We have been selling Online since 2005, on eBay, Amazon and other marketplaces. GadgetSalvation.com started simply as a laptop computer parts store, and over the years, and having completed almost 40,000 transactions on eBay, we have one advice to give you: Do not sell your high valued electronics on eBay. Here’s why:
Reason Number 1: Scams
If you are new to eBay be certain that you will be targeted by scammers. This means you will be contacted often with suspicious emails, most of them very hard to detect since eBayer scammers have become sophisticated. Do not expect an email like “Could you ship to Nigeria?”, On the contrary the scammer will complete the transaction smoothly, you will have the money on you PayPal account and he will wait to receive the item before he/she makes a move. A very common scam is swapping items, the buyer will swap your item for an identical one but defective. There are more unscrupulous ones that will claim that the iPhone you sold them is not the exact model you described or it is defective, the item will be send back to you and for your surprise, what he sent back to you is a Nokia flip phone from 1998.
Reason Number 2: Returns
Be ready to pay return shipping expenses. With the new eBay “Buyer Protection” policy, the seller is responsible for return shipping expenses. Of course this is if the buyer states that the item you sold is not as described, otherwise buyer must pay return. But so far, most eBayers have already found a way around it. They will state that the item you sold is not as described anyway, just for you to pay the return shipping, which of course, eBay will just take from your PayPal account. No questions asked. Remember, it’s called “Buyer Protection Policy”, not “Seller Protection Policy”.
Reason Number 3: Time
Researching your product, taking pictures and writing an accurate description can be terribly time consuming. Of course you can just use the eBay Mobile app, snap a picture, write a quick description and voila! Listed! Yes, listed, but not sold. Your have to relist your item probably 3 to 5 times before it sells. Taking up to a month to sell your device.
Reason Number 4: eBay Hassles
A buyer has return a product you sold, regardless of the reason, you need your eBay fees refunded since the transaction never was completed. You have only 45 days to file for this request. Unfortunately, PayPal refund time frame is 60 days, this means that if the buyers decides to return the product after 45 days, PayPal will still issue a refund on your behalf, with your funds that have been previously held, and you are not able anymore to file for a eBay transaction cancellation. meaning that eBay keeps your fees.
Reason Number 5: Fees
Let’s say you sold your laptop for $500 closing price, your expenses and fess are:
shipping expenses: $28.00
eBay listing fees (auction sytle): $1.00
eBay listing closing fees: $35
PayPal Fees: $14.50
TOTAL: $78.50
Now let’s hope that the buyer like your laptop otherwise you’ll have to pay return fees too. So you will be out of $100 aprox.
We pretty much cover that right above, nut one more fee newly added by eBay. Now there are closing fees on shipping charges, So if you thought that you could avoid paying more fees by inflating your shipping charges, forget about it. This is eBay’s way to force you to offer free shipping. It has worked pretty well for eBay if you ask us.
Reason Number 6: Difficult Buyers
If you do not have a high resolution camera that can catch the smallest flaw on that precious iPhone you are trying to get rid of, then be ready to respond tons of emails. Buyers want to see the actual item they are going to purchase if the item is not new. They will email you and ask you to post real pictures of your device. Also, you must describe the condition of your device with detail if you do not want it to be returned or recive a negative feedback.
Reason Number 7: Being Paid
If you are listing an auction, the buyer is not required to pay immediately. As a matter of fact he has about 30 days to come up with the money. And don’t even think of re-listing your phone if your buyer hasn’t paid in a few days. If he finally pays after a few weeks, eBay will still charge you closing fees, which can be up to 7% of the total.
So what’s your alternative? Sell your electronics to Gadget Salvation, we will take virtually any electronics in any condition, working or not. The service is absolutely free and shipping is prepaid so you don’t have to worry about paying any fee.
