[dmasci]

I have a question for anyone that sells on ebay. I am only really in the marked for graded cards but this question can apply to non-graded as well.

I sell cards on ebay from time to time primarily when I update a card in my PC. Normally, I look the card up in the online price guide and list my card beginning well below the value given if auction or if I list it as a Purchase now I may try to sell it for as high as book value with a best offer option and free shipping.....I feel this is pretty fair after all it is ebay.

On the other hand, I'm trying to figure out the logic other sellers use. With graded cards there really is no guess work for condition so coming up with a fair price should be easy. I don't really deal with new cards so card values fluctuate very little. I was looking at an old card that the online price guide shows it to be valued between $15-$30. The card was listed at almost $100 or best offer.

Do you think they are counting on someone not having any idea of the value of this card and not doing any research to see what it's been selling at? Or do you think they figure if they start high and someone trys to lo-ball that they may get book value?

It all seems like a silly waste of time to me and I just wondered what others thought or better yet if you do this....what is the rationalle behind it.

Thanks

[branesergen]

Most cards I sell start just a tad above what they "sell" for on ebay. 99% of the times someone will buy them. Then there are those that I don't want to move for current selling prices so I list them a little higher and listen to offers. Then there are those that I don't care if I sell them as they are rare and if someone wants them they can take my price for them or move on as I am not letting them go at current sell values. Then there is the junk cards that I let run at 99 cents for auction. When selling I don't even look at book value as book value is just a guide and not for selling on ebay. However when I sell on other avenues then book value comes into play (not online forums as most people want less than ebay because there are no fees involved)

[nolan5000]

There was a Nolan Ryan 1971 Dell Today's Team Stamps BVG 9.5 that a seller had BIN for $499.95 OR Best Offer. I made an Offer of $77.00, knowing full well that he wasn't going to Accept. I just wanted to make an Offer so that when it did sell, I would know how much it sold for.

But he Accepted my Offer.

[branesergen]

There was a Nolan Ryan 1971 Dell Today's Team Stamps BVG 9.5 that a seller had BIN for $499.95 OR Best Offer. I made an Offer of $77.00, knowing full well that he wasn't going to Accept. I just wanted to make an Offer so that when it did sell, I would know how much it sold for.

But he Accepted my Offer.

So your plan worked - You now know how much it sold for lol

[nolan5000]

So your plan worked - You now know how much it sold for lol

Yes Doc, it did work. lol.

[dmasci]

Yes Doc, it did work. lol.

But that is a perfect example of what I'm talking about. If the seeler was willing to sell the card for $77 why on earth did he list it at $499 to begin with? He had to know that nobody would offer anywhere near that. I wasn't talking about listing something slightly above/below book value, I'm talking more silly stuff like mentioned above....it seems like such a waste of time to me.

[nolan5000]

But that is a perfect example of what I'm talking about. If the seller was willing to sell the card for $77 why on earth did he list it at $499 to begin with? He had to know that nobody would offer anywhere near that. I wasn't talking about listing something slightly above/below book value, I'm talking more silly stuff like mentioned above....it seems like such a waste of time to me.

Sellers want to get as much as they can out of their cards, so they list it at an astronomically high number and see IF someone bites.

[dmasci]

I guess, I wonder how often that works...seems sleazy and a waste of time to inflate an asking price several times more than the value of a card in hopes of someone not knowing any better.

[nolan5000]

I guess, I wonder how often that works...seems sleazy and a waste of time to inflate an asking price several times more than the value of a card in hopes of someone not knowing any better.

Well, that's what separates us from those types of sellers.

[bamyanks]

I agree with calling these sellers sleezy who put in an astronomically high price on a card. But just as bad is a buyer who only wants to bid the 99 cents on a card worth anywhere from $10 to $100. Granted I think Beckett prices are high sometimes, but bottom feeder buyers are just as bad as the sleezy sellers. When I list, I put a price somewhere between Beckett's low and high, but here again, they hardly ever sell. I try to be fair on my pricing, but I'm sick and tired of having to give the stuff away at 99 cents a crack.