Is it better to sell items individually or in a lot?

I don’t sell items in lots unless they’re off brands (Osh Kosh, Circo, KRU, Carters, etc) or if an item doesn’t have a match to make up a cute outfit. For example, I might have a Ralph Lauren onesie that doesn’t go with anything else I have to sell. I’ll sell the onesie in my mixed lot of the same size clothing and I’ll be sure to put Ralph Lauren in the auction title to attract more bidders. This way I’ll not only attract bidders searching for a lot, but those searching for Ralph Lauren too!

When it comes to sets of China, I like to break up the sets and sell items individually.  A lot of people are shopping on Ebay to complete a set they already have.  For example, if I have four Spode Christmas Tree plates, I will list one as an auction with a low starting bid, and the other three will go into my Ebay store at a fixed Buy-It-Now price.

I have twin clothing. Should I list them at the same time?

No! You want all interested bidders to drive up the price of one auction. Having two identical auctions running at the same time will make the bidding less competitive, and thus produce a lower final value in the end of both auctions. By running just a single auction, you can offer your second outfit to the 2nd highest bidder (called by Ebay a “Second Chance Offer”), or you can relist it. Sending a Second Chance Offer is the most cost-effective route since you don’t have to pay the Ebay listing fee again; you only pay the Final Value Fee.

My auction isn’t getting many hits or bids. Why not?

Your auction title is so important. It’s your only way of getting people to your auction! Putting “L@@K” or “Must C” in your title will not get the high paying buyers there. Here are 4 things to include in your title:

Brand: Never forget the brand name! If it’s unknown, use the term Boutique or handmade or another word that might describe it.

Condition: Especially if your item is new, make sure you put New in the title. You may also want to put NWT which means New With Tags.

Size: Don’t forget the size! Many people search by size, such as “Baby Lulu 2T.” If you didn’t put 2T in your title, your auction wouldn’t show up for them.

Line name: This only applies if the brand you’re selling has line names for their clothes. Baby Lulu and Gymboree are the biggest brands which knowing the line name is important.

How do you win auctions without sitting by your computer all day and night?

One of the greatest secrets of them all is an “auction stealer” website. This is a website which will “bid” for you in the last 10 – 20 seconds of an auction while you’re out enjoying your busy life. My favorite is http://hammersnipe.com which allows you three free auctions to “snipe” every week. After that, you have to pay a fee. I don’t usually “snipe” more than three auctions a week so this site is great for me. There are others out there and you can find the perfect one for you by doing a search on Google or Yahoo. A site like this will allow you to bid in the last seconds on something that ends at a time when you just can’t put in that bid yourself.

How do you get your listings to look like that?

I’ve purchased templates on Ebay from various sellers. To me, a good template goes a long way. They’re easy to use and definitely more professional looking. It’s also so much faster to just add your pictures and retype the description rather than creating an entire new listing each time. There are many cute templates for sale in all different price ranges. By doing a search for “auction template” on Ebay, you’ll see how many people are offering them these days. Be sure to buy from someone who has good feedback and trusted customer service. If you would like the option of picking from lots of templates, there are two sites that have adorable choices: www.sellersourcebook.com (around $6-$8/month) and www.auctionboutique.com ($3.95 per month). I personally don’t use these sites right now, but I’ve seen many of their templates and I’ve heard great things from their customers in the Ebay community.

I also recommend finding a good service to list your auctions and host your images (pictures). I use Auctiva, (www.auctiva.com) which is FREE! They offer image hosting, free templates, free scheduling, and free online auction software. Image hosting for your pictures is SO important because Ebay charges an extra $0.15 for each additional picture in your listing. This can get very expensive. With Auctiva, I can use all the pictures I want in a single auction. The more pictures I use, the better an idea the potential buyers get of what the item is like, and the more bids I get! Auctiva has some templates, though they’re not as cute as some of the templates sold on Ebay or on the above mentioned sites. I also like that Auctiva will schedule my listings for me if I’m not home on a Wednesday (or whichever night I choose) to list them. I input the time I want the auction to list, and the site does it for me! It’s so easy. Ebay charges $0.10 an auction if you have them do it for you. With Auctiva, it’s free. Additional features are profiling sales, and systematic reports of your auctions which can be really interesting!

How can you afford to start your auctions at a penny?

I start my auctions at a penny when I know I have something that will sell no matter what.  If I'm not sure about how it will do, I'll start bidding at $9.99.  Penny auctions get more attention, more hits, more bids, and higher final ending prices than auctions that start at higher prices. The main goal is to create excitement around my auctions, and to create a circle of people who are watching until the end. Anyone who bids on my auction early in the week will have it stored in their “My eBay” page. Another person who finds my auction later will see all of the bids and want to know what all of the excitement is about. You want to capture as many people in the beginning as you can! So many people enjoy Ebay for the simple thrill of bidding and “winning” an auction. I watch my penny items sell for more than other sellers’ similar items which started at higher prices all the time.

Also, a lower starting price will cost you less to list on Ebay. The higher the starting price, the higher the listing fee. Why give Ebay more of your hard earned profit? Keep it for yourself!

I don’t believe the extra $0.50 Ebay charges for the subtitle is worth it at all, unless you have a large lot and can’t fit all of the brands in the title. However – keep in mind that what is put in the subtitle DOES NOT come up with a regular search. Buyers have to click the “Search title and description” box for anything in the subtitle to pull up. I also don’t believe paying extra for boldface type or highlighting is worth it either. Have you ever been browsing through Ebay and noticed if a particular auction is in Boldface type or is highlighted? Neither have I!

I never use reserves. If I don’t feel confident that an item will get the amount of money that I want for it, then I won’t sell it. Period. Either I want to get rid of something, or I don’t. I see sellers put reserves on their auctions and then they sit there all week with no activity. At the end of the auction, they’re out the listing fees, they made no money, and they still have their item hanging in their closet collecting dust. Ebayers are looking for a deal, and when they come across a reserve they will normally go and look elsewhere. They want to be in control of the price. At least they think they’re in control while they’re bidding on your auction! You and I know that they’ll get sucked into a bidding war near the end. Your auction without a reserve will most often go higher that those with the reserve. :O)

Yes, once in a while an auction will lose money and a buyer will get a great deal. Every business suffers a loss once in a while. Depending on how much the item cost me, I usually only lose a couple of dollars (at most). If I only suffer one of those losses every few weeks but I’m still coming out with big profits at the month’s end, it doesn’t really matter! Plus the customer is happy and will usually come back to buy more from me in the future. If I’m unsure about an item’s “worth” before putting it on Ebay, I’ll do an advanced Ebay search to see what similar items have sold for in the recent past. To do this, click on Search, then hit the Advanced Search tab; and be sure to click the “Completed Item” box under Item type. Put in your search term and you’ll find out what that item sold for in the last month!

What is the best time to start and end a listing?

With auctions, I like to start (and end) them on Sunday, Tuesday, and Wednesday evenings between 7pm-9pm PST.  Sunday is the reported "busiest" time for Ebay.  You’ll have to play around with the days and find what works best for you and your schedule.  My auctions will usually get the most bids in the beginning and at the very end of their duration.  The last 10 minutes of many of my auctions are the most exciting!  If I have an item that is still lurking for around $1.00 by the last day, I don’t worry because I know that there will be a ton of activity at the very end.