Questions about selling on Bricklink

[pbb99]

Hi everyone,

I have a few questions about selling on Bricklink, so thought I'd post and see if this community has any words of wisdom! I have 5 or 6 full sets that I'd like to sell, ranging in price from around $80 Cdn to ~$800 Cdn (roughly $55 to $550US). I'd prefer to use Bricklink over ebay to avoid the absurd ebay fees and I'm not in a huge rush to sell them.

1. I noticed that some people charge a 5% PayPal fee and some don't. Is it better to tell people there is a 5% fee and then list it at a lower price or should I limit extra charges to shipping/insurance?

2. Everything I sell will ship with tracking and insurance. Is it worth also adding the Signature Required option? PayPal seller protection only requires the Signature option for orders over $850Cdn.

3. For currency accepted, if I only accept PayPal, does it matter how many or how few currencies I accept? I'm just wondering how it works with conversion fees. If I only accept Canadian dollars does that mean others pay the currency conversion fee and if I accept US dollars, do I pay the conversion fee when switching to Canadian dollars?

4. Should I limit the people who can buy sets to those who have some positive buyer feedback or are problems with 0-feedback buyers not typically an issue?

Darn it, I had more questions as I was working on the Bricklink store but now I can't think of anything else. Mostly I think I'm a bit paranoid before selling some expensive sets and would like to hear back from some experienced people on anything in particular I should do or not do when selling. Thanks!

[Brickbuilder0937]

Never been a seller but I can help you with the first one.
It is against the PayPal terms of service for sellers to charge an extra fee to cover their PayPal fees. Either some sellers don't know this or they think that they can get away with it.

[Brick & Blue]

Never been a seller but I can help you with the first one.
It is against the PayPal terms of service for sellers to charge an extra fee to cover their PayPal fees. Either some sellers don't know this or they think that they can get away with it.

Clearly they are getting away with it, if it's happening.

[StClair]

"1. I noticed that some people charge a 5% PayPal fee and some don't. Is it better to tell people there is a 5% fee and then list it at a lower price or should I limit extra charges to shipping/insurance?"

I've never sold on bricklink. I've sold items on ebay for years. Because I know that Ebay and Paypal are taking percentage of my profit I take that inconsideration when pricing items (both in item price and shipping). If I'm happy with receiving $15 for item but know that I'm losing a percentage for fees.. I will list it for more than $15. So my point is this... while I may not be officially charging a paypal fee... I really am by raising the price to cover costs.

As I said though I've never listed on bricklink so you have to keep prices very low to attract buyers. I know I usually log onto bricklink and search for the item that I'm looking for.. then look for the best price. If this is the case you may want to consider a low price but with a paypal percentage fee... if thats legal. I'm rambling aren't I? Sorry.

[pbb99]

Thanks for the replies! Yep, so many people on Bricklink add an extra PayPal fee it never even occurred to me to check that it was against the terms of service. Makes it an easy decision not to charge it. It's annoying that the PayPal fee is so prevalent on Bricklink as the prices aren't really apples to apples. The 5% fee is not trivial when it's an $800 set!

[jb1815]

I am a BrickLink seller. Most of our inventory is Star Wars used complete sets with original boxes and instructions. We have some BNIB sets and some minifigures. Please feel free to visit our store, http://www.bricklink.com/store.asp?p=jb ... =globalnav.

I include everything, apart from shipping, in the price I quote. Using BrickLink sellers can add packing fees, general administration fees etc. so there are lots of ways of rolling selling costs in. However I have found that one simple price that includes everything helps buyers judge value.

There is a reason BrickLink is cheaper than eBay and that is footfall. Sales are slow but steady and suit sellers who do not need to turn their stock quickly.

Hope that helps.

John Baldwin
BaldwinBricks