Any book- seller here? I need some advice...

[mintra98]

Hi there,

I've been thinking for the past month to start selling books on ebay. I need to move listings on health & beauty products as soon by asking for the lowest possible prices (I get fed up with them by now). I'll also need to get rid of items not gonnna sell, or else they'll occupy lots of space. 

I just love books and the idea of selling book. However, I'm aware that it'll require lots of effort and time putting into it. Anyone who have much experience in selling books? Please school me a bit.

Thank you.

[go-bad-chicken]

There are currently 68,321,535* books listed on eBay.com.

So it is a bit of a tougher category to crack, but it is do able.

My advice

A) Take great pictures.

B) Accurately describe each book's condition in detail.

C) Use bubble wrap and boxes to ship your books. Do not use bubble mailers or poly mailers, the later two shipping methods, will result in higher rates of returns and unhappy buyers, due to damage the books incur while they are in transit, due to improper protection.

“Books” Category on eBay.com

List of 12 Sub Categories within the “Books” Category

  1 - Antiquarian & Collectible (Antique Books & Manuscripts) – 3,273,891*

  2 - Audiobooks – 595,697*

  3 - Book & Magazine Wholesale & Bulk Lots – 88,863*

  4 - Book Accessories – 218,975*

  5 - Catalogs – 93,019*

  6 - Children & Young Adult Books – 3,851,194*

  7 - Cookbooks – 2,052,360*

  8 - Fiction & Literature Books – 11,300,479*

  9 - Magazine Back Issues – 3,137,830*

10 - Nonfiction Books – 21,164,116*

11 - Other Books – 10,554,707*

12 - Textbooks & Educational Books – 11,990,404*

Grand Total: 68,321,535* 

*Book Listings within the Books Category on eBay.com (Worldwide Location selected) as of 01-12-2018

[retrose1]

OP, books are going the way of VHS tapes.  Some still sell, but unless you tap into a category tha still has a following, then books will be slow movers.

I suggest that you pay attention to the percentage of sell through.  If a category has 5 million books and only 1,000 of them sell a month, you can do the math.  There are a few categories that have a higher sell through, you just have to find them.

[bubbleman2010]

When I search for books or book on ebay I get 20,185,207 so ebay is hiding 48,136,328 or just displaying 1 out of ever 3 listed so if you paid to list 100 books buyers are only going to see 3 listings.... Get real expensive real fast....

[luckythewinner]

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@bubbleman2010 wrote:

When I search for books or book on ebay I get 20,185,207 so ebay is hiding 48,136,328 or just displaying 1 out of ever 3 listed so if you paid to list 100 books buyers are only going to see 3 listings.... Get real expensive real fast....

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(a) Not every book has the words 'book' or 'books' in the title. So that search is not going to return all books for those search terms. IMHO your logic is flawed.  

(b) I doubt anyone searching for a book types in the word 'book' or 'books' and then browses. I suspect they type in the title of the book. 

(c) eBay has only ever shown the first 10,000 listings in any search. If you try to browse to #10,001m, you get an error message saying you need to search better. So in any search that returns 1 million results, by definition 99% are "hidden". But that does not mean they cannot be found with a sensible search. 

[go-bad-chicken]

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@bubbleman2010 wrote:

When I search for books or book on ebay I get 20,185,207 so ebay is hiding 48,136,328 or just displaying 1 out of ever 3 listed so if you paid to list 100 books buyers are only going to see 3 listings.... Get real expensive real fast....

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There are currently 37,826,788 books listed on eBay.com using the default "default" location filter.

The above number of 68,321,535 *** is using the "Worldwide" location filter.

*** Book Listings within the Books Category on eBay.com (Worldwide Location selected) as of 01-12-2018

[kathieskorner]

I've sold books on ebay for quite some time - I used to also sell on Amazon, but sales there all but disappeared several years ago.   In June 2017 I opened a new account just for books and magazines - I have about 150 listings now with 50-100 listed at any one time depending on whether I get a free listing promo during the month.    For the last six months of 2017 I sold 52  listings and 3 so far in 2018. 

Since I rarely pay more than 50 cents or $1 for a book - it tends to be a high profit category for me - about $8-$10 per book or lot on average.   However, I am very selective about the books I list - very little in the way of recent fiction or books from the best seller lists.   

You will be competing against some very big book dealers that pay next to nothing for their inventory and sell most books for $3.99 with free shipping.  My lower limit is $7.99 with free shipping or $5.99 plus shipping.   

Since 150 is about my shelf space limit - I will cull my inventory in April and October  and sell some at the community yard sale for the 50 cents - $1 that I originally paid for them.   The trick is not to get attached to the ones that don't sell. 

[southern*sweet*tea]

Books still sell, you just have to pick the right kind and be prepared to wait for the right person to come along and buy them. 

[moondogblues]

Unless the book is ultra-rare..as in 1st edition signed, or illustrations from the Golden Age, etc...they go for pennies. Our book exchanges here will not even accept anymore, and have taken armloads to the dump. If you can get a buck plus 4 for Media Mail you are very lucky.

[1786davycrockett]

Unless you are well schooled in literature and book marketing, this is probably not an area in which you might feel comfortable.  Most popular books from the past 30 years are saturating the market, and the bigger booksellers are able to purchase skids-full of recalled books from Barnes & Noble, Target, Wal-Mart, etc for pennies on the dollar -- and then sell at a greatly reduced cover price, plus free shipping.

What I primarily sell is "out of print" titles; older titles with low print runs; oddball fiction & nonfiction; classic genre fiction; etc -- very little from the past 30 years, in other words.

You should also have a well-rounded appetite for both fiction and nonfiction, and be ready to supply specific questions on publication dates, editions, differences between publishers, and complete overall conditions of each book.  Equally invaluable is the ability to invent the proper "key words" within the 80 characters allowed by eBay, which will help you sell the book.

Perfect spelling and grammar are a MUST -- I have seen far too many listings of books which are doomed to NEVER be sold, simply because the seller spelled the title of the book (or the author's name) incorrectly.  And proper grammar reflects on the seller, as well, since it is indicative that the book-seller is a professional, and pays attention to detail.

Loving books does help -- but LIVING books is what makes them sell.

[anthemshop247]

Definitely sell what you love sourcing. I have been selling books on eBay for a little more than two years. Selling on eBay is a job so do what you enjoy doing while being mindful that you're also on online selling to make a profit.

Start selling what you are willing to dispose of from your personal library. As you list and compare prices, your learning curve will go north at a decent pace. You will have to learn book description terminology.  Speak the same language as the book lovers especially the collectors. Book searchers can tell from the language of your description if you are knowledgeable. 

Fiction, especially bestsellers that are mass produced, will not give you profit unless they are signed. But not all signed books are desirable either.  Depends on the titles and the author.  

Out of print fiction and nonfiction books, interesting and odd nonfiction will give you profit. Before you buy books for resale, research the competitiveness first.

Like other posters said, some books can sell fast if your price is right but have patience as well if they take time to sell. A right buyer will come along if your books are searchable so make sure your titles, keywords and item specifics are properly listed. 

Be aware also that books occupy real estate if the turnover rate is slower than your sourcing pace.

[ripcityresell]

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@bubbleman2010 wrote:

When I search for books or book on ebay I get 20,185,207 so ebay is hiding 48,136,328 or just displaying 1 out of ever 3 listed so if you paid to list 100 books buyers are only going to see 3 listings.... Get real expensive real fast....

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1 out of 3 =/= 3 out of 100

With the math given, they will show 29.54 out of every 100 listed.

[krazzykats]

You "can" use bubble mailers, I do it all the time with books, but I surround the book in cardboard sheets slightly larger than the book itself, so it takes the beating from the post office, instead of the book. I use clean, recycled cardboard from boxes that I cutup into squares. 

I also double box other  things by cutting clean, used cardboard boxes into flat sheets, then into sizes for double boxing.  I "curl" smaller cardboard pieces up to keep items centered in the box or envelope.

Just insert the book between two sheets of cardboard before placing in envelope mailer.

Buy sealing/packing tape by the case on eBay.  It's cheaper than buying at the store, less than $1.00 a roll when packed 36 rolls to a case. I use Seal Plus brand, which works out quite well.

Dollar store type tape usually peels and splits.

[thallidguy]

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@1786davycrockett wrote:

Loving books does help -- but LIVING books is what makes them sell.

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Quoted and reposted for emphasis. That was eloquently said.

I think this thread is filled with sound observations and well-meaning advice. My own experience selling books on eBay is not great, but limited in scope. I get the sense that the same wisdom applies here as in many other categories: Running with the herd is self-defeating; don't sell what everyone else is selling; find a niche with little competition and try to make your hay there. What you sell and how you sell it has to stand out.

I recall that some of the first sellers to make real money on eBay (at least the ones that got mentioned in the press) were rare book sellers. If you want to talk about people who live books — they fit the bill. They know what's valuable; they know what buyers in that category are looking for; and they know how to source their merchandise.

I tend to sell my books on Amazon, mostly because listing tends to be easier. It's the one thing that I find easier to do on a mobile app: Scan the UPC code, fill in the few details that Amazon leaves to you, and you're done. I have no real evidence that the market there is any better than here. One thing I will say: Amazon uses its 3P sellers to discover new items that it could sell itself. So if you can find something that they're not already selling themselves, you have this happy time — who knows how long it will last — before the steam roller comes along and takes over the market for that item. I compare this to selling on eBay in that big book sellers who can get huge wholesale discounts on in-print books are the steam rollers in this market. You need to find something that they can't be bothered to sell.

[rolenboy01]

Be prepared to sit on the inventory for quite some time that is the main thing you should be aware of.