If you are a book lover you probably have a large personal library. Maybe even some signed First Editions. But as we all know used bookstores are vanishing and with them the possibility of selling some of your books for a little extra cash.
Sadly, the online market for reselling books is not strong either unless you are willing to part with your autographed First Editions by famous authors. Books that are First Editions only–without a signature–are less likely to sell on Ebay or Amazon unless they are rarities. I know this because I recently offered some of my books for sale online. Some sold; others did not.
While selling my books on Ebay, I “met” some of the other booksellers online. One old timer who has a longstanding online bookstore, gave me a good piece of advice: ” Whatever price you set is probably near the price it will sell. Don’t list for 99 cents, in hopes that there will be multiple bids to drive the price up. It won’t happen.”
Another bit of advice: It was after the sale of a signed limited edition book by actor Dennis Hopper on Amazon that I realized how big of a fee I had to pay: 30% of sales price. Books I sold on Ebay had no listing fee and I paid only 10% of the selling price. That’s learning the hard way!
However….all is not grim in the used book world
I know a retiree, John, who is making a very tidy income selling used books and he has been doing it for a long time now. He turns the used book market on its head by buying books online and selling them for a fixed price in upscale flea markets, high end swap meets and even one Farmers’ market.
His booth has a big sign that reads: “No Book Over $5”. Over the years he know exactly which books his customers like and every book he sells is in nearly perfect new condition. He also has a section for children’s books at $1. What parent would turn down a chance to buy a $1 book in perfect new condition for their child? And while they are buying the child’s book, they often end up browsing his tables and buying a book or two for themselves.
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Note: The people mentioned on this site are real and what they did is true. Their names have been changed to protect their privacy.