posted on September 29, 2000 07:52:54 AM new
I have a question of tact for you all:
I found a couple of items on Ebay that I thought could have been marketed better, so I bought them (at a very reasonable price) and plan to put them up for auction myself. However, I don't know if I should be tactful about the whole thing and wait for several weeks before putting the item on auction, or should I just slap the item up there right now?
What sort of tactfulness do I owe to the previous seller?
El
"The customer may not always be right, but she is always the customer."
posted on September 29, 2000 08:40:13 AM new
I bought some little widgits that came in a big box. So I broke them up, photographed them much better and sell them to hobbiests rather than folks who need them in bulk.
I have said nothing to the original seller because after I buy them they belong to me to do with what I please. No?
So far every one is doubling the price of the original. I don't use a reserve and I start them low.
About a year or so ago there was a post here about an auction where a miscellaneous group of toys was sold for pretty cheaply. The bidder had a great eye and resold one little obscure Star Wars toy for over $1,000. It was in the days before posting the auction was verboten.
Anyhow, I can't imagine what the bidder told the seller, if anything. Plus after the "rip-off-the-old-lady-at-her-garage-sale" thread, I wonder if the seller should have been told.
No, I wouldn't mention it.
Capriole
only Capriole here
edited for syntax and spelling ...ack!
[ edited by Capriole on Sep 29, 2000 08:43 AM ]
posted on September 29, 2000 09:57:12 AM new
Seller chose to list the items how, when, where and at the starting bid he thought best,and obtained your high bid.
I'd say you've been "tactful" enough if you've paid the seller the correct amount, on time, in negotiable funds.
List 'em whenever YOU think best for YOUR business.
posted on September 29, 2000 10:02:01 AM new
I usually buy stuff and resell it on round tuit basis. Usually when you buy a lot of varying items, some fly and other do not. I cherry pick for items that appeal to me and sell the rest.
posted on September 29, 2000 12:26:12 PM new
Yep, list it as soon as it's convenient for you. Heck, you really have no idea if the original seller is going to see it anyway, and even if they do, well, you bought the item, it's yours.
I recently bought a book on eBay (not marketed/titled well) for $3 TOTAL (including shipping) and sold it for over $30.00. I did wait a bit before listing it but not because of any tact issue, just because it took me that long to get around to photographing the item and describing it well and planning how *I* would market it.
Honestly, though, I'm sure some sellers DO, but I don't search for stuff I've sold after I've sold it. I dont' want to see an item I sold for $40 going for $100, when I don't have another item like it with which to 'try again'. I do searches before listing an item to get an idea of starting price and effective marketing, but I never 'look up' old items after they've sold to see if they're being offered again, it just doesn't interest me much. So, your seller might not ever see it anyway unless s/he also collects this particular widget or widgets very similar.
posted on September 29, 2000 06:59:58 PM new
I bought something at a moderate price I think because there was a serious spelling error in the title and I just happened to be playing around with search and found it. The pictures were crappy but I took a chance because the item was unusual. Turned around and sold it with clear pictures under a different category and (I think) with everything spelled correctly. Happy ending: 500 percent profit. I can't imagine the seller recognized it and even if he did, so what. I took the time to take pictures, write descriptions, etc., just like I would for any other auction.
posted on September 30, 2000 01:13:04 AM new
Go for it!
As a seller I don't care if you buy something from me and make more money on it, I've made mine and am on to something else. I never check to see if it's for sale again. Who has the time? I check before I sell it and price it for my profit.
posted on September 30, 2000 08:57:40 AM new
I buy everything I sell on eBay. selling individual items is work, and I've found that bulk owners of my items realize that (sooner or later) and sell them in bulk -- at a bulk price.
You will be doing additional work to market the items in a specific manner, work that the original seller did not do, and work that will be appreciated (you hope) by eventual buyers. You anticipate you will get more money on account of that work, as should everyone involved. You have nothing to be ashamed of or to apologize for. Do it.
posted on September 30, 2000 09:44:21 AM new
Hey, I've been on the "other side" of this situation myself. A month or so ago I listed an item with a couple of very clear, large, detailed images showing flaws which I spelled out in my text, as well. No HTML dancing donkeys in the blurb, just the facts. Saw an apparent newbie with a "1" feedback bid vigorously to win it at a higher price than I expected.
Checked out the feedback & what it was for to see if I needed to be cautious about taking a check or anything and found this buyer's only other purchase was for another item in the same category, again flawed, bought for a high price, which was at that moment running as a relist but with no mentions of the flaws! I called my spouse over to the screen and said, "LOOK at this, this buyer's going to do the same thing with what she just won from me!" I was paid promptly, and sent the item out w/o comment.
So I kept an eye out, and sure enough... my item resurfaced in a week or so, minimum open about 3 times what she paid me.... with informative text like "WOW! L@@K! L@@K! GREAT RARE WONDERFUL DANCING WIDGET!!!" All complete with no mention at all of the flaws and an image the size of a penny, blurry, with no angle to allow seeing the most important fault. It didn't sell, nor did the earlier one I'd noticed. Then she relisted at a low start, no reserve, but the same inadequate text, and got maybe 25% less than what she'd paid me two weeks earlier.
Tactfully, I restrained myself from emailing her any comments. She's bid on my items subsequently, now, but not high enough to have won again.
I do searches before listing an item to get an idea of starting price and effective marketing, but I never 'look up' old items after they've sold to see if they're being offered again, it just doesn't interest me much. So, your seller might not ever see it anyway unless s/he also collects this particular widget or widgets very similar.