and I put that in my listing that, unless I made a mistake and the information about the item is wrong, what you pay for is what you get, no returns, I'm not a store, I'm just a person. So, it's better to overdo it on the describing so people can't come back and say, "hey, you didn't mention this hole in the back!" By the way, if there is a defect of some kind, take an extra photo of it up close...I have sold some name brand things (like a Hanna sweater) that had some sort of fixable flaw and yes, they have sold because some people will pay next to nothing and take care of it themselves. If you are selling electronic things, try to find the same thing on Amazon or something so you can highlight the specifics, especially if you no longer have instruction booklets for stuff like that.
  
• Finishing the sale. When people win your item, give them half a day to pay on their own (if you're setting up your account to accept Paypal), most people will pay on their own fairly soon after winning the auction. If they haven't paid immediately, then go in to Ebay and send invoices on unpaid items. I put in my listing that people have 7 days from the close of the auction to pay me. I've had a couple times when people have fudged beyond that and a few emails back and forth usually takes care of it. Only once did I have a deadbeat bidder that disappeared off the face of the earth and I filed a complaint with Ebay. But 99% of the time, people know how it works and pay quickly. Allow yourself 1-2 days handling time (you can do this in the listing) to package and get items sent after payment is received. I print off an invoice from Paypal to put in with the item and once it is sent, I send the buyer an email letting them know the package is en route. You can do a lot of automated communication but most people appreciate a personal email that shows you are paying attention to getting their item to them in an efficient manner. If they paid and were easy to deal with, leave them positive feedback. If you had issues, you could leave neutral or negative feedback...I just don't leave any. My grandma always said, "if you can't say anything nice about anybody..." you know the saying. With the exception of the deadbeat bidder, I haven't had any earth-shattering problems as a seller.

That's about all I can think of right now. There's probably something else, just ask in the comments but this has worked for me, I have 100% positive feedback and I've made a little money doing it, so it's been pretty good on my end.

Anyone else have any tips or advice on Ebay, tell it!