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2009-11-21

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Agriculture

Lifestyles

Thursday, June 25, 2009 12:49 PM

EBAY QUEEN: Seller asks, 'What am I doing wrong?'

By SUZIE EADS, Ask The eBay Queen

Dear eBay Queen: I’ve been selling on eBay for a couple of years. I mostly offer children’s toys that sell between $15 and $25 each. I see that eBay has started free auction-style listings. I listed five things with my favorite listing tool, TurboLister. I did not receive any of my listings for free. What could I be doing wrong?

I talked to my husband about this, and he said that it wasn’t much of a deal anyway because of the final value fees. Can you explain this to me? Why do you think eBay is doing this? — Ace Toys & Comics

Dear Ace: eBay’s five free listing promotion started June 16. The Web site is giving sellers their first five auction-style listings free, without insertion fees, but only if you list with the “Sell Your Item” form on eBay. Since you use TurboLister (or if you used another listing program), you’ll pay regular listing fees. The Sell Your Item form is the old school way of listing your item. Here’s a link to the Sell Your Item Form:

The Final Value Fees on the free listings will be 8.75 percent or $20, whichever is lower. On a regular auction, the final value fee percentage is 8.75 percent, up to $25. If your item sells for less than $25, you’ll always save money. This is because the 8.75 percent Final Value Fee for the free listings is the same as the 8.75 percent fee for regular auctions. You’ll save a dime, a quarter or 35 cents depending on the starting price.

I call all of this “eBay math.” I’m not so good at regular math, let alone eBay’s math. I don’t know how many items you list a month. I list quite a few, and to stop and list five in a unique way that I am not used to would take me longer and mess up my work structure. Since your items are selling between $15 and $25, I would say you should weigh the value of the free listing against the value of your listing program. My listing program is worth more to me than saving 35 cents.

Dear eBay Queen: I’m seriously considering trying my hand at being an eBay princess (since the queen’s spot is filled). I have too much stuff, and I’m tired of paying storage. Where do I begin? — Christina

Dear Christina: I’m not sure what kind of stuff you have to sell. The first step is registering for an eBay and PayPal account. Once you have done that, you should find something in your storage that would be easy to ship. I think it’s better to put up four or five auctions at a time instead of just one; so look for a couple of things to list.

Once you have found the items you want to sell, do a little research by looking at completed listings. You can get an idea for what your item will sell for and you can see the verbiage other sellers use in their auctions. If you are comfortable with what your item will sell for, then it’s time to take your photos and list your item.

Go to the large “Sell” button at the top of any eBay page. Follow the instructions on the “Sell Your Item” form, upload your photos within that form and hit the list button. You’ve listed your first item.

I’ve given you the abbreviated version on how to sell things on eBay. eBay has some great tutorials on how to list your items. Read more about it at http://pages.ebay.com/education/selling.html

Good luck in de-cluttering your house!

Strange eBay item of the week: Item 330338236891 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page). I was browsing through the lamp category on eBay and saw this oil lamp burner. I watched it go from $15 to $1,541. You’ll never look at oil lamp parts the same again. Check out “Unusual Oil Lamp Burner Flip Top no Threads” at http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330338236891

Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com. Check out her blog at http://asktheebayqueen.com

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EBAY QUEEN: Seller asks, 'What am I doing wrong?'

By SUZIE EADS, Ask The eBay Queen

E-mail this story to a friend | Print this article | Enjoy the convenience of home delivery of The Ottawa Herald.

E-mail this story to a friend | Print this article |
Enjoy the convenience of home delivery of The Ottawa Herald.