My ebay update

[disneysteve]

My latest auctions just ended a short time ago. So far, in my efforts to get back into doing the ebay thing on a regular basis, I have listed 11 items and sold 7, so about a 64% success rate thus far.

As per my plan, I also just listed 5 more items. I also opted to relist one of the items that didn't sell today with a lower starting price. It is a very nice piece, but happens to weigh about 4 pounds so postage is costly. I'm hoping the lower price attracts a buyer.

I haven't made much money, but as I've mentioned before, the goal is really to unload stuff that's been sitting around for a long time and clear out some space. The money is just a side benefit at this point.

[hawkster]

Nice...

I just had 7 end tonight to net me about $150.00. Spring cleaning time at the Hawkster house means stuff for Ebay to fund the May trip to Florida

[mom-from-missouri]

I just can't seem to find the right niche this time. I used to do real well, but haven't hit it hard in about 2-3 years. Now, I am having trouble finding items to sell.

[project15]

I just can't seem to find the right niche this time. I used to do real well, but haven't hit it hard in about 2-3 years. Now, I am having trouble finding items to sell.

You sold all the good stuff 2-3 years ago

[moneybags]

I used to do real well, but haven't hit it hard in about 2-3 years. Now, I am having trouble finding items to sell.

I think it's the Ebay market in general. At least for me, sales of similar items have declined over the years. Too many sellers.

[disneysteve]

I think it's the Ebay market in general. At least for me, sales of similar items have declined over the years. Too many sellers.

This is definitely true. When I started on ebay in 1997, buyers greatly outnumbered sellers. And sellers were almost entirely people like myself who were already dealers of some sort. As a result, items sparked bidding wars and went for phenomenal prices. Ebay was really a gold mine for several years.

Then, gradually, everybody became a dealer. People started selling household stuff and buying things for resale. There was a time when a limited edition item drew many bids. Now, if there is a limited edition of 100, odds are that at least 50 of them will turn up on ebay. Nothing is rare anymore. As a result, nothing brings the great prices that we used to see. Plus, fees have gradually risen, cutting into profits.

That said, you can still make money. Just not as much and you need to be more selective and creative in what and how you sell. For example, I'm currently selling a lot of 6 collectible books. 8 or 10 years ago, I could have sold them individually and done very well. Now, between postage costs, ebay and Paypal fees, it isn't worth it so I grouped them together. I'll still make money, just not as much.

[dougger1]

I agree that eBay has changed considerably over the course of the past five years. It has become very difficult to sell ordinary items as big sellers have moved in and virtually taken over many categories. My experience is that the best items to sell on eBay are those that you can sell very cheaply vs. the competition or very unique items. I have seen too many people try to make money on eBay selling new “commodity” items like GPS devices, digital cameras and game systems. I think you have very little chance of succeeding at this as you can't price lower then big players – and still make any money on the deal. On the other hand, if you have unique hand-made items (or collector items) such as quilts or hand-carved duck decoys, you can probably do very well.

[My English Castle]

I also find I do pretty well on better children's clothing and on antiques and estate sale finds. It has to be unique though.

[DebbieL]

I personally don't buy anything off eBay anymore because to me it isn't a true auction now. Everything I would look up has preset prices that are not any better than I can get locally. I think a person should be able to get (or hope to find) some bargains at an auction right? Five or six years ago there were some deals to be had - now I couldn't be bothered. That's just my opinion as a buyer, I've never tried to sell anything.

[disneysteve]

I personally don't buy anything off eBay anymore because to me it isn't a true auction now. Everything I would look up has preset prices that are not any better than I can get locally.

I don't find that to be true at all. If anything, we shop on ebay more than ever because the prices are so good.

A couple of recent examples:

I needed some padded shipping envelopes. At Staples, they were about $14. On ebay, I got them for $10.
My wife is a knitter. There are some higher end knitting needles that she wanted. The local craft and knitting stores charge about $18/pair. We got them on ebay for $11.

Almost everything is cheaper on ebay than it is in bricks and mortar stores, even when shipping is added in. I bought my digital camera on ebay. I got our video camera on ebay. Office supplies, craft supplies, etc. There are tons of bargains to be found.

[DebbieL]

For anything I'm ever looking at it's no longer a possibility to get a good deal. I just find it's no fun whatsever and doesn't have a true auction atmosphere. I don't like the feel of it anymore. It's like everyone is just running an online store. No fun for me anymore. Plus, lots of sellers don't ship to Canada, so many things are out for me anyways.

[moneybags]

Almost everything is cheaper on ebay than it is in bricks and mortar stores, even when shipping is added in

I'm not sure about everything, but a lot of things are. I've seen things sell for a premium on Ebay that could be bought at a regular online store for less. It helps to be a wise/informed shopper. I bought my son a baseball bat on Ebay for 1/3 of what it cost retail. It was a fairly expensive bat that he wouldn't own if it weren't for Ebay.

[disneysteve]

Well, maybe "almost everything" was exaggerating, as I just posted on another thread about the shampoo, but lots of stuff is cheaper on ebay. I try not to buy anything that I don't need right away without checking ebay and Amazon first.

I always tell anyone looking for a digital camera to shop ebay. I've bought 3 cameras that way and have literally saved over $1,000 total on the 3 transactions. I would never walk into a store and buy a camera in person.

I also tell anyone who sells on ebay to shop ebay for all their shipping supplies like envelopes, tape, bubble wrap, etc. Way cheaper than Staples or Office Max.

[herm4]

O.K. I know this is weird, but I never even been to the Ebay site. I think I will check it out just so I feel like I am living in 2008.

[disneysteve]

O.K. I know this is weird, but I never even been to the Ebay site. I think I will check it out just so I feel like I am living in 2008.

Or 1998 .

I registered on ebay in May, 1997. The site went live in September, 1995.