You want to clean up your house. You want to get rid of something you don’t need. Did you ever think of selling them on-line? Why don’t you learn about them and take the first step? It’s surprisingly easy if you once know them.
But sorry if you are an overseas resident. This article is written on the situation in Japan. Please look up the rules and fees in your country.
Yahoo Auctions and Mercari
“Yahoo Auctions” is literally an auction site run by Yahoo. So if you set a price and put your item up for sale, prospective buyers will bid on it, and the person with the highest price will win the bid and buy it.
If there are multiple bidders, the price goes up and the item becomes the property of the highest bidder. If there is only one bidder after the deadline, the item will be sold without any price competition.
On the other hand, if there are no bidders, your auction will end there and you will have to re-list your item if you want to continue.
“Mercari” is a non-competitive flea market application that allows you to purchase items on a “first come, first served” basis.
If you are satisfied with the price of the item, you can buy it right away, and at that point, other applicants will not be able to buy it.
On the other hand, if you want to buy an item at a lower price, you can negotiate the price down, and if you reach an agreement with the seller, you can buy the item at that price. You can also negotiate for a lower price on Yahoo!, but the situation is a little different because popular items go to the person who offered the higher price.
In Mericari, there is no expiration date like on Yahoo, so even if it doesn’t sell, you can leave it on the online market as is, and if it catches someone’s eye over time, it may sell when you forget about it.
In other words, if you want to sell your items at the highest possible price, even if it takes a long time, I recommend Yahoo. But, if you want to give your items away faster than the price and hope someone will use them, I recommend Mercari.
It is generally said that Yahoo users are a little older and more male, while Mercari has more female users in their 20s and 30s, but I haven’t felt any impact from this in my past experiences using both.
Registration and Fees
Registration is required for both.
To start Yahoo Auctions, you first need to get a Yahoo Japan ID. After that, you need to register for Yahoo Wallet for payment. Mercari allows you to register on your mobile phone with the app, and my personal impression is that Mercari is easier.
Both Yahoo and Mercari charge a 10% fee when a transaction is completed. For Yahoo, the fee is discounted to 8.8% if you are a premium member, which is a bit cheaper than Mercari. But considering the monthly fee for premium membership, I don’t see much difference. And it’s a bit of a hassle to get a premium membership just for Yahoo Auctions.
Be a buyer!
The best way to find out what it is like to be a seller is to become a buyer first. Even if you don’t actually buy it, you can get a feel for it by experiencing it but closing it one step before payment action.
First, find something you want to sell. And take a close look at:
- How much is the price?
- Is it new, old, scratched, or dirty?
- Are the photos clear enough to see the condition?
- Are the item descriptions easy to understand?
- Is the shipping cost paid by the seller or by the buyer?
- Will it be shipped right away?
If you are a buyer, you will know what kind of information you want.
So far, you don’t need to actually buy the item to understand this information. But if you actually buy it, you’ll find out even more. This is the interaction with the seller.
- Did you receive a comment from the seller as soon as the purchase was made?
- Did you receive a notification of when the shipment will be made?
You can find out if the seller is sincere or not.
Nowadays, both Yahoo! and Mercari automatically exchange messages, so you don’t have to communicate in your own words to complete a transaction. However, it would be polite to exchange the minimum information.
For example: “Thank you for your purchase”, “Please wait a while, we will ship tomorrow”, etc.
Imagine if the seller kept silence after you completed a purchase transaction, you would probably feel concerned whether your order was correctly received.
When the goods actually arrive, you can check the followings.
- Was there any difference between the actual item and the conditions described in message?
- Was the item carefully packed?
Summary
Yahoo Auction
- Recommended if you want to sell at a desired price even if it takes time.
- The price may rise if there are multiple bidders.
- Need to get a Yahoo ID before registration for auction.
- If not sold within the deadline, you’ll have to re-list it.
Mercari
- Recommended if you want to get rid of it faster than the price.
- There may be negotiations for the price, so you may have to let it go at a lower price than the listing price.
- To register, all you have to do is download the application and fill in the required information. Easily done by mobile phone.
- You can continue to list your items until they sell.
Personally
It’s totally subjective, but this is how I use Yahoo and Mercari depending on the situation.
- Items that are relatively new on the market, and have a known price -> Yahoo Japan (As the matter of course, the newer the item is, the higher it may sell)
- An antique that seems to have value but you don’t know how much it is -> Yahoo Japan (You may be able to sell it for more than you think it is worth)
- Clothing, small clothing items, and miscellaneous goods → Mercari (Items you want to let go quickly rather than the price)
- Books -> Mercari (Books that are listed in top ranking can be sold at a high price.
Once you know what they are like, you can take the first step!
Good Luck!
I’ll write about how to take pictures in the next article.
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