Advice or Knowledge you wish you knew before (or want to share)

[Raleigh504]

I have been selling casually for several years and decided to make the plunge to sell on a regular basis and turn the hobby into more of a "side business" (even help fund my purchases).

Reading a bunch on the forum about others who do it has helped me tremendously grow it over the months and years. Whether it be using Card Dealer Pro, listing on eBay at a regular basis, selling/setting up at local shows, and even knowledge about products I didn't know about before.

What would be one (or a few) pieces of advice or knowledge you wish you knew before (or would like to share) with other members here?

Mine would be to not try to squeeze out the most of each card (being greedy), to essentially take the profit/sale and not look back. Even for a loss, if you can do more with the cash than the card then it is better served. Case in point, when Acuna base PSA 10 was going for over $300, I graded and was sitting on several of those cards. I sold a few but held on to a lot more than I should thinking it was going to $500 and he would win the MVP and 40/40. Granted I have basically sold all the cards I had but closer to $80-100 (a profit), but was overthinking and being greedy about where it could go vs. selling.

[glen87]

Originally Posted by Raleigh504

I have been selling casually for several years and decided to make the plunge to sell on a regular basis and turn the hobby into more of a "side business" (even help fund my purchases).

Reading a bunch on the forum about others who do it has helped me tremendously grow it over the months and years. Whether it be using Card Dealer Pro, listing on eBay at a regular basis, selling/setting up at local shows, and even knowledge about products I didn't know about before.

What would be one (or a few) pieces of advice or knowledge you wish you knew before (or would like to share) with other members here?

Mine would be to not try to squeeze out the most of each card (being greedy), to essentially take the profit/sale and not look back. Even for a loss, if you can do more with the cash than the card then it is better served. Case in point, when Acuna base PSA 10 was going for over $300, I graded and was sitting on several of those cards. I sold a few but held on to a lot more than I should thinking it was going to $500 and he would win the MVP and 40/40. Granted I have basically sold all the cards I had but closer to $80-100 (a profit), but was overthinking and being greedy about where it could go vs. selling.

this is an underrated statement.

so many times i have heard something similar to:

"well i paid this for it so i cannot go any lower or i will take a loss."

when that card will never again be worth the price they paid.

[premium1981]

A couple lessons I have learned:

1) Stay in your lane. I can make money on baseball cards with my eyes closed. My returns over the years have been astronomical. Where I have lost the most has been venturing into other areas that I do not have the same expertise. I've made some money on football and basketball cards, but not as much. I have also taken more losses on those. Venturing outside of sports all together has also not been good for me overall. I have made a little and lost a little. I just don't have the same feel for it. You have to know your strengths and weaknesses, and stay with your strengths.

2) Don't try to make things happen. Let it come to you. With the above large baseball returns I have mentioned, I have had large amounts of excess cash that I felt like needed to be in something to keep returning more money as opposed to sitting there. I have learned two lessons when it comes to "finding" value as opposed to it finding me. My potential for losses are greater if I go looking. See above about venturing outside of what I know. Secondly, when the right opportunity does fall in my lap I may not be able to go as heavy as I would have otherwise due to large amounts of money being locked up elsewhere. Now I want cash reserves because there are 1-2 grand slam opportunities that present themselves every year. Thankfully I have a very high velocity of cash in my business, but there is no amount of cash that is too much to sink into something things. I have to wait for those and not be impatient looking for other things.

PS. As an added note, I will agree with what you said about taking smaller profits, or even losses when its time. The velocity of your money is so important. I think many fail to realize just how important that is.

[Budler]

One thing that I have known from the start. When you are in a business Turn Over your inventory as fast as you can. There is always something new and better out there. It appears a lot of sellers do not understand that.

One thing I have find out and wish I know sooner: I do very little selling so I may not be the one to say this:
Do not believe everything that you heard. NOT to offend anyone who gives advise.

More the once I have heard. This card will sale for X amount OR this card will sell really fast. A year later and a lot cheaper the cards are sold.

I had one guy try to sell me a card with this line. It will be worth 3x the price I'm asking in just a month or two. I told him to hang on to it for a couple of months and sell it then You will make a lot more. For some reason he got mad at me.

[Bosoxfan5990]

Originally Posted by Raleigh504

I have been selling casually for several years and decided to make the plunge to sell on a regular basis and turn the hobby into more of a "side business" (even help fund my purchases).

Reading a bunch on the forum about others who do it has helped me tremendously grow it over the months and years. Whether it be using Card Dealer Pro, listing on eBay at a regular basis, selling/setting up at local shows, and even knowledge about products I didn't know about before.

What would be one (or a few) pieces of advice or knowledge you wish you knew before (or would like to share) with other members here?

Mine would be to not try to squeeze out the most of each card (being greedy), to essentially take the profit/sale and not look back. Even for a loss, if you can do more with the cash than the card then it is better served. Case in point, when Acuna base PSA 10 was going for over $300, I graded and was sitting on several of those cards. I sold a few but held on to a lot more than I should thinking it was going to $500 and he would win the MVP and 40/40. Granted I have basically sold all the cards I had but closer to $80-100 (a profit), but was overthinking and being greedy about where it could go vs. selling.

DON’T rip wax to build your inventory.
DO buy bulk lots/collections (with value) to build your inventory for easy profit.

[byronscott4ever]

Patience pays off —if you have something that’s unique or special, you can hold out for more. I had a card that no one else was selling and could’ve sold it for $300 but waited and got $425. When other things are selling, it’s easier to wait on other things of course.

[byronscott4ever]

Start with cheaper stuff to learn and make sure items are listed correctly. I saw the same card sell for 2.99 and 17 in the same month due to only last names in the title.

[yoadrian49]

Take some time to get up and move around...go for a walk, a run, something that gets you moving. Between the opening, sorting, listings, packaging and shipping there is a lot of sitting in this hobby. My advice

[shrevecity]

Don't rush things set small easy goals over large ambitious goals but try to expand them. This is something I do to fight depression but it also keeps me from overwhelming myself at times

[thenightman]

Don't use a hypothesis as a tool to justify an action you're considering taking.

An example: "If Player X has great results in the playoffs his current card prices are undervalued, so I should get Y card now before the price goes up."

[sthoemke]

1) Buy what you like (others should like it too)
2) Don't be afraid to buy what you don't care for (look for buying/selling oppurtunities)
3) Don't buy just because something seems popular at the moment (don't jump on the bandwagon)
4) Sometimes it is best to wait to buy (sometimes best not to buy singles right when the product comes out. Wait for the hype to diminish)

[LVDan]

I’ll echo premium’s comments about staying in your lane. The more narrow your focus, the better chance you have at success. Know the market for your sport or your brand or your team or even better your player. You will rarely lose and when you do, it will be far less than your cumulative small to large wins you amass along the way.

[wubh]

Just because you don't perceive something to have value, doesn't mean it doesn't have value.

And just because you value something (or at a certain price point), doesn't mean anybody else will agree.

I recently flipped a Greg Zuerlein 2021 Score parallel #ed to 100 for like $6 that somebody was trying to get rid of for pennies on COMC. If you pulled this, you'd probably be pissed that one of your minor box hits was a kicker instead of a rookie or star.

But it's his first card in a Cowboy's uniform and some kickers have a small but dedicated collecting market so that $6 sale is actually going be 90% higher than most non-top tier QBs and rookies from that set. Maybe I even left a couple of bucks on the table because Cowboy collectors are insane.

So if you're trying to maximize ROI, take the time to understand what you have, which isn't always as simple as looking at the most recent comps, especially for cards that have low volume.

And lastly, buy what you like for your PC at price points that feel good about. I'm sure I can find out what I paid for many of my PC cards with some effort but if I genuinely enjoy a card, I won't care.

[jcmel323]

- always offer based on your numbers. Never exceed that number unless its PC.
- buy something you know and have experience.
- never forget to add expenses.
- the faster you move the item, the better. Profit get bigger the more you sell, not the less you sell.
- large inventory doesnt always translate to more money. Try to have quality items that everyone loves.
- "always have a exit strategy". If it doesnt sell after X amount of time, liquidate and move on.
- dont get addicted to work. Relax. Ride bike. Fresh Air.

[shrevecity]

Keep learning. I am a sell everything seller on Ebay. I am always exploring new markets and teaching my self new avenues for money.

[discodanman45]

Don't be afraid of raw cards.

[longhornjunkie]

There have been a couple of interesting comments about keeping your money moving vs. keeping a stash for the right opportunity. Both of these are correct, I would say, especially for a low-end seller. If your sales are steady and you see a deal with decent margin to be had - without draining your reserves - probably a good idea to grab it. (It also helps if you have some type of spending account with points or rewards associated with it.)

But, you also want that back pocket money for a can't-miss, won't-last deal.

This is a hard balance to strike, but will pay off.

[DontBeSoy]

I am really enjoying this thread. I hope the experienced and veteran full timers...continue dropping nuggets and knowledge in here. Even seemingly small things. It is appreciated! By those willing to listen.

[shrevecity]

Originally Posted by longhornjunkie

There have been a couple of interesting comments about keeping your money moving vs. keeping a stash for the right opportunity. Both of these are correct, I would say, especially for a low-end seller. If your sales are steady and you see a deal with decent margin to be had - without draining your reserves - probably a good idea to grab it. (It also helps if you have some type of spending account with points or rewards associated with it.)

But, you also want that back pocket money for a can't-miss, won't-last deal.

This is a hard balance to strike, but will pay off.

I think some of those were directed to sellers who are afraid to lose money on anything. Sometimes you have to cut those losses. I pay 10.00 for a card it ends up sitting for 2 months at my 20.00 price tag. I lower it to 15. Another month goes by ND someone offers 8.00. Some sellers would let it continue to sit tying up 10.00. Cash out and move on.

But your post vrings up a good point too. I always have 400 to 1000 in reserve for those chances.

It also brings up another point you make the bulk of your profit when you buy the item not sell it. Don't be afraid to negotiate but at same time learn when to go ahead and pay up a little.

I saw a reseller at a sale a few weeks ago leave a 2 nice jerseys over a 1.00 difference in price. I scooped both up for the asking price. Sold one the same day for 60.00 paid 6.00 for both. The seller was firm on that and the reseller was stuck at 2 each like the other shirst she had was. The seller likely would have taken it if the reseller had not been rude about the deal.

[Raleigh504]

Yea, I am slowly learning to accept the first offer vs countering even if the price isn't what comps typically go for especially for cards that don't sell as often/aren't as hot.

Another advice, for selling at shows that I learned, is to not sell/bring what you want to get rid of (random inventory). Keep that for eBay unless you have a lot of room on your table. Bring what the area/market wants. I am a Cleveland guy and living in Charlotte it is hard to sell my Cleveland stuff (will occasionally), but anything Braves, Hornets, Panthers and Duke/UNC always seems to sell outside of the GOATS of the sports. I had to stock up on local teams to sell and even then I can add 10-50% of my purchase price depending on who it is and the type of card.

[rwperu34]

Originally Posted by thenightman

Don't use a hypothesis as a tool to justify an action you're considering taking.

An example: "If Player X has great results in the playoffs his current card prices are undervalued, so I should get Y card now before the price goes up."

Heck, this is like 80% of my overall gameplan I'm putting research in and whatnot, but the plan is to sell when hot and buy when not hot.

[rwperu34]

I've been making a log of things I learned along the way. Here is the thread from 2022. There's links to other threads in there.

I'd say my biggest discovery is a tossup between the "sell similar" button and the realization of the importance of gaming the search algorithm.

[shrevecity]

Originally Posted by Raleigh504

Yea, I am slowly learning to accept the first offer vs countering even if the price isn't what comps typically go for especially for cards that don't sell as often/aren't hot

In cases like this sometimes the transaction alone is better than the price achieved. The transaction will boost search rankings a little on all your items.

This brings up another point sometimes best offer is not always the highest price.

[shrevecity]

Another thread reminded me of another one think outside the box sometimes when sourcing. The best buys are not always the obvious ones

A few years ago I was at an estate sale the guy owned a larges printing company in Dallas from the 1960s to the late 80s. His speciality was bumper stickers for many large companies. In the sale there were 3 boxes of bumper stickers each contained about 500 stickers. They were mostly bundled in groups of 25. Most if them had multiple packs of them. There were hundreds of stickers from Braniff and Pan am airlines as well as other companies that have come and gone there were a couple of hundred " who shot JR" stickers. I paid 5.00 a box. These were mostly easy to list as quantity listings as many were identical and pre counted for me. This 15.00 purchase is still selling for me and has made me well over 10k. Other resellers passed them up but I saw the ease of listing and storage as well as the long term profitability.

I got another like this I am working on. Guy owned thise sticker vending machines in the 1980s. Got over 1000 stickers for 10 00. Most are skateboard related but there are others. Look up vintage prism stickers to get an idea of what I maybe looking at.

Again from looking deeper at items people just simply overlook

[thenightman]

Originally Posted by rwperu34

Heck, this is like 80% of my overall gameplan I'm putting research in and whatnot, but the plan is to sell when hot and buy when not hot.

Don't get me wrong, there are certain players you can wind your clock to when it comes to getting hot. Guys like Steph Curry, Mike Trout, Patrick Mahomes, etc. If you can buy their cards low then you have a great shot of flipping for a good profit.

The problem comes in when you start winding your clock on guys like Karl-Anthony Townes, Giancarlo Stanton, Jimmy Garoppolo, etc. Maybe they'll have a stretch where they get hot, and they have, but it's been my experience that when those guys get hot, unless it's scorched earth hot, it doesn't really do much to raise their market value, if at all.