Cleaning out your attic, basement, closets, and garage can be a profitable venture. After you decide what you are keeping and what is no longer useful or wanted, you have three options; the local weekly paper, a garage sale, or eBay. As a small business owner with six years experience as an eBay seller, and over fifteen years experience selling in garage sales and with local ads, I would like to share some of my own experiences with you.
Garage Sales:
With a large family, there is always lots of cluttertoys, games nobody wants anymore because they now have the newer version, and outgrown clothing still in excellent condition. We always have a couple of last months hottest fashion item that no one could possibly wear this month because their friends would think they were weird. Then of course, there is always the dishware set that started out as service for eight and ended up as service for five and a half. Weather permitting, we set aside a weekend every so often and held a garage sale or tag sale. The biggest drawback to this type of sale is that it requires a lot of patience because you will attract more browsers than buyers and it is generally limited to just your neighbors. We tend to give away more than we sell in our garage sales just out of sheer boredom.
Classified Ads:
We have always attracted more buyers from classified ads in our town's local weekly publication because of its large circulation. The ads have come in handy for selling a bedroom set, odd pieces of furniture, and a plow. The larger items sell faster in this venue, but I have always been uneasy about inviting strangers into my home.
Ebay:
It took about a week of browsing the site before I decided to try placing a listing on eBay. My first "test" item, a Disney Character Tee Shirt, sold within four hours. I was ecstatic! Fortunately I had not used my second choice item a new four slice toaster I received as a gift (I have three of them) as my test case because that item had to be re-listed several times before I made the sale; even though I priced it below the other listings for the same item. Had the toaster been my first choice, I would have considered eBay a waste of time and returned to garage sales.
Suggestions for Selling on eBay:
EBay's membership is so vast worldwide that, with a little patience, you can sell just about anything. It is always best to have a clear photo of the item you are listing. First, choose the right category for your item, and then include search terms in your title that will bring serious buyers to your listing. Someone who is just browsing will do a "Category" search, but a serious buyer looking for a specific item will search by category, brand, manufacturer, color, size, year, and other item specific details. YOUR TITLE MUST INCLUDE AS MUCH INFORMATION AS POSSIBLE to cover as many search terms as your perspective buyer may use.
When writing your description, put in all the details you would be interested in if you were the buyer. Type as accurate a description as possible, because your buyer will hold you to every word! Inaccuracies or omissions will not only affect your feedback score, but will force you into a position where you will have to interact with customer service; a nightmare you want to avoid. Your photos should show any markings, stains or blemishes noted in your description. Keep your price in line with similar items in the same category, and do not manipulate shipping charges to include an additional profit from your sale, or try to sell an item for .99 with a shipping cost of $20.
Garage Sales and Classified Ads versus eBay:
Garage sales or local ads will always offer the best venue for large or heavy items because they do not require the addition of shipping costs. In addition to some of the items I have listed above, garage sales are best for disposing of those little trinkets, knickknacks, slightly rusted items that are still workable and just need some cleaning, odd pieces and parts of equipment, used fencing, or other items that would cost more than their value to list and possibly relist on eBay. However, if you and your family enjoy spending weekends tagging items, setting up tables, boxes, and displays on the lawn, waiting for people to come and browse through your things to offer you a dollar or two for an item you would probably rather break than sell to them, then garage sales are just the thing to make your day.
EBay, however, is not restricted to local buyers. You have the opportunity of displaying your items before an enormous number of buyers worldwide, the potential of putting a few extra dollars (or more) into your pocket than you would make selling at a garage sale, and, after your first few listings, the whole process takes only a few minutes of your time. In the majority of cases, even an item that is re-listed a few times before it finally sells will bring in a bigger profit when compared with selling that same item in a garage sale.
Just as weather affects garage sales, certain factors also affect eBay sales. Your best indicator of what is selling and what is not is the "search" feature. This feature is your guide to pricing, choosing a category, comparing titles, and recognizing items that are not currently selling. It also enables you to save money by bringing your attention to similar items offered by dozens of other sellers. Too much competition devalues an item. Be patient and place your listing at a later date.
Having your weekends free to spend with your loved ones or doing whatever it is you enjoy doing in your spare time is another "selling point" in eBay's favor; and after six years, I can honestly say it wins hands down over garage sales or classified ads!