Hi guys, I've been on the boards for a few years and am more of a collector but have a few items that I received in error recently that I'm looking to sell. Silly as this sounds, I've never sold items before and am looking for honest assistance on the best way to work this out. Would like to make this easy on both ends. I have two items that I have put a price to and am curious as to how working out the actual sell works. How do I figure out shipping? Do I have to take the items to the post office to be weighed for shipping first? I have a PayPal account. Do I have to figure out who is interested and where they are located prior to figuring out shipping? If you read this and need to laugh at me, I understand, but I still appreciate any and all assistance. Haha!
If you have a scale and can weigh the item yourself you can use that info on shipping sites to get an estimate. Or at least guestimate. Anything over a pound usually is the same cost up to the next pound, etc. Try inputting zip codes from the coasts to see what is likely the highest cost. Dont bother using the prepaid USPS boxes as they are way over priced unless you are shipping lead weights. For example I just shipped 3 funko pops in a box about 22 oz with packing, etc for $8 something on ebay. I get a discounted rate but it would likely be about $10 for something that size/weight.
First thing, research the two items. Gauge their condition, then search for sold listings on eBay to get a value. For shipping, most sellers will calculate that after receiving offers. For example, many sellers will ask the potential buyer for their zip code. At that point, you can use the USPS postage calculator - Postage Price Calculator - to see possible cost. Shipping to a state far away will be more expensive than one closer. If these are heavier items which weigh over a pound, you are looking at Priority Mail rates which can get pricey depending on location.
Here's my advice, take it or leave it. We all want to get back as much money as we can when selling off our unwanted figures of course....but IMO, it's really important to factor in the fun that you got out of a figure to the final "value." You may remember back to paying $19.99 for that Deluxe class figure at Target and selling it for $12.50 may feel like a loss...but I'd argue that this probably isn't accurate. It's extremely likely that you got $7.50 worth of fun out of that figure! In the end, selling that figure on to the next guy for 62.5% of it's original price is a wash. Sometimes, ignoring this intangible (but very real) value that you got for your initial purchase can result in paralysis since more often than not, your used, loose figures aren't going to return full retail price. Waiting until the right moment to sell when you can get your money back may just never happen. My point is this: Try not to sweat a few percentage here and there. get what you can for it and move on with your life. Along those same lines, you can save yourself a lot of hassle by coming up with a ballpark shipping price and just eating the extra cost if you're $.75 short. Your time is worth something. If you spend cumulative hours measuring, weighing boxes, driving back and forth to the post office for shipping estimates, you'll almost certainly lose out in the end. Again, don't sweat it. This hobby is supposed to be fun. The fact that we can often get real money back by selling off these figures is kind of a curse, IMO. Nobody demands a residual value on that meal at a fancy restaurant. Nobody tries to see what they can get back for the cost of their movie admission. Nobody expects a return on investment for their vacation. Just enjoy your robots for what they are and if you can sell them off and get some of that back, it's a bonus.
Great way of thinking, the paralysis you speak of hurts the fun in collecting. Unless actively selling them makes you happy then by all means break even or make a profit. The hassle isn’t worth it for me, money can be quite a loaded topic when trying to work out a deal. Take note that I live in the Netherlands so shipping is mostly international when I do decide to sell something. I use eBay sold listings for pricing estimates and then lower it by 30-40%. Do whatever feels fair to yourself and fellow collectors. Shipping can be a guessing game. I just use my own scale and estimate the shipping according to the information I have from the post office. Don’t think i’ve ever been off more than 2 bucks tops. And don’t forget the ability to donate to less fortunate children. Might not be good for your wallet but it does feel awesome thinking about someone else enjoying the heck out of your items!
Money was very tight when I was a kid. I used to LOVE finding transformers at my local good will stores. PLEASE donate figures.
