Take it Away,

and SELL it for You!

Þ Are you sick and tired of not  finding the things you need, too much  clutter?

 Þ Are you a caregiver for a Senior loved one who needs to downsize?

Þ Are you too busy to do the needed sorting, hauling, and selling?

Þ Do you have a family home or estate to deal with?

Þ Moving? Need help getting ready or unpacking?

Þ Have things you no longer need or want but don’t want to “just throw   them in the trash?”

Stop Feeling Overwhelmed.

Help is a Phone Call Away!

Denise Pask

Call 517-260-6879 or

email denise@grabsweetdeals.com

 AVAILABLE SERVICES:

Organizing & Sorting: I can help organize any room, cabinets, cupboards, closets so that things are easier to reach and use. Sorting of all unwanted items for sale or donating.

 Distribution: of items to family and friends

Preservation: the thoughtful protection and preservation of family keepsakes and memorabilia

Vital Records: I can create systems for quick and easy access to vital records in case of emergency or medical needs.

Daily Living: I can help organize any room, cabinets, cupboards, closets so that things are easier to reach and use.

Hauling: away items that are no longer needed or wanted

 Disposal/Removal: the safe and proper disposal or removal of unwanted household items.

All items are donated, recycled, or properly disposed.

I can also turn your Trash into Cash!!!

 Sell: I can help sell unwanted items. I list your items on classified sites, take all the emails, phone calls and you get cash!!

   I can also teach you How to Sell your unwanted items on line.

>Learn where to list you items on free classfied sites.

> Learn how to write your listing, take pictures and payment methods.

> Learn how Not to get Scamed!!

Reduce stress — Live cleaner & simpler.

My clients experience that it becomes easier to maintain their homes, easier to manage their papers, and easier to find things. 

I know that the work I do is very special and personal. I respect my clients’ need for privacy, confidentiality, and discretion.

Grab Sweet Deals

Call the Organizational Expert today! 

Denise Pask

Call 517-260-6879 or

email denise@grabsweetdeals.com

Before I write the Title and Description for an item, I make a list of all the words I can think of that describe the item. The color, shape, style, brand name, make, model, year, how many, antique, vintage, size, what it is made of, who it is made by and where it came from (estate sale, grandmothers, you purchased it, etc. ). Think of what words you would use to search for that item then do a search on the listing site. If you find items like yours then you know what words people are searching for when they want that item.

Most listing sites limit the length of the title of your item. eBay only allows you to have 55 characters (including spaces) in your listing title and you should always use as many of the characters as you can. For example, I had 4 photo frames I wanted to sell so I thought of all the ways someone might search for my photo frame. I wanted to use words like picture, photo and words that were associated with the item like Irish and shamrock.

This is the listing title I created for the photo frame: “Shamrock Irish Family Photo Picture Frame New”. In this title it tells you that it is new, it is Irish, for the family, it is for photos and a frame. This photo frame could also be listed as “St Patrick’s Day Irish Family Photo Picture Frame” which you could list 2 – 4 weeks before St Patrick’s Day. The title may also help you decide on a category for your item for sale.

Now let’s write the description for our item. When you searched earlier to see if you picked a good title for your item, hopefully you found a few items other people were selling or have sold. Take a look at those items, especially the ones with lots of bids, and read their descriptions for ideas on how to write yours. Then use the list you made about your item to write the description.

Make sure you include information in the description about the item such as:

• is it new or used, with or without box, how many you have for sale
• is it battery operated or hard-wired
• in need of repair, missing any parts
• what it is made out of
• does it come with extras or bonuses

 Be sure you list any scratches, bumps, nicks, chips, cracks, tears, holes or blemishes on the item. This will save you from upsetting your buyers, who may want a refund and who will probably give you a poor Seller Rating.

Below is the actual description I wrote for the “St Patrick’s Day Irish Family Photo Picture Frame”. I run this listing on eBay, and a few other classified sites every February- it never fails to get bids and always produces sales.

Listing:

This is a NEW Family Photo Frame with the words “God Bless This Irish Family” in yellow with different size green shamrocks or clovers. They are not personalized as shown in the picture. It measures 7” x 9” and holds a 5.5” x 3.5” photo. This is made of resin and includes hardware to hang it or a fold out stand.

A final bit of advice: Make sure you always write descriptions in Word or some other word processor and save all your descriptions in a file. You may be able to use them for similar items you sell in the future.

ü To find out what category most sellers are using for their listing

ü To see what average price & shipping costs sellers are charging for the item

ü To determine how many other items like mine are for sale

ü To see if similar items have recently sold, how many & the final price

This will help you decide if it’s worth your time and the money for listing fees to sell this item on eBay. For example, I have a small Avon goblet and wondered if it was worth listing. When I did the research described above, I found that there were over 50 of them for sale and the lowest price started at $.50 and nothing had sold. I decided it was a waste of time & money to put up for sale on eBay and instead, put it in the box for Goodwill- they will probably get a buck or two for it at their store.

Good Karma Tip: Always donate items not well suited for selling on eBay to your favorite charity such as Goodwill, AMVETS, Salvation Army, etc. You will be doing a good deed for your community, getting a possible tax deduction and as a bonus, it will make you feel great!

Another item I had was an old glass milk bottle, my husband put his change in it, I did a search on it and found one like mine for sale and two others that had recently sold for $71.00 and $63.00 with starting bids for $9.99. I figured this was a good item to put up for sale so I put my milk bottle up for sale at a starting price of $20.00 and it ended up selling for $63.50 plus shipping. Cha Ching! Needless to say my husband had to find a new change container. Let me show you how to do this by going to eBay and do a search for the item (Milk Bottle). Check out the video below to see how it’s done:

First, check to see how many, if any similar items have sold and what they sold for. On the side bar under “Show Only” click in the box next to “Completed Listings”. If you have not logged in you will be required to do it now. All the listings that have ended will show up so look for listings of items that recently sold. If an item was sold, there will be a green “Sold” under the bid or “But It Now” price. You will also see how many bids were on the item and what it sold for if it was an Auction.

Click on the sold item and look at the category that the item has been listed in. This will be at the top of the page of the listed item. Also, don’t forget to look at what the shipping cost was. You can find out what the starting price was on the item by clicking on the bid history. This will show you the starting price and all the bids on that item.

Now you are able to collect information which will help you determine whether or not your item is worth putting up for sale, the category to list your item in, ideas for your description from their description and approximate shipping costs. I have found 5 minutes of research can take most of the mystery out of selling an item on eBay.

When it comes to listing and selling items online, Pictures Are
Important! Always take several good digital photos of your items from
slightly different angles. Shoppers are more likely to bid on and buy
your items for sale if they can look at multiple pictures. The photos
should show all the features of the item- Experiment with the close-up
options on your camera to get the best pictures of smaller items that
have a lot of details.

You really should take more than one picture; usually the front and
back, a close-up of any names, words or markings, and any cool features
that would be of interest to a potential buyer. Be sure to include a
decent photo of any blemishes on the item so the buyer is fully aware
of the condition of the item before they buy. Shoppers will often buy a
“less than perfect” item they truly want because they have seen all
sides of an item in multiple photos.

Taking great pictures of items is made much easier if you set up an
area for taking photos. In the corner of a spare room, I have a table
set up with a piece of material that I have tacked to the wall. This
little “eBay Studio” makes an excellent background for taking pictures.
I purchased 2 yards of white silky material and 2 yards of black
material at the fabric store and I only paid $1.00 per yard.

I use 2 different colors because taking a photo of something white on a
white background is a neat trick of invisibility but it won’t sell your
item. And amazingly enough, the same thing goes for a black item on a
black background. You could also use a sheet, towel, tee shirt as the
back ground but make sure the surroundings are clear of clutter. I have
seen pictures of listed items on top of the washer with dirty laundry
or on a table with all their junk in the background.

Good Sellers Tip: You want a lot of people to look at your photos and
buy your item. But taking a picture of the item on your kitchen table
with your husband in the background wearing his old boxer shorts and
drinking a beer… Well, I think you know what I mean. This can distract
the potential buyer from looking at the item and “a distracted buyer
always says no” to a purchase.

Lighting your photo area is best done with overhead lights and a desk
lamp. Play around with your lighting setup and take pictures until you
get good results. Sometimes pictures come out bad, so just retake them
until you’re satisfied. Also, use the photo editor that came with your
camera or computers to fix photos that are too dark or light, need
sharpened, etc.

In closing, the clearer the photos of the item are, the easier it is to
sell. Remember: “A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words” or at least a few
bucks on eBay!

If you have good credit, now would be a good time to apply for a PayPal Plus Credit Card. You may also apply for a PayPal Debit Card so you may use the funds in your account without transferring them to a bank account but you will have to wait until your PayPal account has been open for 60 days. Both of these are optional but the debit card really is convenient. Refer to PayPal for their added features and fees.

I have found that PayPal is the easiest and safest way to make and receive payments on the web. You can send money to family and friends or your son or daughter in college. Give the kid a debit card and control their monthly spending with your deposits-if there is money is in the account, they can use it just like a MasterCard. When the funds run out, your student might visit home for a meal (and to beg for more money, no doubt!).

A few final thoughts…
When you sign in to your PayPal account you can track payments sent and received. There are tabs at the top to Send Money or Request Money from anyone who has a PayPal account. With Merchant Services, you can put payment buttons on your own site for free and a whole lot more. Surf around the site and check out all that PayPal has to offer.

Before confirming instantly, it is a good idea to have your online banking information written down with you at the computer. If you take too long to enter information in PayPal, you will get timed out and have to login again. Go to you online account, log in and look at the security question and answers you entered when opening the account. PayPal will ask for these and your username and password to confirm the bank account. PayPal will make two small deposits in your checking or savings account, whichever one you chose. The deposits to my bank account from PayPal were between $.07 and $.19 USD. You will need to verify these deposits by logging in to your PayPal account and clicking on the “confirm bank account” link.

If you don’t have online banking, the procedure is the same but you will have to wait 2-3 days and call your bank for the deposit amounts. This would be a great time to ask your bank to set up an online account for you- something I highly recommend! This will also make it easier for you to check PayPal transactions as your online business grows. You may now add funds to your PayPal account by transferring the money from your checking or savings account. It usually takes about 3 days for a transaction to post from your bank to PayPal or from PayPal to your bank account no matter whether you’re adding or removing funds.

In my next post, I’ll finish PayPal by discussing adding a credit card.

There are 3 types of accounts at PayPal: Personal, Premier and Business.

• Personal accounts are mostly used for buying and have a limit of receiving funds of $500.00 in a single month. If you exceed this amount, your account is put “on hold” until you upgrade to a Premier or Business account.
• Premier accounts are used for buying and selling using your personal name.
• Business accounts are for buying and selling using your business or corporate name.

 I would recommend starting with a Premier Account if you intend to start an online business. You can upgrade to a business account if you decide to incorporate or use another business type. After filling in your personal info and clicking submit, check your email. Click on the link in the email and enter your email and password to access your PayPal account. After setting up the security questions and answers and clicking continue, you will be able to enter your bank account & credit card information. Make sure you save your PayPal email address, password and security question answers somewhere safe in case you need them later.

 In the next post I will show you how to add your bank account to Pay Pal so you can start sending & receiving money.

When filling in the personal information- name, address, phone number, email address, etc., use legitimate info so eBay can contact you for verification or if there is a problem with account. If you are opening an eBay account to buy a few items or just clean out the garage, just about any User ID will work. However, I wouldn’t recommend using your full name (i.e. maryjanedoe21) when choosing a user ID either. If you are planning to run an online business, try to pick a name related to your niche or theme (i.e. nascarstuff45). This Link will take you to the rules for creating an eBay User ID.

When picking a password and secret question, make sure you save it in a file in your computer or somewhere accessible- this may save time and hassle later if you need them to access your account. Enter the verification code, check the box next to “I agree that” and click on the “Continue” button.

After clicking the “Continue” Button, check your email (including junk mail) for an email from eBay with the subject: “Complete your eBay registration” and click on the “Activate Now” button. Congratulations! You have successfully registered to eBay.

Since I probably never would have tried selling on eBay if my friend hadn’t held my hand I feel it’s only right that I share all the tips & tricks I’ve learned about selling online. Information that will make and/or save you money, places to find & sell items besides eBay and hands-off products that can be drop shipped by reputable companies.

Whether your goal is to make a few extra bucks cleaning out the basement or to squeeze the most profit from working at home & selling on the Internet, I hope to save you some of the frustration I went through learning this business.

I welcome any questions, comments or suggestions at denise@grabsweetdeals.com and may we all benefit from sharing our knowledge about making money by selling “stuff” online!