Here’s part 2 in my GUIDE TO INTERNET COMMERCE. I’d like to say the best way to sell online is to email me and sell me all your goods at heavily discounted prices, but I don’t think that’s going to fly.
When selling online, you’ve got to consider that your reputation is super important. You wreck that and you can probably convince some people to buy from you, or head to forums where you’re unknown, but people don’t forget when they’ve been screwed over. Don’t be an ass and do your best to provide decent service.
1) Selling on Ebay? Build up some feedback first. Either buy a few items, or sell a few cheaper items. You can do this whenever you want. Do it right now! Because if you try to sell high-value items with a 0 feedback account, you’re going to get absolute garbage prices, thus screwing yourself. As much as I dislike Ebay, they’re still the largest place to easily sell items so you might as well do it.
2) Selling on forums? Same thing applies. Post in the community a bit, get a feel for it. Maybe buy an item or two in the marketplace, or sell some smaller items. It helps if you have feedback in similar communities, or Ebay.
3) On some items you can get away with stock photos. If your item is mint or sealed, or you’ve got a good rep, it’s no big deal. But if you’ve got some damage to the item, or there’s something you have to show, it’s a bad idea to just describe it in text and not show a picture. It’ll lead to either a lower price or it’ll take a lot longer to sell. A half-decent camera isn’t expensive, and if you don’t have one, I’m sure you have a friend that has one.
4) The better the description, the better your ad looks. Let’s look at an example. “Statue is in good condition, some paint chips.” versus “Statue is in good condition, there’s a few minor paint chips on the back of the base, these don’t show up while displayed. Character is in perfect shape!” Which one do you think is going to get a higher ending bid?
5) What time you list is very important, whether on forums or auctions. If you put up your item at 5 in the morning, what do you expect? No one’s going to see it. They’ll see newer auctions or newer forum threads.
6) Ship on time. This one is super important. Most people don’t care if you ship in 2-4 days, but taking a week+ to ship? That’s asking for trouble, especially if you don’t keep in touch with your buyers. Statues are big money to a lot of people (myself included), shooting a tracking number over email is the least you should do.
That about covers it. Be descriptive, build a good rep, ship on time, accurately describe what you’re selling. Now you’re well on your way to being someone that won’t piss me off when we complete a transaction!
