What to buy at car boot sales

Buying items to sell on for a profit is easier said than done. Whether you're buying from a real car boot sale or buying from www.onlinecarbooty.com, this guide will help get you a head start on what to buy.

Firstly, be aware that your main hurdle is your competition. There will undoubtedly be others who are hunting for the same treasures as yourself. If you can't beat em.. join em! Keep a close eye on what regular buyers (dealers) are picking up. Most will specialise in a particular field, maybe antiques, musical instruments or electronics. However, some will dabble in anything which yields a good profit. If you're new to the game, this is where you should start.

Electronics are risky but if you can fix them up then you could make big money. Look for computer equipment, Hi-Fis and audio equipment such as DJ mixers etc.

Clothing is easier to find but needs a good eye and you'll have to rummage through a lot of garments to find something profitable. Car boot sales are flooded with designer names and you could make some good money but be very aware of fakes.

Musical instruments can make HUGE money! They are a well sought after and some prior research will come in handy. Guitars are a quick turnover.. Look for names like Fender, Gibson and Yamaha etc. Check the neck is straight and that there's no cracks. Even a poorly branded or non branded guitar could be sold on for say £30 so if you see anything around this price, it's probably worth a shot!

Bicycles are another easy sell but the money lies in either nearly new hi spec models or vintage/retro bikes. Old BMX and Raleigh racers bring big bucks. If you find an old Raleigh Chopper.. snap it up!

Plush toys.. Car boots are inundated with these and can be bought for pennies but you need to pick the right stuff up! Original care bears are a good find. Look for TV, movie related characters.. if you're getting them for pennies then you can't really lose.

Right, this is just really a taster and I've deliberately not made it too specific! I've written an in-depth guide on what to look out for and buy at car boot sales.. It's literally a brain dump of everything I've learned in the last 20 years of very successful car booting. It will include makes and models so you can't go far wrong. Nothing like this exists on the Internet as no one is daft enough to share the information. This is why I must charge for my in-depth guide.. I'm asking just £9.99 and will probably the best investment you ever make as a buyer/seller! Simply send payment to my PayPal: marky.davies@ntlworld.com and include the email you want this sending to. I will email you the guide within 24 hours of payment being received.
REMEMBER: Keep it to yourself!!!

And don't forget to check out our website..

More than just a Car Boot Sale - How to make some extra money!

As I'm sure you're aware, our Online Car Boot Sale.. Onlinecarbooty.com is a great way to make money by selling your unwanted household items. It's quick and easy to use. But let's say you need a little extra cash.. Well we now have a NEW website which could be right up your street..

Let me just tell you how the site works for Shopkeepers first.. Freebeepoints.com allows small high street businesses to offer Reward Points to their customers.. Just like Nectar Points at Sainsburys! Say you own a sandwich shop, you can ensure your customers will return more regularly buy scanning their mobile phone when they make a purchase to add their points. They can then save up and redeem their points for money off a future purchase. It works using QR codes. 'Subway' have a very similar system. To have something like this designed, developed and integrated can cost you thousands! We can offer you this for a one off payment of just £99 and you can start instantly. There's also no technical integration required.. You can scan customers phones with any smart phone or device which has a QR reader on it.. Available in any app store.

Ok, this is where YOU come in.. We are offering a whopping £30 cash back for referring a shop! Simply visit shops or businesses in your local area which you think will benefit from offering a Reward Points system to their customers and for every shop that signs up, we'll transfer you £30 via PayPal. You can generate your own personal Promo Code to offer the shop which will also give them £10 off. Register on the website here: www.freebeepoints.com/agent.aspx

It doesn't stop there! Imagine if you get just 1 shop to sign up and that shopkeeper sets up his reward points system to thousands of customers.. Some of those customers are bound to have businesses of their own and may end up using your Promo Code if passed on by the original Shop Keeper.

You can also offer the promotion online via Facebook, Twitter or whatever means you so wish. With the right approach, you could make some good money from home. All we ask is that if you visit shops in person, please look smart and familiarise yourself with the website first. We also have a promotional video here.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBk7ssGr-WY and a Shop Keeper demonstration here.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5zLdyA9GQo

Contact us if you require further information at admin@freebeepoints.com where we will be happy to assist. Hope you can join us on this VERY unique and brand new venture.

How to haggle at a car boot sale

I'm Mark from www.onlinecarbooty.com I have over 20 years experience in real world car booting. Some of this guide will apply to our Online Car Boot Sale as well as real world car boot sales. Surprisingly, some people still find it hard to haggle even online. Some people fear haggling either because of the fear of rejection or simply because they feel cheeky.

If you are the type of person who feels cheeky talking people down.. Get over it ! Ask yourself why you feel cheeky ? Most sellers at a car boot sale have adjusted their prices upwards so that they can be knocked down.. So see them as the cheeky ones ! Think of it as not trying to get something cheap, but simply negotiating a sale which is what is expected at a car boot. Don't fear rejection.. If they say "No" then you're the one in the driving seat still, after all you hold the cash ! Either buy the item or move on.. Think of it as their loss. It's surprising how many might call you back as you turn to leave.

Okay, let's say you come across a watch for £10.. You will usually already know straight away whether you are happy with it for that price.. Does it look nice ? Fit ok ? and is it working. If so, then you're in a win-win position.. You are happy with the watch anyway so anything off it is a bonus. As a rule of thumb, between £2-£5 I will ask for £1 off. Between £6 and £10 I will ask for £2 off. Therefore offer them £8. Some may think you could ask for more off, which of course you can.. But they are more likely to accept an offer like this without presenting you with a counter offer. I also believe in being fair and upholding a good reputation.. There's haggling and then being cheeky ! Cheeky may get you some stuff for less but decide whether that's the type of person you wish to be. Strong, forward hagglers will soon get noticed and if you attend a boot sale regularly, you don't want to annoy too many people. It's always best keeping a low profile at car boot sales.. Get in.. Get the item for the right price.. Then get out!

Also, imagine a situation where you've bought the aforementioned watch for a really cheeky £5 ! When you get back to the car, you realise the date isn't working on it.. Would you then dare go back and ask for a refund and if so, would they give you one after you've already probably insulted them and bought it at a price where you wouldn't expect it to be fully working. Of course, this is my personal opinion on this, some may disagree or use other techniques.. Please comment and add any of your own personal tips or advice to this blog.

Counter offers usually occur on more expensive items. Let's say a Laptop for £50. You offer £40, they are most likely going to make you a counter offer of £45. Have this already planned out in your head before making the initial offer. Decide beforehand that if they offer £45 will you accept it ? You can of course continue haggling and maybe offer them half way.. £47.50. This is very common and very easily done once you become experienced. It's more expensive items like this where real haggling like this comes in to play. If say you were prepared to pay £45 for the laptop before making your initial offer.. It's always worth starting at £40 so they'll hopefully meet you at £45. If you go straight in with an offer of £45, you'll probably end up at £47.50 ! It depends which way you wish to play it. It also depends on the seller. If you frequent the same car boot sale regularly then you'll learn what's best with certain sellers.. Dealers, regulars, newbies etc. As I say, on items under a tenner, its worth asking for a quick quid or two off.. It's not worth messing with too much.

Taking all of the above in to consideration, there's also side tactics you can use whilst haggling.. Firstly, How to ask for less.. "Will you take £8 for it ?" is most common and works well but sometimes it may be worth saying "Any chance of £8 since it's got a little scratch on it ?" or whatever the case may be. Point out defects if you feel it will help, or indeed make sure they notice that YOU'VE noticed the defects before you ask. Even if you're excited that you've found a little gem and it's already under priced.. Appear to be inspecting the item after they tell you the price.

BE CAREFUL: You never know what's going to happen at a car boot sale. Judgement is key when haggling and sometimes you also need to be aware of your surroundings. Picture this nightmare from my personal experience.. I came across a rare vintage computer I knew was worth around £300. It already had a price label on it for £10. Even if it was faulty, it would have sold for £50 or more as it had many accessories and games with it. Trying all the above, I started inspecting it and picking at defects before asking "Is £8 any good ?". My reply was "Sorry, that man at the end has just given me £20 for it". It was a buyer I knew.. A cheeky one at that ! He was renowned for jumping in like this and overpaying to take it out of your hands.

Okay, hopefully that gives you some guidance. It does work different in real life compared to online. You should never be afraid online.. No one can bite ya ! Anyway, if anyone has any further advice, like I say, please leave a comment. Happy booting !

Online Car Booty VS Car Boot Sales

As a keen car booter and founder of www.onlinecarbooty.com I thought it would be of interest to point out some of the differences between an actual real world car boot sale and our online car boot sale. I will also discuss the pros and cons of each. I personally don't think you can beat the real thing.. The atmosphere, the excitement and anticipation of finding a bargain is second to none. This was my primary reason for creating a website which try's its very best to mimic this, attempting to retain a similar environment. Online Car Booty is the closest you'll find to the real thing.. It has a weekly start time of Sunday 3pm so that everyone gets in at the same time. It is also visually based around a car boot sale unlike other attempts out there.. We have paste tables!

I think the main 'pro' of an Online Car Boot Sale, is that if you pay a Seller through PayPal then you have more protection and rights to return an item if it is faulty. This however, doesn't mean returning faulty goods is not possible in the real world. However, returning items at real car boot sales can prove difficult for a few reasons.. Firstly, there is usually no proof of purchase and you will normally be dealing with the Seller without the help of a third party such as PayPal. A lot of faulty goods however, are not returned due to the plain and simple fact that the Buyer doesn't check them out until they arrive home. It then becomes a chore to have to return to the Car Boot Sale, maybe having to pay for re-entry and then trying to find the stall.

Speaking of getting lost at a car boot sale, another aspect we attempt to recreate at Online Car Booty is the randomness of finding an item or stall. We could easily add a SEARCH function to the sale but what's the point ? Doing this would eliminate the 'Hunt' which is where the fun is! It's worth noting that our virtual stalls are also set out in 'Aisles', again replicating a booty as best we can.

When I set up Online Car Booty I wasn't even aware of the next advantage of the site until I started receiving 'Thank you' emails.. Online Car Booty is absolutely ideal and easier to visit for the elderly and disabled. Many people struggle to get out to the real thing or indeed may struggle to find a car boot sale in their local area. Couple this with the fact that it NEVER rains at Online Car Booty and you will start to see why we are fast becoming the UK's No.1 choice.

As with many Buying/Selling sites, there is one big disadvantage over the 'Online' version and that is simply that you don't have the 'hands-on' experience. At a real car boot you can examine an item thoroughly from every angle. Bear in mind though and for reasons mentioned above.. At a real booty you NEED to thoroughly examine items for your safety. The one mistake I used to make a lot at real car boot sales was that I was that excited when I spotted something I was looking for, that I would rush to buy it and only give it a quick examination. Try not to do this! There are a lot of dishonest sellers out there and it's easy to miss the price label covering a crack in a vase or a spray painted LCD TV screen to hide the fact that the screen has cracked/leaked!

Finally, although we have a virtual burger van at Online Car Booty.. You simply can't beat a nice greasy overpriced quarter pounder with onions at 6 o'clock in the morning :-) Our burger van again adds a little authenticity to the car boot feel of things.

I would love to hear any other comparisons you can think of or indeed suggestions for the site. Thanks for reading and I hope to see you at www.onlinecarbooty.com