Amazon Marketplace vs Ebay? (For books)

[Dan Gould]

As mentioned here

it looks like I may be moving early in 2016 and I figured if we move it's time to get rid of my poli-sci books from a previous life.  Unfortunately a much higher percentage of books are now baseball or jazz/blues related and I don't plan to sell but I decided to check Amazon for pricing.  I'd say 1/2 to 2/3 of the poli-sci titles are worth about a penny and should just be sent for recycling.

But I found others that appear to be the same printing and have prices of $15 to upwards of $70!  And not just one lunatic seller on a lot of these either.  Some have three or more listings, all surprisingly high and all within $5 of each other.

So my thought is, set up an account and severely under-price these people, then just wait.  I'd post that I am clearing out poli-sci text books so if you like these look for the rest of my stock, maybe someone buys multiple items at once that way.

My concern is costs, as the fine print tells me $2.34 per item sold, and 15% off the top for 'referral'.  But, listings are free until they sell, and I am thinking - but am not sure - that this is more economical than eBay. Thoughts? As always, thanks in advance!

 

[ejp626]

I have sold books, including academic books, on Amazon.com, but they move very slowly, like 2 or 3 sold per year.  I can't sell books on Amazon.ca since the postal reimbursement is so low it isn't worth it.  You probably are best off donating them to a university department where the grad students will scoop them up.

 

Alternatively you could list a whole book lot on Kijiji or craigslist.  You might get something faster that way.

[Dan Gould]

39 minutes ago, ejp626 said:

I have sold books, including academic books, on Amazon.com, but they move very slowly, like 2 or 3 sold per year. 

This is fine to me, as there isn't more than a box worth to go to the new house, and it's no cost to me unless they sell.  And I can at least hope that someone will want more than one if they look thru the rest of my modest offering.  Thanks.