POSHMARK SELLER TIPS FROM AN ACTUAL POSHMARK SELLER:
#1 – Poshmark is Not eBay – And that’s a good thing!
Many new users who come to Poshmark assume that it is like eBay.
They list an item for sale and then they let it sit in their closet. They don’t
realize the social aspects of Posh are there and they certainly don’t realize
how crucial they can be to your success. I like to think of Poshmark as a
platform where eBay meets Instagram. You get to communicate with your
buyers, you can see who likes your item, and you get to know people within
the Poshmark Community. Friendships are so common on the platform that
Poshmark has even dubbed friendships stemming from the app as “PFFs.”
(Posh Friends Forever). I will be the first to say that because of its social
aspects, Poshmark is unique in the online selling world. It requires you to
be social. Sharing your items from your closet, working with people
shopping your closet, and communicating with others in the app are all
keys to being a successful Poshmark seller. The difference between
Poshmark and eBay selling as Active Vs. Passive selling. Unlike eBay, you
can use these social tools to directly impact your sales. Having a slow
sales day on Posh? Share your items, reach out to buyers who have
purchased from you in the past, and communicate with those who have
liked several items in your closet to offer them a bigger discount if they buy
more than one item. Doing these things will help positively impact your
sales within the app.
#2 – Harness the Power of the Bundle and Posh Post Shipping!
Bundling is unique to Posh. Bundling allows someone to purchase
more than one item from your Poshmark closet, usually at a discount, and
then you are able to ship them together. The great thing is you can set a
bundle discount automatically to anything from 5-30% and buyers can
bundle and save on their own. Posh also recently did an app update where
you can send private bundle discounts to people who have bundled items
from your closet and not yet purchased! It’s called the Dressing Room. This
is great for impulse buys! I like to wait about 30 minutes after someone has
bundled some items and then send them a quick private discount. Many
times this is enough to get them to hit that buy button! Poshmark is also
unique in that it has its own shipping called PoshPost and it is dirt cheap. I
mean it. Some people will claim that $6.49 is high for shipping, but for that
$6.49 you receive priority shipping which is usually delivered in 2 days, and
you can ship up to 5lbs for that price. Try shipping 5lbs on your own with
USPS from say New York to California, or even Hawaii or Alaska for $6.49!
It won’t happen. On Posh, the buyer pays the shipping, and the seller only
needs to print the label that is sent to them by Poshmark, and place the
item in a FREE USPS Priority box, slap on the label and either drop off the
item at the post office or request a free home pickup online with USPS.
This is seriously the easiest, fastest shipping in the industry. It saves the
buyer and seller money, and provides an amazingly fast ship time when the
seller ships ASAP.
#3 – Pay Attention to Trends and Style Staples!
Poshmark is a trendy place, with boutiques and unique brands
created by Poshmark users themselves popping up all the time to bring you
the hottest fashion-forward styles. For those of us who do resell, paying
attention to these trends and styles is essential to competing. Offering
trendy items that may not be top brands pulls in buyers to your closet by
providing that “in the now” look. While trends are important, knowing your
brands is even more essential to success. Good brands are considered
style staples. When we buy a wardrobe piece that costs $300 at Saks we
are buying a piece that we will love for a long time. No matter if it’s a dress
shirt, blazer or designer denim jeans, they will stick around for a while.
Knowing when to source trendy items that may not be top brands is key to
bringing a fresh look to your closet, but knowing these key brands is how
you pull people back into your closet over and over again. Learning these
brands is as simple as scouring top department store websites, like Saks
and Nordstrom, and taking field trips to the stores themselves to look touch
and feel what these items are so you know. Building a brand list in your
brain takes time, but once you get the hang of it, and know what to look for
in quality goods, you can easily feel quality. Once you get this down, even
if you don’t know a brand, you can do a google search from your phone
while you are out to learn more about something if it has the signs of being
a hidden gem.
#4 – You are your own brand on Posh, and you need to build it!
Poshmark is somewhere you can easily brand yourself. You are your
own brand, and you are you own ambassador. On Poshmark I am
@JCradd and my brand is Acquitted Apparel. Everyone knows me on there
as those two things. Many people have a user name and then their brand.
It is up to you to harness the abilities of being a brand. In order to make
yourself memorable and stand out you should make your closet unique.
You can do this by using a unique background in your photos, branding
yourself with unique brand logos on your photos, ordering unique
packaging materials and thank you notes, and other little tricks that you will
pick up from successful Posh sellers.
#5 – Make your cover shot count!
Remember how I said Posh is like eBay meets Instagram? Your
cover shot is the first thing people see in the feed or when searching for
items. It’s your first impression and much like on Instagram to get the most
likes you’ve got to make it stand out. I love using a cheap background I
purchased online and doing flat lays to get the best look for an item. I will
also use a mannequin if a piece requires it. All of my items have the same
or similar backgrounds, and feature my logo for my brand, Acquitted
Apparel. You should make sure your lighting is good, and if not, invest in a
cheap light kit. Also, quickly edit your photos with your iPhone pre-installed
editing software. It takes two seconds and can make a world of difference.
#6 – Have fun, because the people at PMHQ do!
I always joke with people in my Facebook group that I’m jealous of
the folks who work at Posh Headquarters because they look like they have
so much fun. The great thing is, that positive fun attitude is contagious and
spreads throughout the Posh community. Everyone (well just about
everyone) is friendly and loves to meet people, talk, and do things involving
fashion. Sure, we get our share of people with grumpy tudes, but that
shouldn’t bother you. When you encounter someone like that let it roll off
your back. (Online selling requires a thick skin like any retail business, the
great thing about online though is you can block them!) If you have
questions as you begin your Posh journey, or even as you become a
seasoned Posh vet, don’t hesitate to ask others. Posh is a place to be you,
do what you want to do, sell what you want to sell fashion-wise, and even
do it with the help of friends and family. Have fun with it, for real, because it
can be the most fun job or side hustle of your life. I promise.
GUEST BIO:
Jessica Craddock is the owner of Acquitted Apparel, a pre-loved designer
fashion boutique. Jessica is a UNC Law School graduate who has always
had a serious love of fashion. She has turned that love of fashion into a real
business by giving designer clothing a second chance at a new life, an
acquittal if you will. She and her other half, Tyler, have been running
Acquitted Apparel since late 2013 on Poshmark, and have saved
thousands of designer clothing pieces from their untimely demise. For
Jessica, there is nothing better than helping people, whether it is using her
legal education, or saving them major money on fashion through
Poshmark. Jessica also runs a Facebook Group to empower others to start
their own Poshmark businesses called Poshmark Seller Tips. Jessica lives
in Atlanta, GA and is the mom to one grey fashion-forward kitty.
GUEST CONTACT:
Instagram: @Acquitted_Apparel
Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/PoshmarkSellerTips/
Poshmark: @JCradd or Poshmark.com/closet/jcradd
