Ask MetaFilter posts tagged with selling

RSS reader optimized for Craigslist and Kijiji

Chuckles — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 13:29:33 -0800

Wanted, an RSS reader optimized for Craigslist and Kijiji. Willing to program myself, if necessary. I'm looking to optimize my use of RSS feeds when perusing online classified adds. I've been using Thunderbird, and I've set a few message filters to save me some time, but it isn't enough. Some of the features I need:

Sophisticated kill scripts, to avoid spam, duplicate listings, and items I'm simply not interested in
Permanent storage of the listing and pictures for market research purposes. This would include monitoring changes, and recording the date of listing removal.

I'm sure there are a million features I haven't thought of, but those two are really key, and they are not at all typical for RSS readers, as far as I can tell.

I'm a junior programmer, but I'm happy to take this on as a project. Hopefully, as a plugin for existing software, or a modification of an existing open source RSS reader. Happier still if somebody has already made it, of course!

And as an adjunct question, I'm very interested in recommendations for ebay software. Again, looking for permanent caching and tracking of auctions. I've heard of some ebay market analysis services, but paying a subscription isn't really an option, unless it is very cheap.

Sell now, or sell later? Barbie's Malibu Dream House has got to go.

Unicorn on the cob — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 16:49:11 -0800

I've been getting my house ready to sell and am wondering if I'm crazy. Should I go ahead with it now, or wait until spring? Of course, there are mitigating factors involved. I own a house in Texas (Dallas) and have been working on getting it ready to sell... fixing things up, paint, polishing floors and the like. However, it literally feels like the end of the financial world right now. So my question is, am I doing all this in vain? Different people tell me the housing market's going to rebound at some point next year. Others tell me to get out now before the dollar turns into the peso.

The following factors are important in my decision for selling:

1. I make a decent living, but I do live paycheck to paycheck because of the house. I literally am unable to contribute to my 401k or do anything beyond make token payments against my credit card debt, which is pretty high. Basic subsistence living is it. Please don't suggest roommates, turning off services, etc. I did all that the past two years just to get by and have exhausted those options; I genuinely have tried everything and cannot get financial traction.

2. Originally I had planned to pay down that debt and wait until next year, hoping the market would improve and the value of my house would demand a better return on the investment. Traditionally, fall/holiday season isn't that great for selling a home, correct? Or am I wrong about that?

3. I have yet to pay house taxes for 2008. That means in January, the tax bill will be due. How will that affect me if I decide to sell now vs. waiting until after the first of the year?

4. My house was built in 2003, so it's still pretty new, in great shape, and on nearly an acre of land inside the city limits. Therefore, I believe I should be able to get a good asking price... but my city is also apparently flooded with foreclosures. How do I compete with that?

All of this is stressful and difficult for me to deal with, obviously, and I am totally alone in dealing with the home and yard maintenance, financial responsibilities and finding a realtor/new place to live if it sells quickly.

I feel a bit lost and overwhelmed. I'm trying to make the best decision for myself financially. I realize that jobs go away, illnesses and accidents happen, and were the scale to tip even a little, I'd be in a lot of trouble.

Any advice or anecdotes from people who have recently sold homes or know more about the real estate market than I do would be welcome. I already know to make the place immaculate/remove everything I own/allow anyone access at any time; I'm trying to work out getting a storage unit and all that jazz. I just wonder if I'm doing it at the wrong time.

Anywhere in San Diego, CA that buys DVDs?

toomanyplugs — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 13:44:32 -0800

Is there anywhere in San Diego, CA that buys used DVDs? Once upon a time, there was Movie Trader in PB that would take back DVDs for cash. They've since gone under after numerous acquisitions from what I can tell. Is there anywhere else like that that'll take old DVDs?

I'm not trying to maximize resale amount, just reduce clutter. Some money would be nice, though.

I am trying to reduce the time and effort involved, so I'm trying to avoid eBay and craigslist, instead looking for somewhere I can just go and drop these things off.

Help me get rid of this stuff and make a couple bucks too.

CwgrlUp — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 15:39:23 -0800

I need info about consignment shops. I have several bags of clothes and shoes that I'm thinking of trying to sell through a consignment shop. It's too much for ebay and craig's list is pretty non-existant. What info do I need to know when I'm looking for a good shop? What percentage is good for my cut of the money? Should I be concerned with location of the shop? I was thinking something close to home but there are places on busier roads than mine. Please give me some insight into this. Thanks.

how do i sell my car registered in CT to an New York resident?

nanhey — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 17:07:53 -0800

Selling my car (registered in Connecticut) to a New York state resident, who is not a US citizen. please help me with my forms checklist! I am selling my car that is registered in CT to a New York state resident who is not a US citizen. I am going with him to the DMV tomorrow to sort this all out. what else (if anything) do i need besides a

bill of sale
title
statement of transaction (sales tax form)

Thanks!

Best Mac resale solution online?

jeffmacintyre — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 09:58:43 -0800

What's the best Mac resale solution online? Describe your experiences. I'm looking to unload a Santa Rosa-era Macbook and wondering how people rate their experience using the sundry Apple resale sites out there (see below). I have just posted to Craigslist in the past but just want a simple, straightforward process that will give me best value for the machine--and hopefully be a service I can use again in the future, too.

Eg.,
http://www.macofalltrades.com/
http://cash4macs.com/
http://www.sellamac.com/

How do I sell my car?

imposster — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 05:42:00 -0800

Where can I find information about how to sell my car? (Ohio) I've never sold a car before and I'm unsure of all the steps I need to take (and in what order to take them). The BMV website doesn't provide much guidance (unless I'm missing some sort of obvious page that explains it all). When do I sign over the title? What do I do with the plates? When do I notarize the mileage? What steps am I leaving out?

How to sell an iMac in NYC.

youcancallmeal — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 09:11:00 -0800

How to sell a two year old iMac in NYC? I have an Intel iMac that I bought in September of 2006 and that I'm looking to sell. I've listed it on NYC Craigslist for $950 OBO, but there haven't been any bites and I'm leery to use eBay since it seems to be pretty scammy lately. It has Applecare, but no box or anything. Just the computer, an upgraded keyboard and a mouse.

Is there anywhere in NYC that would buy this and not totally rip me off? Is there anywhere else I can list it for private purchase?

Info for seling a pair of skis?

el_lupino — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 00:29:12 -0800

What information should be included in an ad selling a pair of skis? I'm packing up stuff before we make a big move and looking to sell a few things on craigslist. We have a pair of skis - a few years old, but never used or even removed from their shrink wrap. I am below the level of clueless newbie when it comes to skis and skiing, never having set foot on a slope or strapped on a pair of skis. If you were buying a pair of skis (no boots, bindings, etc.), what information would you want upfront and what would you think a reasonable price range, assuming they're decent but not top of the line skis?

Help Me Sell My Comics

ursus_comiter — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 05:12:53 -0800

How can I optimize the liquidation of my not so exciting comics collection? Difficulty: I'm moving to the UK in 3 months. I've got your standard'70s/'80s/'90s assortment of comics - 8.5 long boxes worth. Yeah, most of it is dross, but I want to do what I can to extract whatever gold I may have in there. I've read up on the topic here and elsewhere, but there's a few things I'd like to hear from the AskMefi comics collective on. I do have some Silver Age stuff, but nothing terribly exciting unless you're really jazzed about comics referenced in a Hembeck strip.

I've been indexing my comics using Collectorz. However, I'm clueless as far as grading comics, so while I know I've got a few interesting things in there (First Wolverine 4 issue mini-series, First appearance of the New Teen Titans, TMNT 3), I'm not sure how to maximize their sale price. Would it be worth my time and money to go the CGC route with items in that range? - i.e. potentially worth something (up to a few hundred dollars), but nowhere near the value of Amazing Fantasy #15. Also, with my database in hand, are there any resources out there that I can use to dig into my collection to find anything I might be missing that's of value? I could pore through the CBG by hand, but... Meh. I'd be happy to pay a premium to get my collection evaluated as far as finding anything worth looking closely at.

I also have some series that are more or less complete and might still be of interest to folks who are looking at getting them to read or collect. Would it be worthwhile to go out and dig up 1 or 2 missing issues to complete a run and then offer the whole thing on eBay? I'm thinking of Vertigo stuff here, mostly.

I'm willing to make some effort and I don't mind pulling stuff that's worth significantly more than cover and doing what I can to get the best deal for it. The rest, I'm prepared to donate, recycle, or whatever.

First-time car seller looking for best way to sell a car in NYC

dcjd — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 08:55:45 -0800

First-time car seller looking for best way to sell a car in NYC? I moved to Manhattan a few months ago, and I brought my car with me. I hardly ever use it now, and its costing me a lot of money and aggravation. I'm thinking that it might be time to get rid of it, however, I've never sold a car before.

What's the best method to get rid of my car and not get ripped off? Should I have the car inspected before listing it, or is that something the buyer would want to do themselves? I'd like to be safe, as I'm sure there are plenty of people on craigslist who might try to scam me out of my vehicle. The car is registered in NY, gets decent gas mileage, and I have the title to it.

How do I sell analog photography in a digital age?

Hollow — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 01:52:31 -0800

I'm looking for a way to sell darkroom prints of my travel/street photography online. I shoot black and white 35mm film and make prints myself in the darkroom. I don't want to use an automated printing selling/printing service, so what is my best bet? An Etsy store? Any advice on how to go about this? Dos and don'ts? I'm sort of hoping that people will like the idea of buying something unique, something that was made manually without computers, but my printing is rarely perfect. Some of my best pictures have scratches on the negatives. Should I sell those for less, or just offer it as part of the picture. Is there still a market for prints that haven't been doctored up with photoshop? Are there any tricks or gimmicks that work when selling darkroom photography, such as including test sheets or work prints along with the final? Am I an asshole for trying to make money instead of just putting my pictures up for everyone to enjoy on Flickr or something?

Selling MP3 Downloads

krunk — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 18:25:43 -0800

What's the best way to sell mp3 downloads? I run a website for an indie musician who'd like to setup a shop for his tunes. This question has been asked a couple times, but that was almost 2 years ago and I hope that things have improved since then.

I'm currently using 1-2-3 Music Store, but it is buggy, barely functional, has a horrible user interface, and isn't very customizable.

I've seen some shops for digital sales, but I'd like to be able to organize things specifically for music, with tracks grouped by album, for example.

Better Ebay selling

Solomon — Sat, 31 May 2008 04:11:20 -0800

Imagine you're browsing ebay for an item you want to buy. Two sellers have exactly the same item. What is it that persuades you to buy from one seller as opposed to the other? How can I enhance my ebay auctions, to make them more favourable to the purchaser, and therefore make them more likely to sell? If you're a buyer, what do you look for when purchasing an item? If you're a seller, what techniques have you found to work in your favour?

I already list an item with pictures, both in the search results and within the details of the auction, offer Paypal, and write a bit of blurb about the item itself. I'd rather avoid using techniques that cost money, unless they actually bring increased return on the item.

I need to help my dad live his dream.

tessalations999 — Thu, 29 May 2008 17:33:41 -0800

My dad makes really amazing wooden bowls on his lathe. He wants to sell them but there are a few issues and questions: If he sells them on the internet, where? Any one know of higher-end websites that sell quality art? His bowls have been appraised and would go for 100-200$. Also, is there a way to sell bowls at a store even accross the country? My dad lives in a fairly rural part of Massachussetts, and doesnt really have the resources to travel around. Any one have suggestions, ideas, etc of how to help my dad? He is very unhappy in his current job and i really believe he is a true artist. Thank you!!

Selling surplus stock

Anonymous — Tue, 06 May 2008 07:10:26 -0800

How can I sell surplus stock in North America? We have a load of surplus stock, mainly contractor tools and equipment for the service industry. What methods could be used to sell online or are there companies who could take on the task of selling and shipping the stock online where they take their cut and we take ours? Using something like ebay is not really an option as it is too labour intensive for us. There may also be issues regarding our involvement becoming aware by our wholesalers as some of the sales would bypass them and go straight to end-users who are traditionally their customers.

Selling my car in Oklahoma, but it's registered in Texas. What do I do? The sale might happen today! Help!

jimmyhutch — Thu, 01 May 2008 09:11:43 -0800

Selling my car in Oklahoma, but it's registered in Texas. Can I get some advice on what to do here? More details inside, and this sale could happen today! I live temporarily in Oklahoma (moving back to TX as soon as we sell our house), but I am still registered in Texas with the car. I am selling the car for a little less than I owe on it, but paying the cash for the remainder of the loan to the loan company (Capital One Auto - I know, I know) isn't an issue.

I called Capital One Auto, and besides telling me repeatedly that they'll release the title to the new owner after I pay off the balance, they were extremely unhelpful.

So, how this stands is that I am selling my car for cash in Oklahoma, and the car is registered in Texas. Which state do I need to deal with in this situation? Obviously I need to let Texas know that I no longer have liability on this car (via this form) once I sell it to the guy, and then get a registered payment to the bank so that they will overnight the title.

What else am I oblivious to in this situation? Have I left out something for forgotten something that is gonna screw this up?

Thanks for your help, in advance!

Reality of Realty

oflinkey — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 21:33:12 -0800

Landlords are selling the house we are in and we would like to know what to expect from the coming months. We are renters in a house and the landlord is selling. We have never been involved in selling or buying, so we want to know what are rights are in this situation. A few specifics:

1) Can we request that we be present when the house is being shown? That is, can we let the realtor know when the house would be available for showing?

2) What can the landlords/realtor require of us, aside from a clean house?

3) We never really unpacked many things and would rather not do so. Everything is clean and neat, but there are boxes. Will this be an issue?

4) How long, approximately, are houses on the market before they are taken off and re-listed? How long, on average, are they "rested" between being taken off and re-listed (if any time at all?) This house went up for sale before about 4 years ago and did not sell.

Any other pearls of wisdom are much appreciated. I would like to go into this informed. We do not want our lives to be turned upside down by living at the ease of the realtor, but we DO want the house to sell, as we are in a long lease and wish to leave.

How much to help sell clothes online?

ottereroticist — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 18:23:01 -0800

I want to sell some used clothing online, and I'm trying to figure out how much to pay for help. I have a bunch of clothes and accessories that I want to sell online. I plan to list them on a specialized community website that allows sales posts, so there won't be any listing charges. From watching past sales, I think most of my items will move, and I think I'll be able to get an average of $20 per item.

I want to hire a friend to do the following: arrange and photograph each item, upload photos, combine them with descriptive text (which I will write) into a LJ post; package and ship items. I will provide camera, laptop, shipping materials, and postage.

I think it makes more sense for me to pay by the item than by the hour, since I want to give them an incentive to work fast. I'd like to make at least 50% profit, including supplies and postage.

So my first question is, how long would you expect all those tasks to take per item?

My second is, for a job like this paid under the table, what do you think is a fair hourly rate?

My third question is, what should I assume as an average postage cost per item of clothing, using the cheapest available shipping method? Assume US shipping only.

Thanks for your help!

Amazon and eBay best practices?

cosmic osmo — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 12:05:06 -0800

I need advice for selling my used stuff online via eBay and Amazon--more specifically, the shipping and order management part of it. I've been selling on eBay for a while and feel pretty comfortable with most of the process (taking pictures of the item, creating an auction template, when to list, etc.) In a flash of brilliance early this a.m., I signed up for an Amazon seller's account and listed a bunch of CDs I had been planning to sell and much to my surprise, I have already sold some! So far, so good.

All of this is very low-volume: I have at most 5 eBay auctions a week, and right now I only have about 30 things listed on Amazon. I'm using GarageSale to create and manage my eBay auctions, and Delicious Library to organize my Amazon sales. For eBay, I ordered a bunch of USPS Priority Mail boxes, quote a flat rate for shipping within the U.S., pack the items as the auction ends its nearing date and then once I get paid via PayPal (and the money is immediately whisked away into my checking account) I hand-address the packages and bring them down to the local P.O. to ship (always with delivery confirmation, and sometimes the buyer will pay for insurance). So far I've been pretty good at 'guestimating' shipping costs and haven't had any complaints from buyers.

This has been going well so far--all of my auctions end Sunday nights and by the time I go to the P.O. on Tuesday mornings, usually all of the buyers have paid. Sometimes I have to make a second trip to the P.O. later in the week, but I live less than 5 minutes walking distance and rarely wait in line for more than 10 minutes if I go on a weekday morning, so I don't really mind.

My question(s): What's the best way to ship books and CDs, given that Amazon gives you around $3 to do so? Should I start using some kind of online postage payment system (Endicia? Stamps.com? Whatever PayPal offers?) for either eBay or Amazon, or both? Is it worth it to buy things like scales or special printers? I have an HP Ink Jet printer, use Macs (Leopard) exclusively, and use PayPal (at least for eBay). As mentioned above I also use GarageSale and Delicious Library, and would love anything that integrates well with what I already have. How do I make my life easier, especially given that I have also just started selling on Amazon?

I've looked up previous questions about selling on eBay and Amazon, but if you have additional tips for using either (especially Amazon!), mostly with regards to shipping and order management, I'd love to hear them. I've also waded through the seller forums at both sites, but they seem geared toward people who do this for a living, and I'm just trying to clear out some storage space while also potentially making a few bucks.

Where can I sell my car?

sepsis — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 16:25:48 -0800

Where is a good place to sell a used car in Boston? I've tried craigslist, but get no replies. The car runs great and I'm not asking a lot, it's just not a new shiny car. So I'm wondering what other options I have.

help me IT wizards!

outsider — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 16:11:06 -0800

I have about 10 working computers with clean XP installs from our office that we are trying to sell on Ebay... is there a website or program I could run that would show me all of the parts inside the machine it was run on? The motherboard, graphics card, CPU, ram etc... I know how to find this all out manually, but it seems like there should be some program to do it for me. Then I can just copy / paste the output into ebay and not worry about getting some model number of a part messed up...

Any ideas?

How can I easily sell this Rolex?

whiskey point — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 07:40:49 -0800

Anyone have experience selling expensive items on eBay? I've been asked to sell my (filthy rich, trust fund baby) friend's mother's Rolex watch on eBay. Yes, it's real, and yes, they have everything that came with the watch, certificate of authenticity, etc. The watch has rarely been worn and is in immaculate condition. Has anyone sold anything similar? Or have any tips for me? I'd like to make them the most amount of money for the watch and pay the least amount possible in eBay fees. Do you suggest PayPal or cashier's checks or something else? Escrow? I have the equipment to take solid pictures, a scanner for the documents, and a good eBay seller rating. Is there another way to sell a super expensive watch? Thanks for your help!

How to sell parts of a valuable collection on eBay--without the feedback?

cosmic osmo — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 01:43:58 -0800

How do you begin to sell collectible or designer items on eBay that are easily counterfeited or faked without thousands of positive feedback? For years, I collected Nike sneakers. Many of the sneakers I have are highly collectible and worth several hundred dollars. I'm at a point in my life where I'm ready to get rid of some of them, and traditionally eBay has been the standard marketplace for Nikes.

However, there exists a rampant market of fake, knock-off, or "variant" sneakers on eBay--as I'm sure there is for many other collectibles or designer items. In my seven years as an eBay member, I've bought dozens of sneakers, and I know that I would never buy Nikes from someone who didn't have feedback indicating that their product was authentic...so how do I sell to someone like me? I'm not a reseller, I've never sold shoes on eBay before (though I have sold other things and do have 100% feedback), I don't have references or a reputation; I'm just a collector myself looking to get rid of a few pieces for some extra closet space and cash. I'm not actively involved in any of the online sneaker collecting communities (because frankly, the hobby tends to attract 13-year old boys), nor is there really a better way to sell the sneakers.

Surely someone must have gone through this before (with something other than sneakers...though if it was with sneakers, please do share!) How do you make sure you get the fair value for your high priced item on eBay without the reputation to back it up? How can collectors liquidate their collections without taking huge losses? Tons of big, high quality photographs obviously, but what else can I do?

(Flight Club, a popular sneaker consignment store, is currently selling one pair sneakers I want to get rid of for $1100. There's a recently completed auction on eBay for the same shoes from an unknown seller for $81, just so we're clear on how much market value I stand to lose. All the other completed auctions with higher starting prices aren't bid on. As to why I'm not just using Flight Club--the shoes aren't deadstock/brand new).

merchant account important for a site that might need to feel non-bargain-basement?

lorimer — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 23:27:50 -0800

Merchant account versus just paypal/google checkout, for a handcrafts site that will offer some high-end items (c. $20 to $180 range)? I want to sell my "fine handcrafts" online (from my own site, not through Etsy/etc.). I might sell other people's too, like an online high-end crafts gallery with sales.

My stuff has been selling well in person at some shows/fairs -- and I'm good with HTML -- but I have no experience with selling anything online.

For my existing sites, I have a web hosting package that happens to include one SSL certificate I'm not otherwise using (GeoTrust QuickSSL Premium Certificate).

The question is whether to consider getting a merchant account (and dealing with potential chargebacks, fraud, etc.), because I already have SSL... or to forget that and stick with just Google Checkout & PayPal as dual checkout options. Or am I missing some hybrid solution in the middle?