How to describe a book when you sell on eBay

My husband and I own a used books store. We went from the brick and mortar book shop to the online bookshop in the 1990s. We know how to describe a book to sell on eBay and our books often sell for higher prices than average. Here I will teach you how to describe a book to give it the best chance of selling on eBay.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Camera or scanner
• eBay selling account

1. The first thing you should do before attempting to sell a book on eBay is find out if it is worth the trouble. You can research the book's value by looking up the title, author and edition on www.abe.com (Advanced Book Exchange) or www.alibris.com. If there are 2000 copies of the book you have and the prices start at $1.00, it's probably not worth your time.

2. 
   This is the cover of a book I listed on eBay.

   Once you have a book that is worth selling, you should take a photograph with your digital camera or scan the cover of the book with a flat bed scanner.
   
   Photograph the cover, the title page and if there is a question about edition, photograph the copyright page.
   
   If the book has a lot of color illustrations, take several photos of the color illustrations. Pictures really do sell the product and I have learned to take a lot of pictures of a book that has good color illustrations.
   
   When you take the photos, don't try to avoid showing the book's flaws. If you take a photo and the photo shows the book to be a different color than it actually is, be sure to mention that in your description.

3. 
   Title page of book

   When you write the description of the book you are selling, the more detail you have about the book's condition, the better chance you have of selling it. Some people will use a stock description with a stock photo of a book. The reason that stock photos and descriptions don't work well for used books is because some editions look completely different from others. And used books may be worn or stained, etc. There is no substitute for a good personal description.

4. 
   Table of contents is important in non-fiction books

   There are some basic things that most buyers want to know about the book. First, the condition is most important. Is it a hardcover? Does it have a dust jacket? Does it have a previous owner's name in it? Are there rips, stains or tears to pages? Is there underlining or underscoring in the text? Is it a first edition? Is the dust jacket price clipped?
   
   In the next step, you will see an example of a good description. It starts with the title of the book, then tells who the author is, who published the book and what year it was published. It tells that it is a first edition, that it is a hardback book with a priced dust jacket. It also tells the buyer how many pages are in the book and how big the book is. Then it reminds the prospective buyer to look at the pictures of the book by scrolling down. It also tells the prospective buyer about shipping methods.

5. 
   Take lots of pictures of color illustrations.

   Birds of the Eastern Forest Volume 1
   
   By John A Livingston, paintings by JF Lansdowne, published by Houghton Mifflin, Boston, 1968, first edition. This 237 page hardback book is bound in blue cloth with gilt decor and is in very good condition with a very good but slightly shelfworn dust jacket. Previous owner's gift inscription on free standing front endpaper. The color plates are absolutely beautiful and there are 52 of them. The book is large, measuring 13 x 10".
   
   Please see photos below.
   
   We ship all of our books in cardboard boxes with protective cushioning and guarantee safe arrival. We ship within one business day of receiving your payment. We will ship books by media mail to U.S. residents. Media mail generally takes 4-7 days for delivery but can on occasion take up to two weeks for delivery. Please note that we have been shipping books through the mail for over 30 years and pride ourselves on delivering your book to you safely.

6. Some sellers take too much time describing what the book is about. Most people who are looking at the auction have found it by searching for the title and will know what the book is about. While there is nothing wrong with putting a very short description of what the book is about, it shouldn't be a priority. Buyers are more interested in the pictures and the description of the book's condition.

7. If the book you are selling is non-fiction, I recommend photographing the table of contents page. For example, if you are selling a book about birds of the Eastern forests, the table of contents page will show each bird that is talked about in the book. If it is a Civil war book, the table of contents will reveal the various battle places, etc.

8. The only time I call a book new is when it is still in the shrinkwrap. If it looks like it is brand new, describe it that way. If there is a tear on the dust jacket, say so. If there is a previous owner's name inside the book, mention that in the description. If any of the pages are stained or foxed, mention that in your description. It will cost you money to have someone return a book to you because you forgot to mention that a previous owner wrote a recipe on the blank endpapers in ink. Describe whatever flaws might be in the book. Look it over carefully and describe any marks, scratches, dents, tears, etc.

Tips & Warnings

• You can't have too much description.
• More pictures = higher prices
• Describe any and all flaws.

Resources

• Example of good book description

[blindsquirrel]

on 8/5/2009 I sell books on eBay too and this info will really help. What great advice from someone who knows! How novel. ha ha, book joke.

[kimarkent]

on 12/27/2008 Thank you for the helpful hints and web sites to look up to find info about books. I may have not been able to sell mine because i gave too much time describing what the book was about. so thanks for the tips.