wk9 ebay Reseller BOOT CAMP in Retirement + New Seller

[@AvanteAvenue]

Thank you to everyone who asked questions and left comments! I enjoyed responding to them and I did so in my typical candid fashion. Love you all and thank you for supporting our channel, Vickie & Mark ~ Avante Avenue

[@KathyHicks123]

Hey there, I stumbled across a box of postcards at a garage sale. Never thought of them before, but my brain kept telling me to get them. There were about 500 of them and I got them for $15. Then I went home to YT University and did my homework. It did not disappoint. They are considered “bread and butter.” You sell them one at a time with a postage stamp in an envelope. You do have to research them, but it is super easy on eBay. Most of them have a title on them and that is your title and description. Lots of comps too! 0:02 They sell almost everyday. The first one I listed for $6.25 and sold within 2 hrs. Who knew? I will just add 10 a day. Another has several watchers. Not going to get rich but EBay sells more than 100,000 a year. Just a little tip, in case you did not know this either. Kathy

[@MimisTreasureAttic]

You do not need to defend yourself when it comes to eating out or spending money on yourselves. You two have worked all your lives to be where you are right now, enjoying your retirement.. Retirement is a mixture of relaxing, "eating out" traveling and savoring every day in the final chapter of our lives. You two work so hard to make a bit extra so you CAN enjoy the periodic trip out. You should just shrug off the inquiries about your personal spending. I say, ENJOY LIFE! Savor the days and time together. Thanks for sharing! You two are also an inspiration! HUGS ❤❤❤❤

[@AvanteAvenue]

I knew she was teasing and it didn't bother me at all. I took the time to explain to share ideas about how we "save in retirement" to enjoy eating out. Also, I recently had someone comment that I sometimes come across as "entitled" and that's now how I am. I guess, I explained our "choices" in detail to let everyone know that we live a simple lifestyle and eating out is one of our treats for working hard. Thank you, Mimi!

[@karenhunter-kowalski8463]

Sorry you had to explain about eating out, but woohoo…not having done reselling since around 2006, we did not know about the tax deduction for half of meal cost while sourcing! Thanks for sharing! We also bring half our meal home for dinner or next day. And here’s a tip that works in my area…I was in the hospital a lot in 2020 2021 and 2022 with Crohn’s disease. My husband ate in the hospital cafeteria a lot…and said the food was great! I still have to go once a month for an infusion and sometimes eat in the hospital cafeteria first. They have a great salad bar and it costs around $5. This past Saturday we both went, had yummy turkey burgers, a side dish each, and two drinks for about $12. And it being a Saturday, hardly anyone was there. I’m not cheap But I am frugal.

[@AvanteAvenue]

Oh please do not be sorry about that. She was just teasing me and all is good. Being aware that not everyone can can spending money to eat out, I just wanted to put it out there some of the things that we do to save some money in hopes that it would help others. Interesting tip on a new place to eat. Never would have thought of that. I tend to want to avoid hospitals. Sorry to hear about your health issues but it sounds like you’re doing better and I wish you well. Thanks Karen for sharing your tips!

[@timtaman5]

Hi Vickie & Mark!! Great video!! You have both worked hard your entire lives ~ you deserve to enjoy a meal out as often as you desire!! You have shown us glimpses of your home but I would love to see more!! It always intrigues me what people give away to thrift stores so seeing lovely items displayed in your home would be a treat!! Have a great week!! ~Tammy

[@AvanteAvenue]

Yes, and I just shared what I did because I wanted to share some tips on what we do. Thank you, Tammy!

[@lisawalsh3960]

I feel bad that you took time in your video to explain about going out to eat. You do not need to explain to anyone how often you eat out. And it's part of our entertainment! Thank you for making these videos. I know it's a lot of effort but I've learned a lot from you. My customers remark how well I wrapped their items:) I learned from the best. Thanks Vickie!

[@AvanteAvenue]

No worries, I knew she was just teasing in her comment and I welcomed the opportunity to share how we save money in other areas that contributes to our enjoyment of eating out in hopes it helps others. Happy your buyers are happy! Thank you Lisa!

[@TheGgbears]

Vicki Thank you so much for🎉answering my question about where to find ebay shipping supplies!!😊

[@AvanteAvenue]

Happy to help! Thank you!

[@brendarushka9966]

Woohoo! Boot camp is going great for me. I decided to increase my goal this week so list 10 per day. I have set a longer term goal to subscribe to a store so I want to ramp up my listed items to hit 1,000. I will see how the 10 a day goes then may increase again to 20-25 per day. Sales are now increasing because I am listing consistently, I am listing some items with good sell thru rates and my total listed inventory is now higher. I also am sending out offers for every opportunity I am presented by eBay. Thanks for the detailed response on pirate ship.

[@AvanteAvenue]

Wonderful! I’m so happy for you! 10 per day is great! You are so welcome, Brenda!

[@TheGgbears]

Loved the video. Boot camp is going well for me. I only have 700 listing. With your help inspiration and encouragement I am getting it done actually sold 5 things over the weekend! Thank you both.

[@AvanteAvenue]

Wonderful! Thank you!

[@quiltednestvintage6347]

so poised Vickie... well done!

[@AvanteAvenue]

Why, thank you Joyce! Thank you very much.

[@timhalcomb4041]

Thank you both for sharing you have a blessed day in the name of Jesus Christ.

[@AvanteAvenue]

Thank you!

[@patyeaman]

Another video chock full of helpful info. Thanks for sharing.

[@AvanteAvenue]

Thank you, Pat! I try!

[@juliecombs462]

Your videos keep getting better and better. I love this format. I would love to see a tour of your home of the things you thrifted. 😊😊😊

[@AvanteAvenue]

Thank you, Julie! I try! Perhaps on the last Bootcamp video I’ll give a quick tour of some of our decor. Thank you!

[@GeeBee111]

Pirate ship is EXCELLENT for international shipping! They use a special rate for that and it’s a huge savings over eBay. I sent an item to Switzerland and I saved $9 over eBay rates. Thanks for the informative video, Vickie and Mark!

[@AvanteAvenue]

That’s good to know! Thank you for sharing!

[@pamseclecticplace709]

I struggled to reach my goal but made it. I would love a home tour. When I need a piece of furniture or something else, thrift stores are the first place I go. You can't beat vintage furniture for quality.

[@AvanteAvenue]

Happy for you, Pam! It can be challenging. I plan to include a short tour in the last boot camp video. Thank you!

[@pamellastimelesstreasures4071]

Always enjoy your videos.

[@AvanteAvenue]

Thank you, Pamella! Appreciate it!

[@terrywilliams8585]

I would love a tour of your home! Please do one for us. Another great vlog filled with more great info n tips. Thank you both for all you do for us.

[@AvanteAvenue]

OK, I will put that on the list for the last Boot Camp video! Thank you, Terry!

[@maxinebellows741]

I couldn't believe the comps of Blue Sky Clayworks! Also, I use both white and black backgrounds. Some of my more colorful dresses that I sell look better with black. Another great video! Thank you so much!

[@AvanteAvenue]

Me too! Thank you, Maxine!

[@BarbaraMoore-uj6pn]

Great video! I learned so much. Retired reseller too and I can relate to so much of your content.

[@AvanteAvenue]

Love that! Thank you, Barbara!

[@utubeebaywatcher]

Wish my Blue Sky woul sell. Thank you for all you do!

[@AvanteAvenue]

Yes, I guess like with everything not all of it sells let alone for a high price. Thank you!

[@lamerson771]

Thanks for all the tips!!!

[@AvanteAvenue]

You are welcome! Thank you!

[@VickiFromMichigan]

Another very helpful video Vickie.. thank you! I also cut my own hair. It's a money saver for sure, and it turns out just fine every time🥰!

[@AvanteAvenue]

Thank you, Vicki! I’ve been cutting my hair for decades. I figure it’s only hair. It will grow back. Lol.

[@TheAgelessReseller2024]

Another great Video Vickie! My week of listings has gone better but sales are awful. I am reminded of a promise that says; Seed, Time and Harvest, so I must keep listing. Have another great week. I too love to eat out when the price is right.

[@AvanteAvenue]

If it’s any consolation, sales have been bad for us this month as well. We just keep listing and hope for a better fall, and that all of our listing will help is. Thank you!

[@BlissfulDee]

Hear, hear! Right with ya on dining out. I'm somewhat of a foodie and have a background in the restaurant industry. I always enjoyed dining out for lunch or dinner, but when I lived in NYC, sometimes people would comment about that. And I would always tell them, "I cut my own hair, do my own nails, rarely ever buy new clothes, rarely have things dry-cleaned, and don't have cable. Eating out is my perk in life." That would usually shut them up. I do have cable now, but the other things are still true - and I still enjoy dining out (although nowadays it's usually just lunch because where I live now, everything closes up early). 🍔🥧

[@AvanteAvenue]

She was just teasing and I took it as such. I only shared my response in detail for fun and to share how we save when eating out. No harm done. I wanted watchers to know that overall, we’re pretty conservative. Thanks Dee!

[@Mert-e2r]

❤❤❤❤ You two work hatd for your money,Laura and Mert in Canada again here and we are cheering you on in all the things including,having marriage dates and slowing down to sit down for the TREAT you both so deserve,eating out as many times as you want!! We also enjoy eating out for our marriage date treats,we all wnjoy different things and we all deserve treats,after fighting through reproductive cancer in my 20s one thing I learned,life is to short not to live a lil and enjoy ourselves and create as many memories as possible. You two go ahead and ENJOY each bite you both deserve it!!! Blessings from Canada 🇨🇦

[@AvanteAvenue]

Thank you so much and do you know that we love Canada and our Canadian friends! It’s good to know you are on the healthier side of what you went through in your 20s. I can’t even imagine. Thank you so much for your kind words and yes, we are going out to eat today. Lol. At least a couple of times a week.

[@LittleArtisticNook]

This is great! Thanks for sharing about pirate ship, I’m going to look into this. I’d love to see a video of your home and all the thrilled items. I decorate my home in thrift buys too and all of my,others are from thrift stores. I just love thrifting, I got this from my mom. Enjoy your lunches out and yes, you deserve it!

[@AvanteAvenue]

Thank you and I'll include a quick tour of our home in the last boot camp video!

[@michd5507]

Pirate ship is phenomenal... They always help out in customer service... I never use eBay labels

[@AvanteAvenue]

Yes, love PS! Thank you, Mich!

[@craftyskyladycreativetimew9090]

Oh, and one more comment on eating out, etc. I love eating out and my husband and I are now in our senior years as well. I clean and cook all the time and quite honestly, it gets a bit old. So, for us, eating out or getting a meal from our local pizza shop once a week is a real treat and we look forward to it. Our take on it all is that we deserve a break after working hard and I enjoy being waited on as well. Life is precious and if eating out once in a while makes you smile, then keep doing that!

[@AvanteAvenue]

Yes, we make a big breakfast every day and I cook dinner several times a week. I have to say, though I prefer to eat lunch out over breakfast because breakfast is so easy to make. Lol. I shared all that I did about it just because I thought it could help others to share how we “budget” for it. Thank you!

[@frantiquestreasures1443]

❤❤❤❤❤

[@AvanteAvenue]

Thank you, Fran!

[@lisamoore5830]

Hi Vicki and Mark, we also have no grandchildren to spoil. We are just like you. We grow our own vegetables and have many fruit trees. So we source on Saturday and eat out, love every minute away from the daily grind. Wondering if you could share with me the video on variation listing, I've watched it but never had anything to list that way until last week. Thanks, see you next week.

[@AvanteAvenue]

Here is the video Lisa and thank you! ebay VARIATION LISTING Tutorial Step by Step | ReSeller kzbin.info/www/bejne/o5_JqqWFoNOXisU

[@FoundThingsandFamilyLegacies]

I did well this past week with listings! More than my normal - now, I typically do all on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and sometimes Thursday. I am out sourcing/thrifting on Friday and Saturday. On Sunday, we try not to work - although later in the day we pack orders to go out Monday morning. Also, I started holding up smaller item that I can hold in my hand (from stain glass window art to shoes) out our slider door with our lawn and trees in the background (somewhat blurred) with natural sunlight - and WOW! Those items are selling quite fast. I've listed outside before on a table covered with a white tablecloth and we didn't get that kind of response. I saw a channel where she held up many items in this way and I thought, "well, I'll give it a try" because Her's looked so good in the sold photos. Sales are up 33% in the past 30 days and impressions are still down 13.3% but that is a better position than last week.

[@AvanteAvenue]

Busy, busy! Gotta love it! Love your photo suggestion! It’s been a long time since I’ve tried that. Happy your sales are up! Thank you!

[@rjlaxvespa1742]

In California people are big on recycling,people are always moving, so you may be able to pick up supplies for free... locally I scored a large amount of eBay branded tape, & another items... a couple of guys were moving & didn't want to take it with them, in their pod...😎Laxvespa-LosAngeles... I also have neighbors that save all their boxes & leave them on my front porch.... sometimes it just is a matter of telling people what you do for a living... same neighbor has gifted me a huge amount of media items...

[@AvanteAvenue]

Yes, I used to pick up boxes everywhere I went and I had people saving packing supplies for me. When we moved seven years ago, I had tons of boxes that I had to recycle because I hadn’t used them. I had far more than I could possibly use. I find it much easier these days to have consistency in my box sizes. But thank you for sharing your tips! Appreciate it!

[@brendarushka9966]

I forgot to mention. I pick up a lot of Bluesky and rarely find an underplate. I wonder if some models just did not include one. I will have to research that.

[@AvanteAvenue]

That’s good to know! Thank you, Brenda!

[@craftyskyladycreativetimew9090]

Hey guys! Maureen Sky, Crafty Sky Lady here...thanks for including my comment in your video and I found your information very helpful and I will add a sticker on my packages from now on in regard to that. Earlier, in another video, I asked if you do Promoted listings and you answered, "No". But can you explain why you don't use this feature perhaps in an upcoming video? Just curious because I use it a lot and maybe I am losing money because of it?

[@AvanteAvenue]

You’re so welcome and hope you find the sticker helpful. We’ve never had an issue for raising her breaking due to sudden temperature changes. I think the label helps. No, we do not use promoted listings. I’ll keep it in mind for another Q&A. The short response is if everyone promoted, we would be the same situation as we are now because not every listing can be at the top of the page. I also don’t feel that we sell anything that has tremendous competition such as perhaps high value clothing would. That’s just a quick response. Thank you, Maureen!

[@dianeherring1431]

Do y’all go to the Hwy 127 yard sale? We will be heading to Chattanooga on Thursday and plan to go north on Friday and then head south to Gadsden on Saturday. I hope it will be cooler than it was when we went 2 years ago. Thanks Vickie!

[@AvanteAvenue]

No, we live in north eastern Tennessee and Chattanooga would be quite a drive. Thanks though for the heads up. Hope you have fun, Diane and stay cool!

[@TheAgelessReseller2024]

QUESTION: When you use Pirate Ship to send your packages don't you also save on the final value fees that eBay charges?

[@AvanteAvenue]

No, we don’t save on the final value fee. Ebay takes all the fees out before they pay us. Meaning they give us the money for the shipping they collected. And then we pay pirate ship. But no, we do not save on any Ebay fees. That would be great though if we did!

[@mariemitchell6625]

Another great video! I would like to see your home. I’m betting it’s beautiful! I like that you are smart & thrifty and always looking for ways to save money & make money! We do the same.

[@AvanteAvenue]

Coming soon! I plan to include a short tour in the last boot camp video. Thank you, Marie!

[@twocents6363]

Thanks for the videos! I know you probably already covered this subject, but do you use the Promoted Listings? It seems like so much for the suggested promo.

[@AvanteAvenue]

No, we do not use promoted listings. I’ll put it in my list of Q&A. We just don’t find it necessary for our items. If we were selling items that had a ton of competition such as high value items, perhaps we would but we no need for it. Thank you!

[@terrymartin6886]

Something different is happening to me on eBay. I have been on since Jan 2024. July 30-31 I started getting insertion fees. The counter said I had 0 items left from 250 monthly. Aug1 I listed 2 items. Counter took me from 250 to 240. Today I have not listed yet and counter changed 239 left. I average listing 5 items per day. So around 150 per month.

[@AvanteAvenue]

I think the fees are from listings "rolling over" every day. When you list every day, they roll over every day and that can add up to more than 250 listings (accumulative as you add more). If you only had 250 listings, listed on the same day (example: the 1st of month AND NEVER LISTED ANYMORE and didn't sell any that month); you would have 250 rolling over in 28 days (ebay rolls over at 28 days). If you sold say 5 but added 10, you would be over your "free" listings." Every time you add more listings, you're in effect going over your 250 listings. I obviously don't have all the facts but that's what I'm thinking is happening. I could be wrong. Thanks, Terry!

[@terrymartin6886]

@@AvanteAvenue Thank you. That makes very good sense. I love your videos. Great info and very entertaining.

[@AvanteAvenue]

You have to find out how much it’s costing you, average per listing and consider whether it’s time to get a store or upgrade to another level. Hope that helps!

[@dbeverlybrtn]

I guess you have to sell a certain amount to get subscriber discounts. I didn't have any offers.

[@AvanteAvenue]

No, it's not about selling a certain amount. The discounts (amount varies) comes with having a store. Thanks, Beverly!

[@dbeverlybrtn]

@@AvanteAvenue Thanks I have a store, I will try to pay better attention 🙂

[@RhondaRoqueta]

Still confused about pirate ship. I see how once you have sold an item how much it cost but how in the world do you get it into your listing and know what it will cost before the sale? It is so easy with eBay, or do you just pocket the difference in savings?

[@AvanteAvenue]

It's really no different then using ebay labels. I have to weigh the item when listing. I import the sales into Pirate Ship, package the item and weigh again to purchase the label through Pirate Ship. It costs the same as ebay. How do I know the weight when listing? I've included my tips in many videos. The ones I've made on "estimating calculated shipping" may pertain to Priority Mail but the process to weighing and estimating at the time of listing is the same for Ground Advantage. I weight it, if it's over 8 "ounces" and requires a box, I round it up to the nearest pound and add at least 1 pound for the box and packaging. Sometimes more, depending on what I think it will take to package (glassware/pottery etc). We hold onto the difference whether it's an ebay label OR pirate ship. We have to consider all the fees we pay on everything. As we all know, shipping isn't free and neither are the ebay fees on everything. Hope that helps!