New EBay Seller Advice

[hudsonsclothes]

Afternoon 

Apologies if said/asked elsewhere but I could not find it. I am very very new to eBay business selling (Month and a half) before that I had little to no experience with selling online, eBay or anything so it's all totally new to me.

I'm currently leaving the military after a decade and doing this as a side extra income that will hopefully grow to compensate for the expected drop in wages when I start a new career/ cover the expected rise in living costs when I move back to my home city.

I'm wondering from all you eBay wizards who have been doing this a lot longer, if there is any kind of service, forum on here or externally etc that can look at your page and give feedback and advice both positive and constructive?

I feel, early on sales and page views etc are irratic as expected and i'm constantly wondering when it's quiet if i've got it all wrong. I've tried getting friends to look but they don't really use eBay so don't understand all its intricacies. It would be very helpful to get feedback from experienced sellers who have knowledge and experience to pass on if such a place exists.

I am making sales and getting impressions etc and have good feedback so it's not a total failure. I'm also aware it takes time to grow but, if i'm doing something wrong i'd rather know and correct it now, early on, and if i'm doing anything right it would also be good to know to continue it. It's all just a learning experience and who better to learn from than people who have been here themselves before.

Any help greatly appreciated, if this has been said elsewhere i'll close this thread down.

Cheers in advance.

[therenewalworkshopltd]

Thank you, I am going to get branded stuff in as well It's just a bit more of an investment

Do be careful where you buy this kind of stuff from.  Some of the wholesalers wil rip you off at the prices that they sell at.  Your far better going for mixed loads, rather than hand picking etc.

I've literally seen some of them selling items at higher prices than you can actually get for them, it really is insane.  But for some reason, they do get sold.

And don't forget, if you want to split off certain types of clothing etc, such as cheaper or high end, then there is no reason why you can't have another Ebay account selling them separately.

[hudsonsclothes]

I have done mixed loads so far, I know it makes no business sense at all but I find it quite fun getting a delivery and then seeing what I've received.

I bought a small mixed lot at the beggining with about 15 items in and it had a set of vintage work overalls in that I sold for more than I paid for the entire lot. I haven't really started using charity shops or car boots yet either. 

The supplier I have used is good so far, responds quick, gave me a £50 voucher because delivery was a day late. 

[vinylscot]

NEVER EVER use the term "pre-loved"

It was a buzz-word six months ago, but now, buyers see right through it, and it portrays you as dishonest (or at least desperate), for a number of reasons..

1. It's second hand. You have no idea whether it was "loved", as you know nothing of the owner or the garment's history. Baldly stating that something is pre-loved is, quite simply, a lie.

2. In fact, it probably wasn't "loved", as the buyer would most likely have kept it, if it had been.

3. If it had been genuinely "loved", it was probably worn often, and won't be in great condition.

Don't treat your buyers as if they are stupid. Pre-owned is a little better, but a little clunky. The poster is correct in that you should probably avoid using the word "old", but "used" or "second hand" are both also perfectly acceptable and much better than his "pre-loved" suggestion..

[hudsonsclothes]

Surely the pre in pre loved is hinting that it is going to be loved again. It's not a reference to the past or else ot would be post-loved? 

However I will still take your suggestions on board and I have removed old from my listings

[pg_kicks]

Whilst I agree with previous poster that pre-loved is a buzz word and 15/20 years ago when I was after Nike windbreaker or members only jackets it was 2nd hand/vintage/retro eBay love the word pre-loved/preloved however which way they use it so please keep using it, you need to keep eBay happy, they write the script so if they want to call it once adored clothing you basically got to sing to their tune to help your listings in the algorithm. 

Have a look at the open event/roadshow videos on youtube, theres just been one so wont be another till next year but for a new seller I'd expect they are a gold mine of information, I still find small nuggets helpful when I go to them and they put a lot of it online after, some is obvious but its worth checking out.

[1956glyn]

her pre loved suggestion and not his.

My point was that old was probably not the best word to use and i think the OP agrees that maybe an alternative is more appropriate........and yes i said "MAYBE you say pre loved".

[hudsonsclothes]

Thank you, I will give them a watch. I'm luckily signed up to the new seller scheme (don't know what it's proper name is) so I'm getting 8 one on one Skype calls with someone from eBay and they go through different aspects of selling. 3rd one is on Monday. For all the negatives about eBay I learned a lot from the first few and changed all my pics to white backgrounds, title order and wording etc. My organic impressions, sales and page views are higher than any promoted I have on as a result but I'm always open to learn more 

[hudsonsclothes]

Pre-loved is one of the words I was told to use directly by eBay on a Skype call in the new sellers scheme thing to be fair, for my titles and things as it comes up on searches thought I'd captured all the changes but obviously missed old, that's been corrected now.

Sadly whether we like certain words or not it's about the algorithm and all that exciting stuff. I don't like writing titles for products in broken English and a random order however it's necessary if it gets results

[therenewalworkshopltd]

I must admit, the term Pre-loved is a personal hate!

However, Ebay do currently love the word, so if your going to use one of those words, you should probably use Pre-loved.

[bricklanebargains]

Few more things, after having another look at your listings. I noticed that you only use size Small, Medium, etc for women`s clothing both in the title and item specifics. As a result, buyers who search by women`s UK sizes probably won`t see most of your listings. You can test it yourself easily. For example try "Women`s Shell Jacket Size 14 or UK Size 14" as well as "Women`s Shell Jacket Size Large" and you`ll see the search results will be considerably different. You can do this instead "Women Shell Jacket Size Large, UK 14". You can also add the US size if you`re sending to America. With men`s clothing, vintage sizes can significantly vary from modern sizes. In that case, we show it in the title "Vintage Polo Shirt Size L Oversized (fits like 2XL) Men`s ...", only use the actual size in item specifics and explain the discrepancy in more detail in the description like "Labelled Large but actually fits 2XL based on measurements". This way, you will not only put the item in front of the right buyers but also reduce the number of potential returns and SNAD cases which can be very damaging to an Ebay selling account.        

[hudsonsclothes]

Made a start, this is new title for one

Womens Retro Shell Jacket XL UK 16 80s 90s Blue White Pink Pattern Nylon Pockets

and i've started to add this onto every condition description as extra info and a little more to cover my back

Retro and vintage items have different sizes to modern day. Please check pit to pit and back length provided for more information. If you need more measurements, get in touch.

Luckily so far had no returns or issues, but as I hopefully get bigger and busier its good to get things right for when the day eventually comes so thank you.