I recently sold a number of possessions in my year-long quest to vanquish my credit card debt as quickly as possible. Before this, I had very limited experience using online selling tools, and generally thought of them all as a hassle, so I thought I would try more than one and see how they stacked up. Your experiences may differ, along with your selling requirements, but here’s what I found:

Craigslist

I’m fortunate enough to live in a city with a Craigslist presence (check to see if your hometown is on the list), and I had something that I really didn’t want to bother trying to ship: Guitar Hero III for the Nintento Wii. Craigslist, if you haven’t heard of it, is sort of like a city-wide distributed garage sale. You describe what you have using a free-form text entry field, pictures optional, prices optional, limited only by your imagination.

I said that I had Guitar Hero III for sale, found some Creative Commons photos on Flickr, asked for $50, and that was all there was to it. Within a couple of hours I had two offers. The first person haggled with me and asked if $40 would be okay. So I found a Starbucks that was easy for both of us to get to and met her that evening. If I’d waited a little longer, I could have gotten $50 for it from the second person. Lesson learned.

eBay

I had a number of DVD box sets of a favorite TV show that I wanted to unload (while keeping a soft copy of the better episodes on an external hard drive at home). It was easy enough to copy the details of each episode from a wiki to the “Sell item” page on eBay, and after a few repetitions I found it was even possible to find the vital stats with a database that eBay provided.

There are, not to put too fine a point on it, a lot of options for how to sell an item on eBay. I sort of wish there was an “eBay lite” option, or better wizard that stepped me through the process. Also, it tended to break when I used the Safari browser at home. I had to remember to use Firefox.

But my biggest problem with eBay was not really eBay’s fault: they wanted me to estimate shipping costs. The thing is, I don’t own a scale, and I can’t hold something in my hand and say, “yep, that’s about six pounds.”

In general, it seemed to me that eBay is geared toward professional sellers.

Amazon Seller Account

One-click patent silliness notwithstanding, I like Amazon because it is easy. Even without 1-Click, it’s easy. And that ease of use has expanded to their options for selling things online, in my case it was a used video camera.

All I did was find the right model camera by acting as if I was looking to buy one and click a button labeled “Sell yours here”. Specify the condition (new, used, etc.), add comments, pick a price and that’s about it. You get to benefit automatically from any pictures, customer reviews, or any other information that Amazon is already storing about that product.

Amazon also did a good job of estimating the shipping cost for me. The drawback I experienced using Amazon was that I had to wait. This will vary from product to product, of course.

Conclusion

With both Amazon and eBay, there’s something of a process to setting up an account and getting paid. Craiglist is a lot more free-form in that respect. If I was in a real rush, I’d probably use Craigslist again, but for the most part, I prefer Amazon’s way of selling things. I hardly had to lift a finger.

I produce a lot of garbage, and I’m not talking about just my writing. Here’s one reason: Even though the grocery store is only about a block or two away from my apartment, I tend to take large shopping trips infrequently rather than smaller trips more frequently.

Here are the problems with this approach.

I’ve been going through a large number of plastic bags, producing more garbage than necessary. Formerly, I saved the plastic bags with the intention of reusing them for the next trip, but I never did so. This usually resulted in a ball of increasing size underneath the sink in the kitchen, consisting of crumpled plastic bags. Every once in a while, when I decided one particular ball of bags would never be used, they would go in the garbage and the process would restart.

Also, because I wait long between trips, I have a lot of food and paper products to buy, more than I can carry in one trip. Rather than walking two blocks to the store, I drive from one parking lot to the next to pile the full bags into my car, transport them back to my apartment, and carry them up to my second-floor apartment in multiple trips.

I’ve solved the first problem. Stop & Shop, my local grocery store, offers reusable fabric bags for sale. They cost $0.99 each and one fabric bag holds more than one plastic bag, and it does so more comfortably. Every time you bring a fabric bag back to the store and use it for your shopping, the cashier will provide a $0.05 credit per bag on your receipt.

I purchased ten bags in a recent shopping trip to help reduce my plastic usage. In order for this purchase to “pay off” for me, I’ll need to buy 198 bags of groceries. My initial purchase was probably too high—I didn’t realize the bags were so capacious. For one of my large shopping trips, I use only five or six bags. At that rate, it will take 33 to 36 trips to the groceries, or about three years, for me to “break even” on my purchase.

More importantly, I won’t be producing as much plastic garbage.

In terms of the second problem, my girlfriend suggested I purchase a cart to transport my groceries to eliminate the necessity of driving. It’s not a bad idea. It would reduce the short trips I take in my “gas-guzzling” Honda Civic and provide me with more exercise. I’m just about out of storage space in my apartment, however, so I’m not quite sure where I’d leave the cart when not in use. I understand there might be folding carts available, in which case, I could probably store the cart in the closet, so I’ll have to research this further.

RIS News, a retail technology publication, announced some interesting findings recently related to consumer shopping behavior.

According to Deborah Weinswig of Citi Investment Research, the recession is creating more bargain hunters and transforming our shopping style in four key ways:

1. “Trading Down” to Private Label
There’s a cost benefit to going generic, and store brand sales are increasing at stores like BJs, Costco and Target. People are becoming less willing to pay 20% more on average just for a label. Of course, this means the marketing folks out there are trying even harder to build brand loyalty to justify their premium prices.

2. “Trading Down” to Lower-Priced Products
Higher food costs (5.8% inflation in January 2008) are causing consumers to examine their grocery bills more closely, and grocers are commenting on a shift from “steak to chicken.” The USDA is forecasting more increases in the near term, so you may be seeing less filet mignon and more ramen noodles on your dinner table soon. Luckily, there are some great sites out there to help you achieve great culinary feats with less expensive ingredients.

3. “Trading Down” to Cheaper Channels
Not only are consumers buying less expensive goods, they’re also visiting more discount stores. RIS details how Wal-Mart is again trumping Target:

Around the last recession, Wal-Mart outcomped Target almost every month (5/00-7/03) and that reversed when the economy strengthened (8/03-11/07). Now for 3 months in a row, we have seen Wal-Mart outcomp Target and we believe this is the beginning of a longer-term trend.

4. “Trading In” From Restaurants
Cooking at home is becoming a more appealing option for many, as I myself can attest after spending $40 on 2 Pizzeria Uno chicken salads for dinner. (What was I thinking?)

2007 brought the greatest year-over-year increase in at-home food sales since the 1940s, a 240 basis point increase. After remaining flat since 2001, dining in grew to 53.2% of total food expenditures last year, and to 54.6% in January 2008. Perhaps we should thank Rachael Ray and her cult of the 30-minute meal.

Have your shopping styles been affected as the economy slows? What changes have you made?

Cost-Cutting Consumers Trade Down from Steak to Chicken [RIS News]

My day-to-day existence includes nearly 4 hours of commuting, 8-12 hours of work where I’m without access to my personal e-mail, and very little time left over in which to live life to the fullest.

In my endless struggle to balance work, friends and family, I find that mobile web access is a must.

For years, I’ve been a faithful Verizon Wireless customer, enjoying my 17% employee discount and spending an extra $6-7 a month for bare-bones mobile web access on my teeny little flip phone.

I’ve often stared with envy at the iPhone and web-enabled PDAs like the Blackberry, but the more I look into these options, the more I realize I’m simply not interested in paying that much for mobile web access. My company’s not about to pony up the cash, and I’m hesitant to pay $30 or more per month just to be constantly accessible. And since my contract’s not yet up, I need to stay with my current provider to avoid termination fees.

Since I was recently eligible to upgrade my mobile phone at a reduced rate, I went to my local Verizon Wireless shop to search for more affordable solutions. There were, of course, fewer cheap options than I’d hoped. I’ll outline them here to help save you time in your own search:

Option 1: The Smartphone
Service Charge: $45/month
Phone Cost: $200-$600
This option offers really cool smartphones like the Palm Treo and XV6800. E-mail is pushed right to the phone instantly, plus there’s a QWERTY keyboard and nice screen size.

Option 2: The Blackberry
Service Charge: $30 (personal e-mail) or $45 (corporate e-mail) per month
Phone Cost: $200-$400
A nice little integrated trackball is a plus, and the QWERTY keyboard is functional if small. Browsing is primarily text-based, and e-mail is pushed to the device. I’d have full integration with my corporate network for the $45 monthly charge, but must choose between having corporate or personal e-mail.

Option 3: The iPhone Wannabe
Service Charge: $15 per month for V CAST V Pak
Phone Cost: $200-$400
Phones available include the LG Voyager with a frontal touch screen and LG enV with a typical mobile phone exterior. Both phones open to reveal a secondary screen for web surfing and QWERTY keyboard. Mobile web access is unlimited with the plan, but you must log in for access. Full graphical web browsing is available.

Option 4: The Traditional Mobile Phone
Service Charge: $6 per month (plus additional airtime/megabyte charges depending on plan)
Phone Cost: Free-$300
This is my old way of mobile web browsing, peering at a small screen whilst tapping out responses on the numerical keypad. There are new phones like the VX9400 which offer better screen sizes and optional mobile TV, but otherwise these are normal cell phones. Depending on level of usage, this can be the cheapest option.

I also looked at the possibility of getting a wireless modem and laptop, but the service charge ranged from $40-60 a month before I ever got around to pricing out ultraportable laptops. Too much for my blood, plus I’m opposed to lugging around even more gadgets.

Stymied by the options, I logged a few more store visits and calls to customer service before I figured out the cheapest way to get what I wanted: Option 3, with the LG Voyager, which has been dubbed the “iPhone Killer”. It’s not got nearly the same features, but the concepts and overall feel are similar. Forbes described its features best:

Voyager is designed to be a multimedia workhorse, combining access to Verizon’s broadcast TV, video and music service with GPS navigation, high-speed Web browsing, and expandable memory (from 64 megabytes up to 8 gigabytes with a memory card). It has a 2.81-inch exterior touch screen that opens to reveal another screen and a full keyboard.

The touch screen worried me somewhat, but I plan to baby it. The front and interior screens were nicely sized and larger than any of the other mobile phone choices. And no matter how much I surf or e-mail, my mobile web expenses are capped at $15 a month.

I’m pretty happy with my fake, lower-tech iPhone. I don’t have any plans to blind myself editing documents on the thing, so I don’t miss the lack of full PDA functionality. And logging into my e-mail is fine with me – an extra $250 per year just to have it pushed to my phone seems unnecessary.

After paying $200 for the phone upgrade and raising my monthly mobile web costs from $7 to $15, I’m now as wired as I’m going to get.

Until the next round of mobile gadgets, at least.

Have you found any good mobile web deals with other wireless companies? Do share!

Verizon Turns Up Its Cool Quotient [Forbes]
Verizon Voyager Fan Site
Apple’s iPhone: Adding Up the Costs [Apple 2.0 Blog]

Image Credits: Verizon Wireless

Last week, I ordered some new high definition audio/video cables and an HDMI powered switch to prepare for the Blu-Ray player I’ll be receiving as I spend Christmas with my girlfriend’s family. I placed the order with MonoPrice.com, and I expected the delivery yesterday. As I normally do, often without thinking, I directed the cables and switch to be delivered to my home address. Unfortunately, I don’t work from home most of the time, so I was not here to receive the package.

As I expected, UPS left a note on my door indicating the delivery required a signature. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to call UPS and redirect the shipment to my work location before the 7:00 deadline for delivery changes. Today, I believed that I would see another notice on my door when arriving home, but there was no such notice. My first thought was that the package was either delivered to my neighbor who neglected to let me know or was left by my door and then stolen.

I checked the delivery status online. The website indicated that the package was delivered, so I began calling UPS to find out what the deal was. While dialing, I noticed the website contained a note saying the package was left on the balcony. I peered outside, and the box was in fact right by my balcony door. I live on the second floor; did the delivery person thrown the package? The delivery required a signature, so who signed for it? My guess is the building superintendent must have been nearby. He likely signed for the package, but why place it on the balcony? If he’s going to enter the apartment, he might as well leave it inside.

Perhaps he used a ladder.

photo: zyphbear

Unfortunately, I forgot to mention PriceProtectr during my recent Wall Street Journal interview, but I can’t praise this free service enough. This website keeps a private database of your purchases, in store or online, and monitors the price of the items. Many stores offer a price match policy, in which the customer would be entitled to a credit if the price of a purchased item drops within 30 days of purchase. While I normally check the price of large purchases on my own, PriceProtectr has the benefit of constant monitoring and alert.

A few weeks ago, my girlfriend A. purchased a gift for me—a somewhat pricey gift—from Best Buy. The gift is currently wrapped, so technically I shouldn’t know about it. But I do. This morning, I received notification that the price for the item, a Blu-Ray Disc player, dropped from $399 to $299. That’s a significant decrease, and the money saved could certainly be spent towards other things or deposited into savings.

Originally, my plan was to wait until I could find a lower-cost refurbished Blu-Ray player at a Sony outlet store, but receiving the player as a gift works as well. The price drop is just icing on the cake.

So when we get a chance, probably next weekend, we will visit the store with the receipt and take advantage of the Best Buy price drop policy.

Using PriceProtectr is easy, even if your purchase took place in person. Just find the URL listing the product and enter that address and your email address on the home page. PriceProtectr will do the rest, checking the price of your items each day. You’ll receive an email if the price drops and when the protection expires after 30 days from the purchase date.

photo: downbeat

Last Friday, the first portion of my latest interview with the Wall Street Journal Tech News Briefing E-Report was published for podcast listeners. Today, the second half of my rambling was broadcast, this time about finding deals online.

Here are the time stamps relevant to the interview.

07:10 E-Report introduction
07:25 Best place to find deals online (mentioned SlickDeals, DealTaker, CNet (CNET), Froogle (GOOG) and Mallicious)
10:10 Is eBay (EBAY) worth the risk?
12:35 How to control your spending during the holidays
14:34 Coordinating a complete gift experience
15:30 Incorporating charity into gift giving

Listen to this latest podcast by visiting the Wall Street Journal podcast page. Look for the Wall Street Journal Tech News Briefing, and this particular episode will be featured all weekend. An alternate option is to dial 800-975-3916 and listen to the podcast over the phone. Or you can do what I have done: subscribe to the Tech News Briefing RSS feed.

Homemade gifts can be so much more than the sum of their parts, which makes them a great frugal gift option.

They are redolent of effort, of “I thought of you all year and worked on this for you” versus “I realized I needed a gift for you ten minutes ago and picked this up as I was driving here.”

MoneySavingMom has an extensive collection of frugal gift ideas. Some of my favorite homemade gifts from her list follow:

• Homemade baking mixes
• Embroidered pillowcases
• Hand-stamped notecards
• Personalized CDs (with music, family photos, etc.)
• Custom-made photo calendars (every grandparent I know adores these)
• Homemade food, including freezer-ready quick meals and baked goods (I am seriously asking my mother-in-law for a giant vat of her famous fresh Tomato soup for the holidays this year)
• Canned vegetables, jam, pickles, etc.
• Scarves, sweaters and other knitted/crocheted goodies
• Fleece throw blankets

• Homegrown organic dried herbs (in a charming little jar, what could be better?)

  I talked a bit about this in my last entry, but the ultimate “handmade” gift may not be a thing at all, but instead, a service. I love the concept of lending your personal services to someone else, especially in this age of so little free time.

  If you’re good at sewing, what about giving certificates for mending and tailoring clothing? Or giving proofreading or resume help to someone still in school? Know someone who travels a lot? A few certificates for rides provided by you to and from the airport could be just the thing. Or create a scrapbook or photo album for someone with lots of memories and no time to compile them. Babysitting, yard cleanup, etc. are gifts which cost little but your time.

  I’ve been blessed with some very creative friends, so in the past I’ve received amazing scarves, jewelry, gorgeous embroidered pillowcases, and even original artwork. This year, one of my good friends knitted me some very chic pure-white cashmere gloves.

  My own talents are more culinary than crafty, so this year I’m giving out tins of several varieties of homemade cookies and a few premade freezer meals, like lasagna, for those in my life who don’t enjoy cooking as much as I do. If you’re not inclined to create gifts yourself, you can buy amazing and unique handmade gifts of all sorts at Etsy.com.

  Any special handmade gifts you’ve given or received? Share your favorites.

  Image Credit: Autreyu