Attn: Resale Marketplace Listing Guidelines
The Indyx Resale Marketplace is a peer-to-peer platform that connects Indyx users to sell directly to each other. This is an amazing thing: we get to harness the ingenuity of our community to build a thriving marketplace together! But, it also means that without specific community guidelines in place, it can become a bit of a wild west.
We want to make sure that our Resale Marketplace is a fun, inspiring, and trustworthy place to be, and so we are introducing a few firm guidelines that all our public resale listings must adhere to.
Our Listing Requirements
A clean, product-only hero image
We all want a meticulously clean and beautifully organized wardrobe, whether IRL or digitally in the cloud. A neat product photo plays an outsized role in giving any digital wardrobe a cohesive and elevated look - which is exactly the feeling we want to carry over to our Resale Marketplace.
If your wardrobe was Pro-Indyxed by one of our Archivists, then your item images will already meet our requirements and you are able to list any item with just a few clicks.
If you are cataloging your own closet, please keep these requirements in mind so you can seamlessly resell on our Marketplace straight from your digital wardrobe:
1. Use a flat-lay position
The main hero image of your item should be taken from a flat-lay position, with the item laid on any flat surface (e.g., the floor, a table, desk, or bed) and photographed straight-on from above. The one exception to this rule are shoes, which should be placed on a flat surface and photographed straight-on from the side.
2. No ‘extra’ items in the main hero image
The main hero image must include only the item itself, with no additional materials that it may have been sold with (e.g., shoe boxes or dust bags) or your own items (e.g., hangers).
If you are able to include any extras like shoe boxes or dust bags as part of the listing, you are encouraged to photograph those items separately and upload it as an additional image in the listing gallery.
3. Make sure the entire item can be seen clearly, and is as neat as possible
When you purchase an item on the Indyx Resale Marketplace, that item’s photo and information is automatically transferred into your wardrobe. Cool, right?!
Quality hero images make your listings more appealing to potential buyers and become digital assets that pass from seller to buyer each time the item is sold. So, please take care in capturing your photos. They make your own digital wardrobe pleasing to use, make your resale listings more attractive to buyers, and become digital assets that pass on to other members of the Indyx community.
We are looking for even shoulders and straight camera angles. Take a moment to smooth out wrinkles, unfold sleeves, and position the item so that it appears similar to how it lays on the body.
We’ve previously shared our tips on how to create a beautiful digital wardrobe, so please check out that post for additional guidance to take the best possible photos!
A $10 Minimum Listing Price
On the Indyx Resale Marketplace, the cost of shipping is deducted from the sales price of the item - and so we need to set a $10 minimum listing price to ensure that sale proceeds can cover that shipping cost.
You might wonder why we include the shipping cost in the listing price. Our considerations were that:
Research has shown that buyers are more likely to purchase with free shipping - it’s just one less thing to consider when making a purchase.
Every other resale platform takes a hefty commission from your sale proceeds. Indyx does not charge this commission, and so you will earn more on Indyx as a seller versus any other resale platform. We only take from you the cost of doing business, which includes the Stripe payment processing fee (2.90% + $0.30 per transaction), and shipping.
Because you will sell more when buyers do not have to think about shipping and earn more when you don’t have to pay Indyx a resale commission, it makes sense to include seller-paid shipping in our listing prices.
With that, we are setting a minimum selling price of $10 across our entire marketplace, so shipping costs are covered with the sales proceeds of each transaction. Your payout will be the sales price minus shipping cost and Stripe payment processing fees - and so, only listings above $10 will pay out with any cash value.
(A side note directly from our CEO, Yidi):
I can’t set a minimum listing price without giving my two cents about how I price my own listings. If you go into my shoppable wardrobe, you’ll notice that I have quite a few items priced at $10. These items are from great brands and in excellent condition, but they no longer suit me. Each of these items is arguably worth more than $10 in the resale market, but my main goal is just to quickly get them into the hands of people who want them. So as long as the cost of shipping is covered, I am thrilled to send them to someone who would better use them. In other words, I value “rehoming” these items quickly more than getting maximum value for them in the second-hand market. I get to declutter and curate my wardrobe while feeling good about circulating quality pieces to my fellow Indyx community and giving these garments new lives.
How to Decide What To Keep, Donate, or Sell (And Do It Sustainably!)
If you are dwelling on the pros & cons of donating versus selling, we can help with that, too! Check out our previous blog post on that exact topic
Our Other Recommendations
As discussed above, our only two “hard rules” are that you have a clean, product-only hero image, and that every listing is set at or above $10. But, we also wanted to take this opportunity to share a few additional best practices to make your listing as appealing as possible - and therefore sell as fast as possible:
Include multiple photos to showcase your item. A picture is worth a thousand words. Most people are visual and enjoy seeing more photos of what they’re buying. Additional photos on your listing will instantly build trust and understanding of the item you’re selling.
Describe any defect in detail. Always make sure to describe the condition of your item accurately. Error on the side of oversharing - it will go a long way in building trust with your buyers. A tiny stain does not make an item undesirable, but buyers want to know that to make an informed decision.
Add measurements when you can. How a garment will fit you is one of the biggest unknowns with online shopping. Adding garment measurements can give the buyers more confidence that the garment will fit them, thus making the item more likely to sell.
We are always here to help if you have any questions about how the Indyx Resale Marketplace works. Please email us at [email protected] at any time.
