How to Get Every Last Dime for the Items You’re Selling on eBay

December 2nd, 2007 • Related • Filed Under • by admin

We all have a lot of miscellaneous stuff in a closet, a storage room, out in the garden shed or in the basement that probably has some value, but just has no current use in our life. Some of us are packrats and collect as much stuff as possible because we might have some future use for it someday, whereas others of us discard the old as soon as the new comes in. Most of us know that a great way to get rid of these unused possessions is to put them up for auction on eBay, however very few people know that there are specific things that can be done ahead of time which will increase the selling price of the items they are selling on eBay.

Give a Detailed and Honest Description. If people don’t know exactly what they will be getting, they are going to be very unlikely to want to bid on it. For this reason you should provide a very detailed description of the item you are selling. Give every bit of information you know about the item that you are selling, including what you paid for it, what the item is, what function(s) it serves, when you bought it and if there are any problems with the item that you are selling. Nobody likes to buy an item only for it to come scratched and dented.

Sundays are the Key. Your best bet is to start your 7 day auction on a Sunday afternoon or early Sunday evening. This is when your bidders will most likely be home and most likely be watching the auction as it comes to a close. Since most people make the decision to buy in the last few hours of an auction, it’s absolutely critical to have your auction at a time when most people are around to view it.

Avoid Most of the Junk Fee Add-ons – eBay has a lot of extras that they would like their sellers to make use of which cost anywhere from a quarter to a few dollars each. These things are fancy templates, an outline around your listing, and things of that sort. Most of the time buying these things will just end up leaving you with less money after the auction.

Use Smart Pricing – Start your item with a very low initial bid to encourage bidding. Try to avoid using reserve prices as they generally end up causing less bidding to occur. If the price is too low for your expectations, just cancel the auction an hour before it ends if the price is below what you’ll take for it. Adding a Buy It Now button is also a good idea if you know generally what the item’s value is.

Get Good Photographs – If at all possible, include a photograph of the exact item that the bidder will be winning. Even if you are selling a certain model of computer, it’s better to display your actual computer rather than a stock image on the internet. Make sure the lighting is good and you can get a good clear image of the item that you are selling. Include multiple images if possible.