Since the launch of Facebook messenger in 2016, a vast population has proved this app not to be for socialization only but also business transactions. People used e-bay and Craiglist to perform business transactions in the past decade, but the business world has become much better due to the evolving world and social sites such as Facebook.
Have you ever wondered how business transactions take place in the Facebook app? If you are a business person or want to start your online business, hop on this article. This article gives you guidelines on how to post on Facebook marketplace for your amazon products. So get linked with interested buyers as soon as possible.
The benefit of the Facebook marketplace is that you can buy and sell through local selling groups. Before we jump to the guide, let us briefly discuss the Facebook marketplace so that you get a clearer view of this article.
What Is Facebook Marketplace?
As discussed earlier, the Facebook marketplace was introduced in 2016, and ever since, it has gained more popularity than the existing Craiglist and eBay. Facebook marketplace is safer and is user-friendly to most small businesses that want to start selling locally.
In addition, the Facebook marketplace is different from Craiglist as it allows sellers to reach potential buyers by offering nationwide shipping of products in different categories. Therefore, when you sell on the Facebook marketplace, you get a large customer base than local sellers.
You will also be sure that you are reaching a vast population since the Facebook app has 2.8 months users with 800 million sellers that post on the buy and sell groups every month.
Since the Facebook marketplace started as a buy and sell platform, interested buyers often mistake it as an online shopping ground for used or unwanted household items, which is not the case. You can use the Facebook marketplace as a platform for retail arbitrage and buy an in-demand product at a lower cost from a retail store, then resell them online at a higher price.
If you are not familiar with the Facebook marketplace, the best you can do is take your time and study it and see the available products that can suit you. There is everything you may need. So let us now get you on how to post on the Facebook marketplace.
Before you post anything on the Facebook marketplace, you should be aware of certain factors that may hinder your post from being posted or may give you less feedback on your item.
Check Facebook Guidelines
Make sure that the post you are posting goes in line with Facebook commerce policy. For example, Facebook app guidelines do not allow new alcohol, animal, adult products, and injectable supplements. So, before you post a product on Facebook, ensure that it does not interfere with that policy.
Check On What Sells Best On Facebook Marketplace
You are posting your product on the Facebook marketplace to get sellers, you don't want to post something that will not receive good feedback, or people will not be interested in. If the product is new and you want to try out your luck by risking it, you can go ahead and post it.
However, if you want to gamble in between, you can go through eBay and amazon to see what sells most and try out on Facebook too. While you are on the data research, don't forget to look at the relevant details, such as the product's descriptions and the images.
You should shoot the images from all angles, such as interested buyers can see the items you want to sell. Look at other sellers' pages as a potential customer and gauge if you would be the customer you would want to buy the product. For example, look at factors like the image's brightness level or if the product has pictures taken from all dimensions.
When creating your listings, don't forget to include the observations you made. The following are some products that sell best on the Facebook marketplace and may not disappoint you in getting clients once you post.
Popular goods: Facebook messenger app is used by various people, and the population carries a good bet for people who might be interested in spare TVs.
Categories of facebook marketplace that you can post in
The Facebook marketplace has different categories that allow you to sell items from everything you have. The category includes vehicles, rental properties, apparel and shoes, classifieds, electronics, entertainment, family, free stuff, hobbies; these are just a few we have mentioned because the list is endless.
So you should know that if you are interested in selling in the Facebook marketplace, there is everything for you. However, before you sell on the Facebook marketplace, you should do some product research on the items you want to list to see if they will bring you profit. Furthermore, you are venturing into an online business to make money; it will be a waste not to get any or get the incredible amount.
If you want to get effective product research, it will depend on your source data. For instance, you can base your data results on units of the product you have over time and the price you will place them at. Also, competitors are another factor since you must make your price in relation r slightly lower to other competitors since you are competing for the same customers.
Since the Facebook marketplace deals with local sales of one-off items, it will be hard for you to get data on what sells and what doesn't. Luckily, you can get the same data on sites such as Amazon and eBay.
There are a few shortcuts that can help you estimate profitability and a variety of ecommerce business tools that you can use to handle all the heavy work. Since you are not required to use software to do product research, you can use the following idea to gauge the profitability of your product.
Consider the following points, profitability, demand of the product and the competition it has on the market. Let us discuss these points briefly so that you get a clear understanding.
Profitability
The Facebook marketplace does not charge any selling fees if you sell locally. You will not have to incur any listing feed or referral fees. The only charge you may incur is a 5% selling fee if you're shipping on your listing. The fee covers the cost of payment processing since you will be using facebook's checkout system. For instance, if you sell an item for $10, you will be charged $0.50 as the selling fee.
If you want to determine your potential profit here, you should subtract your buying cost from your selling price.
Demand
As discussed earlier, Facebook does not provide data that you can base your profitability on, and you need to rely on eBay and Amazon to give you an idea of what s selling. However, you can view the sold and completed listings of items; thus, you can gauge what sells best. Then, calculate the sell-through rate or the number of sold listings against the number of new listings to get a product's selling rate expressed as a percentage.
If you want to know if a product has a high sell-through rate, you look at its strong demand. It means that a large percentage of the new listing is getting sold out. However, if a product has a low sell-through rate, you will see that it is slow-moving because it is not in demand.
If you want to have a high sell rate and sell your products too quickly, look for similar items you saw on eBay or Amazon and had a sell rate of above 50%
If you go for a product with a low sell rate, you will wait for a few weeks or even months before you get the product sold. However, you can use eBay's advanced filters to search for results and then determine the sell-through rate of any product posted 90 days ago.
Competition
Prepare yourself for the competition from other sellers regardless of the product you will list. If you want to beat the competition, you must stand out by posting great photos and having a keyword-rich description of the product you are selling. Here are some ideas that will help you stand out:
Keeping an eye on popular items posted by sellers alike
As we discussed earlier on the issue of product demand, every time there are new releases of selling products, you should be among the sellers. You can even buy the items from other sites and sell them at a slightly higher price on Facebook.
Go with the trends
Look for the popular trends in the society and what prospective buyers want to associate with, then venture into that.
Go for normal items.
It is motivating to sell exciting products such as designer clothing but did you know you can sell items that people use daily and still get the most out of it? Facebook marketplace gives you a platform to ell household items such as furniture, books, clothes and so forth. The product could be high in demand since they are used daily.
Seasonal products
Products change with the demand of the season that people are in. For instance, winter products such as jackets and coats will be on-demand, while the demand will fall in summer. So go with the seasons and what people prefer to buy at a certain time.
Where to source products that you sell on the Facebook marketplace
Suppose you have the old item in your store that you want to sell or slightly used items you will be forced to source our products. Have you ever sourced items from eBay? Generally, sourcing products for the Facebook marketplace is similar to sourcing products for eBay.
It would be best to go the retail arbitrage way, but there are also a few options to try out so that you're not limited to one idea. Let us discuss them here.
Reselling products from the retail store
Reselling products from a retail store is commonly referred to as retail arbitrage. The idea works best on amazon since most sellers source their products on amazon at a slightly lower price and sell them back on other sites at an increased price.
19% of Amazon sellers do this and gain over $100 monthly sales. The idea has also been tested d on eBay and proved to work successfully. So if there r people in your local ae that may require that product, then you will be good to go.
However, it would be best to go slow on this idea since most people tend to notice marked-up products and won't delay bashing you up. As much as you want profits, try to price your arbitrage products reasonably, and you will get interested parties.
If you want to get more of it, you can try out stores that have clearance sales so that you can get a deal that will enable you to resell the product at a good price. You can also browse through the eBay app and use the sell-through rate method to get profitable opportunities.
Sell your self-made product
If you sell your product label or a unique brand, the chances for Facebook to put you on the radar on their potential place to be is high. 10% of people selling on Facebook are from amazon, and their business has expanded.
If you are looking to venture into your private label company, you should be encouraged since it has proven successful on amazon. It also presents an equal opportunity on Facebook. The Facebook marketplace has over 800 million users nationwide, so it gives you a platform to interact with your target audience and new customers.
Benefits of having a private label product:
- It promotes the work of handmade artists.
- You can create and own a product that you have invented.
- You can sell something rare in the market or what nobody else can.
- You can save money by sourcing external products outside the United States.
Go To Your local thrift store
If you don't know what you can list o the Facebook marketplace, you can visit your local thrift store and see if you can get something unique. On the other hand, if you are keen on some items at the thrift store, you may find an underrated item above the market value.
You can source some vintage designer clothing or any high-value items undervalued. Also, look for functional kid's toys furniture; you will not miss an artifact that you can resell at a higher price.
A source at the garage sales or estate sales
If you want to discover valuable products at a better price, you can try out garage sales in your local area. Garage sales are typically a homeowner's things of value that they sell maybe to declutter or when they want to move out.
These homeowners will let go of most things at a lower price. Sometimes it could be a hit or miss, but if you are consistent in attending those garage sales, who knows, you might land yourself a valuable item at a lower price then resell it at a higher price.
Who Can Post On Facebook Marketplace?
Anyone can post on the Facebook marketplace. The Facebook marketplace is for Facebook users who want to sell items they want to get rid of. However, entrepreneurs, businesses, amazon sellers, woodworkers too can sell on the Facebook marketplace. The seller strategy in Facebook messenger does not differ much compared to apps like Amazon and eBay.
Facebook does not charge fees when you list any items or list the items in local Facebook groups. So let's say, when you place an order for shipping, you will be charged only 5% of the item's sale price. The above makes listing items on Facebook a way to go for young entrepreneurs and experienced e-commerce sellers.
Facebook marketplace, you need an active Facebook account. If you don't have one yet, you need to set up one. The process of setting up an account is quite simple; we will take you through plus give you directions on how you can place payments and shipping information in case you are shipping your listings.
How to sell on Facebook marketplace-Guide
Setting up a Facebook marketplace account
If you already have a Facebook messenger account, this stage will be easier for you. You only need to navigate to the Facebook marketplace, and it is normally a tab on the left-hand side of the Facebook homepage. If it is not there, you can search it on the search bar, which will pop up on your screen.
If you don't have a Facebook account, you will have to set up one before proceeding. Download the Facebook up and while you are signing in, click on the option "Create New Account." Enter your information the finish by clicking sign up.
After you are signed into Facebook, you are good to go; you can now access the marketplace as in the procedure above. While accessing the marketplace, you will be asked to fill in some information to verify that you are a real person.
Fill in all the information you are prompted to gain trust in the marketplace. You will need a profile picture and some convincing identity in your account to get most buyers. The more details you fill in, the higher you may sell on the Facebook marketplace.
What To Post On Facebook Marketplace
Before you post anything on the Facebook marketplace, be sure that it will sell. The Facebook business page is similar to Craiglist and eBay; you can post anything you want to sell. You only have to look around you, come up with things you do not use or need anymore, and put them up for sale.
The things you pot must be of value or interest to people to sell. These things may include old household items such as furniture, electronics, video games, kitchen appliances, books.
How To Post Your Items On Facebook Marketplace listing
Since we have already reviewed product research and sourcing, let us discuss how you can post on the Facebook marketplace and start earning some income. It is easier than you think to list items on the Facebook marketplace since Facebook makes it so. The good thing with the Facebook marketplace is since it is found on the Facebook page, you can list items at the convenience of your phone. Let us discuss how to go about this:
Navigate the app and open it since you have already signed up for Facebook. On the left-hand menu on the Facebook page, click on the marketplace, then on the options that will pop up, click on create a new listing. Next, choose the option "choose your listing type" and proceed to click on the" item for sale" Fill in all the relevant details starting from the product description to the images of the product you want to list.
Before you post the image, make sure the details of the product are visible and hee is where the listing optimization procs we discussed earlier apply. Make sure that your product is most likely to be clicked and sold by most people.
To optimize your listing, make sure your listing title and description include many relevant keywords as possible. It will improve your SEO, and many people are likely to click on your product since it will show up on the results when a customer searches for a similar product.
The trick is simple, the more exact words you include in your keyword, the better chance you have at customers seeing your product. Also, don't forget to add product tags as they act as additional search terms that we cannot fit in the title or description box. Product tags make your Facebook ad easily accessible when a customer searches.
Also, remember to preview the listing and make sure you filed the product information required. Then, go to the shipping option and choose a delivery method; you can go for local pickup or shipping. Your target audience can be the local community or remote customers country-wide. Alternatively, you can use one delivery method, either the shipping only or the local pickup only. But still, it would est if you choose both so that you do not exclude potential buyers.
To make the shipping much easier, go for the prepaid label provided by Facebook, or if you do to use the prepaid label, you can choose to create and print your shipping label elsewhere. The cost of labeling depends on the weight of the package; the higher the weight, the more the shipping cost. Therefore, ensure that your package does not exceed 1 cubic foot to avoid extra charges.
After you have entered the shipping costs, Facebook will determine how much you will expect once a customer buys your product. The last step is to choose where to list your product. You can choose to list on the marketplace only or list it on both Facebook marketplace and in local Facebook groups. Search for buying or selling Facebook groups and join them.
You can even create a side Facebook page and ask your Facebook friends to join it so that you get your products on the front very quickly. After choosing where to list your products, click publish, and your product will be up for sale on the Facebook marketplace and other places.
After listing in public, prepare to get messages from buyers or people interested in knowing the price. You can further download the Facebook messenger app to avoid missing out on any messages and promptly respond to inquiries.
Ways to communicate with buyers
Since your business is in public, you will be dealing with people with every kind of mannerism. Some customers can be very rude, especially if they realize you are selling a product more tha the retail price. Therefore, it would be best if you always were calm and respectful no matter the situation you are dealing with.
To boost sales, ensure you reply to the messages promptly. Reply to the messages from clients quickly can increase your chance of closing upon sale. The only remedy to a rude client is to ignore the message, or if they get extreme, you can block them.
When you are not using the computer, you can use the messenger app on your mobile phone to reply to messages to be fast and reliable. Create room for negotiation for those customers that will low-ball you; if you are asked to reduce the price, ensure you communicate respectfully and state your lowest price the stick on it.
Ways To handle a local sale
Meeting up wh strangers from the internet can be a bit weird since you don't know each other well. Therefore, it would be best to remain cautious while handing over a product to a local buyer in the local community.
You should know the tips n safety fr online shopping and delivery. Follow the following guideline to ensure you are meeting safely with a stranger.
Meet in as shopping center parking lot where you will be sure there will be many people. If you are going to meet at night, ensure you meet in front of a store where there is a lot of lighting or an open store.
You can also opt for a police station since most of them have a place where you can meet up and exchange goods. In addition, they are safe since they have a 24 hr surveillance camera.
Also, if you are comfortable with home delivery, you can give your clients your home address to pick the products at the convenience of your house.
If you are going to sell high-value items and your payment method is cash, it would be best if you kept a counterfeit money pen near since you might risk being scammed. Before you meet you with a stranger:
- Go through their Facebook profile so that you know who to expect.
- Make sure you see a real photo of themselves plus their daily actions on Facebook, such as their family members or events.
- Capture the basic information on their newsfeed, and if you see something wrong with a customer, you can cancel the meeting plans and even stop communicating with them.
The best thing about the Facebook marketplace and Facebook, in general, is that it allows you to report suspicious people.
Selling tips for pros in the Facebook marketplace.
Since you already know how to optimize listings and do effective product research, you might as well become a Facebook marketplace pro. Follow the following in-depth tutorial of how to go about the facebook marketplace and succeed in sales.
Boosting your listings
You can make your product known by boosting them. You can do this by moving th product to the top of the marketplace search results. Boosting your listings turns your product into a Facebook ad that can benefit you in the following ways.
- Your listing will appear in people's news feed, thus selling faster.
- You can customize your audience to the target users
- You can have your daily budget and set the campaign date range to work on.
- You can monitor the insights from Facebook and see your listing's performance.
How to boost listings in the Facebook marketplace
Go to the" your account" option on the marketplace and select " your listings ."Select the listing you like to promote and click on the option boost listing. After that, you can set your daily budget based on the amount you want to spend and the boost duration you want to achieve. Facebook will help you make an informed decision by estimating your audience reach based on your budget. It will be cost-effective, and you will know how much to spend.
After stating your budget, choose the target audience. Facebook marketplace allows you to choose target users employing age, location and interests. If you want the customer to set your audience, you can save the settings you have made to use them in the future.
Once you have picked your target audience, click the promote now option and begin to boost your productivity. Once your boosted ad starts to run, you can monitor it with metrics such as likes and reach. You will see your spending and how many people viewed your listing, plus their engagement with the site and product.
Offer free local delivery on sold items.
In most cases, customers refrain from buying products they will have to deliver themselves. However, many customers will jump on an offer to get the goods delivered to their doorstep, especially if the delivery is free. If you sell things like furniture that may be bulky, you can offer a free delivery service to your local area as long as it is convenient for you. In doing so, you wil boost your sales and improve your conversations with your customers.
Renew Your Post
If your product was posted for over a week and did not sell, you can renew your listings. You will push your listing up to the top of results for free if you do so. Conversely, as more sellers list their products, your listing is pushed down the list if it has stayed for long.
To renew your listing go to the account option in the menu and click your listings. Find your listing and click on the 3- dotted thumbnail. In the options that will appear, choose your listings.
Post your listings in local groups
As mentioned earlier, putting your products at local customers' disposal is very helpful. If you pot your products on your newsfeed or in the buyer/seller groups, you put yourself in a position of attracting new customers, and people can also comment on your post. You will also get immediate attention if you post in an active group.
Take Quality product images.
If you want to sell quickly, you should take your time to produce crip clear and well-lit photos. If you don't include clear photos, you wil receive requests of people wanting more product images since they need to clarify what they are purchasing.
If you don't know how to get quality product images, you can borrow tips from amazon sellers. Take quality images from different angles. Close-ups and using lifestyle settings that show how the product is being used.
Try out other marketplaces
After mastering the techniques of selling in the Facebook marketplace, you can advance to more selling platforms and make more money. You can try out amazon and eBay since you now know how to sell faster. You can try out amazon since it has millions of audience and 83% of them are U.S consumers. Furthermore, it is a great place to launch an e-commerce business since it has a fulfillment network that makes shipping products rather easy.
If you find Amazon a little complicated, you can hop onto eBay since it also has about 183 million buyers worldwide, thus giving you a platform to sell things. Moreover, eBay is quite easy to navigate since you can easily set up an account and sell similar products you were selling on the Facebook marketplace.
