Reverb.com Alternatives

redhedded1

redhedded1

Experienced
With Reverb's ever increasing fees, what are other avenues to sell used gear to a large audience of viewers and potential buyers?

I'd like to hear what ideas have been implemented out there.

Here's my contribution: Sweetwater Gear Exchange
  • zero fees if you take the proceeds on a Sweetwater gift card
  • Gear Exchange transactions have a 2.5% processing fee and a 5% seller fee.
  • If you choose PayPal Hyperwallet as your payout, then the total seller fees are 7.5%.

Reverb seller fees are 2.7% + 0.25 + 5% Selling fee = 7.7% + $0.25, or preferred seller fees are lower if you have good feedback history and not a significant number of unsatisfied customers

Sweetwater is a newer alternative, set up similar to Reverg. They have a slightly lower total fee.

I don't consider e-bay an option, and don't sell gear on there. Things may have changed, so if anyone has success with that, please comment!

Selling online has it's risks as well. Please share how you mitigate those risks.

I myself have:
- always packed well, with padding and bubble wrap (air) inside the guitar case and prefer cardboard braces and double boxing for guitars and other gear. Air is better than just stuffing with paper I would say... maybe not in all cases though.

Rock on!

Edit: corrected the Reverb rates, and removed comment about Sweetwater only being useful if you used the option to put proceeds on a Sweetwater gift card. (I have also applied to be a Preferred Seller because when I checked my profile I had qualified. I am not sure I move enough volume of gear though if that is also a factor)
 
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My online gear days began with eBay back in 2002, and I've built up a decent 100% feedback score of over 300 with a mindset of buying/selling gear in excellent to mint condition. Until about 2 years ago, I'd primarily used the auction format instead of the direct sale approach at a fixed or best offer price. With that in mind, I learned to offer what the market would bear, and then discount the price in due course.

There were times when I could tell I might lose a little off my original price, but could always complete a sales transaction within 8 to 10 days of my item being listed.

Since Reverb began, I've only purchased items there, but have not built up an extensive feedback score. 100%, yes, most likely less than 15 purchases, though.

Had only one eBay customer service issue; a buyer who claimed he lived in Florida but actually lived in the Caribbean. I purposely sell only to the CONUS because of import taxes and fees, and the buyer claimed his item never showed up. Turns out, customs agents confiscated his item because it did not have the correct shipping info and labels. It was necessary to explain to eBay the buyer misrepresented himself, and tried to skirt customs laws and request his money back. eBay sided with me, and the buyer was blocked from eBay. eBay offered to refund my money once it had gone back out to the buyer, but I chose to preserve my feedback score over complain about $22 of computer connection adapters.

The takeaway from this is that a good name is more precious than gold, and a good reputation more valuable than silver. I value my eBay feedback score, and strive to preserve it by providing above and beyond customer service. Well-packaged, same business day handling and shipping, if possible.

A lot of the people I've sold gear to are thankful of the quick shipping and thoughtful follow-up to be sure the buyer is satisfied with his purchase. My only flaw in all of this is each of my items are listed as ALL SALES FINAL, meaning that unless the sales item arrives not as described or pictured within my listing, the item is now the buyer's. This precludes buyer's remorse, the dog needs vet-treatments, my car broke down, etc. In all honesty, if someone buys something that you didn't really want or need, don't expect a refund because I cannot trust that the buyer will put the same effort into packaging and or shipping in a timely fashion. Once the deal is closed, it's the buyer's item.

With this mindset, excluding the so-called FL buyer, I've never experienced any buyer/seller issues, my customers are happy with their purchases, and although I may not have made as much money as I'd hoped, eBay's fee structure is about the same as Reverb. If eBay, Reverb, or other online used sales websites require buildings, leases, customer service agents, equipment, training, management, oversight, as well as many other facets of running a business, they need to take in fees which end users are required to pay for.

I don't personally complain about the price of doing business anymore. Fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly. Businesses need to turn a profit to be viable. If they don't, they end up folding.
 
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I dislike Reverb but have bought and sold on the site. I had a guitar come in with a ding. The seller went with the safe shipping. Reverb refunded me $200 on the guitar. I am unconcerned with the ding and it’s a good guitar, and I got it cheap. So they are good for that anyhow. I like Craigslist but you need to be aware. People like the Facebook marketplace from what I hear.
 
bleujazz3 said:
My online gear days began with eBay back in 2002, and I've built up a decent 100% feedback score of over 300 with a mindset of buying/selling gear in excellent to mint condition. Until about 2 years ago, I'd primarily used the auction format instead of the direct sale approach at a fixed or best offer price. With that in mind, I learned to offer what the market would bear, and then discount the price in due course.

There were times when I could tell I might lose a little off my original price, but could always complete a sales transaction within 8 to 10 days of my item being listed.

Since Reverb began, I've only purchased items there, but have not built up an extensive feedback score. 100%, yes, most likely less than 15 purchases, though.

Had only one eBay customer service issue; a buyer who claimed he lived in Florida but actually lived in the Caribbean. I purposely sell only to the CONUS because of import taxes and fees, and the buyer claimed his item never showed up. Turns out, customs agents confiscated his item because it did not have the correct shipping info and labels. It was necessary to explain to eBay the buyer misrepresented himself, and tried to skirt customs laws and request his money back. eBay sided with me, and the buyer was blocked from eBay. eBay offered to refund my money once it had gone back out to the buyer, but I chose to preserve my feedback score over complain about $22 of computer connection adapters.

The takeaway from this is that a good name is more precious than gold, and a good reputation more valuable than silver. I value my eBay feedback score, and strive to preserve it by providing above and beyond customer service. Well-packaged, same business day handling and shipping, if possible.

A lot of the people I've sold gear to are thankful of the quick shipping and thoughtful follow-up to be sure the buyer is satisfied with his purchase. My only flaw in all of this is each of my items are listed as ALL SALES FINAL, meaning that unless the sales item arrives not as described or pictured within my listing, the item is now the buyer's. This precludes buyer's remorse, the dog needs vet-treatments, my car broke down, etc. In all honesty, if someone buys something that you didn't really want or need, don't expect a refund because I cannot trust that the buyer will put the same effort into packaging and or shipping in a timely fashion. Once the deal is closed, it's the buyer's item.

With this mindset, excluding the so-called FL buyer, I've never experienced any buyer/seller issues, my customers are happy with this purchases, and although I may not have made as much money as I'd hoped, eBay's fee structure is about the same as Reverb. If eBay, Reverb, or other online used sales websites require buildings, leases, customer service agents, equipment, training, management, oversight, as well as many other facets of running a business, they need to take in fees which end users are required to pay for.

I don't personally complain about the price of doing business anymore. Fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly. Businesses need to turn a profit to be viable. If they don't, they end up folding.
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Interesting. 10-15 years ago I sold my son's turntables and mixer on Ebay to a guy who said he lived in Florida but actually lived in the Caribbean. It went smoothly but I think we got the same guy.
 
My practice probably seems extreme / excessive but here's what I do:
  • Local sale only - I don't want to deal with shipping ...
  • Cash only / no trades.
  • I use free buy/sell boards that offer anonymous communication with buyers (kijiji here in Ontario is good), and that allow me to show my approximate location on a map.
  • I post lots of detailed pix and specs including milage / wear info and any flaws. I want to make it so that buyers don't have any questions to ask.
  • I try to price items somewhat below what would be considered the normal asking price and I allow for a margin of negotiation. I want the buyer to get a good deal while I get a price much better than guitar store trade-in.
  • I keep my boxes so I can usually offer original packaging.
  • I don't agree to any browsing / tryouts unless a purchase price has been agreed to in advance, and even then, I'm reluctant (another reason for posting lots of pix + info on any flaws). If someone is not sure, I can send more info, but if the buyer does not show firm intention to buy the item at an agreed price, no meeting will happen. Seems harsh, but I'm not into any in-person haggling or window shopping.
  • I don't tend to answer questions about how the item works, how its used, or whether or not it will suit someone's needs - just the specs / flaws / milage / pix. Though I will direct a buyer to more detailed info, I stop interaction if I get the feeling the person does not know exactly what they want / need. I don't want to convince anyone.
  • no returns is stated (I probably would but I want the buyer thinking twice about buying it if unsure).
  • no meetings without a specific meeting time. No "I'll be there around x" or "sometime in late afternoon" bs.
  • I don't give out address unless we are completely agreed on price, time of meeting etc.
  • no phone calls - lost a few sales cuz I would not talk on the phone, but hey - there should be no reason for it, so why give out additional personal info.
  • meet in a secure meeting spot if possible though I've done lots of sales at my home without issues.
  • 1st come / 1st served in order of who provided firm offer.
  • I don't sell high milage stuff. If it's working well but is very road worn and possibly does not have some good life left in it, then I'll trade it in at guitar store if possible or just give it to someone I know that needs / wants it.
So even given all that curmudgeonry, I've successfully sold a whack of stuff online over the years, though I live in a bigger city which helps. I hate doing it even with these practices to help assure a smooth sale - lot's of times I'll just trade-in at guitar store, if possible, to avoid selling online. I've had good experiences where I meet someome genuinely thrilled to have found something they need in good shape, and at a price they can afford.
 
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Mal said:
Interesting. 10-15 years ago I sold my son's turntables and mixer on Ebay to a guy who said he lived in Florida but actually lived in the Caribbean. It went smoothly but I think we got the same guy.
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If perhaps you allowed international sales, the transaction would have gone through. In my instance, it did not. And it was just annoying to have the buyer request a refund for something that violated the terms of my sale. As was said, eBay sided with me; eBay flagged the buyer and terminated his account.

Regards the same buyer? Could be...we didn't provide feedback for each other regards that particular sale, so I don't have documentation of the transaction...
 
So, explain it to me like I'm 5, what's the deal with IRS taxes and reverb? I don't sell a ton of gear on there, but I have definitely sold my share over the years and some higher end items over 3-4k per item. So far this year I think I've only sold a couple guitars totaling maybe 5k or so. What should I expect if I have to file etc?
 
Local sale with significantly lower price than reverb is the trade off for a smaller market, finding people willing to drive a bit further to pick stuff up they maybe wouldn’t be practical to ship etc

For some stuff, have to go Reverb as the market is so much larger and some gear is very niche appeal. Just the cost of doing business

Generally though, as long as your willing to come down enough in asking price there is usually a buyer.

I mean, I search FB marketplace and even if it’s something I don’t need I’ll probably pick it up if the price is right.

Didn’t need a Yamaha dx7, with one damaged key, but for $200 a few months ago ? Yeah I’ll drive 2 hours to go get that.

Tons of them online for like $600, but shipping a 40 year old 61 key synth that weighs a ton ? No thank you

Seller wanted it gone though and priced to more so win win. Other people maybe aren’t in a hurry to sell so price accordingly

I usually do FB local deal FS ads first and if can’t move in a few weeks, then it goes on Reverb.

Haven’t used EBay in ages, just seems like not nearly the marketplace for synths and pedals compared to reverb
 
GlennO said:
Guitar Center. Walk in with gear. Five minutes later, walk out with money.
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With the cost of shipping now thats prob best way to go now, shipping costs are stupid money and to send a guitar is going to cost a fortune depending on how far its going

Just sold a flightsim yoke sold for 300$ from Ma. to Cali cost 111.00$ UPS cheapest price and that doesnt count EBAY's cut - a lot smaller and lighter box than a guitar

East to west coast is prob going to work out to the same amount of money if you just went to Guitar center - crap shoot - and they do pay in cash which is nice
 
phillyred79 said:
So, explain it to me like I'm 5, what's the deal with IRS taxes and reverb? I don't sell a ton of gear on there, but I have definitely sold my share over the years and some higher end items over 3-4k per item. So far this year I think I've only sold a couple guitars totaling maybe 5k or so. What should I expect if I have to file etc?
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From what I've noticed on EBAY anyway I never had an issue with IRS unless I think if you make over 5,000$ a year
 
I‘ve gone local higher end guitar store consignment. No risk. No hassle. Decent money (commission is 20%) because it’s still a guitar sellers market. I didn’t know about Sweetwater. I like those guys so I will check it out.
 
rsvette12 said:
From what I've noticed on EBAY anyway I never had an issue with IRS unless I think if you make over 5,000$ a year
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So I usually end up selling at a "loss" and then if I sell more than $5k worth of gear would I have to "prove" I didn't make a "profit" on such sales because I originally bought them at a higher price? And then considering final take home price after reverb and paypal take their fees do I base what hits my account as the amount I compare to what I bought said item at originally? Sorry, just confused. I'd rather ignore it, and plead ignorance, but nowadays that doesn't always work!
 
If I understand it correctly, any transactions resulting in income to you over $600 annually will be reported to the IRS and you will get a 1099 form. I imagine after that you will have to use a supplemental form to figure any tax due.
 
GlennO said:
Guitar Center. Walk in with gear. Five minutes later, walk out with money.
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the bummer up here is that unless Long + McQuade (our GC) sells the item, they won't take it for trade - so all my Mooer, Nux ... crap is still sitting in the "to sell" pile.
 
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