How to Get Better Results from Ebay

About twenty years ago, when my kids were young and living at home, we used to set up a table and sell things at local flea markets, also known as swap meets. This was suburban Philadelphia and various local churches and schools would hold them, offering space for $15. or $20. per table area. We would pack the car with our boxes of goodies and our tables and head out each Saturday and Sunday morning at about 5 AM.

We were casual sellers, selling knick-knacks, clothes, glassware and other random items. It taught the kids about responsibility, business, handling money while earning some extra money for the family. ebay presents a very similar opportunity, but on a global scale. Since getting into it I've been shocked as to what seemingly worthless items will bring, as well as the global reach. If you list things correctly, there are millions of people around the world who may want to buy it, like having a table at the world's largest flea market.

ebay is a great way to make money by selling excess household items and other things you may have around the house, in the attic or the basement. It's also a great way to make money selling hand-crafted items, or wholesale items you are able to purchase.

Once you're up and running and know the basics, here are my key tips for ebay success:

Pictures
People love pictures so be sure to take clear, well lit pictures of every part of the item. The more pictures the better. If you are trying to sell professionally or are selling high dollar items, be sure your photographs reflect this. If you are selling many items, there are table-top photo studios and light boxes that make small items look great.

ebay offers the ability to host pictures. The first picture is free, each addition picture is $0.15. They offer a discount of $0.75 for 6 pictures and $1.00 for 7-12. Photobucket is another good option, as is MobileMe / idisk from apple.

If you know about web hosting and basic HTML, you can get yourself a website for $4.99 a month from someone like godaddy.com and on it can host your own, unlimited supply of photos by using FTP. The website doesn't have to be live or active or show any photos, you just need the space to upload and host photos, that you can then post in your auction listings.

Timing
ebay auctions are normally seven days long, ending at the same exact time as you start them. Most action happens at the very end of the auction and smart buyers will wait to these last moments. You can ensure the highest price by starting your auction at a convenient time, so it ends at a convenient time for most buyers. An auction that ends at 2 PM Saturday afternoon will probably bring a better result than one that ends at 2 AM. Don't time an auction to end at 2 PM on a Tuesday when most people are at work and may not have access to a computer.

Pricing
Be realistic about your pricing. ebay can be cheap to list things, so it's OK to try for a high price at first, then lower your price to a more reasonable level, especially on a high dollar item. The best reference isn't the current listings, that just shows what people are seeking to get for their stuff. Check the box for "Completed Listings" to see the finished auctions. Check the prices here to see a much better idea of what you should charge or expect.

Title and Description
No matter how good your listing and how great your item, without a well worded title, no one will be able to find it. The title is very important as every word is used as part of ebay searches. The key is to try to match the wording of your title to what people are typing in as search phrases.

ebay can take years to really master and there are classes, seminars, books and more on how to do it. ebay has great learning materials on the site in their Learning Center, but the best way to learn is to start with some small items to get a feel for the system.

Customer Service
It's all about buyer's feedback now on ebay. Ship quickly, and send messages confirming payment initially and after shipping. Be sure to leave positive feedback from others and request the same. Buyer feedback ratings can now effect your search rankings, so the better your customers rate you, the better position your listings will receive.

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