How to use different pricing tactics to sell items on Ebay, with a lean toward hoarded items.

Buy It Now with a Low Price

A way to move hoarded things is with Buy It Now (BIN) but set the price low. You have to think of these items as “about to go into the trash”, and though they don’t have a high price, they do have a huge profit margin of 100%.

I sold two things I found around the house this way: a DeCecco Pasta Tin, and a miter guide.

Example: The Damaged Vintage Tin

The tin was in the pantry (it’s just a cabinet) way in back. I pulled it out, and saw that it was scratched. Damaged items are great candidates for pricing at the bottom of the market. I looked at recent sold prices, and they were up above $8. I set my price at $5.

The title: Vintage De Cecco 12. Spaghetti Storage Tin w/Flaws

Note “w/Flaws” – you must disclose any flaws. Most used items have some flaws, but this had a big scratch on the front, so I put it into the title. Then, for the second photo, I showed the flaw, and I was pointing to it.

In the “condition” field: See photos. Scratch and dent in tin.

In the “description”, which most buyers do not read: Clean tin. Scratch and dent in tin. See images.

I could not find a box that fit, so I took a larger box, and cut it down into a smaller box. This takes a bit of time, but after making dozens of these, it’s become pretty easy.

You use scissors, a utility knife, and a ruler to cut and score corrugated cardboard. To create the box, use plain white glue (aka, school glue), and clothespins as clamps, and tape when it’s impossible to clamp pieces together. I use a lot of glue, usually a tablespoon or more per box.

Example: The Miter Guide

The miter guide was found in a box of “junk” that was too nice to toss.

Nothing else on Ebay was exactly like it. The more professional guides were pretty expensive, and the cheap new ones were also not cheap. This one was smaller, and clearly for a small table saw, perhaps a hobby table saw.

So I set the price at $7. I figured that sent a correct price signal: it’s not anything amazing.

The measurements appeared nonstandard, so I took careful measurements, and created a photo with the measurements. This took a lot of time:

That photo really “sells” the item. It also avoids returns. Exact measurements for parts really help buyers make purchasing decisions. (The same goes for clothes.)

I used Libre Draw to make the arrows and letters.

Auctions

Ebay auctions are simple: you set a starting price, and then hope for bids. The highest bid at the end of the auction period wins. What if you don’t care about the final price, but want to move things faster?

Auction with Buy It Now and Best Offer

Ebay auctions have a feature called “Buy it Now” (BIN), which shows the reader you’re willing to end the auction for a specific price. Most listings are made with “Buy it Now”, without an auction – this is basically the same as making a listing in an online store: people pay the BIN price and get the item.

Often, “Best Offer” (BO) is used with “Buy it Now”. This allows you, the seller, to set a price, but show you’re open to accepting a lower price. Sometimes, I’ll submit a “Best Offer” of 10% to 20% below the asking price, and often get the item at that price.

What most people don’t know about is using the “Best Offer” feature with auctions.

If you make a listing for an auction with “Best Offer”, it shows you’re willing to accept an opening offer that will end the auction.

Once live bidding begins, the best offer feature is turned off, and all offers are cancelled.

The rule is simple: the live auction supersedes the secret offers.

Example: Art Auction Catalog, Auction Listing with Best Offer

I listed an auction catalog of a Marc Newsom piece. I figured someone would pay between $20 and $100 for it. It’s a lot of money for a book, but, he’s a popular figure among people interested in design and luxury products. The item promoted in the book was sold for over $3 million.

So I opened the auction at $15. That was pretty high. Most auctions start at 99 cents. I just wasn’t willing to sell it for $0.99.

I could have put a “Buy it Now”, but chose “Best Offer” instead.

If I’d used BIN, I’d have put $100. I wouldn’t want to set the price too low, because it sends a signal that the item isn’t valuable. However, my goal was to move the time, not to get top dollar. So I used “Best Offer”.

Think about how this situation feels to the buyer. Their options are to participate in a public bidding war, which can be fun, or to accede to the seller and pay the $100. Once BIN is in effect, it’s almost like a ceiling on the auction, and that’s not fun.

BO is different. BO allows the buyer to exercise their wealth, and terminate the auction with an offer.

BO puts the seller in the position of accepting the high offer, or rejecting it and waiting for the first public bid. BO gives the buyer control of the situation.

Giving some control to the buyer is good.

My goals were simple: to sell the item for a price I found acceptable; to sell the item quickly.

My goal was not to “beat” the buyer, or to force buyers into competing with each other.

I forget the final price, but it was in the $40 to $75 range.

99 Cent Auctions

Dollar auctions are a tactic to increase sales volume.

When you have inventory that isn’t moving, and they’re all in one category, you can increase sales by having a bunch of dollar auctions. If sales within a category increase, Ebay will show your other listings in higher positions. The higher your listing shows, especially in the “Best Match” sorting, the more likely that you’ll sell it.

Additionally, you must be in the top 50 listings to even be shown on mobile phones.

To have dollar auctions, do the following:

• Determine what you want to sell. I just pick old items that aren’t selling.
• Set the shipping to Calculated Shipping, and make sure all the items are the correct weight. Box up bulky items and weigh, adding the dimensions, so you don’t undercharge for shipping.
• If it’s possible, reclassify the item as a “Collectible”. If you buy an Ebay store, it reduces the listing price to nothing.
• List the items as a 10-day auction, on Thursday evening. The auctions will end on a Sunday night, which is the best time to sell. If you miss Thursday night, you can use a 7-day auction and list on Sunday night.

Odds are, most of the items won’t sell. These are items that didn’t sell before, and they aren’t likely to sell now. You might luck out and sell a few things.

If you have items in the categories “Fashion” or “Collectibles”, you can buy a store membership that will let you create many listings for “free”. These two categories have “browsers” who just go onto Ebay and “window shop”, looking for great deals.