Ebay advice please !!!
May 1, 2014 09:14:48 #
Ponce
Loc: Ft. Lauderdale Fl
Good Morning.....I have seen multiples of the exact same item sell for all different prices. Say 3 items listed and they sell for $5, $10 and $15. Right time, right place, right person ? Weekends best time ? I heard starting the bids at 99 cents is the best. If you have an item that you know won't sell for much is it better to start at 99 cents or put your own starting price. Ex: I want to get $6 minimum for this item. Do I do a buy now for $10 and then start the bidding at $6 or start with the 99 and hope to get $6 ? Reserve is $2 is it worth it on a small item ? Is it best to add the shipping to your item and then offer free shipping ? Thanks !!!
May 1, 2014 09:21:25 #
Do advanced search for the item. Check the "Completed" box and you will see what sells and what does not. Then you can get good idea of proper pricing.
fwiw,
RegisG
fwiw,
RegisG
May 1, 2014 09:25:14 #
Ponce wrote:
Good Morning.....I have seen multiples of the exac... (show quote)
Yes, start at .99. Don't offer free shipping on a low priced item because you'll lose money. If you add it in, you'll out price the item. Be prepared to let the items go for the .99 or not to sell it at all.
Can the items be shipped via USPS for the price of a single or two stamps?
Don't fall for the extras that eBay wants you to use.
Above all, ACCEPT PayPal. If you don't have a PP account, state in your description that CHECKS MUST CLEAR BEFORE SHIPPING.
May 1, 2014 09:32:57 #
You can set a minimum price (reserve) - when the folks are bidding, they will see a comment stating the reserve is not met... If reserve is not met by the end of the bidding period, there should be no charge for posting - read the latest rules on this as they might have changed since the last time I listed...
And the comment on shipping is excellent advice - I've seen shipping costs be double/triple the sale price - but if it is a rare item or a "needed" item, the buyer will not quibble over shipping costs...
There are some excellent tips for selling on the eBay site also - just a lot to read and understand the first time out -
Good luck
And the comment on shipping is excellent advice - I've seen shipping costs be double/triple the sale price - but if it is a rare item or a "needed" item, the buyer will not quibble over shipping costs...
There are some excellent tips for selling on the eBay site also - just a lot to read and understand the first time out -
Good luck
May 1, 2014 09:45:39 #
I start at the lowest price I will take for the item. At times I am just cleaning out old stuff and 99 cents is better than taking it to the dump. I think the reserve thing is useless. Check on how many bids are on items that have a reserve. Not much action. I do make sure my items sell between 8 and 9 central time. - Dave
May 1, 2014 09:47:59 #
donrent
Loc: Punta Gorda , Fl
Been buying and selling on ebay since almost day one... What some people LIST and item for and what may be offered are two different animals... Some have no idea what a used item reallly sells for...
I NEVER try and make money on shipping like a lot do... If I see someone charging $30 for shipping and the USPO will do it for $8, then I won't even take a second look at the item for sale... Some times I will even send a message asking why !!!
Look on ebay for what you want to sell and follow thru its sale to see...
I NEVER try and make money on shipping like a lot do... If I see someone charging $30 for shipping and the USPO will do it for $8, then I won't even take a second look at the item for sale... Some times I will even send a message asking why !!!
Look on ebay for what you want to sell and follow thru its sale to see...
May 1, 2014 10:08:59 #
Ponce
Loc: Ft. Lauderdale Fl
Thanks everyone I appreciate you taking the time to help me with ebay. Have a good day !
May 1, 2014 10:13:13 #
May 1, 2014 15:48:00 #
As RegisG has pointed out, doing a search for similar items that have already sold is a great idea. It will give you some idea of what your item is actually worth.
And, as 2thfxr has mentioned, he ends on a weekend; a good idea.
Personally, I usually run my listing for 7 days, and try to end at around 8:00-9:00PM Eastern time. eBay always uses Pacific time in the US. So that means I have to end my auction no later than 6:00 PM Pacific. That way I can watch the end of the auction, and reply immediately with a "Congratulations!"
Don't be discouraged if there's no action in the first few days, but pay attention to how many "watchers" there are. Usually, one of those watchers will be the winner.
And, as 2thfxr has mentioned, he ends on a weekend; a good idea.
Personally, I usually run my listing for 7 days, and try to end at around 8:00-9:00PM Eastern time. eBay always uses Pacific time in the US. So that means I have to end my auction no later than 6:00 PM Pacific. That way I can watch the end of the auction, and reply immediately with a "Congratulations!"
Don't be discouraged if there's no action in the first few days, but pay attention to how many "watchers" there are. Usually, one of those watchers will be the winner.
May 1, 2014 22:47:29 #
Too many people use E-bay as a "selling referdnce". What they forgot to check on is...what the item(s) actually sell for...not what is wanted. But that can and should be always checked.
May 1, 2014 23:31:07 #
Ponce wrote:
Good Morning.....I have seen multiples of the exac... (show quote)
How you sell the item depends on the category, the demand for that item and your inventory level. If you have more than a gross of something you need to compute the postage, packaging and seller fees and add it to your cost. This gives you a landed cost or net cost. Then you find the market price for the item. You find the lowest price including shipping. If selling at that price is profitable for you then you can price yours the same. If you can't make money at the lowest price add money to the lowest price until you reach a profit and create your listing. You will always get more attention by building the shipping into an item's price if the product weighs less than two pounds packaged.
May 2, 2014 06:52:53 #
LGilbert
Loc: Earth
Ponce wrote:
Good Morning.....I have seen multiples of the exac... (show quote)
You will discover that selling a $6 item takes the same amount of work as an expensive item to process. If you want $6 out of it, just put it as BUY IT NOW with minimal extras and let it ride. Remember, unless it is in one of the free categories, your insert fee will consume $0.30 of your 6$ item for listing, 10% of the item after sale, and 4% for PayPal charges. That amounts to about 20% of your sale price after insert and commission charges. So, just do BUY IT NOW (no auction) and no extras and just wait. You can put all seven of them for sale at once. The insertion charge covers multiple units and saves a bit. When it sells. the commissions on the individual specimens apply.
Thus, the tendency on eBay is to not list inexpensive items that make next to nothing relative to the time spent.
May 2, 2014 08:09:09 #
I usually do my listings for just 3 days, using a reasonable starting price, not .99 cents. Serious buyers don't have to wait long, and if it doesn't sell I just keep renewing it.
I'm just an occasional seller, by no means a professional. I've sold maybe 20 items, from $6 shirts to a $200 sofa. I only use the free listing option, with no extras.
I'm just an occasional seller, by no means a professional. I've sold maybe 20 items, from $6 shirts to a $200 sofa. I only use the free listing option, with no extras.
May 2, 2014 10:04:48 #
Ponce wrote:
If you have an item that you know won't sell for much is it better to start at 99 cents or put your own starting price. Ex: I want to get $6 minimum for this item. Do I do a buy now for $10 and then start the bidding at $6 or start with the 99 and hope to get $6 ? Reserve is $2 is it worth it on a small item ? Is it best to add the shipping to your item and then offer free shipping ? Thanks !!!
Depends a bit on how badly you want to get rid of the item. I have sold stacks of old stuff on EBay - most things will sell at your price if you don't mind hanging on to it for a while.
Chose a time with free insertion fees and then offer your example item for bidding starting at $6. You can always re-list it later at a lower price. EBay now are offering re-listing for free - for three insertions - so you could edit the item each week.
Many people offer small items starting at 99c because they then have free insertion at any time but make up on the postage.
Regarding postage - remember that EBay now take a percentage of the postage fees as well. So allow extra postage to cover EBay and PayPal fees - approx 15% total - otherwise you would find yourself out of pocket.
May 2, 2014 16:04:51 #
I have been a dealer on Ebay since 97 and sold about 5,000 items all in photographic equipment. I very rarely have to relist an item, my success is that I post about ten pictures of the item I list and I write an honest description. It works for me, I do no "Buy it now" never a reserve and my starting price is 15% above what I paid for, this way I never loose out.
Good Luck.
Good Luck.
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