[Archived] Ebay

[AlanK]

I wonder if anyone can give me any advice - whether ebay related or not.

I'm trying to sell a few items of commercial kitchen equipment. Eg. Gas oven, frier, pizza oven etc.

I've put some on ebay but it seems that they won't sell unless I drastically lower the price. I'm not an experienced ebay user but I suspect that people are highly wary of splashing large amounts without having physically seen the stuff.

Are there any alternative avenues?

I don`t know of any alternatives.

I did stump up a grand once for a Worcester boiler. It did feel a bit risky but paid off.

Are you willing to deliver?

Collect only puts many people off.

[LeChuck]

I've put some on ebay but it seems that they won't sell unless I drastically lower the price. I'm not an experienced ebay user but I suspect that people are highly wary of splashing large amounts without having physically seen the stuff.

I really don't think the 'having not seen it' is the problem at all, eBay wouldn't thrive if people were worried about that...and far, far more expensive things are reguarly sold than second hand kitchen equipment.

I'm a bit puzzled by the 'lowering the price' bit as eBay is an auction site...but if that implies you're putting a high starting price on the items, then that will definitely put people off. A high reserve (in fact any reserve) will also put people off. People go on eBay to bid in auctions, it's part of the fun as much as buying something. If you want to get a high price, get a bidding war going, don't try to price things like a shop.

I've bid on quite a lot of expensive things (mainly laptops and PCs) and the ones that have reserves hardly ever meet the price, and people tend to stay away from the ones with high starting prices because they don't feel like they'll get a bargain. An example happened last week, someone put a laptop up that I was bidding on with a reserve price and it finished at £145, which was under the reserve. A few days later it went for £220 when it was put up without a reserve.

It might be best to try local advertising as you're selling kitchen equipment though. I'm assuming you won't want to be posting these items so they'll require pickup, in which case local people are going to be your potential customers, and eBay probably isn't the best way to reach those people.

[Paul]

I wonder if anyone can give me any advice - whether ebay related or not.

I'm trying to sell a few items of commercial kitchen equipment. Eg. Gas oven, frier, pizza oven etc.

I've put some on ebay but it seems that they won't sell unless I drastically lower the price. I'm not an experienced ebay user but I suspect that people are highly wary of splashing large amounts without having physically seen the stuff.

Are there any alternative avenues?

The problem with e-bay, for me at least, is when you have an item you know to be of value (or you perceive it has value) and want to avoid it selling for buttons. I once sold a Timberland coat that had cost me a lot for £1 plus the postage!

I have found the best way round this problem is to put a reserve and a Buy It Now price on the item. The two need to match each other. Recently I sold a saxaphone for £300. This was the price I wanted but obviously I'd have taken more. A bidder recognised it was worth £300 and did the Buy it Now thing.

E-bay is a strange place. I've offered items I know to be worth little or nothing to me and got £10-20 for them, on the otherhand I've offered very expensive books, in pristine condition, at half price ( we are talking £100 discount here) and not even had a sniff.

[Ozz]

If you auction your gear, you are subject to the whims of the viewers at that time. Like in a conventional auction house, prices on any given day can be much higher or lower than you may expect.

[Lee]

Indeed, just relist the items - quite often it is free or at a reduced rate - and take your chances again.