How to Sell Your Stuff for Cash

Who couldn't use a little extra cash? ebay is an online marketplace where it's easy to turn unwanted goods into cold hard cash. I have used ebay as a second source of income for over ten years now. The thing that amazes me most, is that people will pay money in order to earn money. There is no reason to buy DVD's, cd's, or attend seminars to learn how to make money on ebay. After all you need to make money, not spend money, right? These five simple tips will get you started, and provide you with all the information a seminar will provide with no cost to you. These are tips I have learned for myself as a fellow ebay seller.

1. Buying new, or selling old. If your thinking about buying new items at wholesale cost in order to resale, there are several things to keep in mind. First off most wholesale places require that you have a business license and / or a tax ID number. Plus there is the issues of how plenty full the item is, and cost. Lets pretend you can buy an item wholesale for $1.00 each if you buy a case of 20, that retails for $10.00 each. That's $20.00 per case plus shipping and handling. Can you resale that item to make a profit? To list that item, ebay is going to charge you at least .15 cents plus 10% of the selling price. The buyer expects a deal as well which brings us to lesson number 2.

2. S&H. In order to expect someone to buy from you, they have to know their getting a deal. That means that $10.00 item will not bring $10.00. You might get lucky and sell the item for $6.00 + $4.00 S&H but that only leaves you with a $6.00 profit not deducting the cost you paid, and your selling fees.

3. What to sell. The easiest money is made selling items that are easily shipped. Your grandmothers rocking chair might be worth a mint to you, but the shipping fees will turn most buyers away. On the other hand DVD's are easy to ship and cost little if you ship media rate. Avoid selling items that are going to be trouble in shipping such as glass, heavy items, and large items.

4. Penny auctions VS free shipping. Starting your auction off at 1 cent and adding what you'd like to get from it to the S&H cost only works part of the time. EXAMPLE: New Disney DVD 1 cent, S&H $19.99. If you take the risk and start your auction low, with a low shipping you will get more bids. However, from time to time you will end up selling an item for next to nothing if there is not multiple buyers. Another tips is to offer free shipping. This only works if the price is low. Usually, I will start the auction out at one dollar over the shipping fee, and offer free shipping.

5. Reserve is BS. Some sellers start their auctions low, with a set reserve price. Most buyers don't even take time to look at the auction when they see the word "reserve". If you have a set price then use the "Buy It Now" feature.

To make the most of any auction you should sell in bulk when you can. You will get more bids on 10 pieces of used clothing for example then you will one used shirt. It is my opinion after 10 years of selling on ebay that no one should relay on ebay as a steady income. There is days where you can't believe how much you sold, and weeks of making next to nothing. Usually auctions closing on Friday afternoon through Sunday afternoon gets the most bids. Good luck selling, and I'll see you on ebay.