We recently had a $4,000 single sale that we almost lost, so we’re going to share the ins and outs of what to do in a situation like this. It’s a bit of a roller coaster when it’s a $4,000 sale and you’re trying to salvage it.
What was the item we almost lost the sale on? It was a four-wheel motorized scooter for two people. I bought it for $150 and had it for about six to eight months. It takes the right person to buy this type of item. It’s heavy duty and it will hold two people.
When I listed it, I knew that there was an error code on the actual monitor. It worked when I first got it but something happened. On our large items we always do 5-day shipping which I thought would be plenty of time for me to find a part and fix it. Once this item sold for $4,000, I tried to order the part so I could fix it. Unfortunately this specific part was hard to find and the only place I could find it was in Europe and it would not be ready to ship in five days.
I Googled the error code it was throwing and I also had thought it was a controller. So first I bought a controller on Amazon to replace it and Amazon sent me a used one. That did not work, so I returned it and kept trying to find the other part, but I could only find the one in Europe that wouldn’t get here in time to ship it.
Finding A Solution
Throughout all of this, I’m communicating with the buyer and that is a crucial lesson. Always have good communication with your buyer. I was thinking I was going to lose the sale and have to refund him. I told him when I was getting the item out to ship that I needed to figure out the error code, and I updated him on what I tried with the Amazon part. In this case I actually got his phone number and called him. Sometimes that’s just easier to explain a situation.
He was trying to get this item quickly and could not wait for the part. I said, “Listen, I can’t get this thing done. I can’t get the part quick enough, to get it over to you. I’m happy to refund your money and I will go ahead and order the part and then I’ll get it reposted and do that.”
The buyer asked me about the part and I told him the whole ordeal and the error code and the buyer said he still wanted the chair because it was unique in that two people could ride on it. I offered to take money off the chair if he still wanted it. I offered it for $3,000 instead. He said he would do some research and get back to me. Then when I got back on the phone with him, he asked if I’d do $2,500 and that’s where we landed. I was still able to 10X my $150 profit, so it was good to sell the item and clear space for new items. Shipping was estimated at $170 and it’ll go on a pallet. So we have roughly $320 in this and sold it for $2,500.
We almost lost this sale due to the error code, but I saved it by being in good communication with my buyer, using my negotiation skills, and by underpromising and overdelivering.
If something like this happens to you, know that you don’t have to automatically issue a refund. There may be a way for both the buyer and seller to get what they want and end on a good solution.
Show Notes
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