Photos, photos, photos! A complete collection of photos of the item you have for sale does more for the final sale price that any other one thing. We'll host the photos for free and we'll even scan the photos for free under certain circumstances. (refer to the auction contract for more information on our photo hosting and scanning services).
Great Description: The second most important thing is a great description of the item. Tell everything you know, being as honest and unbiased as you can. Nothing throws a wet, cold blanket on bidding like a terse 10 word description.
Prompt response to questions: It goes a long way, insofar as bidder confidence in you is concerned, when you promptly reply to email sent to you by bidders. On a regular basis we receive complaints from bidders regarding a total lack of response to questions they've sent to sellers. These complaints are often irate and clearly communicate that the bidder will not be be bidding on that item because of the seller's cold-shoulder treatment. If the bidder has already bid when he/she receives the cold-shoulder, they often also ask that we retract their bids (which we must do). Please answer every query sent to you by a bidder.
Reasonable reserves: Set a reserve price that encourages bidding. We can not stress this enough. Unreasonably high reserve prices actually discourage bidding. Reserve prices should be used to protect your financial position: They should not be used to troll for fools ("trolling for fools" is the process of setting a reserve at a price only a fool would pay).
While we are on the subject of reserves, here is a scenario to consider. Let's say you think your item is worth $100 and you set your reserve at that price. Of course, there is no such thing as exact value on any collectable item, so it is safe to say the market value probably actually exists somewhere between $80 and $120 depending on time of year, market conditions, etc. The bidders know this too. When bidding gets to $75-$80 and the bidders see that the bids still aren't making reserve, then the bidders just drop out, figuring you have set the reserve too high or aren't serious about selling the item. The bidding stops at $80 and you don't sell the item.
The profitable way to handle this is to set your reserve to $80 to protect your position. Then when bidding reaches $80 and the bidders see the bids are now making reserve, the bidders get excited and bidding usually intensifies. In this scenario, bidding doesn't stop at $80, but goes to $100 and beyond. As you can see, a reasonable reserve often means the difference between selling and not selling your item.
I hope this Selling Tips page helped you out. If not, or if you have additional questions or problems, contact the auctioneer at auctioneer@OldIronAuction.com