
When writing a description, give complete information in a logical order. List in multiple categories when in doubt. Three months later, an identical item was put up in a very different category with a more informative description and it brought $1,700.

In March last year, an item posted on eBay in one category sold for $34. And don't think that because you are selling yours for a few dollars less than the cheapest one you can find will make any difference whatsoever, because it won't. Don't waste your time trying to sell things that nobody else seems able to sell or that no one is interested in buying. Listing items that other sellers have currently listed and thatĪre not selling is not good business. Had he identified it as "Cigar Label Sample Catalog" he would have attracted bidders who routinely pay $3,000 to $10,000 for them. For example, one seller sold his "scrapbook of liners" on eBay for $137. Wrong or irrelevant words can cost you money. Learning the basics of that vocabulary can be worth money to you. Every collecting discipline has a vocabulary, a standard way of saying things. Read similar eBay listings to whatever you are selling before you post yours. Bidders don't search eBay for words like "wow" or "look" so be smart with your space and make every word count. The more relevant information that you can jam into your title, the more bidders you attract. If selling an artwork or illustration of any type, the subject matter must be in the title. Identify the material or medium it's made from whenever relevant. Always mention a brand name or maker (or artist) if known. You throw away money when you neglect important key words that buyers search on.Ī good title line should identify what you have (and sometimes alternative names that may be used to describe it). What you say in your title is critical because that's what eBay's (Google's) search engine reads. You are competing with millions of other items trying to get attention and dollars. The following guidelines along with a few eBay-specific additions will help you increase your online auction bottom line. Sellers would be smart to think of each eBay offering as a mini-website and follow basic guidelines of building successful websites. For almost anything you sell, there are only a handful of people willing to bid strongly.

#Ebay smart search how to
In other words, I know how to buy on eBay and I love to buy on eBay, so in order to buy even more, I'm going to teach you how to sell on eBay.Īs I race through mounds of online trinkets looking for treasures, I am amazed at the number of sellers who shoot themselves in the foot, losing bidders, bids and money because they don't understand what serious bidders need. I've bought the oldest item in my collection, two of the three most expensive, and more than half of my 100 favorite items in a 15,000 piece collection that took 50 years to build.
#Ebay smart search full
In my four years on eBay I've read countless thousands of title lines, looked at around 25,000 full item descriptions, bid on about 3000 of them, and bought more than 1000, spending anywhere from $5 to $5000 at a time. After decades driving 500-mile weekends to auctions, shows, fleas, and sales, and coming home happy if I found one or two items worth buying, I now sit home in my underwear snacking on rice crackers and Jack Daniels while sorting through endless piles of online trash on eBay. Better yet, if you type a few words, then push a button, you can print out a list of where you are most likely to find what you want. In spades! It's calledĮBay, an online department store that lets you be at most of the nation's garage sales, flea markets and sales from private sellers at once. Little did we know our wish would come true. How we wished we could be everywhere at once. and only a few feet away from our biggest rival who was just about to pounce. Did you ever have the feeling that while you were shopping in California someone in Missouri was putting a really cheap price tag on exactly what you were looking for? Every time my wife and I hurriedly searched tables at flea markets or antique shows, we feared our treasure-to-be was somewhere else on the premises.
