Next time, skip eBay and trade-in your old video games on Amazon.com
Almost everyone has heard of eBay and understands the core concept of the web site. List stuff you are willing to sell and have people bid on it auction style. The highest bidder gets your stuff.
But not everyone is comfortable with this style of selling. Some people would rather just be offered a flat price for their stuff.
That's why I love the Electronics Trade-In program on Amazon.com. It's perfect for trading in electronics that you don't use any more (ahem, anyone have kids that just had to have the latest video game two years ago but now never play it?)
And using the service is a snap. Just do a search on Amazon for the item you are selling. If you see the "trade in this item" box on the product result page, you're in luck.
For example, here's the results of a search for Mario Kart DS on Amazon.com:
See the box that says "Trade In This Video Game Item for $19.00?" Well, if you have a used Mario Kart DS game, then you are just a couple of clicks away from getting a $19.00 Amazon gift card in exchange for the used game.
The entire process is extremely simple to use. Just click the dollar amount in the trade in box to start the process. Next, verify the trade-in amount and click the "Trade in" button:
Then, indicate the condition of the game (anything less than good may decrease the trade-in value):
Select a shipping method. I always choose free UPS drop-off:
Select a return option (this only comes in to play if you make the item out to be better than it really is):
Finally, review everything and submit your trade-in:
If all goes well, Amazon will walk you through printing a pre-paid shipping label. Attach this to your packaged video game and drop it off at your local UPS Store. Once your used item is received and approved, the agreed upon trade-in amount will be placed into your Amazon.com account.
Have you ever used Amazon's trade-in program? If so, leave a comment and tell me about your experience.
5 comments for this blog post so far...
July 12, 2011 at 6:39 am
Karen Duke
So… what does Amazon do with these pre-owned electronics? I am interested in possibly purchasing a used IPod for my grandson. Does Amazon refurbish or list these electronics on their website as used?
July 12, 2011 at 7:22 am
Patric Welch
Karen, I should have mentioned this in the blog post. You don’t actually send your used products to Amazon. During the trade-in process, Amazon identifies a reseller that is willing to pay you the trade-in value. You send your product directly to the reseller, not Amazon. But since the whole thing is controlled through Amazon, they get notified when the product is received so they know to put the gfit amount in your account.
So to answer your question, yes, Amazon sells used electronics, but they do so through these resellers. Usually when you search for a product you will see a “XX used from $XX.XX” link beneath the product if resellers are selling a used version of the product.
Hope this helps!
July 12, 2011 at 9:25 am
Edward Scott
Amazon’s fees and process is quite complicated and competitive. They force you to drive your price down, then figure out shipping on your own. There are other sites like this out there that are better, and I’d recommend http://gamestaq.com over the sites that force you to drive your price down or take huge fees like the big boys.
July 12, 2011 at 9:42 am
Patric Welch
Edward, you seem to be referring to the process of reselling something you own on Amazon through their reseller program. That’s not what I was referring to. I’m referring to an end user simply trading something in to Amazon. There are no fees and no complications. It’s a couple clicks of the mouse and you’re done. You don’t pay a dime, not even in shipping.
August 01, 2011 at 4:29 pm
Stephanie
I’ve used Giggilyzer (iPhone app). It tells you what items are worth sending in (to Giggil) and shipping is free with printable labels at Giggil.com. I haven’t tried it on games, but I intentionally bought a book of Grateful Dead lyrics on clearance knowing I could make a profit on it!
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