eBay Scavengers Episode 80: How To Handle eBay Best Offers

Haggling doesn't come naturally to most Americans. We like our fixed prices. But as this recent New York Times article points out, we also like getting a good deal.

Adding “Make Offer" was a game changer for our eBay store. It's the honey pot to attract buyers while still having strong prices on good quality items. As we dabble with Amazon, we really miss the ability to haggle. Think about it: if you buy something for $1, price it at $60, and get an offer of $40, everyone is getting a good deal.

In this episode, Ryanne and Jay tell the story of how they moved from all auctions to only "Buy It Now"(BIN) with "Make offer". Sales doubled. We share our best offer tactics and "make offer" strategies. How to handle best offers and when to accept. It makes your eBay store into an old-time bazaar. It's where the action is.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 79: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Old school sweater with old photo style. Sold for $8! Original kitsch nude painting, paid $10, sold for $185. Stars not included.

This week Jay and Ryanne talk about starting auto returns. We were inspired by our recent Caty Burt Amazon podcast and Suzanne Well's Amazon free e-book to start selling some books on Amazon. We are using the Profit Bandit app (App Store, Google Play) to figure out what books to list. Check out the International Shoe charts (here and here) we use to convert shoe sizes for listings. Since it's the end of the year, we encourage you to check out GoDaddy BookKeeping (formerly Outright) for organizing all your eBay store expenses.

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We've included our weekly Ebay numbers below. In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share.

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store Week Dec 22-29, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 3016
• Items Sold: 50
• Total Sales: $1,914.23
• Highest Price Sold: $185.00 (Vintage kitsch painting of nude woman-MEOW!)
• Average Price Sold: $38.28
• Returns: 2
• Positive Feedback: 30
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Dec 22-29, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 1032
• Items Sold: 19
• Total Sales: $518.23
• Highest Price Sold: $50.00 (Pressure Gauge)
• Average Price Sold: $27.28
• Returns: 1
• Positive Feedback: 16
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Episode 78: A New Years Pledge of Abundance

In this episode Wendy reveals the book she has been working on that is focused on taking back your time to improve your quality of life. Wendy and Mikey explain their lifestyle choices and how they became ebay sellers, which helped them meet the goal of abundance over wealth. Wendy's book entitled "The Good Life Lab" is available through Amazon and in most stores and is a guide to abundance through living hands on with help from the waste stream. Also check out their Holy Scrap blog documenting their New Mexico homestead.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 77: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Wendy and Mikey start up listing again and see immediate results. Cool sales this week include a vintage lambs fur hat, used oil paints and a first generation iPod Coach brand cover.

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We've included our weekly Ebay numbers below. In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share.

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store Week Dec 15-21, 2013, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 2993
• Items Sold: 52
• Total Sales: $1,843.53
• Highest Price Sold: $74.99 (Set of hockey sticks)
• Average Price Sold: $35.45
• Returns: 2
• Positive Feedback: 36
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Dec 15-21, 2013, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 1044
• Items Sold: 20
• Total Sales: $436.79
• Highest Price Sold: $54.00 (Coach iPod Case)
• Average Price Sold: $21.84
• Returns: 0
• Positive Feedback: 9
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Episode 76: How to sell on Amazon FBA: Interview with eBay seller Caty from SeattleStyleBlog

We love eBay because it lets us sell one-of-a-kind items that we scavenge throughout the whole wide world. As any scavenger knows, there are treasures lying around just waiting to be sold at auctions, flea markets, and thrift stores.

But we've always been interested in Amazon because it's the other huge online marketplace. Why should we limit ourselves? After a lot of research, we couldn't figure out how we could sell our used, one-of-a-kind items on a site that seems to focus on brand new products. Rarely do we find items that are brand new. And it's even more rare to find brand new items in multiple lots. Isn't Amazon about just selling 1000 iPhone cases from China for a 10-cent profit each?

Maybe we've just been scavenging in the wrong places. This week Caty, another eBay seller at seattlestyleblog, explains how she finds and sells items on Amazon using their FBA system. She says that each marketplace is different, but she makes money on both. She also points us towards Profit Bandit, an app for your smartphone to reasearch items to sell (and buy) on Amazon. Thanks Caty!

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eBay Scavengers Episode 75: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Jay and Ryanne have had a very productive week. Still on a listing frenzy for the holidays, their sales have reflected this. Ryanne encourages you to buy shipping supplies before Dec 31st, so you can write them off on this year's taxes. We've stared a Pinterest account for showcasing our store, so far it seems to be working, though we can't be 100% sure. An interesting sale this week was $120 on 6 Starbucks mugs purchased for less than $5 at auction. Check out eBay's completed Starbucks listings, they are insane. 

Links we mention Mr. Money Mustache: the extreme early retirement blog, USPS Shoe Boxes, TwitterFeed, Brother Laser Printers vs. Zebra Thermal Printers and sticky paper for printing ebay shipping labels.

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We've included our weekly Ebay numbers below. In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share. 

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store Week Dec 8-14, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 2960
• Items Sold: 73
• Total Sales: $2,508.51
• Highest Price Sold: $179.99 (vintage southwestern wool blanket)
• Average Price Sold: $34.35
• Returns: 1
• Positive Feedback: 31
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Dec 8-14, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 1007
• Items Sold: 21
• Total Sales: $468.90
• Highest Price Sold: $50.00 (multimeter)
• Average Price Sold: $22.33
• Returns: 0
• Positive Feedback: 12
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Episode 74: How to make a seller's life easier in eBay: Automated Hassle Free Returns and Automatic Feedback

As eBay sellers, we all know how many little tasks there are when listing and managing a large inventory. Mikey and Jay discuss the pros and cons of automating different tasks - hassle free returns and automatic feedback. Let us know if you have found other ways to free up time so you can focus on listing. Check out this video about how eBay's Hassle Free Returns are supposed to work. We forgot to mention in the podcast that Auto Feedback is just for sellers with stores. If you're serious about selling on eBay, you should get a store!

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eBay Scavengers Episode 73: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Jay and Mikey talk about what's going on this week in their eBay stores. Both have been successful in selling vintage and discontinued perfume. Jay gets a big sale on a Vietnam era G-1 Goatskin Bomber jacket. Mikey's sales stay steady despite a listing freeze- enough to fund his other electronics business.

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We've included our weekly Ebay numbers below. In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share. 

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store Week Dec 1-7, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 2920
• Items Sold: 56
• Total Sales: $2,154.04
• Highest Price Sold: $300 (vintage leather Vietnam bomber jacket)
• Average Price Sold: $38.46
• Returns: 1
• Positive Feedback: 21
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Dec 1-7, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 1011
• Items Sold: 16
• Total Sales: $426.93
• Highest Price Sold: $85.00 (Antique Lamp)
• Average Price Sold: $26.68
• Returns: 1
• Positive Feedback: 7
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Episode 72: Why is eBay Trying To Destroy My Store? (Hint: It's Not)

We were reluctant to go deep into the fevered swamp of eBay conspiracy theories. After eBay suspended 15,000 low performing accounts in August 2013, the eBay community boards lit up with the fear that eBay was shutting down all small sellers. There is now a dark thread that runs through many eBay blogs and their comments scaring new and old sellers alike that eBay is out to destroy their store. Recent emails to our blog showed that this dark cloud needs to be blown away.

Everyone will believe what they want to believe (or need to believe), but we're just looking at the facts. It's a competitive online marketplace that's very different than when eBay started in 1995. Buyers have much higher expectations of presentation, item quality, customer service, and shipping speed. Amazon has really set the tone for the streamlined service people want. Sellers who can't adapt will be left behind.

With e-commerce growing by double digits numbers year after year, there's never been a better time to sell online. More people are buying from other countries as well, thus increasing sales. Let's just say that we're going to focus on improving and selling. If eBay ever becomes too annoying, they'll always be other places to go. Let's have some fun.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 71: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Found this Danish modern office chair for $2, hoping to sell for $150.

Jay and Ryanne talk about getting a little frazzled by listing so much during the holidays. Sales of high dollar items are up, so it looks like it's working. Cyber Monday turned out to be a slowish day for us, but we're here for the long and steady haul. We got a request from a listener to do a show about taxes. Luckily, we've already done that episode and it's here for you to listen to. Check it out.

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We've included our weekly Ebay numbers below. In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share. 

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store Week Nov 24-30, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 2913
• Items Sold: 55
• Total Sales: $2,183.52
• Highest Price Sold: $220 (vintage cast iron coffee grinder)
• Average Price Sold: $39.70
• Returns: 1
• Positive Feedback: 24
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Nov 24-30, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 1026
• Items Sold: 20
• Total Sales: $611.40
• Highest Price Sold: $89.99 (fish poacher)
• Average Price Sold: $30.57
• Returns: 1
• Positive Feedback: 9
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Episode 70: Selling Vintage Slides and Photographs on eBay

Flickr Creative Commons photo by FlorianSimon

Have you noticed those mysterious boxes of adventure that span the globe? They're hidden under old table cloths and in dusty boxes along with musty shoes. They are boxes of memories left by families that have scattered. They are adventures of the young and carefree, and the focused intent of hobbyists honed in on a particular passion: birds, orchids, the wild, boating, or Disneyland. Yes we're talking about vintage slides and photographs! Listen in on Wendy and Ryanne as they discuss how they might make a living, or maybe an art project, out of old 35mm Kodachrome slides. We talk about how to digitize and scan slides for listing on eBay. Worth a fortune or just another distraction?

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eBay Scavengers Episode 69: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Vintage warming trays- they look so cool, yet are bulky and delicate. Truly a scavenger dilema! Bought for $1, sold for $60.

Wendy and Ryanne talk about what's going on in their eBay stores this week. Things are picking up for the holidays, especially since both of us are on a mad listing spree. We answer some listener questions and Ryanne suggests you go stream as many episodes of Antiques Roadshow as humanly possible.

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We've included our weekly Ebay numbers below. In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share. 

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store Week Nov 17-23, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 2894
• Items Sold: 55
• Total Sales: $2,899.39
• Highest Price Sold: $499 (24 rolls of designer wallpaper)
• Average Price Sold: $52.70
• Returns: 1
• Positive Feedback: 37
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Nov 17-23, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 1029
• Items Sold: 22
• Total Sales: $565.73
• Highest Price Sold: $55.00
• Average Price Sold: $25.72
• Returns: 1
• Positive Feedback: 7
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Episode 68: Our Mom and Pop eBay Store Approach- How We Make a Living on eBay

We like to think of our eBay store as an updated version of the 1950s Mom and Pop General Store. flickr-cc-by derrypubliclibrary

This week we thought we’d talk more about how we approach our eBay store to make a full-time living. We sell used items that we buy at thrift stores, yard sales, auctions, and even dumpster diving. But this isn’t new info. We’ve been scanning the multiple eBay blogs and Youtube channels where everyone talks about how much money can be made from “flipping” items. Must be easy, right?

For us, it’s all about thinking of our store as a “Mom & Pop shop”. We do all the work, and we make all the money. Super low overhead. If we don’t want to work a lot, then we won’t make a lot of money. Selling a pair of shoes is easy. Selling 100 pairs of shoes in a month is a serious time commitment.

In this podcast, we share how we structure our time, work with each other, and make 90% of our income from selling old shoes on eBay. Here is a link to an interview with Ryanne's mom, Jena, another long time ebay seller who has inspired us to be independent.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 67: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

We found this rug for free on the street in NYC. It just sold for $150!

Ryanne and Jay talk about what's going on in their eBay store this week. Some tough returns, cancellation denials and ebay buyer history gripes. The good news is, we sold a rug we found on the street for free for $150 and a pair of $5 lamps for $120. Life as an eBay seller is still great. We mention a new technique on how to get unpaid buyers to pay- request their phone number through ebay. You can decide to call or not, either way this has worked to motivate some of our buyers to pay. Here is the link to where you can request another user's information. Be aware that an email will be sent you and your buyer with both your phone numbers listed. So far, it's worked for us!

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We've included our weekly Ebay numbers below. In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share. 

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store Week Nov 10-16, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 2838
• Items Sold: 46
• Total Sales: $2,207.56
• Highest Price Sold: $200 (vintage wool blanket)
• Average Price Sold: $47.97
• Returns: 2
• Positive Feedback: 47 (because we shipped 190 items over the weekend after vacation)
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Nov 10-16, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 1044
• Items Sold: 13
• Total Sales: $425.95
• Highest Price Sold: $120.00
• Average Price Sold: $32.79
• Returns: 0
• Positive Feedback: 9
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Episode 66: Interview with Dave- How To Buy and Sell Cars on eBay Motors

Mikey interviews Dave, a regular listener our podcast, who had some knowledge of the online automobile trade. Dave describes his experience of selling a lot of vehicles online and how eBay Motors is a bit different than using regular eBay. He also has some tips on what scams to look out for and how to protect yourself when buying vehicles through eBay motors. Thanks for talking to us Dave! Check out his items for sale on ebay- mrvintageestateliquidation.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 65: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

A $5 box of antlers sold for $75 best offer!

Wendy and Mikey talk about what's going on in their eBay store this week.

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We've included our weekly Ebay numbers below. In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share. 

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store Week Nov 3-9, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 2800
• Items Sold: 45
• Total Sales: $1422.66
• Highest Price Sold: $149.99 (1970’s Vintage Leather Biker Boots)
• Average Price Sold: $31.66
• Returns: 2
• Positive Feedback: 55 (because we shipped 190 items over the weekend after vacation)
• Neutral Feedback: 1
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Nov 3-9, 2013

• Total Items in Store:1037
• Items Sold: 11
• Total Sales: $386.01
• Highest Price Sold: $110.00
• Average Price Sold: $35.09
• Returns: 1
• Positive Feedback: 13
• Neutral Feedback: 1
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Episode 64: How to Use International Shipping for your Ebay Store

Flickr Creative Commons photo by puuikibeach

Ryanne and Mikey dive into the subject of international shipping for eBay. There are lots of rules and regulations to look out for and hopefully we've covered most of them here. Check out eBay's Global Shipping Program here. Also see their country and category limits here. We mention USPS 1st Class International mail and the new E-Delcon tracking, USPS Padded Flat Rate Envelopes and Small Flat Rate boxes, USPS Customs Forms Envelope and USPS insurance limited countries.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 63: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Bought for less than 25 cents, sold for $230, Global Shipping Program. Oh yeah!

Ryanne talks about what it was like to ship 190 items after a 6 week trip to Europe. Mikey has a bum ebay week, but listing more for the holiday rush should solve this problem. Check out our interview on eBay Radio the other day. Also check out the info about the recent eBay sellers purge.

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We've included our weekly Ebay numbers below. In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share. 

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store Week Oct 27-Nov 2, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 2748
• Items Sold: 38
• Total Sales: $1544.73
• Highest Price Sold: $230.00 (1970s Vintage Nike Running Shoes)
• Average Price Sold: $40.60
• Returns: 0
• Positive Feedback: 4
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Oct 27-Nov 2, 2013

• Total Items in Store:1031
• Items Sold: 17
• Total Sales: $391.18
• Highest Price Sold: $85.35
• Average Price Sold: $23.01
• Returns: 1
• Positive Feedback: 8
• Neutral Feedback: 1
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Mid-Week Treat: Scavengers Interview on eBay Radio

Hey, Ryanne was on eBay radio talking about pulling stuff out of the trash and selling it. Viva la Scavengers! Thanks to Lee and Griff for having eBay Scavengers on for an interview this week.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 62: Wendy Interviews Jodi An LA Mom Who Uses eBay and Etsy

Flickr Creative Commons photo by kla4067

Wendy interviews her life long friend Jodi about the LA eBaying scene. Jodi shares her perspective of using eBay not so much to make money, but to reduce the loss on items she no longer uses. Check out her Etsy store full of lovely handmade jewelry.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 61: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Wendy and Mikey discuss the complexities of selling items worth over $2,500 on eBay. This episode covers the additional forms, shipping and expenses that one has to consider when moving high value merchandise.

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We've included our weekly Ebay numbers below. In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share. 

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store Week Oct 20-26, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 2785
• Items Sold: 32
• Total Sales: $1,091.56
• Highest Price Sold: $120.00 (Harris Tweed women’s wool coat)
• Average Price Sold: $34.11
• Returns: 0
• Positive Feedback: 1
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Oct 20-26, 2013

• Total Items in Store:1020
• Items Sold: 13
• Total Sales: 409.94
• Highest Price Sold: 199.99
• Average Price Sold: $31.53
• Returns: 1
• Positive Feedback: 12
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Episode 60: Interview with Miriam Otto of The Ebay Life Blog: How To Hire Employees For Your Ebay Business

Once we started listing consistently in our Ebay store, the obvious thing happened: we became successful. The bigger our inventory, the more we sold. Like most successful sellers, we then hit a wall. Each month we can barely list enough to keep up with the amount we were selling. This makes it difficult to grow our inventory. Listing is the real bottleneck in the eBay workflow.

We've recently started talked about hiring employees. How would we train them? What would we pay them? How do you keep them from just starting their own store once they learn how easy it is to sell scavenged goods? The math has never made sense to us. We're definitely skeptics.

This week we talk to Miriam Otto of The Ebay Life Blog and Blue Frog Shoes. She has between two and three employees working for her at any one time. She mainly hires college students since they like flexible work hours and aren't stable enough to become her competition. Since hiring employees, she now works a full-time job while they list and ship with the help of her boyfriend, Johnny. They have more than doubled what they make on eBay since hiring employees. She's even recently bought another house to live in, so their original house can just be for eBay storage/business. We like the way she thinks!

Miriam teaches an extensive online class where she shares even more details about how to successfully hire eBay employees. Check out the course here. Thanks Miriam for sharing your knowledge with us!

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eBay Scavengers Episode 59: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Purchased this coat for $10, sold it for $300. Not a bad risk!

Ryanne and Jay talk about what's happening in their store this week. Still in Amsterdam, we have been listing like crazy and selling pretty well. Had to make some returns for people buying clothes, especially overall shorts for Halloween. We also dive back into the Q&A from our blog sidebar and answer some questions. Be sure to weigh your items before you list them using a digital scale. These are the scales we recommend- Small Digtal Kitchen Scale or Larger Digital Postal Scale. Also, check out the USPS guidelines for what items can be mailed using Media Mail.

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We've included our weekly Ebay numbers below. In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share. 

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store Week Oct 13-19, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 2740
• Items Sold: 44
• Total Sales: $1615.21
• Highest Price Sold: $299.99 (Shearling winter coat)
• Average Price Sold: $36.70
• Returns: 0
• Positive Feedback: 3
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Oct 13-19, 2013

• Total Items in Store:1034
• Items Sold: 17
• Total Sales: $415.86
• Highest Price Sold: $47.97 (plaster wall shelves)
• Average Price Sold: $24.46
• Returns: 0
• Positive Feedback: 9
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Episode 58: We Answer Your Ebay Questions and Comments

This week we realized that listeners have been sending in questions from the form on the blog sidebar. Since we accidentally forgot to turn on notifications, all your important questions will now be answered. Like, "DID MIKEY SELL THE PIG BONES?!" (See all questions listed below.)

In the future, we'll make sure we answer questions and comments as they come in. Just write us through the sidebar ===>>

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1.  I know you've talked about shipping options in the past, but would it be possible for you to cover when it is beneficial to use regional flat rate boxes. (charles in baltimore)

2. Talk about regional rate boxes, as per listener email.

3. Finances: How much of your net income do you take as owner's draw and how much is left in reserve for purchasing inventory? Do you do it on a percentage or always keep a specific amount of money in your account for purchasing? (RoxyAnny)

4. I would like to hear the pros and cons of opening a store on ebay.  I list a wide variety of items and really don't expect many return customers.  With that it seems like a store won't do much for me and only listing 50 items at a time it seems I should just stick to the no store idea. (JParr)

5. What works more on ebay: auction or buy it now? (Maria Loyola)

6. I wanted to know if you guys use the "international site visibility" on your listings? I have always used it and am trying to find a way to lower expenses. At $0.50 a pop with 80+ listings it can get pretty expensive.  (Kim)

7. I was wondering since you two travel alot if you could do a show on money saving tip and advice on traveling.  Is your trip for business or pleasure.  (alan)

8. Seller Limits. I don't think you have covered this subject. A new user gets a monthly selling limit of 10 then moves to 50 after verifying with paypal etc. and stays at 50 until ebay feels the need to change that amount. I would suggest you tell new users what to do to Ebay increase this limitation to get to a 2000 item store. (Tony Hoover)

9. Did Mikey ever get paid for selling the pig bones? (Brian)

10. How to list unusual items and get them noticed (especially choosing the right category)? (California Deb)

11. Do you think selling books is a good idea (on amazon or ebay).

12. Please discuss ebay seller fees. Are they cheaper if you have a store in opposed to not having one. Do you take fees into consideration when pricing the item. Between eBay and PayPal fees its hard break even sometimes. (Steve)

13. Is there a garagesale for android phones and PC's. (Alan)

14. Would love a topic on hints to speed up listing, including using ebay Turbo Lister and "paid for" software such as Seller Sourcebook and Auctiva. (Rosemary in UK)

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eBay Scavengers Episode 57: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

This week Mikey and Jay do a transatlantic podcast. Jay (and Ryanne) are still in Amsterdam, while Mikey (and Wendy) are back in their desert retreat after a trip to NYC.

Jay talks about scavenging in The Netherlands while still selling with "eBay vacation settings" on and Mikey shares how they had their biggest week ever ($4689.88). Mikey had shipping problems to deal with, and Jay wants everyone to just calm down.

We're starting something new -- posting our "Weekly Scavenger Numbers". We love when people share specific selling numbers. I mean, how much money can we actually make selling junk on eBay? In the comments, go ahead and post what you've done this week. And let us know if there are other numbers you want us to share. This is where the rubber meets the road.

The Weekly Scavenger Numbers

Jay and Ryanne’s Store   Week Oct 6-12, 2013

• Total Items in Store: 2684
• Items Sold: 40
• Total Sales: $1049.76
• Highest Price Sold: $49.99
• Average Price Sold: $26.24
• Returns: 2
• Positive Feedback: 4
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

Mikey and Wendy’s store Week Oct 5-12, 2013

• Total Items in Store:1031
• Items Sold: 11
• Total Sales: $4689.88
• Highest Price Sold: $3,000.00
• Average Price Sold: $426.35
• Returns: 0
• Positive Feedback: 15
• Neutral Feedback: 0
• Negative Feedback: 0

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eBay Scavengers Episode 56: Interview with Wendy's Mom - An Experienced Thrift Store Volunteer

Creative Commons Flickr Photo by Daniel Oines

Ever since Wendy was a kid, her mom was an antique and thrift scavenger. Since retirement, she has started volunteering at thrift stores in her area. Along with helping the stores with their charity missions, she's been able to get some great finds! Wendy's mom gives us a perspective we're all on the other side of- behind the scenes at the thrift store.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 55: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Just in time for October 31st, Wendy sold a 10¢ vintage Halloween book for $40.

Wendy and Mikey talk about what's going on in their Ebay store this week. A big technology sale boosts their weekly earnings to over 3K. Our Goggle Hangout listing spree with other ebay sellers was a success and also very fun. Ebay allows us to ship USPS Priority to Russia again, but sadly with no insurance options.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 54: The Pros and Cons of Selling Consignment On Your Ebay Store

Ryanne and Jay discuss the pros and cons of selling for other people through consignment on your eBay store. Some people create whole businesses selling for others. We generally air on the side of caution when someone approaches us with a consignment request. In fact, we've never done consignment in our entire eBay career. Does consignment work for you? We'd love to hear about it in the comments.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 53: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Jay checking out the German countryside while we continue to sell on our eBay store!

Jay and Ryanne are on a month long European adventure while they continue to sell stuff for the holiday rush on eBay. Stuff we talk about in this episode include: the PayPal Debit card, great for buying and keeping track of your merchandise and business expenses. Google Voice, where you can get one phone number to go to several phones (so Jay and I have one number) and make phone calls over seas for free.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 52: Interview with Libby and Tristan from Brickyard Vintage Finds, an eBay store in Easthampton, MA

Wendy and Mikey interview Libby and Tristan, eBay sellers and true scavengers in East Hampton, Massachusetts- home to several colleges and a prime spot for scavenging goods at tag sales, flea markets, thrift stores and college dumpsters. They use Brickyard Vintage Finds as a flexible source of income, listing a bunch when they need to and keeping it lean when they're working on other projects. Check out the Tiny House they built from scratch with money from a big tag sale.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 51: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Mikey and Wendy talk about putting their store on vacation mode and selling on the road. Cool sales have included a mid century lamp, bought for $12, sold for $139. Also, a vest that has come back, lives on and is sold a second time around. Mikey also lets us know that he is the lady's shoe expert in this couple!

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eBay Scavengers Episode 50: How To Do Accounting and Bookkeeping For Your Ebay Store Taxes

Creative Commons Flickr photo by Alan Cleaver

When we first started doing eBay, it was like running little yard sales. It felt like a hobby that made us some extra pocket money. However, after a couple years of listing and building a store with 1000+ items, we realized that we were making A LOT of money. Enough to quit our jobs. Great! But we also realized we needed to pay taxes on all our scavenger loot. Paypal tells the IRS when you make over $20,000 in a year.

So like any business, we had to learn how to do accounting for our growing eBay business. This means claiming BUSINESS EXPENSES. In this episode, we talk about how we use Outright.com (Now called GoDaddy Bookkeeping to keep it real simple. We'd love to hear how you handle your eBay accounting. Just talk in the comments.

Remember to check out the IRS standard mileage deduction. For 2013, it's 56.5 cents for every mile driven for business.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 49: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Bought for $50, sold for $950. BOOM!

Jay and Ryanne talk about what's going on this week in their ebay store. We had a slow week after Labor day, but things really picked up when we sold another piece of furniture, a fancy sink and some new in the box Lineman's boots. As long as it all averages out at the end of the month, we're happy.

Our tip of the week is to always have a back up printer. If something goes wrong, you don't want to be stuck without one! Remember to check out our favorite Brother Laser printer.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 47: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

Vintage Fire King green "Jadeite" mugs and glassware can sell for a helluva lot of money. This one sold for $65.

Mikey and Jay talk about what's been going on in their eBay stores this week. Mikey is getting some NYC trash picking and auction advice for his upcoming trip. Find auctions near you on AuctionZip.com. Look for Fire King vintage "Jadeite" green glassware while scavenging. People will ask a high price for it, but you can usually sell it for more on eBay!

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eBay Scavengers Episode 48: How To Avoid Negative Feedback and Deal with Customers On eBay - Tips for Beginners

You can easily avoid having your feedback look like this guy's!

Jay and Mikey cover the basics on how to avoid negative feedback and deal with angry customers on eBay.

• First, don't buy items in very bad condition or that you can't easily test. 
• Second, if there is a problem, deal with it professionally and courteously. Ebay will absolutely take your inbox responses into account when siding on a case. 
• Remember not to take things personally, people get defensive when they have had bad previous experiences with sellers and it's easy to diffuse someone with prompt and consistent communication. 
• Sometimes you get negative or neutral feedback without a word from a customer, but eBay has some new policies about removing certain dings like this.

 eBay recently suspended 15,000 sellers (out of 15 million) from listing new items because of bad performance. Just read the rules and give eBay a call, they might just delete that negative for you!

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eBay Scavengers Episode 45: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

A nice score of vintage Apple software free from the trash.

Jay and Ryanne talk about traveling and having their eBay store in vacation mode. USPS has a new program where anything sent Priority worth $50 and less gets free insurance. Nice! Also, we'd love to hear from you about what kind of experts we should interview in upcoming episodes.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 46: Interview with Dawn Ladd from Aurora Lampworks Brooklyn, NY

Ryanne and Jay travel to Williamsburg, Brooklyn to interview lighting restoration expert Dawn Ladd of Aurora Lampworks. Dawn was gracious enough to sit down with us and answer a few questions about how she started and how she runs her business. Check out her gallery of work. She's done some amazing stuff and really has an expert perspective on the value of antique and vintage fixtures. This interview can help you learn how to sell vintage lights and lamps on ebay.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 44: A Look Back and Into The Future on The eBay Scavengers Podcast

Always scavenging. NYC is a prime place to turn trash into cash!

We all look back on what has worked, was surprising and inspiring and what we can look forward to in the future on the podcast. Also, Jay gets in a fight with a homeless dude in NYC over who gets first dibs on NYU trash night.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 43: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

For the first time ever, all four of us talk about what's going on in our stores this week. Wendy and Mikey deal with non-payers and discuss using fixed price on items they know will sell high. Ryanne and Jay explain their notebook methods (see scan below) and discuss their success with selling furniture.

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Good thing I can read my own writing, sometimes.

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eBay Scavengers Episode 42: Interview with Ben from Voodoo Vintage & Estate - An eBay store in New Orleans

Wendy talks to Ben from Voodoo Vintage & Estate in New Orleans. He's been finding some very unique NOLA items at estate sales and selling with great success through ebay. All it took was one phone call from Wendy to convince him that opening an eBay store was the right thing to do!

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eBay Scavengers Episode 41: What's Happening In Your eBay Store This Week?

A swanky Louis Vuitton wallet worth so much, you'll be too broke to fill it!

Wendy and Mikey talk about what's going on in their store this week. Lots of non-paying bidders and offers. A Louis Vuitton wallet that got a best offer of $1100 that had a non-payer, but will eventually sell because of rabid LV fans. Wendy experiments with auctions to find the right market price for odd items and Mikey coins the phrase yard sale "sweeper".

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eBay Scavengers Episode 40: Interview with Sharon and Sam from ShopCheap 1980 in Australia

Jay and Ryanne woke up at 6am EST (now that's dedication) to interview Sharon and Sam from ShopCheap1980 an eBay store in Australia! The similarities to a US ebay store are very close. They shop at auctions, flea markets and thrift stores too. Only difference is that they have to bring all their boxes to the post office. No Australia Post pickup for them. Visit their store at ShopCheap1980. Thanks Sharon and Sam!

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