Consignment selling on eBay making a come back?

Posted by in Creative Ideas | 6 comments

Consignment selling on eBay is simply selling other people’s stuff. It’s a good way to get your feet wet with an easy to start online business.

It’s also likely to be easier now than it ever has been to find products to sell. Cash is king right now and a lot of people are willing to part with items that are quite valuable.

Some rules of thumb when selling items for other people on eBay:

o  Whenever possible just buy the items outright and then sell them. It’s much easier and more time efficient to do it that way. Only do this with items that you know a lot about and know what profits they’ll bring you.

o  Get yourself listed in the “trading assistant” directory on eBay. Use this link to learn more: http://ebaytradingassistant.com/index.php

o  Use the above link to find other consignment sellers and see how their operation works. You’ll get some great ideas from other sellers on what types of products to sell, how to advertise, and what their auctions look like. Look for sellers with high feedback scores to learn the most from.

o  To find customers run a craigslist.com ad advertising your services. You can  also talk to family, friends and neighbors and likely come up with plenty of customers. Offer your customers incentives to send you referral business.

o  Only sell items likely to go for $30 or more. A higher minimum is even better. Keep a minimum of 30% of the selling price as your fee. Some consignment sellers keep 40%.

o  Don’t get caught talking to people about their junk.  Extended conversations about other people’s stuff is what will kill your business and drain your time.

o  Avoid negotiations by having a clear contract that states what your duties are and what they can expect.

If you have some consignment experience what tips do you have? Leave a comment or question below and learn from what others have to say…

  • http://www.proactivemarketing4u.com Tim

    Hi Jim,

    Quick question on Craigslist advertising and then I'll explain how my consignment biz has worked.

    When you mentioned Advertising via Craigslist,can you give us an example of a sample advertisement and also what section of craigslist do you advertise in?

    Thanks..

    Notes on what has worked for me

    My father and I actually ran a Estate Liquidation/Consignment business for years before eBay. I simply added the ecommerce portion of selling online for others.

    I started out working with individuals but found I had better success in working with Small business owners that wanted to have an alternative distribution channel..eBay to generate sales.

    Inventory seemed more steady,and I did all my photography onsite while the business owner filled out a brief description of the product for me.

    I kept the product at customers store so I wouldn't have to store it myself with the understanding that if the product sold online they have to produce it for shipment, the first time that doesn't happen then, within reason, our working relationship ends.

    Of course I used a standard consignment contract, with a sliding commission scale and I charged $15per item listing fee due upfront, this fee refunded if item sells.

    I also let them(bus owner) know that I would run two auctions to determine profitablity for both of us and go from there.

    Hope that help! As you said Jim, Cash is king and I see this on the upswing this year.

    Tim
    http://www.proactivemarketing4u.com

  • http://stores.ebay.com/Media-Haven-And-More?refid=store Jim Young

    Hello,

    Even though I am a powerseller and have been selling on eBay for a number of years, I just got started as a consignment seller. I have one assignment now and a couple fell through the cracks. It seems as though as soon as I talk about my commission, they run and hide. I use 30% for the first $300.00. My question is for experienced consignment sellers is when do you bring up the rates? Do you volunteer the information right off or wait? Do you ask all the questions about their stuff right away or wait till you got em on a hook? Thanks for any feedback,

    Jim Young

  • Linda

    I used to work for a franchised consignment store. Jim, You may want to enumerate to the customer all of the things that you will be handling,like photography with multiple pictures, accurate descriptions, answering email questions about the item, handling the packing and shipping, and all they have to do is drop off the item. Then 30% seems like a deal…they don't have to know how to do anything, they just get a check in the mail!

    We charged 30% PLUS the Ebay fees. I believe that was on the first $1K and then it slid down to 25% over that. If you can keep the item value at $50 that's even better. Good luck!

  • http://www.ladybugwreaths.com Nancy Alexander

    Hi,

    Although I have not had much experience selling consignment items on eBay, I did this for years in my storefront business.

    I think there are a few ideas which would apply to both types of selling.

    Never let the customer price their item – that is up to you, the experienced seller. Many memories are associated with personal items which makes that person think it should sell for more than its value. This just needs to be made clear from the beginning that your research will show what the price should be.

    Also, I always made clear to my consignees that if an item did not sell, I would reduce it twice, and then one call would be made to them. After that call, if they wanted their item back, they had one week only to pick it up. If it was not picked up, it would be donated to goodwill, or a similar agency. I think this could apply to selling consignments on eBay also.

    I also think 30% with maybe the listing fee is a very fair price, but they need to see in writing the list of everything you are responsible for doing to earn this 30% fee. Most people don't know or understand all that is involved in a listing.

    Smiles, Nancy

  • Yolanda Lyons

    Hello Jim,

    I have bought numerous programs from the marketing gurus and receive thousands of emails that I don't open because I am overwhelmed with most of the information or I don't trust the source. I have at least 12 websites that I could probably make money with but I don't have time to read gobs of material that is way over my head. I am a full time student with limited resources and time, but I will be able to start an online business for real in about 3 weeks using your suggestions. I am not an internet marketer just yet,but I am definitely buying your book next. Thank you for the newsletters

    videos and other ideas because I can't wait to implement them. An online business has been a dream of mine for many years but it is hard to do without a mentor or guide that has already been where you are going.

  • http://hillbillydirect.com Jeromy

    Great list of tips folks!

    Consignment was initially something I didn't want to get into. I was worried about being responsible for someones 'treasures'. I would feel terrible if I let something go at too much less than I predicted.

    However, I have been selling on eBay now for some time, working my way through the IM world, graphic, web design and all that. Much of my learning has been made available by Jim and the many other great folks in My Silent Team. Now that my experience has grown, I realize, there are a lot of people that Need Help. They don't know how to make a listing. And if they decided to work through it, without research, planning and listing design, they run the risk of 'giving' their treasures away.

    With the experience that we, as ebay sellers, have, we have the means to close an auction higher. So at the end of the day, we might be getting them more money, even after the commission fee.

    The fee structure does make sense. There is a lot of work that should be done for each client. It makes sense to itemize these task, so that the client can better understand the job we are doing for them.

    Cheers!

    Jeromy