We are heading into the second month of the new year and it’s time to make some room for new inventory! I say this as a way to motivate myself to clear out the old and bring in some new! Online sales need to be fresh with all the competition out there and I am guilty of hanging on to long to items that haven’t sold. Here are a couple of ways to divest yourself of old inventory:
- Have a garage sale. Take the listings down off eBay (though there will be a final value fee attached to doing so). As the weather gets better, garage sale season is around the corner in some parts of the country. I have begun making boxes and stacks of items ready for my first garage sale of the year in February.
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Donate to a local charity like Goodwill or women’s shelter. Charities depend on getting new goods in their stores and you can ask for a receipt which can be used for your deductions on your taxes.
- Craig’s List is a great place to unload big items. Since it is free to list, I often double list big and heavy things like furniture, bikes and golf clubs. I try to meet potential buyers at the local shopping center parking lot near my home to arrange a public negotiation for safety. If they flake on you, you can run into nearby store for groceries and your trip was not a waste!
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Put your items on sale. On eBay you can use Mark Down Manager to create some sales for items that have been around too long. It’s no different than in retail, where there is limited space for items to sit waiting to be bought! Move them out.
- Use Freecycle or put stuff out by the curb. I had some old office chairs, that no sooner had I left outside, they were gone! Everyone loves getting something for nothing. On the other end, I’ve picked up free books, an old bowling ball and boxes and bubble wrap using free cycle!
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If you are an FBA Amazon seller, you can have your items returned to you for 50¢ each and that includes the shipping back to you. You can avoid those nasty long term storage fees and either put those things on eBay or add to your garage sale pile!
- Similar to mark down manager for ebay you can change pricing on Amazon using a repricing tool. I have tons of CDs and books that have finally been moving, by using RepriceIt.com. Try it out with their 30 day free trial and you will definitely have more sales! You can set “rules” and limited on pricing so you can still keep some profit margins. It’s worth a look.
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LOT things up. I sell in many different categories and will take a look through my listings to find similar items to LOT up and sell all together. Let’s say I have five different metal lunch boxes, or many different Barbie dolls. I will gather them up, find a box, take a group shot and make a new listing of the whole LOT. If I price it right, one bid will take the whole thing. I’ve used this strategy over and over and it really works!
- The last thing that I do to get rid of old inventory is to give it to friends. My friend is a garage sale maniac and I mean that in a good way! She lives in another city nearby and has the best location you could ask for. There is good car traffic, near a laundry mat and deli. I give her a box for say $5 and there might be 25 things in it. She sells most for a buck and can make quick profit for her new items. She usually makes around $1000 a weekend when she has a sale!
Take a look at the list above and try some of the tips. They should get you some quick money or more space! I like to look at it as moving things around the universe. After all, one person’s junk is another ones treasure!
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