by Frank Edwards
In the last issue of the Modern, we addressed the world of online auction buying. In this issue we will look at the other half of the auction experience, selling. Again, although there are more auction sites popping up every month, for our purposes we will focus on the undisputed champion of the online auction world, eBay. Despite the fact there are now auction sites which will list your items for free, they still fall short in that they do not attract enough bidders to generate top prices. If you want to check this out for yourself, search the completed auctions of items which are similar to the ones you wish to sell. eBay, Amazon.com and others will keep completed auction results for weeks after the close.
Once you settle on the site you wish to use, you need to establish an account, with a user name and password, and probably give a credit card to pay the listing and sales fees. You may have already created this account for any online auction buying you have already done.
Before you can list any items there are several decisions to be made: First, will you establish a secret reserve price for your item and set a low opening bid to encourage bidders? The upside to this approach is that you will be assured of either selling your item at the lowest price you find acceptable, or you will not sell the item at all. The downside to this approach is that many online bidders hate reserve auctions and will avoid them entirely. I don’t recommend reserves for that reason. If there is a bottom line price you need to receive, I recommend making that the opening bid amount. If this is a reasonable price, you will find bidders to jump in. If not, you will likely receive no bids and have to determine if your expectations are a little too high.
The second decision is length of time to set the auction. You can usually select 3, 5, 7, or 10 days. I recommend 5 or 7 days, as 3 days is so short you may miss potential bidders who may not check their favorite categories every day. I also think 10 days is too long as there is no sense of urgency and much, if not most, of the bidding will likely take place in the last 12 hours anyway.
The third decision is how to describe your item. You must remember how most of your potential bidding audience will find you. They will either scroll through a list of all items in a category, or they will perform a search using keywords. This is why the description is so important. First, find the category which most closely represents your item. Then create a title which contains a very brief description of the item which specifically includes the most important keywords. If you are selling a Stickley chair you might want to make your title: Stickley Mission Oak Arts & Crafts Chair. Your item would then be listed on any search which looked for Stickley, Mission, or Arts & Crafts. This will maximize the potential bidding audience. Avoid words like “Wow”or “Look,” as online bidders are a relatively intelligent and educated bunch and can make their own determinations without your help.
In the actual description portion of the page, be as specific as possible regarding history, condition, size, etc. Be as brutally honest as possible. I believe in describing any possible blemishes or faults almost to the point of exaggeration. The absolute last thing you want as a new seller is an unhappy buyer. They will leave negative feedback on your account, and you might as well give up selling.
The fourth decision is how you will display your image. The best way to get your images on the page will be with a digital camera and a personal website. Digital cameras can be purchased for around $300-$800. If this is a little more than you want to spend, you can take pictures of your item with a standard film camera and scan the pictures into your computer after you have them developed. Save your photo in JPEG or GIF format, and either upload your photo to your personal (or business) website, or use one of the many image hosting services available. These image hosts are ubiquitous on eBay and, in your online travels, make a note of the names and websites of those which appear to do a good job.
To complete the form, you will need to select acceptable shipping methods, who pays for shipping, and which payment types you will accept. With all this information, you can complete the form (shown on this page) and your auction has begun.
Congratulations, you have everything you need, right? Well, it depends on how aggressive you want to be. If you have really done your homework on the items you intend to sell, you might have compiled a list of previous unsuccessful bidders who made bids which you would have been happy to accept. You could then do a little e-mail marketing to inform these people that your item is now up for bids. I have done this successfully in the past but I always informed them that this was a one time courtesy e-mail and that no further messages would be sent without their permission. Unsolicited e-mails are a tricky thing, so feel free to just sit back and watch the auction progress, if that makes you feel more comfortable.
If all goes well, you will begin to see some action on your item. Potential bidders may have some questions, which they will e-mail to you.Try to answer them as quickly, but as carefully, as possible. Remember, you are building an online reputation with every item you list and all correspondence you make. Be sure to check your e-mails several times a day as your auction comes to a close.
Now the time has finally arrived. Hopefully a last minute bidder pushed the price past your wildest expectations. Now what? I always check the results soon after the close of the auction. I request the e-mail address of the high bidder and send them a note of congratulations. You can wait for the auction site to officially notify you of the high bidder and his or her e-mail address, but eBay is not always reliable about doing this in a timely manner. Ask your bidder to supply his shipping address so you can calculate the shipping charges (unless you have committed to a certain fee in your auction description).
When the bidder responds, calculate the total, including shipping, and e-mail them the address to which you want the payment sent. It is a good idea to inform them that a cashier’s check or money order will allow you to ship immediately, whereas a personal check will be held for two weeks. This will reduce the likelihood of receiving a bad check.
Before you receive the payment, prepare the item for shipping, packaging as carefully as possible. When you receive payment, be sure to insure the package for the full value of the item, ship promptly and inform your bidder that the package is on the way. You’ve done it!
Accurate desciption of merchandise, timely communication and prompt shipment are the keys to being a successful seller. Like the fresh breath commercial says, “you never have a second chance to make a first impression.” If you follow these steps and treat your buyers with honesty and respect, you will find a new universe of customers, a guaranteed way to sell off unwanted items at higher than garage sale prices, and the chance to join one of the hottest areas of the online world before you get passed by. Good luck and happy selling!
I hope you enjoyed this series. If you have any success or horror stories to tell, please e-mail me at: frankedward@home.com