Jonah JacobsJust follow the steps in this short guide, and you could make your first sale in the next 24 hours.
Did you lose your job? Were your hours cut, causing a decrease in income? Are your bills piling up? If you answered yes to any of those questions, you could probably use some extra cash to keep you afloat. And while you could take the old-fashioned route of finding another job to get that cash, this might be an easier and even better option: Selling your used stuff on the Internet.
Even if you’ve never done it before, you can start selling your things online with ease. You can even start today if you need cash in a pinch, and these tips should help you see success.
Visit These Online Marketplaces
Before you try selling anything online, take a closer look at the various online marketplaces to get a feel for what’s out there. Doing so will help you see how easy it is to start making your own sales. It will also help you know what people are selling, so you don’t limit yourself to what you put up for sale.
No matter how obscure the item may be, there’s probably a market for it. In short, if you have it and want to get rid of it, put the thing online to see if you can get any buyers. You’d be surprised at what can sell quickly.
With that out of the way, here are some of the most popular online marketplaces that can help you unload your stuff for extra income:
- eBay
- Facebook Marketplace
- Craigslist
- Decluttr
- OfferUp
- Letgo
- Poshmark
- ThredUP
- Etsy
- Nextdoor
With some of those sites, you may have local sales where you meet up with the buyer. To play it safe, make sure you meet in a public place where other people are around.
Make a Winning Ad
You don’t need to have a marketing degree to make convincing ads. And you don’t have to be creative either.
To make a quick ad that’s bound to sell, look at your competitors. See how they’re selling things. Do they have a lot of pictures? Are their headlines catchy? Do they provide a lot of details on the product? Whatever elements they use, be sure to include them in your ads. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel here, as the goal is to post your item quickly to get cash soon.
As for what makes a winning ad, it all starts with great pictures. Whatever the site’s limit is for images per ad, make sure you reach it, so buyers get to see the item’s condition. Besides offering numerous pictures, make sure that they’re taken in good lighting and are not blurry.
Your product description is essential as well. It should include several keywords to make the ad easy to find through a search. The ad should also include any details that could entice the buyer to purchase your item, including any wear and tear.
Be truthful and thorough in your ads, and you should start making sales soon. And if you get good enough at this, you could turn it into a business. How? By collecting free stuff online through sites like Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace that other people give away. As long as you have space to store the items, you can advertise them online for a nice profit and build yourself a side business.
