Go through your entire house and gather all
the toys, videos, and clothes that you are no longer
using. Then label boxes:
- Goodwill/Giveaway
- Keep for grandkids or future
kids
- Sell
Make This a Family
Event!
- Let children sort what they are done with, husbands
can go
through the garage, teens can sort books they are done reading.
- Use it as a motivational tool to clean the
rooms because they
can certainly make money to buy something else they may be
wanting.
- If you have a digital camera, let the
photographer of your
family be in charge of photographing all the items you may want
to sell.
- Let the computer wizard do some of the listing, etc.
What Sells Best on eBay
1. Toys
(in used but still good condition)
- Fisher Price toys (Little People, Dollhouses, baby
items, etc.)
- Little Tykes (waffle blocks, dollhouse
furniture, cars & trucks)
- Vintage toys from the 60s, 70s, 80s (Strawberry
Shortcake; Care Bears)
- Thomas the Tank Engine items
- Dolls with popular names (Amazing Ally, Crissy, Mrs.
Beasley, Sunshine Family, American Girl)
- Baby toys with name brands like Fisher Price,
Playskool, or Little Tykes
- Lego sets
- Lincoln Logs sets
- Play-doh toys
- Dollhouses
- Fisher Price Adventure play sets like castles, tree
houses, and ships
- Discovery Toys
HINT:
Toys sell best in groups of like items, for example:
HUGE LOT of Fisher Price Little People Toys
HUGE LOT of Winnie the Pooh Books, Puzzles,
and Videos |
2. Books
- Homeschool books that you are done with (A Beka,
Christian Light, Modern Curriculum Press, BJU, etc.)
- Children's books in HUGE LOTS of 30+ books
- Name brand books like DK or Usborne
- Books in series (Little House on the Prairie, Boxcar
children, Nancy Drew, Bobbsey Twins, American Girl)
- How to Draw books
- Arts & Crafts Books
- Classics
- Unused activity books for preschoolers
- Learning-to-read books
- Cookbooks
- Cake decorating books
- Foreign language tapes, books, CDs, and courses
- School textbooks
- Computer games on CD-ROM for kids (e.g., Jumpstart and
Reader Rabbit)
- Baby board books (without teeth marks!) for toddlers
3. Clothes
- Girls dresses in good condition, sizes 4/5, 2T-3T, 5/6
- Women's maternity clothes S, M, L
- Women's nursing outfits
- Baby sleepers in good or like-new condition
- Jackets
- Coats for winter or fall
- Name brands (e.g., Columbia) jackets/sweatshirts
- Baby shoes, size 0-5
- Gymboree, Old Navy, Healthex, Baby Gap clothes will
sell well
because they are durable.
HINT:
Clothes sell best in large lots of like sizes. For example:
HUGE LOT 10+ Boy Clothes, size 0-6 months, Like NEW cond.
Children's clothes sell better than adult clothes because the sizes
are more standard. Just be specific and say what is on the label. |
4. Videos
These videos will always sell well:
- Veggie Tales (Sell as a group and you can get
nearly half to full price you paid for them.) For example 6 Veggie Tale
movies will usually bring about $50!
- Adventures in Odyssey
- Prayer Bear by Steve Green
- Cedarmont Kids Videos and tapes and CDs
- Donut Man
- StoryKeepers
- Quigley's Village
- McGee & Me
- Any Bible Stories videos
- Little House on the Prairie
- Anne of Green Gables or Avonlea
- The Waltons
Disney Movies (Bambi, Mary Poppins, Babe, Toy Story,
Cinderella) Disney movies in nice cases sold in large lots
will bring a good amount of money. I often find these in my garage
sale adventures for 50 cents a video and then can resell them for 10 times
or more what I paid. Be watching. Videos are easy to sell by name without
pictures.
5. Baby Items
- Backpacks
- Strollers in good condition
- Johnny Jumpers in good condition (not recalls!)
- Nursing pillows or other nursing items
- Crib bedding sets
- Nursery decor that matches (themes)
- Breast pumps
- Slings, Snuglis
- Nursery monitors
- Exersaucers (Don't worry; buyer pays shipping!)
6. Other Items That Sell
- Exercise equipment
- Items that are still in their original boxes
- Computer games on CD
- There's even a category for weird items!
What Do I Need in Order
To Sell Online?
1. Something to sell.
2. A computer with internet access.
3. A digital camera. These cost $60-$300 and are optional, but highly
recommended.
4. Boxes to ship items. (can be obtained free at local hardware
stores, etc.) Also you can get Priority boxes free from the post office if
you choose to send it Priority. However, these can't be used for Parcel
Post. Parcel Post and UPS are often cheaper for large items.
5. A scale is helpful to weigh each package so you can let the buyer
know exactly the total shipping based on your zip code and theirs (from the
www.usps.com
domestic calculator).
6. TIME! Believe me it will be worth your time in money made. You
will get paid for the labor in organization you have done! (1 Corinthians 14
:40).
7. Total cost to list each item is usually about 70 cents, depending
on how many pictures you use. Then eBay charges about 5% profit fee. Be
aware that eBay will take a portion of your total sale.
Next Step
Gather the items you want to sell in one location and
group them. To determine prices, you can go to
www.eBay.com and do a
search for like items. For example, type in "Johnny Jumper" and it will pull
up a list for all the Johnny Jumpers and what they are going for. You can
start the bid at $5 and list it for 10 days and it will usually go for about
$15-$20.
Go to www.eBay.com
and click on Sell. Have a look at the form and do a trial listing; just
don't press the final button until you are ready to actually sell the item.
1. Sell Your Item: Choose Selling Format:
Choose the option to sell item online auction.
2. Select Category & Sub-Categories.
For example: if you have a huge lot of children's videos, Pick Movies>Video,
Film>VHS> Children, Family
Pick the category which best fits your item. You can do a search on your
item and see what categories others are listing theirs in to get an idea if
you are in doubt. Spend a few moments seeing what categories are available.
You can always list your item in two categories, but be aware that that this
doubles your insertion fees.
3. List Title.
You get 45 characters maximum so be creative and very eye-catching.
For example HUGE LOT 6+ Veggie Tales Videos Esther++
| HINT:
Use capitals, stars, or word L@@K! to make it more appealing. For
example an ad that says Jogging Stroller will get a lot
fewer looks than one that says LIKE NEW Jogging Stroller MUST
SEE! |
4. List Description.
Be as specific as you can be. List all the videos, books, clothes sizes! The
more you inform the buyers of what they are getting, the better the chance
they will be satisfied. Be specific with brands of homeschool books,
condition, and year of books.
5. List Price.
You have three decisions: Starting Price, Reserve price (not
recommended because it costs more), and Buy It Now price.
Decide on what price is the minimum you will take for an item, then decide
on what price you might like to sell it for if someone wanted to buy it
right away (optional). It only costs five cents to add the Buy It Now price
feature. For instance, if you have 6 Veggie Tales movies and you know
somebody paid about $100 for these, full price, you can start the bid at
$19.99 and then have a Buy It Now price of $49.99. This is a good
deal for you and a good deal for them because you are getting back about
half of what you paid for them (or more if you bought them at garage sales).
This takes some practice and some trial-and-error but as
you gain more experience, you will know more what goes for how much!
6. List Your Pictures.
If you have a digital camera, it will increase your sales tremendously. Take
a picture of your item and crop it. Then you can upload it straight from
your computer to the eBay site and it will show a picture of the item you
wish to sell.
The first picture is free, and any additional pictures are
15 cents each. Most auctions only need one picture but sometimes it is good
to take more for certain angles of things.
Digital cameras can be purchased for $60-$500. It is
a wise investment and will pay for itself with just a few sales. A digital
camera is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED but certainly not necessary.
Home-school books are easy to sell without pictures, so
start with those when you begin selling. Always list your pictures in the
Gallery option (0.25 cents extra). Some people only shop the Gallery. If
you are using pictures, definitely use the gallery because it increases your
sales. A pictured item will nearly always sell for more than an item without
pictures!
7. Select Payment You Will Accept.
I recommend you accept money orders or
PayPal only. It is
wise to sign up for PayPal so that others can use their credit card if they
wish to buy it immediately. It makes things easier for both parties, and
they are a reliable company. You can request a check from them whenever you
want for a small fee or you can build up an account and use it to buy other
things online.
8. Determine Who Pays for Shipping.
The great thing about selling online is that the buyer pays for
shipping. You must indicate this on the form. You can determine what
shipping will cost from zip code to zip code by using the US Postal Service
Domestic calculator which is on the website
www.usps.com.
9. Review and Edit Your Listing.
Be sure that everything is how you would like it. Then submit it and watch
it get bids!
10. Keep a Log of Everything You Sell and Who Bought It.
Get a little notebook and jot down the auction number, date it sold and who
bought it with their address and the total amount it sold for. Also weigh
your packages and keep a log of what the package weighs in case someone
wants to know shipping costs prior to buying.
Selling on the internet can and should be a family event. Go ahead, get
organized, sort your stuff, and make some extra cash. If you have already
been successful in organizing your home you can find things to sell at
garage sales and estate sales. One man's trash is another man's
treasure.
Have fun and don't forget to give the Lord a portion of
your profits to benefit others who may be in need or other church needs. |