Most of us have never sold an item or any type of merchandise online.  eBay makes it possible for anyone to sell virtually whatever they wish to sell, and makes it easy for you to do so, right here on the Internet.   Selling is not as difficult as you may think but it's not as easy as you may assume either.  There are, however, some business fundamentals that can make selling a whole lot simpler for you here and in any arena.  As I said in my guide for Buyers, Rule # 1 is to know your merchandise! What do you wish to state as the opening bid for your wares?  What is it worth to you and a potential buyer?  Do you know?  You may not know it now but through this site as well as other places, online or in your local stores, you can discover what that opening bid should be and take it from there.  The form you'll be working with is called eBay's SYI form, which stands for Sell Your Item.  Now we come to the first line of that form and the first step on how to keep it simple!

What Are You Selling?  The first time you fill out this form you'll want to put as much on that first line as possible...but don't!  There will be plenty of room elsewhere to describe your item to its fullest potential.  Right now, we're concerned about placement only.  Under which category should your item be placed to reach as many potential customers as possible?  If you're selling a Dell Computer System with all the bells and whistles, simply fill in that question with the answer Computer System!  eBay will let you know immediately if you have chosen the correct category by giving you percentages of items that fall into several areas of exactly what you're selling.  Choose the category which makes the most sense for what you're selling, the one with the highest percentage listed.  That will give your item the exposure you need and your buyers won't have to look for a needle in a haystack trying to discover that you have an item up for bidding!

Titles, Sub-Titles, Pictures , Gallery Pictures & Listing Designer!  The Title for your item should be informative and make someone want to take a look.  If it's a name brand, put it there!  If it's new, put it there!  If you're offering quite a bargain, put it there!  The Sub-Title is something I use to further describe the reasons a buyer SHOULD offer a bid on an item.  Call it the hook!  Your first Picture is free but a Gallery Picture is not so bundle this Gallery Picture with the Sub-Title and Listing Designer to receive a few worthwhile perks at a very low cost to you.  You've all seen items with the little icon of a camera instead of a real picture!  Who wants to click on that when you can see the item you're interested in by choosing the Gallery Picture as a selling tool.  The listing designer is a great tool eBay offers you within the bundled price.  It allows you to Frame your description of the item with an appropriate design of your choice, and there are many to choose from!  Pick one that enhances the item you're selling and sets it off to it's best advantage.

I'm Not An Ad Or Copy Writer So How Do I Describe My Item To Make It Appealing?  The answer is simple!  If your item is new and in the box, use some of the description the manufacturer wrote on it.  Whether it be dimensions, highlights of the item or whatever it may be.  Keep it honest if you're selling a used item and tell everyone out there what the degree of usage has been.  Used once, Used infrequently, Slightly used or just Used!  Remember to put on your Buyer's cap for a moment and think about what you would like to see written there and what would be important for you to know.  Look at other ads for the same item and take a lesson from those.  Can you do better?  Of course you can!

Starting Price, Reserve Price, Buy It Now Price Or Fixed Price & Best Offers!  You've decided on your starting price but should you ask for a reserve price?  My take on this feature is NO, unless the item means a great deal to you and you wish to have bidders bidding up to that price to ensure you receive what you really think it's worth to you.  I love the Buy It Now Feature.  It gives your potential buyers the opportunity to negate the bidding process and simply buy it because the price is right.  I sell most of my items that way, but you must do what is comfortable for you.  Bidding can be fun for one person and tedious for another, so use your best judgement in using that feature and listing a fair Buy It Now price for the item.  One that tells a buyer that it's worth it to not go through the process of bidding and having to answer every bid with a counter-bid.  It is my opinion that fixed prices and best offers should only be used for larger, heavier and more expensive items.  You set the price on what you'll accept as the buying price and potential buyers, hopefully, bid on that item for you to accept or reject that offer! 

Payment Methods, Insurance, Return Policy & Check-Out Instructions!  If you haven't done so already, get yourself a PayPal Premiere account so that you may sell and buy easily.  All you'll need is a checking account and a credit card and you're off and running.  Get verified by PayPal and make certain your buyers are also verified  (read about verification on their site).  That makes for smooth transactions all the way.  Remember that PayPal charges a slight fee for handling your transaction but it's worth it when you know you have the funds straightaway!  You may, of course, elect to accept any form of payment you wish along with PayPal , whether it be a Money Order, Cashier's Check or Personal Check, although personal checks would be the last thing I would accept because of the delay, possible bouncing and having to pay additional fees in case it does just that!  Insuring your items is a good thing to do.  Whether you pay for it out of your handling charges or the buyer pays for it out of their pocket.  Some insurance is already included up to a certain amount by UPS.  That is built into the shipping amount but the item is highly trackable and safe.  Your Return Policy should be well thought out.  If you wish to have the buyer purchase Insurance put a disclaimer in your Return Policy stating that you are NOT responsible if an item is lost or damaged en route to them.  You may wish to elect to have a 7 day or Return Policy but be clear about whether the return of funds include the original shipping price.  Be careful with this and follow eBay's guidelines lest you get into trouble in this area.  You may also elect to give a buyer a merchandise credit if you are comfortable with that.  Exchanging an item can be problematical if you have only one to sell.  Think about what your best approach to this may be, for you and your buyer.  Remember also that you have certain protection as a buyer and seller with PayPal and eBay so read about them.

Yes, Shipping & Handling Is More Important Than You Ever Realized!  Here at eBay people have discovered all manner of shipping shortcuts, or so they sat, which allow you to ship less expensively than quoted by eBay through their SYI form!  Why, How?  Aren't the shipping charges written in stone?  No, they're not.  The next time you're at the Post Office ask them for a copy of their Worldwide Shipping Information booklet and you will have information for every category.  In it is an absolute goldmine of information you will have to know when using USPS.  I believe you may also print a copy of it here online.  You may also discover the same information piece by piece if you wish to on both USPS and UPS sites.  But here's a tip!  That's not worth your time and NO buyer wants to spend more than they must on shipping and handling!  The Post Office, through their site also offers you, all for FREE, Global and Priority Mail Boxes, Priority Shipping Tape, Stickers, Clear envelopes for your shipping labels and many other things.  If you plan to ship internationally they will even provide you with Customs Declarations and such.  Delivery Confirmations and Tracking Numbers are also FREE and so it their shipping all these wonderful tools right to your door!  That brings us to handling prices.  Handling prices should be kept down if you can.  You won't make a fortune jacking them up either, in fact, it may cost you the sale!  Yes, you are entitled to be re-imbursed for your expenditures and time.  If you develop a good system early on the time spent can be minimized and the USPS will pick up your packages for mailing at home and for FREE provided you have at least one Priority Mail Package to go.  There are also many UPS drop off stores and even eBay stores where you can cart all you items for mailing!  Believe me, it's so much easier and cheaper to do from home.  Virtually all your postage an be paid for online through PayPal or the USPS as well as UPS.  Printing labels is also a FREE service of PayPal, so why use anything else on simple packages?  Well, one reason might be that you WILL be able to get more services AT the Post Office than eBay or PayPal offer!  Check it out and keep shipping as low as you can.

Scales & Packaging!  Your home scale may be great for you but it's terrible for weighing packages!  With some of the proceeds from my sales I invested in a wonderful commercial digital scale that will weigh up to 130 lbs. and give you any type of readout you wish in .01 ounce increment for $80.00.  I already had a 5 lb. postal scale but needed something larger.  So, you may have to lay out some money if you plan on selling heavier items.  That's good because your customers will pay less for shipping and may become repeat buyers because they KNOW you haven't ripped them off in that way.  You may have to invest in bubble wrap or strapping tape and foam peanuts for your packing.  Keep it light and keep your items secure from damage!  These out-of-pocket expenses should reflect in your handling charges but keep them to that minimum I talked about.

Happy Customers & Feedback!  What make a Happy Buyer?  Getting their merchandise in a timely manner and just as described.  That person paid you virtually sight unseen for your item and hopes you're an honest seller.  Leave their feedback right away and expect your when they receive their item.  If they have questions about anything...answer them!  It's sets up trust between you that is invaluable.  Get that package out as soon a possible so they can track their item and know they haven't paid their hard earned money for nothing.  If you use the Postal Service or UPS yourself, enter their tracking number on PayPal.  This little known perk is available to you when you click on the details section of the transaction and will be at the bottom of the page.  Communication makes the world go round and makes businesses flourish.  Let yours fall into that category and be a GREAT Seller!

Happy Selling To ALL!