The start of a new year is a great time to clean out your home and organize your living spaces. But what should you do with the gently used clothing, furniture, home items, or electronics that you aren’t using anymore? Fortunately, online marketplaces, such as Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, Ebay, and Poshmark, make it easy to sell without even leaving your home.
That said, there are a few perils to selling used items online. To avoid the dangers and to successfully make sales, BBB recommends the following tips.
How to Stay Safe When Making Online Sales
Choose an appropriate platform
Nerdwallet recommends that “before you sell stuff online to make extra money, determine the ideal venue for your goods.” There are dozens of online marketplaces to choose from, but many of them focus on a specific kind of used goods, such as electronics or designer clothing. Before you create an account with a marketplace, make sure it is a good fit for the kind of goods you want to sell.
Know the worth of your items and price appropriately
To determine the value of an item you want to sell, Consumer Reports suggests searching for similar items on the site where you plan to list. If you are selling an item that was never used and is still in its original packaging, remember that technically it is still coming to the buyer second-hand, so you’ll need to charge a little less than the original retail value if you want to make a sale.
Watch out for shady buyers
Con artists often pose as buyers in scams. Sometimes they offer to overpay for an item, but that’s not their only tactic. Beware of buyers who ask you to make transactions outside of the selling platform or those who ask for personal information, such as your banking information.
Be extra cautious when making local sales
Some platforms allow you to meet up with people in your local area to exchange your item for cash in person. While this can be an effective way to sell big items and avoid marketplace fees, use caution when meeting up with strangers. Don’t be quick to give them your home address, instead ask buyers to meet you in a safe place, such as outside your local police department. Never meet up with a buyer you don’t know alone. Always bring your partner or a friend to make the transaction.
Always protect your personal information
As you sell items online, keep your sensitive personal information under lock and key. Avoid communicating with buyers outside of the online platform you are using to make the sale and don’t give out your home address, phone number, or email address.
