Hype, but don't overstate

In the business of selling, you want to make your goods as attractive as possible, and that means talking them up. Be wary, however, of over-hyping your item or deliberately leaving out any obvious functionality flaws that may come with second-hand goods. It's tempting to not mention the blue smoke that comes out of the back of your laptop if it's left on for more than ten seconds, but failure to accurately describe goods is a quick route to having a buyer dispute on your hands, especially where it's easily proven you were less than honest in your description.

Pay as much attention to the writing of your eBay listing as to your picture. For selling on eBay, you need a powerful eBay listing. And the trick to writing a strong eBay listing is to combine search engine friendly phrasing with concrete details about the product in a way that will entice people to bid on your product. Take the time to craft your eBay listing just as you would any ad.

Accurate Descriptions are a must. You want every buyer to get exactly what they expect when they made that bid. Your feedback is your livelihood, your customer's comments can make or break you. Offer the chance to get a wonderful deal on slightly damaged goods, if that is what you have to sell. You may get less money, but you'll also get the positive feedback from a buyer that got what they bid on.

Consider search keywords in titles. The small amount of space you're alloted for an eBay item title is valuable real estate from a selling perspective. Why? Most searches on eBay are done on item titles rather than descriptions. When you leave out specific keywords pertaining to the size, maker, color or age of a piece in your item title, fewer potential bidders will find your wares. Consider replacing extraneous words (such as wow, must see, huge and look) with pertinent detail words most bidders would use in a search. To do this, put yourself in the searcher's shoes. Do you think a bidder will key in "signed lovely old sparkling choker" as a keyword phrase? Perhaps "vintage clear rhinestone necklace by Lisner" would be the foundation for a better title.

Try to anticipate questions potential buyers may ask and address them in your descriptions.