Jo Spurling looks at making a dollar or twenty from your unwanted goods online.
Just after Christmas I got what I thought was a rather cheeky email from the folks over at online auction site eBay. The subject line was ‘Sell your unwanted Christmas gifts on eBay’. At first I thought this was a bit callous, then a bit opportunistic, but the more I thought about it the more I thought what a good idea it really was. Not just for unwanted Christmas gifts though – for anything you don’t have a use or the space for.
In good times we all have a tendency to accumulate piles of stuff we don’t really need but purchased anyway simply because we had the money there to spend, we wanted it and we could. In tougher times the purse strings tighten and we take a more conservative approach to this spending. That then still leaves us with a pile of products, bought in easier times, which (to be honest) could go to homes where they might be needed. So something good can come from hoarding all this stuff, because now you can make a little extra money by selling it online through auction sites such as eBay. Now if online auction sites aren’t for you, then try an online trade paper such as the Trading Post or list your items for free on Gumtree.
Just remember one person’s trash is always going to be another’s treasure and so if you don’t want or need an item anymore put it to good use - you never know - your next holiday could be funded by all those unwanted Christmas gifts.
….AND, Rose’s tips for Successful Selling on eBay:
1. Sort through everything you own. If you haven’t used something for over a year – whether it’s a bright green shirt that just isn’t your colour, or a milk frother that’s gathering dust because you don’t drink coffee – sell it!
2. Items that are new (especially if they still have their tags) usually sell for more than items that are used, unless it’s a hard-to-find or niche item.
3. If the goods you are selling are a well-known brand, make sure you highlight that in the title. They will sell for more than unknown brands.
4. Specialist goods sell well. If your item is hard to find, consider listing it for a longer time and starting it at a higher price. Someone is sure to eventually search for an Art Deco Porcelain lamp in the shape of Pierrot the Clown.
5. If you have 10 t-shirts to sell, consider bunching them together as a ‘lot’ item. Saves you time and effort with listing and postage.
6. If you are new to eBay, buy a couple of things before you start selling to get your feedback rating up. No one will buy from a seller with zero feedback.
7. Before you list something, check out similar items that people are selling. Look at their title and description especially, and their starting price to get an idea of what to expect from your item.
8. If you have a large item that is about to go into hard rubbish, or you are about to pay someone to pick it up and get rid of it for you, DON’T! Sell it for next to nothing on eBay and list it as ‘pick-up only’. That way you get rid of it for free and someone else gets a broken fridge (or whatever) to fix!
9. When writing the description title, think long and hard about what people will be searching for. Don’t put in unnecessary words like ‘amazing’ or ‘beautiful’. No one searches using those terms. Instead, cram in as many appropriate descriptive words to grab as many search results as possible. For example: ‘Brand new Alannah Hill pink dress size 12 with tags’.
10. When writing the description, make it detailed and accurate. If there are any stains or damaged sections, make sure you list them and if possible take a photograph. If you don’t list them, the buyer may leave bad feedback and may also make a complaint to eBay. Let the buyer know shipping costs and how fast you will ship. Also let them know your preferred method of payment.
11. Upload lots of photos! The more photos, the better price you are likely to get. If you don’t want to pay extra for having more than one photo on the site, use a proxy photo hosting site such as Auctiva. Another important point about photos is to make them clear, un-cluttered (ie. with a plain background) and take them from all angles. The sexier the pictures, the better the price.
12. Pick an attractive start price. If you start too high, you will frighten away bidders and then there’s no chance of a bidding war. Start too low, and you run the risk of selling a valuable item for $1. Check out similar items and the price they start at to get an idea.
13. Pick the right ‘end’ time. Sunday evening (somewhere between 7 and 10pm) is often the best time to end an auction. If you end it at 3am you run the risk of your bidders sleeping through the all-important final hour. If you can’t be around to post a 10-day listing on Thursday night (to make it finish on Sunday night) then you can use eBay’s start time schedule function for a minimal fee.
14. Think about WHEN you should sell something. If your favourite band is about to tour the country, that’s when you should dig out that signed drumstick from 1998 and flog it.
15. Postage: sometimes it’s best to use trackable post, such as Registered Post or Express Post. This gives the buyer a fuzzy warm feeling that you will not scam them, and protects you from potential lost items or scammy buyers who will try to claim you never sent an item.
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