the selling of music cds

[walkav0]

what is the best way to sell music cds?

[rabites-n-chocobos]

Do you do any testing of your discs?

Like through the CD into CD player and listen for a few minutes?

Through the DVD into a DVD player and watch for a few minutes?

Through the game into a console and play for a few minutes?

[musicyouneed]

I've been selling CD's for years.  Bought out a couple of CD stores when they closed about 10 years ago, so have 25,000 or more yet to list.  It is not an easy sell now, many young people don't purchase them and collectors want specific issues and in perfect condition.  You have to do research, research and more research.  If it is a common CD, you won't get very much, best to lot it with others.  

You have to figure out your costs.  Even if you got your CD for free, by the time you pay for shipping and the packing material it can add up to quite a bit.  My selling costs with ebay are 25%.  So if I sell a CD for $5 - free shipping, it will cost me money to sell it.  $5.00.  Ebay takes 25% which leaves me with $3.75.  From that I have to pay the actual shipping with is $4 and .50 for an envelope which leaves me in the hole 75 cents and that is if you got the CD for free.  It will take you about 15 minutes for list a cd, taking pictures and research so at that rate you are working for peanuts per hour.  You could probably earn more working at McDonalds. 

If I didn't have all my inventory, and I was starting again now, I wouldn't do it.  

[2013grotz]

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@rabites-n-chocobos wrote:

That's some very good information. Do you resurface you discs?

I don't go anywhere near "resurfacing" discs, mainly because it primarily involves polishing/sanding the surface down.  Generally if the idea is to remove scratches, the problem is it kills the surface of the disc overall.   So generally if a disc I get doesn't test well, I just toss it.

[gamersbaystore]

Do I test my discs? Yes and no, it depends on the product. With CD's and DVD's, if they have anything more than a few very light scratches, they get thrown out, so there is no need to test them. I do test many of my games though.

As for resurfacing, In my experience it isn't very cost effective to resurface cheaper items like the average CD or DVD. Disc resurfacing is a time consuming and very expensive process given the materials required, such as polishing agents, pads, etc.

I've resurfaced many games though over the years. If its an expensive game, then its worth the time, money, and effort to repair it.

If you do it wrong, you destroy the disc! Too much heat can permanently warp the plastic of the disc, or destroy the data layers as well.

[katzrul15]

@gamersbaystore 

Wasn't second guessing your decision to not take a pix of the back of the disc, etc - was just wondering if it created claim issues for you, affected sales, etc

I would love to stop doing all the pix of a pre-owned disc.  lol  

Just afraid of claims, buyer issues, reduced sales, etc

[gamersbaystore]

Exactly! You really have to factor in all costs of making a sale. I've tried free shipping, its a dead end once you factor in all those costs. I see no logic in earning 10 cents on every sale, its a waste of time.

I will from time to time throw up a few bargains with free shipping just to draw more eyeballs though, but thats as far as it goes.

I'd imagine free shipping is a dying breed now that shipping rates are sky high. Media mail rates just recently went from $3.19 to $3.49. ebay is now putting fees on the entirety of the sale, including shipping  and taxes. Then you have the per transaction fee as well, free shipping is dead in the water.

[gamersbaystore]

No, its never caused me any problems. I often sell 3 or more cd's at a time to a single buyer, no one has ever complained even once. The buyers who're going to cause you trouble are going to do so regardless.

As long as your CD's are clean, you have nothing to worry about. Offering free returns takes out the guess work for the buyer too.

I just make sure I'm selling clean disks that are going to play. If I think there's scratches that might affect play, I just dont list them.

My biggest headache with returns is people lying about the reasons for the return, an issue I've always had with games, and rarely with anything else. They will buy original XBOX games, then open a case claiming the game is defective, all while admitting they dont own an original XBOX console to begin with.

[inhawaii]

Year old thread.

[femmefan1946]

I take a pix of everything and it is time consuming........

CDs are flat and scanning is faster. The scan is automatically on your desktop. And you can focus on important details.

That being said,  CDs are no longer behind the cashier at the thrift stores because they are no longer being stolen.

[kh-stanley1]

Hi everyone,

Due to the age of this thread, it has been closed to further replies. Please feel free to start a new thread HERE if you wish to continue to discuss this topic.

Thank you for understanding.