Tips for selling on Ebay
magician45
Posts: 63 ✭
I have a craft Ebay business which does great. Any tips on selling cards though? Not getting much action on my cards, despite offering great deals. What are some tips to getting more action on Ebay with sportscards? I already offer free shipping & secure packing. I have great feedback with the crafts, but not much on cards as I have not sold many. Perhaps that is the issue? Thanks all.
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Give a couple of examples of "great" deals that you have offered that didn't get action.
Ahhh you're testing me Joe. Well, I had some Michael Jordan cards on there for 99 cent auction just looking to clear them out. Beckett value anywhere from 30-150 bucks. How is that? I'm thinking it's just because I am a new seller and I think Ebay sorts sellers by past action.
What’s your eBay ID? I’m always buying MJ.
Technically a great deal would be a Buy-It-Now price. Saying you started a listing at 99 cents doesn't mean anything, as that's not the final selling price, but at least you are inviting bids as opposed to people who have auctions that start with a higher opening minimum bid, or worse a reserve price.
Assuming you have a 100+ feedback number, then the fact you mainly sell crafts should not matter. It will only come into play if someone looks at your feedback to see your past sold items, but for low cost items I don't see peeps checking your feedback unless you have less than 100%
Now if you have the feedback numbers and 100% and you aren't getting bidders, then either the cards you are listing are ones no one wants, you have listed them with a title that makes them impossible to find, your pictures suck, or you have something in your description that scares peeps.
The other thing, in your seller hub you can at least see how many times people viewed the listing
Give us a link to a listing and we will gladly take a look-see, then rip you a new one
There has to be a reason no one is buying if you are selling cards that people want.
Thanks Rufuss once again for good comments. I am learning. I use a digital camera which worked good for my crafts, but maybe I should upgrade to a scanner for the cards. Keep in mind I am just starting out on Ebay after a long hiatus, so I'm just test selling a few things now. Still waiting for PSA for all my graded cards which might make a big difference, but those obviously I don't think I should start at 99 cents given the costs and wait time of grading. My site is Michael's Crafts and Collectibles.
You still haven't given me enough information. How about a link to your auctions.
Were your Jordan cards in mint condition? What years were they. I am certain if you listed a Jordan rookie in mint condition starting at .99, you would get bids. Not from me though, I don't collect basketball.
A scanner is not necessary for raw cards if you have a decent camera on your phone and you use a light box or get good lighting. Could be better when you have graded cards. I googled Michael's Crafts and Collectibles and the only thing I get is Michaels.com! Show me a listing!
starting slabs at 99 cents shouldn't be an issue if you list them with the correct title so people can find them. The bids should still end up at what ever the market value is at that time.
I wrote a big post about this recently that you can search for.
https://www.ebay.com/mys/active
Here is a link for Joe and Rufuss. Thanks Professor, I will check it out.
Joe, I do have a 1986 Fleer Jordan, though .99 cents is a bit low of a starting bid for that one. Still waiting from PSA for a grade on it. Anything over 4 or 5K I would probably sell it, After all, it is only a card. I saw a 10 gem mint at auction the other day for over 300K though. Holy cow.
Professor, I found your post and it was super interesting. I read the whole thing. Good luck to you and your family. I'm wondering though if you ever miss those cards? I know firsthand that cards, like anything I guess, can become an addiction. For me they are a connection to my childhood.
That looks like a link to your items on your personal eBay profile. We can’t access that. Just post a link to one of your listings.
Nic
Guides Authored - Graded Card Scanning Guide PDF | History of the PSA Label PDF
For me, the fun is in the chase. Selling let’s you reset, refocus, and begin the hunt again.
https://ebay.com/sch/Sports-Mem-Cards-Fan-Shop/64482/m.html?item=124633702665&mkevt=1&toolid=10001&mkcid=1&campid=5338722076&mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&_ssn=michaelscraftsandcollectibles
https://www.ebay.com/itm/124618338422
1990 Fleer basketball!!! The hottest set in the WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
First off, you've got over 1000 feedback and are at 100%, so that is not hindering your prospective sales.
Looking at your completed, UNSOLD listings they are basically cards that nobody wants at the minimum price you have started the auctions at. Start the bidding at 99cents and just let them run.
As for the one listing you have sold so far, your description is the following: "Ken Griffey Jr. baseball card. 1989 Fleer, card # 548. Although not professionally graded it is like new from an unopened set from 1989, so sure to be at least an 8 or possible gem 10. This card is sure to go up in value over the years. I am only selling some of my sets and singles to clear out space in my house as I'm downsizing. "
Now I will let the other readers see the listing and then comment
[ https://ebay.com/itm/Ken-Griffey-Jr-1989-Fleer-baseball-card-/124616635032?hash=item1d03baf298%3Ag%3A0dUAAOSw87ZgKEvN&nma=true&si=GSV1f3gSQBj%252FrJ6kKGpaPTCfax0%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557]( https://www.ebay.com/itm/Ken-Griffey-Jr-1989-Fleer-baseball-card-/124616635032?hash=item1d03baf298%3Ag%3A0dUAAOSw87ZgKEvN&nma=true&si=GSV1f3gSQBj%252FrJ6kKGpaPTCfax0%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557)
So you have successfully sold one listing so far. A 1989 Fleer Griffey Jr. rookie with the following seller notes: “Perfect condition, at least would be an 8 or above graded.”
And the following description:
Ken Griffey Jr. baseball card. 1989 Fleer, card # 548. Although not professionally graded it is like new from an unopened set from 1989, so sure to be at least an 8 or possible gem 10. This card is sure to go up in value over the years. I am only selling some of my sets and singles to clear out space in my house as I'm downsizing.
Here is the link to that listing, I'll stand by for a bit while the other readers comment
Then lead you down the correct path!
https://ebay.com/itm/124616635032
Talk about a Magician !!
Yeah, so your Griffey is definitely not an 8, due to terrible centering alone. The Jordan is hard to tell because the pic is awful, mostly due to it being in a sleeve and top load. You can’t see the corners. Ungraded 1990 Fleer Jordan’s are a dime a dozen, so nobody will want to take a chance on it for more than a couple bucks.
I just sold a buy it now 1990 Fleer Jordan for $24 this morning. It spent less than a day on ebay. So, I would expect around that much for yours. By the way, your 1990 Gretzky has shipping costs of $175.
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bad pics and something like the above are all ya need to know, op. bad pics are bad enough, but as soon as i see something as ridiculous as a $175 shipping fee, I’m out. whether intentional or not, I’m not gonna risk a headache in buying from a nut job. and not calling you one, op. but there are sellers out there that intentionally do this on the reg. most of the time these guys are off their rockers.
just keep in mind, potential buyers can’t hold the card in hand. so w your pics, you gotta sell the sizzle, not the steak. sharp pics, both front and back* along w super cheap (free) shipping will do the selling for you, prevent returns and most times bring you a higher realized price than a similar item w crap pics.
Going to have to be brutally honest here.....the 90 fleer barkley and ewing can be had on sportlots for 18 cents each, so even at 99 cents, you are pretty much wasting time, same for some of the other 99 cent listings. The 1972 yaz is in low grade, many are available on ebay in better condition for much less. The 90 Fleer Griffey @ $4.99 is about double as what many are going for. The 90 upper deck wayne gretzky at $6 can be had for under a dollar and pretty much as many as wanted.
Bottom line is your cards are way overpriced and are from the overprint era so they can be had pretty much anywhere. Beckett price guides are not the best way to determine value. Some Jordan cards ARE selling well, but they have to be in top shape to get the top dollars if sold raw and expecting to sell an ungraded card for the value of what they "might grade" is just asking to be disappointed. As for the Jordans, I didnt see any that "book" for 30-150 bucks. I just saw the one when I looked at completed items. maybe I missed something there
Edited to add: Most cards will sell well on their own merits. There is no need (nor reason, other than you want returns) to hawk your item by saying it will grade at least something and maybe a 10 and then add what graded cards sell for. Usually when I read stuff like that I expect the card will be bad.
Thanks all. Business is picking up though so I'm learning. The 175 bucks was a bad mistake on my part (my eyes are getting bad I guess with the decimal points), so I'm going with all free shipping to avoid any more missed decimal points. MT don't worry about criticism as I take it all in stride as I want to learn the right things to do. My digital camera is probably not the best for cards (though it does excellent for my crafts). I know I need a scanner. Better cards are coming as I just put up a few to learn a bit. I have a whole roomful of cards from 1960-2000 and have not nearly cataloged them all. Today alone I came across 20 rookie Rickey Hendersons. Not sure what I'm selling or keeping now. Keep the tips coming.