Article by Fab after Fifty
Is time to refresh your home AND generate a little extra cash to contribute to the extra cost of having a child at university?
Rather than store unwanted items in the loft, or consign to a skip, why not sell online ?
As students settle in at university, new research from eBay.co.uk shows that parents are taking advantage of their own (re)fresher week, using the start of term to freshen up their empty nests.
A fifth (21%) of the 2,000 polled parents saying they’d be decluttering or redecorating their home; with one in ten planning to sell unwanted clothes, toys or kit.
More than 20% will wait less than six months to turn their child’s bedroom into something else; one in twenty have plans to convert it into an office, gym or dressing room. Meanwhile one in 25 said they’d be letting out the room as a b & b or to a lodger, with others adding they’d give the room to a sibling, move into it themselves or even take the opportunity to move house.
Says eBay.co.uk Director of Consumer to Consumer selling Will Weightman, ‘Forget the traditional freshers week its all about (re)freshers week this year with many parents planning to de-clutter, redecorate or even re-assign their childrens’ rooms while they’re away at university. 30% of parents even believe they will make up to £500 from the sale of unwanted items. Time to get listing!’
So, is time to generate a little extra cash to contribute to the extra cost of having a child at university?
Rachael White gave up full time employment to grow a successful business on eBay, here Rachael offers three of her top rips to sell successfully.
Tips for selling on e-bay
Clear Photos and Descriptions
It’s important to be very clear with your descriptions and photos of your products. Clear descriptions, stating the size of the item, the make, model, what it is used for, what its limitations are etc. all help the buyer make an informed choice.
Clear photographs, taken from different angles if necessary, preferably on a clean white background help the buyer to decide if this is the item they want. We take photos against a white wall, clothing is put on dummy, and we use a photography tent for the smaller items. There are lots of different photo editing software programs to choose from, to help you create and list the best possible image of your item.
Calculate the postage correctly and include this on the listing. A customer is more likely to purchase if they have the postage and total cost available easily at their fingertips. Being told to contact the seller for postage is likely to have them looking at another listing. This includes overseas postage. If you do not want to send an item overseas, set the listing to show this, or if you want to post overseas work out the postage costs in advance. It’s also handy to have a variety of posting options. Our items are relatively small, so in the UK we offer Free 2nd class, 1st Class and Special Delivery – all options the customer chooses at checkout.
Post all items quickly
Customers expect their items quickly. They expect the retailer to ship the item without delay, so that they can enjoy the item they have paid their money for. Notes on listings stating items only posted on certain days of the week will put customers off. If you are going to be on holiday and cannot post, then consider whether it is better to have listings live whilst you are away, or whether someone else can post the items for you.
Treat customers as you want to be treated
To you it may be obvious that the item is not waterproof or is not suitable for use in a dishwasher – but to the customer asking the question it is not. Treat every potential customer as you would like to be treated. Be polite in emails and respond quickly and accurately to their questions.
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