The trials and tribulations of EBay

I've bought things occasionally on EBay over the last few years, but never have I tried the whole flogging stuff side of it.

I like the buying aspect. Searching from the comfort of the sofa, finding exactly the righ thing and bidding to get it at exactly the right price. Even losing is fun when you're bidding against someone as determned as you are.

But selling. If you have the time, the patience, the products and a really good calculator it can be pretty lucrative. When you're doing a loft clearance like I am, your products are very mixed. I've found that the key is research. Find out what you're likely to get for it. See how other similar items are doing on EBay. And see if there is a better place to sell. Some specialist shops buy specialist items - that sort of thing. If it's worth selling and there is no other ready outlet, then EBay is a gem.

The main question is, is it worth selling on EBay? For instance, a single paperback book. It's nothing special, it's been read and you can sell it for, let's say, 99p. However, you then have to pack it for posting. A jiffy bag would be ideal, or failing that, a carrier bag or food bag to protect it from weather, and then brown wrapping paper and duct tape, or maybe an envelope.

Whatever you decide, unless you just happen to have these things lying around, you have to buy and factor that in. The 99p may be more than enough. Or maybe you'll have to add 20p or so to the postage.

Speaking of which, depending on the size of the book, postage is going to be around £1 at the very least, more if it won't fit through the 'large envelope' sizer.

And then you'll probably have to get it to the post office – you'll want proof of postage after all.  How easy is it to get to the post office? Especially if you work full time? Do you live right next door? Or do you have to jump in the car and drive five miles and then find parking? There can be extra cost there.

So you factor all these things in and you find that your little paperback will cost a buyer £2.20 in this case before even thinking about EBay fees. How many people are going to want to pay £2.20 or more for said paperback? After the time invested in research and calculations, some items are simply not worth it.

EBay does free listings now and again which is worth keeping an eye out for – especially if you're putting a lot of items on.

Large items are also an issue. You would probably want to make them pick-up only. But that restricts your selling power to your local area. On the other hand, if it's a good item, I've found that I might have to list it three or four times, but its selling price is at least reasonable and it will most likely go eventually.

Another downside – and this is really only a tiny minority of the time – is where a buyer is not happy with a product, demands a full refund, but will not return the item. There are people out there who do this as a standard method of getting things for nothing, and by putting you on the defensive, ensure that you don't give them negative feedback (no feedback is almost as good as good feedback). This is a contentious issue, but I have found that by having a policy of no refunds or refunds only on return of goods (including return postage cost) prevents this from being an issue.

All of that aside, EBay is a marvellously good forum for getting rid of stuff. Some things that I would have labelled as junk has just flown out. In fact the money I've made after fees and overheads in two months was enough to pay for Christmas, and so far, I've only sold junk I'd forgotten I had.