Ebay - any wise words on using this site to make some cash?

Eshka_2

Hi all

Posting this seperately as I'm going to challenge myself with ebay. Had a bit of a think last night, and I realised I actually have TONS of stuff I could auction off - lots and lots of unused/barely used baby clothes, toys, equipment; clothes belonging to myself that I never wore; a Nintendo DS that I never play (I have lots of games for it too), and a sound system that sits dormant in my kitchen. I spoke to my ex and he's in a similar predicament to me financially so he's also gonna stump up some stuff for listing.

So, this morning I'm gonna rifle through my house and make a list of everything I can sell. Re the baby clothes etc, I reckon a good run in the washing machine and some TLC with the iron could have them looking great, I could even put together a couple of bundle boxes - as I have two little girls the clothes I have range from birth to 2 years, surely someone would snap that up? I also have a baby gym, steriliser, and various bits and pieces that I never use now. My house is absolutely coming down with baby items, so I thought why not get rid for some pennies?

The only thing I have that would really be worth money is something I could never part with, it's a bass guitar but it's a highly sought after model and it would gut me to be without it.

Anyone got any hints/tips for how to make this sort of thing work best? I'm already planning on taking good quality pictures with my digital camera against a white background etc, and I'm pretty good with words so I can present everything quite well.

My aim is to get everything listed by the end of the week - cos there's a lot of stuff haha!

Any words of advice much appreciated folks.

MrsTinks

Have you had a look at the Ebay board? loads of great tips there!

rayday2

Definately never sell anything you don't really want too. I have some limited edition prints that I was staggered to find out were now worth over a £1000 but they are worth more than to me on another level.

I tend to start all my auctions low, around 99p unless very valuable, definately go for the gallery listing think that is around 15p more. Offer paypal it is the easiest and also you can pay your ebay fees with paypal to makes it much easier. Keep your post and packing fairly low but not to the point of robbing yourself. If you are selling clothing bundles make sure you say bundle in the listing and mention brands like Next, M&S etc. I go for 10 day listings more value for money and try to list on an evening as you get more for listings that finish in an early evening.

IWantToBeFree_2

With regards to the baby clothes, you might be best off taking them to a car boot. My sister sells loads (she has 2 little girls) and has found that the car boot brings her more money & less hassle.

If you do sell them on ebay, do them in size bundles, and if you can, seperate them out into stores. Next generally sell very well.

Make sure you take good pictures & make your listings accurate, list any faults etc as it will stop people moaning & opening disputes if the item is not as described.

Be careful when accepting paypal payments, make sure that its eligable for protection and the address is confirmed. This will make sure you don't get scammed. I'd also accept Cheques and postal orders as not everyone has Paypal.

Weigh your items so that you can work out the postage on the Royal Mail website. Don't forget to factor in the cost of packaging, and also the costs of your time/fuel etc for going to the post office. I always offer postage discounts as well for multiple purchases in the hope that people will buy more than one item from me.

I always use a 7 day listing, and tend to list on a Sunday evening. Its one of the peak times for people viewing & tend to find that I get a higher price than I would if I ended it midday on a Wednesday for example. I would ALWAYS end around 8pm on an evening regardless of the day. Also I think 7 day listings are better than 10, as if people have to wait for a long time before they can buy they will go elsewhere. 7 days is just the right length IMO.

I have made £000's from selling on ebay over the years, its a fantastic way to get money, and there are always people who are willing to buy other peoples junk

Eshka_2

Cheers m'dears!

Good advice, and I've had a nosey at the Ebay board. Definitely gonna do it, so now that's decided I can focus on the real nitty gritty today and take some action on my debt problems.

Lovely stuff!

Diane_239

hi i cleared a load of stuff i no longer needed and listed it on eBay i decided to take payment by cheque,postal order and bank transfer avoid paying pay pal fees which can be high.i also offer cash on pick up which is great as it saves me going post office.so far have made £298.which will go towards clearing my debts.
also try amazon you can list loads of different items i have also listed some things on
ibootsale which is totaly free.good luck

IWantToBeFree_2

Amazon has very high fee's though, and as they set the postage you can sometimes find yourself losing out as it doesn't cover the actual cost.

People lose potential buyers by not taking Paypal as its the most convienient method of payment, and also, it is the only method of payment which gives buyers protection from potential dodgy sellers. If you send a cheque, postal order or bank transfer when buying an item, the seller can say they never received, and there is nothing at all you can do about it, at least with Paypal your protected, even if it does take some time to open/close a dispute.

I would also recommend using Turbo Lister to create your auctions on, its an offline tool available from ebay and it means you can create listings as and when you like & then when you are ready to upload them you can do so at the click of a button. Means you can upload them at prime times but still create them in a morning. If you use ebays schedule tool when creating online, you have to pay 6p per item to set a start time, can get expensive, and a lot of people don't have the time to create in an evening when they are starting immediately.

van22663

Im an avid Ebay fan and I do agree with the Sunday evening auction end, but I have had problems with the internet being so busy at that time, that not everyone can get connected. I have recently tried ending the auction on a Monday evening and I find that pretty good too. Monday seems to be another stopping in night. Good luck.

moz86

Hi there, just a quick thing, set up a paypal account to send and receive payments, and make sure it is verified. Stipulate on your listings that people you trade with must almost have a VERIFIED account. If not, you are not elidgeable for the seller protection policy, and you can be stung with chargebacks effectively meaning you lose your item PLUS what its worth. Not enough people know about this security lapse. Message me if you want any further details.

One other thing, make sure your postage prices are reasonable, to attract bidders, and start all your auctions at 99p. They will still fetch whatever they are worth, and you pay alot less to enter the item at this price.

Good luck, it can get addictive, before long you'll be selling anything you can get your hands on!

Moz.

mrs-d_3

I would agree with moz about PayPal account. I always ask for sellers to have a confirmed PayPal address.
In regards to ending time I find that evenings between 7-9 are best but not so much on friday and saturday .
I never sold kids clothes but reading through ebay forum I learnt that lot of sellers have they listings taken off if they mention certain brands in titles, ie: Mothercare, Next. Have a look through ebay forum (under community, Discussion board). People on Business seller's board are great and very helpfull.
Use Registered or Recorded delivery. Lately there has been an increased number of "undelivered items"! Another reason for confirmed PayPal address.
As for photos I would highly recommend opening a free web album (I have Picassa with Google) and then pasting links on your listings. That way you'll never pay for extra photos and first photo is free.

I find this works for me. Hope you'll find it helpful. Good luck.

funkeemonkee

its worth a try. i have no cash whatsoever but i always pay my bills just struggle to eat for the month. petrol is sooooooooooo high i'm trying to walk and stay in rather then drive. i have loads of girls clothes to sell but i have tried bootsales and not sold much then have to bring it all back. so depressing