help with Ebay

[mrs.pudding]

Given the cost of selling on Ebay, how do people selling items at about a �1.00 make a profit? I really don't understand how it works. I have loads of odds and ends that I would like to try selling but can't see how to do it without it costing more than I'll get for the item.

[Merthyr Imp]

If you list something with a starting price of 99p you are charged a listing fee of 15p (�1.00 is a higher fee). Then there is a percentage charged to you of the selling price. But even if the item sells for only 99p you still make a profit - although of course it is only 50p or so. Remember you can charge the actual cost of postage and packing to the buyer so they pay you for that as well as the 99p.

[SavageMonkey]

But then again, unless you make your living with eBay, is it really worth the bother for such a cheap item? It might be better to go to a boot fair with all the odds and ends you have and sell them all in one go. You won't have to go through the trouble of creating each page for each item...

[Philtaz]

Some of them add on a small surcharge(usually 5%) to 'cover Paypal costs' and some charge a little over the odds for p&p as Merthyr Imp stated.

[stevie21]

If you only sell the odd thing and you consider the cost of your time (it may take you 20 minutes to put the page and auction together) then for a 1/3 of your hourly rate in work, is it really worth it? Just give it to Oxfax if it's worth less than a quid.

[mrs.pudding]

Do see your point about it probably not being worth all the hassle but am glad to know how it works. Thank you.

[Mattk]

items selling for a pound is purely a gimmick to make the more gullbile amongst us bid ! holiday to florida = bidding starts at a pound !!! whats the point ?

[Drewhound]

I think a lot of people use this as a way of getting a good sellers feedback quickly and cheaply, it's always worth looking at the actual feedback and not just the numbers

[slimfandango]

Sometimes it is worth it, like if you want to build up feedback from scratch, or protect yourself from the impact of one negative.
ebay.com (USA) has just announced a reduction in fees specifically for this price category , so I presume we will follow suit.
But overall, yes, not worth listing. I've stopped really listing below �10 now.
ALSO, I find almost without exception that buyers of low value items are MUCH more likely to leave negative feedback unjustifiably , and bid, win, and don't pay , more often.