Good Alternative to eBay?

[wingzrow]

So I'm thinking of selling my games some other way. Between eBay and paypal fees, I'm losing 20% of what my games are worth in fees alone.

Can anyone suggest a good alternative?

[APE992]

Yahoo auctions seems to be big in Japan which makes it great for sourcing items that are rare/difficult to acquire in the states. Most sellers also really don't like shipping outside of Japan showing off their xenophobic leanings.

As for the states, you've got almost nothing. The Goodwill has their own auction site for stuff they get in their stores but I've never actually used the service just browsed it. Some really nice stuff there but not always for a good deal.

[Jaruff]

Yahoo auctions seems to be big in Japan which makes it great for sourcing items that are rare/difficult to acquire in the states. Most sellers also really don't like shipping outside of Japan showing off their xenophobic leanings.

As for the states, you've got almost nothing. The Goodwill has their own auction site for stuff they get in their stores but I've never actually used the service just browsed it. Some really nice stuff there but not always for a good deal.

ShopGoodwill is a crap shoot. Video games tend to go WAY over actual value but I once picked up an Osborne OCC1 for $30 shipped. I flipped it on eBay for probably $120-150 (funny that they now can be had for $50-60 or so). Been a year or two and traffic has increased since then so it's harder to get good deals. However, if you're actually near one of the stores, you can get great deals on large items they won't ship (like electronic synthesizers, furniture, etc).

Bonanzle is an alternative but I've never tried to sell anything on there. Positive about them is you can import your eBay feedback and I think listings too.

[wingzrow]

I meant to specify but I guess I was too quick in making the topic.

what would be the best way to SELL games online? Do I start my own web site?

[Gameguy]

what would be the best way to SELL games online? Do I start my own web site?
There's Ebay or Amazon. That's about it.

That's if you care about the best way, if you don't care about getting much money or if you don't mind taking months longer to sell anything there's a few other options.

[Bojay1997]

There's Ebay or Amazon. That's about it.

That's if you care about the best way, if you don't care about getting much money or if you don't mind taking months longer to sell anything there's a few other options.

Agree. If you're trying to be a flipper or reseller and expect a solid profit margin, Ebay and Amazon are it. If you're just looking to sell some excess and not looking to make a huge profit, I have always had good luck selling to fellow collectors here and on other forums.

[Jaruff]

Agree. If you're trying to be a flipper or reseller and expect a solid profit margin, Ebay and Amazon are it. If you're just looking to sell some excess and not looking to make a huge profit, I have always had good luck selling to fellow collectors here and on other forums.

I don't use Amazon personally but I know a few people that do. It's great for textbooks, DVD's, and other media. eBay is still the best place for everything else, even with their changes in policy.

I've never tried GameGavel but I know some people here use it.

[FanOPants]

Amazon is my favorite - by far - though I do use eBay to sell collector-oriented items (odd accessories, complete older games, etc.). Amazon's fees used to be notably higher than eBay but, last I checked, eBay has raised theirs to a comparable level. I prefer Amazon because listings take substantially less time, the site is much easier to navigate, and Amazon has a standard shipping stipend allotted to sellers. That stipend, $3.99, is much higher than shipping costs typically are which, depending on the price of the item, can negate most of the fees involved with selling. Oh, and I consistently sell my items for more on Amazon than the going rate on eBay.

Been using eBay since the 90s, Amazon for five years or so. Amazon consistently gets better and eBay has consistently gotten worse (though it appears they hit bottom a few years ago...not improving but it isn't getting worse).

Alternatively, I have some luck selling cheaper items here and on Nintendo Age. Great way to unload large quantities of common games...always seem to be buyers here so long as they're priced right. I've also had some luck selling imports here.

As for starting your own site...cannot discourage that enough. Everyone in the US shops on Amazon; nobody else can offer their exposure. A site called gamegavel.com started up a few years and while I do find bargains there once every blue moon, it's more/less a ghost town. Never sold there, probably never will. I don't mean to knock the site; admirable effort, just don't see it succeeding without massive funding and even that wouldn't guarantee anything. Traditional console gaming is on the decline and has been for years, not a great sector to be in really.

Anyway, hope this helps.

[wingzrow]

Thanks for the fully thought out responses everyone.

I more or less came to the conclusion that it was eBay or nothing, purely because of the exposure even before I made the topic, but it's good to hear that from other people too.

[ianoid]

Thanks for the fully thought out responses everyone.

I more or less came to the conclusion that it was eBay or nothing, purely because of the exposure even before I made the topic, but it's good to hear that from other people too.

No way, you have to check out www.gamegavel.com

You may have to be more patient than on eBay, but stuff does sell. Protect yourself with appropriate minimum bids and such, but consider that your fees are much much lower.

The overhead on eBay is high. On Amazon it's even higher.

If you want to pay less, starting your own site to sell or selling on these types of forums is your best bet. Price things reasonably and you can do pretty good selling here, or depending on the system, on atariage.com, nintendoage.com, segaage.com or playstationcollecting.com. Just be sure to do your sale posting in the marketplace forums and your auction/eBay posting in the auction forums.

[Oldskool]

You may typically lose a bit in Paypal and eBay fees, but usually on eBay people will pay more than you will get for the item anywhere else so it helps absorb those costs. That's what I noticed anyways.

[Kitsune Sniper]

You may typically lose a bit in Paypal and eBay fees, but usually on eBay people will pay more than you will get for the item anywhere else so it helps absorb those costs. That's what I noticed anyways.

I've been getting mostly ridiculous lowballs from buyers on eBay nowadays. Say I'm selling something for $50, looking for an offer of $30. Do I get that offer? Nope, everyone offers $10 or less.

[Wookie]

Do give gamegavel a try. Price your stuff 15-20% lower than the going ebay rate and be patient. You'll meet a better class of people there, too.

[APE992]

I've been getting mostly ridiculous lowballs from buyers on eBay nowadays. Say I'm selling something for $50, looking for an offer of $30. Do I get that offer? Nope, everyone offers $10 or less.

I do that on items that are ridiculously overpriced just to be a dick. But lowballing $50? That's a dick move.

[Gameguy]

If you want to pay less, starting your own site to sell or selling on these types of forums is your best bet. Price things reasonably and you can do pretty good selling here, or depending on the system, on atariage.com, nintendoage.com, segaage.com or playstationcollecting.com. Just be sure to do your sale posting in the marketplace forums and your auction/eBay posting in the auction forums.
I've never had much luck on forums, not unless someone was close enough to meet with me in person.

For the most part I've had better luck selling things in person locally through classified ads, as long as it's not something too nische or obscure I can get close to ebay rates with none of the fees and I don't have to bother with electronic payments. I've never lost money through scams or Paypal complaints. For selling bundles of games with a console, I can get more than what similar bundles sell for on ebay. Sometimes it might take a few weeks or even months but it still sells. People are happy to save the shipping costs as some items are rather large or heavy.


I've been getting mostly ridiculous lowballs from buyers on eBay nowadays. Say I'm selling something for $50, looking for an offer of $30. Do I get that offer? Nope, everyone offers $10 or less.
No offense but some of your items are a bit overpriced. You're asking $30 for a copy of Microsoft Digital Image Suite 9, it sells for under $5. Maybe $10 shipped would be better if you want to sell it.

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/280893915792

Older Microsoft software is near worthless, Office 2003 is the oldest that's still worth more than a few dollars. Onenote 2003 is almost worthless, another copy didn't get any bids when priced under $10. For some reason I can't get your Honestech Easy Video Editor to show up in searches with either ebay.ca or ebay.com, I'm not sure why it doesn't show up(I still never heard of this software, there's one mediocre review on Amazon for it). Plus you only ship stuff in the US so it would take longer to sell stuff.

[Kitsune Sniper]

I've never had much luck on forums, not unless someone was close enough to meet with me in person.

For the most part I've had better luck selling things in person locally through classified ads, as long as it's not something too nische or obscure I can get close to ebay rates with none of the fees and I don't have to bother with electronic payments. I've never lost money through scams or Paypal complaints. For selling bundles of games with a console, I can get more than what similar bundles sell for on ebay. Sometimes it might take a few weeks or even months but it still sells. People are happy to save the shipping costs as some items are rather large or heavy.


No offense but some of your items are a bit overpriced. You're asking $30 for a copy of Microsoft Digital Image Suite 9, it sells for under $5. Maybe $10 shipped would be better if you want to sell it.

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/280893915792

Older Microsoft software is near worthless, Office 2003 is the oldest that's still worth more than a few dollars. Onenote 2003 is almost worthless, another copy didn't get any bids when priced under $10. For some reason I can't get your Honestech Easy Video Editor to show up in searches with either ebay.ca or ebay.com, I'm not sure why it doesn't show up(I still never heard of this software, there's one mediocre review on Amazon for it). Plus you only ship stuff in the US so it would take longer to sell stuff.
I'm talking video games. :p

Also, the prices on old software fluctuate wildly. I had a program listed for $50 for months, hoping someone would offer $12 just so I could have enough to ship it off... and someone outright buys it out. Go figure. Plus sometimes I get bulk buyers who're interested in other stuff, and they ask if we can make a deal.

[cheesystick]

Check to see if there is a local expo or convention in your area. I sold a good chunk of my trade box at the last Cowlitz Gamers for Kids Expo in Kelso, WA. More than 500 people showed up and I basically sold almost everything. Then again, things were priced to move.

Tables are usually pretty cheap and you get to see hundreds of people that are interested in exactly what you are selling. Maybe some of my things sold slightly less for what they go of online, but the sheer convenience of selling all those items at once was monumental. That was 50-odd packages that I didn't have to tape up and take the the post office, 50 feedbacks I didn't have to leave or worry about, and 50 or so paypal/ebay fees I didn't have to pay. Some of the sellers there sold in the thousands, so you can see that the savings on fees add up real quick.

I can also recommend Game Gavel. The only problem with that site is that there is very little traffic. You type in something like 'Neo Geo' and maybe you get one result. Hopefully the pick up more steam because that offer a hands-down better service than eBay or Amazon.

[mobiusclimber]

I use ecrater a lot. It's not auction, basically just BIN, and you have to list a few things a day to generate sales (dunno why it is, but just leaving stuff on there doesn't work, so I tend to list an item or two whenever I have a chance). It's slow for selling, but no fees beyond whatever payment method you use (like Paypal).

[Jaruff]

I'm talking video games. :p

Also, the prices on old software fluctuate wildly. I had a program listed for $50 for months, hoping someone would offer $12 just so I could have enough to ship it off... and someone outright buys it out. Go figure. Plus sometimes I get bulk buyers who're interested in other stuff, and they ask if we can make a deal.

OT: I told you that TJ&E would be a quick sale. Genesis stuff is crazy right now; I'm trying to get some systems bundled and Sega CD's repaired to list next week. Recent change too; I acquired a huge lot for under $200 a month or so ago. Probably would cost me $300+ right now.

[ianoid]

I've been getting mostly ridiculous lowballs from buyers on eBay nowadays. Say I'm selling something for $50, looking for an offer of $30. Do I get that offer? Nope, everyone offers $10 or less.

I always set the auto-refuse for some number I can stomach or at least low to get rid of the lowballers.

I think you have to be in an alternate universe to expect sellers to take an offer of 20% of their asking price. I think starting closer to 50% won't insult most sellers, although a lot use the best offer and will barely knock off 5%. Revealer: that is not my perspective.

The whole best off psychology works best with the auto refuse since they will keep putting in higher offers most of the time, sometimes reaching your minimum or auto-refuse limit, which is nice.

[FanOPants]

The whole best off psychology works best with the auto refuse since they will keep putting in higher offers most of the time, sometimes reaching your minimum or auto-refuse limit, which is nice.

Agreed, most of my best offer items move in this fashion. I'm also spared the disappointment of seeing a new offer only to find it's well below what I'm willing to accept. Win/win!

[theclaw]

If only systems would price spike the way games are. I'm to the point of trying to get $14 and postage for a Genesis 2 with official power supply and even 32X cable. It is pretty dusty though, perhaps cleaning it will help. :)

[Jaruff]

If only systems would price spike the way games are. I'm to the point of trying to get $14 and postage for a Genesis 2 with official power supply and even 32X cable. It is pretty dusty though, perhaps cleaning it will help. :)

Shouldn't be too hard. I have some lots that I have to put together and list but here is one from a few months ago:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330716580481

After my fees and investments, I made around $15 profit.

System, controller, hookups, Sonic game = cash, especially from newer eBay members

[theclaw]

Perhaps I should keep this then. Buying a game and controllers wouldn't be worth it. After shipping I'd already get less than a stereo model 1 32X cable costs. Let alone after making the system complete.

[Parodius Duh!]

This forum and every other gaming forum out there has a Buy/Sell/Trade section. Just sayin'

[theclaw]

This forum and every other gaming forum out there has a Buy/Sell/Trade section. Just sayin'

Nah. Not enough demand for US models. An import would've been lightning gone before I dotted my T's and crossed my I's.:)

It is in my topic here anyway.

[Gameguy]

Perhaps I should keep this then. Buying a game and controllers wouldn't be worth it. After shipping I'd already get less than a stereo model 1 32X cable costs. Let alone after making the system complete.
Why are you including a 32X cable with the system then if you're not including a 32X? I'm not even entirely sure what cable you're talking about exactly. I thought you meant an AV cable but the stereo ones never came with the 32X, and the Model 1 Genesis couldn't use a stereo cable. If you're talking about the cable between the 32X and Genesis, that's meant for the Model 2 Genesis. Or there's the conversion cable to use the 32X on a Model 1 Genesis, but why would you include that with a Model 2 Genesis?

In any case I would suggest to sell a Genesis system locally. Every so often there's someone looking for a Genesis and they can sell between $20-$30 if they include all hookups and 2 controllers(fully cleaned and tested). Usually I would just bundle a bunch of games with a system and sell them together, like with 20-30 games depending on the titles and condition for $100. It can be a mix of common popular titles and sports titles.

[ianoid]

If only systems would price spike the way games are. I'm to the point of trying to get $14 and postage for a Genesis 2 with official power supply and even 32X cable. It is pretty dusty though, perhaps cleaning it will help. :)

Systems won't spike in price because they are the most common item out there for a successful system. There have to be more systems than the most common game, perhaps by an order of magnitude. Supply vs demand. Of course there are less common systems out there, but those probably have always had price premiums- NES top loaders, TG16 and of course Neo Geo AES.

I'm also confused about the 32x cable. If it connects a system to a 32x, then sell it separately, you'll get more for it and it's easy to ship in a bubble mailer.

As far as systems, like anything where there are 100s or 1000s for sale at any given time, you have to offer a service to sell it- that service being a cleaned up item or a nice looking tested ready to play set. A dusty old untested unguaranteed system doesn't attract buyers on the internet, who want something nice to play now. If you are too lazy to clean up your stuff, expect the lazy person's ending price.

[theclaw]

Yes but it's not worth such effort for the minimal gain. Tracking down controllers wouldn't bump up its price enough to bother.

Rocket Knight Adventures in motion certainly helps push my position back toward keep. Experiences like that make the hobby what it is.

[incubus421]

Honestly I make way more money on Amazon then I ever did ebay. It's SO much faster and easier to list items, and as long as my items are listed competitively they mostly sell within a day or two. Amazon is basically the only site I use anymore.

Amazon takes 10 seconds to list an item
ebay takes atleast a couple minutes...plus picture time, I hate using stock photos.

No pictures necessary on Amazon
I always found that not posting pictures or using stock photos on ebay made my items sit around longer

Using only descriptions to sell works much better for me because most people leave non detailed, short messages to describe their items. Taking a few extra seconds to write a detailed message about your item gets my stuff sold over listings that may even be cheaper than mine.

Amazon has competitive pricing and they show you when someone has a lower price than you....and it takes just 2 seconds to drop your price.
ebay prices fluctuate so much...especially in their auction style format. So many people will skip on BIN because eventually some auctions will fall through for cheap. Leaving your items to sit their even longer. Not only that to edit your listing takes way longer than it should.

Lastly I find that fees between the two sites are very similar. Not only that, but the majority of the time you can list your items for a higher price on Amazon than on ebay. Here is an example I just looked up the other day:
*this is all before shipping and these ebay prices include paypal fees because a vast majority of ebay sellers use it as preferred payment*

Super Mario RPG player's guide
The last few that sold on ebay sold like this:
24.99 + free shipping -- after fees you'd make $20.72
21.00 + 2.00 -- $19.00
20.50 + 5.00 -- $21.15
However, if you jump on Amazon you can see that the lowest listed is at $25.99 and from there it jumps to $30.00 each with a $3.99 shipping cost:
Once sold, you'd make $23.74 and $27.15 respectively

While this is only one comparison, I also find that selling consoles/handhelds is much much easier to do on Amazon and almost always go for a higher price. The consoles that sell decently on ebay usually have games and such included. The bare bones consoles usually sell for dirt cheap and can sit around for awhile. GBA SPs are one of my favorites to compare (I've sold 5 or 6 SPs on Amazon in the last couple months)

GBA SP (Flame Red - because that is what I usually stumble into, but I'm sure they're similar in every other color)
On ebay the last bare ones that have sold:
$32.50 + 4.25 -- $30.84
$32.00 + 5.00 -- $31.06
$27.00 + 7.00 -- $28.47
On Amazon the cheapest selling is at:
$36.49 + 3.99 -- $35.22
and from there:
$36.90 (no charger) + $3.99 -- $35.60
In fact, I just sold one the other day (flame red system and charger only) for $36.79 + $3.99 and made $35.50 before shipping.


Even if you don't use Paypal for ebay you'll only save yourself another dollar or two thich still leaves a few dollar gap on each of these examples...which any seller knows adds up. Now of course, this isn't true with all items, but I've found that a majority of the time I can make more using Amazon, and the few items that go higher on ebay I'm ok with not listing them there for the sake of convenience.

[theclaw]

I've been experimenting with Amazon. Just one item sold yet, out of two.

[FanOPants]

[a bunch of very right stuff]

Dead on, every word.

I'm surprised by the number of "eBay or bust" replies here. Totally inaccurate. More surprised by those advocating Craiglist. If I want something sold, I want it sold yesterday. I'm certainly not going to re-up my Craigslist thread every week and hope that after six weeks someone is willing to buy my Genny 2 for $18. Certainly better for my sales if other sellers stick to their eBay/Craigslist diet though. :D

[mobiusclimber]

Amazon is a terrific alternative, but not without its own share of problems. Payment takes several days to a week, many types of items are restricted to only certain sellers (like expensive software), lotting up items doesn't really work that well, you're stuck selling only what they have a listing for (unless you pay $40 a month for the privilege of adding to their database), it can be tough to sell CIB cartridge games if there are a ton of cart only sellers since you with the higher price will be pushed off the first page... etc etc etc. Also, Amazon sellers are slow to react to trends, so sometimes you can get more for your item on Ebay if it's "hot" at the moment. Yes, less fluctuation, but that's not always a positive. Let's not make Amazon out to be be-all-end-all either. It is also much slower to sell something on Amazon. I might get more money, but I get more volume on Ebay. And I hate saying this b/c I really hate Ebay. It's just stuff you should be aware of before jumping into the river.

As it stands now, I sell everywhere I can get a sale. Ebay, Amazon, forums, ecrater, Craigslist... Why limit yourself? Certain things sell better at certain places. The savvy seller uses what works for selling the item, not just sticking with one thing all the time.

[FanOPants]

Dumb, lengthy post. GONE !

[Gameguy]

I found that Genesis bundles sell better locally than what they sell for on ebay, I guess it also would depend on the region.

There are several completed auctions on ebay but I'll just post one as an example;
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/221048232019

That's a Model 3 Genesis with 19 games plus a Game Genie, most of the games being good with just a couple of sports games. It sold for $55 with free shipping included. If I had that I would have priced it for at least $80, possibly at $100. Normally I would want the games to be complete to price it at $100(or have at least 24 games) but that's a Model 3 system which would be in more demand. $80 is more realistic as the games are loose.

For shipping something like that it would cost at least $15 locally, or to the US with tracking $30. I'd rather sell a bundle locally for more money(in cash) without having to bother finding a proper shipping box, pack everything, and deal with electronic payments, potential scams, potential shipping problems, fees, or any of the other problems with dealing online. It's easier to just buy a shipping box and packing materials when shipping something but nobody wants to pay for those, you have to scrounge around for scraps to reuse which takes time. Plus having to go to the post office or bank all the time would take more time, it balances out the time it takes replying back to emails except with emails I don't have to leave the house.

[theclaw]

I'm thinking I might try craigslist for my Sega Saturn steering wheel. Really do not want to ship that.

[mobiusclimber]

I don't think most Genesis cart only games go for much on Ebay. If you're shopping on there, you want em at least in box. Looking over that list of games, the only one with any value is Boogerman. I can't see getting $80 for it anywhere, but I could sell it for $50 locally and avoid fees and shipping costs at least. But if I had better games or they were CIB, Ebay would be a better idea b/c people on CL or whatever only seem to care about the cost. It's why so many PS2 lots on CL have the cheapest games you can imagine. Someone just raided the $1 bin at the local pawn shop for their games. Who cares if the game is fun/rare/playable as long as it's only a dollar!

[Gameguy]

Looking over that list of games, the only one with any value is Boogerman.
The SNES version is worth a decent amount, the Genesis version really isn't(around $10 complete, sometimes less (http://item.ebay.com/330743260732)). I've sold several Genesis bundles locally so I do have a feel for pricing with bundles and what ratio of games to bundle together, mostly with commons that aren't worth much even complete. They've taken anywhere from 1 week to several months to sell, it really just depends on who's looking for it at the time. I find it way easier to sell a bundle together than trying to sell the games separately, I used to sell games separately but the best stuff would sell fast and I'd be stuck with the rest.

I tend to buy bundles of games with systems just to get a few games for my collection, then I sell off the rest to break even. I tend to pay more for games in bundles than most people so I'm not really making much when selling off Genesis stuff. About a couple months ago I did get a large bundle of Genesis stuff with a few systems for a great price but I still need to clean and test everything before bundling stuff together. I still need to do the same with Gameboy stuff I need to get rid of, I price that at $5 per game with a system included for free. This stuff also doesn't sell for so much on ebay.

I do have some better games listed separately for more money, but I haven't really got any replies for them. Shipping anything larger than a letter would cost over $10 to ship(even a single complete Genesis game in a small box) so I won't get much for them online. It's the common good games that sell well in a bundle, stuff like Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter II, Aladdin, the Sonic games(especially 3), Comix Zone, etc. The thing is they've included Streets of Rage with the lot and there's already a copy of the Genesis 6-Pak which has Streets of Rage included, I wouldn't have included a double like that.

[xelement5x]

About a couple months ago I did get a large bundle of Genesis stuff with a few systems for a great price but I still need to clean and test everything before bundling stuff together.

Props to you my good man, if feels like no one cares about cleaning up stuff before reselling it anymore.

I feel that while it can take some extra time to get everything fixed up it's totally worth it to be able to sell a Genesis 2 that looks nice and clean and has had it's power jack fixed already. Maybe I'm just wasting my time and people wouldn't care anyway, but I feel that at least if it continues to work well after I sell it then it won't just get pitched into the garbage in the future.