Selling on Reverb?

[BluesB3]

Like many of you, I am contemplating selling a couple of my keyboards and streamlining my gig rig. I want something that's more ergonomic on a par with a Hammond console.

 

I went to Reverb and filled out an ad just to see what the process was like. It seemed very easy. What I didn't see, since I did not initiate the ad, was what the cost or commission would be. If anybody has a handle on the ad cost or commission at Reverb, I'd love to hear about your experiences.

 

If you're asking why don't I post in the Classifieds, I didn't think any of our astute members would be interested in an OB3 squared and an Electro3-61.

 

Also as I was contemplating this, I wondered what is the average cost and most reliable shipper for shipping a medium weight Hammond clone would be? I have the original factory shipping boxes for both and I thought I'd double box with some crumpled paper or foam around the OE box.

 

Thanks in advance for any advice you may offer.

[MathOfInsects]

I think it's a flat 5%. It used to be a couple of different fees that added up to about that, and at some point they standardized it. But it's good to keep in mind that your sale price should include the money you won't be getting, from this fee.

 

I like Reverb, and just sold a pedal on it last week. If you price stuff right and don't mind fending off the take-a-chance lowballers to get the (ideally lower-end-of-the-range) price you want, it's the easiest way to sell used gear, other than to those you know.

[Bif_]

I sold on Reverb, don't recall the commission but I had no issue with it. I sold a Roland sound canvas in a few days for a very good price (more than I expected). High visibility to a lot of buyers, an easy selling process, a quick sale and a good price.....no complaints from me.

[zxcvbnm098]

For shipping, you really need to measure the box and weigh it, and then price it after you've packed to if at all possible.

 

I have found in my area the shipping stores that pack for you and use many or all of the usually suspects (USPS, EPS, Fedex), charge more than going direct with each.

 

I recently set up a Fedex account (which is free), and was pleasantly surprised at the rates I got by just doing that. Historically I have found USPS to be the most cost effective, but it depends on where it's going of course. With USPS make sure you get signature and insurance to cover,

 

Speaking of insurance, I think there was a thread sometime back that had a lot of info about that relative to the carriers; try to find that, because that changes often with all of them. Some that were good may not be now, so try to get the most recent info on who's good and who sucks. It may matter.

[MathOfInsects]

Also, Reverb offers discounted shipping. You get the item packaged up, measure and weigh it (fine to do this at shipping sites, including the PO, they are used to it), put the relevant information into the shipping-label page on Reverb, and you print out your own label at a discount over the shipping co's.

[Irena]

I've sold two items in the last year since they simplified (read: raised) their fees. Their current published rate is 5% commission + a 2.7% payment processing fee; ergo, 7.7%. I've not been able to tie their fees on my recent transactions precisely to the stated 7.7%, but I suspect it's related to nuances around sales tax, etc., and it's been close enough that I haven't worried about it.

 

Ditto on using Reverb's shipping service unless you have access to a spectacular negotiated rate with one of the major carriers. They offer a good discount and the process is streamlined.

[Doerfler]

I have been active on Reverb since 2015. I buy and sell a lot of gear, have over 30 feedback ratings, would have many more if people bothered to submit them. I factor an 8% fee subtracted from the sales price, and always use Reverb's shipping and buy the insurance they provide. I also always sell everything "as is". This way, once I get the green light from Reverb that's it's OK to ship, meaning buyer has submitted the funds to them, I print the label and take it to be shipped, typically UPS. Once the label is printed they tell me I can get my money and I have it transferred to my bank account, usually take about 36 hours before I see it, blame my bank for that. Transaction is over for me, anything happens in shipping, buyer deals with Reverb. Of course I am very honest about the condition the equipment I am selling is in to the buyers.

[KenElevenShadows]

I'll just join the chorus of people who use Reverb. I am very satisfied with them and the fees they charge. Everything is cleanly laid out, making it easy to sell or purchase.

[Art-0252]

I may be in the minority here, but I have used Reverb for years, and am fairly unhappy with the raise in fees that occurred when they were bought out by Etsy a year or two ago. Before being bought out, they had a very reasonable 3.5% seller's fee that was much better than the 5-7% charged by other online marketplaces like Ebay. They claimed when the company was acquired that they would stick by their pro-musician roots, but the increase in costs has not come with any increase in value, and seller's fees are passed on to buyers raising the price of used gear to absurd levels in some cases....

[S_Gould]

If you're asking why don't I post in the Classifieds, I didn't think any of our astute members would be interested in an OB3 squared and an Electro3-61.

 

 

That might be a mistaken assumption. I, for one, might be VERY interested, depending on the price. Besides, it doesn't cost you anything to try.

[Doerfler]

If you're asking why don't I post in the Classifieds, I didn't think any of our astute members would be interested in an OB3 squared and an Electro3-61.

 

 

That might be a mistaken assumption.

 

agree with this, wanted to post this myself earlier but it didn't happen

[o0Ampy0o]

....Before being bought out, they had a very reasonable 3.5% seller's fee that was much better than the 5-7% charged by other online marketplaces like Ebay.....

 

eBay can take as much as 14.35% depending on what you are selling and the final price sold.

 

In most categories, we only charge once your item sells (up to a 14.35% final value fee and $0.30 per order)

[Mark Zeger]

Is there a setting for seeing completed sale prices on Reverb? I"m planning to sell nearly all my studio gear and move 'inside the box' with an upcoming MBP. I will look on eBay for completed sales but also wanted to check Reverb. I"d post here in the classifieds before anywhere else.

[Morrissey]

Is there a setting for seeing completed sale prices on Reverb? I"m planning to sell nearly all my studio gear and move 'inside the box' with an upcoming MBP. I will look on eBay for completed sales but also wanted to check Reverb. I"d post here in the classifieds before anywhere else.

 

Yes, Reverb has a "Price Guide" section on the menu bar for most items which shows recent past sale prices. These price guides aren't available for less common items; Reverb seems to require some critical mass of recent sales to create a guide. Also, if you use a search engine to search for the item and "site:reverb.com," it often produces hits of previous completed sales.

[Outkaster]

I have had excellent luck and have sold a lot of high ticket items like two Jenco Celeste's. It's very easy there. I don't like the fees but it's better than Facebook marketplace and more focused on serious musicians. I can help walk you through things if you want.

[Stokely]

I think there used to be a search option on Reverb similar to ebay's, you can set it to "completed sales" or something similar (default is off).

 

I've only sold one thing, a fairly large keyboard that nobody locally wanted. No issues, though I did kind of try to find out about the buyers as much as possible. The guy that eventually bought it I found via his email, he was a musician in another state and that made me feel a bit better about the whole thing...I get paranoid about scammers who'll try to say "it was broken". I realize that sellers are somewhat protected but I simply don't want the hassle if it can be avoided.

 

Shipping is-or was-brutal on big items. Fortunately I discovered by accident that the mailroom where I work will send items Fedex at their cost, which is quite low. They also double-wrapped my keyboard in a custom box with padding (outside of the case) so that was pretty cool...work perk!

[Outkaster]

Shipping is killing me and it's the fault of the carrier mostly but I understand why.

[KuruPrionz]

I've sold a few things on Reverb and have been on eBay since 2000, sold LOTS of things.

It's important to describe all defects and if possible to photograph them. If it is a cosmetic defect, I often put a penny in the photo to give the shopper an idea of how big the defect actually is.

 

Packing well is paramount. Larger items I always try craigslist first and I've sold lots of things on there. It's really the easiest, you can deter scammers by posting "Local cash only, I will not ship or meet you elsewhere." on my ads.

 

For an item that may be collectable or is very desirable you could do better on eBay with an auction format if you plan well. List any auction items for 10 days, start on Thursday around 4-5pm Eastern Time so your auction ends on THE Sunday in the middle of the month, when people get their second paycheck. The first paycheck goes to rent/mortgage and bills. Be sure to post early enough that folks back East have a chance to bid on it. I usually start those at 98 cents and let them run, an 82 Gibson Les Paul Custom in very good condition with case went for over $3,200 that way. By the first day it was well over $1k.

 

Reverb is good for lots of things but bear in mind that the sell price can only go down and list accordingly. Take into account the time and effort to pack for war, you want your items to arrive in great condition. "Not as described" means a refund and possibly additional shipping costs so now you are in the hole. I get the Reverb insurance every time.

 

I haven't tried the MPN listings yet but it seems like a great place to sell music gear to me.

[MathOfInsects]

I'm sure versions of this discussion have come up here before, but I think the people most satisfied with the various commerce sites are the ones who lean toward "price over sale," and those who seem fine with it lean toward "sale over price." For me, I'm decidedly the latter. Once I've decided to sell something, it "costs" me more to continue owning it than to get some $ for it, even that means I am the cheapest seller on Reverb. I can only vaguely remember what I've ever sold anything for--and whatever it would have definitely been more than I'd be out renting the same item for however long I owned it, so everything I get back at that point is profit IMO. If that's your mindset, you'll be happy with something like Reverb, because you can get your needs met very quickly and easily.

 

But there are those who have a very firm and fixed idea of what they need to get for an item to sell it, and they can experience these sites differently. Not because their expectations are unreasonable, but because once you're factoring in commission and shipping and the price differential between you and others, your two choices are potentially don't sell for a long time/ever, or sell for less than you want, and those would both feel like dissatisfaction with the results of a site, to the seller.

 

I personally look at the range of similar items on Reverb, price mine toward the bottom of the range, get accurate shipping estimates, and then take (or negotiate to) an offer that gets me most of my price--usually in some mental window I've created that lets me feel confident the buyer is not fleecing me in order to resell at profit. I don't know what that's my threshold, but I also don't know why we stick to the Earth instead of flying off it, so take what I know with a grain of salt.

[KuruPrionz]

I'm sure versions of this discussion have come up here before, but I think the people most satisfied with the various commerce sites are the ones who lean toward "price over sale," and those who seem fine with it lean toward "sale over price." For me, I'm decidedly the latter. Once I've decided to sell something, it "costs" me more to continue owning it than to get some $ for it, even that means I am the cheapest seller on Reverb. I can only vaguely remember what I've ever sold anything for--and whatever it would have definitely been more than I'd be out renting the same item for however long I owned it, so everything I get back at that point is profit IMO. If that's your mindset, you'll be happy with something like Reverb, because you can get your needs met very quickly and easily.

 

But there are those who have a very firm and fixed idea of what they need to get for an item to sell it, and they can experience these sites differently. Not because their expectations are unreasonable, but because once you're factoring in commission and shipping and the price differential between you and others, your two choices are potentially don't sell for a long time/ever, or sell for less than you want, and those would both feel like dissatisfaction with the results of a site, to the seller.

 

I personally look at the range of similar items on Reverb, price mine toward the bottom of the range, get accurate shipping estimates, and then take (or negotiate to) an offer that gets me most of my price--usually in some mental window I've created that lets me feel confident the buyer is not fleecing me in order to resell at profit. I don't know what that's my threshold, but I also don't know why we stick to the Earth instead of flying off it, so take what I know with a grain of salt.

 

In my mind, the money is not made by selling, the money is made when you buy something. I look for deals. I like thrift stores primarily because it's hard to imagine that a thief would donate their stolen items to Salvation Army.

So it's a "clean buy", the only kind I willingly engage in. And sometimes prices are just absurd.

 

4 years ago or so I bought a repairable but slightly damaged old ukulele at Goodwill for $5. I got $500 for it, described accurately, on eBay. That doesn't happen often but it does happen and other stuff happens too.

I'm still using it but I bought an Audio Technica microphone in good shape, sitting in the tools at Goodwill for $3.50. It's gotta be worth $30, someday I may flip it for that and get a bag of groceries or something.

[Outkaster]

The problem is when people want to make money over what they paid. You can get into trouble this way. I have sold on Craigslist, EBay, Facebook Marketplace and Reverb. They all have their faults. I sell a lot of High ticket items so sometimes I find you can get screwed on shipping, fees or whatever it just depends on the situation.

[o0Ampy0o]

In my mind, the money is not made by selling, the money is made when you buy something.

It only becomes money when / if you sell it. Before that you are SAVING money if you purchase something lower than everywhere else you could purchase the item. If you could turn it around and sell it for more it is the process of selling when you make or lose money.

[MathOfInsects]

The problem is when people want to make money over what they paid. You can get into trouble this way. I have sold on Craigslist, EBay, Facebook Marketplace and Reverb. They all have their faults. I sell a lot of High ticket items so sometimes I find you can get screwed on shipping, fees or whatever it just depends on the situation.

Yes, I've eaten it more than once on shipping. But here's the part I always try to remember: If you ask me how much I "lost" those times, I have no idea. I just remember it happened. The net gain was getting rid of the item and having money I didn't have before.

 

I've got two items up on Reverb right now. Both are either at or near the lowest price on the whole site. Getting to sell some dead-weight drawer-filling piece of needless gear is worth way more to me than waiting around for the magic right buyer who will give me an extra 7 dollars or whatever. Particularly since I would have given either of the items (both pedals) to my guitar-playing friends for free. Instead they are going to help defray the cost of my two new pairs of glasses, which together cost more than a Reface CP.

[zxcvbnm098]

The problem is when people want to make money over what they paid. You can get into trouble this way. I have sold on Craigslist, EBay, Facebook Marketplace and Reverb. They all have their faults. I sell a lot of High ticket items so sometimes I find you can get screwed on shipping, fees or whatever it just depends on the situation.

Yes, I've eaten it more than once on shipping. But here's the part I always try to remember: If you ask me how much I "lost" those times, I have no idea. I just remember it happened. The net gain was getting rid of the item and having money I didn't have before.

 

I've got two items up on Reverb right now. Both are either at or near the lowest price on the whole site. Getting to sell some dead-weight drawer-filling piece of needless gear is worth way more to me than waiting around for the magic right buyer who will give me an extra 7 dollars or whatever. Particularly since I would have given either of the items (both pedals) to my guitar-playing friends for free. Instead they are going to help defray the cost of my two new pairs of glasses, which together cost more than a Reface CP.

 

Glasses......ugh.

 

[KuruPrionz]

In my mind, the money is not made by selling, the money is made when you buy something.

It only becomes money when / if you sell it. Before that you are SAVING money if you purchase something lower than everywhere else you could purchase the item. If you could turn it around and sell it for more it is the process of selling when you make or lose money.

 

I do buy things simply for the purpose of selling them, often.

If I pay $150 for something I can sell for $150 I haven't done anything good. Now I have to sell it, I won't break even because I put effort into buying and selling it.

 

So I want to pay less, much less - so I can sell it for enough to be worth the trouble and then some.

If I make poor buying decisions there is no money to be made. If I buy well, then I can make money.

 

Your thoughts are logical enough, technically you are correct. But, so am I.

[o0Ampy0o]

Your thoughts are logical enough, technically you are correct. But, so am I.

 

There are ways to make money when buying something** but the path you describe is not one of them.

 

You are spending money. You exchange money in order to own the thing. You will have less money in your possession than before you purchased it.

 

In order to gain money from this thing you have to sell it. Even if you sell it for less than you paid for it you would still gain money you did not have before you sold the thing.

 

In the long run you may come out ahead. Had you not bought the thing you would not have made money. However, it is not because you made money buying the thing it is because you made money selling it.

 

 

**One way you can make money buying something is if someone pays you money to buy the thing.

 

**Another way to make money buying something is if you purchase a lottery ticket and win more than the cost of the ticket.

 

 

[MathOfInsects]

Sunk cost vs. investment.

 

Some view the equipment we buy as sunk cost. We buy it, we use it, loop closed. We are already ahead. Then anything we might sell it for is profit/gain.

 

Some view the equipment we buy as an investment. We buy it, we sell it, loop closed. In that case, profit or gain is measured in whether we sold it for more than we bought it for.

 

KuruPrionz is describing investments, oOAmpyOo is describing sunk cost. They are just two different ways of thinking about the stuff we buy.

 

Kind of the same with renting vs. owning a house, right? You do get something for your rent money--a place to live. Loop closed. The homeowner has to make more from you (or a buyer) than they spend to "get" something for theirs.

[o0Ampy0o]

In a sense it is a matter of different ways of looking at something but I do not agree that I am considering Sunk Cost. I am addressing when money is exchanged foremost then whether it is exiting or entering not so much the why behind the exit or what I feel about the money exiting.

 

I consider KuruPrionz more of a trader / flipper than an investor. He is primarily focused on why his money should exit, which is because he sees the potential to turn the purchased item around and make a profit from it. I am sure he thinks beyond the why as his method is in motion. But within the context of this discussion I see his emphasis on why he would spend money. He spends money so he can make money but my point is that this is not the same thing as making money when you spend it.

 

I am saying you make money when you make the money. Spending money to make money is just one step of the process. It is not the final step.

[Al Quinn]

If you're asking why don't I post in the Classifieds, I didn't think any of our astute members would be interested in an OB3 squared and an Electro3-61.

 

 

That might be a mistaken assumption. I, for one, might be VERY interested, depending on the price. Besides, it doesn't cost you anything to try.

 

Not sure if you're referring to the OB3 or Electro but I've had an Electro 4D listed in the KC classifieds for a while. Many views but zero interest. I just checked my pricing (i.e., $1100) using info on Reverb that I learned about while reading this thread. Doing so validated my belief that I've listed my Electro 4D at a relatively low price (i.e., below the lower end of Reverb's Estimated Used Price Range which is $1,180-$1,360). I did this because I was willing to give up a few bucks so a fellow KC'er could get a good deal.

 

My take on this experience is that the issue is demand -- or I should say lack of demand. If anyone was interested they'd offer me a little less and I'd agree which would be a really nice deal for them. So, I could drop the price $100 but I don't see how that would help because there's no interest at an already low price. I understand market size can be an issue but in this case it shouldn't be as I've offered to drive up to an hour to meet someone half way. A two hour driving radius from where I live includes all of Long Island, all five burroughs of NYC, Westchester County, parts of NJ, Connecticut, and more -- you get the idea: there's a ridiculous amount of people within this driving radius.

 

No demand for an Electro 4D? I'm puzzled after hearing for years how popular this keyboard is. In any event there's a lower limit that I recently tested by selling a Roland KC-110 amp to Guitar Center. They say they'll give you half of what they can sell it for and that's what they did. My wife was with me and she asked what do you think they'll give you? As it turned out they were within $2 of my estimate. Easy peasy. I'd have to have my head examined to try to sell a Roland amp on this forum. So, of course, I did not. So, I now factor this lower limit into my thinking when trying to sell something online. I saw a used Electro 4D for sale at GC for $1600, which is no longer listed so perhaps it sold.

 

Don't get me wrong I've sold many things successfully through the years. My primary motivation is usually to free up space in my studio by moving stuff out that I don't use as it's basically clutter to me but likely of value to others. I'm not driven by making any sort of profit and enjoy selling stuff to KC'ers at a good price. I've met some really nice folks doing this which I value in ways that are much more important to me than money.

 

I have several other things in my studio that I need to sell. I haven't used Reverb but it looks appealing for smaller things where shipping costs won't overwhelm the deal but for a keyboard in the $1000 price range I'm not seeing it as a good way to go. Having said that, I understand when the priority is money it can be a good way to go.

[KuruPrionz]

In a sense it is a matter of different ways of looking at something but I do not agree that I am considering Sunk Cost. I am addressing when money is exchanged foremost then whether it is exiting or entering not so much the why behind the exit or what I feel about the money exiting.

 

I consider KuruPrionz more of a trader / flipper than an investor. He is primarily focused on why his money should exit, which is because he sees the potential to turn the purchased item around and make a profit from it. I am sure he thinks beyond the why as his method is in motion. But within the context of this discussion I see his emphasis on why he would spend money. He spends money so he can make money but my point is that this is not the same thing as making money when you spend it.

 

I am saying you make money when you make the money. Spending money to make money is just one step of the process. It is not the final step.

 

I am both a trader and an investor. In both cases, it is impossible to make money without spending it. Further, it is impossible to make money without selling the item.

I don't disagree with simple facts. It is a simple fact that I can buy a brand new guitar at the going rate and sell it later, losing money. Yes, I lost money on the sale of the item.

I have friends who do this all the time. A lack of patience leads to poor planning.

 

I would not have lost money if I had purchased more carefully, i.e. made the money when I purchased the instrument.

I have some items that I purchased because I want to use them, the only difference there is the time frame, apparently selling quickly is "trading" and selling slowly is "investing". I have done and do both, as need or opportunity arises. I also buy stocks, nobody buys stocks intending to keep them forever, no matter what. It is wise to be patient but it is also wise to be aware of trends and situations that may lead to a considerable loss of money. Buy low, sell high is a universal reality.

 

Can you sell if you don't buy? No, you can't (only if somebody gives you something, that is a lucky windfall with no planning on your part). Your logic falls flat on that point while being correct on the sale being where the register rings. If I buy carefully with a plan to sell, I am making money when I buy, you may be annoyed by that fact but it doesn't change it.

 

We will never agree and neither of us is wrong. Math of Insects nailed it 100%.