Recycling Valentine’s Day

15 Step Quick Start to Selling on Ebay

Feb 16, 2011 by Marianne Richmond

So, another Valentine’s Day has come and gone. Maybe this year you received something wonderful from the special someone in your life…maybe there is really not a special someone in your life right now. But maybe, you have some once wonderful Valentine’s Days artifacts from someone not so special any longer.

Recently, I did an informal inventory of things in my house…things that I haven’t worn, used, looked at or even thought about for years. Many of these things were small and really weren’t taking up needed space but nonetheless could I really justify their existence in my house? Furthermore, would there be advantages to getting them out of my house and life? Would they have value to someone else?

Ok, what exactly am I talking about? Mostly I am talking about gifts from my ex….relationship based gifts such as Valentine’s Day Gifts and Anniversary gifts. Things that are too “valuable” to simply toss out but that there is really no reason to keep other than not knowing what to do with them. And many of these things, mostly the Valentine’s Day things, were never worn or seldom worn because that’s really the problem with heart things, isn’t it? On how many occasions will you really wear a silver heart belt from Tiffany’s? And also, if your current feelings towards your ex involve the opposite emotion that these gifts were originally intended to invoke you don’t really want any more to do with these things than you do with him.

So, hell-llo Ebay!! Sell them on Ebay, take the cash, and recycle it into something you want or need. The benefits can be vast and perhaps way beyond monetary. That depends on your things, your needs, and your attitude towards both.

Okay so maybe you have never sold anything on Ebay and really don’t know how to do it. Here is a 15 step quick start version:

1. Set up an account. If you have bought on Ebay,  you have an account and probably a PayPal account already. If not, follow the prompts for an Ebay and a Paypal account.
2. Search on Ebay for items similar to yours. Forget about how much the fool paid for the Tiffany silver heart belt.  Like a car, the minute he walked out of the store, it was worth a lot less.
3. Try to get a feel for what the items are currently selling for on Ebay…this can take a little while if you want to see what items currently listed ultimately sell for. When you find an item currently for sale, click on “watch this item.” This will appear in “My Ebay” and when the auction ends, the selling price will be noted.
4. For past results, enter the item in the search window and then click on “advanced search.” You will see a choice called “completed listings” and your search results will detail what similar items have sold for in the recent past.
5. Decide on a price that you think your item will sell for. If you want to sell it for a set price, that is “buy it now”. If you want to sell it in an auction (recommended) there are various strategies that people prefer…the best strategy to start out with in my opinion is to set the price at the minimum you would be willing to sell it for. As you get more experienced, you will find the strategy that works best for you.
6. Be honest about the condition…if you have a, for instance, a Sterling Silver Tiffany belt buckle on a red leather Tiffany belt that you have never worn and is still in the original Tiffany packaging that is excellent in Ebay-land. That would be considered “new”. If you wore it even once, didn’t even leave the house, it’s “pre-owned.” If it has any flaws, i.e. scratches, dents, creases, marks you need to note them.
7. If you have a known “designer” item or brand, that will sell better. Original packaging, even better.
8. When you describe your item, it is okay to use “sell copy”…e.g., comes in the original Tiffany packaging, ready to make Valentine’s Day perfect.
9. You get one photo “free” with your listing…make it a good one! If you are selling an expensive item and want to showcase the label or a special feature, it is inexpensive to add a few additional photos but no need to overdue it. You can always offer in the listing to provide additional photos (in fact, recommended) and encourage people to ask any questions that they have.
10. Always promptly answer any questions people ask, however stupid or annoying.
11. The US postal service has these great, priority small, medium and large flat rate packages. If your item fits in these, I recommend them because you can charge a flat rate. If your item pricing can stand it, offer free shipping.
12. Be wary of buyers who have no prior purchases or sales. And be warned that people may be wary of you for the same reason. It takes time to accumulate ratings. Take the ratings seriously…don’t sell to people with a history of not competing sales. You can specify that in your listing. And guard your own ratings with well described prices and great customer service.
13. Read the buyer and seller guidelines carefully. Ebay and Paypal will help you in case of a problem but there are some limitations that you need to adjust your expectations for. Their help takes time….in other words, there are waiting periods for resolving both buyer and seller issues. If you are selling an item that is related to Valentine’s Day for instance and your buyer doesn’t pay and you want to cancel the sale, you must get the buyer’s agreement or you have to wait a specific amount of days to file a case in the resolution center. You may miss Valentine’s Day. Hence also the warning about buyer ratings.
14. Most good buyers pay promptly…Ebay sends them an email notice that they have won an item…it never hurts to send an invoice (there is an Ebay prompt for doing that). If they don’t pay or communicate within 24 hours, send another invoice with a note mentioning that you will ship immediately upon receiving payment. Then be sure and do that.
15. Always get delivery confirmations. You will need it in case of an issue. You can ship right from within PayPal although you don’t haveto…it’s just simpler to have everything in one place.

And that’s pretty much it for Ebay. I have turned a number of these things into found money and it felt great!  If you think you have some of these artifacts taking up real and psychic space in your home and life, take an inventory and recycle them. Their “second life” may be of much more value to you than their first life.