Re: help with selling a valuable used book
- From: clams casino <PeterGriffin@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 24 Sep 2007 13:57:22 -0400
AuctionAction wrote:
In article <9tbff3t31di9sg5s2r4uejfl085ebjfdok@xxxxxxx>, JC Dill says...Abe is typically the best reference for scarce / out-of-print books, however expect about half the average Abe price of similar quality when selling on eBay (although you can hope for and may get more than half).
I have a non-fiction book that is out of print. There are 8 copies
available thru Amazon, the lowest price for used is $199, the highest
price is $1050, and there are two that are listed as "new" at $800.
There are none of this particular book listed for auction on eBay or
in eBay stores. There is one on half.com for $200 - strange - it
doesn't come up in a partial title search on eBay because of other
books (similar books but smaller, covering a smaller part of this
field) with similar titles that show up in eBay stores.
Could someone who knows how to list and sell used books contact me
off-list so I can discussion this book's condition and how to list it
appropriately? I *think* it's in Very Good condition, but I know that
rating books is a bit of an art and I'm definitely not an expert at
it.
I'm thinking of listing it on eBay with a reserve, see if it draws any
bids by people who didn't think to look on Amazon. I'm also wondering
if it's worth listing in an eBay store. Or should I just put it on
Amazon? Or, is there another way/place I should list it?
Thanks!
jc
Don't use Amazon.com as a price guide. People list things there for
over-the-top prices. To see what it might be worth, and its availability, look
it up here:
http://www.abebooks.com
and let us know what that used book market indicates.
Amazon is typically NOT a good place to list a scarce book as they tend to have a relatively small market of buyers / lookers for older books. Also, as pointed out previously, Amazon pricing is most likely the pricing it will NOT sell at.
http://www.ioba.org/desc.html is a reference for book condition. A book in very good condition will likely have few, if any markings, minimal, if any tears / creasing on the DJ and have minimal, if any soiling. Few, if any truly scarce books tend to fall into that category, although many (non professional) sellers (frequent on eBay) do tend to often overstate condition. That, however, is not a good reason to overstate the condition. A collector of a scarce book will likely return any book that is overstated. Most scarce books tend to fall into the fair to good+ range for obvious reasons. Second to markings, the condition of the DJ is typically the next most important consideration for condition.
I suggest listing on eBay at the minimum you hope to obtain, being very clear / concise in defining any defects (markings, creasing, tears, soiling, etc). You do have a second listing option to relist at a lower price, but do space the second listing 4-6 weeks later.
.
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