If you have a bunch of unwanted clutter just taking up space in your home, what better way to get rid of it than sell it? Mercari is a great option if you are looking to free up some space and make some cash on the side.
Similar to other reselling platforms, Mercari is an app for selling just about anything from clothes and shoes to toys, home decor, and more! Many of the items on the site are secondhand, and unlike local meet up sites like Facebook Marketplace, everything on Mercari ships. How great is that?!
Getting Started
Mercari is so simple. All it takes is an account with an email address or you can connect to your personal Facebook account for easy login. Use my link to get a $10 credit when you sign up and make your first purchase!
You can then set up your seller profile. Then give your shop a name, write a bio, and let your potential buyers know a little bit more about yourself. You can even create a logo or use a favorite picture to personalize your shop. All of these can create a connect with a buyer and help increase your likelihood of making a sale.
Listing Items
Now that your profile is complete you can begin to list items for sell. If you are just starting out and looking to clear clutter from your home, look around for items you no longer use to list. These can be old toys, unopened gifts, gently used clothing, etc. If you are looking to start a reselling side hustle, or more items to flip for profit check out my post here.
Once you’ve gathered your items, it’s time to list. Take a few pictures of the item in a place with good lighting. Make sure all relevant angles are shown and the pictures are clear enough for a buyer to see what the item is. I usually recommend taking at least 3 good pictures, but the more the better!
Next head to the List an Item icon at the top of your screen. A new screen will open to walk you through listing items. Here is what the listing form looks like:
Photos
Upload your pictures and move them to the order you prefer. I recommend putting a large, clear photo that shows the item clearly first and then detailed photos later. Shoppers like to see what they are purchasing.
Don’t just take picture of the item itself, but also include tags, accessories included, care instructions, and other important details
Profile Info
- Title—give your item a clear, but concise title that is easily searchable. Include information such a brand, color, size, and unique qualities. You have 80 characters to complete your title and you should use them all! This gives more opportunities for your item to appear in searches.
- Description—here you can go into more detail than the title. Include again the brand, style, unique qualities, what it is used for, etc. Give your potential buyers as much detail as you can to encourage a sale. If this is a used item include a description of the condition and if there is any damage. A picture of damage should also be included above.
- Hashtags—Yes it says optional but use them! Hashtags are meant to help categorize your items for search. If you are selling some new with tags sandcastle toys you could use hashtags such as #summertime #vacation or #beachtoys to help your item appear in more searches.
- Category—This will help classify your listing. Choose what best applies and more subcategories may appear.
- Brand—include the brand of your item. If the brand does not appear in search send it in to Mercari for review. This helps the app expand its search engine to help other sellers! Try to avoid using the no brand/not sure if you can help it.
- Condition—honesty is best for this category! Let your buyer know what condition the item is in so they know what they are purchasing. This will lead to happy buyers and better ratings!
- Color—again it says optional but try to fill this out if you can. Try to choose the most prominent color
Shipping
First you need to decide who covers the shipping; you or the buyer. Mercari give you the option to offer your buyers free shipping (you pay for it). Doing so can increase your sales, but it isn’t a requirement and there are definitely pros and cons to both.
You cover the shipping:
- Pro: It can drive more sales because who doesn’t love free shipping!
- Con: You will have to pay for the shipping, and it can cost more than you anticipate if you don’t do your research.
Buyer covers the shipping:
- Pro: Mercari sends you a prepaid shipping label
- Pro: You can determine which shipping options you prefer and only use locations that are near you. Mercari works with USPS, FedEx, and UPS. If one of these businesses is not located near you, you can choose from the other options making shipping more convenient.
- Pro: No hassle of paying out of pocket
- Pro: Mercari insures items shipped through them for up to $200 and provides tracking information
- Con: Shipping can be more expensive than other reselling platforms if you are selling larger items, so this may drive buyers to other options
I personally only have my buyers pay for shipping, but if you prefer are willing to do the research free shipping can help improve your profits.
If you choose buyer shipping, you can adjust the shipping provide to help get your buyers the best deal. First weigh your item using a scale. You can also input the item measurements and Mercari will calculate the shipping for you.
Pricing
Set the price you would like to sell the item for. I typically price mine a few dollars more than I would like to receive for my listing to give room for sending offers and possible sales. Mercari will automatically calculate the profit you receive after all fees have been paid.
You can also use a feature called smart pricing. This will allow Mercari to slowly adjust the price of your item based on the demand to make it more attractive to buyers. They will recommend a price (where similar items have been selling) and slowly reduce the price over a few days if your item is not getting much attention. The floor price is the lowest your item will be listed for and Mercari will notify you when it reaches this price. You can also choose to have this feature off and reactivate it at any time.
Time to Sell
Now after all the necessary information is complete, its time to officially list your item! Click on the orange “List” button at the bottom and it is listed! If you are not quite ready to sell, you can also save it as a draft and keep the information for a later time.
At this point you can sit back and wait for the buyers to come!
Mercari will notify you if someone likes your item, sends you a message, or puts in an offer. You can also look on your dashboard to see how many times your items have been viewed or liked.
When an offer is sent, Mercari will let you know how much your profit will be at that price. You can also counter or decline the offers.
Shipping the Sales
You received that email saying you have a sale! Congrats! Now its time to print the shipping label from your email.
Pack your item and make sure its securely packaged and protected. I include a small thank you note in each of my packages, but that is not required. You can package your items however you like but things such as tissue paper, notes, and colorful poly mailers can add a little extra flare and give your buyers a great experience. All of this will lead to five-star reviews and show other buyers you are trustworthy and considerate.
Mercari requires you ship your items within three business days. If for whatever reason you are unable to meet this timeline, reach out to the buyer over messages. Once you have dropped off the item you can confirm shipment on the app and your buyer will know it is in transit. Mercari will track your package and let you know when it has been received by the buyer.
Supplies
You don’t need to spend a ton of money purchasing supplies to sell on Mercari. I recommend having a supply of the following:
- Scale—this is a must especially if you are going to offer free shipping to your buyers and pay postage yourself. If you aren’t paying for shipping, it is still helpful to know how much your item ways to try to adjust the shipping cost to be as low as possible for your buyers. I use this small food scale, but a bathroom scale can be helpful for larger items.
- Printer—or even access to a printer is fine. You will need to print the shipping labels to send your packages.
- Half sheet labels—these have been a game changer for shipping! So easy. You just print, peel off the label, and stick it on. You can also use regular paper and tape the label on with packing tape
- Mailing envelopes—I like to use cute poly mailers to add a bit of fun to my packaging, but you can also find even cheaper ones online. These work great for clothing and small items.
- Plain boxes—you can purchase these, but I prefer to keep a small stash of boxes from my own online purchases to reuse (Amazon’s are my favorite).
- Storage—If you are just selling a few things out of your home it’s a good idea to have a space dedicated to your listed items. This will make the shipping process a lot faster because you will not have to go searching for the items. If you are starting a small business, you will want to find a way to store your inventory. A closet, storage bins, or shelves all can help keep it organized.
Fees and Profit
One of the best parts of Mercari is their low seller fees! It costs nothing to list and item, so list as many as you can. Then when an item is sale is made Mercari takes 2.9% of the sale price plus a $0.30 processing fee. That’s it!
Mercari has been especially successful for me with some of my less expensive reselling items for this reason. You get to keep such a large percentage of the profits. Remember, when setting the price don’t forget to look at the automatic profit calculation.
Payment
Once the item is delivered, the buyer now has three days that the item has been received and it is in the expected condition. This gives them time to notify you of any issues and leave you a rating. After the buyer confirms or the three days have passed, you can then rate the buyer. Once you have completed your rating, the funds from the purchase will be added to your balance.
Now you can use this money to shop on Mercari or request a payment.
If your balance is less than $10, you will be charged a $2 fee for direct deposit. If your balance is over the $10 threshold, you can request a direct deposit and in a few business days the money will be deposited in your account.
Other Great Features:
Mercari Rating System
Badges
Mercari has a 5-star rating system for both buyers and sellers. Visitors can leave anywhere from a 1 star to 5 stars along with a comment about their experience with you. They are also quick ratings such as “fast-shipper”, “friendly”, and “good communicator” that can be used. If the costumer does not leave a rating within the 3 day period after delivery, Mercari automatically will give you 5-stars.
Badges are shown on your profile page underneath your picture. The available badges are
- Member since XXXX (how long you have been on Mercari as either a buyer or seller)
- Quick Shipper (you usually ship items within 24 hours, excluding holidays and weekends)
- Fast Responder (You answer questions within an average of 12 hours)
- Reliable (You deliver items as promised and do not have cancelations)
All of these give your potential buyers insight into how you are as a seller.
Promote Button
Do you have an item that has been listed for a while but has not sold? Put it on sale! The promote button allows you to either publicly drop the price or send a private offer. A public sale will lower the price, put a banner on it indicating a price drop, and place it at the top of keyword searches. A private offer will notify all the people who liked your item of the same. It only allows you to drop the price lower than your lowest previously listed price, so keep that in mind when choosing the sale.
Now that you have set up your account and listed a few items its time to wait for those offers to come in! Reselling can require some patience for the right buyer to come around, so don’t get discouraged. And remember, the more items you list, the more chances you have to make sales!
Not sure Mercari is the right fit for you? Or want to scale your business even further? Check out my Ultimate Guide to Selling on Poshmark or my Complete Guide to Reselling to help to get your reselling business up and running.
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