Dumpster Diving for eBay Inventory

Dumpster diving is a messy and sometimes smelly activity, but it can be a good way to find eBay inventory. There are some basic steps you should follow to stay safe and (relatively) clean. There are also some locations that are better than others and normally yield better items.

If you live close to a college, you can find some great items at the end of each semester when students are moving out. A lot of times the students are too lazy to pack up all of their stuff, so they just throw it out and figure they’ll buy another item next semester. Or they realize they have nowhere to store items over the summer, so they’re forced to leave them behind. Also look for text books.( I have a coaching client (shout out Nancy M. in New York!) whose husband is a professor at a university in New York. My client told me that she walks around the campus at the end of the semester during exam time and finds abandoned books lying in hallways, on steps, and in parking lots – all free for the taking! Not dumpster diving, even better!)

When you go out dumpster diving, make sure to bring a step stool with you. This will make it easier to climb into the dumpster (since actual diving isn’t the safest choice). You’ll also want to bring gloves and boxes for your finds.

Once you’ve arrived at the dumpster, put your gloves on and use the stool to climb up and open the dumpster. Look over the dumpster and note where anything sharp or potentially dangerous is. Decide where the best place to climb in is and look for anything valuable there – you don’t want to step on it and break it. Once you’ve scoped everything out, climb in – while ignoring any comments and stares from people passing by.

After you’re safely inside the dumpster start going through all of the trash. You can find a lot of different things in dumpsters – radios, televisions, used DVD’s, cameras, purses (they may have jewelry or even cash inside), computer equipment, etc. Basically you’re looking for anything that may be worth money. If you find old handbags, be sure to look through them for money.

Move from one side of the dumpster to the other. As you come across potentially valuable items, move them outside the dumpster to your boxes. Once you’ve sifted through everything, climb out of the dumpster carefully. Make sure you replace any trash that’s fallen out and close the lid – you want to leave everything looking just like you found it.

For fun stories on what people really find dumpster diving, check out The Experience Project – I Dumpster Dive. Also check out Online Selling Coach for the “Turn Trash into Cash” series where we tell you specific throwaway items you can sell for cash on eBay.

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Estate Sales

5 Ways to Get Free Inventory to Sell on eBay

The tight economy makes it tough on eBay sellers who don't have the cash to put out for inventory. However, if you are just a little bit creative, you can collect free stuff and then sell it on eBay. Here are some ways to do that.

FreeCycle is a great way to get free inventory to sell on eBay. You can get all kinds of things from home accessories to toys to furniture. Subscribe to the mailing list and when someone has something they want to get rid of, you will be notified. You don't have to tell anyone you want it to sell on eBay. Just make arrangements to pick it up and they'll be happy to get rid of it. Craigslist is another good place to find free inventory to sell on eBay. People post ads when they are putting their items on the curb and whoever gets there first to haul it away gets it for free.

(Side note about FreeCycle: It is an organization set up to help keep things out of the landfill. The FreeCycle organization has not issues with selling items obtained from the site. The FreeCycle website says, “Welcome! The Freecycle Network™ is made up of 4,936 groups with 8,376,006 members around the world. It's a grassroots and entirely nonprofit movement of people who are giving (and getting) stuff for free in their own towns. It's all about reuse and keeping good stuff out of landfills. Each local group is moderated by local volunteers (them's good people). Membership is free. To sign up, find your community by entering it into the search box above or by clicking on 'Browse Groups' above the search box. Have fun!” However, moderators and members might impose their own opinions here and punish those they feel are taking items away from the financially needy, even though that is not what FreeCycle is about. It is best to stay under the radar and not broadcast that you are an eBay seller or you might be removed from the group.)

In fact, picking useful items up on the curb is a good way to find free stuff. It's best to drive through the more affluent neighborhoods, especially on trash pick up day or take it a step farther and go dumpster diving. You never know what you'll find.

Garage sales are a great place for freebies when you get there late. By the end of the day, the people hosting the yard sale are usually worn out and the last thing they want to do is drag what didn't sell to Goodwill, so you can offer to haul it away for free.

Start collecting free samples by joining coupon groups and forums. Some good sites are Money Saving Mom, Coupon Cravings, and The Krazy Koupon Lady. You'll be kept informed when manufacturers offer free samples so you can send for them. Before long you'll have quite a collection you can sell on eBay. . Or even tune into the new show on TLC called “Extreme Couponing.” This program profiles extreme couponers and how they obtain thousands of products for free.

Another way to get free samples is to "like" manufacturers on Facebook. Sometimes you are rewarded with a coupon for a freebie, plus they will occasionally send free offers to their fans on Facebook. Some examples are General Mills, Clairol, and Neutrogena.

Finding free inventory to sell on eBay can be an adventure in itself but is worth the effort since you'll be rewarded with pure profit.