On Craigslist, there are three sections that I look at for resale opportunities:
1) Books
2) Garage Sale
3) Free
Books – Most of the time people are selling single titles or a few fiction books. However, sometimes people are selling their entire book collection. Students will often sell their textbooks here as well. I usually offer them half of what their asking for and negotiate from there.
Garage Sale – This section lists garage sales, yard sales, and moving sales. I always look at the description to see if it’s worth the drive.
Free – Occasionally people will give their books away. When this happens, you will want to respond quickly.
I use a website called IFTTT.com to get email alerts whenever books become available in these Craigslist sections. Here’s a video for further explanation.
Thanks for sharing this idea! I was able to quickly get in touch with a seller of old country music cds that I would have most likely missed without the IFTTT email. I picked up 80 cds for $10. Five of the cds I will sell on Amazon for about $100. The rest of the cds I will sell at my flea market booth at $4-5 each. Also, I was able to be more strategic with my garage sale stops today after setting up the “book” recipes as you suggested! Thanks so much Nathan!
Awesome! I’m glad IFTTT is working for you. Thanks for sharing your success!
Great tip. CL has an alert system in place now. One click save a search and choose if you want email notification or not. I keep alerts for the name of my local area so I can avoid time lost on Craigslist and still see what is offered or moving around me.
I see books posted in lots but I always assume they are sellers such as myself who have already scanned them and are selling off the duds. I often give boxes away when I do a culling of duds.
I feel awkward approaching someone and asking if the books are already scanned. Any advice on how to word the question efficiently?
I would just ask them directly. Most of the time they will give you a straight answer. Ask them a few questions via email before looking at them:
1) Are these books from your own private collection?
2) Do you sell online?
3) Have any booksellers picked these over?
Thank you both for the great tips!
This is great info – I tried to use Ifttt before and was lost! This was super easy and I can’t wait to use.
Thanks!