posted on January 5, 2001 01:41:06 AM new
Hi! I am new to posting messages & have been reading the old ones & think this is a cool site.
I've been selling on ebay now for a year & have had pretty good success & am having a blast. Over the last year, I have had about 3 people approach me (friends) & asked me to help them get"started"doing eBay. I did & it didn't turn out good as they always tried to copy what I did. Now, i have relatives wanting to make eBay a career & are now approaching me to help them & tell them everything I know on how to sell on eBay. NOw I am not a power seler seller or anything but I've worked very hard to specialize in what I sell & i don't wanna give away everything. Do I charge for my time to teach her howto list, post, etc. etc. Any feedbacks out there? has this ever happened to you? Being approached by people wanting you to teach them for free??? Let me know as I am trying to handle this diplomatically. I really don't have a lot of time to sit down & show them everything nor do I think I want to (selfish?) I suggested that she buy a book ..After all I learned by just jumping in..Any thoughts???
posted on January 5, 2001 01:58:02 AM new
I am approached by people who don't want to learn. They just want me to sell their stuff and give them all (or too much) of the money. I would rather that they learn to do it themselves.
In your case, I would say that if they want to do something like this they will need to experience it first hand. I always suggest that people sell the old stuff they have around the house for experience -- that way they won't have much invested and can see if they like it. I would tell them that if they run into trouble or have any specific questions, you will try to help; but if they cannot get started on their own, it may not be the career (or hobby) for them.
posted on January 5, 2001 01:59:23 AM new
This hasn't happened to me so I can't speak with any authority but I think your response, to buy a book is good.
There are a few good books now about selling on the internet and about ebay that would give them the basics without giving away everything you've learned by trial and error not to mention the time involved trying to teach them.
posted on January 5, 2001 02:51:53 AM new
raindrop5, tell them that the best way for them to learn is to come to AW and read. That's what I was told and believe me it is a great way to learn. I have picked up more tips and hints from this board than anyone single person could ever have shown or told me.
A big thanks you to all who post and who I have learned so much from.
posted on January 5, 2001 07:06:03 AM new
My mom is wanting to sell on EBAY. We live in different states.
So, I bought her the digital camera, I set up her auctionwatch account and a few dummy ads for her to copy from the last time I visited. She calls my 1-800# so I can talk her through the steps.
What else can you do when it's your mom?
posted on January 5, 2001 07:57:54 AM new
I am approached alot by people who want me to show them "the ropes". My answer is always the same:
Get a computer and spend a few months researching and learning eBay. Then find something that interersts you and research it on eBay and elsewhere on the net.
After that people usually discover that eBay is really alot of work - not just a sit at home and people send you money scam.
For immediate family, however, I tell them to research eBay then I will sit them down and explain the process to them. My tally so far: Dad gave up for now, Sis is doing very well and loving it (she actually found auctionwatch!) and my Brother just got his computer and is in the research phase.
Remember: If you teach someone else how to do eBay they will soon be searching the same places you do for the same items you are looking to sell. That is not too good for your job security!
posted on January 5, 2001 08:34:42 AM new
I finally quit telling people that I sell on eBay.
This xmas I had 2 in-law relatives asking me how.
I tell them to start out buying to get use to the sight and build feedback. Read the TOS. And...go to auctionwatch.com (eBay Outlook).
The only way their really going to learn is to do it themselves.
In the past I've helped several get started but they want me to do all the work. When I cut the cord they give up and quit...they find out it takes alot of work.
When I started this, it was SLOW and GRADUAL learning as I went.
When people see how well I do now they think they can jump in head first and make $1000's the first month.
The ones that get me(I'm dealing with now) are the ones that want you to sell all their "junk" for them which they think should bring BIG BUCKS.
I can't seem to make them understand that it takes me just as much time to list that item that brings $5.00 as it does to list one that sells for $100.00. I don't have time to fool with all there petty stuff for a $.50 commission. I spent one whole evening putting their "junk" on and made a whopping $20.00, that doesn't include my time to pack and ship the stuff. If they can't bring me something thats sure to make $100.00 or more then I'm saying NO.
Oh, and another thing I get alot of. People want me to search their stuff they have to see what its worth. You would be surprised at the stuff people bring into my work to look at, as if I'm suppost to be an expert on it. Gheesh.....
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edited for packer by packer!!
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Having a BAD HAIR DAY! ...
posted on January 5, 2001 08:42:01 AM new
I taught them. Spent many many hours going over and over it, for FREE. They learned well. Then they decided I was their competition. Real appreciative eh?
It's amazing what GREED does to some people, even people you care about and are trying to help.
posted on January 5, 2001 09:08:13 AM new
So (and sorry to get off-topic), what do you say you "do" when people ask "what do you do"?
I am also a part-time afterschool arts & crafts teacher at my son's private school, in addition to being a stay-at-home mom of my 3 year old all day, so I can get away with mentioning those things, but sometimes it comes up that I have a "home business" of sorts, and I hate to mention eBay at all! So I try to answer with a vague, sort of true "oh, I do online re-sale, like a virtual thrift store" or something like that, but am never quite satisfied with that response, really, as it often leads to more questions.
posted on January 5, 2001 09:36:34 AM new
I work 2 part time jobs beside eBay.
VFW Club for 4 years now...seems everybody there knows what I do. They are the people that are always asking me to look up this or that or bring it in to look at.
My other job is at the Post Office, I got that job from all the business I took into him. So when the PMR job became available he asked me if I would do it. Thats one job I just as soon not have. TO DAMN MUCH PAPER WORK. He's the one that wants me to sell his stuff because he sees how well I do at it.
So when I'm asked at one job or the other I talk about the other job, I stay clear of talking about eBay as much as possible.
I've sold for a few people at the Club but I think their expectations are to high, and then I think it bugs them because they have to pay me to do it. Like they think it is no added work to list their stuff.
One thing about me, it is really hard for me to say no as they are all my friends.
Mums the word for me, I try real hard to steer clear of eBay conversation.
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edited for packer by packer!!
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Having a BAD HAIR DAY! ...
posted on January 5, 2001 09:45:12 AM new
Firstly, apologies for not answering the original question because it is always a difficult situation but... it does bring back not so found memories that I couldnt possibly share elsewhere.
Just after my accountant told me how much my corporate tax bill was and writing him a multi-thousand dollar check for his services, he asked me " oh by the way...you sell on eBay right?" I was dumbfounded at where he was leading. And then he asked how to. I was still on the clock, very sick from the first news and he wanted to know how I made money on the net.
I dont remember what I said about eBay, but I do remember his embarrasment and apology!
posted on January 5, 2001 09:45:55 AM new
I suppose I've been lucky...My friends seem to think that eBay is a quick/easy money maker..I have taken the time to explain (in painstaking detail) what is required to sell each and every item (find/clean/photo/edit photo/load photo/measure/examine item/write description/email communication/payment processing/record keeping/packing/shipping/follow-up)....When I'm done, they have typically lost their interest in this "get rich quick" idea!
posted on January 5, 2001 09:48:00 AM new
BlackCoffeeBlues: When I'm asked what I do by people who don't know, I just simply reply that I'm in marketing.
posted on January 5, 2001 10:23:28 AM new
BlackCoffeeBlues -
Go to http://www.dack.com/web/bullsh*t.html (make the appropriate substitution for the asterisk) and generate some classy sounding phrases:
I deliver wireless action-items capable of unleashing next-generation synergies as they benchmark open-source portals. My specialty is my ability to deploy real-time initiatives.
Next week I will be starting a project to repurpose next-generation metrics in an effort to empower seamless supply-chains in a new paradigm designed to harness impactful initiatives.
posted on January 5, 2001 10:30:47 AM new
I usually just tell people I work on the internet.
If they press further tell them you work on websites.
It is true - you work on 2 - eBay and AuctionWatch!
If they know you sell on eBay and ask direct questions, go back to the old look/buy/clean/fix/sort/file/picture/post/list/watch/contact/collect/ship / ......
posted on January 5, 2001 11:07:59 AM new
I've had several people ask me to teach them how to sell on eBay. The first person was my sister, who had *zero* computer experience to begin with (much less any internet experience), and she's doing GREAT on eBay. Almost 300 positive feedback, and having a blast doing it. She was in the situation, though, where she either HAD to make it work, or she had to go back to a "real" job after having her baby, so she was very motivated to be a stay-at-home mom if she could. I'm proud for her learning so much in so little time.
My stepfather also asked me to help him learn to sell. I tried. I really did. But the more he got into it, the more he realized how much work went into it ... and the more he asked me to do his listings *for* him. I did list a few things for him before Christmas, but didn't/don't have the time to do that on a regular basis with as many auctions of my own that I've got running (and especially not for the 5-10% commission he offered!). Current status: He *says* he's going to start listing some things in a couple of weeks, but I'm not holding my breath.
Some people just don't realize how much work it is, photographing, describing, measuring, packaging, weighing, going to the post office, dealing with difficult customers, etc. ... they seem to think we just sit on our backsides waiting on the checks to come rolling in! LOL!
posted on January 5, 2001 11:18:39 AM new
I'm lucky... my relatives aren't interested in selling things on eBay, though they've asked me to bid on things for them.
I did have a friend once ask me for some pointers about selling on eBay, so I put together a list of the basics and noted step by step what she'd have to do, and also where to find more info. Rancher24 is right, lots of folks lose interest pretty quickly once they find out how much effort is involved.
posted on January 5, 2001 12:10:51 PM new
Less than a year ago I bid on and won 3 dollhouses ~ which lead me to decide to relist 2 of the houses and the rest is history ~ I had so much fun with that ~ so I sold my house junk ~ bought the first of 3 digital camaras ~ and peaked the interest of my mother ~ who had recently lost my father after a long drawn out illness. She offered to partner with me ~ at the time I was working outside the house ~ she offerered to split the expenses right down the middle ~ me do the computer work ~ we would both shop for inventory and do cleaning ~ but she would do all the shipping and running to the bank and post office etc. That partnership as worked well for us ~ but we were close to begin with.
When a friend learned what we were doing ~ she put me in contact with a friend who had moved away from town ~ since she was selling very different stuff ~ she did not mind giving me her secrets ~ I don't know if I would have made it without her help. However, when a neighbor caught on to what we were doing and starting selling too ~ we learned an important lesson ~ we keep our big mouths shut about what we do!!!!!
Sure, I live in a small town and some people know exactly what we do ~ but before I ebayed fulltime a worked as a computer programmer ~ so when people ask if it is hard ~ I just tell them not for me ~ but others have said that it was. This runs most of them away...............
I am quick to tell friends that ask me to list things ~ that they will need to pay the ebay listing fees upfront ~ but I really don't have the time to do it for them because the time I spend listing their stuff takes up the time I would spend listing my own stuff ~ and this is the way I put food on my table ~ I also offer to look at their stuff and tell them if I would be interested in buying it. Most of them never ask me a second time. I know it sounds harsh ~ but it really is the way I put food on my table. When people ask my mom ~ she just rolls her eyes and tells them it takes a computer programmer to do all that ebay stuff and that she does not even know how to use a computer!
I do have a dear friend who decided to do this after we did. She lives in another town so I was not worried about her competing for my inventory ~ I spent hours on the phone with her ~ she even hauled a bunch of stuff up to my house and I spent most of my thanksgiving helping her get her pictures right and her ads right........she said she would give me a commission. When the auctions sold she said that the whole thing was just too much work ~ but that maybe in the future she would list some of her crafts through me ~ for a commission. I was finally frank with her that I did not have time to get all of my own auctions on and that if she wanted to ebay she would have to do it herself. I never received a dime from her either.
Now ~ I just tell people I am a stay at home mom ~ and when people ask why I want to buy 300 pc of clothes at a garage sale ~ I just tell them that I have a cousin that has a resale shop in another town and that I buy for her.
posted on January 5, 2001 01:49:20 PM new
I had some friends copy me. When I suggested they read the getting started section on AW, they just wanted me to give them a summary.
Some just copied me but didn't quite get everything right.
A friend who has sold on ebay successfully for years now told me to charge for my knowhow. She said to charge $50/hr to teach operation of digital camera, writing listings, making templates, etc.
I got tired of so much ebay, so I took time off and told everyone that I quit. Now, I will search for inventory alone. There's no distractions that way.
posted on January 5, 2001 07:33:41 PM new
I just tell them how I get up at 4:30 in the morning, go to auctions, stand on my feet for 8-10 hours in the wind, rain, cold, burning heat, how I come home and have to sort through all the stuff I got, decide what stays and goes, clean it, photo it, write it up, answer questions, ship it, consign the other stuff to RL auctions - pretty soon, they don't think it's so "easy" any more.
posted on January 5, 2001 09:29:08 PM new
My daughter bought a compu and I didn't want no part of it, I was worried I would ruin it.
We'll, so she showed me how to sign on, and from that point I went all over the web. Came to Ebay, read everything I could, at the time it was not as easy as it is now.
Do you know for months I asked everyone who was selling on Ebay "What is a URL, where do I find it" Would you believe they all said I don't know what you are talking about.
None of my friends wanted to help me. My son-in-law came over and showed me what he new, but he wasn't selling on Ebay, so he didn't know what a URL was.
To make a long learning story short, I did it all on my own. But when someone needs my help I take the time to show them, no matter how many times they need help.
I know what it feels like to be LOST IN SPACE
and it is a Bad Feeling.
I even set my daughter up on Ebay, and she is doing well.
Lets face it, we are nothing in this world if we are alone.
After working all day, I would stay on the compu. for 7 hr. every night just to teach myself. Lets face it I am from the typewritter age. Sure I put a lot into learning, but that's ok, I still will be there when someone needs my help.
posted on January 5, 2001 09:43:07 PM new
In early December 1999, I discovered eBay on my computer (it was like Christmas!). I also discovered the wallpocket site, which is a real passion of mine, and thought I'd died and gone to heaven. I began buying wallpockets, and a little Bauer pottery, slowly learning how the whole thing works from the buyer's perspective. It wasn't until a year later, this last November, that I felt comfortable attempting to sell on ebay. Now I'm into that--slowly--because that's the way I operate most comfortably in my life.
I have suggested to would-be get-rich-quick sellers that they begin slowly by buying things they like. I think that's the very best way, especially since then they can learn how the buyers feel.
And this AuctionWatch site has been so valuable to me that sometimes it brings tears to my eyes. I've read things, I've printed them up for later study, I've filed some threads. People are soooo wonderful here!
posted on January 5, 2001 10:03:55 PM new
At work I operated a Cat Scan Machine so I had some knowledge of computers but not enough to go out and buy an expensive computer. (They were higher than they are now)so I bought webtv and had a great time with that. I learned by reading. I did this all by myself with NO help. Then 2 years later I bought my computer, went to auction watch and signed up and went from there. What really irritates me is that you start out with the things that you like and make a little money on it and then your friends see that and then they start selling the same things. It's the same with my Mall space they see your doing good then they buy the same merchandise. I will sell other peoples merchandise for 50% of the profit nothing less. I also will tell people how to sell on ebay but I will not show them. I learned and they can. It took me a long time to learn and I feel my knowledge is worth something.
posted on January 5, 2001 10:29:21 PM new
My advice when relatives want to get on ebay is to run like h*ll in the other direction.
A little over a year ago I suggested that my sister might like to sell a little on ebay...she had left her husband and was depressed and it seemed like a good idea...a way to help her chase the blues away.
But she went back to her husband and decided HE could do ebay (he is a lazy person who never has a job). So she started going to all the auctions I did, started bidding on the items I did.
Eventually, he decided that he wanted to sell books (saw how much I got on a few books). So she started buying books too. She became very predatory...wanted ALL the books and bid aggressively.
She got angry last Jan when I outbid her on a lot of books and warned me that from then on she and her husband would ALWAYS outbid me on books.
I didn't stop bidding on books but she got most lots....but became angry because I was "making" her pay to much for the books.
She now won't speak to me.
At Christmas another sister said she wanted to start ebay...I started laughing, ROLLING on the floor, actually. When I stopped laughing I told her every down side I could about selling on ebay. Thank God she decided ebay wasn't for her!
As I said...run as fast as you can in the other direction!
posted on January 5, 2001 11:31:53 PM new
abacaxi, love the bs generator!
For those who want me to sell for them, politely I tell them NO. This is repeated as many times as necessary.
For those who are nosy and keep asking about my business, I politely tell them "I don't care to discuss that", and then change the subject. Again, repeat as many times as necessary.
If they still don't get it, politely excuse yourself and get away from them!
posted on January 6, 2001 12:04:06 AM new
GHEEZ...Thanx everyone. I am so excited to know that its not just me...There's lots of us ebay sellers who have gone through this. Sometimes I feel bad as i want to share how fun it is to sell but now I realized I have to be careful... I will take lots of the advice you guys gave in this posting. I will definitely keep my big mouth shut next time people ask & if they probe I 'll just change the topic or be real vague...
Victoria, my mom wants to do ebay too so i'll let her try it out & see if she likes it..she has hardly any computer experience but youre right, what can you do if its your mom...
I have about 2 relatives from out of state call me & tell me that they want to come over for a vacation & in the meantime they all want me to drop everything I do to help them learn EVERYTHING about ebay...
I cringe at this thought..But as you guys suggested..I think I will have to be out of town when they call...(smile).
