Palm Beach Outboards specialise in new Yamaha and all makes of used outboard motors. I asked Russell, the co-owner of the company about how they integrate eBay into their business.

What kind of items do you primarily sell on eBay?

Used outboard motors and parts.

What portion of your business does eBay sales account for?

Roughly 60% are eBay sales.

What brought you to sell on eBay?

It was the only venue at the time that you could advertise basically worldwide.

Could you take us through the steps you go through to sell an item on eBay?

Used motors come in from trade ins towards new motors or larger dealers sell them to us wholesale. The motors are checked over / fixed if needed and then painted before sale.

Are there any common issues you have to deal with, or things you are wary of?

We avoid taking credit cards or Paypal for used motors over $1000 unless customer signs a form stating the product is being sold as-is.

What advice would you give to new sellers?

Try to avoid taking credit card or Paypal when selling used mechanical merchandise. Additionally I would advise anyone to cancel any bids from zero feedback bidders unless they contact you first. Tremendous hassle when they don’t pay.

How do you promote your listings outside of eBay?

We really don’t have any other forms of advertising at the moment. We have a great location that brings in local business and Yamaha has us linked to their websites.

Have you noticed any changes in the eBay ecosystem over time? Was this for the better?

eBay is very slanted towards the buyer. The fact that they can leave you feedback and you can’t return is unfair enough. To make it worse we get 5-10 bids a month from buyers who don’t pay. No penalty is in place for these buyers who fail to follow through and tie up your sales.

Many thanks to Russell for taking the time to share his experiences. You can visit the Palm Beach Outboards website at palmbeachoutboards.com