Ever given freebies when selling on eBay? How did it go?

whatyadoinsucka

never on ebay, selling on other sites, i throw in free CDs or free postage every now and again..

Last week i offered a CD to a swedish guy for £5.75 (cheapest online) and said i'd chuck in free airmail
he then went and bought three more CDs off me so I got an £20 extra from him. for a little favour..

its amazing how a little genorisity goes along way, i also offer 15% discount on two or more purchases.
the amount of people who say thanks for the unexpected discount, when i clearly state this is funny

lightisfading

Most of the time it's not worth it but occasionally, just occasionally, it's worth going the extra mile.

Not a freebie as such but... a few years ago I sold a camera flashgun on ebay. The 'new' price was £140, I'd got it for £40 second hand with work discount, but found I didn't use it. One bidder asked me if it was compatible with his old camera. My initial thought was 'go look it up yourself you lazy !!!!!!', but I did go do the research (ringing the manufacturer) and found out it was. He then entered a nice bidding war against someone and wound up paying £200 for it (RRP £140, and second-second-hand LOL).

The moral of this - give good customer service, and check the RRP of something before buying on ebay!

botanical

On such a nice posting, I hesitate to introduce a cautionary note about freebies and free gifts- BUT -

Sometimes when the word 'freebie' or 'gift' is mentioned in feedback (from your delighted buyer) it can attract certain types of buyers on the hunt for 'weak' sellers who can be tried out for extra discounts etc, and cause you endless hassle and trouble- believe me!

So watch out for your terms and conditions appearing either too strict (puts buyers off) or too 'nice' (soft touch)
And if your feedback is full of 'thanks for the extra free gift', you'll only attract problem buyers expecting extras and 'partial refunds'!

If you can, please forgive my note of cynicism, but as an experienced seller on eBay, I've learned that protecting your account comes number one, rather than being 'nice' first.

botanical

mandragora wrote: »

We had a spate of selling teasmades and now and again I'd put in a couple of teabags (nice brand, individually wrapped), with the line 'Have a drink on me'. Sometimes people commented and appreciated it, sometimes they didn't. The thanks were always nice - it was a whim on my part, nothing more, as I think it would have made me smile if I'd opened the parcel and got that. The thanks were nice when they came, but I didn't really think about it beyond that.




When my mum was a bit low after my dad died, I bid on some old smellies in a scent that has long gone, but which her favourite aunt used to wear, and which my mum longed to smell again. I won the item, and in the email correspondence I explained the reason I'd bought it and why I wanted it posted to a different address. The seller then told me the story behind the smellies - they'd belonged to her grandmother, and the back-story was lovely - too long to describe her but ultimately one with a very happy ending. I then explained my mum's loss and how I was hoping the scent and other bits would cheer her up. All I asked was that the seller didn't include an invoice in the parcel, as I didn't want my mum to know how much I'd spent.

When the parcel arrived, it had been beautifully wrapped, as a gift, really nicely presented and very thoughtfully done, with a very simple but lovely card attached to it. It was a lovely gesture, and one that I still appreciate for the pleasure that just receiving and opening it gave my mum at the time.

A beautiful and very moving memory- thank you

botanical

HannahIOW wrote: »

I once received a top from ebay which had loads of sequins etc chucked in the parcel... that was weird...

Sequins get everywhere and my little dog chokes as he snuffles on the carpet
GRRR-RUFF-BOW-WOW-COUGH!

terra_ferma

botanical wrote: »

So watch out for your terms and conditions appearing either too strict (puts buyers off) or too 'nice' (soft touch)
And if your feedback is full of 'thanks for the extra free gift', you'll only attract problem buyers expecting extras and 'partial refunds'!

Do you sell high risk items by any chance?
I have 'nice' t&c' that tells me apart from most of my competitors, but I haven't found that they attract the wrong type of buyer (yet). I will monitor closely.

alx2010

What about listings which go along the lines of 'selling a top - includes free leggings'
What is free about the leggings as people will surely bid with them in mind?!

The last time I sold a job lot of my kids clothes I added a pair of pyjamas which I found after the auction had started and it tipped the weight of the parcel over the 2kg hence costing me almost £3 extra to send! Not sure the buyer even noticed!

botanical

terra_ferma wrote: »

Do you sell high risk items by any chance?
I have 'nice' t&c' that tells me apart from most of my competitors, but I haven't found that they attract the wrong type of buyer (yet). I will monitor closely.

No, not high risk stuff.

Whatever you're doing must be right if you're attracting the nice kind of buyer...

(So glad you've got 'nice' T&C's! I find that most people on eBay are lovely,
but having one of these awful scammers attach to your account is no joke.)

Have you noticed the growing number of listings that have over the top, dire warnings on them? Usually they're from
sellers who've had trouble with scammers, poor things, and are trying to attract only good buyers, but
they're actually drawing attention to the fact that there was a problem in the past and that puts buyers off as well
as attracting the wrong kind of attention .

botanical

alx2010 wrote: »

What about listings which go along the lines of 'selling a top - includes free leggings'
What is free about the leggings as people will surely bid with them in mind?!

The last time I sold a job lot of my kids clothes I added a pair of pyjamas which I found after the auction had started and it tipped the weight of the parcel over the 2kg hence costing me almost £3 extra to send! Not sure the buyer even noticed!

That was lovely of you.

botanical

Myyrrddyn wrote: »

A friend of mine used to give a murray mint with all his orders and still does.
I honestly don't think it is worth it, but a good idea all the same.

I love Murray Mints