The MLP Arena

TCB => Trader & Shipping Support => Topic started by: EnaRocketQueen on April 11, 2019, 04:37:54 AM

Title: Advice on selling
Post by: EnaRocketQueen on April 11, 2019, 04:37:54 AM
I have collected ponies on and off for six years, and I have now decided that I want to downsize my collection and focus on just G3s, which means I want to sell my G1s and G4s. They are mostly in good condition, though the G1s were all found second hand in the wild.

The only problem is that I don't know how. I have never used eBay before and don't even have an account. I've also heard that it's difficult to get someone to buy from you if you don't have any feedback.

Any advice is appreciated
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: bright rabbit 1 on April 11, 2019, 05:16:38 AM
What G1 ponies have you got to sell? (Please private message me with pictures of the ponies and your address I might be interested in some)

Have you got PayPal?

Only site that I know that’s better than ebay.uk is Shpock (on that you can put whether you can post them or ask them to come to your house)
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: banditpony on April 11, 2019, 05:32:37 AM
I dunno. Since there is buyer protection -- which guarantees that a buyer will get the item, as described, or they get a refund... There is really little worry about 0 feedback these days.

That said, it's really stacked against you as a new seller. You get your funds held (see above about buyer guarantee), shipping is expensive, fees are expensive.. it's hard to gain feedback ( to get the hold removed ).

Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: LadyMoondancer on April 11, 2019, 07:52:36 AM
If you're thinking about buying on eBay, buy five cheap listings of something to get a little feedback going.  It doesn't really matter that it's not seller feedback, just as long as you don't have (0) after your username.

But yeah, prepare to have your funds held at first.  And it's so true about it being hard to get feedback.  A lot of buyers just don't leave it anymore.
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: banditpony on April 11, 2019, 08:22:18 AM
Oh also..
This might help in getting feedback.. write a small hand written note thanking the buyer, and politely asking them for feedback in a not pushy way. It sort of gives a reminder that there's a person there, and it isn't a big box.

Some people might still ignore it, but I will always give feedback for people who are kind with how they ask it. (Not gonna lie but I tend to not always give feedback unless I notice it is someone with little feedback)
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: tailrustedtealeaf on April 11, 2019, 08:35:52 AM
eBay feedback sure is tricky! I agree with making small purchases so you at least have something next to your name. I'm a relatively new seller and it looks like I have little issue with getting sales as long as my prices are competitive despite only being in the low double-digits. I've found myself ignoring feedback numbers if a deal is good enough.
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: EnaRocketQueen on April 11, 2019, 11:50:50 AM
Thnaks for the comments everyone! I created an account and made my first purchase- G3 Sweet Breeze!

I haven't set up PayPal yet, but it looks like you have to in order to sell on eBay.

A friend in real life told me that it might be a good idea to sell some of my cheaper ponies for a really low price so people will buy anyway and then get some good feedback from them. I do have a few G4s I want to shift that aren't worth more than 99p
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: banditpony on April 11, 2019, 12:10:43 PM
Eh. I'm surprised you still need a PP account. There will be a time soon that is not the case.

I'm going to say you will want a PP account over "managed payments" because right now MP won't accept payments by PayPal "for now". https://pages.ebay.com/seller-center/service-and-payments/managed-payments-on-ebay.html
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: Ringlets on April 12, 2019, 04:03:44 AM
I agree with the advice in this post about buying some cheap ponies /other items that you want and gaining a bit of feedback from them  first -  because as well as gaining you some feedback ( doesn't matter that it's for buying rather than selling) and  adding to your own collection, it will help you learn how things work on ebay . :bigups:

When it comes to selling on ebay - you can't avoid the delay in getting your money - unfortunately that's something ebay does now, but you can get your money released more quickly if you do get good feedback from sales in the meantime so definitely worth it to sell off some cheap ponies quickly first and gain what feedback you can from that ;) :relaxed:  . That way you also gain more buyers trust because you won't be a zero feedback newbie , but to be honest since buyers are pretty much covered now on ebay, it's much less risky for them to buy from a low feedback /no feedback seller than it used to be. Everyone has to start somewhere. Low feedback new sellers don't put me off.
Adding a personal note to your buyers with their pony does encourage them to leave you good feedback - I do that myself with any items I sell (I send a small thank you card) . It makes a difference.
Good descriptions and plenty clear pics make a difference too. Your potential buyers will prefer it if there are no "surprises"- so list any flaw from dry hair to factory flaws, to ingrained dirt or fading- whatever it is, always mention it no matter how small. Buyers will appreciate a longer description of anything like that that rather than just a few pics and a one line that says something like" G1 mlp Apple Jack . good condition see pics". (I tend to not buy from people who do not describe properly unless it's very good deal for a HTF item that I wouldn't mind if it was flawed. I prefer the sellers who take the time to properly describe the pony and any tiny flaws) :awake:
Any other help you need when you do come to selling your ponies - ask here and we'll always do out best to help you :)
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: EnaRocketQueen on April 15, 2019, 04:33:52 AM
I was wondering if I should sell here on the arena instead.  Pretty much everything I want to sell is pony-related and that might be a way to avoid eBay's listing fees. I don't have any feedback on here but I've been around the forums for a few years now. I just wondered if many people round here would want to collect G4s
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: Ringlets on April 15, 2019, 05:47:24 AM
Trying to sell your ponies here first is a good idea . There are G4 collectors here so you might find buyers :)  you can always try ebay later if you need to/want to :awake:
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: LadyMoondancer on April 15, 2019, 06:57:53 AM
I just wondered if many people round here would want to collect G4s

If you have less produced figures like Nightmare Moon and Sapphire Joy then I think you might find some interest.  If you have a lot of Mane 6, not so much.

For Mane Six, what I've found works well is to sell the whole set of six on eBay.  I sell them pretty cheaply, like $8 for six ponies.  But at least they DO sell, and it's faster than selling them individually.  I think it's mostly parents buying them.

Edit:  Of course it's not an either / or situation, you can list items multiple places.  What I usually do is list on eBay first, then I list the same item on the Arena using the pictures hosted on eBay.  It's MUCH faster than uploading picks to Flickr or other photo sites.  If an item sells on the Arena, I cancel the eBay auction.  If it sells on eBay, I remove the pony from my Arena post.
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: bright rabbit 1 on April 15, 2019, 11:17:51 AM
Selling them on here will be better
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: EnaRocketQueen on April 15, 2019, 12:10:17 PM
I just wondered if many people round here would want to collect G4s

If you have less produced figures like Nightmare Moon and Sapphire Joy then I think you might find some interest.  If you have a lot of Mane 6, not so much.

I have the Holly Dash who is supposedly rare, and quite a few of the non Mane 6 characters (Pursey Pink, Skywishes, Sweetie Drops etc) and some of the snow globe ones. I don't have any duplicates and have about 25 ponies plus heaps of blind bags.
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: Ringlets on April 20, 2019, 03:14:51 AM
You should be able to sell your G4 ponies either here or ebay  (or both) much more easily if they are not mane 6 :bigups:
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: Tracks on April 20, 2019, 04:33:31 AM
I would try selling on here for a start, at least if your ponies don't sell (I'm sure they will!) it won't have cost you anything as Ebay charge a listing fee which is payable regardless or if your ponies sell

Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: banditpony on April 20, 2019, 05:42:55 AM
I would try selling on here for a start, at least if your ponies don't sell (I'm sure they will!) it won't have cost you anything as Ebay charge a listing fee which is payable regardless or if your ponies sell

Does the UK not get 50 free listings a month?
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: EnaRocketQueen on April 20, 2019, 06:10:43 AM
I have posted a thread for my G4s and I'm addinng my G1s to it soon.

I don't know about if eBay have a free listings thing, I haven't investigated yet
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: Tracks on April 20, 2019, 08:09:08 AM
I would try selling on here for a start, at least if your ponies don't sell (I'm sure they will!) it won't have cost you anything as Ebay charge a listing fee which is payable regardless or if your ponies sell

Does the UK not get 50 free listings a month?

I've seen somewhere that we are supposed to have a number of free listings but I've never had it whenever I've listed anything  :(
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: EnaRocketQueen on April 20, 2019, 08:22:42 AM
I would try selling on here for a start, at least if your ponies don't sell (I'm sure they will!) it won't have cost you anything as Ebay charge a listing fee which is payable regardless or if your ponies sell

Does the UK not get 50 free listings a month?

I've seen somewhere that we are supposed to have a number of free listings but I've never had it whenever I've listed anything  :(

Perhaps it happens once you reach a certain amount of feedback or have been on the sie a long time
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: banditpony on April 20, 2019, 08:38:54 AM
I would try selling on here for a start, at least if your ponies don't sell (I'm sure they will!) it won't have cost you anything as Ebay charge a listing fee which is payable regardless or if your ponies sell

Does the UK not get 50 free listings a month?

I've seen somewhere that we are supposed to have a number of free listings but I've never had it whenever I've listed anything  :(

Perhaps it happens once you reach a certain amount of feedback or have been on the sie a long time

No..

They occasionally will give offers for MORE, (and you also get more for having a store).

All this digging, found it:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/help/selling/fees-credits-invoices/selling-fees?id=4364

Quote
Listing fees
Every month, you get up to 1,000 free listings, or more if you have an eBay Shop. Each listing you create after you've used your free allocation costs 35p.

Keep in mind that this fee will apply if you choose to relist an item after you've used all your free listings. Also, you can't use free listings for items listed in the Property category, or listings using the Classified Ad format. All existing selling limits still apply, and may prevent you from using your entire allocation of free listings.

Learn more about how free listings work, including the terms and exclusions for those listings.

whatever catches are in this link: https://www.ebay.co.uk/help/selling/listings/listing-tips/free-listings?id=4163
Title: Re: Advice on selling
Post by: Taffeta on April 29, 2019, 08:58:07 AM
I would try selling on here for a start, at least if your ponies don't sell (I'm sure they will!) it won't have cost you anything as Ebay charge a listing fee which is payable regardless or if your ponies sell

Does the UK not get 50 free listings a month?

I've seen somewhere that we are supposed to have a number of free listings but I've never had it whenever I've listed anything  :(

We do have free listings per month. I think the quota is higher than 50 now. But what hits is the final value fee which, unless there is a promotion, is a total including the postage (which is obviously designed for big sellers who have deals on postal options or can factor in the cost, not private sellers who quote actual cost, but that's another matter).

But what I noticed is that before you could list all types of auction for free in terms of duration - 1 day, 3 day, 5 and 7. But when I wanted to do 3 day auctions recently it wanted to charge me. So I had to do 5 day ones instead. It may be that there are fees for some of the settings on the listing.

Listing fees and final value fees are separate, though. There's no such thing as a free sale on ebay...
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