[UPDATED 1.14.21]
Hi there! If you’re a subscriber to Adirondack Girl @ Heart, then you know that I’ve been taking a survey the past few weeks about what sorts of things you’d like to read about here on the blog, in a book, or in a course of some kind.
Several themes have definitely presented themselves for some big projects. But several survey responses make for great blog material, like today’s topic: how to sell on Facebook Marketplace.
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Anyone can sell almost anything on Facebook Marketplace (FBMP). You don’t have to be a dealer to list your old DVDs or Tupperware castoffs. In fact, it’s a good way to get your feet wet selling stuff. Just start out slow with cheap items or ones you would normally send to Salvation Army.
So far, I’ve sold mostly quirky items (a lion mask, a hand statue, a sewing box), along with a few vintage items (folding chairs, a painting, Fisher Price toys) and a couple of blog projects (a mirror and a stool).
In today’s post, I’ll share some of my personal experiences, but it really is the sort of thing you just need to jump into with both feet and learn as you go. But let me give you some selling tips:
How to List an Item on Facebook Marketplace
In order to list an item for sale on FBMP, you must first be a member of Facebook. Today I’ll be talking specifically about how to list an item via the Facebook app on a smart phone because it’s much simpler than listing on a PC, although the process is similar.
The screen shots below were taken on my iPhone, but the process for listing should be similar, if not the same, for other smart phones.
- A.Enter Facebook Marketplace: First, click on the Facebook icon on your phone. Then click the FBMP icon, which looks like a house/market, on the bottom of your screen where the arrow’s pointing (above). [Note: Your page will look different because you will see items for sale in your area. These items are for sale in the Albany (NY) area.}
- B. Ready to Sell: When you’re ready to sell something, click on the Sell button on the upper left-hand corner of your screen. This will cause a list to pop up from the bottom, like the one you see here. You’ll want to click on Items.
- C.Upload Photos: When you click on Items, the Add Photos screen opens up. To add photos of the item you’re trying to sell, click on the Add Photos button. You’ll be taken to the photos you have stored on your phone. Click on the photos you want to upload. Press Select(on iPhones) and your photos will load.
- D.Add Info: After you load your photos, a screen containing those photos will appear, along with text boxes to add a Title, Price, and Category. Take a little time to describe your item well in your title. As far as pricing goes, I always recommend starting out a little higher since you can always lower it. I also add OBO (or best offer) to each of my listings to encourage serious offers.
- E.Add a Description Details: Scroll down a little further on the same page and you’ll be prompted to add a Condition, Brand, Color, and Decor Style. You don’t have to fill these out, but doing so will ensure that your listing gets shown to the widest possible audience.
- F. Description & Tags: Next you’ll be prompted to add aDescription of your item. Take full advantage of this opportunity to sell the heck out of it, including how it will make the potential buyer feel or how it will make their home look. It’s also where you want to put measurements, if relevant. When you’re done with the description, add some Tags. You can add up to 20; write as many as you can as they’ll help your listing get seen. When you’re done, click Next on the upper right-hand corner.
- G. Delivery Method: Fill in your zip code so FB can indicate on your listing your general location. Then select how you would like to deliver your item (1) Local pickup only (my choice) or (2) Shipping. Click Next when you’re done.
- H. List in More Places: FBMP will automatically list your item in Marketplace. It doesn’t show up on your personal FB page. You are also given the opportunity to post your listing to any garage sale or antique groups that you belong to on Facebook. Once you’ve selected the groups you want your listing distributed to, click Publish on the lower right corner and you’re done!
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What to Sell on Facebook Marketplace
As with any secondary market, identifying “sure-sellers” is no easy task. If you knew exactly what sold well on FBMP, you could go out buy them up and get rich quick. But, it’s never as easy as that, is it?
A potent mixture of wisdom, experience, and self-education goes into learning what to sell in any given market, whether it’s eBay, Etsy, Facebook, or somewhere else.
As someone who sells in multiple locations (and antique booth, eBay, Etsy, FBMP, an annual craft show, and my blog shop), I can say that you get a feel over time for what sells well in which venue. And the beauty is, if you get it wrong the first time, you can move the item around until it sells.
[Kid’s stove sold for $25 and Nerf guns sold for $20.]
An upcycled mirror project of mine serves as a good example of this. First I brought it to my antique booth, listed at about $30. When it failed to sell after a year, I brought it to the yearly craft show that I participate in, and again it didn’t sell. Ditto Craigslist.
After sitting in my garage for several months, I finally decided to give FBMP a try. The initial frenzied reaction led to no sale. Lots of interest, but no appointments. I renewed the listing several times, lowered the price by a few dollars each time, and it finally sold for $20. Go figure.
This farm landscape (oil on canvas) is another example of a piece that refused to sell from my antique booth, even after I lowered the price to $35. So I brought it home and listed on FBMP and sold it for $50.
NOTE: During the pandemic, artwork and other vintage items began to sell like crazy in FBMP. Check out my What’s Selling in May 2020 post for the details and my June 2020 income report.
I sold this vintage (1972) Fisher Price airport for $40; it garnered a lot of attention and I could have sold it many times over. Fisher Price sets also seem to sell well on eBay, but if I can make good money without having to ship a large package, I’m happy. What I currently look for to sell on FBMP:
- Nerf gun sets,
- Vintage Fisher Price toys, and
- Quality home decor, e.g., I sold a Pottery Barn jug for $15, and a pair of industrial lamps for $43.50
Managing Conversations
As potential buyers begin to contact you, you will be notified via Facebook Messenger. Sometimes you may receive a flurry of interest, and if you have more than one item listed, this might seem overwhelming. But have no fear, your conversations with potential buyers are stored in FBMP and Messenger.
Go back and look at A. above on my first set of screenshots. Right next to the Sell button you’ll see aYou button. When you click on You, you’ll be taken to your “profile.” There, you’ll find a bunch of things you can check out, but at the top, click on Inbox. This takes you to all your messages.
When I receive a number of inquiries about an item, I like to keep track of who messaged first, second, third, and so one. So I jot their names down on a piece of scrap paper in the order they sent their message. I also try to deal with just one potential buyer at a time, moving onto the next one if/when a potential deal falls through.
Staying Safe on Facebook Marketplace
I have been selling on FBMP (or sites like it) for a couple of years now. All pick-ups for the items I sell are in my driveway because I don’t have time to run around meeting people at “safe” locations.
Because of this, I give out my cell phone number and address, but I have never had a problem. I have met some truly lovely people that have made the process enjoyable, including a delightful handyman who worked for us for a year.
I make pick up times when I know I won’t be home alone, and ask the buyer to text me when they arrive. I carry my phone out with me as a safeguard as well. Each seller has to decide for themselves what their safety protocols are going to be.
No-shows
Every now and again, a potential buyer may not show up. It happens. It’s happened to me twice since I started selling on FBMP back in the spring. If you expect it to happen occasionally, then you won’t be so thrown by it when it does happen.
There are two ways I protect against this disappointment. First, I make appointments that are completely convenient for me. I make them for a time when I know I’m going to be home. Second, I stay in contact with other potential buyers.
In other words, if I’ve made an appointment to meet with a buyer, but a second person contacts me about it, I don’t tell them the item is “Sold;” I say I have a “Sale is pending and I’ll get in touch with you if it falls through.” People are usually quite happy to hear that.
So far my FBMP experiences have all been very positive and have had very positive outcomes (money in my pocket!). I enjoy meeting new people and engaging in conversation about the item being sold. Being a “people person” is a definite plus when selling directly to the public.
I hope today’s post has taken some of the mystery out of Facebook Marketplace. I promise you the process is quite straightforward, but I know sometimes reading about it before hand or having the instructions right in front of you while you practice can be helpful. Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below 🙂
How FBMP has Restored My Faith in My Fellow Man
Sometime in June 2020, I had difficulty connecting with a buyer. Since the item in question cost just $10, I told them I’d place it on my front stoop, and they could slide the money under the doormat. They were super happy since it meant they didn’t have to specify a time.
When I got home later in the day, I found an envelope with the $10 right where it was supposed to be–under my door mat. I’ve since repeated this practice on a number of occasions, each time with the same success. And sellers have afforded me the same trust, too, and I LOVE it!
I truly hope that your experiences on FBMP are as lucrative and positive as mine 🙂
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