Ebay sellers thread (other platforms too)

[QuarterMillionMan]

Update on the 2 foreign currencies that had questionable shipping statuses using eBay's standard envelopes. The one that traversed through Alaska made it to its destination and now shows "delivered." The one that still shows "out for delivery," the seller gave me a positive review saying, "fast service." If the item that traversed through Alaska and has been delivered gets a positive review I can rest assured that these 2 sales were successful and the buyers were satisfied.

[disneysteve]

If the item that traversed through Alaska and has been delivered gets a positive review I can rest assured that these 2 sales were successful and the buyers were satisfied.

Most buyers don’t leave feedback. It’s great to get it but not getting it doesn’t mean the buyer wasn’t satisfied. I’m glad both items arrived safely.

[QuarterMillionMan]

My next 3 listings for foreign currencies, I'm trying the buy it now or best offers as you suggested. Don't want to get stuck with a $1 bid again for my prior listing where they buyer scored when no one else bid, lol.

[QuarterMillionMan]

Listed it today and I got to offers already, I think I'll take it. 2 out of 3 sold.

[disneysteve]

Listed it today and I got to offers already, I think I'll take it. 2 out of 3 sold.

That's great! I'm glad my suggestion worked out so well.

[QuarterMillionMan]

Ds for anyone on the sidelines wanting to get in on selling on eBay what would be the easiest items to start with selling to get going selling on eBay?

[disneysteve]

Ds for anyone on the sidelines wanting to get in on selling on eBay what would be the easiest items to start with selling to get going selling on eBay?

Start with stuff you already have. Everyone has things lying around the house that they could sell. Toys the kids don't play with anymore. Outgrown clothing. Those gifts you got that you never wanted and shoved in the back of the closet. That gadget you had to have, used twice, and haven't touched since. Older small appliances and tech that you've upgraded to newer ones. That thing you bought and never got around to returning. Go through your drawers and closets and basement and garage and gather up things you are okay getting rid of. It shouldn't cost you a penny to start selling on ebay. You might need to buy a roll of packing tape and some bubble wrap but other than that, the merchandise itself should be free.

Once you've gotten comfortable with that stuff, if you want to start reselling items, start with what you know, whatever that is. I started my business in 1986 selling Disney memorabilia because that's what I collected and had substantial knowledge about. I would go to yard sales and flea markets and pick up Disney items that I knew were worth more than they were charging. I'd also buy brand new Disney items when we went to Florida and sell those. They were only available there so most people couldn't get them. If they wanted them, they bought them on ebay.

There are people who sell virtually anything. Sewing patterns, Depression glass, board games, Hot Wheels, Barbie dolls, jeans, baseball caps, stamps, vintage books, anything you can imagine. If there's a niche you're knowledgeable about, put that knowledge to use.

[QuarterMillionMan]

The easiest way to get started IMHO is to sell small things that will fit in a first-class envelope. Such as jewelry, RAM/memory/SSD hard drives, foreign currencies, new t-shirts, etc. Items that will fit in one of these envelopes are the best way to get started. When you get good like disneysteve then you can ship bigger items such as vases, memorabilia, etc. The biggest thing that I've shipped was a laptop in a medium flat rate box. Anything bigger and I would really have to do some homework on shipping costs, packaging, etc.

[disneysteve]

As part of my ebay store subscription, I get a $25 coupon every quarter to use toward shipping supplies like boxes, tape, and bubble mailers. I used my first one last quarter to get 12 rolls of ebay logo packing tape. With the coupon, it came to $9.53 out of pocket. Of course, shortly before that, I had ordered a 12-pack of tape so I was stocked up. That's about a 6-month supply. I figured I'd use the ebay tape eventually, but I'd also get a new coupon every 3 months.

I looked on ebay and sure enough there are people selling the tape. It goes for about $16-18 for a 6-pack but with free shipping. I checked yesterday and shipping would cost me $12.85 so I'd barely make any money. Instead, I listed a 6-pack on Marketplace for $15. A few hours later someone messaged about it and said he could meet up today and asked if I had more. I told him I had another 6 pack and would do both for $25 and he agreed. We met up a little while ago and he said to let him know when I get more.

So I spent $9.53 and sold the tape for $25 cash (no fees to deal with). Not a bad deal, and I can repeat it every 3 months.

[disneysteve]

The easiest way to get started IMHO is to sell small things that will fit in a first-class envelope. Such as jewelry, RAM/memory/SSD hard drives, foreign currencies, new t-shirts, etc.

I would recommend that people start with lower cost items and things that are less prone to scams because new sellers are very much targeted by scammers. Try to stay away from electronics and mechanical things that need to work. And avoid items that need authentication like designer handbags or high end sneakers or legit jewelry and precious metals and gems.

Definitely learn to pack properly. That's something a lot of new sellers get wrong. Even if the item isn't particularly fragile, you still don't want to just throw it in an envelope where it could get crushed or bent. Heck, even Amazon gets that wrong. I ordered a picture frame recently and they shipped it in a bubble mailer. Of course, it arrived with the glass broken. I always err on the side of safety and put most things in a box.

[disneysteve]

I have a bad habit of losing motivation to list stuff once I've made a nice profit off of a lot. For example, I bought the LEGO collection back in January. For weeks, I worked on it every night after dinner to assemble the sets and get them listed. I spent $275 for everything and have since done over $1,500 in sales (over $1,000 profit). But I never finished. There are still two tables set up in the basement with LEGO on them. There are several sets I haven't checked for completeness or gotten listed yet.

I'm sure you remember my bottle cap story from last summer. I sold off most of them in a couple of bulk purchases to a collector/dealer in PA, but I kept a bunch and the box has just been sitting on the floor near my desk ever since. This afternoon I was feeling kind of blah and decided I needed to do something to invigorate myself. I pulled out the box of caps and proceeded to list 5 of them. I've already sold 2 for $19 and $22. Remember I bought the 1,600 caps last year for $10 so today alone I've made 4 times that much (on top of the $4,000+ I've already made from them).

I'm not going to stop shopping for more stuff to sell but I really need to focus more on listing stuff I already have. It's all just money sitting there waiting to be made.

[QuarterMillionMan]

I too could be more active at selling and have new clothing that I could list but it's just sitting in my drawers or sitting on shelves. I like fast selling and clothing takes a long time to sell so I just let it sit and sit. But the good thing is that eBay allows me an outlet to get rid of things and make a little money instead of throwing things away or giving things away or donating it. Often on facebook people I know offer freebies to others willing to pick up the items for free. People have too much junks and are willing to give things away for free to get rid of it, I guess. Or my SIL pays for a storage unit at $500 a month to store all her belongings which had been stored at my parents home until my parents asked her to please remove it. I'm sure people here all have too much stuff as well and either rent storage units or are donating, discarding, or want to sell their belongings as well but never took the neccessary steps to sell eBay or other platforms. As for Offer Up, no one inquired about my weight bench so I will list it on eBay for the same $28 and list it as free pick up in my local area. No way will I attempt to ship that bulky item. Or Craigslist might be an option as well but eBay works the best IMHO at selling things fast.

[disneysteve]

Often on facebook people I know offer freebies to others willing to pick up the items for free. People have too much junks and are willing to give things away for free to get rid of it, I guess. Or my SIL pays for a storage unit at $500 a month to store all her belongings which had been stored at my parents home until my parents asked her to please remove it.

I regularly get things free from Marketplace, Nextdoor, and the Freebie Alert app that I then resell. Not everyone has the time or desire to sell things online or even to have a yard sale. If you have 2 weeks to clean out a house after someone died or you have to move on short notice for work, you just need to get rid of stuff. I responded to a free notice a while ago where the parent had died. The adult child who lives in Florida came up and had a short window to empty the property so she just opened the door and let people come in and take whatever they wanted for free. It was either that or donate it or pay someone to haul it away.

When you asked about starting out, I meant to mention storage units. If you are paying to store stuff, you have things you absolutely don't need and could sell online. You're clearly living okay without those items and it's costing you a fortune to store them ($500/mo is insane). Not only will you get money by selling them, you'll save yourself hundreds of dollars every month by ditching the storage unit.

[QuarterMillionMan]

Ha-ha yup I get a kick out of people paying for storage. In my line of work I often have to deal with homeless people and when they tell me they are paying for storage it warps my mind. The may be living in their cars or in a tent but paying for storage. I try to get them to see the irony that their furniture or appliances have better accommodations than themselves but I guess their priorities are mixed up.

[disneysteve]

Ha-ha yup I get a kick out of people paying for storage. In my line of work I often have to deal with homeless people and when they tell me they are paying for storage it warps my mind. The may be living in their cars or in a tent but paying for storage. I try to get them to see the irony that their furniture or appliances have better accommodations than themselves but I guess their priorities are mixed up.

It's understandable in that situation as they have nowhere else to put their belongings. Same for folks who are temporarily renting a small place between houses. But for anyone who is settled in a house, having a storage unit just means you've got too much stuff you don't need.