Ink cartridges are a very profitable and fast-moving item to list
on eBay. Even the ones that are expired sell regularly and for a good
profit. They are also very easy to find either at yard sales, thrift
stores, estate sales or in a storage unit you may buy at auction.
The process for buying an ink cartridge is no different from any other item you may be sourcing. It begins with looking the cartridge up on your eBay app on your smart phone. For example, lets use the HP 20 Black C6614d ink cartridge. Imagine that you are in a thrift store like Goodwill today, and you come across an HP 20 Black ink cartridge. The box is a little worn, but it is still sealed from the factory. It's priced at $1.99. It's expiration date is MAR 2008. You get out your phone, open the eBay app and type in "HP 20 Black C6614d expired 2008". The results pop up on the screen. The prices range from $5 to $13. Those results don't mean a lot, they just show you the price range people are asking for that item. What you need to do is tap on the refine tab, then tap completed. The reason why you pick the completed option instead of the sold option is because the sold option only shows you the auctions that did sell. You want to see auctions that sold, and auctions that ended without selling. Scrolling down the list, if the price is green, that shows you it sold. If the price is red(windows based smart phones don't have the color so carefully check each listing to see if it sold.), that auction ended without a bid or buy it now. The green prices outnumber the red by 5 to 1. This is a good sign, it means this item sells regularly. The prices that are green range from .99 to $13, with various expiration dates and shipping fees charged. After a quick averaging of prices and expiration dates, this cartridge looks like a quick & easy sale priced at $11 with $2.99 shipping.
Here is a quick method I use to do a field determination of what I will make on this item. I always figure cost and fees a little high to be safe. If the cartridge sells for $11(I don't include the shipping charges in this & always try to be as accurate and honest with the buyer as possible on the charges), I figure eBay and PayPal fees at 20% (like I said I figure fees a little high to be safe). $11 x.8 = $8.80. You need to take the fees off the top of your total sale price first. Then you take what you paid for the item out. $8.80 - $1.99 = $6.81 before tax profit. That's not a huge profit, but you tripled your money on this one sale and now you have $6.81 to put back into your business and multiply again! You could even hold on to the cartridge until you have two or more and sell them in a lot to make more profit off one transaction. You could even set the sale price at $14 with a best offer option. It will either pop at $14, or you may get a best offer you can accept.
I chose this particular cartridge because it is a very common item. With all the different brands and models of cartridges out there the prices are all over the place, so if you are unfamiliar with an item, always look it up. You may even want to look up items you are familiar with if its been a while since you sold them because prices will fluctuate from time to time.
The Benefits of Selling Ink Cartridges on eBay:
The process for buying an ink cartridge is no different from any other item you may be sourcing. It begins with looking the cartridge up on your eBay app on your smart phone. For example, lets use the HP 20 Black C6614d ink cartridge. Imagine that you are in a thrift store like Goodwill today, and you come across an HP 20 Black ink cartridge. The box is a little worn, but it is still sealed from the factory. It's priced at $1.99. It's expiration date is MAR 2008. You get out your phone, open the eBay app and type in "HP 20 Black C6614d expired 2008". The results pop up on the screen. The prices range from $5 to $13. Those results don't mean a lot, they just show you the price range people are asking for that item. What you need to do is tap on the refine tab, then tap completed. The reason why you pick the completed option instead of the sold option is because the sold option only shows you the auctions that did sell. You want to see auctions that sold, and auctions that ended without selling. Scrolling down the list, if the price is green, that shows you it sold. If the price is red(windows based smart phones don't have the color so carefully check each listing to see if it sold.), that auction ended without a bid or buy it now. The green prices outnumber the red by 5 to 1. This is a good sign, it means this item sells regularly. The prices that are green range from .99 to $13, with various expiration dates and shipping fees charged. After a quick averaging of prices and expiration dates, this cartridge looks like a quick & easy sale priced at $11 with $2.99 shipping.
Here is a quick method I use to do a field determination of what I will make on this item. I always figure cost and fees a little high to be safe. If the cartridge sells for $11(I don't include the shipping charges in this & always try to be as accurate and honest with the buyer as possible on the charges), I figure eBay and PayPal fees at 20% (like I said I figure fees a little high to be safe). $11 x.8 = $8.80. You need to take the fees off the top of your total sale price first. Then you take what you paid for the item out. $8.80 - $1.99 = $6.81 before tax profit. That's not a huge profit, but you tripled your money on this one sale and now you have $6.81 to put back into your business and multiply again! You could even hold on to the cartridge until you have two or more and sell them in a lot to make more profit off one transaction. You could even set the sale price at $14 with a best offer option. It will either pop at $14, or you may get a best offer you can accept.
I chose this particular cartridge because it is a very common item. With all the different brands and models of cartridges out there the prices are all over the place, so if you are unfamiliar with an item, always look it up. You may even want to look up items you are familiar with if its been a while since you sold them because prices will fluctuate from time to time.
The Benefits of Selling Ink Cartridges on eBay:
- Easy to source. Yard sales, thrift stores, estate sales etc.
- Small and easy to ship.
- They sell quickly and at a good ROI.
- Expiration dates. A few years is OK, but more than 5 or 6, be careful.
- Make sure the box is unopened, or the cartridge wrapper is sealed.
- Only purchase name brand cartridges like HP, Epson, Canon etc. Avoid generic brands or refurbished cartridges.
- Always use the method mentioned above to look up any item before you buy it to resell.
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