by Auctionwally

Created on: February 16, 2007   Last Updated: August 21, 2009

As an auctioneer with 25 years in the business, 8 of them on eBay, I've come up with this list of top money losing eBay blunders.

Mistake #1) Posting items at a high starting price. If you take chance of someone getting a great deal out of your auction, very few people will look at your items. Starting your auctions low, is the surest way to get a much larger pool of bidders, auctions are nothing without momentum. All of my auctions start at .99 or 4.99. Over the years many of them reached reached over $500.00 with these starting prices. If starting them that low still seems too risky, try listing your item in an eBay store.

Mistake #2) Listing only one or a couple of items at a time.
The more auctions you put up, the better they will do, eBay probably has the biggest cross marketing effect in the world, your not getting the full advantage of that when you list only a couple of things a week.

Mistake #3) Drop shipping or selling trendy items at the wrong end of the trend.
Remember Beanie Babies?
As for drop shipping, half of the people on eBay are drop shipping, think there's any competition there? Only hot products are successful with this method and they don't stay hot for very long. If you've access to a hot product at the right time, by all means, go for it. But I think you'll find that those trendy items are difficult to find at the precise time you need them. I prefer antiques, collectibles & used items, they are easier to get in the long run, and this is what most people are looking for on eBay. If your not well versed in antiques & collectibles, there's plenty of demand on eBay for good used items, especially clothes.

Mistake #4) Paying too much for an item in the first place.
There is an old axiom, "well bought is half sold" stick to that like it was one of the ten commandments.

Mistake #5) Over relying too much on research.
Let's say you've found a Maxfield Parrish print that sold for $500.00 on eBay, and you saw the same one at an antique shop for $250.00. This is an easy $250.00 profit right? Maybe not, maybe the one you saw sell for $500.00 went for that because of a myriad of reasons you don't realize. Perhaps the seller listed 10 other similar items that week, getting great cross market value. Or the seller has a following of regular buyers for that item. Anything can happen, hit for average and buy right. If your not sure what right is, then ask yourself, if I don't sell this item, do I like it enough to keep it and can I afford

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