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20 Tips on How to Price How Your Ebay Items

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By kiwi91



Tips on Pricing Your Ebay Auctions so They'll Sell

  1. Research completed items on Ebay. It's simple. Just search for the item you are selling, then check off the "completed items" bar. The past 14 days of sales will show up for you.
  2. Skip the reserve auction. These never work out, and buyers hate them. I know I do! The thrill of Ebay is getting a deal, and starting an item at 99 cents with a reserve is just a tease and letdown.
  3. Use Google to figure out the buy it now price other online retailers are selling the item for. This should give you a good idea of what people are willing to pay, if the item is out there.
  4. Toggle your keyword search and omit words or use synonyms. You may find items ending at higher prices (or lower) that are using different descriptive words. Example: the word "and." Many brand names use the word "and" or the "&" symbol in the title. Buyers use both to search for the item.
  5. Do you have several of the same item? Include the buy it now option, or place an extra of the item available in your store at a higher buy it now price with free shipping. Link from the auction to your store and promote the fact that they can get it right now.
  6. If you've purchased an item that is selling for less than what you paid for it, or close to it, consider the loss leader strategy. This will pull in traffic to your auction. Consider it like an advertisement. Promote the heck out of your Ebay store from within your auction, write off the loss, and call it a day.
  7. If you have a one-of-a-kind item, put the item on auction. Bidding creates excitement, and can generate even more sales towards your BIN items.
  8. Starting items at 99 cents is usually a mistake. Start your items at $9.99 at least. 99 cents items for some reason tend to linger at that price for far too long. People think the item has something wrong with it.
  9. Always price the majority of your items at a minimum bid price that will make you a profit. Take into consideration any shipping expenses that you might incur. Don't just hope that the bidding goes up high, because it often times won't.
  10. Used items often give a higher profit. New items may go for more money, but the chance for profit is lower. Why? They cost more to obtain the items, and there's usually more competition. These used items often do very well when the starting bid is very LOW.
  11. Always include the full retail price of the item in your auction. This will make the item appear like more of a steal (and that's what Ebay is known for, great deals!)
  12. For items like gemstones, gold, and other jewelry, you may need an appraiser. It can be difficult to grade these on your own.
  13. Vendio has an even better ebay research tool for $20 a month that will give you the average selling price, trends, and the selling history of keywords beyond 2 weeks. You can price your item more accurately and learn more about your items this way.
  14. Always check the Amazon price of an item. This is Ebay's biggest competitor, and a good estimate of the true value.
  15. Remember when buying your inventory that Ebay is a place for deals. People expect a deal, so it's not unreasonable to see your item selling for 20-60% of the retail price.
  16. Price your item to sell now. Waiting too long can open up the competition and lower the average selling price.
  17. Are you the exclusive seller of this item on Ebay? You're best bet might be the auction format, along with a high fixed price format. Take advantage of this as long as you can!
  18. Experiment with the free shipping option. This can give you better visibility in the Ebay search, so it may be worth it to roll the shipping costs into the price of the item.
  19. Keep records or spreadsheets (or use some of the auction software programs out there) of your best selling items. Is the price on the downswing? It might be time to dump this item and not buy any more of the inventory, or maybe you should be buying variations of this product. Is a newer model available?
  20. Including the retail price in the subtitle of the item usually increases bids (if the item is of high worth). It will attract more bids, excitement, and overall traffic.

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Benz B profile image

Benz B  says:
7 days ago

Great tips.

Benz B profile image

Benz B  says:
7 days ago

Great tips.

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