Decline in eBay listings?

[smtjoy]

I use both ebay and AH's for buying and selling. For auctions IMO eBay is best if your item is less than $100 and even more so if less than $30. Ebay has a broader audience, you pick when your auctions run, I can choose my starting price to protect myself and I feel they bring higher prices on low dollar items. I also have good luck with my ebay BIN's as I feel if you list close to a fair price your card will sell over time.

I prefer AH's if the item will likely sell over $100 and even more so over $250, my reasons are greater exposure and I dont have to worry about payment or returns. The though of selling a $1000 card and 80 days later the seller files for an ebay return I find unacceptable (they can file from 90-180 days after the auction closes), I just don't trust eBay enough on expensive cards. I also feel the big high dollar collectors spend more of their card budget in AH's than ebay. I have had a number of cards sit in my eBay store for a year then I pull and send them to an AH and they sell higher.

For disclosure sake I have had an ebay store for over 7 years and I have consigned to LOTG, Sterling, Goodwin and B & L.

To me the choice comes down to -

If its most important to maximize profit on everyday stuff (say a common T210-1)-

List as a 7 day auction on ebay at the lowest price you are ok selling it at and hope you get interest and a couple bidders to compete, if items fails to get any bids I then convert it to a BIN at the starting bid price (also list on boards BST with 10% discount after auction). If priced within 5% of VCP normally it will sell within 6 months. I try to price from +15-20% which can mean up to 3 years to sell. Also note these are usually cards with no other listing at that condition on ebay and the higher graded are priced much higher. If you are selling a common card like a T206 common in SGC 40 and there are 10 for sale, you had better price it at the lowest or 2nd lowest if you want to to sell anytime soon(a card like this at auction plan to for it to sell for a lot lower than those listed generally).

If I want the money now then an auction is the only way to go-

For low dollar I just list on ebay at either a .99 or 9.99 start and let it ride. For higher value I send to an AH that's right for what I am selling and let it ride.