eBaying for Fun and Profit - Today I Learned a Lesson!

I’ve been getting into eBay lately. You know, buying stuff I don’t need, that sorta thing. It’s not as bad as the late 90s/early 2000s when everyone in my field was making six figures and bidding on auctions was more like gambling than shopping. You’d bid on things just to “win” them back in those days. Of course, everybody had stock options at one dotcom or another and tons of people were potential (or literal) paper millionaires. Stupidity! LOL!

Today I use eBay a lot differently. First of all, eBay has changed. The ability to find almost anything on eBay even exceeds Amazon in some areas (like so-called “smart drugs” from the Far East or random parts for cars). The pricing and quality options for many items is wide, giving you the ability to pick up a mint copy of an old magazine or just a well-worn one. Need luxury shoes? Buy Prada from Italy for 20%-30% less than the same styles at a luxury store in the USA. Many manufacturers and retailers, especially in the electronics industry, have eBay stores. Some use the name you are familiar with, like Apple, while others use a totally different name so as not to cause confusion for pricing differences.

This post is about a lesson I learned today. I’ve been selling old items online, a variety of computer and electronic music gear, and doing really well with it. However, I sold an X-Arcade Trackball and discovered a real risk when selling online. You need to make sure you understand the size of a box needed and the amount of bubble wrap or packing to go in that box, and that’s not mentioning the cost of shipping. Bulky boxes cost a lot more to ship than the standard shapes and sizes, regardless of weight.

With that said, my net was about $20 for the X-Arcade Trackball. My only consolation is that I know the device is going to a good home where it will get new life and regular usage.

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