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DPChallenge Forums >> Photography Discussion >> Prints to sell on eBay
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 02/14/2003 01:04:24 PM · #1
Has anyone attempted to sell their prints on eBay? I can't sell mine yet 'coz I'm new to photography and still have so much to learn.

Anyway, since I'm a Powerseller on eBay and just tired of selling junk, I decided why not try do photography since I'm already starting this as my new hobby. Since I̢۪m not ready to sell mine yet, I was searching for photography affiliates until I came across daprints.com in which you are able to signup as an affiliate and you don̢۪t have to have your own photographs to sell, you may wish to select any artist to sell in your own website created for you. To no luck, I found daprint (also deviantART) the worst website I̢۪ve seen, not a user friendly site and have no time to learn how to do it.

I know DPC will allow you to sell your own prints soon but I wonder if similar affiliate program will be considered too?

Oh, btw, I find eBay as the best place to advertise anything for free.
 02/14/2003 01:16:13 PM · #2
I sold stuff on eBay for a few years. I've been wondering if anyone has had any success selling their own prints there. It is a highly visible site, and a household word. It may be worth a try. Any comments?
 02/14/2003 01:54:29 PM · #3
I've had little luck selling signed & matted prints or signed & framed prints on ebay. I've watched listings over the last year and I think the market is much better for original paintings and other types of art than it is for photography on ebay. (Not trying to discourage anyone, of course - maybe you just need a better marketing scheme than I have!) :)
 10/07/2003 02:43:40 PM · #4
I've been curious about this so I figured I'd bump the thread up from its depths.

I currently do sell some photos on eBay and find that only particular ones have the appeal for people. Generally only my New Orleans pictures have caught interest, and those are mostly black & white. So do any of you currently sell? I've sold about 15 so far. Not a huge amount but some nonetheless. I don't sell digital photos on there though - the good ones are all with a non-dig. camera.
 10/07/2003 04:21:27 PM · #5
LucidLotus -- Just curious what size you sell and how much you ask? I think that is key. People on e-bay are always looking for a *bargin*.

If you charge Art Fair prices, I would doubt you would be very successful. If you charge the prices for prints as sold through DPC Prints (bargin prices), you may be quite successful.

I didn't have any luck when I tried a two of mine. I could have probably sold them at a real reduced rate, but that didn't interest me.

Just curious,
Renee
 10/07/2003 06:38:17 PM · #6
I've never been to an art fair so I don't know what those prices would be. But yes, mine aren't overly expensive.

$9.99 for an 8X10 and $14.99 for an 11X14, plus they pay shipping. I've been thinking about raising prices but I can't be sure if that would be detrimental or not.

As it is now I'm still making a profit because my costs for the prints are $3.99 and $7.99 respectively.

I have wondered how Art Fairs work and whether its a worthwhile endeavor. Do you sell at those or have any experiences with them, Renee?
 10/08/2003 08:08:26 PM · #7

I've never been to an art fair so I don't know what those prices would be. But yes, mine aren't overly expensive.

$9.99 for an 8X10 and $14.99 for an 11X14, plus they pay shipping. I've been thinking about raising prices but I can't be sure if that would be detrimental or not.

As it is now I'm still making a profit because my costs for the prints are $3.99 and $7.99 respectively.



The worst thing an artist can do is sell their stuff too cheaply. You are not only undermining your own work but the work of others. You are making $6.00 on your smallest print. Do you think that your time and expertise are not worth more than $6.00? I find that as I raise my prices the more I sell. If you don't think highly enough of your own work other people won't either.
 10/08/2003 08:47:39 PM · #8
That is always a concern, but it is possible to value yourself right out of any sales at all. I think very highly of my work, but I also have only eBay (currently) to offer them so I have to be sensitive to what works in that market.

I find that eBay is very finicky and photographs don't sell there all that well. I don't know if higher prices would still draw customers or instead alienate them (When many photos are priced between the $2.00 and $10.00 mark, raising my prices more than they currently are doesn't seem wise). With eBay it seems it would do more harm.

In a different market I might have higher prices. Still I'm just starting with all of this, so maybe higher prices would be a good move. Time and experience will tell.

Do you sell yours on eBay at higher prices or do you have a different outlet? I'd be glad to hear about how you do. Also, how do prices tend to differ when photos are offered in art fairs? Or is it mostly subjective?

:)
 10/08/2003 11:50:36 PM · #9
Originally posted by sonnyh:

The worst thing an artist can do is sell their stuff too cheaply. You are not only undermining your own work but the work of others. You are making $6.00 on your smallest print. Do you think that your time and expertise are not worth more than $6.00? I find that as I raise my prices the more I sell. If you don't think highly enough of your own work other people won't either.


I think you have to go either really low or really high. Right not my prints are at "bargain" prices for the medium-sized ones (about all I can make with my camera), and at "free sample" prices for the smallest prints. I'm dubious about anyone paying $50-500 for one of my prints, so am I to give up entirely?

I am completely lousy at pricing prints (or almost anything else). Suppose you (and maybe a couple of friends) check out my print gallery and suggest some picture prices (or removal) in exchange for the print of your choice?

I suggested some time ago that we have a "Curators Club" to perform this service for people, but I don't think the idea went anywhere ....

As far as the $6.00 profit ... once the image is posted to the sales gallery, which has to be done whether you order a print for yourself or sell it for a million bucks, you have to do zero additional work, so that $6 turns into $infinite/hour.

Message edited by author 2003-10-08 23:53:18.
 10/09/2003 12:15:08 AM · #10
First of all their might be a difference in what "selling a print" is between all of us here. I sell my prints matted and 50/50 on the framing. All of which I do myself. Matboard and framing supplies cost a small fortune and I have to include that in the price of the finished product. I also have an Epson 2200 and print everything out myself which in the long run is cheaper than sending the stuff out.
I used to do an "art fair" for a few years and there I sold matted prints starting at $20.00 (for an 8 x 10)and going up with the size. I have no idea if that is cheap for an "art fair" or not. I'm not really a good person to ask about pricing as my situation where I sell is quite different than other people, but I do know that selling too cheap is not good. I have not tried to sell my stuff on e-bay because that is a place where people are looking for a bargain and I would think that photographs would be hard to sell unless they were of a specific subject such as lighthouses which everyone wants.
 10/09/2003 01:32:38 AM · #11
Originally posted by GeneralE:
I am completely lousy at pricing prints (or almost anything else). Suppose you (and maybe a couple of friends) check out my print gallery and suggest some picture prices (or removal) in exchange for the print of your choice?

I suggested some time ago that we have a "Curators Club" to perform this service for people, but I don't think the idea went anywhere.


I think this could be an interesting idea. If only to see what people in general would be willing to pay for a print. I'm not that great at setting prices either, I always look at my own and of course would be willing to pay a large amount for it. So hearing what others would likely fork out is helpful. Then again it could be like voting where people say $1.00 just to be rude.. ;)

I like the idea all the same!
 10/09/2003 02:11:21 AM · #12
this is a little off the ebay topic...but I think its relevant in that its an alternative to ebay...which I think I saw a request for below......there was another thread somewhere that talked about self promotion (i.e. your own website - and self promoting with the likes of very specific overture or google ad words, word of mouth, forums on sites like this,etc.,etc.,etc.)

An example EASY way to take payments is with paypal - you can use there logos and stuff, just log in and tell them which url(s) and what info you want on them.

See reference here: //www.pbase.com/image/3411031

I don't know this person, I just liked how professional and seemless the pay pal integration is on her pbase site. Simple, yet could be effective with the right self promotion...and would be far more profitable than ebay in the long run i think...emphasis on MORE WORK...but you keep a certain artist professional "look" that I think you lose on ebay...just my thoughts.
 10/09/2003 02:19:10 AM · #13
oops...

I meant to mention cafepress too...

example gallery: //www.cafeshops.com/karensfstop/57237

another diy choice over ebay...
 10/09/2003 02:21:40 AM · #14
eBay owns PayPal.
 10/09/2003 02:23:48 AM · #15
yes i know. but in my example application they are worlds apart.
 10/09/2003 02:28:02 AM · #16
Your point is relevant either way. eBay bought PayPal because that's how they want eBay sellers to take payments too -- they get to skim off an additional commission on the transaction that way.
 10/09/2003 02:37:02 AM · #17
okay, now I know where you were going - that's cool. But I didn't mean to imply that pay pal was "better" or anything over ebay - I meant that the "concept" of selling on your personal page would yield better results all around (financially, creatively, career wise) than on an auction site.
 10/09/2003 01:03:05 PM · #18
I took a look at cafepress too, but I couldn't figure out how to get my images large enough to fit for prints and the like. (I use the 2560xwhatever size on the camera) I downloaded Gimp recently so once I figure out where the biggerizer is, I might be able to do more with my photos.

With eBay though, I think it is very much a niche market and you have to be on top of what is selling each week. For example, I am with a self-representing artists group online as well, and they deal with all sorts of art media, and one of the big 'themes' on eBay earlier in the summer for paintings were fairies, mermaids and martini glasses.

So of course, there were bunches of all three for sale - whether this trickles into photography wants is another question entirely. As is whether you want to photograph for yourself and hope others like what you've created, or aim directly for what is currently selling.

I do find that Paypal (though owned by eBay) is an easy route to take for payments though. One less worry I guess.

:)
 10/13/2003 02:56:27 PM · #19
Just to update, because I'm tickled pink about it.

I had a photo auction going on eBay that ended a few minutes ago, and have managed to sell three of the presented photo through it so far, which isn't that great but the best part is because of it I had interest in my other photos and have sold three others that are in my portfolio on another site (non-digital pics) plus one 11x14 of the presented photo (my auction is for the 8x10 size).

This has made my day so far. I had even decided to raise the price of my 11x14s by $5.00 before the person had expressed interest and she still wanted to buy it at that price (not that she knew the lower price) so I'm doubly happy about that.

Yay!
 10/14/2003 12:41:14 AM · #20
Out of curiosity how much did you wind up selling it for?
 10/14/2003 04:05:24 AM · #21
The 8x10s were still at their original $9.99 price, but I upped the 11x14s from $14.99 to $19.99.

Not an obscene amount I know, but it was still a big step for me, I have to be careful not to price myself out of eBay's photo market.

:)
 11/22/2003 02:53:19 PM · #22
My brother was just suggesting pricing 8x10s at 5.99 + shipping.

I'd like to figure out some kind of "reverse commission" for DPC Prints. Right now, I can sell the image on eBay and order the photo myself and have it drop-shipped to the customer. I'd like there to be a way for DPC Prints to be compensated for this order fulfillment service, without having to temporarily change the public price to match the eBay price and order through the public print store.

One additional reason for trying this is to be able to post a link to DPC Prints in the listing.
 11/22/2003 02:58:22 PM · #23
My brother was just suggesting pricing 8x10s at 5.99 + shipping.

I'd like to figure out some kind of "reverse commission" for DPC Prints. Right now, I can sell the image on eBay and order the photo myself and have it drop-shipped to the customer. I'd like there to be a way for DPC Prints to be compensated for this order fulfillment service, without having to temporarily change the public price to match the eBay price and order through the public print store.

One additional reason for trying this is to be able to post a link to DPC Prints in the listing.
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