E-Bay Tips

[MachineDr]

Anyone have any tips for a new person selling on E-Bay?

I have seen a few people post a couple of things based on their experiences here and would like additional tips based on the User Group's experiences.

These don't have to be just comuter related, I have a ton of things that I plan on posting that have nothing to do with computers.

Here's a tip I learned from someone: No matter what you sell and ship you should also get a method of receipt of delivery. I appears that this is the ONLY thing that PayPal cares about (no E-Mails between you and the seller, E-Bays records of the buyer etc.).

Thanks for your help!

-Jim

[Golan Klinger]

Sure. If it's a rare item, do a seven day auction and have it close on a Sunday night around 9:30pm EST which means the most people will likely be at home and able to bid. If it's a common item, do a three day auction so your auction will get plugged as a 'new' auction for one day and a 'closing soon' auction for one day giving you the maximum free exposure. Start your auctions low (< $1) and let the process happen. Don't use reserves (a lot of people won't bid on auctions with reserves, not sure why) and avoid using BIN because if someone bids, it's goes away and you're out the fee.

[MachineDr]

Thanks GK.

Those are all good points that I hadn't even considered. I appreciate your help!

Take care!

-Jim

[airship]

Here are a few more:

(0) First, do everything Golan says. Great advice. Then,
(1) Make sure you list your item in the correct classification. For C128 stuff, that is ALWAYS 'Vintage Computers - Commodore'. Don't list it in 'Software' just because it's software, or 'Printers' because it's a printer. The audience you want is trolling in 'Commodore'.
(2) Don't use the words 'VINTAGE', 'NOS', 'NEW', 'MINT', 'WOW!!!!'', or any other phony superlatives in your title. Just give your item a PRECISE and CLEAR description. Don't say 'Commodore Baseball Game', say 'Street Sports Baseball Disk Game for Commodore 64 C64 64'. That way, it will show up in searches for 'game', C64', '64', 'Commodore', 'Baseball', 'Disk', etc., and folks won't have to actually open your auction to see if they're interested. And yes, people ARE looking for tape, or cartridge, or other specific features or formats. Try to think about what people might be looking for. And MAKE SURE words in your listing title are spelled correctly! Once your listing goes live, you can't change the title!
(3) Please don't use 'Commodore 128 C128 128' UNLESS the item is actually C128-specific. C128 owners already KNOW that C64 stuff will work with their computer!!! We want our C128-specific searches to actually turn up C128-specific items.
(4) You CAN and SHOULD use words in your title like 'Clean', 'with Manual', or 'Complete in Box' IF AND ONLY IF they're true. A copy of Ultima IV will get you a LOT more bids and money if it's complete in the box than if you're just selling the disk.
(5) TEST the item if you can, and say 'Tested Working' in the listing title. You'll make more money. 'AS IS' is a killer, but if it's true, say it up front.
(6) Include an ACCURATE and DETAILED description on your listing page. If parts are missing, say so. If something's broken, make it clear. If you've tested it and it doesn't work, come clean. In the long run, your reputation on eBay is much, much more important than a few bucks from a single auction.
(7) Take a picture that's BIG ENOUGH to actually see, and IN FOCUS. Make sure your photo is of the ACTUAL ITEMS included in the auction. Don't use a stock photo, or take a picture of items that aren't in the auction. Take several pictures if you need to. If it has a serial number, include a photo of that.
( Don't bundle good stuff with bad. You will actually make more money on a good item listed by itself than by bundling it with a bunch of drek just to get rid of the drek. Sell the drek as a lot by itself, but don't expect to get much more than shipping costs for it. Face it, that's the stuff that would go for a quarter apiece or a dollar a box at a garage sale.
(9) Don't sell complete systems. Sell the computer, drive, monitor, and printer separately. Most people are adding to existing systems. They don't want to pay for shipping for a printer or monitor they don't need. I'm firmly convinced that people selling systems lose 1/2 their potential revenue. You CAN bundle joysticks with games or systems, and that sort of thing. You MUST include any manuals, disks, cables, etc. that came with the original product. Don't be tempted to sell them separately.
(10) If an item has its original box, SAY SO. When you pack the item, pack it in its box, then put it all into a well-packed outer box. Collectors care about boxes. Let them know that the serial number on the box matches that on the computer, too. Or if it doesn't.
(11) Do your homework. Do an 'advanced search' for the same item on eBay, and choose 'closed auctions' to see what similar items have sold for recently. If you don't have a manual or disk, Google and see if you can  point your customers to copies of them on the Web. Include a link to a site that has more information on the product if you can, and don't be afraid to copy and paste a nice description you find to use for your listing. The more your customer knows, the more they're likely to shell out for your item.

EBay has lots of help pages for sellers that will help you figure out the technical aspects. Read them. Then sell relatively inexpensive, common items in your first few auctions until you're comfortable with the process. Don't list your best items first, or you'll regret your newbie mistakes later.

Good luck!

[MachineDr]

Airship,

Thank you for your very detailed reply. I have been doing some of the things you mentioned (researching items) but for the most part I think your post covers EVERYTHING that will insure success in my dealings on E-Bay.

I have looked at a few of the user posted topics on protecting yourself (that's where I came up with thge proof of receipt tip) but really wanted to hear it from someone here.

By far, this is one of the best User forums that I have been on. I haven't seen one attack on a person and everyone seems to want to to contribute to the site and extend their knowledge to others.

Thanks!

-Jim

[swordfish1030]

This is all great advice.. but what are you selling?  call it insider information if you like.

[Blacklord]

Hi Jim,

By far, this is one of the best User forums that I have been on. I haven't seen one attack on a person and everyone seems to want to to contribute to the site and extend their knowledge to others.

We're too small a community to be able to indulge in flame-fests. Add to that that the small handful of 'lunatic fringe' people that participate in the C64 scene aren't in the 128 one.

Add to that the the board is pretty much user-driven as well, I don't really enforce any rules - look at the topic drift that happens all the time as an example

As a result we seem to have a fairly high quality little group here. I only wish I had've started this years earlier....

cheers,

Lance

[Golan Klinger]

We have our differences from time to time but the love of the 128 trumps everything else. It's a beautiful thing.

Lance: Better late than never.