Thinking about selling your vintage jewelry on eBay? I've heard lately that eBay is setting the market prices on vintage jewelry. I disagree with that statement for several reasons.
eBay is a market of supply and demand. As more and more sellers join, you will see the prices drop as the competition tightens. While that is great news for the consumer, eventually smaller merchants will have to "retire" as they are forced to accept smaller profits.
eBay is not track-able. You have a wide range of people who surf the auctions and many purchases are based on impulse buying alone rather than a select targeted audience.
I've seen common place vintage jewelry sell for much, much more than it was worth. This could be as a result of a bidding war between several people or an unethical seller that bids on their own auctions through a third party.
I've seen highly collectible and prized vintage jewelry sell for far less than it should.
In my opinion, eBay is a "being in the right place at the right time" sort of selling venue. Certain vintage jewelry designers always bring a high price such as Haskell, high end Trifari, Jomaz, Margot, Spratling to list a few. I'm hesitant to include Julianna jewelry as there is a current craze on eBay to list almost anything with rhinestones as "Julianna". I don't think that the sellers are deliberately dishonest, just misinformed as D & E jewelry was never signed and easy to misidentify. Authentic Julianna is highly collectible and should fetch you a nice price, just document your sources in your auction and verify your jewelry before claiming it to be Julianna.
If you are lucky enough to have inherited high end vintage jewelry, eBay is a fast and economical way to sell it quickly and easily. However, if you have more of the common pieces, you may or may not do so well...it all depends on the eBay market at the time of your auction.
eBay is a buyer beware market, which means it is the responsibility for the buyer to know what they are buying and bid accordingly. This also holds true for sellers. If you don't want someone to snatch up your $10.00 necklace, only to find out later it was worth $500.00, you need to research your vintage jewelry and know what you are selling. There are vast resources for researching jewelry in your library and on the Internet. "I didn't know" is a lame excuse. Other ways to get more bidders on eBay:
Good clear pictures of the front and back, noting any maker's mark.
Concise descriptions of size, color, paying particular attention to condition. I shudder when I read "great condition for a vintage item". What does that mean? To me, it means damaged and not worth buying. Take your time writing a crisp, easy to follow description and don't oversell. If you provided clear pictures of the front and back, your description should enhance your auction.
Consider small lots as opposed to one piece auctions.
List your shipping and handling fees in your auction.
Answer any questions you receive as soon as possible.
Have fun with your auctions! Don't be surprised if you don't see any activity until the last few minutes. Many people don't bid until the last few minutes. Cross your fingers and hope for a bidding war at the end of your vintage jewelry auction.
JoAnna Gilford is the Office Manager for Junky Jewelry®: Create your own style with vintage and fashion jewelry at http://www.junkyjewelry.com New Library open for Galleria members, borrow jewelry books and magazines. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=JoAnna_Gilford |
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