eBay Was Hard Until I Stopped Doing These 6 Things 

The worst are the ones that want you to take pictures for them when you have great photos already. They 9 out of 10 never buy.

Thank you for all your great tips! I find your your calm, kind, no hype demeanor to be the best Ebay youtuber to listen to. Just made it to 10K in 90 days this week after 18 months part time on Ebay. Appreciate you sharing your great advice!

I started selling on ebay 24 years ago. Your advice here is the BEST I have ever seen for new sellers. I had a friend get into ebay that I was coaching. Sure enough her buyer wanted a partial refund as the sweater had an undisclosed "spot". I told her, tell the buyer to return for a full refund. She sucked into the buyer's pressure and gave them 50% off. A week later her buyer had reposted the sweater that she had sold for $20, for $300......

I HIGHLY recommend NOT using the AI button, not only is the majority of what it generates completely useless fluff that no one reads, it often generates information that is flat out false or wrong, I agree with most of the rest of your advice though.

I sold a carry on bag to someone who had multiple questions and wanted more photos. I accommodated her, and she bought it. She left me a lovely review! Sometimes questioners are good buyers!

In almost every video, I hear you state that an eBay description is unnecessary. I'd like to challenge that by stating that it's highly dependent upon what you're selling. As a seller of collectibles, buyers are looking to understand the condition of the item and if it meets their requirements. Over and over again, I see this in my reviews, so I know that buyers are reading my descriptions. I'd just exercise caution with being so adamant about not filling out the description, and rather, state that it's market-specific. If you're in the collectibles market, DO write an accurate description with the item defects, even the ones that can be considered manufacturing defects. Manufacturing defects don't decrease the value of the item, but they are important to buyers of collectibles.

I think description is necessary with flawed or damaged items. The best defense against "Not as Described" disputes is to write a description. Of course, I understand the futility of trying to prevent all returns, but it's hard to dismiss any tool that can help minimize issues.

I agree about not giving partial refunds. People have been programmed to do this by those who are giving it to them. Sadly there are too many out there that play this game with every seller.

Really helpful, especially about using the eBay app with your phone camera, hadn't even thought of that - thanks

Great information as always! Thanks Justin!

Thank you. I always appreciate your great advice!

Amen! I sold a case of can light bulbs they are soft white. I had a buyer ask me all kinds of questions about them from wattage to light color , how many kelvin’s the bulbs were. They ended up buying them and guess what? Yep got them back and some got broken on the return.🤦

Great advice Justin. So true about buyers that ask a lot of odd questions.... trouble. Thanks.

Nice job, Justin! Well done 👍🏻

Good morning Justin. There is a gentleman (PhoenixSales85)that just started his journey on selling on EBay and he is putting out weekly videos to share his experience. He has mentioned using Flipwise and giving the use of it to be very positive and useful. Thought it would be cool to maybe give him a comment. I think you have been a common sense inspiration for him. Have a happy day 😊

That was a great informational vid ol mate

Great video! I sold on eBay for 3 years and luckily only had to deal with two idiots. You hit the nail on the head!!! The thought of negative feedback really haunts me but I've never had one. I'm about to get back selling with fingers crossed.

Great information. Thanks

Very nice video and well done. Good thoughts and nice points. This is going to be helpful to new eBay sellers and a few vets very good job.

Great help!!

Wow. Great info. Now I’ll continue watching :)

Another really good video 👍

Hi Justin! I've been watching your videos for a few months now and REALLY enjoy them. You come across as very genuine and down-to-earth. I have recently started myown Ebay store, Kelley's_Blessings, and trying to build it up. What was once just a little side fun hobby has now become the ONLY thing I have to support my family. That was not intentional, but I know all things happen for a reason even if we are not yet aware of that reason. I'm very proud though because through learning from honest people like you, I doubled my May sales in June (even though they are still small potatoes). I learned to create coupons and have one running for the July 4th weekend and I have had a few sales from that so praying that July doubles June :). I think this is the first comment i have EVER written on someone's video, but I feel you should know that all the time and effort you put into what you do is a blessing to people like me. Looking forward to the next ones!

Thank you!

Agree on good lighting so you can list any time of the day. And agree on the question askers usually being the problematic customers.

Good advice. Other than the camera nonsense. The quality of your camera and lighting greatly improves your pictures. eBay does not compress your photos noticeably. It only looks noticeable on pictures that were substandard to begin with. I use a dedicated dslr and professional strobes. And it makes a big difference. Using a decent cellphone is fine, but if you're going to set up a photo station and list multiple items, it's easier to use an actual camera. I usually shot 25 to 75 items at a time - 200 to 700 images. Using a cellphone for that would be painfully ridiculous. Selling similar is useful for amateurs if listing on the fly, but you're better off making templates and building your listings from those. I love it when I find listings that copied my listings including my inventory codes in the title. Also, the description... eBay might not emphasize it, but it will make a big difference if there are ever claims that the item was not as described. It's better to over describe than to rely on the intellect of your buyers.

The VHS are for money laundering. I run a Disney collectibles group and this is a common question we get about the value of Disney VHS tapes.

Awesome video

I use the Google pixel 6 and it's a 50MP, same as the new pixel 8. And I have noticed a small difference in clarity when I take the photos off app and then just add them later. It's also faster when listing multiple items. Just snap all your photos, draft all the items. Then put them together.

I have to disagree about using auctions, cause I make more money now doing auctions then doing buy it now, cause I double my money by doing 5 day auctions and items are gone in 5 days,instead of doing buy it now feature and wait a month to forever to sell item,so to me , auctions is the best way to go if you want to sell stuff, if you want to wait forever for item to sell, then do the buy it now feature and watch your items collect lots of dust on shelves,and I never had a problem with people paying for items after auctions ends

#1 is so true. I have had soooo many winning bid no- payments. And I'm glad you mentioned that Solds don't mean nothing. What I look at is how fast and how often it "sold" that gives me the demand. Example: If I see a widget is selling every day in a month. But if the last sale was 3-6 months ago....nope. I still use Auctions + BIN. Often the buyer will just BIN. You don't mention the Auctions + BIN. If they don't pay the auction, I give them a negative " buyer didn't pay" and they get a strike against them.

Hey Justin…love the content! Huge time saver for shooting photos… Edit one photo…iPhone allows you to copy those edits and then pate those edits to other photos. Shoot every picture with the 1:1 size or crop photos to square when needed.

All great advice. Especially, with problematic buyers. If someone asks a question it's usually an issue.

Thanks

one annoying thing i notice is when the item is dirt cheap and they're asking for pictures and stuff. It's like "look buddy, it's $1!" or there are 10 questions on a 1 dollar item and then they don't buy it.

Love the channel. Recently got back into eBay selling. I needed a custom 22x12x2 box and went to UPS store today, and they charged me $16.11 for one box! It's kind of ridiculous that they can charge that for one box. I imagine they would charge another $40 to pack it for me!

Hey Justin thanks for always providing informative videos. I have two questions. I'm sure you have already answered. 1) What type of box lights do you use for taking pictures? 2) How do you combine shipping for multiple orders? Thanks!

I just had a buyer try and scam me recently using the exact tactics you describe in this video. I sold him a used polo shirt that was in great condition, and when he received it, he messages me about all the “flaws” the shirt had along with several photos. he then asked me to credit some money back to him because the shirt wasn’t up to his standards. I told him he needed to return the shirt within 30 days and I’d be happy to provide a refund. he never sent the shirt back to me, eBay closed the case based on the return window expiring, and now he is initiating a payment dispute with his bank about having to pay for the shirt. total scam artist. gives a bad name to all the great ebay buyers out there.

Thankyou

Hey Justin! Appreciate your videos so much and really enjoy watching. Thanks for all your advice! Do you have any recommendations for smaller sellers who can't list new items weekly? I currently have 150ish items for sale, and while I was daily listing 5 or so items, sales were good. Now, I don't currently have anything to list, and my items are sitting with little to no views or sales. I understand I need to source, but until then, any advice to help boost views and sales? I currently use promoted listings, all buy it now with best offer, and price competivetly with quality photos. Some of my items have low STR, so that's understandable, but I am surprised to not even be getting views. Am I just in a slump?

If the winning bidder on an auction listing doesn't pay for the item you can offer it to the next highest bidder at the maximum bid they placed. This option will be shown under the bid history for the item. This second chance offer can also be used if you have another identical item to sell without having to run a new auction listing.

Great video, Justin!! Flipwise is a great product and it has really helped me save a lot of time! I have been selling sports cards for a while, on consignment.

OK, I just caught wind that a lot of advanced eBay sellers do NOT GIVE ITEM descriptions. THIS IS NUTS . To me . I sell strange and esoteric items - MANY have condition issues. And MANY items , when I say where they came from -- HELPS the SALE . A LOT of my stuff comes from estate sales of people who were in the business of whatever "Estate sale of a professional Magician" etc.

One nitpick: taking pictures while using the app. We find that the app crashes on us every 8 or so listings. And, uploading photos can be slow when using the app. What we've been doing instead, when we have large batches of similar items is to use the phone to take photos outside the app. Then, upload those photos in a single large batch to a free cloud service. Finally, on a desktop, we download the photos and marry the relevant ones to each draft. Using SKUs helps tremendously to match up photos with drafts.

Really enjoy your straightforward approach and videos. Question: how do people organize pics on your computer. My current method is to bulk take pics, then sit down when I have a chunk of time and do the listings using either “sell one like this” or with a template I’ve made. What is the best way to organize pics of “listed” ready to list “ or some other way?

When you say eBay compresses images, is this why my photos always look washed out and dark after I upload them? 🤔 Eg. A bright red hat just looks dull and faded, so annoying!

Thanks man! Just when I was thinking of getting a DSLR on a stand to shoot clothinbg with a remote shutter. Thought that might speed things up cause I'm not picking up the phone each pic? I'm going to do it anyway and I'll let you know if it's indeed faster. Me thinks it comes down to how niche you are and what volume. I'm from the Class of 1999 eBay Sellers who first had to learn how to use a computer and then learn the pitfalls of eBay by just diving in.

to add to that thing about them bringing up your feedback you can report that and you win. i had someone mention feedback while he claimed after his package said delivered that he never got it, tough luck pal get a camera if you live in an apt. long story short i passive aggressively mentioned that he brought up my feedback and he back tracked. what do you know the last day possible for him to pull back on the ticket he tried to open he magically came home to his ten dollar package sitting at his door.. was nice knowing that i was safe vs the person trying to scam back a ten dollar item. just goes to show you people will try to get anything for free if they think they can and wont care about how it effects you.

Early on, I was a victim of those McDonald’s plushies. Found a bunch of them unopened for $2 a piece and thought I was going to retire early. 5 months later, they haven’t sold for $2 a piece and are rotting in my death pile :( Tough lesson learned

Funny thing happened to me with a partial refund was. I sold something but in the description I had put the wrong year. I actually sold it for a little bit cheaper than the other exact ones for sale. I mark the item a s sent but hadn't taken it to the post office, as I do my postal run in the afternoon. The buyer came at me with I tried to deceive him by saying it was vintage and that he should ask for full refund unless there's something I could do. So I cancelled his order and blocked him. Ad looking at his profile he was a seller in that niche. Cheers Graham

Speaking of auctions vs. buy-it-now, I want your opinion on an eBay strategy I have been using for a while. I list an item maybe 10-20% above its value, and I periodically lower the cost of all listings by 5%. I figure that eventually, the price will be right and I can make the sale. This strategy is to ensure that I don't undervalue an item, but I wonder if this takes the item too long to sell, especially if I was wildly overestimating its value. Is quick turnarounds always better? How do you go about re-evaluating a price?

Sell similar is great and it cuts off a lot of time, especially if you're selling in niches. I sell postcards and doing "Sell Similar" from another postcard listing of mine saves a lot of time.

For descriptions I make it like a list... Brand size color material......most of it is in the title and shown in pics

Just because there are items that have weird sold comps like Disney vhs doesn't mean you can't trust sold comps. Sold comps are basically the #1 thing you should be using to determine value.

Hi Justin, thanks for putting out this content. It has helped me a lot as a reseller! Question - How do you handle returns where the buyer falsely claims “Item not as described”? I sold a book recently listed in acceptable condition and uploaded photos of damage to the spine. The buyer returned it as “not as described” claiming that I listed it as “new” (which I did not).

Greetings! Love your videos. Very helpful. Photos - How long should you hold on your photos once an item has been listed and/or sold? I look forward to your response. Thanks!

In the mobile app if you tap on the title below pictures the description will pop up

With auctions would you not get more exposure for other items even if auction items do not sell ?

I was thinking about making an Ebay store dedicated just to Disney VHS, Beenie Babies, and Corningware. :)

is 150% sell-through-rate good for a iphone x 256gb

Hey justin, after I finish my listing on the computer and get everything set, I take my photos on my phone, but after I take them, ebay automatically resets my buy price to the median Buy It Now price. any way to fix this? I often times have to run back to my computer to remember what I priced an item, so I don’t have to research it again. Also please talk more specifically about shipping policies🙏Thanks!

Oh, I always wondered about those exorbitant listing sale prices. I thought Ebay puts a slash if the item did not sell full price. True about partial refund or feedback blackmail. Some people are just vicious and cheats. We had one lady who asked 11 separate email questions for this antique 1880s lamp we were selling. Luckily we are patient. We answered all her questions. Two days later she purchased it full price. Using sell similar, though, you want to be VERY careful as some of descriptions are not the same, review each line.

Hey, I often hear that you sell about the same amount of items as you list on a weekly basis. Wouldn't the number of items in your store be even more important than the number of items listed in the week? And how many items should one have in their store if they are aiming to sell 35 items a week?

when you do advanced search--you should also look at COMPLETED listing. not just sold.

When should a seller choose to go above 250 listings? Should you naturally go above that limit when you have enough inventory or when you are making a certain amount of sales?

I don't use a dedicated camera, but after upgrading my phone recently, I'm using my old phone exclusively for listing so I don't have all the eBay pics mixed in with my personal pics. Would love to hear other suggestions for managing the picture library. I'm reluctant to delete until an items sells, but who wants to track that really? I'm not sure it's even worthwhile to maintain my masters once the item is listed.

As far as answering questions goes I thought that you had to respond questions to make the algorithm happy?

I honestly think the AI descriptions turn a lot of buyers off for the same reason people don't like AI phone conversations. I would use the description to use your copy and pasted description of your free return policy 100% of the time unless there are some basic details to include (rare).

I respectfully disagree - definitely money laundering on eBay - appreciate your content 😊

There are very few things I disagree with you about eBay and reselling in general and one of them is about having a description. Items should have a description except for when there really is not much to say because it’s brand new, the photos show everything, etc. but 95% of the time there’s things to note beyond the condition that people might not notice in the photos. And you should never use the AI tool.

Hey Justin. I haven’t found anyone that can answer this Question. In my photos I would like to add a screenshot of the same item on Amazon to show the value that I am offering? It’s a strategy that I use on facebook marketplace with a lot of success/sales. Don’t want to get dinged for using this strategy.

i have a hunch.

Spaghetti throwing CONtest now so listen to Justin folks. With eBay now saving your old listings it is going to become even more a throwing contest. Realistically one could outfit a transport van/RV to sell and travel all year around North American sourcing. Pack-up the days work and sending the products to a fulfillment house. Start the listing a week later, Why wouldn't you do this? While out and about look for RE buys, like cheap land. Start a channel for that and other travel experiences. The opportunities today are endless really.

Hi Justin, I love your videos. As background, I started with eBay in 2004. In 2006 I was a power seller. I was selling very customized items, I started out with a few samples and every order I sent detailed pictures to the client. I received their acceptance and final payment before shipping. Any new shape , size, or color I took those detailed pictures and made a new listing. I soon had hundreds of sample listings. They were just guides of what I could make, Every order was made to order. This worked well because of constant communication. Live changed and I closed the business. Forward to 2023, I decided to become a reseller... I used sell similar. I did a lot of research before choosing a listing. Yes there were some errors and misinformation but other than occasional aggravation due to rewriting or making corrections it worked and saved time.

i want to start flipping iphones where i dont need to drive but how many do i need to sell to have 1000 euros to buy my grandma a new ipad and a apple watch

Do you think that most users are sellers?

SELL SIMILAR is a mixed bag. If the listing you are copying has errors, then you are just (as the old joke says) an "idiot-once-removed" The best ways to list quickly are either with CSV spreadsheets or the ebay Bulk Listing Tool with your own templates and saved items. Once I did that, I went from struggling to do 10 items a day to whipping out 30 a day. NIGHT AND DAY!

More questions = more problems.

I just started selling with ebay without subscribing ebay store. So far, 1. immediately sold and canceled, 2. the same item sold, but ebay banned the buyer's account and told me not to send, but I had shipped already, so ebay kept the fund they paid to me. 3. Sold ok. 4. Sold and the buyer want the refund because 'I changed my mind.' The item is on the way. I have to refund once I get it. I am a long-time ebay user as a buyer with more than 1000 of 100% positive feedbacks (66 items sold). I didn't expect this kind of start. I understand there are occasional not-great selling experiences, but 3 in 4 were terrible experiences. Is this because I don't sign up for the ebay store?

Okay, but the AI descriptions are absolutely ridiculous! It's generally flowery and redundant and not at all helpful. I advocate for templates - starting from a template saves loads of time.

You have a very INCORRECT STATEMENT about LISTING. The best way to list is to use RELIST. Not sell similar. Use RELIST option whether it's same item or not. That is if you want to sell!!!

First!