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where do you sell stuff (e.g. craigslist, ebay, etc.)

hydroazuanacaine

hydroazuanacaine

bluelighter
Joined
May 17, 2007
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i list my stuff on

-craigslist
-ebay
-facebook marketplace

they all work pretty well for me. facebook marketplace you get lots of messages from unserious buyers and craigslist lots of messages from scammers, but i've been going minimalist which means selling lots of stuff so i can tell right away and don't waste time.

ebay you gotta pay ebay and paypal fees, but i list the items for more and it's a ton easier to drop a package off at the post (i got boxes, scale, tape, different bubblewrap, etc.) than to sell someone in person. and that's even with my no meeting rule; i don't meet people off craigslist and facebook. they come to my apartment. that's because of so many no shows.

i'll ship to craigslist and facebook buyers once in a blue moon, but only if i can find everything out about their life through their name so i know they are not a scammer. i also usually make them pay venmo, because i don't think you can undo venmo payments. if they don't have venmo, we do facebook friends & family so there's no fee (if they don't use a credit card). they talk about checks, money orders, any of that it's a scam.

i haven't tried etsy but i'm curious. thing is you can't list on etsy and ebay at the same time, because if they sold on both in one night you'd be fucked (ebay at least keeps a "seller score" and not backing out of sales is a big part of that score).

there have been times were i've been doing a couple grand profit a month buying and selling cameras analog cameras. that's settled down a bit and i mostly only sell my stuff i don't want anymore, unless i find a rolleiflex for $34 or something crazy like that (true find).

what other platforms are there, to sell by post and in person? how do they work for you?
 
what are you talking about? i don't mean drugs if that's what you mean. you can't those that on ebay. against their policies.
 
Depends what your talking about hydro.

I used to do ebay for musical instruments, but it's fairly easy to get burned selling on ebay. I use Reverb for those types of item.
Other types of stuff I've used Amazon in the past with good result. I have sold guitars in person through craigslist in the past, but there are way more tire kickers and time wasters than it''s worth lately.
 
i mostly sell guitar and biking stuff. but i've even sold the clocks of my walls, because the ticking was driving me crazy and i wear a watch and have a phone so external clocks were not doing me any good anyway.

i never auction on ebay. buy it now only. and because i'm mostly selling pro and prosumer camera equipment, it's easy to google the person's name and see that they're a photographer not a scammer. only time i've only lost money on ebay is people buying expensive studio cameras, saying they don't work (because they don't know how to use them), and then me having to pay shipping both ways. all because someone bought a camera that used to cost $5k usd and was for pros, but now costs $500 and anyone who thinks they wanna start photography can buy it (and then return it).

hadn't thought of amazon!
 
oh, my bad. Wrong interpretation. I apologize. by the way, where would you sell a bicycle? I been trying to get rid of it for a while now….
 
Aeon Psyche said:
oh, my bad. Wrong interpretation. I apologize. by the way, where would you sell a bicycle? I been trying to get rid of it for a while now….
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no worries. bicycle is actually the last item i sold! on craigslist. anything that won't fit in a usps priority mail box doesn't go on my ebay. or if it weighs more than 10 pounds, because you have to pay for shipping both ways if the buyer claims it doesn't work and that's too much risk.

LadyAlkaline said:
I sell everything on Marketplace now. There is almost nothing I can't sell. The endless "is this available?" And then no response drives me nuts though
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i don't reply to "is this available." facebook autosends it for the. if that's all they ask, i know they're not a real buyer.
 
^i adjust the price to make up for the fees. it eventually sells because ebay gets so much traffic. to be honest i’ve had little trouble with buyers abusing ebay’s policies. most of my returns are people buying complicated studio cameras and thinking they’re broken when in reality they’re not meant for casual hobbiest.

while i like craigslist and facebook sales because it allows me to give my fellow human beings better deals, in person meeting are less convenient than stopping by the post office whenever it fits into my day. living in a major city and being in the heart of it makes selling in person easier. chicago craigslist gets plenty of traffic.

sellers complain a lot about ebay but it works well for me. i’m a 100 percent positive feedback seller and have made around $10k on it in the last two or three years.

yesterday i picked up a camera for $30 off craigslist that i’ll be able to sell for $120. after i’m done playing with it. is nice being able to experiment with so much photography gear with out letting it accumulate. it’s difficult to not grow attached and hoard, but i remind myself i’ll find another fun camera soon to spend the money on.
 
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facebook marketplace is a good way to sell old junk. I was able to sell my old 99 volvo w/ busted head gasket for a nice bit of money(nothing to retire on but still). i've also used craigslist in the past to sell old phones and such, but be carful when selling anything online. I usually have friends with me, or meet at a public place like a starbucks or w,e is open and has some customers.
 
I just assume everyone, everything and every website is a scam and that I won't ultimately get paid for anything I try to sell. So I generally just bin or Freecycle my unwanted stuff, bikes, laptops, printers etc.
 
hydroazuanacaine said:
^ive made over $10k usd selling my old stuff.
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Nice! I know it's mostly just a problem in my mind, but I had so many friends complain about re-selling on eBay in the early days that I got the impression it was more effort than it was worth and mostly a scam with people taking the piss.
 
You must understand that the operator must have a good reputation in the market and make as few mistakes as possible at all stages of sending an order. A well-organized document flow is also essential since bills of lading, and other documents will be issued to the customer with a certain periodicity. It is also worth bearing in mind that the business owner will not have free access to the warehouse of a full-field operator. This means that there will not be an opportunity to monitor the number of goods or the quality of packaging at any time. Therefore it is better to work with proven companies, such as https://www.ecommercefulfilment.com/en/order-fulfilment/product-fulfilment/, and not to worry.
 
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hydroazuanacaine said:
what are you talking about? i don't mean drugs if that's what you mean. you can't those that on ebay. against their policies.
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Craigslist used to be happening for drugs before they took down the personals...

I used to sell on eBay and Craigslist before my conscience said stop that start donating some people will never have it as good as you did.

I mean selling my used stuff no longer sits right with me and I could have used money for it honestly still unable to pay bills.

If I had my own crafts to sell I would probably setup an Etsy today.
 
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I use eBay for collectible items (vinyl records, trading cards, old school Lego sets, etc.) and I actually bought my car off craigslist. I don't sell anything on craigslist but if I sold my car I might, since selling an old-school convertible isn't gonna net you much outside private sales (KBB says my car is worth $4k, I've seen local ones go for $8k+ recently).
 
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