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I’ve never been the kind of person who, when beginning a new endeavor, relied on how-to manuals, instructional DVD’s, or expensive consultants. I simply took mental notes on what I personally considered positive and negative then tailored my style to eliminate any results that were not acceptable.

For example, a few years ago I decided to try my hand at deejaying parties and special events. I thought back to many of the parties I’d been to that were DJ’ed by local mobile disc jockey services. Since I’d always been fascinated by music, light shows, and entertainers, it was a simple task to remember in particular what I found to be the best, and the worst of what each deejay had to offer. Armed with knowedge and a fistful of cash, I was able to build a very successful deejay outfit that lasted over ten years.

The same is true for my experiences as a seller on eBay. When I started out there were no instructional DVD’s that I knew about. There was no guy on tv telling me to try his product so I can sell an attic full of baseball cards. Oh sure there was a tutorial of sorts on the eBay site with some tips and tricks, but I’ve found that experience, trial and error, and some old fashioned sleuthing on my part is my best bet on getting my item seen and bid on.  I’ve listed some of the tips that have proven successful for me.

1. Sell What People Want To Buy

Sounds silly but you don’t know how many times I’ve seen multiple listings for the same item by the same seller that have no bids at the auction closing time. Test the waters with one or two of the items first to see how it sells.

2. Research Your Item

Find out everything you can about the item(s) you intend to sell. If it was yours to begin with you should already know enough to create an informative, and effective auction listing. Buyers want to be assured that you know what you are selling.

3. Be Honest About Item Description And Condition

Nothing does more to hurt your reputation than being less than honest when describing the item or it’s condition. Your feedback rating will suffer and you will lose customer confidence not to mention being banned from eBay and possibly facing litigation. If the item has flaws, point them out but by all means accentuate the positive features of the item as well.

4. Take Good Pictures

Yes a picture IS worth a thousand words and maybe a few extra dollars to boot. Use lots of light and whenever possible, turn the cameras flash off. Get as close as you can with light bathing the item. Try cropping out non-essentials so that the item is centered in the picture. For eBay photos, I set my digital camera to 4 megapixels and use a combination of flourescent and incandescent lighting. This eliminates the need for the cameras flash which robs the photo of minute details I want the customer to see. I also use the lightest color backgound I can get away with. I’ve included an example showing three listings of a Zippo lighter. The top shows a used lighter and keychain set with visible flaws and a missing molded box insert and outer box sleeve. The middle auction is a brand new, never used set complete with everything available. Both auctions were scheduled to end only nineteen minutes apart but the used one sold for three dollars more than the new set when the auction ended. The pictures were cleaner and brighter and there were nine pictures to look at instead of the other guys three dull lifeless ones. There is also a subtitle in the first auction which draws more eyes and happens to be my listing. I got a respectable 101 page views along with 14 people who clicked ‘Watch this item’.

5. Time Is Of The Essence

One of the earliest tips I learned was that Tuesdays and Wednesdays are best when beginning a seven day auction. Think about it. Middle of the week, everyone is home, If you really want to see a bidding war, set your auction to begin and end at 7:30pm U.S. Central Time. That way, you will have the attention of the East and West coasts. It’s 8:30pm in New York; No one is in bed yet, while it’s only 5:30pm in Los Angeles. The whole continent is awake and looking for that bargain on eBay. Why not let it be yours?

6. Stay Away From ‘Buy It Now’

It’s an auction site, not a store. Ok it’s a store too but for me the auction is where the excitement is. There’s just no fun in using ‘Buy It Now’. Buyers enjoy the thrill of an auction so if you are adhering to tip #1, you’re selling what people want which means you should still realize a profit. In the example above, you can plainly see the advantage of an auction over a ‘Buy It Now’ item. The lighter on the bottom has been re-listed several times.

7. Don’t Try To Profit From Shipping Costs

Should be self-explanatory but many sellers attempt to tweak a few more dollars by charging a high shipping cost. Here is where research pays off. Check similar items to take an average of what to fairly charge. If you are still unsure, check with the Post Office or a local mailing center. Many auctions now include free shipping but you can still charge a fair rate while remaining competitive with the free shipping guys.

8. Ship Quickly And Securely

No one enjoys having items broken during shipping. Do your part in reducing the possibility of breakage by using packing peanuts, paper towels, newspaper, etc. Center the item over a layer of protective material then surround it with as much as you can safely use. Wrap multiple pieces separately within the same box. Packaging tape is recommended over cellophane, duct, or masking tape at the Post Office. Write clearly and as large as you can with a permanent marker for bigger parcels or use black ink on smaller packages. Write the Zip Code below the address on a separate line. You also have the option of printing out a mailing label through eBay. Ship the item within 2-3 days of auction end.

I hope these tips help you to have a fun, yet profitable experience on eBay. Good luck and Happy Selling!