Who sells on ebay and what advice can you offer?

I plan to open and ebay (maybe etsy and amazon too) store soon. Right now, I'm exploring packaging and shipping. But, I need advice on every aspect, since I've never done anything like this before.

Comments

  • I'm following as I am considering selling on Ebay as well - good question @judsoncarroll4

  • KimMullen
    KimMullen Posts: 38 ✭✭✭

    I sold on ebay for a few years. I don't have time to do it now though so I closed my store. Open a store if you're planning to sell more than 50 items at a time. It will save you money and your page looks more professional. Make sure you spell everything out very clearly. Will you take returns or not? If you do take returns under what circumstances? Lots of people buy something and decide they don't like it or it doesn't fit or the color isn't right or some excuse and they return it and then you are out time and money and probably ratings. I finally just stated no returns. Post lots of pictures. Every angle. Pictures are worth more than words. Until you pay all the fees involved, you are paying out about 35% of your list price so make sure you price accordingly especially if you offer free shipping. Good luck!

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Kim Mullen gave great advice. Tons of photos and either explicit return description or no returns. I only did returns if the item was broken. Too many people were returning because they changed their mind or found it cheaper elsewhere.

    If you ship overseas let them know upfront shipping is expensive and out of your control. So is delivery time.

    Etsy takes a bit of time to establish a base and get people to your store.

  • Linda Bittle
    Linda Bittle Posts: 1,518 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I've been working on opening an Etsy shop for the longest time. I'll only do printables so no shipping. However, I joined a FB group for Etsy sellers (the uncensored one, and boy, is it!)

    Major issues for months now with shipping delays. I wouldn't even consider international shipping right now. Look into the laws about how you have to refund orders, including shipping, for some countries, regardless of your shop policies. I'll look for that tomorrow.

    Some people are saying international shipping is taking months instead of weeks right now, and lots of unhappy customers.

    Etsy is pushing free shipping, but unless you set up your items really carefully you can wind up paying more for shipping than the item costs! Because some people will choose the most expensive option if it's FREE.

    Etsy does have lots of info that you can access without even starting to open a shop. Here's the link to the seller's handbook, although it's really more of a collection of articles: https://www.etsy.com/seller-handbook?ref=seller-platform-mcnav