Ten Tips Selling Thru Online Classified Ads

I suffer from what cyclists call ‘upgrade-itis’; a condition which results in an uncontrollable urge/compulsion to replace parts on one’s bike for the latest and the greatest in the hope of becoming a faster cyclist. (In severe cases, this condition is manifested in having multiple bikes). Hoping to fund yet another project (a hipster fixie bike), I decided to sell spare bike parts that have sat inside a bin, unwanted and forgotten.

I “googled” online classified sites for bike parts and found www.biketradesph.com. This online resource has proven to be indispensible; through it, I was able to sell those dusty bike parts giving them renewed life and at the same time allowing me to get that fixie bike I wanted.

Here are the top ten things I’ve learned selling bike parts online:

1. The standard marketing technique of pricing an item just below a round figure applies (preferably ending in 9 e.g. 990 instead of 1000).
2. Provision at least a 10% buffer on listing price. Almost always, potential buyers will haggle over prices. This strategy will give your room to bargain and will make the buyer feel good that they got a discounted price.
3. Sometimes despite having agreed over the phone on a price the buyer will renegotiate when they pick up the item. To avoid this, I ask a trusted person (friend or relative) to meet the buyer. This way there is no haggling over the price as my ‘agent’ is not authorized to set a different price.
4. If you must do meet-ups, do them in public places preferably indoors like a mall for safety and convenience. They’ll think twice about doing anything untoward such as robbing you blind.
5. Another option is to have the buyer deposit the money in your bank account . After you have verified the deposit ship the items to the buyer at his or her cost.
6. Pictures are very important. It catches buyer attention, some people will not even open an ad if there are no pics. Posting them will also save you time as buyers will request to have pictures emailed.
7. Be as detailed and accurate in describing the item to save time. But some just don’t know how to read or refuse to read and will ask questions whose answers are clearly indicated in the ad. I had one person ask the color of a bike jersey I was selling despite indicating in the ad title no less “FS Red Cycling Jersey” and an image of it to boot. I politely answered, “Red like the ad says” [duh].
8. Provide at least one mobile number and an email. Make it convenient for the buyer to contact you. Some people are too lazy to send an email and some do not have load to send a text to your Globe phone from their Sun phone.
9. Reply to queries promptly. You may just miss out on a buyer ready to spend. You don’t need to make “kwento”. At the very least, just answer the buyer's questions. But if you are a good salesperson, you can probably sell an ice to an Eskimo faster by embellishing and doing some salestalk (not misrepresenting – see next).
10. Most importantly, do not misrepresent. In the end, you will waste your own time and money when the would-be buyer flakes out when he sees the item is not as described or worse yet demands his or her money later on. Besides it’s bad karma.
    

Ferdinand Manebo #1