Material required for selling on eBay

[kinggregus]

Hello fellow Eurobrickers,

I am thinking about selling a few pieces of my collection on eBay as I have some duplicate minifigures and set that I do not use at all (eg technic 8258).

I was wondering what material was required to make both the sale cost-effective and avoid having the buyer disappointed. So, I'd like to know what material you would use to send a minifigure only and what material would be required for sending out a set, which includes the manuals.

In short, what sort of enveloppe and wrapping are recommanded for a minifigure? And what sort of box and wrapping are recommended for a set?

Thanks for your advises

[tkatt]

As a buyer I can tell you how I like my eBay Lego to arrive.

For minifigures a small padded envelope is ideal.

If the set is still in the box it should be put into a slightly lager cardboard box with newspaper stuffed around the sides to keep it from getting knocked around. No styrofoam or packing peanuts, just packing that can be easily recycled.

Loose sets should be disassembled and always be in a sealed bag or container before going into a box. I don't like it when someone puts parts directly into a box because there is a chance pieces will slip through the flaps of a box.

[62Bricks]

For larger, valuable sets, you should check with the company or service you will be using for shipping to get an idea of their packing recommendations. For example, one company in the US recommends at least 2" of packing on all sides of the item. If the item is damaged in transit and it did not have at least 2" of packing around it, the company might not pay an insurance claim for the damage. So knowing what your shipper recommends is important.

If you are shipping sets that have been opened, then in addition to packing around the outside of the set box, put some packing inside the box, too. This will keep it from getting crushed.

[Darkdragon]

A note on sending figs in small padded envelopes: be sure to wrap in bubble or at least wad up a piece of paper to shove in there. If the envelop is under 1/2 inch thick, there is a chance they will try to run it through the auot-sort machine (in the USA anyway). You don't want to see what happens to a fig that runs through those things. I've had it happen, it's not pretty. The extra paper or wrap doesn't add enough weight to change the shipping cost.

[AwesomeBantha]

BrickPicker has a good guide on what you need.

Hope it helped!

[ElCrab]

I sell minifigs on eBay, and I have access to sealable bubble wrap bags. I put the minifig and all needed pieces in a small sealable jewelry Ziploc, then into the bubble wrap bag, fold it a few times over and seal it. Then I put this into a manila envelope, clamp it shut and tape over the flap.

Using the bubble wrap bags I do, it means several layers of wrap on each side protect the minifigure, and when someone opens that up, the contents are all collected in that inner sealed bag as well.

When I ship a larger item (like a Jabba the Hutt or a dewback), I have small boxes for those items. But they still get wrapped in a bubble wrap bag and any additional space is packed with more wrap.

[ocifant]

A note on sending figs in small padded envelopes: be sure to wrap in bubble or at least wad up a piece of paper to shove in there. If the envelop is under 1/2 inch thick, there is a chance they will try to run it through the auot-sort machine...

Ah, that would explain what happened to a recent BL order of mine. Only a few pieces, but the seller had just put them in an ordinary letter envelope. The 'letter' arrived in a RoyalMail plastic bag, with a nice apology from the RM about the state of the letter. Luckily, all the pieces I'd ordered were there, and intact!

[AirborneAFOL]

As a frequent Lego Ebay buyer, here's a few "little things" that I appreciate, and keep me coming back as a repeat buyer from someone...

* If it's a set, take the extra few minutes to actually bag the pieces consistent with Lego's bags. Gives a buyer the same experience in their build as if they bought it new.

* Throw in a small surprise "bonus". Doesn't need to be much - just a dozen random element you've got a big surplus of. But I've always found it to be a nice little easter egg, and generous "thank you for your purchase".

* Offer free shipping - especially if you list multiple, small items. It's a headache as a buyer to fill your cart with 10 items, only to have to hassle through a revised invoice request to avoid the shipping exceeding the order itself. Just build your anticipated shipping cost into your posting price.

* Take the time to provide more than a sentence or two in the description. Particularly if it's a set, articulate if it's complete, includes any replacement pieces, or has any damages. It may seem counterintuitive from a "want to make the sale" perspective, buy serious buyers will appreciated the detailed condition and being upfront about any issues (no matter how small) and give them high confidence there'll be no frustrating "surprise! Missing three bricks!" when they get it.

[kinggregus]

Everyone! Thanks so much for your advises. I will really take all your comments in account. When I start the sale, I really do not want to have the buyer disappointed.

I have already purchased all the material found on the BrickPicker site as suggested by AwesomeBantha.

[VintageLegoEra]

For me the most important thing is the buyer gets his parcel/Letter package in excellent way. Here what i do:

For small and some large pieces: i use padded envelope and include the parts in a Zip bag. ( Wrapping some large pieces with paper/bubbles )

For Large parts and sets: i use a box and fill it with newspaper, corks.

and the most important thing when you are done packing the packages, make a note of: Handle with care, Fragile so they will take extra care.

Note:

As you know, people at the post and airport are working a lot and 80% they are stressed and your package can be mishandled. So making a note of the above, you are on the safe side!

Regards

Edited August 29, 2014 by VintageLegoEra

[fred67]

If the set is still in the box it should be put into a slightly lager cardboard box with newspaper stuffed around the sides to keep it from getting knocked around. No styrofoam or packing peanuts, just packing that can be easily recycled.

If you're getting peanuts from me, believe me - it's because I'm recycling them. Feel free to do the same. I have a garbage bag full of them from orders I've received from other people.

[TheLegoDr]

Recycled is good. Re-used can be good. We try to always re-use the air bubbles we get from Amazon and whatnot. Packing peanuts are horrible, but I can appreciate the re-use of them. They must work since people use them (or are they cheap?)

Free shipping is an interesting concept. I think the problem many have with that idea is they expect the auction to go for less, so if you build shipping into the final price and have free shipping, it might go for higher than they expected (even if it is the same as a lower auction price plus shipping). Something about the mentality of a final value and how it appears.