Don't Bid Higher on eBay Items Just Because They're Labeled Vintage

eBay sellers will often list their wears as vintage. Sometimes this turns out to be the case and the items listed really are collectible. However, many sellers will use this ploy on an older item in the hopes to drive its value up. It's not necessarily a bad technique since vintage is an opinion, the sellers are not really engaging in false advertising, but perhaps it is remember the famous phrase attributed to Phineas Taylor Barnum about suckers and their unbelievably high birth rate.

It would not be the first time a seller used a certain word as a marketing technique to increase its perceived value. Hess used to release a new truck every year and marketed as a collectible. In fact, one of my nephew's grandparents used to buy such trucks and warn them not to open them. The nephew ignored the warnings, but several months or years later I would see many of the same Hess trucks stacked up on flea market tables with high and then eventually lower price tags on them. Regardless of the price the owner of the truck wanted, he always seemed to be stuck with this merchandise.

Much like a broker, it helps to know your market. Some things sell in places like eBay, Yard sales or a Flea Market simply because children will play with them. Legos are a prime example. I once bought an older box of Legos and sell it for collective novelty. It did not work until I lowered the price and a person snapped them up. One of the things the makers Legos have done that the makers of many other products have not is that the older building bricks are always compatible with the newer ones. You'll never find a case of planned obsolence there. On the other hand, if you happen upon one of the original Cabbage Patch kids in your yard sale or thrift store travels, you better be prepared for a lot of questions. The original "vintage" dolls can almost always fetch a prophet by the buyer, but the people who buy the merchandise are very picky and ask a lot of questions.

Video games can be tricky. Often the vintage Atari games such as Space Invaders will not sell, but Genesis and Super Nintendo games will sell without even being a collectors item. But then again, selling them as vintage will not raise your price. Some vintage limited run board games such as the Fortress America with the picture of the burning towers and someone who looks like Saddam Hussein can fetch a high price indeed.

The main point remains regardless whether you intend to sell your stuff or not, before bidding higher on anything labeled vintage, make sure the seller is not labeling the item as such in the hopes of getting a higher selling price.