dvds in your house, making you sad

October 16, 2007 11:32 PM

I have approximately 230 dvds I'd like to sell. I have been to some local shops that advertise they buy used dvds, and I keep getting told that no one is buying right now. I'm not looking to get rich, but a little cash would be nice. All are in good condition with the original artwork/cases. (Some we never even opened) Besides ebay, any suggestions? Has anyone had experience selling large quantities of DVDs to a reliable buyer, either in the San Diego area or online?

I've had some success with ebay (selling small lots, 1-3 at a time), but it's a pain. Before I give up and devote myself to ebaying the rest, I thought I'd do some more research, in case there is an easier way I haven't yet discovered.

I also tried an outfit I found online (mx123). They seemed too good to be true, so I shipped them a small number as a test, ones that I didn't care much about. When I didn't hear anything after a few weeks I contacted them and they emailed back saying their store had been closed, inventory "seized" and my dvds "should be" returned to me. I'm now wary, understandably, and would prefer to ask here and see if anyone has any recommendations.

posted by routergirl to grab bag (20 comments total)

I just heard about these guys the other day.

No personal experience, but it seems like an interesting idea.
posted by jjb at 11:41 PM on October 16, 2007

I know it's a pain in the butt for you probably, but I've had very good success selling on amazon.com; but this would mean one at at time as opposed to bulk selling.

Other than that, maybe craig's list?
posted by willmize at 11:54 PM on October 16, 2007

I know you asked about alternatives other than eBay, but based on personal experience, I'd suggest a Dutch auction eBay but in unlabeled lots of ten (or so) each.

Make a complete listing but note that you're randomly packaging the DVDs. Starting bidding off at $1 and require winner to pay postage. To further entice bids note that you'll cover postage for auction winners who purchase more than one (or two, etc) lots.

By using a Dutch auction you're selling the same quantity but in discrete lots that are manageable.
posted by Mutant at 12:28 AM on October 17, 2007

Yeah, I've been able to sell on Amazon too, but again, it's a real pain in the butt. Have you thought about getting a table at a swap meet? If you're looking just to get "something" then that's probably the least amount of trouble.

Also, perhaps donate them to a library for tax purposes?
posted by every_one_needs_a_hug_sometimes at 1:21 AM on October 17, 2007

Craigslist? (I love craigslist and I hate the fact that the page for my new city is very underpopulated)
posted by Phire at 1:35 AM on October 17, 2007

Sell them on Amazon Marketplace.
posted by seanyboy at 4:07 AM on October 17, 2007

I know it's old school, but you can't beat a garage sale. If you just put a general sticker on a box of DVDs (i.e. "5.00 each"), they'll be gone within an hour.
posted by thanotopsis at 4:54 AM on October 17, 2007

You haven't said how much you want for 'em. :) There might be MeFites in San Diego who are interested.
posted by aeschenkarnos at 5:32 AM on October 17, 2007

Peerflix.com
posted by Freedomboy at 6:29 AM on October 17, 2007

I have sold approx. 200 DVDs in the past 5 weeks on half.com - it's run by E-Bay, but not it's not auction style. I was surprised by how fast they went - books on half.com have really slowed down, but I was going to the USPS 3-4 days a week with 10+ packages each time. It takes a while to post each listing, but is much faster than E-bay - you can type in the UPC codes and a picture is pre-loaded for you. Also, you only pay the half.com charge, not E-Bay plus PayPal, so I think you come out a little ahead that way too.
posted by blackkar at 6:31 AM on October 17, 2007

i vote amazon. i've sold lots of stuff on there. it's easier than ebay because you just enter the upc or whatever. and they reimburse you like 3.49 for shipping as well.

of course, if the dvds you have are going for a cent, this isn't very worthwhile.

of course, you could also post an entire list of your collection in meta, and i bet a few of us would buy some!
posted by misanthropicsarah at 6:39 AM on October 17, 2007

I hate to disagree with people's AskMe answers, especially when I'm not sure if they're joking, but aeschenkarnos and misanthropicsarah offer what I think is a bad idea.

Don't post a list of them, either here or in Metatalk. This is not what Metafilter is for.
posted by box at 8:08 AM on October 17, 2007

If you want to email me your list of remaining DVDs, I'd be interested in buying some from you. =)
posted by agregoli at 8:48 AM on October 17, 2007

I sold a few hundred DVDs through craigslist. Most of the people just wanted 2-5 specific ones, so I priced them so it was cheaper to buy bulk (1 for $5, 3 for $10, etc.). I lucked out and a guy had a video shop bought something like 100 at once.

So, if you do craigslist right, it's easy. People come by and give you cash. No middleman. No paypal. No trips to the post office. All you have to do is email a standard 'first come, first serve' notice, with hours you're available when people email they are interested, and then just be there during those hours. (there is a crazy high level of no-shows - so that's why i would just recommend setting blocks of time, and not trying to negotiate a specific time with each person)
posted by kamelhoecker at 9:00 AM on October 17, 2007

I'd second Peerflix.
posted by mattbucher at 9:05 AM on October 17, 2007

No suggestions for selling, but I live in the city where mx123 was located, and have some more info regarding their (now shut down) operation. The local paper ran a piece on them:

The Woodbury business raided late last month by federal postal inspectors is being investigated on allegations that it used the U.S. mail to transport stolen merchandise, sources for the Federal Postal Inspection Service confirmed Wednesday.
........
Postal inspection service investigators seized nearly all of the video and audio merchandise in the display room and back room, said Jeff Long, a public information officer for the postal inspection service.
posted by ekstasis23 at 9:08 AM on October 17, 2007

I sold about 50 DVDs through craigslist recently. I was clear in my posting that I only wanted to sell all 50 at once, though you'll still get people offering to buy single titles.

Usually someone who owns a video store or has a booth at a flea market will respond (knowing they can make $1-$3 profit on each one since they'll take the trouble to sell them individually), or someone looking to quickly build a DVD collection.

I sold my lot for $200, and of course the buyer will come to you, so there is zero effort there and no shipping hassles.

So, craigslist if you want to sell them quickly in bulk, or eBay/auction site if you want to make more money but do a lot more work.
posted by robbie01 at 9:43 AM on October 17, 2007

If youre willing to make a trek north, Rhino Records in Claremont is an excellent place to sell used CDs and DVDs. They also run Mad Platter records in Riverside, which would be a little closer for you. I know they buy large music collections, so you could email them a list of what you have and see if they are interested.
posted by InfidelZombie at 10:26 AM on October 17, 2007

SecondSpin buys DVDs over the internet, and has a good reputation (and actual stores). You'd still have to enter all the UPCs, but you can do it in bulk in a comma separated list.
posted by everybody polka at 7:00 PM on October 17, 2007

Nearly all of these were good answers. Thanks, hive mind! I definitely have some options to look over.
posted by routergirl at 9:13 PM on October 17, 2007