Facebook Marketplace

Although I had heard about Facebook Marketplace, I had no experience with it until this past month.  It was kind of surprising that I never used the online selling service since I had been a fan of Ebay for over a decade.  I think it was the thought of meeting people in person to drop off items and pick up money that scared me.  My dad was the complete opposite of me.  He actually preferred Marketplace as he didn't have to mess with shipping in using it. There also weren't any fees when an item sold.

Now that I better understand Marketplace, I can see why my dad prefers it.  He put Brett's air conditioner from college on his page in July and sold it within an hour.  That would have never happened with Ebay.  I would have had to wait until a garage sale or donated the air conditioner because of its size.  Since he also had luck with my Raggedy Ann lamp, I decided to give it a try.  I listed the items that I had sorted through at my parents recently on my own Marketplace and waited to hear if anyone was interested.

After a couple of weeks, I do still like the Facebook page but have gotten frustrated at times.  On Ebay a person just looks at the item and bids if they are interested.  I would get some questions, but overall, it was pretty straight forward.  With Marketplace I have gotten more questions than I ever would have thought and more people asking me to make concessions on my listings.  I have also been ghosted dozens of times as individuals have offered to buy an item and not follow through with the purchase.  At first, I held those items believing that the person would keep their word.  I have quickly changed and now only hold something if that person pays me online.  I hadn't planned on shipping anything but did end up sending one of Brett's games to Michigan with the buyer paying the extra cost.

Overall, it has been a positive experience. Besides the game and air conditioner, I have also sold a large set of Brett and Karen's wedding decorations bringing our family total to well over $100.  The only part that I feel bad about is having my parents being the one to meet with the buyer.  My mom said that they don't mind and that my dad actually enjoys talking to new people.  I was also able to sell her Halloween decorations by doing it this way and hopefully, we will be able to sell even more items this fall.