Sell on EBay

Getting Started on EBay

If you’ve never used EBay before, you might want to take a look around and maybe even make a purchase before you start to sell on EBay. This will give you an idea of how the system works and the wide variety of items that are available to buy.

Signing up for an account is free, and it is required both to buy and sell. Getting a PayPal account isn’t a bad idea, either. This is an online system that allows you to send and receive money without directly dealing with credit card transactions. A lot of people prefer to buy online using PayPal because it is safer than sharing credit card information.

Stores versus Auctions

One of the first things you’ll notice is that some people sell exclusively in an auction format, while others have online stores with prices on the items just like regular stores. The shops are perfect for people with a lot of inventory to sell who are always getting new things, or for those who want to have an EBay business selling overstocks or other items purchased from a third party.

For most individuals looking to sell items from their own home, the way to sell on EBay is through auctions. Like an in-person auction, people bid on your item until the times (chosen by you) for your auctions have expired. The highest bidder wins.

You can set a minimum bid to ensure you aren’t getting less for an item than you think it is worth. You can also add a “buy it now” price, which allows a user to pay that amount and bypass the bidding process altogether.

How to Sell on EBay

Once you’ve spent some time looking around EBay and tried your hand at an auction or two, it’s time to get down to selling, which is actually a very easy process. EBay gives you all the help you need to get started.

Click on the “sell” link at the top of the page and you’ll be taken to a page that outlines all the steps and makes it easy for you to make your auction attractive to potential bidders.

Before you complete the posting, you’ll want to take some digital pictures of the item you want to sell (or take film pictures and ask your photo processing center to give you copies on a disk). Pictures sell on EBay, there’s no question about it. Take good-quality pictures that show the details well, in good lighting. If there are any flaws in the piece, take pictures of them as well, so the buyer knows what he or she is really getting.

You’ll also want to write a title and description for your item. The title should be as descriptive as possible, because people often search for specific antiques or collectables that they are looking for. Avoid misspellings in your titles, or you might get no bidders because they can’t find you.

EBay offers tons of tips for writing descriptions, doing research on EBay for pricing, adding shipping to your total price, and much more. Make sure you check out the fees page so you understand what EBay will charge you for your auction.

When you go to build your listing, there’s a search box where you can input what you are selling, such as a 1900s antique table or a Coca-Cola figurine. The site will give you a variety of categories to choose from. Pick the one that is most suited to what you’re trying to sell by clicking the checkbox next to it and then hit the “save and continue” button. Continue through the steps of adding your pictures, description, setting prices and time for the auction, and you’ll be selling on EBay in no time!