How to List on eBay Step by Step

Just starting your eBay selling business? Here’s how to list on eBay step by step with pictures from the app!

Selling on eBay has never been easier. With the eBay app, you can list your items from anywhere you are. Here’s how to list on eBay step by step using the app!

How to List on eBay Step by Step with Pictures

Below is how to list on Ebay step by step with pictures but I also have a video on my YouTube channel for you where you can see step by step how I post a product I have.

Using the App to List on eBay

The easiest way to begin listing on eBay is to get the eBay app through Play Store or the Apple store. The app has almost all of the functionality of the website in regards to selling. More on that later.

Using the app to list on eBay is the easiest way to list an item!

Getting Started

When you open the eBay app to start listing your item, you want to click the “SELLING” button.

At the top you will hit the “LIST AN ITEM” button.

At that point the app will ask you to “describe your item”. Begin typing what you have. You do not have to be too specific here, just a make and/or model of what you are selling. In our example, I am typing “HP 826a” into that box. As you type the app will begin suggesting items, find yours and tap it.

If nothing comes up as a suggested item, you click “SHOW MATCHING TERMS” to begin listing your item. Here is where you need to be SPECIFIC to your item at that point your item will come up unless it is a super rare item and you have the only one. In that case, good for you! You cornered the market!

Condition

The next screen is CONDITION. Describe your item exactly as it is. No lying. This is not an area to make up something to make your item seem better. Believe me, your customers will value your honesty!

There is no “like new.” If your item is in great shape but lacks a box, paperwork or in any way isn’t like it came directly from the factory it has to be listed as USED.

Select Similar

Now eBay will show a handful of stock photos with some information. Select the stock photo that matches your item or click the bottom to CREATE A NEW LISTING if your item isn’t shown. On the next screen tap “SELL YOURS” to start your listing.

Now I’m going to go through step by step each section with my expert tips for listing your item on eBay.

The eBay app will then take you to the listing summary. Now is your time to SELL this product.

Taking Pictures for Your eBay Listing

The first thing the app is going to ask you for is pictures. I highly suggest using a white background for your photos.

I highly suggest that you use the eBay app to take the pictures. A good cell phone camera is perfect for taking your eBay listing photos.

Hit the little pencil in the corner. There you can either you can add photos from your gallery if you have previously taken pictures of your item or you can take new pictures with the app which is the method I use.

You can take 12 pictures for free to go with your ad. Any more than that and eBay will charge you extra to list.

You want to take clear, focused, and detailed photos of your item. This includes all angles (even the bottom) and any model numbers you can find. This is also the place to highlight any damage (on a box for a new item, or on the product in the case of a used item).

What If My Item Is Damaged?

Take pictures of any damages to your item. It okay to post damage, even encouraged to be completely honest with your potential customers.

If you sell something, and there are scratches (or damage) on it and the buyer doesn’t know or they are not clearly outlined, you can get hit with an Item not as Described or “INAD”. eBay will rule in the buyer’s favor and automatically approve a return and refund in INAD cases.

Even if you don’t think a scratch, tear or dent is a big deal; it is. Show it. Let’s avoid INAD whenever possible.

Title of eBay Listing

After you get your photos uploaded, the next item you have to fill out is the TITLE.

This is it. Your time to shine. You have 80 characters to sell this thing. The more words the better, but you only have 80 characters, so make them count. You have to be descriptive, but don’t use fluff.

Here’s an example: “New HP 826a CF310a Black Toner Cartridge 826a Genuine OEM Factory Sealed!”

Quick easy, descriptive to the point. It gives make, model(s), condition and manufacturer. That’s a good title. 73 characters and we’re done there.

Here’s what you don’t want “Print cart HP L@@K Like NEW Condition 826a” or HP 826a ink cart.

Here are some really common mistakes when titling your item:

Don’t shorten words! “Print cart” is no good. Think about how you search for items whether it’s through Google or on eBay. Buyers aren’t searching shortened words. You have to spell it out.
Avoid Symbols. “L@@K” Just stop. Don’t do this.
Do NOT Use “LIKE NEW!” to Sell an Item! You are not allowed to post “like new” in the title because eBay doesn’t allow it. It confuses the buyers. It’s new or used. Black and white. There’s no room for interpretation there.
Make and Model Next to Each Other. Put the make and model next to each other, like this: HP 826a

Other Tips for Listing Items on eBay

Capitalize Each Word. It helps you look more professional.
Avoid “Read Description” or “See Photos.” No one is searching for these terms so avoid using them in your title. You can add at the end if your make, model or condition doesn’t fill the 80 characters.

Item Details

The next box down is Item Details. Just the facts go here. Fill out as much of this as you can. The more information the better. This isn’t a place to sell per se, but you need to put down as much in this section as possible.

Description

NOW you can sell. Let it fly!

The more information here the better. Put all the same information down as you did in the Title box and then just let them have it! You can drop your “like new” in here. How many times it was used. How clean (or dirty) it is. Anything and everything goes here.

You want to make you buyer feel good about buying this product so keep it upbeat. Be honest. If there are defects on your used items list them here. You NEED to be honest about any defects.

Pro Tip: I tend to put any flaws or defects in the beginning of my description and then hammer to good stuff. When they are done reading the description, they should feel good and want to buy.

In this section you can (but it’s not needed) add information about shipping and your return policy.

Pricing

The next box down after the description is pricing.

Now your heart starts racing. This is where your results come from.

How do you price this item on eBay? Well, the answer is right there in your hand.

You can back out of your listing (don’t worry it will save as a draft), and you want to search as if you were a buyer right back at the beginning.

There, search for your item, but as if you were a buyer. The search results are where you are going to get your pricing information from. So put your item info into the search bar and when the results come up, head to the top right corner to “FILTER.”

There, you are going to tap “SHOW MORE” to expand the filters and then you are going to scroll down to “SOLD ITEMS.”

You will then see what your item has sold for over the last 60-90 days. That’s where you are going to get your prices from. In the reselling world this is called check “Comps”. These prices are the law. It doesn’t matter how much you feel the item is worth, this is the market staring you back in the face. Pick a price in this neighborhood.

Here are eBay’s options once you’ve set a price:

Auction vs. Buy it Now (BIN). I almost exclusively do BIN with offers. This isn’t eBay of 2002. No one auctions anymore. They want their item in Prime shipped in 2 days. No one is going to wait 7 days for an auction to end so try to avoid it.

Pro Tip: If you search comps and there is nothing listed and it seems like a rare or expensive item, go ahead and put it on auction. I will let put rarer things on auction for 3-7 day auctions before I convert them to BIN. But if you are selling socks, do BIN.

Offers? Yes. Always. Put a price in that section, so that you are not bombarded with insulting or waste of time offers. EBay will filter out those for you. How much do you make your offer price? I usually do 10-15% less than the stated price.

Pro Tip: This is what I call “Bonus Money”. I will check the comps and make my BIN price that 10-15% higher than the offer amount. The offer number is the number that I want to sell the item at. Any money over that offer number is what I call Bonus Money. For example: I want to sell X for $100. I make my BIN price $115 with my offer price of $100. If it sells for the full BIN I made an extra $15. If it goes for an offer price above $100 that’s all bonus money.

Duration is going to be good till cancelled unless you’re running an auction.

Quantity is how many of the items you are selling.

NOTE: If you are selling 3 individual hair dryers, you put 3 there. If you are selling 3 hair dryers in a lot the number here is 1, not 3. If you put 3 here, you better have 9 hair dryers.

Schedule Start Time. This is good if you go on vacation or don’t feel like doing this every day, you can have drafts to list on schedule. I recommend to get a listing up every day if you can so this might be a good option for you to batch all of your items together. There may be an extra fee for using this service.

Delivery

THE BAIN OF RESELLERS! THE SHIPPING SECTION!!

This is where a TON of new resellers get confused and make mistakes. If you screw up here, you’re losing money at best or getting suspended at worst.

In this section you are going to accurately add you items weight. This is VERY important to get accurately. You need to use an accurate scale. No, stepping on your bathroom scale with and without your item, and subtracting the difference, is not accurate.

ACCURACY IS KEY TO SUCCESS HERE! You have an accurate scale right? If not, click here for the one that I use every day.

You also need the dimension of the box you’re going to ship it in. If you don’t have a box yet, it’s okay to estimate here, but be smart. You’re going to be adding bubble-wrap, so make sure your estimate is reasonable.

Pro Tip: Have the box ready before you list. What happens if the item sells 10 mins after you post it? You gotta run around all crazy. Like a crazy box hunting person. Let’s avoid that.

Delivery Service

You are then going to pick your delivery service. This one is going to be item dependent, but you really can’t go wrong with USPS.

For USPS, if you item weighs less than 16oz (1lb) you ship using First Class. If the item is over 16oz, (this is a big distinction, you accurately weighed your item right? Just click here), then your item is going Priority Mail.

Now if you live above a FedEx, and the Post Office is all the way across town and prefer FedEx, that’s fine. As long as you choose that option in this section the integration is the same.

Free Shipping vs Calculated Shipping. Now for the big one. The reason you’ve read this far. Free shipping or Calculated Shipping? The great chicken vs. egg of the reselling world! AHHHH! What do you do?

Easy. Do calculated shipping.

Until you are comfortable with the shipping process, zones and weights (you got your scale right?) just make it easier on yourself and do calculated shipping. It is way easier for you and the buyer, and it’s one less way to screw up.

International. Next section is going to ask if you want to do International. Yes. Through eBay’s Global Shipping Program (GSP) you’ll be able to ship internationally. So far I’ve shipped to Germany, Australia and England.

Local Pickup. Sure. No one ever does this because that’s what Craigslist is for, but hey why not? That said, if you DO get a local pickup sale, ALL payment and communication MUST be done on the eBay Platform. That’s not negotiable. They will kick you off the platform so fast! Keep it legit!

Donate To Charity

Do what makes you feel best.

Now even though the next option is “list your item” you’re not done yet! Keep scrolling! All the way at the bottom is where you set your Preferences.

You indicate that you want Payment via PayPal.
What your handling time is. We swim in Amazon’s pool, get those packages out as fast as you can to try to keep up! The default is 3 days, but to me that is too long. That said, do not set it so quick that you can’t fulfill the obligation. eBay doesn’t care that the cat is sick, if you say 1 business day it means 1 business day. And that means in the POST OFFICE after 1 business day. You can’t just print a label and have it sit. The clock stops when the item is scanned at the Post Office, not at the time of printing the label.
Accept Returns. Up to you. I have a Top Rated store so I have to accept returns. But it’s up to you. Some buyers will buy from you because you accept returns. Some do not care. Remember, if your item is INAD or broken upon receipt, you’re taking that return no matter what. That’s eBay’s policy.
Require Immediate Payment. Always yes. Note: This option is available when your selling account is in good standing and won’t be available if you’re starting from scratch. This option is not available on auctions or accepted offers. The buyer has some time (48 hours) in those cases.

Proofread!

At this point I will save my item as a draft and head to the computer. I will click on it again on the selling tab, and I will proofread it. Seriously no one proofreads anymore; let’s buck that trend and not send out typos!

On the computer I also make sure that calculate sales tax is checked!

After my proofread, I will hit “LIST YOUR ITEM” and (patiently) wait for it to sell.

There you have it! How to list on eBay step by step with pictures. Now get out there and start selling!

Have any additional questions about listing your item?