Tips for becoming an Ebay seller from those who know

[marsdaman]

I bought 2 gaming consoles with 2 rare games at around $180. It wouldn't have been so much had I have gotten a certain game the first time, so I bought after I lost an auction from another seller as a result of that(not wanting the rare game to get away). Then, I bought the one that I originally wanted(same game in better cond), when the original offer was reneged on by the bidder I lost to. To recap, I do have 2 console systems and 2 very rare games. So, at this point, the minimum that I could sell for is $90 for each and break even. I should be able to get that; the game itself is being sold at $50-$60 in acceptable cond and the ones that I bought are in Good shape and the other one is in Like New shape in original cases and booklets. Now, if I sell with ebay, I notice that they charge around $15 to list each of the items and there's probably another $15 in shipping costs. That would make the new breaking even price be $120 for each system. It doesn't seem like there is much room for profit, considering the penny-pincher buyers at ebay. When you put an auction up, don't you risk losing money(if the price plateaus at a certain price that is below your expectations)? That being said, auction, auction and reserve, auction and fixed, or fixed for my situation? Also, I'm new to this, so what ebay options do you select and what do they mean(One of them said "Value Price", etc)? Any info would be helpful.

[dtexley3]

First, paragraphs are your friend, your wall o text is hard to follow.

Second, electronics and games are a high risk sales area with scammers just watching for newbie sellers.  Please search for SCAM in the forums and read the long painful threads of those who have learned the hard way before you list these items.

[dtexley3]

---

@marsdaman wrote:

I bought 2 gaming consoles with 2 rare games at around $180.  I do have 2 console systems and 2 very rare games.

So, at this point, the minimum that I could sell for is $90 for each and break even. I should be able to get that; the game itself is being sold at $50-$60 in acceptable cond and the ones that I bought are in Good shape and the other one is in Like New shape in original cases and booklets.

Now, if I sell with ebay, I notice that they charge around $15 to list each of the items and there's probably another $15 in shipping costs. That would make the new breaking even price be $120 for each system. It doesn't seem like there is much room for profit, considering the penny-pincher buyers at ebay.

When you put an auction up, don't you risk losing money(if the price plateaus at a certain price that is below your expectations)? That being said, auction, auction and reserve, auction and fixed, or fixed for my situation?

Also, I'm new to this, so what ebay options do you select and what do they mean(One of them said "Value Price", etc)? Any info would be helpful.

---

You would need to start your auctions at $105 + shipping in order to make sure you didn't lose money.  The better option would be to decide on how much you think you can get as a fixed price Buy It Now (BIN) listing and list them that way with Immediate Payment Required (IPR).  Using a BIN with IPR will protect you from many of the scammers that will come after you as a new seller.

[thatsallfolks]

You should charge your buyer for shipping.

A new seller offering an item in a high-scam category should use Fixed Price, without the Best Offer option.

eBay charges 10% of what the buyer pays you. PayPal charges 2.9%.

Check the prices of SOLD items (not listed items) to determine a realistic price.

[siayan]

Also since you are a new seller in a problem category you should ship to US only, accept only US funds.

I would recommend listing at your bottom price BUY IT NOW with immediate payment required.

Try one first and see how it goes then if all goes ok, try the other one.