The Lessons to be learned. Ebay Dump #3

[ironlord1963]

      Just figured I would share my #3 Ebay dump story.  First Ebay dump is to post several items, different tech, times, and etc. to watch the results.  I know more crazy ironlord stuff  .
Results was Poor, Actually Bad   
Posted 150 items. (Thrift store quality) 
I posted on Sat and Sun between the hours of 12 to 6  (Have to keep in mind East Coast surfing times and etc. 
More then have was posted starting .99 (many of these items did not sell the last dump) 
Did have lots of Views and watchers and even a record 8 early bids, timing and Dump was looking good 
Then the end results.  2 items made great results, and even had 21 sells, record percentage.  But in the end the .99 cent items killed me.  once the fees were in and the profit  counted I would of made $15.00 (time not included)
Too many .99 thrift store item with shipping being more then the value.

Then today I just had a buyer back out of the sell, says shipping cost was too high,  On this item I would have to agree myself.  I had $10.00 shipping on a item that just sold for $1.04.   .  I did politely let them back out.  I was just bothered by the fact they outbid someone else, did they not look at the shipping cost first before bidding?  After my third run on ebay, I have found that you sometimes, at least each time deal with well lets just say less then perfect clients.  Anyway just shipped off 16 items today well just see waht else come from this run.  I feel a storm coming on.

[wendy177]

Thanks ironlord love your "crazy stuff"

[Dean Perdue]

Sorry it didn't go better ironlord.
I personally would never use a .99 starting bid.Who could possibly make anything if the item sells at that price?
Time & effort spent would just make it not worth it even if your item listed was free to you.

What do you think the 'lessons to be learned' are on eBay dump#3 and what is 'plan B' next time around (if there's going to be a next time) to get better results?

At least now you have all the write-ups and pictures done and the listings are ready to go for next time around.
If you list this many items again isn't there promotions from time to time where eBay will give a seller 1 day to list with no insertion fee's? Maybe that way there would be nothing to lose (hopefully).

[ironlord1963]

   Did I learn a lot, First and formost I need better stuff        I actually kind of or rather should of known better.  I wanted to see what the results of .99 cent was on stuff, that has been through a 2 Flea Markets,    3 Rummage sales and at least posted once already on ebay.     Gosh just typing this is making me say what was I thinking.  I just have lots of stuff now, and they Way I work my system I have to get rid of some of this before I can break into my newer boxes.  Most of this stuff was bought when I first started on this path of Treasure Hunting  .  Back when I was not so dumb and stupid,    Actually that should be back when I was dumb and stupid, Gosh can't even type it right.  .  Anyway, I will try better stuff next time and place these items in the Rummage sale pile  .  I do have better stuff, just not processed yet.   
    As of the 30th of this month .99 items up to 100 will be free, and no fees unless sold, this might just work, espicially since the fees is what killed me the most.  It did cost me about $60.00 worth of fees to post and sell those items, when you are dealing with items that if lucky will only make you a buck or two then that is alot.  Since after the last three Dump I have learned that those .99 items get hits, and with hits you get lookers and sometimes even a early bid.  These are all items that will get them in the door (cyber wise that is ). 
    I'm still at a + all in all.  Overall my Ebay experience has yielded me $800.00,  and some where around 200.00 in profit, Part time while I learning all about this Antique and collectible world.  Kind of like it is paying for my intution, and after a bit more I maybe can start thinking about that 401K plan that ebay offers  .      

[regularjoe2]

Thanks for all your candid posts , ironlord1963 !

Hey man , a 25% margin ain't all that bad ! - Esp since it'll free up 'space' for the next adventure !

My first +$100.00 deal led me to figure out all my costs involved - the figures told me that I'd lost $25.00 !
(negative 25% margin)

You're doin' better than I did , way back when .

Hope you keep @ it & find the nitch(es) that really suit you !

[Dean Perdue]

 
    I'm still at a + all in all.  Overall my Ebay experience has yielded me $800.00,  and some where around 200.00 in profit, Part time while I learning all about this Antique and collectible world.

Sounds like a very positive experience then.What's better than making money doing something you enjoy and getting an education in the process.All in a time where it's harder and harder to make a buck because of a rough economy.

Great to hear buying and selling experiences and trying to make a science of it.

[Dean Perdue]

BTW Regularjoe2, I like the Barney Fife avatar. I'm a fan of Don Knotts and the Andy Griffith Show.

[regularjoe2]

Dean - I met him in person @ a book signing in Mo. in the 1990's .

His 'Barney File' character was not exactly his favorite (he said) example of his acting career .

[syl]

I want to rely my latest ebay shinnanigans. Earlier I sold a collector plate for .99 but it cost $11 to ship. I charged for it so I didn't lose anything. Seems like the only ones making money are the shippers. So this time I tried listing with a minimum bid including shipping and insurance. The small yellow/white teacup and saucer were $19.99, the cream soup bowl and saucer were $29.99 and the english teacup and saucer, which I posted on this site awhile back, were $59.99. Didn't sell. No bids. Seems like a bad time to be selling anything.

[waywardangler]

My ebay foray...I recently posted 2 items and both were military patches.  One I bought at an estate sale on my lunch hour a few hours after it opened and the other I bought at an antique mall.  I know nothing about military patches but they looked good and authentic and looked interesting (not like a 'normal' common patch).  Both were listed for auction with free shipping/ins./del. conf. figured in to just cover my cost.  I did research both to find out what they were before posting.  The estate sale one was from a famous fighter squadron during WWII and the antique mall one was from an air force training unit at Maxwell field.  The estate sale patch sold for $228 and the mall patch sold for $32.  Fees (eBay and PayPal) have to subtracted from both but both did better than expected.
I have tried glassware in the past but glass collectors are extremely fickle.  I either barely broke even or lost money, if it sold at all.  I know next to nothing about glassware and what I thought looked good, no one else did.  I now try to stick to tools, tackle, advertising, or pinbacks.  If no one buys it, that is OK because I still like it.  I also do not like to ship breakable items.
I am trying to be as organized as Ironlord but have quite a struggle to post like he does.  When he gets all his knowledge accumulated and moves up to higher $ items, watch out.  I think he could easily work that into a retirement vocation or easy street.  The posting numbers he puts up are just amazing to me.

[ironlord1963]

     Thanks Wayward for the thumbs up on what I have been doing, sometimes I'm not sure if my sucess is that great, espically after this last run.  The biggest key is I set them up for my online store, and then Ebay is a simple copy and past, and then keep in mind those unsold items stay ready for repost up to sixty days.  As for the cost of shipping, yea it can easily exceed the value of items that are worth under $20.00.  However there is always someone willing to pay for these items to add to collections.  The trick is finding them, this is where the tags come in.  It is important to have good tags on the title.  It seems that if my title (orTags) is weak, hardly any views or watchers.  The more you know about the item the more likely someone will find it.  Tea Cup, Yellow, Blue, Antique, Pretty, Must see is a waste of characters.  Need Company name, pattern name, and things collectors will put on their search list.  It cracks me up when I see Silly stuff like "Must See" , Rare, or even Antique added to tags.  When was the last time you type in Must see Rare Antique when looking for something.  Tags are the most important factor in getting hits (not sales exactly) it does increase one chance of making the sale.  After this last run I will make sure I have several .99 deals along with good stuff.  When I had so many good deals my hits, views, and even watchers went up.  Get them in the door and them maybe they will notice the nice stuff.  Of course the shipping will always be the killer of the sale, just the way it is today.  It cost me 8.29 at least to ship 1 Lb to florida, cost me about $1.00 in material, espically glassware and at least 15 min of time.  If I don't add $10.00  shipping cost I lose, unless I get challange bids.  Still not the greatest time to sale, but I have too much stuff and must make room for more, so I just bit the bullet and at least try and learn from it.  I just spent $30.00 more on stuff at Goodwill this weekend, and I don't have room for anymore, and Garage Sale season is near, boy am I going to be in trouble then.

[syl]

When I listed my stuff I included complete descriptions with marks and three photos of each item. But it seems like those types of things (teacups,etc.) just aren't good sellers right now. The listings were saturated. More supply than demand I guess.

[syl]

Hey Ironlord, how do you accept payment in your online store? Can you use Paypal for that?

[ironlord1963]

   Yea Tea Cup sure are saturated, was just process a couple of Demitasse Occupied Japan cups moments ago and sure looks bleek on the cup market.  Yes and Paypal is my only method I use. The Stores at MSMO will accept any forms of payment I believe.  Also keep in mind that come summer time online sales usually takes a dive, If any thing in the spring helps is the Refunds people are spending, another part I'm trying to watch.  I did make my most profit thus far on my Oct and Nov Dump,  Did O.k. Feb, but Mar well not looking all that good. Still have three items not payed for and that will kill any profit from this last dump.  The bidders has (0) for feedback and bought three teacup from me, but still not payment.  Not looking good is right.

[waywardangler]

Yes, I do believe shipping is a killer and it is not just for collectibles.  I was going to order 3 knobs to match our kitchen cabinets and the shipping alone was $8 just for 3 knobs.  I finally found the same knobs at Home Depot with free shipping but I had to pay tax. Sometimes shipping is a real deal killer.  I do have a gumball machine, a Dazey butter churn, and some Griswold that I bought very reasonable but am reluctant to list due to what it will cost to ship (and time to pack).  I try to stick with lighter items that might command more $ and not more shipping $.  I just have to set aside the time to list to move some of the items I have accumulated.  I find it much easier to buy than to list and sell.
So with the new eBay rules, if the bidder does not pay and he has 0 feedback, what feedback recourse does a seller have on a non-paying bidder?  You can't leave negative feedback on a buyer anymore.  I think I would block a bidder with 0 feedback.  I would not like to do this because he might just be brand new to eBay and want to buy.  Everyone started with 0 at some time.