Using Amazon Marketplace to Sell Used Books
One of the best things about selling used books on Marketplace is that you do not have to shell out an insertion fee, worry about timing, or even keep track of what you have for sale. With this service, you only need to put your books online and whatever sells, sells. You will be notified whenever this happens. It is not an auction; whatever price you put on a book is what you get from the buyer. The only agreement is that you need to ship the book within two days of making the sale. This means you need to be careful with books you sell. You always want to check and see if any books have sold, even with Amazon’s e-mail notice. There is always the chance that an e-mail gets lost.
If you know that you are going out of town or on vacation for a while, you should suspend sales for that time. Amazon makes it easy to temporarily stop your sales. Just click a button and everything stops until you get back. It is very important to do this because of customer ratings. You do not want people ordering books when you are unable to respond.
Further in this book, you will find information about how to join other Amazon programs. For used books, a large number of people use Marketplace. This is because of its ease and, more importantly, the millions of buyers who know that they can find their used books through Marketplace. The advertising and promotion have already been done for you.
Of course, there is a charge for selling your books on Marketplace. You pay a flat 99 cents, a commission of 15 percent of the sale, and also the variable closing fee. Amazon gives you a shipping credit to pay for sending out the product. The proceeds go directly into your account. If this worries you, you can set up a separate bank account. You set your sales price, and Amazon only collects a fee when your book sells. Amazon collects the money from your buyer, including the amount for shipping. It then deducts the commission off the sales price and the transaction fee.
$10 for book
+ $3.49 shipping charged to buyer
- $1.50 (15 percent commission)
- 99 cents (cost per item)
- $1.35 (variable closing fee, to cover refunds through A to-z Guarantee program)
Amazon will waive the 99-cent transaction fee if you become an Amazon Pro-Merchant or sell in large quantity (more than 20 items per month). Only become a Pro- Merchant if you have a large number of books to sell. It will cost you $39.99 per month, but you can cancel the account at any time. As your business grows, you will know if, and when, it is applicable to move to the Pro-Merchant level.
As noted previously, Amazon Marketplace is easy to use. Registration is a standard online membership process, requesting your name, shipping and billing address, credit card information, payment method (including bank check number), birthday (optional), and e-mail address. You will want to choose a name that buyers can associate with your business. Once you feel comfortable with the selling process, you should enter your information into the “About Seller” section and include a picture or logo if you wish. In addition, you need to carefully read and accept the Participation Agreement. As usual, in order to log on, you will need to have a user ID, your name, and a password. Be sure to make a note of this password for future use. For security purposes, have the password contain both letters and numbers and more than eight characters. If you already have a personal account with Amazon, you should set up a new account here as a business. For accounting and tax purposes, it is best not to mix personal and financial and credit activities.
Once you sign on to Marketplace, you will need to click on the item detail “sell books” and enter your separate books. This can be done by using the author and title, ISBN, and/or UPC for more recent books; older books may have other codes, which you should also become familiar with. You need to make sure that you have entered the right information, such as format (hardbound or paperback, for example), date, and edition. Verify that all the information is correct.
Amazon will ask you to set a price and make recommendations. To start, you will have the opportunity to see what others are charging for the same book. You do not have to sell your book for the lowest price. Do a search online on other Web sites to determine the book’s value. Also, Amazon will ask whether you want to ship internationally. Shipping internationally is excellent because it opens up many more potential customers. Be careful, as it is more expensive to ship to other countries, especially if your book is heavy. Amazon charges the customer more for international shipping; however, once in a while, that charge will not be enough money to get your book to certain countries within 14 days.
Check with the USPS for overseas’ shipping rates. In some cases, such as with a paperback, it may be to your advantage to sell internationally. Many merchants do not take this option because of the extra cost. The international market is expanding significantly, and it would be worth your while to look at this option and which books may be worth your while to list for international sale.
Pricing the Book
As noted previously, it is necessary to describe the condition of each item that goes on Marketplace, and you should become familiar with the terminology involved. This is a major factor in setting the price of a book. It is also necessary because you do not want any surprises. The buyers have to know what they can expect when they open the package and see their purchase. You cannot catch everything, unless you go page by page in each book you sell; nevertheless, you should quickly look through the book to find any damage with the binding, writing inside, notes, and folded-down corners. Each seller has different guidelines for book selling. As noted previously, Amazon has its own criteria for specific items, such as computers.
- Collectible: Must be unique in some fashion, such as signed, rare, or out-of-print. It is important for you to explain why your copy is collectible.
- New: This is a book that is brand-new, never read, and in perfect condition. If it was originally plastic-wrapped, it should remain that way.
- Like New: This book was unread and remains in excellent condition. It has its dust cover, and there are no marks or folds on any of the pages.
- Very Good: This book may have been read, but it still appears to be in perfect condition. Once again, the pages have no folds or notes, and the spine is completely undamaged.
- Good: This book has also been read, but is also in clean condition. The dust cover is on the book and all the pages are intact, although there may be some notes and highlighting, including “from the library of” labels.
- Acceptable: Although this book may have a number of notes or highlighting, it is still readable. All pages are intact, but the dust cover may be missing.
- Unacceptable: These include books that are mildewed, stained, or unclean. They may have missing pages or text that cannot be read under highlighting. Also included are items that were used only for promotional use, such as advance reading copies (ARCs) and uncorrected proof copies.
Once you know the condition, it truly comes down to supply-and-demand and following the lead of other sellers. Unless you have a true find, you will not have to expend much effort to set the price. You need to look at the competitive offers. If you ask for much more than the average going price, you will have wait a long time to sell the book, or you may not sell it at all. Sometimes, there are bidding wars, so books are a penny. You do not want to get into this game; you will be selling books for almost nothing. Also, think about the other book dealers who are not selling their books dirt-cheap and still doing well. They sell books for a decent price that are in good-to-excellent condition and are books that sellers want. In fact, having a book at a higher price can help buyers see it as more valuable.
Textbook Sales
Most used booksellers use to shy away from textbooks, but these things have changed. A study conducted by the Government Accountability Office found that, although the price of college textbooks has not risen as much as tuition costs and other higher education expenses, it did increase twice the rate of annual inflation over the last two decades. Even though the amount spent on textbooks differs based on factors such as course load, the College Board™ reported that the cost of books and supplies for the 2005-2006 academic year ranged from $801 to $904, depending on the type of institution a student attended. This figure did not include the savings achieved by students selling their used textbooks or using financial aid. Now, given the huge increase in printed materials — about 41 percent over five years — it is becoming increasingly difficult for students to pay hundreds of dollars for these textbooks, let alone tuition and room and board. Meanwhile, the price of textbooks keeps going up.
Some books that are requested specifically by professors are difficult to buy used — particularly those that the professors have written themselves and want royalty commissions on. Colleges and universities do have different standards, however. If you can get some of these textbooks that will be used for another semester for low enough cost, in good enough condition, and recent enough for resale value, you can make yourself a nice profit.
A number of both students and parents have been using Amazon to sell used textbooks, with some books bringing better results than others — mathematics textbooks, for example. Amazon is a good place to sell these books because it is possible to reach people worldwide. Amazon attracts a lot of buyers who are specifically looking for textbooks. Here are some tips in regard to college textbooks:
- Sell your books at peak times of August, September, January and February.
- Try to resell your book as quickly as possible, as the class or the professor of the course may change requirements and replace the textbook with another.
- Research the price of your book through Amazon as well as other textbook-selling sites.
- If you plan on selling your books, do not underline or highlight text — or at least try to keep it to a minimum.
- If you smoke or eat while studying, there is a good chance that your books will offer proof. Books with sticky pages, coffee cup rings, and smoky smells do not sell well.
- Make sure the condition of your books matches the conditions that you state. If it is “used,” do not list it as “like new.” Also, be extremely careful of edition. Each year, another edition could become available, and students need the latest book.
- Thumb through the whole book and look for torn pages and underlined text.
- Make sure you send the exact book. Check the ISBN and binding of the book. They should match.
- Be patient and reduce your price. More often than not, you can get 40 to 50 percent of the original cost. If the book is rare, you might even get much higher than this. If there are several people selling the book on Amazon, it might be a little lower than this price.
- Try to select all shipping options when listing your book. Many sellers do not select “international shipping.” If you do, you can sometimes sell your book more easily.
- Be careful about packing the book. You want people to be satisfied with what they receive from you.
Amazon now offers fulfillment services for textbook sales. The EasySell™ program ships any media items, as well as textbooks out of Amazon. The company will also store the books free for 60 days and then charge for storage. This means no more running back and forth from the post office. There is no monthly fee, but when a book sells, Amazon will charge a $1.35 variable closing fee, 99-cent set fee, and 15 percent commission on the final sale amount. If you are selling a $20 book, that will amount to $3. For students who never get around to listing the used books with any other source, it may be nice to get a few bucks every so often.
Amazon is increasing its efforts in selling textbooks through Marketplace, which is a good indication that this opportunity is growing. If you want to sell textbooks, be sure to download the “Textbook Selling Guide” on Amazon’s Web site, which has best practices and frequently asked questions, and view the video for selling tips.
Other Tips for Selling Used Books
- Although Amazon will contact you each time a book is sold, it is still best to update your inventory at least every other day. You do not want to lose a sale just because you forgot to send the book out.
- If a book has not been sold in 60 days, you will receive notification. Be sure to let Amazon know your decision. If a book has been listed for 30 days without any movement, check the price and desirability with other books on Marketplace.
- Be sure to remove your listing when you are away for a vacation. Let Amazon know three to four days in advance.
- Do not rely completely on getting e-mails for sale notices. As everyone knows, e-mails can disappear into junk mail, never arrive, or get overlooked within the morass of other e-mails.
- Remember that the customer always comes first. If there is any doubt about an item, swallow your pride and give in. That person could be a big buyer next time. Also, remember Amazon’s A-to-z Guarantee.
- Send e-mails letting people know when you find a book that may be of interest because of the subject. Send out other information of interest. (Ask first to make sure such e-mails are acceptable to the customer, and provide the customer with an opt-out option.)
- Include a packing slip and your business card within the shipping package.
- Respond to customer questions as soon as possible — always within 24 hours.
- Send an e-mail confirmation when you ship the book to your customer. Encourage the person to fill out a feedback form.
Dear (Name):
Thank you so much for purchasing your book from (name of company).
We received your confirmation order (date) for your Amazon.com Marketplace purchase and your (name of items) was/were shipped today through (mail service). Your shipping delivery confirmation number is (xx). You can call (telephone number) or go on (Web site) for additional information.
It can take up to (xx) business days to reach the final destination; international shipping can take up to (xx) days. If you asked for Priority Mail, it should arrive in two to three days. If you do not receive your package as expected or have any concerns when it arrives, please contact us as soon as possible (e-mail address and phone).
Comments on your buying experience can be left at www.amazon.com/buyer-feedback.
Thank you again for using our services. If there is any other way that (name of business) can be of help in the future, please let us know. We would be pleased to service you again with your book-buying needs.
(Your name, title)