eBay Selling Advice

[minicoopers11]

Hmmm, not had an issue with this type of disclaimer, have had issues when I haven't had this.*  Many eBay auctions have far-harsher wording.  For example, this seller.  

 

"There are no refunds for opened Lego sets or due to box condition. If an absolutely perfect box is required then please do NOT bid on or purchase this listing. Thank you!!!'

 

Is the advice to not have such a disclaimer your opinion or based upon some other experience in which such a disclaimer lead to more issues?  In 15 years of eBay sales, I've never had problems when describing an auction (or elements such as packaging) as as-is, especially since I always have good, accurate pictures?  

 

*I sold a kit with a set of accurate box pictures, and the buyer claimed additional damage.  Wanted a partial refund, I refused and simply said I'd fully refund his kit instead.  Got the kit back, in worse shape than when I shipped it, and I ate shipping charges as well.  For better or worse, there's a small slice of buyers that look to take advantage of eBay and extort additional payments.  I refuse to play that game, and usually just offer full refunds.  Haven't had a problem since I gave these gentle disclaimers.

Based on your disclaimer, I would not buy from you. I also wouldn't call it gentle (sure, there are more harsh disclaimers out there). That last sentence gives me the impression that you would be extremely unhelpful if I had a legitimate complaint.

[ravenb99]

everything is based on experience from my auctions.   For me the more words you put the more words they can turn around on you or use against you.

 

If you've been doing it 15 years without issues then keep doing what works for you. 

 

If you have great pics and you can put "box may have some minor shelf wear as shown" it is 100% accurate and if they have further questions they can ask you.

 

Ebay prefers things to be simple now while still being detailed but they want a more user friendly and basic description without a bunch of excess.

 

Damage claims fall back on the seller anyways so to put "you might persue at your discretion" is a bit of a misnomer to begin with.  

[diablo2112]

Based on your disclaimer, I would not buy from you. I also wouldn't call it gentle (sure, there are more harsh disclaimers out there). That last sentence gives me the impression that you would be extremely unhelpful if I had a legitimate complaint.

 

Fair enough.  No idea if I'm losing sales over this. I have stellar 100% feedback with about $100,000 in eBay sales visible on feedback.  "Better than described"  "Perfect item", etc.  That probably helps a little bit.  No issues moving merchandise on eBay at all, even if I'm losing a few sales here and there.

[diablo2112]

 

 

Damage claims fall back on the seller anyways so to put "you might persue at your discretion" is a bit of a misnomer to begin with.  

 

100% correct.  I've had one eBay damage claim from shipping in 15 years.  And yes, the shipper/seller is responsible for initiating the claim, but its a joint process that requires close cooperation of the buyer (for pics, descriptions, etc.).  In this one case, I refunded the buyer for the damage portion (it was a high-end guitar case that had the hinges blown off from some hard drop), then had UPS refund me.  Took 6 weeks to get the UPS check, but it was made whole.  So, saying "you might pursue at your discretion" is technically accurate, because no damage claim is going to happen without a buyer willing to invest his/her time as well.

Edited March 24, 2015 by diablo2112

[Frogger21]

I just put that box shows signs of normal wear (see pictures) because usually boxes do and that doesn't make a big deal out of things. If you make such a big deal about then people will just right your listing off as being damaged. The chances of you having a buyer open a case for box damage if you just describe it well is very slim so I don't believe putting a HUGE disclaimer is necessary.

[minicoopers11]

Fair enough.  No idea if I'm losing sales over this. I have stellar 100% feedback with about $100,000 in eBay sales visible on feedback.  "Better than described"  "Perfect item", etc.  That probably helps a little bit.  No issues moving merchandise on eBay at all, even if I'm losing a few sales here and there.

Then I wouldn't sweat it, if that works for you. Forgot to mention, the most entertaining and harsh disclaimers have got to be on Bricklink.

 

Can't make this up:

1. By placing an order, you agree to not file a Paypal Chargeback.

2. We are not responsible for your package once it is in the hands of the courier.

[ravenb99]

Then I wouldn't sweat it, if that works for you. Forgot to mention, the most entertaining and harsh disclaimers have got to be on Bricklink.

 

Can't make this up:

1. By placing an order, you agree to not file a Paypal Chargeback.

2. We are not responsible for your package once it is in the hands of the courier.

I like the we only ship once every three weeks or something to that effect I saw on one of the ads 

[diablo2112]

I just put that box shows signs of normal wear (see pictures) because usually boxes do and that doesn't make a big deal out of things. If you make such a big deal about then people will just right your listing off as being damaged. The chances of you having a buyer open a case for box damage if you just describe it well is very slim so I don't believe putting a HUGE disclaimer is necessary.

 

You may be right, simpler is better.  Over-describing defects is always better than under representing them, for sure.  As others have said, rather have "pleasant surprise" with the buyer than the other way around.  In this case, good pictures are truly worth 1000 words.

[Kenxxx]

Putting the call out there for any general (or specific) tips, advice, etc, to help me sell more efficiently on ebay (and Brickclassifieds).  About me: I'm not a high volume seller. I tend to have 5 or 10 ebay listings running at any given time (though I'd like to do more) and usually have 1 to 4 units of each item to sell.  I've been doing this a couple years now, so I'm not a complete noob.   I've been busy with other obligations thru the holidays and January, but now - with a little free time - I've decided to get my eBay and BC listings going again. So I picked out a dozen or so items from my inventory that are ripe to sell. The other day decided to get the first five of them up on eBay. Spent an hour or two digging them out of inventory, setting them up, and taking photos. Another hour downloading, and editing photos. With three hours gone, I had to get busy with other responsibilities that day. The next day spent about three more hours writing the listings, and getting them "live" on eBay. I don't have long, verbose listings... usually just 5 or 6 sentences, and sure, I work from a template, but with differences in quantity offered, box condition, free shipping vs. buyer pays, etc... most listings tend to be about 20% standard text and 80% "customized" anyway.  I like to be accurate with my listings... put the correct UPC code in the correct field of the eBay form, etc. I also have to double-check the listings of "the competition"... make sure my prices are where I want them... this all takes time.  I'm guessing it takes me about 70 to 90 minutes per listing.  This just seems terribly inefficient to me.  How do you guys with 200 listings do it?

Any advice is appreciated.

[tractorboy]

2 hours ago, Kenxxx said:

Putting the call out there for any general (or specific) tips, advice, etc, to help me sell more efficiently on ebay (and Brickclassifieds).  About me: I'm not a high volume seller. I tend to have 5 or 10 ebay listings running at any given time (though I'd like to do more) and usually have 1 to 4 units of each item to sell.  I've been doing this a couple years now, so I'm not a complete noob.   I've been busy with other obligations thru the holidays and January, but now - with a little free time - I've decided to get my eBay and BC listings going again. So I picked out a dozen or so items from my inventory that are ripe to sell. The other day decided to get the first five of them up on eBay. Spent an hour or two digging them out of inventory, setting them up, and taking photos. Another hour downloading, and editing photos. With three hours gone, I had to get busy with other responsibilities that day. The next day spent about three more hours writing the listings, and getting them "live" on eBay. I don't have long, verbose listings... usually just 5 or 6 sentences, and sure, I work from a template, but with differences in quantity offered, box condition, free shipping vs. buyer pays, etc... most listings tend to be about 20% standard text and 80% "customized" anyway.  I like to be accurate with my listings... put the correct UPC code in the correct field of the eBay form, etc. I also have to double-check the listings of "the competition"... make sure my prices are where I want them... this all takes time.  I'm guessing it takes me about 70 to 90 minutes per listing.  This just seems terribly inefficient to me.  How do you guys with 200 listings do it?

Any advice is appreciated.

An hour and a half to list a new Lego set sounds like an incredibly long time to me. It might take me 5 minutes to take at most 5 or 6 photos, and another 10-15 minutes to edit (adjust brightness, crop, resize etc) and upload them. Then another 5 minutes to list at the most. And I would consider myself quite finicky and slow, as I don't have a huge number of listings to create.

Usually if I'm listing a sealed set, I'll take a previous listing, click on 'sell similar' and go from there.

Edited January 31, 2016 by tractorboy

[ravenb99]

2 hours ago, Kenxxx said:

  I'm guessing it takes me about 70 to 90 minutes per listing.  This just seems terribly inefficient to me.  

Holy wowsers that is a long time...

I know I have a lot of advantages in the setups I have to streamline the whole process but a LEGO set should not take more than 10 min even with just listing through ebay.  

Would need more info to help you out like if you're using ebay or a 3rd party to list. Used to be some free services for smaller seller under a certain volume.  They also usually have basic photos editing right in the software although for a LEGO set should not need to much.  Also what kind of camera you are using. How is your lighting and so forth. With proper lighting and just a white fabric backdrop you shouldn't need to do anything other than crop which saves a ton of time.  

Usually list my bulk product with a simple front and back photo.  Distressed or damaged box items I add a few photos of the damage and add a simple sentence noting box damage as shown. 

Also add upc and mpn numbers to show up in most searches possible. 

Lots of other little things if you want to pm can help you out if you let me know your exact setup.  

 

[justapilgrim]

I use my phone. Takes 5 minutes tops. My 11 year old can now make her own listings.

[Loghamel]

2 hours ago, tractorboy said:

An hour and a half to list a new Lego set sounds like an incredibly long time to me. It might take me 5 minutes to take at most 5 or 6 photos, and another 10-15 minutes to edit (adjust brightness, crop, resize etc) and upload them. Then another 5 minutes to list at the most. And I would consider myself quite finicky and slow, as I don't have a huge number of listings to create.

Usually if I'm listing a sealed set, I'll take a previous listing, click on 'sell similar' and go from there.

This is my advice.

1.  I take front and back photos.  If the minifgs are rare or really contribute to the value of the set, I might take a close up of the minifig photos from the box.  

2.  I have very short listing information.  Most of my listings are almost identical.  

Title:  LEGO <set title> <set number>  - <Anything special> 

For example;  LEGO Halloween Bat & Pumpkin (40090) - Retired!

3.  Set condition.  "New and sealed.  May show wear."

4.  One sentence to reassure buyers.  "100% feed back, 10 year history."

I also put my shipping & returns terms at the end of my listing.  I know they can get them by click on the tabs, but I want it front and center to remove any ambiguity.

So, with all of that, when I need to make a new listing, the only thing I need to change is set name and number and possibly add/delete retired or rare from the title.  The rest is all copy and paste.  I sometimes add the description from LEGO.com, but really, I'm not trying to sell them on the set in my auction, I'm trying to sell them MY set in the auction.  This is a listing for one of my Republic Gunships.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Star-Wars-RETIRED-RARE-LEGO-75021-Republic-Gunship-Factory-Sealed-New-NISB-/231826888280?ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

This is the only listing that I described the box condition and I've thought many times about removing the word 'Pristine'.  It is as mint as a set can be, but if someone purchased it, they could disagree with my definition of pristine and make a fuss.  Other than that, this is pretty much how all of my listings look and it would take me less than 15 minutes to add a new one by using this as a template.

Lastly, the easiest way to make a new listing is to do what is mentioned earlier and find the set you're wanting to sell and click "sell similar'.  This will auto-fill many of the fields for you.  Any fields such as MPN (set number), UPC, etc. can be obtained by opening other auctions for the same set.  It takes me less than a minute to find and verify via a Google search the UPC of a set simply by opening other auctions to find it listed.

 

[randrace]

Agree with both posts above. 'Sell similar' is your friend. Copy the Best Match listing, as they often have filled out many of the product details. 

For those not using EBay's app to list, get the app! It makes listing speedy and painless. Today's phones have enough megapickles to take a decent picture (I'm using a Blu Life One with 13mp.) 

The app has made what was once a chore fun again. I sometimes list while in Target buying LEGO. I've sold Minifigures before I've even gotten them home.

[jaxman]

5 hours ago, Kenxxx said:

Putting the call out there for any general (or specific) tips, advice, etc, to help me sell more efficiently on ebay (and Brickclassifieds).  About me: I'm not a high volume seller. I tend to have 5 or 10 ebay listings running at any given time (though I'd like to do more) and usually have 1 to 4 units of each item to sell.  I've been doing this a couple years now, so I'm not a complete noob.   I've been busy with other obligations thru the holidays and January, but now - with a little free time - I've decided to get my eBay and BC listings going again. So I picked out a dozen or so items from my inventory that are ripe to sell. The other day decided to get the first five of them up on eBay. Spent an hour or two digging them out of inventory, setting them up, and taking photos. Another hour downloading, and editing photos. With three hours gone, I had to get busy with other responsibilities that day. The next day spent about three more hours writing the listings, and getting them "live" on eBay. I don't have long, verbose listings... usually just 5 or 6 sentences, and sure, I work from a template, but with differences in quantity offered, box condition, free shipping vs. buyer pays, etc... most listings tend to be about 20% standard text and 80% "customized" anyway.  I like to be accurate with my listings... put the correct UPC code in the correct field of the eBay form, etc. I also have to double-check the listings of "the competition"... make sure my prices are where I want them... this all takes time.  I'm guessing it takes me about 70 to 90 minutes per listing.  This just seems terribly inefficient to me.  How do you guys with 200 listings do it?

Any advice is appreciated.

Do you sell on Amazon too?

[Migration]

5 hours ago, Kenxxx said:

Putting the call out there for any general (or specific) tips, advice, etc, to help me sell more efficiently on ebay (and Brickclassifieds).  About me: I'm not a high volume seller. I tend to have 5 or 10 ebay listings running at any given time (though I'd like to do more) and usually have 1 to 4 units of each item to sell.  I've been doing this a couple years now, so I'm not a complete noob.   I've been busy with other obligations thru the holidays and January, but now - with a little free time - I've decided to get my eBay and BC listings going again. So I picked out a dozen or so items from my inventory that are ripe to sell. The other day decided to get the first five of them up on eBay. Spent an hour or two digging them out of inventory, setting them up, and taking photos. Another hour downloading, and editing photos. With three hours gone, I had to get busy with other responsibilities that day. The next day spent about three more hours writing the listings, and getting them "live" on eBay. I don't have long, verbose listings... usually just 5 or 6 sentences, and sure, I work from a template, but with differences in quantity offered, box condition, free shipping vs. buyer pays, etc... most listings tend to be about 20% standard text and 80% "customized" anyway.  I like to be accurate with my listings... put the correct UPC code in the correct field of the eBay form, etc. I also have to double-check the listings of "the competition"... make sure my prices are where I want them... this all takes time.  I'm guessing it takes me about 70 to 90 minutes per listing.  This just seems terribly inefficient to me.  How do you guys with 200 listings do it?

Any advice is appreciated.

Egats Brain, that's a long time per listing. I sell a large amount of used sets from bulk lots so probably take more time per listing than most here because they're all one offs, but I'm still spending five minutes or less per listing. With loose sets I'll take lots of pictures showing the set, the mini figs, the instructions, any rare pieces. With sealed sets, like Loghamel mentioned, front, back, and I will take a shot of the mini figs. I'll also add pics as needed to highlight any imperfections in the box. The description should be brief (no one reads it anyway). Forth quarter last year almost 50% of my items were purchased from a mobile device, I guarantee you hardly any of those buyers read my three sentence description.

[ravenb99]

2 hours ago, randrace said:

Today's phones have enough megapickles

Love me some good mega pickles

[Darth_Raichu]

7 hours ago, Kenxxx said:

Any advice is appreciated.

Practice makes perfect

[Kenxxx]

Well, with everyone telling me what I already know – that I’m taking way too much time – I did start to wonder if I was overestimating. So today I carried a stop watch and ran a little test.  I wanted to list 3 different items and see how much time it took. Here’s each task, in minutes…

1.   Recheck my list (which I had already created) to identify 3 items to sell.	1:00
2.   Set up my “photo studio” (2 pieces of white cardboard).	1:00
3.   The first was a polybag I had sold before, so needed no new photos. So I went to stock area to find the second set – 2 copies of the same set - had to inspect both boxes to confirm they were about equal quality, set up and photograph.	4:00
4.   Return those to the stock area and go get the third set.	1:00
5.   This was an open box item – had to check out the contents, confirm it was all there, lay them out and photograph, return to stock.	5:00
6.   Put away the photo studio	1:00
7.   Needed to get the shipping weight on both sets	3:00
8.   For the polybag, I wasn’t sure how many I had to sell, so had to check inventory, just to get a count	3:00
9.   Went to the computer to list the polybag. First did a quick check on others for sale, just to make sure my price was right. Had to search eBay for polybag by name, and also searched by number.	5:00
10.                Went to My eBay and clicked “relist” on this polybag item, confirmed quantity, and listed.	2:00
11.                Downloaded 3 photos from camera, no cropping, clicked one-step “enhance” in my photo software, created watermark on each one, and saved.	6:00
12.                Did a quick search on eBay for the second item and confirmed my price point. Found the “Best Match” listing, and clicked on “Have one to sell? Sell yours.”	3:00
13.                Uploaded my 2 photos, corrected UPC number and other details the “best” listing had omitted, cut, pasted and fixed my basic text from a template, clicked other options in the eBay form which are not default such as paypal “immediate pay”; as usual, had to click 3 times on the “Best Offer” option in order to turn it OFF, reviewed listing, then clicked “List it”.	6:00
14.                Did a search on eBay for the final (open box) item. Checked prices, found “Best Match”, and clicked “Sell Yours”.	3:00
15.                Uploaded one photo, correct UPC number, etc. Cut and pasted my template, but took a bit more time describing this open box item, etc, reviewed listing, and clicked “List It”     ... so I don't know why it took so long the other day... maybe I was adding in time for interruptions, the phone ringing, etc. Anyway, today took 55 minutes to list 3 items, or about 20 minutes each.  Still seems like a long time.  All tips and advice appreciated.	11:00

[randrace]

I don't do most of the stuff you do in 11, 13, and 15. Cut your time by using the app instead of uploading photos (BIG time savings.) Forget the watermark. If you are worried about people stealing your photos, throw a LEGO built nametag with your store name in your photos (see my avatar for example.)

 

Don't spend too much time on your descriptions: I firmly believe they have much less impact then your feedback. I have had stuff fly off the shelf with a lazy, one sentence description: "I ship quickly and securely."

 

I used to be very precious with my listings. Now I throw them up as quickly as possible, telling myself I'll go back and tune them up later. Often, they sell before I can do that.

 

Edited February 1, 2016 by randrace

[randrace]

On descriptions:

I buy a lot of sealed sets On EBay, I only need two pieces of information in your description:

1. Do you know how to pack a box?

2. How quickly are you going to ship?

Often, the answer to number 1 has to be deduced by digging through your feedback. I look for someone to say, "great packing job," and I'm ready to buy.

 

.

[Zelgazra]

5 hours ago, randrace said:

On descriptions:

I buy a lot of sealed sets On EBay, I only need two pieces of information in your description:

1. Do you know how to pack a box?

2. How quickly are you going to ship?

Often, the answer to number 1 has to be deduced by digging through your feedback. I look for someone to say, "great packing job," and I'm ready to buy.

 

.

Would you outright trust a seller (say with sub 100 feedback) who claims this in their description? Or would you proceed to check feedback anyway? 

Just wondering if, in anyone's opinion, there's any point in bothering trying to advertise my quality packaging methods... or just let the feedback speak for itself (about 50% mention quality packing in their 80 characters available, so I must be doing something right!).

Like Kenxxx (and by the sounds of it, like your former self too Rand) I put a lot of care and detail into my descriptions. I also simply like to write, anyone who's seen any of my posts here might have noticed this.... I'm not one to post up one liner responses usually, it's always a paragraph or two... or three or four. Adding in a blurb about quality shipping and packaging would just make it [the listing] longer... so I reiterate, would you look for the comment in my wall of text, or would you still be digging through my feedback anyway? 

[randrace]

1 hour ago, Zelgazra said:

Would you outright trust a seller (say with sub 100 feedback) who claims this in their description? Or would you proceed to check feedback anyway? 

Just wondering if, in anyone's opinion, there's any point in bothering trying to advertise my quality packaging methods... or just let the feedback speak for itself (about 50% mention quality packing in their 80 characters available, so I must be doing something right!).

Like Kenxxx (and by the sounds of it, like your former self too Rand) I put a lot of care and detail into my descriptions. I also simply like to write, anyone who's seen any of my posts here might have noticed this.... I'm not one to post up one liner responses usually, it's always a paragraph or two... or three or four. Adding in a blurb about quality shipping and packaging would just make it [the listing] longer... so I reiterate, would you look for the comment in my wall of text, or would you still be digging through my feedback anyway? 

I would lead with claims about your packaging skills, yes.

 

I absolutely would love to hear a seller brag about their skills. If you talk about it in the description, I wouldn't investigate your feedback unless there was a negative or neutral. Even then, I'm only looking for negative feedback that is about package condition.

 

 

[biniou]

On 31/1/2016 at 10:47 PM, tractorboy said:

Usually if I'm listing a sealed set, I'll take a previous listing, click on 'sell similar' and go from there.

I do the same way, just changing the title and the picture.

[stephen_rockefeller]

2 hours ago, randrace said:

I would lead with claims about your packaging skills, yes.

 

I absolutely would love to hear a seller brag about their skills. If you talk about it in the description, I wouldn't investigate your feedback unless there was a negative or neutral. Even then, I'm only looking for negative feedback that is about package condition.

 

 

I just want an accurate description of the item.......I don't want to hear someone ramble about how cool they are. It should be a given (should be) that a seller doesn't pack items like an orangutan, and if they do it will most likely be reflected in his/her feedback.