Ebay or not?

[NikiJ]

Hi All
Do any of you sell on ebay and do you think its worth it??

I've dabbled selling my crafts on there but havent been a regular, wondering whether I should.

Whats your experience?

Niki
xxx

[Tanya]

well in my experience from selling low cost stuff, the fees eat up all my profit but I still continue to sell on there

[storm]

My dp sells some stuff on there to raise money so he can afford to go and see his kids.

[Al1x]

We sell second hand stuff on ebay but nothing new.

[maggiescandles]

I never sell anything i make on ebay, its not worth putting my prices that low.

the kids old stuff and junk all goes on there though.

[Lemon]

My experience from a WAHM point of view, it's total rubbish ! But then again there are alot of people doing the same thing, so it is extremely competative. I put some shorts on a couple of months back, brand new ones, for 99p and they didn't sell ! I felt like I couldn't give the stuff away.

Have a look and see who else is selling what you do and keep an eye on how well it sells. Some people do really well.

[Chell]

I have been watching some items on there which are similar to what I sell and they haven't been going for much. I put an item on as I thought it would be a good link to my site. I have just checked and I have one bid but its not enough to make a profit on the item. Fingers crossed for a few more bids.

[helen.broadhead]

I sell my hand painted products on there.
I do quite well with them, but I feel this is where people are looking for unique items like mine.
The selling fees are ridiculously high though. I find I loose alot more money on ebay. I wouldnt personally sell low cost items as it just wouldnt be worth it with the fees, although selling on 5p days maybe an idea?
Christmas time is a good time to start selling on there as alot of people look on ebay for presents.
Use turbo lister to list your items, so you can use your own hostig for your pictures that way you only use the free one and dont pay for each picture.

hope that helps you alittle

Helen x

[judithbl]

I've got the dolls clothes on and they do sell. They are at the same price as on the website.

But I am selling off a lot of the clothes on there too now as I am going to reduce the amount of clothing I do and concentrate more on the baby gifts, bibs, shoes etc oh yes and the fancy dress.
x

[Katiequiggle]

I don't bother to sell my stuff on ebay. People sell alot of naff cards on there and it cheapens it for the rest of us. I want to sell mine for more than 4 cards for 75p.

[magsite]

I tend to subscribe to alor of magazine offers (Wonder why lol) and then sell the magazines on Ebay. I also add www.magsite.co.uk to the bottom of the picture of the magazine to get extra exposure. However adding your link in the text is a big no no

[hector]

i sell on ebay but sometimes wonder why i bother my bridal range has it's moments but that is seasonal also i dabble with other things at the moment i have clothes and glass decorations fingers crossed things will go without hassle i've had a few hassle's the last one it took a month for them to tell me they had'nt had it by then it was do late so they no longer want it what do i do i sent the stuff so i'm not sure what to do.
Also i feel handmade does'nt reach a good price my MIl makes bears we looked into selling them but they were only selling for a few pounds did'nt cover the cost of making them, I've got new tops on there at the moment for .99p no takers so far...........

[Al1x]

I think it depends on your market really.. and how you advertise your stuff for sale. When we have car item on ebay we stick links in all the car forums we use and also add a link from our website.

I've never been very good at selling clothes on ebay but mine and DP's friend does really well on there with her ebay shop... she has a really good way of describing things that make you want to buy them!

[feistygal]

I always do really well on eBay but I have always sold fixed price only on buy it now. Auctions I think are a waste of time these days.

I just restarted selling last week and have sold 15 items in 7 days. Not a huge amount but as its fixed price (same prices as website) thats not a bad number of orders. It is also fab for hits and because I have a link to my website in my About Me page I'm getting huge amounts of hits from that.

The reason I gave up my old business a few years ago was because the eBay sales were going to well and I got too busy to carry on doing that and my employed job. I was selling nursery items, prams, cots, sleeeping bags, slings, mobiles, baby clothes, that kind of stuff and whilst the website was dead in terms of sales, my eBay sales rose to 30-60 a day. All were buy it now fixed price items as well.

If you're prepared to work at it, get a professional template that matches your website and put some effort in to the listing the right stock, you can make it work. I don't list everything on eBay, partly because some suppliers don't allow it and partly because I know some things won't sell on there.

hth

Claire

[Sarah]

The fees are crippling but the customer base is amazing. Over ten million members in this country alone. Just make sure you add enough onto your postage cost to cover some of your fees too. It's a good place to start and if you decide to get a website you can mail shot all your ebay contacts - I also put a flyer in with all my ebay parcels telling them about my website.

[Al1x]

I also put a flyer in with all my ebay parcels telling them about my website.

Thats a really good idea actually!

[NikiJ]

Thanks for your replies. I still havent made my mind up lol!

Will have a think...

Niki
xxx

[Daffs]

I would definitely try Niki as your items are unique. I would also do as the others suggest and try and plg your sie as subtley as possible and definitely include a flyer or note to your site in orders.

[NikiJ]

Thanks Alison, thinking if I do do it Im hiring someone to do the listings because I just hate doing all that.

Niki
xxx

[Chutney]

I have sold 2 bracelets on Ebay and they went for a ridiculous low price - I think one went for £1.80 which doesn't even cover my costs. However, reading through these replies, it is a fab way to get your business out there. I am going to list a few bracelets for Buy it Now prices. I LOVE the idea of including a flyer. I think I'll set up a new Ebay account though.
Good luck!
X

[babybiz]

I hate ebay with a passion but I won't start my rant on here ;) I think for second hand goods it's a great thing but not for new except buy it now which is obviously a different kettle of fish. Ebay makes life hell for me with certain brands :( That said I guess it does have it's place because it's absolutely massive and Judith and Claire seem to be doing well with it so I guess a try wouldn't hurt.

If I get caught within a snif of that place I'd lose a lot of my brands so there isn't a snowballs chance in hell I would even if I didn't hate it anyway lol

Can you tell I don't like the place ;) Not just from a business pov either personally I don't like it although I do use it for certain things (how much of a hypocrite does that make me hehe).