How to Price Very Old Textbooks
I am selling a large number of ex-library medical textbooks, and I am somewhat mystified as to how to set prices. I am looking at one right now, for instance, that is listed at $9.50 on Biblio, $55 on Amazon, $115 at Alibris, and $217 at AbeBooks.
Where do these wildly different prices come from? Is there any rhyme or reason?
Do you think my prospective buyers are going to check Bookscouter and compare prices on other platforms, or do I only need to concern myself with what I see on Amazon?
And how would I set a price for the occasional book that is not available anywhere?
I do realize these are very long-tail, but I got them all for free, and I do occasionally sell one.
How to Price Very Old Textbooks
I am selling a large number of ex-library medical textbooks, and I am somewhat mystified as to how to set prices. I am looking at one right now, for instance, that is listed at $9.50 on Biblio, $55 on Amazon, $115 at Alibris, and $217 at AbeBooks.
Where do these wildly different prices come from? Is there any rhyme or reason?
Do you think my prospective buyers are going to check Bookscouter and compare prices on other platforms, or do I only need to concern myself with what I see on Amazon?
And how would I set a price for the occasional book that is not available anywhere?
I do realize these are very long-tail, but I got them all for free, and I do occasionally sell one.
0 respuestas
Seller_Hi7wbO2Kbo6bl
This is where you draw upon your own experience with similar books. Your own evaluation of the book itself. Your own research into the author.
Seller_cy9errRioq6yi
If they are antique medical books then you can ask more for them. Sure they will be long tail and to sell you may be sitting on them for a long time. It is the books that are 20-60 years old that I would think twice about even listing. Too old to be medically accurate and not much of a market for them. List these lower if you want any chance of selling them, but you may sit on them until they get old enough to be interesting.
Seller_x8APpwHRolOM2
Do they have an ISBN?
If not, it’s really up to you. I’d make up a price based on current books in similar condition on eBay, Alibris, etc. If you can, also look at the sales rank here on Amazon, because that will give you an idea of how long it will take to sell it. Also, because it’s ex-library, you have to sell it in Used- Acceptable condition.
In my experience, prospective buyers don’t know about Bookscouter.
Seller_8heIxAf1mLwgp
“Very old” is a rather vague term. Bought several boxes of pre-WW1 science/tech books from a religious college library where they were never looked at. Many of these were collectible.
In general though old editions of medical texts have little or no value, especially considering the rather high shipping costs you might encounter. Many that I had I finally got tired of devaluing and either recycled or threw away (very few sales will take old textbooks as donations).
Seller_3N7yVnTXPzLkL
When old medical textbooks are valuable they are books which are of interest solely to collectors.
As a general rule, collectors prefer not to buy expensive ex-library books. They buy such books as placesavers to be replaced when a proper collectible copy becomes available and affordable.
Collectors usually are better informed about what the value should be than dealers who do not specialize in the subject area. Many will do more checking than using Bookscouter. And many will never check only Amazon.
You need to price in accordance with the entire universe of booksellers, online and offline.
I hate having large numbers of ex-library books on my shelves. If I paid very little for them, I would list a few at auction on Ebay, at an opening bid which would make me happy but not ecstatic with the intention of paying back my cost of the lot.
As others have suggested these are long tail, and if you want to wait until a collector wants them make sure you can afford to. If you price low, you might be able to sell it to another dealer who is more patient.
Seller_RMhXaCISMdkDk
Lots of good advice here. Thanks! These are not antiques/collectors items; they are mostly 25 to 50 years old. I got them for free, and I just want to see how many I can move before my husband retires and we downsize (two years, maybe). I’ve posted maybe 200 of these so far, and to my surprise I’ve sold 8 of them. I’ll just go with my own gut feeling with prices.
Seller_qz1y4XweLE9SO
From the Seller Help Hub:
Selling Textbooks
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/help/hub/reference/G200386280
Textbook Sellers FAQ
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/help/hub/reference/G200422810
Seller_dy0iaamuixQa3
Sometimes, what we call “antique” is just old. If you have the storage space, some might sell at a higher price. But I would be very careful about the description – listing author(s), illustrator(s), whether or not it is a first edition, copyright date, printing number, etc. I would even include photographs. I have sold out-of-date books to people who have commented about the reason they bought the books. Some buy it because one of their relatives either authored or illustrated it. Others to use in research reports in doing a history of diagnosis and how it has changed. I have a friend and frequent customer who is an interior designer who looks for books with unusual cover designs. (To her, it doesn’t matter what the book is about.) Another friend likes older, hard to find, hymnbooks. Ultimately, the price is what someone is willing to pay.
Seller_KCQYifW1GPbC8
Seller_i82wV4v2ctjvG
If you see more than a handful copies of such text books, where the sales rank is really bad, like in the millions, and the prices vary greatly, like from und $10 to over $100, which is a red flag, I would not bother adding yet another copy to the mix. Do your colleagues the favor and let them have the next sale. The fact that one or more copy is already sitting somewhere for practically zero profit to be expected, is a clear indicator that nobody really wants it, and your inventory is less than desirable, because it’s ex-lib on top of it.
