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People think it’s easy to sell baseball cards on eBay.

“How hard could it be?” they’ll say. “That seller got [X amount] for this card, I should be able to get that price too.”

People fail to grasp that using eBay effectively is not an easy task. They’ll focus on the final sale price realized without understanding that there is much more to the process than meets the eye. If you want to achieve a fair price for your collection and avoid a huge headache, here are seven reasons why you should absolutely NOT try to sell your sports card collection on eBay.

#7: You're unsure of value

You may have some idea, but you’re not 100% sure.

How much should you ask for? Should you include a reserve? Should you list it as an auction format or a buy it now? Split it up into individual cards? Sell it as a lot?

#6: Your listing(s) won’t get enough exposure

Dealers know how to market their auctions and command higher prices. Many have already established a loyal following of buyers who get email notifications about their auctions.

Do you know how to properly optimize your listing around keywords? How about the best time of day to end your auction? Are you familiar with listing best practices? We didn’t think so.

#5: You’ll be a target for scammers

Scammers love to pick on new sellers who don’t know all the rules of PayPal. They’ll pull schemes like the classic chargeback con --- and new sellers have little recourse. You could lose your whole collection AND get stuck paying the scammer for his or her troubles.

#4: You have low or no feedback

People don’t feel comfortable buying from inexperienced sellers. You may still sell your items if you choose an auction format with a low opening bid and no reserve --- but you’ll likely be disappointed with the result.

#3: Fees, hidden costs, and restrictions

Each eBay listing costs money to publish. eBay also takes a cut of the final sale price when your item is sold. There are fees for adding additional images to your listing and featuring it for more exposure. New members are often not allowed to list more than ten items per week and cannot exceed $1000 in realized price.

#2: Time and energy

Photo credit: Sam Moore --- mvtimes.com

Going to the post office, waiting in line, writing listings, scanning images over and over and over again, responding to bidder questions --- these are all things you’ll need to plan for.

#1: Opportunity cost

By the time you’ve gone through all the trouble of pricing, listing, and selling your cards, you could have been paid weeks ago. Do you really want to spend the dozens or hundreds of hours required to do this properly?

Selling baseball card collections on eBay may seem easy, but it’s definitely not. If you’re not convinced and you’re ready to give it a shot --- good luck to you. Here’s one resource we recommend you read. If you’d rather unload your collection quickly and easily for a fair price, check out our appraisal form. We’ll get back to you and make you an offer in less than 24 hours.

*** Just Collect will be buying, selling, and trading at the 2016 National Sports Collectors Convention in Atlantic City, NJ August 3rd to 7th. To see where exactly we'll be, and how you can get a free in-person appraisal, visit our national page here. ***