Ebay

[TheGreatPretender]

I'm considering selling some stuff on ebay, and I have never used the site before, does anyone have any advice or things to look out for?

[browneyes106]

I have never sold anything on there. But I know people that have. They say to only ship things once a payment has been cleared.

[Marvo301]

You should really talk to Charles (Zoneboy) he sells things on E-Bay regularly. If anyone can give you good advice it's him.

[JulieSomoski]

I sell on ebay pretty regularly as well. Just the basics I guess - only ship once you've received payment, only allow 24-48 hours for payment, watch out for buyers with bad feedback, all that stuff. It's usually harder for first time buyers, especially if you haven't received any feedback points yet. It's usually best to add your own pictures and give good descriptions, as this will tell buyers you're only selling the best. Never say anything negative in your descriptions, which is pretty obvious.

Hope this helped a bit. If you have any other questions don't hesitate to ask!

[Zoneboy]

I'm considering selling some stuff on ebay, and I have never used the site before, does anyone have any advice or things to look out for?

I'm not trying to discourage you but eBay and Paypal are making it harder for new sellers.

You cannot accept any form of paper payment including cash, certified/personal checks, money orders of any kind, etc... At first I wasn't crazy about this but with so much counterfeiting going on these days, I've come to accept it.

You can only accept your choice eBay's pre-approved payment methods which can be found here. (http://pages.ebay.com/help/pay/methods.html)

Paypal is the most accept form of payment but new sellers are subject to having their funds held for up to 21 days before they're released. The funds can be released sooner if the seller can prove that the item(s) were delivered or if the buyer leaves positive feedback

If you're going to sell, Be sure to give a thorough description of the items and include at least one photo.

eBay's fees have changed and costs will depend on category and listing upgrades you choose (if any)

Keep in mind that eBay charges for every little thing and most of the upgrades they offer such as bold type and highlight aren't worth the prices they charge especially if you have an item that isn't all that expensive.

Keep your shipping costs reasonable, High shipping charges will cause a potential buyer to look elsewhere and in some categories, You can only charge a certain amount. For example, If you're selling books, cd's dvd's, records or any other type of media you can only charge $3.00. The only exception is with multiple items and then you have to weigh and measure the package and then enter the info into eBay' shipping wizard and the buyer can determine the price from there

You also have the option of selling internationally but if you prefer not to, Be sure to mention this in your description and check no international shipping when you get to that section.

Insurance is your call, Some sellers require it depending upon item and price. If you're shipping something fragile such as glass then you definitely should require that the buyer purchase it.

If you have an item that has any flaws, Be sure to mention them in the description no matter how minor you think they may be. A flaw that might seem like a minor problem to you may be a major one for someone else.

Finally... Don't waste money on shipping supplies. You can get priority boxes, envelopes and tape free through the postal service. If you ship UPS then you can get all the boxes you want from any of your local grocery stores and some places might give you free bubble wrap as well. The only thing you should have to pay for is non-priority packaging tape.

I hope this info is helpful and I wish you well. :wave:

[TheGreatPretender]

I didn't even realize the type of fees that ebay has...they really charge you for the type of lettering...that is crazy! :eek: Thank you everyone for your advice :wave:

[Zoneboy]

I didn't even realize the type of fees that ebay has...they really charge you for the type of lettering...that is crazy! :eek: Thank you everyone for your advice :wave:

Here's a rundown of eBay's add-on fees:


Gallery Plus • Subtitle • Listing Designer
($0.35-0.65) Sale!


Gallery Plus • Subtitle • Listing Designer
($0.35-$0.65) Sale!





Big Upgrades, Big Savings
Bold • Border • Highlight • Featured Plus! • Featured First
$34.95 (Save $15.95)*





Bold • Border • Highlight • Featured Plus! • Featured First
$34.95 (Save $15.95)



Gallery Plus ($0.35)

Display a large picture in search results — capture special details or different views for buyers.

Add pictures to make your items more successful and to take advantage of features like Gallery Picture, Gallery Plus, and Featured First.




Subtitle (Free $0.50) Sale! Limited time.

Give buyers more information in search results (searchable by item description only)


Gift Icon ($0.25)

Promote your gift service with a icon next to your listing in search results


Bold ($2.00)

Attract buyers' attention by making the title of your listing appear in Bold


Border ($4.00)

Outline your listing with an eye-catching frame


Highlight ($5.00)

Make your listing stand out in search results with a brightly colored band


Maximize your listing's visibility
Featured Plus! ($14.95)

Upgrade your listing to show up at the top of the same page it would normally show up in search results


Featured First

Upgrade your listing for an opportunity to show up at the top of the first page of search results
Up to 7 days ($24.95)Duration of Listing ($24.95) Listings are randomly selected to appear in the Featured area from sellers who maintain a Raised or Standard Search Standing.


Add pictures to make your items more successful and to take advantage of features like Gallery Picture, Gallery Plus, and Featured First.


Home Page Featured ($59.95)

Get maximum exposure! Appear in our Featured area and your item is likely to appear on eBay's Home page.

[InspectorExstead]

I've only sold a couple of things on ebay. I haven't posted anything in over a year, because I didn't have much luck the first time around (yet, they still charged me for the posting fees, and adding pictures, and everything).
What kinds of things are you selling on ebay? If you're selling books/textbooks, you might want to sell them on Amazon. They don't charge you to list items, but they do take a percentage of your profits. I've had more success with Amazon.

[InspectorExstead]

Here's a rundown of eBay's add-on fees:


Gallery Plus • Subtitle • Listing Designer
($0.35-0.65) Sale!


Gallery Plus • Subtitle • Listing Designer
($0.35-$0.65) Sale!





Big Upgrades, Big Savings
Bold • Border • Highlight • Featured Plus! • Featured First
$34.95 (Save $15.95)*





Bold • Border • Highlight • Featured Plus! • Featured First
$34.95 (Save $15.95)



Gallery Plus ($0.35)

Display a large picture in search results — capture special details or different views for buyers.

Add pictures to make your items more successful and to take advantage of features like Gallery Picture, Gallery Plus, and Featured First.




Subtitle (Free $0.50) Sale! Limited time.

Give buyers more information in search results (searchable by item description only)


Gift Icon ($0.25)

Promote your gift service with a icon next to your listing in search results


Bold ($2.00)

Attract buyers' attention by making the title of your listing appear in Bold


Border ($4.00)

Outline your listing with an eye-catching frame


Highlight ($5.00)

Make your listing stand out in search results with a brightly colored band


Maximize your listing's visibility
Featured Plus! ($14.95)

Upgrade your listing to show up at the top of the same page it would normally show up in search results


Featured First

Upgrade your listing for an opportunity to show up at the top of the first page of search results
Up to 7 days ($24.95)Duration of Listing ($24.95) Listings are randomly selected to appear in the Featured area from sellers who maintain a Raised or Standard Search Standing.


Add pictures to make your items more successful and to take advantage of features like Gallery Picture, Gallery Plus, and Featured First.


Home Page Featured ($59.95)

Get maximum exposure! Appear in our Featured area and your item is likely to appear on eBay's Home page.

Wow, that's crazy.

[Zoneboy]

Wow, that's crazy.

At least those are optional, You wouldn't believe the number of people that actually use them though. :rolleyes:

[InspectorExstead]

At least those are optional, You wouldn't believe the number of people that actually use them though. :rolleyes:

That's good that they're optional, but I can see how quickly they can add up, even for just a couple of them.

[dawsongirl]

Learn simple HTML. It can make your listing look jazzier without having to cost you anything. You don't need to use ebay's listing designs.

And don't post any more than 1 picture with ebay. If you have more than one picture, use something like photobucket to host the rest and then use their links to put them in your auction. Again, all free.