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Buying and Selling Successfully on eBay, Part Three

Selling

by Deborah Gray

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By now, you may have noticed that there's a difference between buying and selling on eBay and buying and selling successfully on eBay. It's not difficult to be successful on eBay, but tips and some experience will help in buying low and selling high (nearly) every time. The benefits gained from experience is the reason why I suggest, when looking around for something to sell, that the item you choose for your first sale is something of relatively minor significance. In other words, something you're not counting on to bring you a lot of money, and what you select to sell and part with is of use in a learning experience . In addition, you are a brand new eBay-er, with no feedback next to your name. Other eBay-ers will be more likely to take a chance on you if you're selling something small.

One way to boost your feedback is to start off selling something on Half.com, where you can sell used or new books, CDs, DVDs, and other items. Half.com is owned by eBay, and your User ID is the same on both sites, so feedback from one site appears on the other. There is much less risk to buyers on Half.com than on eBay for various reasons. Once you've had a few successful sales on Half.com, you will get a better response to your auctions (and bids) on eBay. Be scrupulously honest about the condition of an item on Half.com. If you have a book to sell that's out of print or hard to find, someone might not care that it's only in "Fair" condition.

What Should You Sell?

So what should it be? Well, it obviously needs to be something you don't need anymore but think someone else will. If you think that you have an item that will sell, do some research first. One of the first few items I auctioned on eBay was a pin in the shape of Mickey Mouse by Wendy Gell. I had bought a few of these pins in the 1980s when I worked at a Disney store (and got one as an employment perk), but hadn't really worn them often so they were in good shape. To gauge the popularity of Wendy Gell and Disney jewelry I searched on eBay for Wendy Gell items and, separately, looked at the jewelry subcategory under the Disney category. I found that Disney jewelry in general was selling fairly well, but Disney jewelry by Wendy Gell was selling very well! The items received numerous bids and the auctions ended with the jewelry selling for a minimum of $50.
You Ought to Be in Pictures

So you've found something that you want to sell and have determined that it's a good bet. Now you have to get a picture of it online. This is absolutely essential; many eBay-ers will not bid at all on an item without a picture, or even click on the listing. My recommendation is to get a scanner, especially if you think you're going to sell enough to recoup the price which nowadays is about $150 for a very good flatbed scanner. Not only can you scan photos of the item, but you can actually scan the item itself in many cases. I have scanned jewelry, plates, trading cards and even computer game CDs.
Digital cameras are another option. The photo is available immediately, and it's possible to reshoot if it doesn't come out well. The drawbacks of digital cameras are that they're fairly complicated to use. If there's someone you can borrow a camera from try it out first.
No matter which method you choose to get the item into the computer, store it somewhere in cyberspace so that a link will be provided on the eBay listing that will pull the picture up when someone looks at it. If you subscribe to America Online, a spot is already provided. Now, it's necessary to "ftp" the picture up to your private space on America Online's computer. Go to keyword ftp, choose "Go to ftp," then select members.aol.com, click connect, then ok. You'll arrive at your screen name's ftp space from which you can upload the file.
If you use another ISP or online service, chances are they also provide a space for uploading photos. Many eBay-ers use AuctionWatch where they provide free image hosting. Be careful about using a free home page provider on the web: they make money from selling ads on your home page and won't be able to when the space is being used to host an image. Oftentime, they terminate the account if you use it for this purpose and obviously this could be a problem if your account is terminated in the middle of an auction.
Listing Your Auction

You probably want to browse the Seller Guide before you list your item. When you're ready, click on the Sell button on any page on eBay. The actual process of listing is fairly self-explanatory, but there are a few things to think about in order to ensure a productive auction. The category and sub category your item is in are important, and there's an advantage in browsing through a couple of categories in order to find the right one. I chose the main Jewelry category for my Wendy Gell pin instead of the Disney category because I felt there would be more traffic in the former.
An effective title for the listing can make a big difference in the number of bids you receive. Make sure to include crucial keywords. For instance, the title for my pin was "Rare! Wendy Gell pin - Disney's Mickey Mouse." A word like "rare" is eye-catching, and in this case was definitely true; don't use anything in your description that you can't back up, or that is even questionable. A Wendy Gell, Disney or Mickey Mouse aficionado would be able to find the pin by doing a search on any of those terms. Use capital letters and exclamation points sparingly. Many people find them irritating when they're overused.
Next, a well written description can turn a potential bidder into an actual bidder and eliminate, or at least reduce, the number of emails seeking clarification that are necessary to answer during the auction . These points should be included in every listing:

Condition of the item, i.e., never used, like new, slightly worn, etc.

Any flaws. I mentioned that one crystal was missing on my pin.

Payment methods you will accept.

If the item will be held till a check clears.

Method of shipping, shipping cost and who is paying it, usually the buyer.

Size of item, if applicable, which is essential with jewelry.

If insurance can be added to the item when it's shipped.

If you will sell to international buyers.

If you will sell to bidders with zero or negative feedback. I usually say, "I reserve the right to refuse to sell to a high bidder with zero or negative feedback."

Optionally, if there's a story behind the item, include that. I included in my Wendy Gell pin listing a narrative how I had acquired it: I worked at the Disney store in 1989, and the designer did a trunk show in our store. She gave all three managers a pin and a silk scarf. In most cases, a history of the item can be a substantial addition to the value of the item. If you know HTML, use it to enliven your listing with background and font colors.
Setting the minimum bid is your next decision, and it's a tough one. First of all, include any handling costs in this amount, i.e. bubble wrap and boxes. Most bidders hate seeing handling costs added on. Second, you need to take into account what your goal is here; you want to get a lot of bids on your item. One way to do that is to start the item off at a low price. Bidders know intellectually that it's likely that they won't get the item for that price but subconsciously they think they will. This means it's more likely to draw an early bid, which will attract other bids. The more bids you accumulate, the more attention you attract, the more bids you acquire, and so on. If are fairly confident that your item will be popular, this is the way to go.
When choosing to make the minimum high, there is a chance that no one will bid on it, or they will wait until the last day or even the last hour to bid. On the other hand, you won't let your item go for less than it's worth. As I said earlier, this decision is a tough one but the risk can be part of the fun.
It's possible to impose a reserve price, but I wouldn't recommend it. A reserve price is the (hidden) lowest price you'll accept for the item. You cannot be compelled to sell it for less than this. So you could make the minimum bid $15.00, but the reserve price $30.00. If the highest bid is $29.99, you don't have to sell your item for that price. The auction ends without a sale, though. Of course, many auctions end with the reserve price being reached. However, many people, myself included, can become frustrated if they keep raising their bid and finding that they still haven't met the reserve price. The lack of a reserve price is used as a selling point by many buyers in titles (NR). Some people do, however, list the reserve price in the description, which can remove the frustration.
Remember that there is a fee to list the item. The insertion fee is based on the minimum bid price, so this is another reason to set a low minimum bid. When you sell the item, eBay charges a second fee based on the final bid.
The length of time your auction is going to run could also be a tough decision, but there's some advice I can offer. Most of your auctions should run seven days and end between 5pm and 9pm on a weekday or Sunday. This means not only will your auction end in the evening, when most people are home from work, but it also includes a weekend, which is when a majority of people browse the listings, and it's possible to avoid the weekly eBay downtime in the middle of the night on Friday. Remember that the auction ends at the same time of day that you begin it, so make sure you enter the listing at that time.
During and After

During the auction, you may receive email from potential bidders asking questions. Sometimes these are intelligent, seeking clarification of the item's condition or size, for instance; sometimes they are merely annoying, such as a bidder asking if they really have to pay shipping costs. In every case, answer the email promptly and politely and hope that the person who asked the annoying question isn't the high bidder.
Once the auction has ended successfully, etiquette requires you to send the first communication, preferably within three business days. You can wait for eBay to send the email confirming the successful end, and then forward it to the high bidder with a note attached from you. Many people don't wait for eBay, partly because that email can take over 12 hours to arrive. An email like this covers all details well:
Congratulations! You are the high bidder in my auction #20453769, the Wendy Gell Mickey Mouse pin. Please send your payment of $65.20 ($62.00 + $3.20 Priority Mail) to:
Deborah Gray
1234 Main Street
Anywhere, CA 12345
Please reply to this email so I'll know I was successful in reaching you. Please also provide your mailing address so I can get your pin ready to ship. For the most efficient transaction, print out this email and include it with your payment.
Thanks for bidding!
Deborah
Assuming the buyer contacts you, and sends their payment, you're almost done. I'll cover what to do if they try to renege in the next installment of this series. Pack the item very securely. I can't emphasize this enough. If you pack the item assuming that someone's going to sit on it in transit, the shipment should arrive in good condition. If the packaging is inadequate, you may regret it. If you package the item well, people also tend to mention it in their feedback. It's something that tends to make an impression, either positive or negative.
I purchased a pin from a seller who sent it in a manila envelope with no padding at all, and it was broken. I didn't bother to ask her for a refund, since it was a cheap pin, but I never bought another item from her again. Remember the feedback feature; something like this can enhance your reputation on eBay or ruin it.
Speaking of feedback, remember to leave a positive feedback for the buyer, if everything goes well, as soon as you receive the payment or wait till the check clears if they pay by check. I usually say something like "Good communication, speedy payment, a pleasure to deal with." Of course, if payment was slow or they were difficult in any way, I leave feedback that's more on the lukewarm side.
I'll discuss what to do if you run into problems with another eBay-er in your transactions, and how to protect yourself, in the next installment. Until then, bid low and sell high.