posted on May 29, 2001 06:48:47 PM
A couple weeks ago, I listed approximately 45 books on both Amazon's Marketplace and Half.com. Within the first 3 days, I sold 12 of the books on Amazon and 1 on Half. Then I listed another 45 books, and quickly sold 15 of them on Amazon and 2 on Half. The books were all of recent vintage (mostly 1998 to 2000, with a few older and newer ones) and were primarily non-fiction. I found these results quite informative, and was wondering if others had had the same or different experiences. It made me think half.com should change its home page to say "15 million items for sale - and not many of 'em are moving!". I do get kind of tired running to half.com to delete items from my inventory that have sold on Marketplace, but I double-list to take advantage of the occasions when a book sells first on half. This recent experience, however, made me wonder if I am wasting my time on Half.com.
posted on May 29, 2001 08:19:29 PM
I have been selling at half.com for several months and my sales are going very well. It is so easy to sell there. I have not tried marketplace, but have been thinking about it. Half.com is not able to keep up with their correspondence too well. And I think I would rather keep in contact with my customers instead of all this he said she said. I buy books for my personal use, but have never bought one from half.com. I cannot imagine buying books without knowing something about them other than the slight details on half.com. So you sell that much more with Amazon? From looking at their set up, I gather the pricing is more real also.
posted on May 30, 2001 05:38:21 AM
Hi, aliceroad! That is one thing I forgot to mention. Even with Amazon's higher fees, I am able to get more money for my books there than on Half. I can't tell you how many books I saw on Half that were 75 cents, 99 cents, etc. I occasionally see that on Amazon, but by and large, the prices are higher on Marketplace. I'm not sure why buyers are willing to pay more on Amazon, but it may have something to do with that psychological thing of seeing "Buy it New from Amazon for 19.99" and then seeing "Buy it used from xxxx for 5.99."
posted on May 30, 2001 06:16:05 AM
Hi Birdwatcher! I found Amazon rather confusing with it's auctions, marketplace and Z-shops or whatever. Does your listing come up in the search engine wherever you put it? And you obviously found the marketplace a better deal than the auctions?The auctions are 10 cents (listing) and the marketplace is a flat monthly fee?
I just can't go with half.com and their prices and policies. The only books there listing at decent prices may as well be sold on ebay! I think Amazon is a better known place for books as that was their specialty for a long time and still is, so it seems.
posted on May 30, 2001 07:01:31 AM
I double list on half and Marketplace also, and over time the sales have been more or less even. Lately it seems like I sell more on Amazon...but not enough to give up the half.com sales.
I discovered that Amazon will allow listing ARCs once the "real" book is in print. I had some double-listed and they sold simultaneously on both sites, so I didn't have a chance to delete from half. I got threatening messages from half when I cancelled the sales. I felt bad...but not that bad.
I dunno, isn't ebay absorbing half.com anyway? I can't really envision what it will look like after that happens.
posted on May 30, 2001 10:21:12 AM
deco100, yeah, I agree, Amazon can be confusing with all its different venues! If I list a book on Marketplace, it comes up when a person searches for that book - it'll say something like "Buy Used - starting at $4.99". The advantage of Marketplace is the listings run for 30 days (not 7 or 10 like auctions), and they are very easy to relist. If you have a Pro Merchant account ($39.99 per month), you don't have to relist, because the listings don't expire. This month, it would have paid for me to have a Pro Merchant account, so I am thinking of switching over to that. As a non-Pro Merchant account, I have to pay a fee of 99 cents, plus 15% commission. And it's *still* bringing me better $$$ per book than Half.com!
keziak, I had the same experience on half. I had a book sell on both Amazon and Half 25 minutes apart! So I had to cancel one, and I cancelled the Half.com sale. All sorts of dire warnings came up about what would happen if I cancelled - the general tone was NAUGHTY, NAUGHTY! I think it's unrealistic for Half.com not to expect that we list on one more than one site.
posted on May 31, 2001 03:12:13 PM
escandyo: my best sales [good money, fast] are with anything brand new. Obviously, folks hear about the book, go to buy from Amazon, see a less expensive copy, and bite. [Then they are mad when it doesn't show up in 2 days like regular Amazon books.]
I have been listing more out-of-print and older books, but they move much more slowly. Sometimes I hit a mother lode of brand-new, review copy hardcovers at Salvation Army and those little goodies really move! Wish I could find more of those.
posted on May 31, 2001 05:17:14 PM
If eBay didn't gauge you on shipping at Half.com you could theoretically buy, for example, 75 cent books on Half.com and resell them on Amazon Marketplace for 8 times the amount. And they'll sell on Marketplace! Why? Because there is much less competition and sellers tend to list toward Amazon's new item price for some reason. In addition many Internet users just aren't savvy enough to realize there are places like Half where crazy sellers will list items for 1/10th of retail. Still it always amazes me when I sell an item on Marketplace for 25-50% over what the same item could be bought at Half.
Then again, Half.com is becoming a dumping ground like eBay where it's near impossible to get good prices for your wares due to the intense competition.
posted on May 31, 2001 06:55:45 PM
I'll have to pull the titles of some of my "dogs" and check how they are doing at Amazon. I've almost got a phobia to buying new fiction. Pay $2 for a mint book, get it home & Half is running it for a penny. Only viable options left were: flea market or yard selling them, neither of which I have time for.
I refuse to list something for a penny! Better to donate the book and use the tax deduction!
Sometimes I think the meaning of life will be discovered in finding out who are buying all those New Harelequin Books (when read once issues are crying for a dime!)
I do get kind of tired running to half.com to delete items from my inventory that have sold on Marketplace, but I double-list to take advantage of the occasions when a book sells first on half. This recent experience, however, made me wonder if I am wasting my time on Half.com.