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I absolutely do not get it? A treatise on eBay prices

Started by Dan/Panther, April 09, 2018, 03:01:06 PM

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Dan/Panther

I recently listed an all matching numbers 1958 SOFT Plastic 61 light gray WE500. I ran the add for 7 days under (1940-69 Telephones), and it sold for $112.00.

https://tinyurl.com/ydggfnyf


Now I find this phone in the same category NOT SOFT PLASTIC, Dated 1961 and $5.00 MORE for shipping ?

https://tinyurl.com/y8dy8j8a

Can someone look at these two auctions and tell me what I missed. I'm getting tired of selling EVERY phone I sell at a loss. Especially when I see another phone not a as old or desirable go for 33% MORE ? Within days of mine selling.

D/P


The More People I meet, The More I Love, and MISS My Dog.  Dan Robinson

Hotline

Could it be the the other one's lower starting price attracted more interest and therefore more bids?

Dan/Panther

I started the bidding at $49.99. I wouldn't take a cent less, and it's still, way below what I felt it was worth. The other phone is an ABS hard plastic phone mine is a Soft Plastic, all original 11-1958.   
Don't collectors know the difference anymore ?
Maybe you are right, but collectors SHOULD know it's worth more than the other phone, and both listed under the same heading ?

D/P

The More People I meet, The More I Love, and MISS My Dog.  Dan Robinson

Sargeguy

I learned my lesson, and now I price phones for what I want to get,  and I try to sell through Facebook or Etsy since they take a smaller cut.
Greg Sargeant
Providence, RI
TCI /ATCA #4409

kleenax

eBay is an "AUCTION" site. Items go for what a given bidder is willing to pay at any given moment.

I have been selling on eBay since 1997, and have seen and tried just about every format there is, and I have to say, you got a good price at $112.00. Being disappointed at that seems rather unwarranted to say the least. The price at which something sells is TOTALLY emotional, meaning the "relative humidity" can even effect the final price at any given moment! The 1 single negative I can immediately see in your auction is the lack of a open-center finger wheel; that is BIG for a soft-plastic set; they ALL had it, and that is the #1 thing that all collectors look at first.

If I could mention -4- major factors that will really help you get a better price on your AUCTIONS, they are this:

1. HIGH-QUALITY PHOTOS (and lots of them)
2. HAVE YOUR AUCTION BE 5-DAY, AND START ON TUESDAY (that way, the guy that really wants it, can get the final bid in on the weekend, sitting in his underwear in front of the computer!)
3. HAVE A LOW STARTING BID (honest, it works!)
4. ADVERTISE YOUR AUCTION WHEN IT STARTS ON THE VARIOUS LISTSERVES (It really helps to bring your stuff to their attention)
Ray Kotke
Recumbent Casting, LLC

Doug Rose

Dan....eBay is is fickle! I gave up asking why something I had, that in my opinion was a nicer phone went for less than a lesser phone went for.

Why is this 64 WE 554 going  for $200 with a day to go? Sometimes you bite the bear....sometimes the bear bites you  8)

Go play your Blues Guitar, you done good!....Doug


https://tinyurl.com/ybcemg2m
Kidphone

kleenax

Quote from: Doug Rose on April 09, 2018, 08:14:30 PM
Dan....eBay is is fickle! I gave up asking why something I had, that in my opinion was a nicer phone went for less than a lesser phone went for.

Why is this 64 WE 554 going  for $200 with a day to go? Sometimes you bite the bear....sometimes the bear bites you  8)

Go play your Blues Guitar, you done good!....Doug


https://tinyurl.com/ybcemg2m
Ha!  Funny you picked this very auction Doug!  The collector that put this up on eBay (his very FIRST eBay auction) is a friend, and he called me and asked if something was wrong, or if something "bad" was going on because he was astounded at what it had gone up to! I basically told him what you just said, and congratulated him on the success of his first auction!
Ray Kotke
Recumbent Casting, LLC

Doug Rose

Ray...it is a small world.   It will go higher....Doug
Kidphone

RotarDad

Dan - I agree with the others here... you can never tell.  Pricing an item to start at your no-regrets minimum is a good practice, but may decrease the early emotional bidding... Some things can tilt the odds in your favor as a seller - ending the auction on a Sunday afternoon, be sure your pics look sharp, etc., but you know that already.  The biggest factor is having at least two bidders who really want your item - and that is the big wildcard.  The red 554 is in that category.
Paul

Dan/Panther

The thing that really gets to me, is the other auction was in the same category, and NONE of the bidders on the other phone saw mine ? I think there was a one day overlap. You would think the second bidder on theother phone would have figured out and bid on my phoine.
I get it, eBay is getting ridiculaous as far as fees etc. So I guess it's timew to move on.

One thing for sure, IF I ever decide to sell the 48-500 You can bet your butt, all my losses are going to be made up on that phone.

D/P

The More People I meet, The More I Love, and MISS My Dog.  Dan Robinson

kleenax

Quote from: Dan/Panther on April 09, 2018, 09:08:26 PM
The thing that really gets to me, is the other auction was in the same category, and NONE of the bidders on the other phone saw mine ? I think there was a one day overlap. You would think the second bidder on theother phone would have figured out and bid on my phoine.
I get it, eBay is getting ridiculaous as far as fees etc. So I guess it's timew to move on.

One thing for sure, IF I ever decide to sell the 48-500 You can bet your butt, all my losses are going to be made up on that phone.

D/P

Dan;

I have even had ANGRY collectors/phone sellers email me, and accuse me of soliciting "shill bidders" to bid up my auctions because they had sold something very similar and not get even close to what my auction went for. Of course, I have been on the other end of that scenario too!

Just like my ex-wife used to say: "No expectations, no disappointments"!
Ray Kotke
Recumbent Casting, LLC

RotarDad

EBay is still a good marketplace.  Hard to beat it for size of audience viewing your items, and super efficient time-wise for buyers (me included).  Yes you pay 10% seller fees + 3% PayPal fees, but that's still reasonable for most sellers in exchange for the market size and relative ease of selling.  Far from perfect, but a great tool in may ways.  EBay is working on replacing PayPal with another lower-cost service, and they do offer promos to reduce fees or increase EBay Bucks which can reduce costs if you time things right.  I have my issues with EBay too, but I would not be collecting phones if EBay (or similar) didn't exist.... 😎
Paul

kleenax

Quote from: RotarDad on April 09, 2018, 10:39:06 PM
EBay is still a good marketplace.  Hard to beat it for size of audience viewing your items, and super efficient time-wise for buyers (me included).  Yes you pay 10% seller fees + 3% PayPal fees, but that's still reasonable for most sellers in exchange for the market size and relative ease of selling.  Far from perfect, but a great tool in may ways.  EBay is working on replacing PayPal with another lower-cost service, and they do offer promos to reduce fees or increase EBay Bucks which can reduce costs if you time things right.  I have my issues with EBay too, but I would not be collecting phones if EBay (or similar) didn't exist.... 😎

I agree; totally.

There is NO better place to get the most "eyes" on your product that you are selling (virtually worldwide if you will ship), and without a doubt, the best prices on items that you sell. eBay even provides VERY generous discounts on USPS shipping charges on the items you sell. Try paying $150/mo for a small booth in an antique mall and sell at what you can get on eBay. You might get 100 people a week that see your phones.

Etsy can't match it, Amazon can't match it, and certainly not Craigslist; no other site will give you the exposure or consistency of eBay.
Ray Kotke
Recumbent Casting, LLC

TelePlay

Quote from: Doug Rose on April 09, 2018, 08:14:30 PM
Why is this 64 WE 554 going  for $200 with a day to go?

https://tinyurl.com/ybcemg2m

     Regular Member Post

Watching this discussion, a lot of good points were made about selling on eBay and how prices may end up.

Going a bit further off topic from the grey phones. as for the $201 (current price with 5 hours to go), I find it interesting that the seller claims it is a WE 554 when the hard to read emblem on the front seems to read Northern Electric, which would then match the modular back plate. But what do I know. The seller's photo of the housing front is not good enough to say for certain if it really is a WE or indeed, a Northern. Others may see and say this really is a WE emblem, I can't tell one way or anther with 100% certainty. Could be either.

Having watched a lot of phones related to the auction contests, it is a real fact that red rotary phones sell for a premium. $201 for this 554? Seems high especially since no inside images were provided.

There is another red listed as a "WE 554" on eBay right now listed with a BIN price of $79.99 with free shipping. This phone has not been cleaned up, restored, as the $201 phone seems to have been. The emblem is very clear, it is Northern Electric, not Western Electric which for that time period might say Bell System with 3 lines of text. In its condition, even with free shipping, $79.99 seems high for a NT red phone.

Why is one bid up to $201 and the BIN at $79.99 still sitting there? It might just be the condition, the color and the photos for the $201 listing.

I may be wrong, is the $201 phone really a WE 554 with a NT modular back plate? Someone may have better eyes than I have and can clear this up.

poplar1

#14
Quote from: TelePlay on April 10, 2018, 12:56:25 PM
     Regular Member Post



There is another red listed as a "WE 554" on eBay right now listed with a BIN price of $79.99 with free shipping. This phone has not been cleaned up, restored, as the $201 phone seems to have been. The emblem is very clear, it is Northern Electric, not Western Electric which for that time period might say Bell System with 3 lines of text.

Stromberg-Carlson housing in the highlighted photo. However, that isn't the $79.99 phone being sold by danielz3735
"C'est pas une restauration, c'est une rénovation."--François Martin.