I am a complete and utter Ebay virgin. Yup, far too tempting in my eyes. However after a mass wardrobe clear out, being very, very ruthless - i've decided that there are some gems that are far too pretty to be sent to the charity shop (or most likely, i'll be tempted to re-buy them in sellers guilt) so i thought i'd have a try at the whole Ebaying malarky. This is where you come in, hello! I haven't got a foggiest of where to start, i've got a bag full of clothes and shoes, barely worn and thats as far as i've got. Well apart from signing up with an actual Ebay and Pay Pal account, i've worked out that as much. So here are a few of my questions:
- Will any one actually buy from me with no actual feedback?
- How do i know how much to sell things for? A no brainer here, but tips welcome!
- How do i work out postage costs? And more to the point, what do i freaking bag 'em in?
- What rough things should i list on the page?
Phew, thats all the questions i can think of at this moment in time. Sorry to be so demanding - but i am in a pickle. Any advice or further tips will be very much appreciated, maybe we can all learn something?
And yes yes yes i'll put all revenues in my Chanel fund, maybe.
UPDATE! - thank you for your very helpful comments! I've decided to set up a little blog shop first here, if you fancy a ganders!
UPDATE! - thank you for your very helpful comments! I've decided to set up a little blog shop first here, if you fancy a ganders!
Well there are 100's of people who will be looking on ebay and im sure someone will pick them up. You could put the items on bidding, and the more people bid, the higher an item will go for. So start it at about £1 and work the way up. Im unsure about postage, but you can alway make a price up, such as £1.50. Keep it reasonable.
ReplyDeleteGood luck selling!
http://thefashiondistrictnlc.blogspot.com/
Ebay will charge you for selling stuff..your better off doing a blog sale and saving yourself some money! X
ReplyDelete1. Yes, I would. I'm very trusting though.
ReplyDelete2. Start as low as you'd be willing to let the item go for as people are more likely to watch something which starts at 99p even though they will pay £20 for it at the end than watch something which starts at £15
3. Buy some brown paper and big tape and you can wrap most things in that (like a birthday present). Shoes I post in shoe boxes. You can buy loads of stuff for posting at the post office. Postage costs I always guesstimate and sometimes I'm wrong. £2 will cover most things e.g. tops, skirts etc. Shoes can be up to £5. eBay gives you a guide by setting the highest possible p&p based on the item. Remember to include your packaging in with that.
4. I list very little - size, real size, colour, condition, why you don't want it (not because it's horrible!)
x
Welcome to the eBay world! You really have nothing to worry about, its really easy when you get into it.
ReplyDelete1) People will buy from you if they want your bits and pieces. Everyone had no feedback at some point, so people will give you a chance.
2) How much you start on depends on roughly how much you want it to sell. I have some bits on from 99p because I don't mind what I get for it, others I have more on but still reasonable £3.99+. If you want to offer a buy it now option then you can set a price that you want for it but remember it is eBay and people are looking for a bargain.
3)I treat eBay like a blog review of the product, I put in lots of detail about the product, even some outfit ideas. Also people like it if you state it comes from a smoke or pet free home so they know its clean.
4) Postage and Packaging go together, weigh the item and then use the Post Office website to check prices, but my standard price if £2.99 for 1st class which usually covers the cost.
If you need any more help let me know!!
Sarah xx
1) Yes they will, some people may be reluctant but everyone starts somewhere!
ReplyDelete2) I usually go by how much I paid for the item and by the condition it's in. It's often better to start lower as for some reason more people are likely to bid. (I would definitely try and list today as it is free listing for any start price! Although if you start items at 0.99 they are free anyway)
3) I just weigh them, go onto 'royal mail price finder' and put in the weight (usually round the weight up a little incase my scales are dodgy) and it will tell you a price. I then add a little for packaging and again in case my scales are dodgy and voila!
I bought these to send clothes in (10X14 size or bigger if you wish): http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/120752440537 they are cheap and perfect for sending clothes.
4) Describe product, what it looks like and condition. Mention if you have any questions to send you a message etc.
I use ebay alot so if you have any other questions feel free to email me! vanillacrush(at)gmail(dot)com and I will be more than happy to help :)
Hope that helped! xxx
I think it's really hard to make money from ebay. You have to pay a listing fee to list the actual auction which is about £1-2, then a final value fee which is about 10% of the sale price, plus paypal fees for them taking the money for you which is about 2% + 20p.
ReplyDeleteI think ASOS marketplace could be another option but perhaps you could just make another blog and link to it from here? If people send you the money as a gift on paypal you don't have to pay a fee.
If you do sell via ebay include every mortal detail about the item in case the buyer tries to give you crappy feedback and always send the item by recorded delivery - it costs an extra 72p but it's worth it in case they try to say they didn't receive it and you have to give them a refund!
Royal Mail's website tells you how much something costs to post as it goes on the weight: http://www.royalmail.com/price-finder
I usually just use those brown padded envelopes that the post office sells for about 35p, but if it's something that could be damaged I use extra bubble wrap which is about £1 a roll.
I always put 'Sold as described, no refunds sorry. Please pay within 48 hours of listing ending' or something similar on the ebay listing.
You can get feedback easily by buying items - a few 99p items like and you're good to go!
Here is a link to some Uggs I sold recently
Epic comment, hope it was helpful!
I've sold lots of things on ebay, so in answer to your questions:
ReplyDelete1. Yes, everyone has to start somewhere.
2. I think it's best to start items at a low price to encourage people to watch/ bid, maybe do a search for similar items to see what they're selling for.
3. I basically guess postage prices - around £2 for a top, £3 for a dress etc and I always send items recorded delivery. I buy padded envelopes from poundland or you can buy mailing bags on ebay.
4. Size, brief description, the condition the item's in, maybe something about the other items you're selling and how quick you expect to be paid etc.
I did a post about a selling on ebay a while ago here:
http://styleandthecityuk.blogspot.com/2010/03/tips-for-selling-on-ebay.html
It is daunting to start with but here are my tips, i'll bullet point!
ReplyDelete-Don't worry too much about having no feedback, everyone starts somewhere. Just provide as much information as possible about the garment. I won't buy something if there is hardly any description about it, I like to know what the material is like and how much times it's been worn. Also, take good pics! Maybe a close up of the garment so the buyer knows what the print/material looks like up close.
-Postage costs- I would charge a standard postage and packaging charge of £3.00. If your selling heavier items like shoes or coats I would charge £4/£4.50. If your selling small items like a necklace, I would only charge £2. The heavier the item the more it will cost to post!
-Packaging-The cheapest option is to buy a cheap roll of brown kraft paper from poundland or asda and just wrap the item up. If it is likely to break in the post then I would buy a padded brown envelope which comes in various sizes and you can buy these from the post office/poundland/asda.
-Selling costs-Start the bid at a price your comfortable with, for example start the bid at £0.99 if your confident that lots of people will want the item. Some things that go for £40 start at £0.99. Sometimes though it will only go for £4. It's always a risk so you can start the bid at £5 too or any price you want. That means that less people may bid but you can sell it for a price you'll be happy with. You can also add the 'buy it now' option where you can set the price and the customer will pay the price you set.
Good luck!
Jade x
Oh and to avoid paying picture fees I just use the first free pic ebay offers for the main picture, then link to images in the description from an online host like tinypic!
ReplyDeleteBlog sale first!
ReplyDeletex
Or car boot?
ReplyDeletex
Don't usually comment on blogs but i've used ebay in the past so thought I'd share a few of my experiences!
ReplyDelete-Personally, I think it's only worth selling high value items (I.e. currently in fashion/ sold out items/ expensive brands). After ebay fees, paypal fees and postage you really don't see any money on items selling for under £10 or so...I decided it wasn't worth the hassle for low value items in the end.
-Start all your listings at 99p..it's a gamble that has always paid off for me! People start bidding thinking it's such a great deal and end up going MUCH higher than they would've done on buy it now. I've sold two phones on ebay (family unwanted upgrade/old phone) started both at 99p and both finished at over £100.
Hopefully my experiences can help you! X
Well eBay reminds people to give feedback, so you neednt worry about that. You rate certain things out of 5 and have the option to comment.
ReplyDeleteAs for prices, for bidding think how much you would pay for it? 99p is popular, but remember there is also the 'buy it now' option - so you could have it up for auction, but with a 'buy it now' price as well, or just have it as a BIN option - bit auctions will be more popular.
If you have a rough idea of weight, the post office website gives you postage guides. I usually just say £2.50 but I'll only ever post to UK adresses. And as for packaging, I just pop them in jiffy bag *usually* but I ran out once so I just used old wrapping paper the wrong way round. :)
Good luck with your auctions! Xo
i find that starting bidding at 99p works well if you have a whole bunch of items to sell, especially if you leave the auction running for the longest time (10 days i think.. or 7, I'm not too sure...) .. basically enough time to get more exposure.
ReplyDeleteI usually keep postage at £2.50 or £2.80ish unless the item is heavier/bulkier, but I only post to uk buyers :)
Aaaaand I either reuse those padded envelopes that ive recieved stuff in.. just wack a couple of plain white labels on top! OR buying a roll of brown parcel paper which is usually super cheap and lasts a LONG time.
Include any details the item has, the size, etc.
I add as much as possible purely cos i dislike answering questions..esp measurement related haha such a pain the arse!
Good luck! xx
My top tip is to schedule the listing carefully. You want it to END at prime time which is usually a sunday around 7ish when most people are sat around browsing the internet that way your item gets more exposure.
ReplyDeleteI've been selling on eBay for years. It's actually harder work than people think and it takes time to get it right. Think about how much you'd really like to sell the item for, how much realistically you think you'll get for it and then decide if you think it's worth the time and effort. Start by having a look for similar items on eBay and see how much they're selling for. Then make sure you include good quality pics and a detailed description. This leaves the buyer in no doubt about what they will receive and you're less likely to get someone wanting a refund. These days eBay strongly favour buyers. It's sad and it's the reason I sell stuff less on eBay now. You can calculate your postage costs on the Royal Mail website so then you know the costs are fair and you don't underprice the P&P (which I have done and ended up out of pocket). I learnt about 2 years ago that you can print and pay for postage labels through your paypal account. It's quicker, easier and means you aren't forking out for postage before the funds have cleared to your bank account, which can take up to a week! I go for a mixture of "auctions" and "buy it now" listings depending on the item and I also vary the start price depending on how much I'm looking for.
I've learnt all this in nearly (gulp) 8 years of selling on eBay. Any Qs I'd be more than happy to help! Lx