mcjane
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posted on April 22, 2002 03:19:09 PM new
A lot of friends have been asking me to sell items for them on eBay. I can't make up my mind if this is a good idea or not.
Anyone have input on this, would you do it, how would you do it, what would you charge & what would be the upside & downside of getting into this.
I would appreciate any advice pro or con that would help me make up my mind.
Jane
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barparts
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posted on April 22, 2002 03:31:11 PM new
I have done this in the past and it has worked out well. But you must put down the rules to them. Make sure that all fees are there responsibility. And make them tell you when to stop relisting an item if it does not sell. You need to treat that like a business and not a hobby or will be out too much money. Also offer to put the items on some of the parking lot auction sites for exposure. Epier, gruvo ect. Also, make sure you get a cut for you time.
Good luck,
bp
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revvassago
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posted on April 22, 2002 03:42:28 PM new
I charge 10% plus all fees. I must have item in hand before selling.
Get something in writing. Make sure to put in the contract that the consignor admits ownership of item, and is consigning it to you to sell.
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bowpro
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posted on April 22, 2002 03:44:01 PM new
I have sold quite a few items for others. I charge them 40% of the finally selling price. I pay all the ebay listing fees and final value fees. That keeps it simple.
<br>I figure with listing fees, valuation fees, my time for taking a picture and packaging that my cost run approximately 10%.
If the item they want me to sell is of "low value" then I simple tell them so and do not accept the item.
Good luck.
Pat
Pat Norris
Bowpro
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etexbill
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posted on April 22, 2002 03:44:29 PM new
To Jane: I won't go into the terrible details, but from my experience, my advice would be DON'T DO IT! To make a long story short, I expected my first negative from the transaction, and I held my breath until the transaction was completed. No negative, but no feedback either. You can ruin a good friendship by selling for someone else. Run, don't walk away from this.
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dadofstickboy
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posted on April 22, 2002 03:58:24 PM new
I do sell for friends from time to time.
Make sure they are REAL GOOD friends.
Explain up front about the costs.
If you don't!
It will end up costing you money & they won't be yor friends anymore!!
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stopwhining
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posted on April 22, 2002 04:42:14 PM new
make sure the two of you agree what form of payment you would accept for consignment sale,you dont want a chargeback 60 days later when the ex owner already spent the money or cannot be found.
also if there is a lawsuit,the buyer only know he bot it from you,the ebay seller.
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rarriffle
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posted on April 22, 2002 05:04:31 PM new
I have sold many things for friends and co-workers. I charge a flat 25% of final bid plus all fees. I keep the item in my possession until payment has been recieved. I then keep the payment in my possession until the buyer has received the item and is pleased with it, then the money is given over to the original seller.
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Libra63
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posted on April 22, 2002 05:17:59 PM new
revvassago I think you need to charge more. Your time is worth more that 10%. Like the other person said 25% or even more. If you do the emails, packaging, all that takes time. You have to remember that when you are listing theirs you can't list yours so you are losing money that way.
[B}mcjane[/B] I think the most important part is the contract between you and the other person. You don't want to make any enemies doing this. It's like renting an apartment with a "friend" make everything up front so there is no problems.
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revvassago
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posted on April 22, 2002 05:31:24 PM new
If you do the emails, packaging, all that takes time.
Emails are automated (with my selling software), and packaging isn't costing me anything (except time). I am being paid 10% for my time.
I charge equal to (or a bit less) than other people involved in eBay's Seller Assistant program do (in my area).
Even your live auctioneers charge around 25%, and they are paying their employee's wages. I am not paying anything, and am collecting 10%. That is enough for me.
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mcjane
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posted on April 22, 2002 05:40:26 PM new
I am just about convinced that selling for someone else is something that I don't want to do.
I thank everyone for your replies, you were so helpful.
I knew if I posted the question here I would get some good answers & I did.
Jane
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fluffythewondercat
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posted on April 22, 2002 06:38:04 PM new
Selling For Others, Would You Do It?
I'd rather nail my tongue to a picnic table.
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kiara
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posted on April 22, 2002 06:44:46 PM new
fluffythewondercat 
There are only a few people that I would ever sell for as they understand ebay enough to know what is happening.
I would rather buy items outright and then sell them for myself, much much easier and no feelings get hurt.
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outoftheblue
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posted on April 22, 2002 08:13:51 PM new
revvassago
>>"I charge 10% plus all fees. I must have item in hand before selling."<<
That's an excellent deal for the person you are selling for. I did it once for 20% and found that unless the items sell for a pretty high price it's not worth my time listing it.
If I were to do it again I wouldn't do it for less than 35% - 40%.
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dodobird
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posted on April 22, 2002 08:21:49 PM new
peck,peck,peck- i wont do it for anyone,most people have high expectation of what their stuff is worth.
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sweetboo
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posted on April 22, 2002 09:20:51 PM new
I agree with Fluffythewondercat... I have sold for others and am doing some now and am having problems... I just told a friend tonight that
"I would rather chew my big toe off then sign another deal with someone to sell their stuff!!!"
People expect too much but they never really tell you how much they want... they've heard the stories of selling widget for $1000 and expect you to do it for them.
I am selling some stuff for a company now and am charging 30% for items ending $50 or more and 40% for items under $50. Still a lot of work and then you have to make invoices to show them what all is for. I pay the fees and that keeps it a bit more simple.
Good luck, one good thing is there is no investment money needed and that comes in handy right after writing the mortgage payment 
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toybuyer
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posted on April 22, 2002 09:48:17 PM new
Been on since 1997. I sell now for family that bid on eBay and know what the market is about. I have dealers who only do RL shows and sales and think that there stuff is worth "book price" on eBay. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS BOOK PRICE ANYMORE! True Rarity is gone! The addage that if you miss bidding on an item another one will come along on eBay is becoming very true. I've listed $5000 items and don't mind a 10-15% commission after eBay fees, etc. It's worth my time. BUT, I have the item on premise and the item is packed and shipped by me since a good chunck of feedback left is delivery or shipment related. Selling a $25 to $50 item for 10-15% is not worth the time. Even if you do several. The majority of dealers who are not computer savy have absolutely no clue what selling on eBay involves. They don't want to know either. I don't like being used. The knowledge I've learned these last 5 years is worth more than the measly 10% they want to offer.
not toybuyer on eBay
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mcjane
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posted on April 22, 2002 09:52:37 PM new
All the people that have approached me to sell for them are friends & I can see the problems mentioned here that will no doubt come up.
I have never sold for anyone before & I don't think I'll start now.
Might be better to teach them how to sell their own stuff on eBay.
I really appreciate your answers.
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slabholder
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posted on April 22, 2002 10:00:20 PM new
To much of hassle and a waste of time.
Slabholder
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outoftheblue
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posted on April 22, 2002 10:18:59 PM new
I make sure they know what to expect. Most people decide not to do it when I tell them how much their item will probably sell for.
I don't care if an item is brand new and has never been used. It is only worth about 20% or less of its former retail value when you try to resell it.
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profe51
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posted on April 23, 2002 05:58:16 AM new
I only sell for people I know well, and people they refer to me, and only in categories I am familiar with. I do not take posession of their items, rather, I get the payments, settle up with them, then take the items and ship. Knowing that they have money being held has so far prevented anyone from deciding not to sell at the last minute. I did have an item that the owner broke during an auction, but the high bidder was very understanding (I sent him pix of the damage) and still wanted the item and we were able to renegotiate a different price, I took my commission (10%) off of the original auction price. I have turned people down because they had unrealistic ideas about their items' worth, and in order for my method to work, I've got to see some good sales out of every batch to make up for the fees on items that don't sell. I wouldnt advertise my service or use the Ebay seller's asst., too many liabilities in my view.. ..
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fluffythewondercat
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posted on April 23, 2002 08:54:37 AM new
THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS BOOK PRICE ANYMORE! True Rarity is gone!
I'll agree heartily if we change that slightly to "perceived rarity".
After all, there are still the same number of original Faberge eggs extant in the world today that there were in 1995.
But for items that were perceived to be rare Be ("Before eBay" because it might take many years and lots of driving to find another just like it...well, now you'll see a dozen of 'em listed on any given day.
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fluffythewondercat
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posted on April 23, 2002 08:58:38 AM new
Might be better to teach them how to sell their own stuff on eBay.
And probably a lot more fun, too.
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bdunique
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posted on April 23, 2002 09:17:16 AM new
Same here -- I sell items occasionaly for family members and that's it, though I'm happy to explain to my friends how they can do it themselves. I like to keep the few friends I have...
Onward and Upward,
--bdunique
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msincognito
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posted on April 23, 2002 12:06:16 PM new
I have done this twice and both times, it worked out terribly. One time didn't turn out so bad in the end ....I was listing an expensive musical instrument with, thank goodness, a reserve. A day before the auction was supposed to end, my friend sold the instrument to a local collector! Fortunately, the bids hadn't reached reserve so I just emailed the bidders and explained as nicely as I could. One of the guys was really quite disappointed, but nobody was mad.
The first time was for a co-worker who fought me every step of the way; she didn't think a picture was needed (this was an old Operation game) she didn't want to hand the item over to me, she didn't really understand about fees and she didn't seem to understand that (barring terms that excluded some bidders) the person who won was the person you'd be dealing with, period. The final straw was when I was trying to do the description and she couldn't tell me for sure if all the parts were there. All she knew was that "this is worth a LOT of money." (Well, actually, not.) I finally put her off by showing her how much they were going for on eBay (the highest completed sale I could find was a fraction of what she had in mind) and convinced her that she should put the game back in "storage" until it gained more value.
And I'm sure the grape-juice stains will come to be seen as marks of authenticity...
Ever since, I've been strictly in the "teach a man to fish" category. I absolutely won't list for someone else. Even Mom.
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