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Sales advice

Started by The Amazing Chump,

25 posts in this topic

The Amazing Chump

The Amazing Chump

Posted
Posted

So, I'm thinking of starting my first sales thread here in a bit (maybe this weekend, maybe the beginning of June) and I wondered what advice there is to be had. From watching, it seems like these are some good rules of thumb:

 

1. Pics sell books.

2. Cheap/ low quality runs sell in lots.

3. Front and back scans for high cost books, front only/back on request for masses of books.

4. Undergrade/overship as much as possible, or at least overdisclose.

5. Set the rules in advance, so no-one gets too butt-hurt.

6. Dale has some great books, and sells them. Greggy has some great books, and doesn't sell them. Rupp is the man.

 

I'm wondering if you all have any other advice or thoughts on sourcing boxes, packing materials, shipping services, etc. In answer to the first question I know I'm going to get- yes, I'm aware of the search function. But, searching through 3 years of threads and finding answers that may no longer obtain seems like a less than ideal situation to me.

 

So, be a buddy and answer the frakkin' question, willya?

 

:foryou:

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Marvelfangirl

Marvelfangirl

Posted
Posted

Pics are a must in a sales thread.

 

Don't say "Personal PayPal" in your sales thread,just say PayPal.

 

Make sure you have a return policy just in case something doesn't go right.

 

Start a feedback thread in the Kudos section.

 

Let the buyers know what kind of shipping you'll be using (USPS,Fedex,UPS)

 

Once the buyer is happy with the purchase,make sure you give the buyer some good feedback in the Kudos section.

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The Amazing Chump

The Amazing Chump

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Only advice you need...

 

list books that people want at prices that they are willing to pay.

 

Successful thread every time (shrug)

 

This, I think, is going to be my biggest problem. After being out of the hobby for years, and living in a teeny-tiny market with no local dealers I don't have a lot of info to go on for pricing. Learning curve is going to be steep, methinks.

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asteroid-comix

asteroid-comix

Posted
Posted
Only advice you need...

 

list books that people want at prices that they are willing to pay.

 

Successful thread every time (shrug)

 

This, I think, is going to be my biggest problem. After being out of the hobby for years, and living in a teeny-tiny market with no local dealers I don't have a lot of info to go on for pricing. Learning curve is going to be steep, methinks.

Just pre-send me the list and I'll tell you what they are worth. Might even be willing to make a purchase myself.

 

:whistle:

 

:devil:

 

 

 

:gossip: Look at completed ebay listings. Then factor that you have no overhead here (ebay fees) and price. (thumbs u

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Annihilus

Annihilus

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Posted

Here are some things that work for me. Other folks have formats that work better for them, I guess it really depends on the kind of stuff you're selling.

 

1. If your stuff doesn't sell, don't cry about it or say 'Wow, no interest? Really?' Either throw some discounts on your stuff or put it back in the box for another sale. If you're stuff isn't selling, then you shouldn't need to ask...no, there's not any interest (either because of price or because the right buyer isn't around).

 

2. This place is full of bargain hunters. Unless you're selling really high grade, keys or hard to find books (like GA, etc.) you're probably not going to sell at guide prices. I tend to sell at around half of guide. Sometimes less. Then again, most of my sales are either low/mid-grade or moderns. I wouldn't (and don't) use the same pricing structure if I'm selling slabs or keys, etc. I still discount these types of items, though.

 

3. Have your mess ready to go before you start selling. Scan it all in advance, load it up to photobucket (or wherever) and list in bundles of several books (Brian (Foolkiller) and Dale (Roberts) are good examples of doing this). If you have 20+ books to list at a time, you'll hold a buyer's attention a lot better than if you list 3 books and quit because you're tired.

 

4. Recap what hasn't sold at least once a day (for multiple-day threads). Have a discount at the end of the sale. Personally, I won't bump my own sales thread without offering a discount on whatever hasn't sold.

 

5. Guarantee satisfaction. No matter what.

 

There are probably a ton of good ideas I've missed, but those are a few I use for my own sales threads.

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asteroid-comix

asteroid-comix

Posted
Posted
Are checks/money orders standard payment options in seller threads?

 

(I'm wondering how dominant the evil paypal is)

Paypal is still king, although I've gotten about one or two more requests per thread this year than last for folks to pay by check/mo.
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Bomber-Bob

Bomber-Bob

Posted
Posted
Here are some things that work for me. Other folks have formats that work better for them, I guess it really depends on the kind of stuff you're selling.

 

1. If your stuff doesn't sell, don't cry about it or say 'Wow, no interest? Really?' Either throw some discounts on your stuff or put it back in the box for another sale. If you're stuff isn't selling, then you shouldn't need to ask...no, there's not any interest (either because of price or because the right buyer isn't around).

 

2. This place is full of bargain hunters. Unless you're selling really high grade, keys or hard to find books (like GA, etc.) you're probably not going to sell at guide prices. I tend to sell at around half of guide. Sometimes less. Then again, most of my sales are either low/mid-grade or moderns. I wouldn't (and don't) use the same pricing structure if I'm selling slabs or keys, etc. I still discount these types of items, though.

 

3. Have your mess ready to go before you start selling. Scan it all in advance, load it up to photobucket (or wherever) and list in bundles of several books (Brian (Foolkiller) and Dale (Roberts) are good examples of doing this). If you have 20+ books to list at a time, you'll hold a buyer's attention a lot better than if you list 3 books and quit because you're tired.

 

4. Recap what hasn't sold at least once a day (for multiple-day threads). Have a discount at the end of the sale. Personally, I won't bump my own sales thread without offering a discount on whatever hasn't sold.

 

5. Guarantee satisfaction. No matter what.

 

There are probably a ton of good ideas I've missed, but those are a few I use for my own sales threads.

 

:applause: Good Points, very good points. So simple yet why do many sellers not follow these suggestions ? I would add a suggestion for a BC scan on pricey items. I have been burned too often by a surprise on the BC.

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MCJ

MCJ

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eBay's image size limitation is a big drawback. One way to get around that is providing a link to your photobucket album in the listing.

 

My scans aren't serving me well on my sales thread, however. Copies with nice cover gloss look washed out, and my flatbed scanner doesn't accomodate CGC slabs at all well.

 

I bought a 12 MP camera today as a result. Canon PowerShot SX130 IS (12x zoom)

 

That should enable me to get in really close to magnify those flaws...wait a minute doh!

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lizards2

lizards2

Posted
Posted

 

5. Guarantee satisfaction. No matter what.

 

There are probably a ton of good ideas I've missed, but those are a few I use for my own sales threads.

 

A guarantee of a good fisting with every meal is a deal-sealer every time! :banana:

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lizards2

lizards2

Posted
Posted

 

5. Guarantee satisfaction. No matter what.

 

There are probably a ton of good ideas I've missed, but those are a few I use for my own sales threads.

 

A guarantee of a good fisting with every meal is a deal-sealer every time! :banana:

 

Yeah.............wait, what?

It's called d e d i c a t i o n ! :baiting:
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lizards2

lizards2

Posted
Posted
give away freebies

 

and call people names for buying

Alaskan Dork :sumo:

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