Just realized how much money eBay takes from sellers, something like 12.5% and then shipping (for items under $20, that’s a HUGE loss) - Been doing eBay pretty seriously for a month now and am immediately turned away. Really wanting to move to Insta to try to grow awareness there and make sales through Insta. Any tips to creating a solid instagram for pokemon/sales? Otherwise, any other sales platforms?
Please don’t add any judgement or hate on my realizing the eBay thing only after a month - I just found out about my fees/invoice now, I knew they’d hit, but not this badly.
The issue is just a standard case of loss aversion. People see the 12.5% as just a loss but don’t see what they actually gain. The highest amount of exposure in the hobby is through ebay. You don’t have to message people and work out details, only to have the person ghost you at the last second. You don’t have to constantly be reposting the things you have for sale. You have built-in tools for printing shipping labels.
There are definitely benefits to selling off ebay, the fees being one (then again, most buyers expect the item to be cheaper because of the fees - defeating the point altogether). The option of F&F is another benefit. But there are also costs associated with selling on instagram that people tend not to acknowledge. All the extra time I mentioned above for instance. Also, you need to get people to see your items which involves playing the complex time-sink of a game that is generating followers.
I recommend just trying it. Post things for sale on your story and see what happens, it can’t hurt. Some people really like that method but for me, I’ll stick with the fees.
Aside from what’s been mentioned, another benefit to eBay is that you can ship cards under $20 with tracking for 51 cents. Whereas the cheapest way to ship a card with tracking off of eBay is ~$3. That alone more than makes up for the 12.5% in fees.
EDIT: Oops, I see that someone already mentioned it lol. Note, then, that you don’t even have to spend 70 cents like the other person mentioned. If you change the weight to 1oz (which is more than enough for shipping a few cards), it will only cost you 51 cents.
I used to listen to everyone complain about IG constantly and it really put me off from using it until recently 2 or 3 months ago I decided to create an account. I have had great success selling and I only have like 60 followers so far. I don’t have any tips besides take nice photos and use relevant hashtags. I prefer to be paid in crypto or PP friends and family but for some customers I will accept the traditional goods and services payment. It is helpful to have a well established eBay account or multiple references from well known collectors to vouch for you so the customer is more comfortable to send F&F or crypto. I have had no issues with people trying to lowball me but like I said I have only been on for a few months. I have had a few customers inquire about a card and then never get back to me but that doesn’t bother me. If anyone has tips on hashtag strategies or other ways to reach more people let me know! If you would like to give me a follow my IG is GemCases My account is still a work in process but I have a lot of cards I am looking to show off/sell and just interact more with the community.
It comes down to convenience - the ig community can be a good place to sell things, but you have to put in a lot of work to make it worthwile. Just posting things for sale isn´t going to do it, you need to build a community and deal with loads of messages where only a fraction lead to an actual transaction.
Ebay gives you the convenience of reaching the biggest online buying community at an instant, for a ~15% fee. You will most likely not get top dollar on ig, whereas on ebay you´ll have no problem doing that, regardless of your account. That in itself might already be more than the 15% fee you´re paying.
If you´d like to closely interact with the pokemon community specifically and really engage in it, go for an IG and try it out!
Taxes are for profits, profits are great because well you are making money. Running any business is great because the tax deductions are almost endless. Consult with a tax lawyer for deduction ideas and professional advice. Most importantly when running a business and utilizing any tax deductions keep detailed records of everything!
I feel like IG deals work better for higher priced deals. If you are doing less than like 1000 dollar cards, I feel like eBay is well worth it. even to just advertise your listings so people know who has what. But I can’t lie when I say that if I’m looking for a card I look through hashtags on IG to find owners.
It takes a lot of time to build an IG page, get followers and build your brand. It’s not something you can rush overnight. Part of selling over IG is gaining people’s trust and confidence that you’re not going to scam them. The longer you’re in the community, the easier that is, I would just create a page to document your collecting journey. My IG feed is where I get a lot of info Pokémon news and people post cards they are looking to sell or buy. Selling will come naturally with time.
Thanks for chipping in everyone - I love reading all of this feedback and insight. I see that this question is one that y’all have thought about before. Would you be able to offer more detail on your responses? Some of you guys have done a great job outlining your reasoning for using eBay over Instagram. As for me, my experiences thus far have yet to fall in the same boat as yours.
Yesterday, I sold a card for $30, and got hit with a fees for $4.45 and then $3 for shipping. I have tried to cut shipping costs down, but can’t seem to give good service for lower than $3. Where is this $.51 cent option coming from? I have tried to rationalize the fees in my head, but losing ~30% (fees + shipping cost (I try to offer free shipping)) of a sale (or worse for anything lower than $30) makes me feel a bit cheated. Is this simply the business and the way it rolls? Is this why lower cost cards are barely worth it, even if it’s +/- $20?
The 51 cent shipping option is only for cards <$20 (you should see an option for ebay standard envelope) and is honestly fantastic. As for cards over $20, it sucks that shipping costs around $3-4 (not to mention the cost of supplies needed for shipping), but that’s just the cost of selling cards online.
This is literally the cost of doing business. Most people who are selling items consistently on Instagram probably took several months or even a year to build up their page with a solid “consumer base” of followers in which they can post cards and get buyers. Now in this case they obviously don’t have to pay fees, but they probably did spend countless hours building up that page and making posts to get to that sale. With ebay, you take 30 seconds to make your listing with your picture and wait until it sells because they provide that massive network of consumers for you which is why you will pay a fee. Another important question to ask here would be what is more important to you… Your time or the 15%~ in fees?
This ^
Additionally, I don’t see how the shipping cost is relevant since you would also be shipping when you sell on instagram. What ends up happening with expenses is you just factor them into the price as the seller. If the fees and shipping are costing you too much then just add 15% to the price and don’t offer free shipping. Again, selling off ebay is not really a solution for this either because the assumption from many buyers is that any savings from fees will also be passed onto them.
My account is still a work in process but I have a lot of cards I am looking to show off/sell and just interact more with the community.