How to Make Money by Reselling Your Old Items for Cash

A step-by-step guide on listing and selling your stuff

In the age of infinite side hustles, everybody has something going on the side. Everyone has some kind of passion project or side hustle that grants them a few extra bucks.

I’ve been selling successfully online since 2012. I started with my own Etsy shop where I sold children’s aprons and makeup bags. As time went on, I branched out to other areas.

I started watching Gary Vaynerchuck and his online series, Trash Talk. It was all about how he went to garage sales to buy items he would turn around and flip on eBay for more money.

It inspired me to start my journey. I cleared out my closet, making hundreds of dollars off my clothes and items. It was so successful that I started to go garage sailing and start flipping myself.

So, I thought I would give you a guide on how you can sell your stuff.

1. Sign up for the app(s) of your choice.

There are dozens of apps out there for selling. Depending on what you’re selling, some platforms are better than others.

Etsy

Etsy is great if you’re selling your handmade crafts. It’s a crafter’s dream site. Whether you sew, knit, or do woodwork, there’s a market for it here. If you can make it, you can sell it.

eBay

eBay is the shopper’s hub of the internet. It’s perfect if you’re reselling books, music, electronics, or toys. I’ve sold antique glassware, hair products, and dog toys.

Mercari

Mercari is kind of like eBay lite. It’s a lot of the same products, but it can be a bit more niche. You can also shop and sell locally.

I’ve mostly sold Bark Box toys on here, but you can sell anything.

Poshmark

If you want to sell clothes, shoes, or accessories, this is the app for you. It’s home to thousands of different brands. You’ll typically do better if you post name brands, like Nike, Athleta, or White House Black Market, but anything goes.

The app hosts ‘parties’ about every two hours for niche items, where you can share your applicable listings.

2. Get your items ready.

If you have more than one thing, you can take a go at it and batch them. Instead of doing them one by one, you can batch the process. Take all the pictures at once. Edit the images all at once. Write the descriptions at the same time.

3. Take clear pictures of your item.

Since I’ve been running my own business since I was 17, I’ve invested in some materials to make this easier. But make no mistake, you don’t need anything other than your phone.

You can easily take pictures of your items on the ground or hanging up.

Here are a few tips to get good shots:

Use natural light
Try to avoid shadows
Take them next to the window or open a door
Take many different angles — front, back, side, any defining characteristics.
If it’s an object, you can take it next to something general to give a sense of size.
Use neutral backgrounds. Try to keep distractions out of the background

Bonus trick: If you have smaller items, you can use a piece of white cardboard as your background to give it a clean look.

I put my mannequin in front of a white bedroom door and cropped the image to focus solely on the clothing.

4. If relevant, take measurements.

This is important for things like clothes because fit often varies. Having the measurements gives people a better sense of size.

Include height, width, and width for items. For clothing measurements, take the length, hips, and waist measurements.

5. Editing

First up, take a look at your pictures. Are they clear? Can you tell me what you’re selling? Is there anything distracting in the background?

I like to use the app Snapseed to edit my pictures. It has plenty of tools to help you optimize your images. You can crop it, adjust the lighting, and make it into a square image.

Be careful about overediting. You want accurate pictures. I use it mainly to neutralize any weird lighting and help enhance the original colors to match the object better. Take this chance to crop/expand your images into a square.

Most (but not all) apps use primarily square images.

6. Your listing

This is where all your hard work comes together. You’re going to put all the pictures and information you gathered into the listing, which you will then publish to your app of choice.

Title + Description

Here’s your chance to make your listing shine. Describe your object in as much detail as possible. Add your measurements, who it would be good for, what it is, and what it does.

If you’re a copywriter, this is a great place to show off your expertise.

There’s a character limit for a reason. Use it. Describe the item you’re selling in detail. Don’t just say ‘blue ball.’ Say ‘Small rubber toy ball for large dogs’

The more specific you can be, the better.

Pricing

You want to price your listing fairly so that it will move and sell. You don’t want it to sit around forever, waiting for the one person who can afford to buy it. You want to move your items.

Use the search function to look for similar items and look at what they sold for price comparisons.

Don’t price your items stupidly high or they will never sell. Two nice options:

eBay allows you to do auction-style listings where the highest bidder wins. You set the minimum value, then people can bid higher.

People are also allowed to make offers on your item. So, if you posted your item for $25, but someone offered you $20, you can choose to take it or deny it. This can give you some wiggle room to list a little higher since people love to haggle.

Whatever you do, don’t get greedy or you risk losing the sale.

Shipping

You have two options. You can either offer free shipping or have the buyer pay for shipping. I always have the buyer pay for shipping because it’s easier on my end. But, it’s your choice.

To ship your item, you’re going to need mailers or boxes. Good news: you can get these from the post office for free.

All that’s left is to pack it, print the label, and ship it. Stick it in the mailbox or drop it off at your local post office.

Final Thoughts

Selling your stuff online can be a great way to make extra cash. If you really like it, you can go all in. I know people who make a living off of selling like this.

You can join groups on Facebook and talk with other sellers and get feedback.

All you have to do is get a few shots of your item and list it. It takes some work on the back end, but there’s nothing better than the sounds of a sale made. And it works two-fold. You get money and your item gets a new life.

Try it and see how it goes. It’s easier than it looks.

How to Make Money by Reselling Your Old Items for Cash

A step-by-step guide on listing and selling your stuff