When it comes to selling things, there are a few things you can do to make sure your customers are happy. You can start by creating a good product or service, and then making sure your prices are fair. You can also make sure your customer service is good, and that you provide enough information about your product or service so that customers can make a decision. Finally, be sure to keep your prices low so that customers will be willing to buy from you.
So you’ve unpacked a shiny new iPad (or laptop, or camera, or other gadget) and it’s time to get rid of the old one. Why not make a few bucks in the process?
eBay: Good for Rare Items, Broken Electronics, and Spare Parts
eBay may almost be synonymous with “selling stuff online”, but its reputation—particularly with sellers—isn’t actually that great. Let’s start with eBay’s downsides, because they are many and oft-complained about.
First, eBay takes a 10% cut of your sale, which—for big-ticket items like laptops and tablets—means you could lose $50 to $100 (or more!) when someone buys it. That’s not great, especially when some sites take no fees at all. If you’re ever in doubt, compare the average selling price for an item on eBay to the average selling price elsewhere—even if eBay’s sale price is higher, be sure to factor in the 10% fee before you determine which site will net you the most money.
Here’s another downside: eBay is notoriously bad at protecting their sellers. This is good if you’re a buyer and want to avoid getting scammed, but sellers can get scammed too—and eBay will often take the scammer’s side.
eBay can be useful, though, even if you end up selling elsewhere. eBay is the only site that lets you filter your search by “Sold Items”, so you can see what certain items sold for, not just what someone is asking for.) Even if you end up selling on another site, eBay can help you determine what people consider a fair price for your item.
Furthermore, eBay is very popular with geeks and DIYers, so if you’re selling spare parts from a tech project—or have a broken item you want to sell “for parts”—eBay is actually a great place to do it. I’ve sold a broken pair of speakers, a broken video card, and a broken iPad on eBay with great success. You won’t get a ton of money for them, but hey, money is money—and $50 for a dead video card is better than $0 for throwing it in the trash.
Lastly, eBay is pretty decent for rare collectibles, since it has the biggest audience of sellers and buyers of such things. If you want the most eyeballs on your stuff, eBay is the place to go.
Craigslist: Ideal for Very Popular Items and Hard-to-Ship Items
Selling on Craigslist may seem like a shady back-alley drug deal if you’ve never used it, but it has some distinct advantages. First and foremost, it’s the only place to easily sell things like furniture that are hard to ship. But it’s also good for some smaller stuff too—particularly items with big brand names that are in regular high demand (Apple computers, Beats headphones, Xboxes and PlayStations, etc.). You won’t have as much luck selling slightly more obscure items (like a pair of high quality, audiophile brand headphones) because you’re limited to a much smaller local market, but if you have a big-ticket item to sell, Craigslist takes no fees and requires no shipping. Just a quick swap and you’ve got cash in your pocket.
RELATED: How to Sell Your Old Gadgets on Craigslist
Of course, Craigslist still has its share of hassles. As soon as you list an item, you’re almost guaranteed to get the attention of a scammer or two, but they’re easy to ignore if you know what they look like. Second, be prepared for a couple lowball offers before you get a decent one—and even then, they’ll likely try to talk you down on price, so list it for slightly higher than you want to sell it for. Almost everyone I’ve dealt with on Craigslist has been nice and normal, although their text messages often read like a hostage negotiation with someone who can’t spell. So be prepared to put up with some quirks.
Keep in mind that Craigslist, being local, may not be as popular where you are—for example, Canadians may have more luck with Kijiji. Check to see which classified sites are more popular in your location.
Other Sites: Swappa for Phones, Hardwareswap for PC Parts, and More
Here’s the real secret: some of the best sites are not the most popular ones. In fact, usually the best sites are a little off the beaten path—and are bulit around one specific category of item.
Similarly, while I’ve had decent luck selling computer parts on eBay, you can probably do better selling them on PC building forums like /r/hardwareswap or Hard Forum. You have a pretty large audience of people who know what they’re looking for, and since you’re selling directly to the buyer, there are no fees. Just make sure, like Craigslist, that you know how to spot and avoid scams.
You may also find luck with other Craigslist-like classified communities. Facebook, for example, has become a popular place in many cities for buying and selling—see if there are any community swap groups in your area. OfferUp is also starting to become popular, and apart from being a bit more mobile-focused, is very similar to Craigslist in practice (though there aren’t as many users, i can be good to cast a wide net and list your items on both).
