Great question! You don’t get a seller defect for not uploading tracking as long as you mark your item as "shipped". The only thing that would be affected by not uploading tracking is that you could lose top rated seller status(if you even have it). Top Rated Seller status requires 95% percent of your items to have tracking uploaded and validated). Personally, I don’t obsess about top rated seller status much anymore. The program honestly isn’t as great as it used to be, and I don’t see any difference in search visibly like eBay claims (I’m currently rated above standard which is one step below Top Rated). Back in the day you used to get a 20% discount on final values fees if you were Top Rated. They took that away. You can still get a 10% discount if you meet the Top Rated Plus standards (which is a step above top rated), but you only get the discount on items that are listed with a 1 day handling time, plus 30 day free returns. That being said, I no longer actually ship postcards with just a stamp. Ebay recently opened a new shipping program specifically for postcards, trading cards, coins, and stamps. It’s awesome because its actually cheaper to ship with versus a stamp (it costs 51 cents), it’s insured, and includes tracking! I only ship my postcards this way now. If you’re not familiar with the Standard Envelope yet, I actually made a video showing how to use it. You can view it here: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/nZt3mdSht5qylnk.html

You don't get demerits for not uploading tracking. It helps but cannot hurt you.

​@@CoachCommerceI have avaible limited stock postcard from Pakistan

besides shopping, what would you change if you made this video today?

Thanks for the awesome review Bill! I appreciate your support!

Do you find that every card you list sells? No matter the subject on front, time period or area? I want to try to do this but I don’t want to find that I’ve bought postcards no one cares to buy. But if everything sells eventually, that gives me more courage

@@a1ntcry1noveru I would love to know this answer too! :)

That's very smart! It definitely would be hard to build a postcard store without a sku system. I'm glad that you have a great system that works for you! And saving money is always a plus!

you're welcome!

Thank you so much for the kind words! I'm glad I could help. Postcards are such a fun hobby. Plus, by selling them on eBay, it's a hobby that you can profit from as well!

Glad I could help Robin! Good luck with your future eBay sales! ~ Justin

Thanks Mark! I appreciate your feedback. Selling Postcards is a lot of fun, and it’s fairly easy once you get the hang of it. Good luck with your selling!

Thank you Teresa! You made my day! Glad you’re enjoying my channel.

Glad I could help!

That's awesome! Thank for letting me know because that made my day. Keep up the great work and I wish you continued success moving forward.

Thank you! Vintage photos are awesome too. I love any old ephemera. The great thing about paper collectibles is that they are so easy to list and store. Plus, if you're a history buff like I am its a lot of fun listing. I find that when I'm listing items on ebay that I'm excited about that I'm doing my best work. I'm glad that you're rediscovering you love for postcards and I hope you sell a bunch!

Thanks for the sub and the compliment! I love selling postcards because they are interesting and listing & shipping them is such a simple process. Plus, they take up almost no storage space. They're one of my favorite items to list on eBay!

You are right, and that is why Ebay started giving folks 250 free listings......they need to make it unlimited. Several years ago, you had to pay for a store if you wanted to list more than 10 items at a time!

Can you list a bunch in one listing with the variations option? Like have your listing title be "National Parks Postcards", then in the listing have 100 different postcards for sale? That way you'd have 100 for sale that would only count for 1 of your 250 listings. Does anyone know if that would work?

Sounds like it would work

Sku's are what makes selling postcards work. Otherwise, you'd never find them!

You're very welcome Carole!

Me too! Thanks for watching!

Thank you David! I plan to upload at least once a week moving forward.

Thanks CJ!

You’re welcome 😊

That's awesome Dwayne! Those are both fun things to sell. Good luck with your sales!

You're welcome HannaH!

Thanks for the compliment! I usually try to stay away from the more modern stuff. when I say modern I mean the oversized postcards (called continental postcards. I also usually stick to strictly american postcards. I don't sell many foreign postcards because they generally are in foreign languages. This makes it more difficult and time consuming to research the locations. I've found that the best way to sell postcards for what works for me is to become as efficient as I can by listing large quantities. Modern and foreign postcards do sell, but not nearly as fast or regularly as anything pre 1960's. Also, my favorite postcards to list are old real photo postcards (RPPC). These can bring money. They're more rare and unique one of a kind cards that collectors go crazy for. If you find lots of them, they usually sell for higher amounts than mass produced cards go for. But, they can be worth the investment if selling them individually. I hope these tips help, and good luck with your postcards!

Thanks!

You're welcome Neil! It sounds like your grandmother had a great collection. I love ephemera (paper collectibles) because it's so much fun to look at. Many people collect what you now have, and you might do really well with it all if you end up deciding to sell it on eBay. Thanks for sharing!

@@CoachCommerce Not to mention she was also very organized and has the whole thing in card catalogues. Looks like Granny essentially left me a box full of money do now I just need to take the time to scan and post:)

@@neilhosler9001 Wow, what a legacy. Sounds like your Granny was a wonderful woman and had great taste. That's awesome that they're also so well organized. Best of luck with them!

They wrote a manuscript of their 50, 0000km trip. They never published it though. Pretty cool reading.

That's pretty funny! It's wild to think of things like that in this day and age. lol

Hi Gary! I've had some good luck in the past with local buy/sell classifieds such as craigslist, offerup, and facebook marketplaces. If you get lucky, you can sometimes find really large collections for great prices. I like to put saved searches out in my area on facebook so that any time new listings get posted I get a notification. I know other people that put out wanted ads on facebook buy/sell groups that have had good success as well. I hope this helps! ~ Justin

I've found that there's really no difference in what sells better. Most of the postcards that I sell are postmarked since I like to sell a lot of older cards. Most collectors don't mind if they are "uses" as it adds history to the postcard. I've used the new postage a little, and haven't really had any issues. Before eBay introduced the new postage, I always shipped anything under $20 with just a postage stamp. Most everyone in the postcard collecting community are honest and I have almost never had problems with people claiming that they never arrived (without tracking). Of course, anything more expensive I ship with tracking just to cover myself. But I'd say by and large over 95% of the cards I've sold over the years didn't have tracking. Now that eBay standard envelope is in effect I use it instead of stamps. The rate is cheaper than a regular forever stamp (by 4 cents) and over time that small amount adds up to considerable savings. Hope this helps!

@@CoachCommerce Thank you, yes that helps.

Thanks for the sub! I love all things Pokemon and anime so that's awesome! Yes, you could definitely use this scanner to scan Pokemon cards. If I were using it i'd probably only use it for lower valued cards (just in case the feeder or roller were to damage the card). I've personally never had any issues with it messing up postcards. And, it can scan documents / cards of all shapes and sizes...and get the job done fast! But, it is an automated machine so there's always the chance I suppose. sure you'd probably hand photograph more expensive slabbed cards anyway (or flatbed scan them). But this machine would really help churn out commons! If there's ever anything that I can help with, shoot me a comment and I'll do my best to help. Thanks!

@@CoachCommerce thanks!

Hey there! Thanks for asking. I don't know what the reviewer was referring to, because with the ES-400 you can save files as PDF, JPEG, or as searchable PDF files. I save all of the postcards that I scan as JPEGs and they upload to eBay with no issues whatsoever. I hope this helps. ! Justin

Those sound really neat! I've had a lot of success selling hotel postcards in the past. It sounds like they have great subject matter as well with the cars and buildings. If it were me personally, I'd list them. But, I also tend to list everything. lol. Remember, you can always lot them all together and sell them in bulk if you don't want to take the time to list them individually. People like me buy postcard lots on eBay I wouldn't toss them because they're worth something. I hope this helps!

That's awesome! Throw them on eBay and you'll make some extra cash. Plus, if you've never sold on eBay before it is a great way to learn. It's how I got started and was one of the best decisions I've ever made in my life. I sell a lot of other things besides postcards, but there's lots of money to be made still on eBay.

@@CoachCommerce will do ! yeah i think it's time i get started, thanks for the informative video it's really helpful for newbies

You're welcome! Glad I could help!

Great question! I've found that it really doesn't matter if they are used or not. I sell new postcards and used postcards. People buy used cards just as much as they do new. I actually sell a lot more used cards than I do new ones. They are a lot easier to find. Plus, people that collect postcards oftentimes buy the card just because it's used. Many people that collect are into genealogy and history. Believe it or not, "used condition" can add to the value of postcards (unlike most other items you would sell on ebay).

Hello! Great question. I don't actually copy the postcards. I use a scanner to take pictures of each postcard that I am selling. It is much faster and efficient than taking photos by hand. Every time I sell a postcard I send the buyer the original. The way that I acquire thousands of postcards is by buying them in lots off of ebay. Postcard collecting is huge and often times you can find people liquidating thousands of postcards at a time on ebay. Yes, eBay always pays you as long as you mark the sale as "shipped." You have to manually do it in the sales record, but it is easy. When I used to ship with stamps there was no tracking number. However recently, eBay began a shipping service specifically for postcards that costs .51 cents (which is cheaper than a forever stamp at .55 cents). It is called the "eBay Standard Envelope" and it actually includes tracking as well. I would absolutely sell old letters. Some old letters sell for incredible amounts of money. People love old war letters and things of that nature. If you can tie a name to the letter it will really help sell the letter as well. History buffs and people that are into genealogy really buy that stuff up. I hope this info helps, and thanks for watching my video! ~ Justin

Hi Dave! What you're looking for are sleeves for Continental Postcards. They are a little larger than standard size postcards. I typically buy these sleeves from BCW, but they're often times backordered since these postcards aren't as common. You can find them here: www.bcwsupplies.com/continental-postcard-sleeves If you can't find them on BCW's website, you can oftentimes find them by searching on eBay. They'll be marked up a little on eBay, but you'll get them more quickly: www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2334524.m570.l1313&_nkw=Continental+postcard+sleeves&_sacat=0 Best regards, Justin

Also, I've been using these envelopes for the last few months sever since the others have been out of stock. I haven't had any issues so far. amzn.to/3s618X4

if you have a big set like that it would be better to sell them together

It's definitely possible! I've often thought about doing that exact thing when my wife and I retire and selling out of an RV as we travel the country. Its probably the most realistic way to travel and have an eBay store because you can take a large inventory with you. You can store thousands of postcards and it really doesn't take up much space at all to store them. I know a handful of sellers that sell only postcards and make a full time living doing it. They really crank out listings and grind at it, but the ones that do make a living doing it. I know of a husband and wife team that grosses 150-200 thousand a year in postcard sales alone (they have about 80 thousand active postcard listings). It's crazy, but it's doable if you build it up over time. The only obstacle really is being disciplined in listing them. If you love selling postcards and don't burn out in the listing grind it can be well worth your time.

I used to buy ecoswift rigid photo mailers off of eBay, but recently jacked the price up. I just bought a new brand of envelopes off of Amazon and haven’t had any issues with them so far (even though the eye are slightly thinner and Han the ecoswift brand). In my opinion, the cost outweighs the thickness quality as these are about half the price: 150 Pcs A4 Invitation Envelopes in Brown Kraft Peel & Press Self Seal 4 1/4 x 6 1/4 Envelopes 100lbs. Paper Stock for Wedding Shower Birthday Holiday Mailing Announcement 4 x 6 Photo Greeting Cards www.amazon.com/dp/B083JDX9QN/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_P56R7ZPSY4K1VPG93GTW?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

Hi Mike! You can use a postage stamp with these envelopes. I do all of the time. When mailing with stamps, you're allowed to mail up to an ounce in weight per stamp. If your letter goes over an ounce, all you would do is add another (and so on per ounce). As a side note, if you're using these to mail postcards on eBay, you can use the "Standard Envelope" mailing option. It's cheaper than a postage stamp (costs .53 cents for an ounce) and includes tracking (where a normal stamp does not). I hope this help! ~ Justin

@@CoachCommerce Thanks...this is good to know. I just got about 2500 postcards from an estate sale last week and going through them now. I also ordered the envelopes. Also all my stamps I have used in last 4 years came from estate sales. Most ppl dont know old stamps are still worth actual money and can be used! So I just use those.

New subscriber really like that you have teaching oriented videos instead of just what people ha e sold as newer seller you wonder why you are not selling as much and deflates you bit your videos make me want to try harder and grind

Hi Mark. I've personally found that writing on the back doesn't really affect the value a whole lot. Some collectors will even buy a postcard just because of the writing on the back. Especially if it tells a cool story or is related to the buyer in any way (I.E. genealogy). As long as you photograph it in your listing you shouldn't have any issues as buyers will understand the condition of the card before buying it. Hope this helps.

Thanks Mark! I try my best to publish videos through a teaching angle to help others learn. eBay can be a grind sometimes but it's well worth it. The more you list, the more you sell. If you have fun with picking out items to sell that interest you, it doesn't seem like work really.

Good question. @CoachCommerce, answer?