Tips For New Sellers

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Tips for new sellers!!!

I have been buying and selling clothes on various platforms for over 20 years. Wowza! Each platform is very different and Kidizen has its own vibe. There are different “rules” here that will help you sell those cute little clothes! These are all my own opinions, and may differ from other sellers.

Your bio: This is an app filled with Mommas! Let us know who you are!! Use a notes app to type your bio, then copy and paste. Don't ask me why, but it gives you unlimited space when you do this. Add a cover and profile photo. I want to know who I am buying from! Include if your items come from a smoke or pet free home. Look at other shops for ideas!

What to sell?
This is a much debated topic on this app. High end? Mall brands? Walmart/Target? Here is my answer…yes. I have sold many items from all three of those categories but there is a big BUT. But, how much is your time worth? Are you happy taking photos, listing, buying shipping supplies, etc to make $1 profit? If the answer is yes, then list it all! BONUS: you can also list women's shoes, clothes and accessories. You may NOT list men's, beauty, housewares, etc.

Low end brands: Personally, if it is not in like new condition I say take it to consignment. People will not pay $10 for a onesie or dress they can walk into Target and buy brand new for the same price if not cheaper. I see items all the time in play condition that were purchased at Walmart for $8 but listed here for $12. And then sellers wonder why they cannot make a sale. Think smart!! Do your research on retail pricing. For low end brands I 100% suggest bundling like items/sizes.

Bundles: Keep in mind that many kids do not wear the same size on top as they do on bottom. None of my three ever did and still do not even in bigger sizes. Bundle like items! All onesies, pjs, all bottoms, etc. I only bundle lower end items OR small sizes. For example - 3 Carter's onesies rather than listing just one.

Baby items - these are the HARDEST to sell! Items under 12 months are in general very cheap at local consignment stores (typically $1) and many new parents get baby items at baby showers. If this is the only size you have, you will probably not see many sales and not many quick sales. Unless you have higher end and highly sought after baby items. (Think Posh Peanut, Baby Boden, small shop type brands) Target and mall brands are just a hard sell. With shipping costs ever climbing along with app fees, I will reiterate in my opinion it's best to sell those things at garage sales or take to local consignment.

Fees:
Knowing fees will help you in determining how to price your items. We pay 12% plus .50 on each item. During the listing process it will show you how much you will make. That is before shipping. For me, my average shipping cost is $4.85 so I just subtract that and if I am happy with the bottom line I roll with it.

Shipping: This is my opinion remember, but as postal prices continue to increase, we are seeing a shift in most sellers no longer offering “free” shipping. Myself included. In an effort to show buyers truly what it costs to ship one item, we are separating it out. Same as on other platforms. This used to be a “only offer “free” shipping” kinda platform, but alas like the world, things change. Kidizen offers the ability to purchase your shipping label right in the app. I HIGHLY suggest doing this! Should your item go missing or have any issues, if you used a Kid label their support team will take over for you. ALSO!! If you use Kidizen labels they do not take the 12% fee from the cost of the label. They DO if you get your labels elsewhere. Do the math but typically it's cheaper to use Kid! Yes, PayPal offers labels or you can go to the post office and type in the tracking, but my opinion, just keep life simple and print your labels from the app. Buy a scale on Amazon for $10! Also - shipping is never free, as the seller you will buy the label no matter if you charge shipping or offer free shipping.

Pro tip - stop using scissors and tape and buy the sticky paper for labels. It's already cut in half for you and I pay about $14 for 300 labels from Amazon! Stick in printer, stick on package and done!

Pricing: Before listing an item I suggest you search the app for similar items. Keep in mind these items are for sale, there is no way to search sold items unfortunately. So just because you see a Garanimals dress listed for $16 does NOT mean it will sell for that. Look up retail pricing of your item. My rule of thumb is I list for half of retail if it is in perfect condition. If you sell high end items, you are familiar with market value. I head to BST groups for pricing comparisons and list a little higher due to the app fees. I personally list most of my items with $1-2 wiggle room because I run shop sales. NOTE - the suggested price you see within the app simply shows the last item of that brand/condition that sold. It is not a good tool in my opinion and is often way off. Maybe look at it as a guide but honestly I usually don't even pay attention to it.

Condition: Please read what Excellent, VGUC, etc mean for THIS platform. Coming from BST groups, these are a bit different. When in doubt, list it in “worse” condition. I love to get an item that I am expecting in play or good condition and it is actually in very good! Happy buyers mean repeat buyers. When it comes to stains or holes, my rule of thumb is just say no, UNLESS it is a higher end brand or you are listing as an add on. Ask yourself if you would be thrilled to open a package with your item inside.

🚨 Re-read the last paragraph. Your item is NOT in excellent condition if it has a stain or shows any type of wear. If something has a hole, it's PLAY. It doesn't matter if your child only wore it once.

Add-ons: An add on is something you will sell only with the purchase of another non add on item. Currently there is no button for this, there IS a “bundle” button now, but you can purchase just bundle items so this often doesn't work for cheap add ons. If you list add ons without the bundle option, know that you WILL at some point have someone buy one by itself and you will refund and relist. I have found adding these listings to be helpful in selling the lower end brands. ($9 is my personal lowest list price because with my shop sales and fees, it leaves me with the profit I want to make it worth my time. Figure out your minimum!)

The FB marketplace option - simply toggle this to “on” under your shop settings. You have no extra work, Kidizen does it all for you. But now your items show on another platform. You do not need a FB account to use this tool. Think of them as bonus sales as they are always full price and take no extra work. NOTE!! If you choose to use the bundle option, these items will not push to facebook. What I do is list shipping separately for my bundle/add on items and note in the description I will remove the shipping cost if added to another item. This way, all of my items are pushed to FB.

GET TO LISTING!!!!!

The NUMBER ONE most important thing I will tell any seller is…YOUR PHOTOS!!! Your photos will either make your shop look like a major dud OR will make buyers want to browse. A solid background is best. Maybe a big table or a blanket when you just start out, but let me suggest spending a whopping $10 on a photo backdrop from Amazon. I paid $10 for mine and my husband glued it to a very lightweight piece of wood so I can carry it around my house to find the best lighting that day. Natural light is best, but often as Mommas we have to take photos at night. Get you a lamp from Goodwill, remove the shade, place where you don't see shadows and voila!! I also suggest a photo editing app to brighten up just the cover photo. I use PicTapGo but there are many options. Do not edit all of your photos, the buyer needs to see the true and actual colors. TAKE AT LEAST 5 photos!! I will not buy an item with just one photo. What if there is a huge stain on the back? Protect yourself as a seller, just take too many photos. It takes a few extra seconds. I do front, back, close up of fabric, close up of any flaws, close up of the tag, and an extra for good measure. Decide on a background and stay consistent! It is easy on the eyes to scroll a shop with the same background. I know I am beating a dead horse but for the love, please do not take photos that show your messy house. Or on a dirty floor. Yes, we are all Moms and yes we prob have the same mess, but who wants to buy clothes from a mess? To me it is like taking a selfie in a bathroom with your toilet seat up and a dirty mirror. Just say no. (Photo of my background is the last pic in this listing! And yes, wine is always a must.)

Pro tip - take your photos in square mode! At least the cover photo. Why? It makes your shop look clean and cohesive AND puts you in the running to be featured. This app runs in square mode and if you don't use it, you have to click a photo to make it bigger. You CANNOT click photos in the groups, so if you don't have a square photo you will crop things off.

Item title: Be descriptive! “Blue dress” is not descriptive. Making a buyer click it to find the brand isn't fun. Give details! “Janie & Jack Blue Striped Dress” would be better. You want to use key words that can be searched!

Listing descriptions: Don't vaguebook. Just keep it real! If there isn't much to say just reiterate the brand and size. If your camera isn't great and an item looks blue but it's brown, say so! Sizing is another “thing.” If an item is a size 2 but runs huge and fits like a 3, I personally list as a 2 and note the fit. This definitely varies by item and brand. Many items like H&M are sized such as “2-4” and you should always list on the smaller end. Same with a size 6 months. List it as a 3-6 NOT a 6-12, this is per the official handbook. I also don't believe in the, “Is this true to size (TTS)” question. No kids are exactly alike. When asked I then add the brand size chart to my listing and tell them to reference that. Just give as much info as possible and always be sure you have taken photos of the tag. We don't expect measurements here but if a buyer asks for them I suggest adding them to the listing. If there are FLAWS, do NOT just take a photo. Don't assume someone saw the tiny hole on a small phone screen photo and not disclose. Explain! Like I've said already, you want a very happy buyer! Stock photos are fine to include, but don't make them the cover photo for the listing.

Sales: The app gives you the ability to put your shop on sale. 5% off of 1, 10% off 2, etc. You can choose the combination. When you change your shop sale it alerts your followers if they have that setting on so I try and change it up now and then if I am not getting regular sales. It also shows when you scroll the items in your cart which shops have a sale on.

Followers: Like any other social media app, followers are important!!! The more followers you have the more stores that get alerts when you run sales and list items. To grow in the beginning take time to follow lots of shops! I go to the various groups within the app and follow everyone who is active. Find successful shops and follow their followers. This topic is to be debated, some say you don't need many. But remember this is my opinion.

Share Groups & Sharing: Think of it like sharing a post on Facebook. Same concept because now it shares to followers and bumps your item to the top of the search feed. BUT only if a user has their settings to show just shared. Typically most shop by just in or lowest priced. Share groups are easy, just read the rules. Literally. Read the description the seller who is hosting has posted and you cant mess it up. Want to find share groups? Many run daily groups and also groups you can do at your own pace. My favorites in my shop are ALL share group related. Fave them! Or add to your cart or make a collection, whichever you choose. When you tag an item to be included, just make a comment. No need to edit your listing and add to the description. To see my personal sharing opportunities click #PMSharing (I don't host them very often these days, see my “faves” on my shop, they are all share group related. **YES! You can also simply share your own listings and not join groups. Lately I've seen the same success sharing my own versus joining groups.

Weekly hashflashes: These appear on the home screen. The app highlights various things weekly and the goal is to have YOUR listing featured!! Now please, for the love, don't be one of those people who tags “stripes” when your item is clearly floral. You may tag all eligible items at the beginning of the week even though it's not that day of the week yet. These go right in the comments.

Faves: Different people use this feature for different reasons. I use mine to organize all my share groups. Some people who are just buyers use it for items they are interested in. Some use it for all of the above. NOTE, when you fave something you will get an alert when a seller drops a price.

Collections: Pretty self explanatory. I LOVE adding to mine! You can create them for anything you want. I am a Little Mermaid lover, so when I see anything with Ariel I add it to that collection. Doing this alerts the seller that you added one of their items to a collection and often they will head to your shop and return the favor! These really serve no purpose.

🚨 Your Cart: Do NOT get overly excited when someone carts an item. For me, I cart items I am interested in buying but not always that day. It's also the easiest place to compare items I am interested in. Many buyers do the same. On this platform it is the easiest place to have all of the items you want to buy in one spot. Until fairly recently, you didn't even know who carted your items, just that it got carted. Use this as a guide in terms of people liking certain items and also pricing. If an item I list gets carted many times but has not sold, I will drop the price a bit.

Offers: Oh the dreaded topic of offers. This is also a new feature to the app. Do NOT feel like you have to send an offer on items that get carted. I WILL say since this feature was added, I tend to send offers versus run shop sales and that's been successful for me. Sometimes buyers will message you asking you for a deal. Again, it is ok to say no! In my experience, I have not gotten many lowball offers on this app compared to other places. If you don't want to sell at a price, just say no thank you, not at this time. And don't let it ruin your day.

Materials: Amazon Prime is my bff. I spend about $6 for 100 poly mailers. Once you grow you may spend a little more but my max is $10 for 100. You can get plain ones or fun designs. Spend time searching and find a deal! I also reuse any materials I get items in that I have purchased. I do list this in my bio in case anyone is weird about reused stuff. Let's chat double bagging. Again - this article is MY opinion. Is it necessary to double bag your items? No. Do I recommend it? 100% YES!! I have received items that are wet, big tears in the bag, etc. And for some Mommas, buying gently used clothing is all they can afford, so make it look nice yall! Reuse materials to double bag, use a Walmart bag if you have nothing else, or a ziplock. I bought clear cellophane bags for cheap on Amazon.

Extras: Some platforms like you to go over the top and include toys and nonsense. This is an app full of Mommas who just want some extra cash to buy the next size up. Add a hand written note if you choose and call it a day. Because, who doesn't love that?! Yes, some shops use tissue paper and ribbons and stamps and whatnot. I am not hating on them. I think thats rad. But for us hott mess type, double bag, fold neatly, make sure you didn't miss any flaws, scribble a note or buy a cute roll of thank you stickers to seal your double bag and call it a day. I'm a clear bag, thank you sticker, poly mailer, ship next day kinda shop. Buyers here just want their items as described and in a very timely fashion.

Shipping Times: Yes, the app gives you 7 days but don't make a Momma wait that long! That is, unless you communicated it or have it listed in your bio that you ship on certain days. Many Mommas work full time, keep that in mind. But try and ship within 2-3 days. I always send a message letting my buyer know when I shipped their item and to say thank you. If you will take longer than 3 days, just communicate. We are a very understanding and loving bunch!!

Groups on the app: READ the descriptions. Please. Two of the three groups are a NO PROMO zone. Do not be a rebel. Just trust me. But do use the groups! Make friends! Ask questions! I have met some amazing friends thanks to this app. There is also a group on Facebook called Hello Kidizen where you can get more tips and help!

Sold somewhere else? Congrats an item sold elsewhere. Money is money so high five Momma! NOW DELETE THAT LISTING! For real. No need to edit and type “sold.” We don't do that here per the official handbook. Just edit - delete. Easy peasy.

Random tips: Generally speaking, smaller sized items take longer to sell. Onesies are just cheap brand new. Remember the topic of bundling. Some also say that having JUST one category of items will limit your sales. If you only have boys, maybe find some girl items to list along the way that you pick up at resale shops. Do not get discouraged! Being more active, listing more, and sharing more will help! If you are still not making any sales, ask someone to critique your shop.

Listing Daily: Your goal is to list items as often as possible. This platform works by listing new items daily. Rather than listing 10 items at once and none for the rest of the week, list 2 each day. One of those things I just say ok to and dont question. I will tell you if I go a bit without listing and have no sales, as soon as I list new items the sales come rolling in!!!

I hope this helps someone out there. This app is wonderful. Is it perfect? Nah. But to sell kiddos stuff I find it to be the best. Welcome to Kidizen!! You are officially a Momizen!!!

PS - Did I miss a topic that a newbie has questions on? Let me know!!

Want to host a fill the flat rate sale? Click this for info!! #PMtipshare

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