Retirement hobbies: Online auctions
Looking for retirement hobbies like Online Auctions that add income to your pocket?
Ebay and other auction websites are an easy way to declutter your home and make money selling your “stuff” (things you no longer want or need, but someone out there does)! You can also sell your crafts out there.. it's fun!
Internet auctions are really addictive. You can make a nice income selling your “stuff” but you can also become ddicted with BUYING other stuff... so beware. You could think you are decluttering and making life simple – and spending the cash you earn on more stuff! Grin!
You Need Good Photos
With today's technology, even a cheap digital camera will do great photos for the auction site. Some cameras will connect directly to the computer and others need a small hook up, both are very simple to download your photos to the computer.
I love Google Picasa software ( did I mention it's FREE?) for my photos... it stores them all for easy finding, you can make quick fixes (brighten photos, red eyes, and all that). One cool feature I really like is it's “name tags” - after you name someone in your photos, it will go through and pick that same person out and name them throughout your entire photo library. Looking for a photo of them, you'll see them all! It's really great... even if you aren't doing auctions, check it out!
Folks need to see what they bid on, they don't know you, and just as you'd like to see the item, they do too. Your photo itself might even SELL the object right then and there!
Back to Auctions...
Title - Use KISS with the title – keep it simple stupid. Think of what folks will enter into the auction site that they are searching for. Simplicity rules here.
For example, a mug description might be:
Funny Mug
Pineapple Mug (people might find for pineapple searches or mug searches)
Vegas Mirage Mug (Vegas searches, Mirage casino searches, mug searches)
Description - Now be creative here in describing the item. Details details!
Postage - You certainly don't want to dismiss postage as this is a big cost to running this small eBay business. Lighter weight items are best for postage, logically, unless this is something special! Many auctions say the buyer pays postage. There are postal stores everywhere that will ship for you too.
I know one retiree who sells motorcycle parts through online auctions - and pays for his two kids college expenses all by eBay. He paid $600 to ship one Motorcycle that he purchased on eBay from CA to MI, but then sold the parts for far far more. You just need to see what folks are willing to bid on items, and just add the postal fees into the cost.
Personally, I'd sell Dollar Store stationery for $5... you never know! Buy it for $1 each, sell it and see what they will bid for it. Someone who didn't frequent Dollar Stores would love to find this stationery! This doesn't make much for each sale, but little by little it all adds up!
Online auctions as a small home business - If you decide you like selling your stuff, you might turn this into a retirement business. You can work day or night, skip a month, work in your pj's... pretty cool!
You can buy from garage sales, flea markets, and sell on an auction site. You might even know one type of product well, something you've collected for years, etc. The more you know, the better you can describe and be the salesperson on eBay.
eBay Learning Center here!
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