Next question: list a top price or not?

[TSidhe96]

Okay, having gotten the general advice that multiple lot sales do better than a single large army sale, if I list these minis I'm shedding on say E-Bay, I was wondering whether or not to list a "Buy It Now" price with the normal auction setup. Something in the neighborhood of 50-70% of my purchase, current retail, or whatever. Am I needlessly shortchanging myself or is it a good idea? I mean, this is E-Bay, not a retail store, not even an E-Bay store. Just me, myself and I shedding miniatures I know I won't get to so I can concentrate on those I'm keeping. I wouldn't think people come her or to E-Bay to pay close to retail for minis. The whole idea is to find something of a bargain I should think. And as I said in my prior message, my expectations are fairly realistic. Not looking to recover the expense, just to get something while passing those I choose to get rid of to others who can use them.

These may have seemed like noob questions or a sly attempt at teasers, but they are not. I've just have been out of the loop for a while and genuinely asking what works and what doesn't. Thanks for your indulgence for my questions.

[flagg07]

It's been a while since I moved anything on e-bay and a lot of changes have been made since then. Do they charge you extra for including a "buy it now" option?

In the past, I have offered listings with a "buy it now" option. The key is to find the sweet spot between what others will pay and what you want to get for it. Obviously, this is the most difficult part... Another issue is that many people will simply watch a listing and bid at the very end in order to ensure they get it, but also because it helps keep the price lower than if people had continuously bid on the items for the life of the auction. "Buy it now" cuts that out.

I have also used the "buy it now" option to pick up items I really wanted (OOP, LE, etc.). When it comes to items that are readilly available, I'll generally figure out what I'm willing to pay for it, place my bid and hope I win. Genius right ? If I wanted to pay retail, or even close to retail, I'd just buy it locally.

Another key factor for me is the shipping. I hate finding a deal only to realize shipping makes the total cost more than the walk to my local FLGS. I'd suggest combined shipping for multiple auctions. Don't get greedy and people will appreciate it. Charge to much for "handling" and people will skip you. IMO, shipping is not the place to make up for lost $$.

Again, it's been a while since I sold on e-bay so take it for what it's worth.

[specs.esd]

Am I needlessly shortchanging myself or is it a good idea?

my $0.02:
if you want it to sell, start an auction at 0.99 and let market forces determine final price.
If you want it to sell at the price you want, set that value (auction or BIN) and hope that at least one bidder shows up before time expires.
if you use both auction and BIN in an a single listing (it does cost more to incorporate both), consider paying for setting a Reserve price as the BIN option goes away (and *poof* to the extra money you paid) as soon as there is one bid - can be useful if your selling entire armies.
50-70% of the price you paid for it might not be what it's selling for now; check what the BINs are from the ebay stores as well as Completed Listings.

Right now the mighty dollar is extremely week against foreign currency - consider International as an option but you really need to have your shipping weight determined before hand so you don't get a rude surprise on the actual shipping cost, and always use Customs forms.

Also the beginning of the month is an ideal selling time as most salaried people in the US have a paycheck deposited on the 1st and its a 50/50 chance that hourlies would have one deposited on that Friday; Sundays see an increased share of the traffic, too - Aug 2nd might be a good time to have your listings end.

And welcome back to Btown.

[MagickalMemories]

Specs made some good points above. Especially, re: Completed items and International sales.

Also, NEVER EVER ship to Italy. It's not worth the hassle, due to the huge # of "lost" packages they seem to generate there.

...and remember that lying about an item beinga "gift" on a customs form is a Federal offense.

Eric