The Ultimate Guide to Selling Your Old Stuff Online
There’s one good thing about being a hoarder: One day, the time will come when you realize that you could make a small fortune by selling all the crap in your house. (We might be speaking from experience.) If you’re looking around and realizing how much of your stuff you don’t use, have no fear — we’re here to save you. Here we present the definitive guide to getting rid of your junk online. From the kitchen to the garage to your closet, there are several different methods for selling your stuff. Let’s break it all down.
You have quite a few different options for selling your stuff, depending on what it is you would like to get rid of. Here are some of our favorites:
1. eBay: The OG marketplace for selling everything and anything you can possibly imagine. We’re huge fans of eBay’s vintage clothing and accessories sections.
2. Craigslist: Missed connections, old furniture, cars, bikes, tech and roommates tend to do well here.
3. Poshmark: Selling your old clothing is super easy on Poshmark. They basically take care of everything for you. All you have to do is list it, print out a shipping label, put it in the mailbox and wait for the cash to come rolling in.
4. Gone: This is basically like if eBay did all the work for you. You can sell anything on Gone. Take a picture of the item, upload it and Gone will tell you how much you should charge, based on current market prices. Then the app will help with shipping and deposit the money in your account.
5. Rebagg: If you’ve got out-of-season bags lying around, list them on Rebagg for a no-fuss sale. Take a picture, get a quote and then schedule a pickup. The site will pay you as soon as it processes your old bag and you get a guaranteed sale. Yes, you could make more money selling it elsewhere, but it wouldn’t be nearly as easy.
6. Amazon: We love Amazon for reselling books — especially old textbooks from college courses that you’re never going to use again. To see if Amazon is interested in your book, search its ISBN. Then, where you normally find the option to buy, check to see if Amazon wants you to sell your old copy.
TIPS AND TRICKS
1. Make sure that all of your pictures have excellent lighting. Nothing turns a customer off more quickly than a hard-to-see photograph. Everything should be in focus and you should upload multiple angles so that your customer can see what your stuff looks like from all sides.
2. Make the description thorough. If there’s a small tear in the fabric, be up front about it. Make sure that your customer knows exactly what they will be getting. And write it in a clear, legible font. None of that neon green, Comic Sans nonsense in your listing.
3. Know your value. Check around the marketplace to see what other people are selling similar items for. You don’t want to charge too little and not make a profit, but on the other hand, you don’t want to charge too much and miss out on getting a sale.
4. Trust your gut. If an interaction with a customer doesn’t feel right, you are under no obligation to sell. If they are uncommunicative — or just acting fishy in general — try to find someone else. Although it’s worth mentioning that most online buyers have more reason to be afraid of online salesmen than the other way around.
5. Have fun. You’re making money, and you’re getting rid of junk! It’s a win-win!
Have you had any luck selling your stuff online? Let us know @BritandCo!
(Photo via Getty)
