Have you sold items on ebay?

[Lonelymum]

I am desperate to sell old children's clothes and having ony had a limited response on Mumsnet, I thought I would try ebay. I've had a look at the site but I am not experienced with the internet and I can't work out quite how ebay works. Do I have to have photos of my items? How does the bidding system work? Can't I sell my things at a fixed price? How does the payment system work? Does ebay take a commission? PLEASE could someone explain it to me in simple terms!

I've sold loads on Ebay, but never childrens clothes, so I can't say how mch of a market there is for them. Anyway, photos help but aren't essential (the first one's free, any others are 12p each I think). You put on a starting bid (of whatever the lowest price you'd accept for the item, best to start low to encourage bidding). You can sell at a fixed price with the Buy It Now option (but you have to pay to add this option I think, only a few pence). You can specify how you want to be paid, e.g. people send you postal orders/cheques and you mail item out after they clear or you can register with PayPal and the transfer the money to your paypal account (which you can then trnasfer to your own bank account, but they charge 50p to transfer amounts under £50).
You pay a listing fee to put things on Ebay, changes depending on the starting price, but for small items it goes from about 35 - 75p.

Ebay's online tutorials and advice for sellers etc explains things well, good luck!

read up and ask questions in the community pages first. I have made a fabulous 84p profit on my first ebay sale (make sure you allow a decent amount for package and posting - that was my downfall - I didnt weigh the item first!!)

will this help some?

Thanks for that Bibiboo. I still feel a bit overwhelmed but I will have another look at the site when it is cheaper to be on the internet. Basically, the listing fee is the commission? Sounds like selling small items such as children's clothes isn't an option then?

Hi Lonelymum

It's abit daunting at first on Ebay, but I've managed to sell some stuff. Trouble is, I keep buying!!

Have a look here: Interactive tutorial

HTH

message withdrawn

no- the listing fee is the listing fee. the selling commission is called the Final Value Fee and is a percentage of the final price

message withdrawn

Thanks for all these replies and for the links. I have had a look at them and will certainly return to them and your advice if I decide to use ebay, but for now, ther is an NCT sale coming up locally so I shall see how that goes. Also, if anyone wants some kiddies' clothes (or maternity wear) see my ads in the For Sale section!! As you can see, I really am desperate to sell!

Lonelymum, it's pretty easy to sell, but I have found that baby clothes only sell well if they're designer or desirable, such as Mini Boden, Gap, OshKosh etc, and in excellent condition, or really cheap. People can pick scruffy stuff up at jumble sales/ charity shops so why pay postage?

Sometimes it helps to "bundle" things together, e.g. 5 pairs of trousers, 7 babygros, BUT bundles are heavy and the postage can be quite a lot, so your start price has to be very low, to make people want to pay for the postage as well.

Photos definitely help. If you don't have them be meticulous with your descriptions- I personally never bid for something without a photo.

If you can, buy a few things on Ebay before you start selling.You'll get an idea of how things work, and if you pay quickly you'll get some positive feedback which will help you sell.Don't go wild when bidding, though. Always look at the P+P cost, and set yourself a maximum you're prepared to pay, bid the maximum (you won't pay this unless others are bidding against you)and walk away until the auction is over.

HTH