If you’re anything like me, you probably have way too many clothes in your wardrobe- most of which you never wear anymore. Following up on our posts about starting a minimalist wardrobe and making money during school, we’re going to talk about how to sell clothes on eBay. Selling your old clothes is a great way to help recycle what you wear as well as make some much-needed cash on the side.

Without further ado, here are some tips to make sure that your clothes sell!

1. Do your research

This is an important foundational step to take before you start selling anything. You want to make sure that you know what you’re doing. Things you’ll want to check are:

  • How much is everyone else selling their clothes for?
  • How much will I have to pay eBay/Paypal for selling clothes through them? (people will be more encouraged to buy if they can use Paypal)
  • How much will postage be/how will I get the clothes to the buyer?

These are all easily accessible by having a little snoop around the internet for all the right information. Once you have a good grasp on what you’re doing and where you’ll be posting, you can start thinking about how to market your clothes.

2. Take good photos

If you stop and think about what makes you stop and think, you’ll find that it’s the photos that make you click on an item on eBay. It’s important to take photos that are attractive, show the item accurately and at multiple angles. You don’t have to have a professional camera, your phone is fine! To make sure that your photos turn out well, make sure that your camera is in focus, you have a plain background and good lighting (think about a window). It can be tempting to just take photos from the original retailer, but if you do this, make sure you at least have some of your items as well. Having more photos will make people more interested in buying.

3. Title

Make sure that you have a killer, informative title for your listing. This should list the size and brand of the clothes. Of course, you don’t want it to be too long, but at the same time, you can afford to make it as descriptive as possible. This is going to help guide buyers to your item so they can find it easier!

4. Set your price

When you’re thinking about pricing, there are a few options on eBay: buy it now (set price), auction and best offer. You’ll want to find a balance between a price that’s right for you and one that will make people interested in buying. This is when it’s good to have a knowledge of the original retail price (RRP) as well as what other people are selling theirs for. Auction bids will generally rise, so don’t hesitate to be generous with the starting price. Auctions will generally start lower and will attract more customers, however, buy it now will give them security. 

5. Sell yourself!

The second thing that people will be drawn to after they click on your listing is the description. You don’t want to lie but be positive and put your item in the best light. In the description, you’ll want to include the original RRP of the clothes, this makes it easy for the buyer to feel like they’re getting a great deal and more likely to buy. You will want to highlight the best parts of the item e.g. ‘only been worn once’. If it’s useful, you can say your reasons for giving it away or a story about the piece, if you have one.

6. Respond

It doesn’t all end when after you’ve got your item listed. Communicating with customers and answering their questions will help you to make sales, as well as help them! You want to make sure that they have all the information they need to make a purchase. So make sure you’re checking your e-mails or get the eBay app and keep up to date with your sales. If you’re making this a regular thing, this will also improve your customer rating!


 

I hope that you found some of those ideas helpful! When selling your clothes on eBay, it’s important that you’re not falsely advertising, but still accentuating the most positive aspects of your clothing. The most important thing is to make your clothes easy to find by people who’ll want to buy. I definitely recommend selling your clothes on eBay if you’re wanting to make money while avoiding throwing your clothes into landfill.

Good luck selling your clothes online, everyone!