05-15-2008, 04:49 AM
I often see DVDs for sale at garage sales, and there is good money to be made to buying these are reselling them on ebay for a profit, if you know what to look for.
Keep these tips in mind next time you see a bunch of DVDs that you're thinking of picking up for a deal.
Inspect the condition closely before buying
Sealed DVDs are of course ideal, but most often than not, they are opened. You want to inspect the bottom of DVD for scratches. A few scratches usually are OK, but if there are a lot, its best generally to avoid them. You can buy DVD cleaning solutions and even machines that may repair most of the scratches. If you're buying DVDs often, you may want to check out a portable DVD cleaning machine such as Disc Rescuer or a mail-in service like Azuradisk if you don't mind them shipping your damaged discs.
Learn To Spot Counterfeit DVDs
There are many counterfeit DVDs that have flooded the ebay marketplace that you want to stay away from buying. Make sure you are getting the real deal by learning to spot fakes. The eBay reviews and guides website has a great learning section for spotting fake DVDs specifically Disney DVDs, which are best sellers, which lead me to my next tip.
Disney DVDs Are Hot Sellers
All Disney DVDs (authentic ones) have historically been very hot sellers on ebay. Snow White And The 7 Dwarfs, Peter Pan, Lion King, etc. Usually these can be had for $5 or less, and generally sell for over 4 times that amount on ebay. So they are a good buy when the opportunity presents itself.
Popular TV Series DVDs
There is a huge demand for DVDs of TV series such as Dawsons Creek, Charmed, 24, Heroes, and other made for TV series. Its not uncommon to find ending auction prices of $100 or more for a complete boxed set in good condition. Individual DVDs in this category are not a bad idea to pick up as well (if they can be had for just a few dollars), since it could be just the one thats missing from a persons collection.
Self Help DVDs
Self Help topics, including books, have always been great sellers on eBay and DVDs are no exception. Looks for topics on personal finance, or anything to do with learning or personal enrichment. Some of the childrens learning DVDs do very well in this category. Complete sets again can sell for big bucks.
How Much To Pay
Unless you're certain you have a good deal, I typically will offer between $1 and $3 per used DVD in one of the above "hot" categories. Most of the time you can talk the seller into a package deal, like buy 3 DVDs for $5. Unless its a boxed set, of course, which in some cases may be a great deal even at prices in the $20 range. A great tool to use before you buy if you have a web browser enabled phone is http://www.priceanywhere.com which will give you ebay historical auction data on any item sold on ebay within the past 30 days. It generally works very well with DVDs, but be sure you are very specific by entering the full and complete title and include the word "DVD" when you do your search. For fun, try this search "Star Trek Voyager Season 1-7 DVD". Now, if you are wondering whether or not that $50 asking price is way too much, now you know! You just tripled your money.
Below Ive included a few links to articles related to helping you find the best DVDs with the goal of resale on eBay:
Top 10 DVDs on ebay selling for over $100 each
Top Selling DVDs of 2008 (box office focused)
Keep these tips in mind next time you see a bunch of DVDs that you're thinking of picking up for a deal.
Inspect the condition closely before buying
Sealed DVDs are of course ideal, but most often than not, they are opened. You want to inspect the bottom of DVD for scratches. A few scratches usually are OK, but if there are a lot, its best generally to avoid them. You can buy DVD cleaning solutions and even machines that may repair most of the scratches. If you're buying DVDs often, you may want to check out a portable DVD cleaning machine such as Disc Rescuer or a mail-in service like Azuradisk if you don't mind them shipping your damaged discs.
Learn To Spot Counterfeit DVDs
There are many counterfeit DVDs that have flooded the ebay marketplace that you want to stay away from buying. Make sure you are getting the real deal by learning to spot fakes. The eBay reviews and guides website has a great learning section for spotting fake DVDs specifically Disney DVDs, which are best sellers, which lead me to my next tip.
Disney DVDs Are Hot Sellers
All Disney DVDs (authentic ones) have historically been very hot sellers on ebay. Snow White And The 7 Dwarfs, Peter Pan, Lion King, etc. Usually these can be had for $5 or less, and generally sell for over 4 times that amount on ebay. So they are a good buy when the opportunity presents itself.
Popular TV Series DVDs
There is a huge demand for DVDs of TV series such as Dawsons Creek, Charmed, 24, Heroes, and other made for TV series. Its not uncommon to find ending auction prices of $100 or more for a complete boxed set in good condition. Individual DVDs in this category are not a bad idea to pick up as well (if they can be had for just a few dollars), since it could be just the one thats missing from a persons collection.
Self Help DVDs
Self Help topics, including books, have always been great sellers on eBay and DVDs are no exception. Looks for topics on personal finance, or anything to do with learning or personal enrichment. Some of the childrens learning DVDs do very well in this category. Complete sets again can sell for big bucks.
How Much To Pay
Unless you're certain you have a good deal, I typically will offer between $1 and $3 per used DVD in one of the above "hot" categories. Most of the time you can talk the seller into a package deal, like buy 3 DVDs for $5. Unless its a boxed set, of course, which in some cases may be a great deal even at prices in the $20 range. A great tool to use before you buy if you have a web browser enabled phone is http://www.priceanywhere.com which will give you ebay historical auction data on any item sold on ebay within the past 30 days. It generally works very well with DVDs, but be sure you are very specific by entering the full and complete title and include the word "DVD" when you do your search. For fun, try this search "Star Trek Voyager Season 1-7 DVD". Now, if you are wondering whether or not that $50 asking price is way too much, now you know! You just tripled your money.
Below Ive included a few links to articles related to helping you find the best DVDs with the goal of resale on eBay:
Top 10 DVDs on ebay selling for over $100 each
Top Selling DVDs of 2008 (box office focused)