Silly Seller Superstitions

[VintageTreasures]

Just wondering if anyone else shares any of my silly seller superstitions?

I have found myself thinking that some of my eBay inventory boxes are jinxed. When I’m about to put an item I’ve just listed into inventory I sometimes think “ooh, not in that box, it’ll take years to sell if I put it in that box”.

I also entertain the notion that if I go back to a place to source before I’ve made a profit on the items I bought there the last time I scourced at that place that I either won’t find anything to buy or I’ll buy nothing that makes any profit…

And I don’t normally think of myself as a superstitious person!

[Ryanne]

or when you pick up an old item in your storage and then it sells!

[Jay]

Or when you mail a package and know in your heart the person is going to return it.

[VintageTreasures]

Yes to both of those too, Ryanne and Jay. Thanks for playing along!

[sonia]

Don’t get a cart at Goodwill until after I’ve already found something to put in it.

[Inglewood]

This is one I agree with – everytime I get a cart or basket at the front of the store I find barely anything, and when I go in without a cart/basket, I find a lot…always best to double-back and get a basket/cart when needed.

[Retro Treasures WV]

Or don’t plan on going to a thrift store but get an overwhelming sensation that a special treasure is waiting there for you so you just have to stop. This is how I’ve found several $200+ items, so I trust this one.

[Mark S]

Retro,

I have done that also going to the thrift store scoring those $200+ items. But to be fair, I have also gone with great expectation and then just left with a $25 baseball glove that I paid $3 for.

But yes, you have to take the good with the bad. Hey, if you don’t go, you will never find those $200+ items.

Mark

[Mark S]

Retro,

Thanks for reminding to go to the thrift store. Just got back from there. I got a $65 pair of Hockey Skates for $6. This time I made out.

Mark

[VintageTreasures]

Retro Treasures, yes that one too! I get that feeling sometimes – there is an amazing treasure waiting for me at the thrift, so I go in looking for it.

Today my sales stink and I’m adding this one: My lucky kitty statue was not facing the door, if Lucky Kitty doesn’t face the door to wave the $ in the $ doesn’t come in.

I think I now have to admit that I am a superstitious person.

[Julie B]

If I see clothes hanging over the racks instead of on a hanger, or if an item is falling off of it’s hanger I think it’s good thrifting karma to hang it up correctly. I guess I’m thinking if I take care of the thrift store, the thrift store will take care of me. 🙂 I don’t pick up every clothing item I come across thats on the ground anymore because that would quickly become a part time job but if it’s just a few items it can’t hurt to pick them up and hang them.

[Mighty Brilliant]

Julie,
I’m constantly picking up and rehanging clothes at thrift stores! I think it’s good karma. Can’t tell you how many times people have assumed I work there. LOL.

I think it pays off. Just last week I bought a VCR DVD combo player that was way underpriced…$1.99. I plugged it in and it turned on, so I figured what the heck. I brought it home and while the DVD side worked, I couldn’t put a tape in the VCR side. The door wasn’t opening. I’m no electrical repair genius, but I unscrewed the top to see what could possibly be blocking the door. It was the remote control to the unit! Someone had shoved it in. Everything works!

[Steves Stuff]

I don’t know that it’s “superstitious” (probably just learned behavior), but I now get a sinking feeling every time I accept an offer. I used to have very good luck with offers. But the last 4 have been those who make an offer then never pay, leading to an unpaid item case. And that’s really starting to irritate me. And I accepted another offer 2 nights ago. Guess what? That’s right, they’ve ghosted as well.

[Steves Stuff]

Oh, I should clarify that everyone who make offers that are auto-accepted have paid pretty much immediately. It’s the ones I have to manually accept (because they are below the limit I set for auto-accept) who keep screwing me. Even when I accept within a minute of receiving notification.

[gfd_622]

So I’m a small seller on eBay compared to most, but I will go through some days when there is nothing happening for 3-5 days, which is a little odd even for me. When that happens, I typically revise some old listings. In many cases I lower the prices and maybe change a few of the smaller details. In other cases, I actually raise the price and also do a few minor tweaks. Any time I do that, it seems like one of those items that I changed sells within a day of me messing with it. Even the ones where I raise the prices. And typically when this happens, it’s a full price pay, not an offer. Guess I should just sit around and edit/change things all day every day. Might be a good strategy 😉

[mscellaneous]

When I go to a thrift store I always wrangle at least 1 cart from the parking lot (the further away the better) and bring it into the store.

That combined with being nice to all the employees has resulted in some very good prices/overlooked missing price tags over the years.

[bcfol440]

Much like the Marie Kondo show where she “wakes up” the books by tapping on them to spark stale energy, I do that when I rearrange old inventory! It works.

[sonia]

another touch it and sell it sale today!

[Steves Stuff]

In the past week, I’ve had both a “touch it & sell” and a “think about & sell” sale of items I haven’t touched of thought about in a long time.

It’s pure conformation bias (we remember the hits because they stand out in our mind and forget the misses because nothing happens) and I know there’s absolutely no connection between the two events, but every time it happens it’s a reminder that list it and forget it is valid strategy. Eventually, the things that show no activity or interest sell out of the blue. Even if it’s several years later.

[Author]

Posts