Where to sell items online

There are so many ways to sell items online that it can be very confusing to work out which is best for you. Do you opt for the online auction sites or place a classified ad? Is it worth setting up a website of your own, on which to offer your products?

Online Auctions - Fixed Price Marketplaces - Your own Work

Two names are probably going to come to mind straight away, eBay and Amazon - but are they your only options?

In this section of the site I hope to introduce you to lots of different places to sell stuff online, whether it is things that you no longer need, craft items you have made yourself, or stock that you have bought cheaply to sell on.

If you are eco minded you could think of it as a way to recycle unwanted things and therefore keeping them out of a landfill. As a bonus you get paid for doing it!

Can't be bad, eh?

Lets start with auctions

All sorts of things can be sold at auctions. Both off and online, the principle is the same. You find an item you want to buy and you bid on it up to your upper limit. If someone else wants the same item, then the price can rise steeply, as you both keep offering more, hoping to be the highest bidder.

But let's look at things from the other side of the transaction. If you are selling, rather than buying, you are the one in the driving seat. Firstly you will want to describe your product in a manner that makes the bidders want to own it. You must do this honestly, pointing out any imperfections, so the buyer doesn't get a nasty shock after handing over their money.

There is an element of risk involved when you sell items online via auction sites.

You can help to reduce this by checking out similar items, beforehand, to see what sort of prices they have sold for. If you have a bottom price in mind, then you can either start the auction there, or put a reserve on your item so it does not sell unless the bids reach the minimum price you require.

The excitement comes when the price paid far exceeds what you imagined it would sell for!

One of a kind products are likely to sell for a higher price, compared to items that can be bought easily elsewhere.

Online auction sites will normally charge yosu a listing fee, and then take a percentage of the selling price.

If the idea of selling at an online auction appeals, you might find the following pages useful...

Fixed price marketplaces

If auctions scare you, and you are not prepared to take the risk, then you might be happier selling at a fixed price, on sites such as Amazon, Craigslist or Half.com.

Which you choose will depend somewhat on the items you wish to sell.

Books, DVDs and games etc are a great fit for Amazon, whereas something large, bulky or heavy might be better offered locally on Craigslist.org so that you don't have to ship it to the buyer. Instead they can come and collect it.

The costs to sell items online in this manner can vary.

If you have a seller account with Amazon it will cost you 99c per item. However if you are planning to sell many items, it can work out cheaper to become a preferred seller at $30 a month.

Craigslist, on the other hand only charges for job or apartment rental adverts. Generally, your classified advert will be online for 45 days, at which point you can repost if necessary.

Selling your own work

Why not create your own saleable products to sell online? Short on ideas?

How about...

Craft items, such as jewellery, toys, paintings etc.
Etsy is one of the best know venues to sell your crafts online. Or, of course, you could sell them off your own Web site.
The written word - articles, ebooks, ghost writing, proofreading
Writing for cash opens up lots of opportunities!
Your designs - for tshirts, embroidery patterns, web site graphics.
Again, there are many different directions you can take if you have design skills. We will cover a number of these on the site soon.