Would you recommend selling on Ebay?

angelfairy

Thinking about diving into the deep end of the Ebay pool and becoming a seller.

I have bought various things of Ebay and have thought about becoming a seller, but then usually have a change of heart.

I watched the tutorial on selling on the Ebay site today and am thinking very strongly about starting to sell.

I am not going to accept Paypal (due to its fees) and realise this may cost me some buyers.

Any tips/suggestions greatly received.

frivolous_fay

Try listing a few low value items to see how you get on. Weight the items and check how much the postage will be... get good photos... don't bother with the listing extras that cost you more money, like subtitles, although I do sometimes use gallery.

Harri2

I've been doing it for a while and have made a good amount of money. I've sold clothes and glassware and books, but mainly clothes that are too big for me since I lost weght.
Things I do to keep safe
I actually wait for cheques to clear beofe sending things off.
I encourage them to use paypal and don't charge extra (I never buyfrom people who do)
When replying to questions I keep my e-mal address to myself but send a copy to my inbox, so I can keep track of what's happening
I rarely include personal information in my e-mails
My ebay name does not identfy me
get things in the post when you say you will or say why there is a delay


Things I do to keep people happy
I send clothes really well packed, ironed and fresh then packed with a little tissue paper and in a big enough envelope
I keep in contact while waiting for cheques to clear
My communication is friendly and up front
As soon as they leave you nice feedback leave them some too

This all might seem a bit paranoid but actually I have had very few problems and never with things I have sold

Harri2

Before you post something look for it check the prices and whether there are lots of them around at the moment. If you can, wait until there are less available.

Also chck what style ets most bidding. I find with many things people don't want to buy it now perhap they like the thrill of bidding and hoping for a bargain. i also don't bother much if there is no picture
Check their feedback if there is negative contact some other buyers and get their impression.

FloFlo

I started selling around May and I learn something new everyday. Take it slowly to start with and this forum is great for help. I now have over 800 feedback and 100%, but you work hard to keep 100%. I accept paypal it is so much easier than waiting for payments to arrive through the post, although I am now stating on the higher priced items I am selling that the paypal address must be a confirmed address. Good luck.

smsmasters

Start with low priced goods, then once you have experience and are confident, sell the more expensive goods. That's how I started.

I only use paypal to send/receive payments.

Contains_Mild_Peril

I only have a basic Paypal account because I think their fees are horrendous, so I can't tick the "I accept Paypal" box, but I mention in my listing that I can take Paypal payments which are made from a Paypal balance or bank account without a debit card. I still sometimes get customers trying to make card-funded Paypal payments, though.
I normally wait for cheques to clear before sending goods, but occasionally post low-value items (under £5 inc p&p) before the cheque clears if it saves having to make an extra trip to the PO just for one thing.
I seldom iron clothes to post them though, since they'll just get crumpled again in the post, so I only iron them if they're too badly creased or crumpled to take a decent photo.
If you're not willing to post abroad, then you can save yourself some hassle by blocking bidders from countries you don't ship to.

angelfairy

everyone for all your posts.

I think when I start I am only going to ship to the UK and block international bidders, dont think I will be doing myself too much harm with the sort of things I have in mind to sell.

I am going to stay clear of paypal though. Just dont like the idea of their fees!

Going to do a bit of looking about at current prices of things I want to sell.

Will keep reading the forum.

Thanks:beer:

Mutton_Geoff

I am going to stay clear of paypal though. Just dont like the idea of their fees!

That may be a false economy if you plan to auction items. I buy and sell on Ebay (feedback almost 400) and I often skip items where the seller doesn't offer Paypal as it gives me the impression they either are not credit worthy themselves or are penny pinching.

The higher numbers of prospective bidders on items that sell with Paypal means, with luck, the higher selling price will more than offset the cost of sales via Paypal charges.

I'd far rather have an automated transaction for say £50 that cost me £2-3 than receive a cheque for £50, go to the bank, pay it in, check my statements a week later to ensure it's properly cleared, correspond with the buyer, post item a week or more after auction closed etc.

If buying, I highly recommend a sniping service. I've saved a lot of money by bidding automatically only in the last seconds of an "auction". A few sales and purchases will give you the confidence in Ebays "marketplace", it can't really be called an auction as the sale stops at a certain time, not when the item no longer has any higher bids as in a real life auction.

wishiwasarichgirl

word of advice for anyone as dumb as me - never underestimate postage costs!! sold my 1st item on ebay last wk - some books, guestimated them to be about 2.5 kg (was pretty close - 2.3 to be exact) checked royal mail website, price for 2kg £5.31, price for 4kg £7.70, so i figured mine would cost around £6 and priced accordingly, didn't realise the prices were for UP TO *kg, not a sliding scale, books sold for 8.30 total, £7.71 when ebay took their cut, so with £7.70 postage charges i made a massive PENNY PROFIT!! :rotfl:
oh well, i'll know for next time. Now i must go check ebay for a set of scales...

buxtonrabbitgreen

well you did better than me. I listed 16 books sold 2 for 1 each paid £2 for postage and ended up having to pay e bay £6.07/ I did better with the one book I put on Amazon sold for £28 and actually got £25 and it only cost me £1.07 to post. Unfortunately the other 16 books did not have ISBN numbers so couldnt put them on Amazon.