How to make a proper B/S/T thread

Hey
I am making this thread to help out some people so they can sell their gear easier. Everyone likes to see what their buying, so pictures are always a plus when trying to sell stuff here on RFD, or anywhere for that fact. In this tutorial I will show you step how to take pictures of your gear, how to host the pictures, how to post it on RFD and what should be included in the post. Enjoy!

Step One - Taking pictures

When your taking pictures of your gear you want to get quality clear pictures. Try to avoid using a camera phone if possible. Set your camera to high quality for the best resolution. If your like me and on dial-up you can get away with low quality so upload times are faster. Or if your good you can use high quality and downsize the pictures. To get the best pictures make sure there is enough light, but not so much that there's glare off of your item. Anything that has a shiny surface can be hard, like chrome stuff. If that's the case turn on lights in the room instead of using a flash.

To create a nice backdrop for the gear get something square to lay the item on, that is, if your item is something small like a vid card, goggles, headphones or anything of that nature. For this example I'll use my chair. Also when taking pictures you can use a tripod to steady the camera, or rest it on something.
My chair

My tripod


After you find something to place the item on get a blanket or curtain that contrasts the item (ie white background black item) I'll use a sheet to contrast my goggles. All you need to do is toss it over the chair and have it sort of loose on there, or tuck it in, your choice. And Wallah.

A cheap background!

Next place the item your selling on the chair and centre the camera. Try not to get glare on it and hold the camera steady (tripod is good, or lay the camera on something)
First picture the goggles were a bit crooked but it can work. It had no glare as well and I used a flash.

Second one was better.

And last was the back of them.


Make sure to photograph all sides of the item your selling, the good parts and the bad (damage, scratches, cracks, scuffs, etc.) You might be thinking why take pictures of the bad sides, that's just stupid! But it's not, read about it in the sections below.
For bigger items just place them against a wall or on the floor and make sure there isn't a lot of other junk around it.

If you want to take one picture of a few things make sure your stuff is organized some how. Place small numbers by them so they can be matched up in your product description so the buyer will know what they are looking at. Or you can just take individual pictures of each.

Step Two - Description

Here you want to be really specific. The main things to list are the size, the condition, the year, model, colour and brand of the item your selling. Also include what comes with what your selling and what condition those parts are in (ie. Cables, warranty, case, etc.)

For example
"I have for sale a pair of Oakley Wisdoms. The frame is a matt black with a fire iridium lense and they are in near perfect condition. There is one small black scratch about a 3 mm long on the right hand side. The foam is also in mint condition with zero damage. They come with a carrying bag and a micro cleaning cloth, works good."

Usually with goggles you don't need to include the year, same with most clothing. With items like cars, bikes, computer stuff you might need to.. One other important thing to do is list all of the damage to your goods! People don't like being sold something that it's as the description lists. If you lie about it and try to sell something again you'll have a hard time because that person will most likely tag you on RFD as a bad buyer. And if you are a first time seller make sure you make a Heatware account so you can get a bit of a reputation for yourself and selling will be easier in the future. The site is www.heatware.com

Step Three - Title

This is what will catch the attention of buyers. You can take the stupid root and do "OAKLEY WISDOMS FOR SALE!1!!!one!1!" or do it right. "Black Oakley Wisdom with Fire Iridium" Something short and sweet. And I'm not sure if I spelt iridium right, so don't bash me. And if you have multiple items for sale list the big ticket items before anything else "Brand new so and so" and get the other stuff after that if there is space. Also include what you want to do with the item or weather or not you want an item. FS = for sale FT = for trade WTB = want to buy. Or you can do a FS/FT meaning you will sell or trade the item. If you are looking to trade make sure you list what it is you are willing to trade for.

A second way mentioned is to have symbols in it which will also make it eye catching. You can use symbols with the shift + number keys to give it some edge. It all depends on what you want and what you think will look good and stand out. Look around the forums to see what looks good and bad.

Step Four - Pictures!

This is the key part! Once you have taken your pictures and loaded them onto your computer you to upload them to the internet, then post the. For this I use Image Shack which has yet to fail me.

i) When you have your pictures loaded on your computer go to this site http://www.imageshack.us/ Once there you will see this menu;



Click on the "Browse" button to navigate through your computer and find where your picture is. Once you find it double click and the picture will start to load. If not click the "host it!" button below. After it loads this menu will pop up;



Highlight the last line on that page which I highlighted, this will be your image link. To do that drag your mouse across to highlight it, right click and select copy. Then go back to your thread listing and description and type [IMG] After that right click and hit paste. Your image link will appear and then you type [/IMG] after it. Make sure there are no spaces between the [IMG][/IMG] tags and your picture or it will not work!

You can also click on the yellow “Insert Image” button, found in the tool bar above the space where you can type, which will prompt a menu to pop up. You can paste your image link there and hit ok and it takes care of the IMG tags for your, but make sure there aren’t spaces at the end of the link and you don’t have http:// twice at the beginning.

Step Five - Tools On The Site

When you go click on the “New Topic” button in the correct thread this menu will pop up.

This will be where you enter all of the info about the product(s) you want to sell or trade.

The items highlighted by the yellow circle are the tools. Most of them are basic tools and self explanatory. Bold, underline, italics, left/right/centre justification, ordered list (1,2,3), unordered list ( point form), insert link, remove link, etc. The last four tool buttons I don’t even use, maybe someone can post up what they are used for and any additional tools that should be known.

The items in red are everyone’s favourites, emoticons. There are a bunch of them there you can stick in your thread all over the place, too many is annoying, a few are fine to have.

And in the blue down bottom are icons that will appear in front of your thread listing in the forum menu. You will see whatever icon you select before your title name. It can be used to show where you are and want to sell the item (GTA = Greater Toronto Area, GVR = Greater Vancouver Region, FS , etc) or if you want to sell or trade, or just to jazz it up with the flaming hot icon.

Step Six - Things to Include

This last step isn't a must but it makes it look good. Check your spelling and grammar! do't tpe like a friken idiot w/ dum abreverations. Type correct. Also include your email address if you wish to. Or if you want just tell people to pm you for questions or comments if they need to. List the ways you will accept payments such as PayPal, money order, electronic band transfer etc.. When the deal is done be sure to go to the persons Heatware, if they have it, and leave some feedback for others to read.

Also be sure to include these key points in your post!

1. Post a price! You must do this, it is a forum rule and it must be posted. The only way you don't need a price is if you want to trade the item you have, if this be the case list what you will accept for trades.
2. List how you want to deliever the items. Bigger items like cars, freezers etc. will most likely be pick up only. Maybe you want to meet at a location to do the deal, or maybe you will ship the item. Please list what you are willing to do.
3. If you are going to ship or set up a place to make the deal list where you live (not your exact address) or the place you are willing to do the deal.
4. And lastly if your shipping, try to get an estimate on the cost for shipping the item. This can be obtained by going to websites with shipping companies or to their stores and getting an estimate. The quickest way is a web site which will ask for package size and weight (you can estimate to get a rough idea)

Step Seven - Sum It Up

The last thing to do read the forum rules before you post. Make sure what you’re selling is going in the right section of the forum. If you accidentally post something in the wrong thread post in your own thread and ask a moderator to move it. When your done making your thread click the preview thread button and look at it to make sure the pictures work and your satisfied with your work. Once your ready click the submit button and then go to the menu and find your thread (should be at the top just below the sticky threads). I like to go into mine and bookmark them in my tabs so checking it can be easy instead of looking around the forums for it. Ctrl D is a short cut for book marking pages.

It is also a good idea to read the forum rules which will include things from general rules to a glossary of terms, great thing to read, check it out!
Click Here to get to that page.

That's about it! It's a lengthy read but that is how you can make a proper thread to sell your gear. I might have forgotten something which I will post after if necessary, so check back for updates. If anyone spots a mistake or has any positive criticism about something I said please feel free to post. If you have any questions post here or just drop me a pm and I'll see how I can help you. Hope it's useful, enjoy.
Cheers,
-aaron