So you have an item to sell, you check the completed listings on eBay, and you notice that there are 1,000 of the same exact items active right now. How do you stand out? What is going to make your listing different from all of the others? You might have an item in better condition, or maybe you have better pictures and a better title. Thats a great start, but what about making it personal?
Not to long ago, I was trying to sell an item called the Ma Roller. Its a wooden item that you put on the floor and lay on it, and it’s suppose to help with back issues. Anyway, my roller was one of hundreds listed. I thought that it was going to be a home run with no problems, but it ended with not one bid. While I was getting ready to relist it, I was thinking that I needed to make this item stand out somehow. Then it hit me. Some people love a great story, and if you can share the life story of the item you are selling it may get buyers interested. I remembered that when I bought this item at a garage sale, the owner was telling me that this item has helped many backs in his family. It came from New York, where he practiced medicine, and he had used it himself.
With that said, my new listing was still for a Ma Roller, but now its personal. Now my Ma Roller has a story to tell, and I included that in my description. I shared everything I could remember, and made it like it was almost an autobiography. The first day I had three bids, and it sold for more than I was expecting. My description looked like this:
“This Ma Roller has a story and has helped many backs along its way. In the 1990′s it was owned by a doctor who lived in New York city. Since he was a doctor, he understood what it took to heal a hurting back. He would pass this Ma Roller along to his clients as needed, and even used it himself. In the early 2000′s the doctor and his Ma Roller made the move to Indianapolis, Indiana where he thought they both would retire. The doctor made the decision to sell his Ma Roller because he now realizes that it could help other people.”
Sharing his story brought interest in the buyers, and they can now share the story of their new Ma Roller. This works great with vintage type of items, and not so much with clothing (unless its really old.) So now whenever I go to a garage sale, I ask for the whole story on the item I’m buying. I also try this at Thrift Stores, but its really hard to find out the background on an item that was donated. Remember to use the power of a story to capture the interest of your potental buyers, and your sales percentage will increase!
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