People choose to sell teddy bears at auction on the internet for many reasons.  A dealer or artist may want to expand his/her sales prospects and gain greater internet exposure.  Someone may have inherited a collection they wish to liquidate or a collector could simply want to downsize their collection.  Selling at an internet auction has the potential of reaching prospective buyers all around the globe.

In order to effectively sell on the internet, it is important that you accurately describe the bear you are trying to sell.  Unlike buyers at a show, the cyberspace shopper does not have the privilege of examining the bear in person.  Your description can make or break the possibility of a sale.  It is important to outline a complete description of the bear including size, trim or costume, materials used in the bear as well as a mentioning all flaws, including even minor ones.  If you're not sure about something, better to error on the side of caution rather than leave something out.  Be as specific as possible in your description of the bear.  Also list any specific marking on the bear such as signatures, tags or other marks even if you don't know what they mean. 

Good pictures are an absolute must.  The best sales tool in any auction listing is the photograph(s) you include.  If you plan to sell on a regular basis, invest in a good digital camera.  Be sure to set your bear in front of a plain background.  Poster board or construction paper in a complimentary color is a good idea.  Stay away from background clutter that could distract from your bear.  Good lighting is also a must, outdoor lighting works great as long as your bear is not in direct sunlight.  This usually works best because then you don't have many of the issues caused by using a flash indoors such as unwanted shadows and a washed out look to your pictures.  Present numerous pictures in your listing to show the bear from all angles.  Take close-ups of special features and any damage or repairs.  When you list your auctions at The Teddy Patch - (and we hope you will!) please take note that each individual photograph must be no larger than 150K in size.  If you receive an error message and your photos will not load, please check your photo size as this is most likely the problem.

How should you price your bear?  You can list him with no reserve, using a starting price that is acceptable to you if the bear is sold.  With no reserve, it could possibly sell with a minimum of one bid. We recommend starting with a low minimum bid and then setting a reserve price to protect your investment.  In this case, the bear will not be sold unless the reserve price is met.  If you do use a reserve, be realistic - keep in mind that a large percentage of merchandise sold in internet auctions typically sell for less than so-called book value.  It pays to do some research before you start listing so you know what similar bears are bringing at auction so that you don't price your listings so high that they won't sell at all.

For those of you who are eBay veterans, you know that internet auctions have perils you need to guard against (we've written a whole article on the subject of internet fraud in this Blog you might want to reference).  If you are not a veteran, and are just getting started there are plenty of resources out there for you including the great information in this blog.  While there are dangers; the options that have opened up the world for buying and selling and reaching collectors and other artists as never before are worth the small risk.  With a little caution and some common sense, internet auctions are an exciting way to add new sales, meet new friends and share this wonderful hobby!

Credits:  Terry & Doris Michaud 2005