Claris wrote on 2021-12-03, 00:11:

(Moved)

Anybody have any experience trying to move computer stuff online? I'm getting a little sick of Ebay not being cooperative. Iv listed a few parts yesterday morning but they haven't appeared in the searches yet nor do they show up when i check for my active listings on desktop. Only on eBay mobile does it say i have things up.

Not to mention, eBay takes a small cut of my final profits. Are there any good easy alternatives? Or anything i can do to help make my listings more visible/accessable? Any general advice for how the process goes?

Three alternatives come to mind:

Amibay - https://amibay.com - Is basically a retro computer trading post
Vintage Computer Federation Forum - https://www.vcfed.org/forum/forum - They have a section for buying & selling retro computers
Craigslist - https://craigslist.org - If you need to sell something locally

I love how sellers want Ebay prices but don't want to pay Ebay their cut.

As long as you use the correct descriptions and use good clear high resolution pictures Ebay is really the only game in town unless you target buyers directly on forums or Facebook (a lot more work). Places like Craigslist are where many nutjobs go to harvest email addresses and sell stolen goods.

Also while VCF has a for sale section it is pretty much meant for the locals to buy/sell stuff and not for free appraisals for people wandering in who just flip stuff on ebay anyway. Nothing like people wandering in with poor descriptions, too lazy to take a clear photo, and then get pissed nobody offers them 2x ebay prices for their junk.

Unknown_K wrote on 2021-12-03, 00:23:

I love how sellers want Ebay prices but don't want to pay Ebay their cut.

As long as you use the correct descriptions and use good clear high resolution pictures Ebay is really the only game in town unless you target buyers directly on forums or Facebook (a lot more work). Places like Craigslist are where many nutjobs go to harvest email addresses and sell stolen goods.

Also while VCF has a for sale section it is pretty much meant for the locals to buy/sell stuff and not for free appraisals for people wandering in who just flip stuff on ebay anyway. Nothing like people wandering in with poor descriptions, too lazy to take a clear photo, and then get pissed nobody offers them 2x ebay prices for their junk.

Who says all of us are asking eBay prices? I'm honestly just trying to clear the stuff im not using. I don't want Ebay prices that sit for a decade, i just want the stuff gone, cash in my hand and someone to get a good deal 😀

Quickselling.

Does Amiibay have a big market for DOS stuff? I thought it was mostly for Amiga/Atari ST

Claris wrote on 2021-12-03, 00:37:

Who says all of us are asking eBay prices? I'm honestly just trying to clear the stuff im not using. I don't want Ebay prices t […]
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Unknown_K wrote on 2021-12-03, 00:23:

I love how sellers want Ebay prices but don't want to pay Ebay their cut.

As long as you use the correct descriptions and use good clear high resolution pictures Ebay is really the only game in town unless you target buyers directly on forums or Facebook (a lot more work). Places like Craigslist are where many nutjobs go to harvest email addresses and sell stolen goods.

Also while VCF has a for sale section it is pretty much meant for the locals to buy/sell stuff and not for free appraisals for people wandering in who just flip stuff on ebay anyway. Nothing like people wandering in with poor descriptions, too lazy to take a clear photo, and then get pissed nobody offers them 2x ebay prices for their junk.

Who says all of us are asking eBay prices? I'm honestly just trying to clear the stuff im not using. I don't want Ebay prices that sit for a decade, i just want the stuff gone, cash in my hand and someone to get a good deal 😀

Quickselling.

Does Amiibay have a big market for DOS stuff? I thought it was mostly for Amiga/Atari ST

I know retro PC stuff has been sold there, just how big it is I don't know for sure. The site is under maintenance right now, but should be back up soon.

Claris wrote on 2021-12-03, 00:37:

Who says all of us are asking eBay prices? I'm honestly just trying to clear the stuff im not using. I don't want Ebay prices t […]
Show full quote

Unknown_K wrote on 2021-12-03, 00:23:

I love how sellers want Ebay prices but don't want to pay Ebay their cut.

As long as you use the correct descriptions and use good clear high resolution pictures Ebay is really the only game in town unless you target buyers directly on forums or Facebook (a lot more work). Places like Craigslist are where many nutjobs go to harvest email addresses and sell stolen goods.

Also while VCF has a for sale section it is pretty much meant for the locals to buy/sell stuff and not for free appraisals for people wandering in who just flip stuff on ebay anyway. Nothing like people wandering in with poor descriptions, too lazy to take a clear photo, and then get pissed nobody offers them 2x ebay prices for their junk.

Who says all of us are asking eBay prices? I'm honestly just trying to clear the stuff im not using. I don't want Ebay prices that sit for a decade, i just want the stuff gone, cash in my hand and someone to get a good deal 😀

Quickselling.

Does Amiibay have a big market for DOS stuff? I thought it was mostly for Amiga/Atari ST

Quick selling tends to be below market value (as in a good deal).

jasa1063 wrote on 2021-12-03, 00:40:

Claris wrote on 2021-12-03, 00:37:

Does Amiibay have a big market for DOS stuff? I thought it was mostly for Amiga/Atari ST

I know retro PC stuff has been sold there, just how big it is I don't know for sure. The site is under maintenance right now, but should be back up soon.

They have been back up for a few weeks now.

seems like Amibay is targeted only at European users, nothing against my Eurobros but I'm not really interested in paying for nor charging for shipping across the atlantic

Depending on how much you are selling, it might be worth it to sign up for an eBay store subscription. The final value fee goes down a decent amount if you are paying for a store subscription.

There is also Facebook marketplace which doesn't cost anything as far as I know.

maxtherabbit wrote on 2021-12-03, 01:20:

seems like Amibay is targeted only at European users, nothing against my Eurobros but I'm not really interested in paying for nor charging for shipping across the atlantic

There are ppl from all over the place. If you're looking for something specific, it doesn't matter where it's located. I've bought items from Japan, USA, Australia... Had buyers from Singapore, S.Korea, USA, Mexico, New Zealand, S. Africa...

kixs wrote on 2021-12-03, 08:20:

maxtherabbit wrote on 2021-12-03, 01:20:

seems like Amibay is targeted only at European users, nothing against my Eurobros but I'm not really interested in paying for nor charging for shipping across the atlantic

There are ppl from all over the place. If you're looking for something specific, it doesn't matter where it's located. I've bought items from Japan, USA, Australia... Had buyers from Singapore, S.Korea, USA, Mexico, New Zealand, S. Africa...

Good luck actually being able to post anything unless you have either gotten really lucky or have already been a member for years and don't have to have every single post approved by the mods there.

I gave up after a few months.

I'm an old member (since 2009)... but I agree. Rules are quite strict and maybe they need to be as money is involved.

It's like ppl forget that eBay is also (and used to primarily be) an auction site, that's the selling format where people pay as much as they want to pay, the whole whack of what the market will actually bear. If you want to move stuff, use auction listings.

Ebay is also VERY generous to buyers, if you leave any opening for a return it's entirely possible a buyer will enjoy your item for a few months and then return it at your cost, particularly if they break it or the market value drops significantly, with you picking up the cost of shipping. Even if a buyer orders the wrong part but decides you should pay for shipping to return it, nothing you can about it (even if the buyer admits as much in the eBay messaging system).

Be very careful when you set up your listings, return/refund abuse is rampant with retro computer stuff so I'd suggest making everything "parts-only / as-is" and just indicate how it functioned when it was in your possession.. and make sure you are buying appropriate insurance.

I don't actually think the 15% cut eBay takes is unreasonable compared to other forms of consignment or the much lower prices that Facebook/Craigslist tend to bring unless you are in a relatively populous area. If you are in the US, keep in mind that all income earned via online sales IS reported to the IRS now as part of recent COVID Recovery legislation, so you will want to factor your state and federal tax rates in your overall "cost of selling" math as well.

If you just want stuff gone, use the auction format, the market will figure out what it's worth.

I only sell on local auction sites and offer local pickup only. It's slower and less profitable but the buyer gets what he sees and we don't have to deal with shipping costs and possible damages. Warranty is not an issue because no sane person would offer warranty on 20-30 years old tech that came out of the trash.

Mercari... it's like offerup but you ship. It's like ebay but less rigid. I noticed in the last year there has been more retro stuff on there, and stuff DOES move..

DaveJustDave wrote on 2021-12-03, 18:34:

Mercari... it's like offerup but you ship. It's like ebay but less rigid. I noticed in the last year there has been more retro stuff on there, and stuff DOES move..

I do buy stuff off Mercari, but have never sold on there.

The search is not near as good as eBay and the categories are kind of a joke.

That being said, I can usually find what I am looking for if it is on there.

They also do "Mercari local" now where you can choose to pick up if local if the seller offers it. I have also seen listing that are "local only" which means the seller will not ship.

Unknown_K wrote on 2021-12-03, 00:23:

I love how sellers want Ebay prices but don't want to pay Ebay their cut.

While I agree they are entitled to a fee for their service, eBay has become quite greedy, taking in the neighborhood of 15% per auction for their "cut." That's a little bit much, considering back in the day it was around 3%. They do that because there is no adequate competition, yet...

Also their seller support is pretty much non existent. They will side with buyers 99% of the time regardless of the circumstances, so buyers have learned they can game the system and screw over sellers with no consequences. Sellers can't even report non paying bidders anymore, nor leave anything but positive feedback. If a buyer chooses not to pay for an auction, all the seller can do is "cancel" the transaction with no mark whatsoever against the buyer, so sellers can't even determine ahead of time if a buyer is honest, and restrict bidding accordingly.

EBay used to be a great platform for selling stuff, but they've really gone downhill as a company.

I never understood the need for some people to behave like greedy pigs only to then turn around an complain that eBay prices are too high. Well no shit when the sellers have to not only compensate for fees they also have to compensate for the greedy pigs who make it their life's mission to rip others off.

I have bought a lot of stuff off eBay over the years and have never thought to rip a seller off, sure I have had a few bad experiences but cheating the system would only serve to make it worse in the long run.

I just dont get some people.