new seller

[chana-4306]

hello I am new to selling on Ebay and would like the ebays community to help me. I have many trading cards both sports and non sports and I guess really what I would like to know is what the ebay community looks for when it comes to selling ungraded cards. what are some dos and don't that can help me become a successful seller to not only help me but also help the buyers get what they are looking for.

[art_primo]

take great pictures of both sides, use a scanner if possible, and include as much pertinent information as possible in the title, disclose any defects in the condition report. there is a lot of competition in that segment so search is a key factor and most of that is gleaned by key words used in your title. the first few words in your listing title are most important in search, also fill in as many item specifics as possible as ebay's algorithms utilize them for search placement. gl. 

[rebell45]

If you start things out at $ .01 or $ .99, be prepared to sell them at that price. Not much profit there.

[tdumonde2014]

You really need to spend some time researching prices, a 1962 nickel is worth a nickel and a 1950 wheat cent is also worth a nickel. Your basketball cards are also overpriced. You're going to give buyers the impression that you don't know what you're doing or that you're trying to rip them off with your over priced items. Good luck.

[duncanvr]

If you have a real expensive trading card don't list it as a new seller before you read up on known scams. Start lots of cheap 99c auctions for some, do a few batch lots. Put others on buy it now make sure your prices are realistic. Make sure when you mail out mail the cards in a clear plastic postcard sleeve. Add sticker on postcard sleeve visit my ebay shop /please leave 5 star feedback.. List something every day, aim auctions to end at 7.30pm daily. Be fair on your postage cost make it actual, do make sure your postage policy is set up correctly, i.e. block places you don't want to ship to. This is a big one, answer all questions as soon as possible. Offer combined shipping that allows them to buy 5 cards at one postage rate. Use very clear photos. Block non paying bidders on auctions but give them a few days before. Reach out to every buyer when they purchase and tell them item shipped please allow for postal delays. These tips from a big seller since 2004 and near to 14000 feedback.

Only upgrade your store as you need to. Pay all fees asap any that are not covered by MP. Make sure you have enough each month to cover any store fee.

Use a separate bank account for ebay alone.

[wesk_36]

Make your pictures more user-friendly.

Most of your pictures are sideways, one listing picture is upside-down, I wonder why?

Same with the coin pictures, as well as being blurry. One coin says "misprint possibly. Half obverse side of penny is not there"

The coin is not missing half it's side, it's just worn, and what does "misprint possibly" mean? The coins you list are in poor shape and common, overpriced when adding postage and who is going to do a local pick-up for a penny or nickle that is worth a penny or a nickle?

[duncanvr]

Get rid of buy it now under auctions, auction start price only. Your pics are no good as other member commented. Use all white background, the pics need to be high resolution very sharp detail I would not buy based on the pics you have up the way they are. Your new listing the pic is sideways do you check your listings once they are up?  Coins should be center in the pic and crop them more. Build your feedback a little by buying from a few other sellers.

[jayjaspersgarage]

I would advise that you slow down and learn about the standard ebay envelope shipping program for sports trading cards.  Look at some other sellers listing sports cards and see what they charge for shipping.

Your coin listing are not going to sell.  First of all you need to post the pics in the correct orientation.  Sideways makes it harder to grade.  They also need to be a higher quality photo like my coin listings.  

[go-bad-chicken]

For auctions as @duncanvr explains in post #5 end your auctions a 6:30 PM pst. Because that's 7:30 pm mst, 8:30 PM cst, and 9:30 PM est. That's nighty night time for folks on the east coast. I you go much later than that you risk losing your audience who often times want to wait until the last minute to bid. 

Don't do this anymore. You have your auction ending around 01:30 am est., 00:30 am cst., 11:30 PM mst., and 10:30 pm pst. 

All the real people with money have already gone to bed because they've got to go to work tomorrow so they can make more money to spend here on eBay.

The only people who are awake right now are eBay sellers, and other gainfully unemployed people.😉

 

Also use a piece of foam board as a backdrop. To many prospective buyers the wood grain backdrop looks like you are throwing your cards on the ground (wood floor) to photograph them. From a buyer's perspective you never want to interject doubt into their minds. 

After that crop your photos a lot tighter to the card.

Post all of your photos right side up and orientated in the correct position. Don't make your buyers  turn their heads 90 degrees sideways like Linda Blair just so they can view your photos in their correct proper orientation. 

Keep coming back to this community board and keep asking questions. And pretty soon you'll be walking and chewing bubble gum at the same time.

Best of luck and welcome to eBay.

[fashunu4eeuh]

Hi and welcome!

I do not sell trading cards, so i cannot speak to that. But I looked over your listings and had a couple of thoughts. Like other posters noted, your photos need to be clearer and right side up. Your coins are currently not clear enough to make buying decisions with. The details must be crisp.

I also noticed your title for the 1972 penny straight off because of the words “misprint possibly”. Never list anything that is not absolute. If you are not sure of something, do not guess. Items for eBay cannot be “possibly” something. They must be “absolutely” something to avoid misleading buyers.

If you do not know it is a misprint for certain, then it is not a good candidate for listing. Concentrate on what you do know and do not ask a buyer to speculate. It is risky enough selling online without adding additional risks to a transaction. Not everything is a good idea to sell on eBay. Sellers have to be discerning in their selections to be successful here.

The auctions format is best for rare or highly collectible items, luxury goods, or something limited in number like event tickets. And although eBay will advise you to start the auctions very low, there is the chance it could sell for that low opening bid, and you could lose money. Your fees, expenses, acquisition costs, etc generally need to be rolled into the price. Fixed price listings can give you that security. 

Don’t get discouraged. Everyone goes thru the eBay learning curve. In no time you’ll get the hang of this and be going like gangbusters. If you can persevere thru your first 6 months, you have a better chance of making a go of eBay. It just takes time, so don’t quit the day job as eBay is not a get-rich-quick kind of business. It requires careful application. So hang in there, good luck, and come back anytime you need help.

[duncanvr]

What is a day job?😂

[cardzncomics]

I definitely recommend as someone else says using something as a background for most items when taking pictures.

Also, you have a baseball card that you mention in both title and description as being 1953 Topps, but it is actually a 1991 Topps archives card, so not as valuable.  Only the Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays from the 1991 archives have any value.

When shipping out the single trading cards, I would recommend a very heavy duty cardboard on both sides, as well as FRAGILE and DO NOT BEND stickers.  I ship all my cards via small boxes, but that depends on what the price of the cards sell for.

I would also recommend taking multiple pictures of the front and back of an item, such as sports card, DVD, Blu-ray, etc.  For the sports cards, I would recommend taking pictures of the corners, sides and other angles as it will give the buyer more of an accurate detail of what the card looks like.

Best of luck.  Hope you do well.

[cardboard-haze]

Actually that's not true for my sports card auctions. Ifi startout the bidding at $.01 I'm way more likely to sell that card for more money than if I'd listed it with higher starting price. Or worse yet, it won't sell at all even ifi start bidding at a few bucks instead of $.01. And another big thing for me is that my $.01 auctions sell for more money/greatersell through rate than ifi start opening bid at $.99. 

[cardboard-haze]

Wow. That was a really thoughtful, thorough response you made! I just wanted to voice my appreciation of your knowledge of the card market as well as your kindness in taking so much time and effort in sharing it here with us. Thamk you!!