How to Sell Music, Collectibles, and Instruments on eBay... And Make a Fortune [Paperback]

Dennis Prince (Author), William M. Meyer (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0071445706 | ISBN-13: 978-0071445702 | Publication Date: November 12, 2004 | Edition: 1

Music is a huge category on eBay. It includes selling not only records and CDs but also collectibles, instruments, equipment, tickets, and technology. Dennis Prince teams up with William Meyer, an expert at selling music items on eBay, to give information specific to the music market, including determining the condition and authenticity of items; understanding what can legally be sold, including copyrighted material and tickets; the use of an instrument (for beginners, marching bands, professionals, or collectors); and more.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Imagine opening a music store...and 60 million people show up.

That's the power of selling on eBay.

Every year more than 60 million people browse and buy music-related merchandise on eBay. In order to reach this growing market, and get top dollar for your merchandise, you need the right listing, the perfect presentation, and two of the world's leading eBay experts to answer all your questions--fast.

How to Sell Music, Collectibles, and Instruments on eBay... and Make a Fortune! gives you the inside track on selling opportunities in this lucrative category including: appraising instruments and equipment; harnessing the hottest trends in recorded music and memorabilia; targeting customers, artists, and categories; and proven key words, descriptions, and images that will turn up the volume on your listings and make them sell.

• Research market trends and capitalize on them
• Find the most valuable items at the best prices
• Choose the best brands, manufacturers, and distributors
• Determine what's legal to sell, including copyrighted material
• Advertise off eBay to drive sales on the site
• Attract collectors who are willing to pay top dollar
• Reach the biggest possi-ble audience
• Choose the best order fulfillment, packing, and shipping options

About the Author

Dennis L. Prince is a recognized eBay guru and the bestselling author of eight eBay books.

William M. Meyer is a writer, editor, online auction expert, and musician/music critic. He is also a consultant and a freelance writer/editor for eBay.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (November 12, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071445706
• ISBN-13: 978-0071445702
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #380,248 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #82 in Books > Computers & Technology > Business & Culture > eBay

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Basics on Collecting Music items with eBay, June 22, 2005

By 

Frank D (ridgewood, nj United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Sell Music, Collectibles, and Instruments on eBay... And Make a Fortune (Paperback)

How to Sell Music, Collectibles and Instruments on eBay
and Make a Fortune
A book review by Frank Dobrowolski
May 12, 2005

by Dennis L. Prince and William M. Meyer
Published by McGraw-Hill/Osborne
ISBN 0-07-144570-6 2005 268 pages
List price: $14.95 On Amazon: $10.17 +S/H

This book is a quick, short introduction to using eBay for buying and selling music and related collectibles and instruments, [one of the "How to Sell ..... and Make a Fortune" series]. It appears to be aimed at those who would rather learn by doing and need only a brief tutorial on the process. This objective is met quite admirably. Those who find they desire more detailed discussions or want information on the ancillary sectors of eBay can find other books that meet these needs.

As to the "Make a Fortune" part of the title, the recommendation essentially is the familiar mantra of retail operations - Buy low, Sell High, Generate High Sales Volumes, Know the Product and Understand the Customer. The difference here is that eBay is the base of operations rather than a store and operating on eBay opens the operation to a potential audience of million. While few make a fortune in retail at this level, the book does offer much information and lists a wealth of reference sources.

The potential market is very large. According to this book 54% of U.S. households have at least one musical instrument player. And, retail music is a stable product category with staying power and sales potential.
* Over 745 million audio CDs were sold in 2003 for $11 billion
* Over 35 million concert tickets were sold in 2002 grossing $2.2 billion
* Music products [instruments, performance gear, etc.] sales in 2002 exceeded $6.9 billion
* Vintage music products and memorabilia generates tens of billions of dollars every year

Those selling in this field can be either: experts in a narrow, low volume market with high profit margins; or broadly interested in a wide, high volume market with low profit margins. Whichever part of this field one chooses to follow there are many sources of information provided in this book.

Memorabilia refers to items like t-shirts, ticket stubs, programs, etc. Once these items were considered to be disposable. However, their presence on eBay has created an expanded, eager collector base. So more items are being valued and the values are increasing.

According to this book there usually are over 650,000 music-related items listed in eBay's categories and over 500 sub-categories for Music, Musical instruments [grossing $500 million a year] and Music Memorabilia [ with 75,000 Rock-n-Roll listings every day] categories. This book claims to be the only one focused on these three areas. Some data the book presents on eBay's sales in the music categories:

* Music - 500 categories
* 700,000 listings each day
* 150,000 records listed
* Musical instruments - $500 million/ year
o 50,000 guitars listed - $1.1 B in 2002
* Musical Products - $350 million/year
* Rock-n-roll memorabilia - 70,000 listings

Chapter 2 is entitled "The History of Selling Music". This information helps one start to develop a background in the field to better understand the items being sold and to prepare for updates and changes. The chapter points to two areas of concern: Fraud and Competition.

The book states that fraud and misrepresentation are widespread, especially with Memorabilia. It is estimated that 99% of the Beatles signature items and 75% of Rock-n-Roll autographs are fake. The book recommends that such items have rock-solid appraisals from recognized specialist appraisers and a written, lifetime guarantee of authenticity.

Competition relates to the various levels of marketing, particularly of musical instruments and related equipment, The mass marketers [Wal-Mart] lower prices and make business difficult for music stores. The Internet also competes with the music stores. Fraud is rife and prices are lowered mercilessly [in the eyes of store-based merchants] In fact some instrument manufacturers forbid the sale of their instruments on the Internet and impose pricing protection for the stores.

The book discusses each sector in the music categories, addressing source information, market, current pricing and the more popular items. Pages 45 to 63 lists many information sources, sub-dvided as by instrument or type of memorabilia.
Chapter 5 discusses the necessary Business Plan focusing on marketing and sales strategies and on the financial aspects.
Chapter 6 covers building and maintaining an inventory. Chapter 7 discusses acquiring and holding on to customers and keeping them happy to generate return business. The book addresses the tasks to use eBay for selling - Listing, Payment, Shipping, etc. Chapters 10 to 12 cover the elements of becoming a music specialist in one of the categories and sub-categories. It outlines the knowledge needed and the means to keep the customers happy, and advised of one's available inventory.

The book is well-written, easy to read and has enough illustrations to convey the needed message. I would recommend this book for beginners or novices in using eBay for buying and selling music-related items on eBay.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Real-world money-making advice, February 7, 2005

By 

Tech Geek - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Sell Music, Collectibles, and Instruments on eBay... And Make a Fortune (Paperback)

This in-depth book covers the topic of selling music products on eBay, using a lot of practical examples plus a dash of humor. It's a great resource for anyone who wants to start selling CDs or instruments on eBay, giving real specifics on how to position your music merchandise effectively. It's a solid guide that's bound to generate real sales. Also, it includes excellent first-hand testimony from some of eBay's best music sellers. Highly recommended.

4.0 out of 5 stars Best book on subject, but from 2004, January 13, 2009

By 

Alexander E. Maas "Alex Maas" (San Diego) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How to Sell Music, Collectibles, and Instruments on eBay... And Make a Fortune (Paperback)

There are 2 books like this--one by another author, both from 2004, so both are outdated, and of course the world of music is changing everyday with Apple just removing copy production from iTunes, new ways to download, new instruments all the time..but this is a good place to start and give someone a lot of great ideas. There are tons of web addresses in this book, but the web changes so fast, a lot of them are going to be outdated. Still the best book on the subject. I did notice there is a newer 2007 book called Global Marketing of Music--but that one is more about promoting your own music.
Any questions, please feel free to ask me.
Same email address as always
Alex Maas
[e-mail]
Dolphin's Treasure Trove on Amazon.