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Tips on Selling Games on Ebay
DesertBox
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Suprisingly, I couldn't find any threads relating to this. Essentially, I went into Gamestop to sell some games I now longer wanted. I found their rates to incredibly low. So having bought a number of used games on ebay, I am thinking of selling these on ebay. Here are the games
Perfect Dark Zero (Gamestop offered $7. The lowest completed sales on eBay I see is ~ $15)
Project Gotham Racing 3 (Gamestop: $9. eBay: ~$18)
Sonic Heroes (Gamestop: $2. eBay: ~$10)
I have never sold anything on eBay, so any tips would be appreciated. What is the likelihood that I would be screwed, as a seller? The selling fees for these games shouldnt be more than $3, right? Unless there are some hidden fees I'm not seeing.
Is it even worth it to sell these games on eBay or should I give in to Gamestop?
As a buyer, what do you look for in eBay listings?
Perfect Dark Zero (Gamestop offered $7. The lowest completed sales on eBay I see is ~ $15)
Project Gotham Racing 3 (Gamestop: $9. eBay: ~$18)
Sonic Heroes (Gamestop: $2. eBay: ~$10)
I have never sold anything on eBay, so any tips would be appreciated. What is the likelihood that I would be screwed, as a seller? The selling fees for these games shouldnt be more than $3, right? Unless there are some hidden fees I'm not seeing.
Is it even worth it to sell these games on eBay or should I give in to Gamestop?
As a buyer, what do you look for in eBay listings?
DesertBox on
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That's all I can think of.
Off the top of my head:
• Do you have an existing eBay account? A lot of buyers are gunshy about buying from a seller who has a brand-new account or very low feedback. If you're serious about it, I'd make an account and buy a few small things from people to boost up your feedback; it instills more confidence that you're truthworthy, which means more potential bidders, which means a higher winning bid.
• Start the bidding low and never use a reserve price. It may seem like a gamble, but eBay's fairly good with giving you a fair market price of what you're selling, so long as you're descriptive. Using a Buy It Now is fine, but remember that the first "real" bid will erase a BIN.
• Always use your own picture instead of a stock photo. Take a clean pic against a neutral background, like a solid-color bedsheet or a towel or something.
• Scope out other people's listings and look for the type of "small print" you want -- like info on returns, payment, etc. Paypal is retardedly easy to use; I usually say that I accept Paypal and money orders, no personal checks.
• State if you're willing to ship outside the U.S. or not. Also say how you'll ship. I always did USPS Priority Mail with Delivery Confirmation.
• You'll never really be "screwed" as a seller because you always get the money first. So long as your games are in the condition you describe them, anyway.
1. At least 10 exclamation points in the title, and a minimum of 5 exclamation points after every sentence in the description. I hear auctions get 50% more money when you have "L@@K", "WOW!!!!", or "MUST SEE!!!" in the auction title.
2. No matter what you're selling, it's RARE!!!!, it's a COLLECTOR'S DREAM!!!!!, and every auction you list is the ULTIMATE VIDEO GAME AUCTION!!!!!!!! It helps if you throw "RARE" in at least 3 more times in the description. If Wal-Mart does not have a copy of the game you're selling on shelves right now, you need at least a $100 reserve price on it, just to make sure your investments are protected.
3. Everything you sell is in mint condition. Even if there's no box, manual, and half the disc was chewed apart by your dog, it's MIB (mint in box).
4. Shipping cannot be less than $20 per disc. The USPS (or Royal post, or whatever) website is completely incorrect (which screws you, the seller), as are the FedEx, UPS, and DHL websites when it comes to calculating shipping cost. "Packaging and Handling" of all video game related products constitutes at least an additional $10-$25.
5. Any picture of the item for sale has to be taken with a camera with Vaseline smeared on the lens at a distance of no less than 100 feet away. It also cannot have a higher resolution than .005 megapixel and cannot have a flash. You get a discount on listing fees if you set the item on the ground, then take a photo with your feet in the picture, and listing is free if you're barefoot with a terminal case of Athlete's Foot and are missing at least three toenails.
6. Whenever you get a Paypal payment, or a check, and the buyer files an "Item Not Shipped" complaint, cancels the check or has Paypal freeze your entire account for a $4 transaction, and leaves you negative feedback despite the fact that the FedEx website has the tracking number listed as "delivered" along with a signed reciept, you need to immediately give back the money, as well as an additional game or two or $100, whichever has greater value, otherwise eBay will revoke your citizenship in whatver country you are currently a member of.
Trust me. eBay will pull your auctions, and you face very serious federal charges unless all of these conditions are met.
EDIT: Geez, how could I forget #5 and #6? eBay's gonna revoke my license.
I like to hope people I sell to are actually making a worthy purchase...
But this would have given me a chuckle, had I been expected a joke thread.
Lunker, I've been a member for a couple years, but I only have a feedback of 7. Will that hamper my efforts? I have never gotten negative or neutral feedback, however. Also, any specific reason you chose to use Priority mail as opposed to the cheaper media mail option? I plan on giving different shipping options, is that a bad idea?
Never ever EVAR buy GBA games off eBay if they have a stock picture. They are all fake unless they have a real photograph, and even then if the description mentions anything about flat-packing the box it's a fake. When I was a noob I learnt that the hard way, luckily for me both the sellers offered a refund.
I guess it doesn't matter as much for console games if it's a stock pic cos the games couldn't really be faked but I'm not sure on that one.
I always used PM because it's not that much more expensive (around $3-4 as opposed to $1-2) and I think bidder appreciate getting stuff faster and more reliably. I've had a small fraction of stuff beaten up by media mail. It can't hurt to give the buyer some options, though!
Real pictures of the products will help boost auction hits and trust in the seller. So, upload some real shots ya lazy bum.
In order to keep yourself from being screwed by PayPal frauds, immediately add the funds from your PayPal account into your bank account, or transfer them to another PayPal account. If the money is not there, they can not get it.
Offer discounts on shipping for multiple items. Sometimes people will pick up another game you are selling if it means they can get few bucks off the shipping.
Never ever send Media Mail. It's incredibly slow.
It's cool. I'm sure someone will find this information useful. Perhaps I should refocus the thread on general selling and buying games on ebay tips. However, I do not know how to change the threat title to reflect that.
That's it, done, wham bam thank you ma'am.
My own tips:
- Traditionally, ending auctions on Sunday evening (8-10:30 p.m.ish Eastern) brings the best prices. I've had better luck lately ending on Monday or Tuesday, though this might be a fluke. Always make it an evening if you're doing auctions, though, and never have them end on Friday or Saturday.
- If, however, you've looked on Completed Listings and see a definite set price range for your game, just do it a BuyItNow only, no auction. Many buyers just don't want to wait around for auctions to end/don't remember to snipe/etc. They're hassles. A BuyItNow will get you a quicker sale. Start in the mid-to-high price range for the item, then lower a bit if it doesn't sell in a few days.
- Offer international shipping, if you can; it'll fetch you a higher price, even with region-specific items. Use the usps.com site to gauge the cost.
- Japan's method of description is more attractive. Don't festoon the page with extra stuff, but a nice photo of the actual item and a bit in-depth description give a buyer confidence. Provenance also helps; if you're the only one who used the item, say so.
These people do it to make up for eBay and PayPal fees. Don't buy from them; if there's a problem with the game, they won't give you back shipping, which'll make up the bulk of the cost.
At the same time, do understand that eBay and PayPal are going to take a good chunk (usually around 15%-20%) out of your sale price. Price accordingly. Also, *do* know what it's going to cost to send your item; weigh and plan for envelope/bubble wrap cost.
They'll just take it out of your bank account.
ETA: To make things clear here, you'll get hit with fees either twice or three times when you sell on eBay. The first is the listing fee, which is contingent on your starting price. Second is the Final Value Fee, which depends on the final price. Third, if you're paid with PayPal, is the PayPal fee, which is, off the top of my head, about 1-2% of the total plus 30 cents or so.
And you *can* offer BuyItNows only, with no auction attached.
Also, go into Ebay educated, especially in the realm of the fees. You will generally do much much better than what EBgames/Gamestop gives you, but keep in mind that you'll be paying:
1. A listing fee.
2. A final value fee
3. Usually, Paypal fees (you can sell without Paypal but you lock yourself out of so many people it's not worth it).
On top of this, you have to list the auction, take pictures, pack the game, communicate with buyers, and ship it, all in a timely manner. Me personally, I value my time, and Ebay selling takes it up, so generally I will not sell anything I can't get more than $5-10 beyond EBStop's prices for. This is easy to do with newer games, but once you get to older stuff it varies from game to game. Do yourself a favor and be realistic about what is worth your time.
Dreamcast games are the ones you have to watch out for the most.
1. Non-stock photos. I prefer to see what I will actually be receiving.
2. Fair shipping charges. This has been mentioned, but damn some people on eBay are total cocks about shipping.
3. Simple layout, I'll buy from someone with a plain page with an honest and quick description over someone with a page with tons of marquee effects scrolling "HOT ITEM!!" and shit all over the place.
4. People who accept paypal. It offers protection in most cases, and it allows me to pay fast. If you insist on the buyer covering your paypal fees, state it on the page; don't lump it into shipping and look like a fucker.
Has anyone found this to be a viable alternative?
Switch: 6200-8149-0919 / Wii U: maximumzero / 3DS: 0860-3352-3335 / eBay Shop
the stuff in my sig. I've been meaning to put it up on ebay for like 6 months (just got back from Uni, and I will probably get round to it in the next week or two)
Stating outright that the buyer must cover PayPal fees will get your listing 86ed and your account on notice. (eBay will prosecute this, but not the super-high shipping. Take it up with them.) Take the the fees into account when setting the price.
As a buyer, I find the embedded-video thing annoying. There's one seller whose store I occasionally visit who has an embedded video on every page. I'm often listening to music when browsing, and having to fumble for the "pause" button on the video every time I go to a different page is frustrating.
As for the Amazon thing, I *believe* that shipping credit is the only shipping charge allowed - you're not permitted to charge your own shipping, in other words. I haven't sold there, though.
But - don't use media mail. It can be extremely slow, and many buyers aren't willing to wait that length of time before filing for a refund from PayPal.
Wow I didn't know that about paypal fees. I've bought a few things where the guy had a thing to add in like 1-2 bucks if using paypal, and if the end price is low enough I didn't mind. Sorry for the misinformation
It can be optional, but nearly every buyer opts for it because $1.60 shipping is $1.60 shipping. If they didn't want to wait, why use eBay?
Also, I've heard horror stories for slow Media Mail, but I had Media Mail arrive next day within the state and in two days half way across the country and in three to four days across the country, so it seems very much like typical parcel mail when the holidays aren't upon us. Then again, I live near Atlanta which is a major shipping hub.
I don't remember all the details, but it was explained to me once that Media Mail is loaded absolute last on any trucks, behind First Class, Priority, Overnight, even mass coupon mailings. If that's the case, then it would be better to just spend an extra fifty cents on First Class, preferably with delivery confirmation as well, and eliminate the chance of your package sitting for days at a time in USPS facilities due to a possible spike in package volume. Though if volume is low, there would be no difference in ship times overall.
The best advice I have is to get some sort of tracking or at least delivery confirmation. Adding .75 of delivery confirmation, or going so far as to set up parcel tracking or require a signature, will give you some measure of protection in case a buyer submits a claim via eBay/PayPal saying the package was never shipped.
eBay rules are utterly insane to intuit. Buyers and the legit sellers have been trying to get a crackdown on the super-high shipping for years now. Nada. It's a way for shady dealers to circumvent fee increases and for eBay to maintain its "low low prices" image (since shipping doesn't count olol).
To rephrase: you can try it, and you can sometimes get away with it (like the sellers you mentioned), but bad things happen if you get caught.