Advice for an eBay newbie?

[Taxel]

My boyfriend's mom is going to be starting an eBay account soon (non-pony, but I'm not sure exactly what she'll be selling). I'll be helping her out as much as I can with photos, descriptions, packing, etc since I've done plenty of online sales, but neither of us have ever used eBay for selling. Tracking & insurance will be required on everything (I believe she mostly has nicer things to sell), but beyond that we're not really sure what eBay requires/we should keep in mind/etc.

I remember hearing a lot about eBay holding new sellers' funds. How long do they hold it for? How are we supposed to cover shipping?

We probably won't offer international shipping since its such a pain, but in case we do for something I know the Global Shipping Program is rubbish. Is there anything else?

Also, should she make a few purchases before starting to sell since this will most likely be a brand new account? Or would it be better if we used my eBay account? Its a few years old with a handful of positive feedback spread out (I think it has 10ish and is about 3 years old).

[Haruna]

Well, I've been selling on Ebay for about a year or more, and I guess I can think of a few things that will hopefully help . . . 

As far as shipping, my advice would be to always make sure you charge 10% more than it will actually cost to ship the item. This is because Ebay charges you 10% of your shipping costs in addition to 10% of your item and any listing fees. (Unfair as that is.) For instance, if you know it will cost you $2.99 to ship an item, you should add at least 30 cents to the cost to cover the 10% Ebay charges. I usually calculate shipping using their shipping calculator: http://www.ebay.com/shp/Calculator and then add at least 10% of the cost to get my shipping costs. You'll need your item's weight and dimensions to get an accurate quote on the calculator, and for the zip code, I would choose the farthest zip code from you that you can think of. I'm in Florida, so I use 90210 (Beverly Hills, CA). For small items like ponies and most items around or below 13 oz, I use regular USPS First Class shipping and have had few problems. For heavier items, FedEx is usually the way to go, or Ebay's special FedEx SmartPost option. I would recommend UPS above FedEx except for the fact that it's more expensive. All of this postage can be purchased through Ebay, and Ebay gives you a discount on it.

As far as pricing your items, I'd also make sure that you not only keep in mind the 10% Ebay will take from the sale of your item, but the PayPal fee. I can't remember it off the top of my head, but it's somewhere around 30 cents plus a percentage of the total item payment (price plus shipping).

If you keep the shipping fee and PayPal fee in mind, you'll do pretty well.

I can't remember how long Ebay held my funds for when I was a new seller, unfortunately . . . you may want to transfer money into your boyfriend's mom's account so that she can pay for shipping until the funds become available. And, yeah, I think it's a good idea to make a few purchases on the new account so that you at least have some good buyer feedback. I admit I'd be leery of a seller with 0 feedback. Everyone has to start somewhere, though.

[Ringlets]

I think it would be wise to buy a few things first and get some feedback with the new account , or alternatively use your old account but make some new purchases too so that potential customers can see that all recent activity has been without issues   TBH yes everyone has to start somewhere and buyers are very well protected on ebay so I personally dont have any issues buying from a newbie, but I know some feel more comfortable with buying from more experienced sellers (or at least someone with some feedback)    
Unfortunately your money will get held. it happens with new sellers now, but even with your old account it will probably still happen as you havent used it that often or for selling. I believe they can hold it up to 21 days (    i know - awful isnt it?) but if there is tracking/delivery confirmation/signature on the items it might help ge it cleared sooner, or if your buyers leave good feedback quickly. PonlyLady will have more info on this I'm sure   I cant remember all the details off the top of my head since I've been selling before it all changed. there are some threads on it though.
...   you will have to cover the shipping . Once the buyer pays up and it shows that the item has been paid for, even though the money is not released to you yet, it counts as though the sale has gone through and you have to ship the item (its not the buyer who is holding the funds, its ebay/paypal)
Good advice from Haruna there too ^^    the fees ...can be shocking ... if you arent prepared for them. They will charge : a final valuation fee, a paypal fee and a fee on the shipping. I usually say its approx 20%  altogether. It does vary slightly. ( sometimes you get charged a listing fee possibly too. I think you get 50 free auction listings a month for US ebay. It varies from country to country) . So make sure you add at least that much onto the value of the item. You dont want to be losing monies because of the high fees
...
If you havent got one already I would recommend buying a digital kitchen scale to weigh your items on. You dont want to be losing monies by not charging enough and you cant ask the buyer for more money if you make a mistake. Even cheap digital scales are good and accurate enough. Put your item and the packaging you plan to use on the scale , check the weight /dimensions etc online and you'll have a very good idea of the actual cost to post the item.
...
Global shipping program can be a pain and cost your potential international buyers a lot more so its best avoided IMO. (again there is a big thread in here with info on it ) . There are other options for shipping items safely internationally though that dont cost the buyer as much. I'd start out selling in your own country until your used to how ebay works though if you think international shipping might get stressful. when you get more confident with ebay selling, then you can look into selling internationally too if you want to 
...
hmm.. what else?... well, if you are used to selling then I;m sure you already know that you'll need to describe the item very carefully, note *any* flaw , fault , stains, or whatever else no matter if they are very small, factory flaws etc and dont use collector terms. Describe the item in as much detail as possible and take plenty of good clear pics. You'll get to post 12 pics for free on ebay per item. 

I'm sure Ponylady and other experienced sellers will cover anything I've missed.
Hope that helps a bit though , and wishing you and your BFs mom all the best with your sales

[ponylady]

I believe you girls have given some great advice so far!

I can really only add more details about them holding your funds. They can hold them for 21 days but most of the time they are released sooner if you follow a few simple steps. This is straight from Paypals FAQ page.

1. You ship directly using USPS, UPS, or FedEx, or pay for shipping and print labels on PayPal. Once we know that the item was delivered, we'll release the payment within 3 days, OR

2. You mark an order as shipped or processed. (This applies even if you don't provide tracking information through USPS, UPS, or FedEx or if the order does not require shipping.) We'll calculate the expected delivery date and release the payment within 7 days of that date, OR

3. You mark the item as processed and we know that the buyer has received it and is happy with the item. We'll release the payment within 7 days.

I am pretty sure if your account is in good standing at the 90 day mark, they will stop holding your funds. It maybe sooner now depending on the volume you sell but 90 days is standard.

Also in regards to paying for shipping. As long as you print labels and pay for shipping through PayPal or eBay, the cost of shipping is released from your pending balance shortly after purchase.

[Ringlets]

thanks for adding the extra info Ponylady     

[Taxel]

Thanks for all the great advice guys! <3

I'll talk to mom tomorrow and come back if she has any specific questions.