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Anyone here an Ebayer?
EliteLamer
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I know how to use ebay and do quite often but I was looking to get into it on a more professinal level. I used to go to garage sales and flea markets to pick up stuff to just turn around and sell on ebay; however, I have ran into the problem of going to a garage sell and they have stuff listed pretty much at ebay price already. Which is kinda BS in the fact they are expecting the avrg ebay price for something without doing anymore work than putting a sticker on it.
I really want to sell collectable electronics on ebay as its what I do already and I can identify the value of most things without the aid of my smart phone but if I can't I have my trusty palm pre to look it up on the spot.
I just don't know where other ebayers in this area are getting their items without people already asking ebay prices for it.
I really want to sell collectable electronics on ebay as its what I do already and I can identify the value of most things without the aid of my smart phone but if I can't I have my trusty palm pre to look it up on the spot.
I just don't know where other ebayers in this area are getting their items without people already asking ebay prices for it.
SEGA
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Large ebay resellers usually specialize in a category of items, and nine times out of ten they have some sort of "in" into that industry i.e. they are an actual comic book/toy store.
I have bought go karts for 25 dollars before, classic flip alarm clocks worth close to 100 for 2 dollars. NES Boxed systems for 20 bucks, N64 for a dollar, dreamcasts for 5 bucks.. Rare games, baseball cards..
I never see this anymore..
I didn't know they had physical stores for collectiable electronics. Its kind an odd thing to do.
I disagree. Selling in person requires a quicker turn around then your average ebay auction. I'll set up an auction that I can leave up for 4 days and have it seen by several thousand people who will want to bid it up to an acceptable price.
On the converse, I am not willing to man my yard for 96 straight hours and haggle with the dozens of people that show up.
In my experience garage sales are about getting rid of shit you were going to throw away anyway, with the added bonus of beer money.
The benefit of going with ebay prices is that at best you'll get value for it, but given that it's in person you can haggle down if you are actually looking to get rid of it.
Flea markets are also going to see a lot more people there, and a lot of the sellers at them also sell the same stuff on ebay.
If they admit they're getting eBay prices, then talk them down. Tell them that they don't have to pay for the eBay fees, PayPal fees, or shipping and insurance fees.
Again, haggle haggle haggle haggle.
Go early in the morning and if they don't break, go back in the evening. They're more likely to sell by then if they didn't earlier. Keep stressing that you'll take it off their hands and save them the trouble.
Just because something has a sticker on it doesn't mean that's the price you have to pay. In retail stores, people don't typically haggle because it's useless, as managers are the ones who can adjust prices and rarely budge. They will still often let people haggle over open box, slightly damaged, or otherwise "not perfect" items, though. And I've known many people who never bother with garage sales as an actual money making event -- but rather just a way to get rid of old stuff and still get some money out of it.
And be up front and say "I could get this for the same price on eBay, and it'd probably be better. I'll give you half and buy it right now," for example. But you can often get much better deals by buying in some sort of volume, which would mean you skip over the places that never or rarely have anything you're interested in and focus on the people who do.
The other thing, though, is that if people are posting things at eBay prices, they may very well be planning to put anything that doesn't sell up on eBay themselves. You'd be surprised how many fleamarkets and pawn shops run an eBay presence. Or maybe you wouldn't. Either way, that's typically why having a storefront of some sort gets you so much better deals -- people expect to get lowballed.
When I was younger, I played Magic:TG, and I was pretty familiar with card prices and such. I'd trade with friends and people in general based roughly on card prices. One time, I ended up working behind a table at a tournament, and the deals I suddenly got -- simply by being associated with a store -- were incredible! People would trade with me because I was offering good deals "for a store," which technically were pretty bad deals for a person-to-person trade. It's an odd mental switch but it certainly exists.
eBay sellers do the following for their merchandise:
1. Complete dicks with haggling at all times, and are always willing to walk away.
2. Buy huge volumes, sometimes even with some crap, just so they can offer you less. If you walk away with half the garage sale they're going to sell it cheaper than if you just want this one great item they know is worth $$ on eBay.
3. Trawl all the estate sales and auction houses. This allows them access to liquidation and bankrupcy from stores.
4. They volunteer at places like Goodwill, in the best area of town they can get in. They get to go through all the stuff before it goes on the shelf, and frequently set aside any/all decent stuff and if they pay anything at all for it, it's probably pennies..
Number 4 is a huge dick move and I could never do that.
I mean I go to goodwill type stores for fancy dress parties when I need to get something silly. Am I not allowed to buy the clothes there because someone might want to buy that particular beige safari suit?
They are also donating their time as well which is a good thing.
Satans..... hints.....
Goodwill's specific purpose is to provide job training for people who need it (the low income, homeless, mentally disabled, etc), so not really.
Now taking a job that could be going to someone who is actually disadvantaged... I'd say that's more of a dick move than buying things from Goodwill and selling them on ebay. Considering that's how Goodwill makes the money that it pays their employees and all.