Question About Ebay

[Davyjones]

Hi gang,

I was just wondering how difficult it is to start selling stuff on Ebay. Have any of you sold anything, and if so, have you had any problems? Have you heard of any problems from friends? I need to sell some, okay, a lot of my old sports jerseys, and instead of giving them to Goodwill, as my wife suggested, I would like to try to sell them on Ebay.

Any input is greatly appreciated!

[mickey&missy]

I've sold quite a bit of stuff on ebay. Things I've made and things I didn't need anymore, like maternity clothes. Make sure you note in the item description when you expect to be paid, shipping etc. Take a look at other items similar to the items you want to sell to get an idea of price and also look at a few descriptions to see what other sellers general say in their description.

I've only ever had a good experience selling on Ebay. I hope you have the same experience!

[merlinmagic4]

It's easy once you get started. I have sold many, many things and do pretty well!

Remember your title is everything. Think of all the words a person would use to search for your item and try to get them into the title (i.e. New England Patriots Football Jersey Size L Large Brady 12). That way someone searching for New England Patriots, Brady, football jersey, L or large, etc. will find your item. Take a good picture and try to describe as accurately as possible the condition of the jersey. Buyers don't like to be surprised by stains or tears that they weren't aware of.

Starting at a lower price encourages bids but don't start lower than you are willing to take because sometimes you do only get one bid (although I have no experience with sports jerseys).

Your shipping needs to be fair to get more bidders. I tend to calculate the shipping based on weight. You can enter the weight of the item when you do your listing. Most sellers add a small handling fee (1-2 dollars) to cover fees and any packing supplies.

You can get priority mail packaging free (the tyvek envelopes would work really well for jerseys) from the post office but make sure you enter priority mail as your shipping method when you do your listing.

Good luck!! Any other questions?

[Davyjones]

It's easy once you get started. I have sold many, many things and do pretty well!

Remember your title is everything. Think of all the words a person would use to search for your item and try to get them into the title (i.e. New England Patriots Football Jersey Size L Large Brady 12). That way someone searching for New England Patriots, Brady, football jersey, L or large, etc. will find your item. Take a good picture and try to describe as accurately as possible the condition of the jersey. Buyers don't like to be surprised by stains or tears that they weren't aware of.

Starting at a lower price encourages bids but don't start lower than you are willing to take because sometimes you do only get one bid (although I have no experience with sports jerseys).

Your shipping needs to be fair to get more bidders. I tend to calculate the shipping based on weight. You can enter the weight of the item when you do your listing. Most sellers add a small handling fee (1-2 dollars) to cover fees and any packing supplies.

You can get priority mail packaging free (the tyvek envelopes would work really well for jerseys) from the post office but make sure you enter priority mail as your shipping method when you do your listing.

Good luck!! Any other questions?

I've heard that I might have problems with buyers not trusting me because I am new and do not have any feedback ratings. Did you find that to be true? How much does Ebay take from your sale? If I have an account with Paypal but have only bought things using it, can I also use it to receive payments?

Thanks!!!!!

[BigRedDad]

Starting with eBay is not too difficult. You may want to buy a few things to get your rating up to about 5-10 before selling. The good news is that you and the buyer are protected if you use PayPal. The downfall to PayPal are the fees. Between the seller and PayPal fees, you can pay over 10% for your items. It gets insanely excessive now.

[pixiesmimi]

There have been a lot of changes to the rules on EBay lately and that will go into effect in October so it would be best to go to the boards on EBay and read as much as you can about how to do it and all the rules. Of course, they are going to try to get you to use their services as much as possible for pictures and templates, etc. but if you plan to sell more than just one or two things, I would find an outside picture host (I use Sellersourcebook) for your pictures and to do your templates and listings. To begin with, you don't need this though. Unfortunately, one of the new rules is that you HAVE to use Paypal only now because they no longer will let you accept checks or moneyorders, which in my opinion, is ridiculous. It has gotten more and more complicated since Meg Whitman left the company as CEO but I have been selling on EBay for a long time and have a store on there. I have always done well on there. Be sure and take good pictures to post because most people will not even look at your auction without pictures. But research, research, research before putting your auction on, as stated previously. The lower the price you start the auction, the less the fees will be but, like said before, never start it lower than what you are willing to take. Those who start theirs at .99 do so if they are selling something they know will be popular and will have bidding wars for. And it is a good idea to get your feedbacks up by buying some things first (maybe packing supplies, etc.) before listing just for the insurance that more people will look at it. Good luck and go for it!

[Davyjones]

So feedback ratings from when you buy things also count for you when you are selling things?

[Lucille]

So feedback ratings from when you buy things also count for you when you are selling things?

Yes, the feed back percentage is an overall score. Recently, ebay has added a star rating that can be left from buyers to sellers only.

I have been shopping on ebay since the beginning and have been making my living on it for 5 years.

Personally, I ALWAYS check feedback. It makes a big difference in how and if I will bid. Honestly, it would have to be one heck of a spectacular item to get me to bid on an item listed by a seller with no or very low feedback.

I would definitely take the advice above and buy some items before you attempt to list anything. It will give you an idea of how ebay works.

[pixiesmimi]

And make sure you communicate with your buyer and ship quickly after the sale. You can click on the number of feedbacks on a person's name and see the comments left for them by buyers. I never buy from anyone with less than 98% feedback, especially without checking the comments left about their service, etc. Sometimes these are just left by vindictive people but most of the time are justified. If you see something you don't like, then don't buy from them.

Always leave feedback for your transaction after it is completed, whether you are the buyer or seller. I get very aggrevated when people do not leave feedbacks for me, especially if I have gone to the trouble to leave one for them.

[Mom to a Princess and a Prince]

I just sold my first item on Ebay last week. The process was relatively easy but in the end, I only broke even because I really underestimated the shipping. I sold 13 of my son's shirts and they were HEAVY!! So between the Ebay and Paypal fees and the shipping, I made no money. But it was a learning experience and now I have several more items listed for sale.

[Davyjones]

I just sold my first item on Ebay last week. The process was relatively easy but in the end, I only broke even because I really underestimated the shipping. I sold 13 of my son's shirts and they were HEAVY!! So between the Ebay and Paypal fees and the shipping, I made no money. But it was a learning experience and now I have several more items listed for sale.

So how much do Ebay and Paypal take out form your transaction?

Thanks for all the info, everyone!

[LauraleeH]

Ebay takes money out when you list, and if it sells, they take more money. Paypal takes money out as well. How much money depends on how much you make. I sold something for $2.99 and Paypal took .39 cents of that, and I also sold something for $32.00, and Paypal took $1.23 from that. People always complain about the high shipping prices, but they forget about the charges AND the box/bubble mailers plus tape and bubble wrap and whatever else.
Just don't charge $20 for shipping something like a Disney pin, and you'll be good

Oh, and before you place each item for sale, check around to see if it's selling, and put the starting price lower than what it's selling for. Also check the shipping prices for what others are asking and estimate how much it will cost you with the supplies.

I've noticed that things I usually sell and make good money off of are not selling at the moment. If your item isn't selling, keep it and check back within a few months. It may be more popular then. Or if you don't want to hold onto it or think it won't sell no matter what, donate it

If anyone has questions, they can send me a message

[pixiesmimi]

Ebay takes money out when you list, and if it sells, they take more money. Paypal takes money out as well. How much money depends on how much you make. I sold something for $2.99 and Paypal took .39 cents of that, and I also sold something for $32.00, and Paypal took $1.23 from that. People always complain about the high shipping prices, but they forget about the charges AND the box/bubble mailers plus tape and bubble wrap and whatever else.
Just don't charge $20 for shipping something like a Disney pin, and you'll be good

Oh, and before you place each item for sale, check around to see if it's selling, and put the starting price lower than what it's selling for. Also check the shipping prices for what others are asking and estimate how much it will cost you with the supplies.

I've noticed that things I usually sell and make good money off of are not selling at the moment. If your item isn't selling, keep it and check back within a few months. It may be more popular then. Or if you don't want to hold onto it or think it won't sell no matter what, donate it

If anyone has questions, they can send me a message

Check the boards and information on eBay and it will tell you what the fees for listing, etc. are so you can be prepared.

The best thing you can do for shipping is decide if you are going to ship First Class or Priority, etc. Then weigh your item in the box or envelope that you are going to mail it in. Check on line for the cost of mailing for that weight. I figure in a dollar or two over that for shipping materials, which is allowed as long as you don't go overboard. Ebay will not let you overcharge on shipping to make fees back and you can be reported for excessive shipping charges. Also, people know when postage is too high for the particular item and won't bid. Starting this month, you have to spell out how you are shipping and the charges. I usually add a dollar or two to my price to take care of the fees as long as it doesn't run the starting price up too high. Some things you will break even on or make less after fees and some you will make a profit on. It usually evens out though over time if you continue to sell. I have lost money on some things that just didn't get the bids and made a big profit on others. There is really no rhyme or reason to it but check your seasons too and what kinds of things are selling right now. As for clothes, there are particular times when people buy clothes, especially for children, so you just have to research and see what is listing and selling now. Just be sure to put pertinent info in your title like size, gender, new or used, color to maximize your traffic.

[LauraleeH]

One thing I just found out is that ebay and the post office teamed up and you can order 25 boxes for priority shipping for free! So I don't have to charge for boxes anymore and it saves me a trip to the store

[pixiesmimi]

Priority boxes and envelopes have always been free. You can pick them up any time from the P.O. I ordered several sizes to begin with from the P.O. and then discovered I didn't have anywhere to store them all when they were delivered. So I just pick up 4 or 5 every time I go into the P.O. now from their display.

[Wells]

What are the tax implications of selling (and hopefully profiting) on E-bay. I mean like income tax, not sales tax........

[LauraleeH]

Priority boxes and envelopes have always been free. You can pick them up any time from the P.O. I ordered several sizes to begin with from the P.O. and then discovered I didn't have anywhere to store them all when they were delivered. So I just pick up 4 or 5 every time I go into the P.O. now from their display.

What?! I did that last week and they charged me for the box!

[pixiesmimi]

Was it a Priority box or Flat Rate Box? There is a difference. I think they charge for the flat rate boxes but not sure. The regular boxes, they charge for but the Priority boxes and envelopes are free. Don't know what the difference is in their eyes. Don't know why they charged you. I do it all the time. Just walk in, pick one up and walk out. You can also just go to USPS.com and order 25 of whatever size box you need and they will deliver it to you free. But after that first time when I got so many (inexperience) I started just picking them up one at a time.

Unless, you use your eBay business as a legitimate business with business license and all or sell a lot of NEW items, there isn't really any tax problems. If you are reselling things of yours, you don't really have to report it (like a garage sale, etc.). But if you use it as a business, like I do, then you have to report it as income, minus expenses, on your taxes at the end of the year. Our state doesn't charge sales tax on things sold on the internet (YET). Some states do. If the item is sold within my state, I have to pay sales tax on it but not if it is outside the state. There is a tutorial on Ebay about taxes, also, I think.

[LauraleeH]

Was it a Priority box or Flat Rate Box? There is a difference. I think they charge for the flat rate boxes but not sure. The regular boxes, they charge for but the Priority boxes and envelopes are free. Don't know what the difference is in their eyes. Don't know why they charged you. I do it all the time. Just walk in, pick one up and walk out. You can also just go to USPS.com and order 25 of whatever size box you need and they will deliver it to you free. But after that first time when I got so many (inexperience) I started just picking them up one at a time.

It was Priority, but since I didn't know they were free, I gave it to my mom and she stood in line. When she got up there, she said she just needed to buy the box. They charged her $1.98 or something like that. Maybe they figured since we didn't know, we didn't have to know! Oh well, it wasn't that much anyways

[Davyjones]

Wow. I'm starting to wonder if it would be worth selling my stuff on Ebay. I just want someone to appreciate my old football/soccer and hockey jerseys like I do. Oh well. Still trying to decide whether I should or not.

Thanks for the continued input everyone.