Online Selling?

[DTR 11TG]

I have some things that I want to sell, non cycle stuff, and was wondering how many members have used sites like amazon & ebay and what the results and/or problems were?

[John Luciano]

Never sold only bought. Only use Pay Pal. Open an account. Don't trust anyone.

[Gorilla]

I have some things that I want to sell, non cycle stuff, and was wondering how many members have used sites like amazon & ebay and what the results and/or problems were?

I do a lot of selling on E-Bay. Takes a little work to do a listing. Fees are about 10% by the time all is said and done with PayPal and E-bay. I have very good luck. If the item can fit into a Priority mail flat rate box I will list the item with free shipping. I then list my starting price to take all the above in consideration (fees and shipping) In 1400 transactions on ebay may have gotten stiffed with not as advertised on a but and had to refund a buyer who didn't like what I sold maybe 5 times total. I make sure on my listing to post good and lots of pictures and describe it as complete and truthful as possible. Also be realistic on what you are going to get out of what you are selling. Even if new you are not going to get new price for it. The exception is something that is rare and in demand. Good Luck

[oneup]

I have done a reasonable amount of buying and selling on ebay and have a 100% rating, including overseas purchasing of motor vehicles. (bought my trike this way). selling is less risk than buying, and i say this because as a seller you dont part with the goods until payment is received, and cleared. it might be a good idea to open a bank account just for your ebay transactions with the minimum amount deposited just to open it, that way no one can even attempt to draw money from it (if they are that savy).
as mentioned above take the time to describe the condition of the goods as accurately as possible, and not a bad idea to mention any damage or wear to second hand goods.
Personaly i dont like paypal, but the idea is that it makes transactions safer , at a cost.
for less work advertise that buyer pays for any freight, unless you know freight charges globally. for heavy lower cost goods freight can be more expensive than the goods itself.

[Veritas44]

Buying and selling for over 13 years and over 500 Transactions with only one bad Deal and then eBay reimbursed me so no biggie.
As said by others, be cautious and smart and pay close attention to the "details". When selling, be truthful, detailed, and describe the Item like YOU would like it detailed if you were the prospective Buyer. Show as much as you can in as many Pics as you can list.
Price reasonably and in keeping with other Market comparable Items listed. Start the bid relatively low to entice early "players" and hopefully incite bidding frenzies and buying battles.
If you want a Quick Sale, use a Buy It Now Listing and Price accordingly. You usually won't get full Market Price unless, as said before, it is Rare, Unique, or you just get lucky. Usually a 60%-75% of Value guideline is fair and gets the job done. Remember, you want to sell quick and get paid so you gotta give a little to get noticed and paid. You can try it higher on the first go round if you want and have the time to wait and then realist at a lowered Price if it doesn't sell. The better and more complete the description and Pictures-the better chance to get a higher dollar using BIN Listing (or Auction type for that matter). Set your Item apart from all the rest of the similar ones by detail and salesmanship.
Unless selling a Vehicle or a truly Rare/Unique Item, Only do 5 Day Auctions/Listings. Remember,,, you can always relist but People lose interest quickly in this environment and hard to hold your Audience for over the 5 Days. Some use 3 Day for that reasoning but that can be too quick and cause you to miss a, or more, Buyer(s) who would have put more Bucks in your pocket. 5 seems to be the best of both. I use 7 Day Listings for Vehicles and Rare/Unique/Collectables.
Free shipping is a great way to lure Prospects as many are leery of inflated Shipping charges. Of course, that's only on smaller Items that can be classified as "If it Fits-It Ships" type stuff. Prospects like UPS and USPS Priority shipping.
"Economy" or "Standard" shipping usually implies SLOW which will turn Prospects off and to other Sellers. Use USPS Flat Rate Priority whenever possible. I prefer to use UPS for included Insurance and reliable Service with great real-time Tracking. Plus, UPS is perceived as better by most Buyers and will sell your Item over other similar ones in most cases.
Use PayPal. Sure it costs but is by far the Safest, most Reliable, and most Respected and Trusted Medium for Seller and Buyer.
Require Payment within 24 hours of Auction close or Immediately if Buy It Now Listing.
Bar anyone with Zero or less than 5 Feedback Scores from Bidding. Most Trouble and "Crack-Head" bidders and Numbskullz will come from the "Newbs". Plus, there are some Nefarious Sellers that will self-start and fake Bump Bids on their own Listings using aliases. Their Fraud IDs bid alot and have been Members a long time but never buy anything. Most ebay savvy Buyers are aware of these type tactics and won't bid on or drop out of your Listings thinking it's you bumping if they see a Zero Bidder on your Item History.

Overall,,,, Love it and have made some good Cash on no longer needed Stuff and "flips" and have saved a TON (probably less than half Retail Market Value over all) on things I have bought with little or no issues to follow.
Enjoy and participate with Confidence

[wiredgeorge]

I am in the vintage carburetor business and when I sell, it is mostly to sell bike parts I have no use for. I occasionally sell carburetors on eBay but between their fees (which are different for different categories of items) and the PayPal fees I am forced to eat, the profit margin is greatly reduced. I buy carburetors, when I need, from eBay and about 1/3 are not sold as advertised or problems are not disclosed. I have to factor this into the price I resell them for. Probably some of the negatives were not known to the seller but I am sure some are.

If you are thinking of selling, eBay is the worlds largest flea market... I like to be as honest as possible and this tends to help repeat sales.

[DTR 11TG]

Thanks everyone for the great replies & info, learned some good stuff.

[zman]

Just buy on eBay ,but got some thing s I would like to sell might try it.

[FRR]

I won't sell on Ebay anymore. Sold a couple of motorcycle parts last Summer. Was charged a high fee. 25% in one case, on a $50.00 item, and my one item was listed as "standard shipping" when the rate they Ebay listed was no way close to the actual charge. I would NEVER do paypal, IMHO.

I might buy, but it is doubtful. It seems that doing business on Ebay has become more complicated over the years with more scammers out there. Besides, trying to talk to a real person at Ebay is virtually impossible.

I know many folks have a great experience on this site, but I just haven't been one of them

[tfdeputydawg]

Had a bike on E-bay once.
Ad was canceled and a message was sent to all bidders it was a scam.
E-bay never told me what made them think it was a scam, refused to retract their action and would not print an apology for their mistake.
Would never use them to buy or sell again!

[Texan]

Have been buying and selling on eBay since 1997. Have completed over 1700 with a 100% rating. Have had some issues but can gladly say have got them handled to everyone's satisfaction. AND no lost $$$$$$.

You want to have some real fun try Craigslist. WoW !!! Scam alley !! I have close to $100,000.00 in totally worthless "so called" cashiers checks. And you can tell its a scam when they want to buy something from you for $10.00 and their assistance accidentally cut the check for $1000.00. They want you to send them back the overpayment. RIGHT!! When I get one of these I set the hook and drag
'em around the lake for a few days.

8~\o