Weight Gain? No Problem! How Poshmark Helped My Confidence.

Did you ever think about the benefits to buying and selling on Poshmark that go beyond the deals to be had and the extra pocket money? There are so many! But I have been thinking a lot lately about something that I really really love about shopping all of your closets. And that is accepting my body the way it is. 

Over the years I have fluctuated between a size 2 and a size 12 and that doesn't even count my two pregnancies. I am pretty sure my happy healthy size is between 6-8. If I am over or under that something is wrong. Size 12 = stress and poor time/life management. And size 2 = anxiety and fear. I will explain in a bit. 

But first let me tell you why I am embracing where I am now, which is on the heavier side. And it has been like this for about 2 years now. I am ok with it. First of all, because I know it is a reflection of this current stage in my life and secondly, because I now know that every size is beautiful. And you all are living proof of that. 

Before I joined Poshmark, my fashion inspiration came from magazines. And my shopping experiences consisted of clothes displayed on mannequins or modeled by perfect bodies in catalogues and on websites. When I got dressed, I saw something very different in the mirror. It did not match my perception of what those clothes would look like on me. And I judged myself harshly. And unfairly. I am normal and you all helped me see that. 

Those models are size 4-6. So ofcourse the clothes look great on them. Poshmark is different. I love buying a size 12 dress that I found in a size 12's closet. If you can rock it, I can rock it. And I love the confidence of all of you ladies who model your listings. You are seriously gorgeous, no matter what size. I see all of your beauty and confidence and realize that I have been judging myself too harshly and holding myself up to an unattainable ideal. 

Even at my healthiest, rowing two hours a day and doing weight workouts on top of that, I was a size 4-6, and pear shaped. And I hated my hips. Then I thought I was huge when I got up to a size 8 the first time. I hated myself and all of those lunches at Taco Bell. 

Then I lost some weight and everyone who saw me told me how great I looked. I was down to a size 2, even in the hips!! And this was post-baby! The truth is, I was going through a divorce at the time. Best diet ever - devastation and anxiety. I don't recommend it.

And where I am now is a combination of hectic schedule, both me and my husband, 3 kids and a blended family, and crazy stress at work. So you can see that the last thing I should be worrying about is my body. That would just add to the stress. So I've got to work with what I've got. Another plug for Posh - I am able to purchase a whole wardrobe, in what I hope to be this temporary size, without breaking the bank! And when I get back to a healthy weight for my body type, I can pass these gorgeous clothes on to someone else who will love them as much as I have. Win win. 

I am a little hesitant to share this with you, in case I fail, but maybe it can help hold me accountable, so here goes. I found a dress that I couldn't resist. I had my eye on it for so long, but didn't dare purchase because it wouldn't fit me right now. It went on sale, and I couldn't resist, so I bought it, promising myself that I will fit into it dammit!!

 

And I told the seller, @mykidsfault, who has an amazing closet BTW, so now I have someone in my corner cheering me on! That was about a month ago, and I have lost 7 pounds, so I am on my way!! And I am doing it by eating well and squeezing in a little exercise. Nothing drastic, so it is sustainable. But in the meantime, thank you Poshmark for helping me embrace the body I am in, no matter what size. 

Keep an eye out for my size 10-12 clothes. I am hoping to post them some day soon!!

Visit my closet at https://poshmark.com/closet/corporatebarbie

Full Disclosure

Here is the deal. You can sell almost anything, as long as you are completely honest about the condition. Of course, for branding purposes, you might not want your closet to be associated with damaged goods. But once in awhile, you might have an item that, while not in great condition, you know someone might want it.

I have made some great purchases, knowing in advance that they had imperfections. And I have been unlucky to receive a few items that were not well-described. My philosophy when buying is that unless specifically noted, I should expect the item to arrive clean, without odors, stains, or tears. In fact, this is pretty much the only reason I have ever given anything other than a five star rating. If the gorgeous DVF dress you have listed has an imperfection, I may still want to buy it. But if you sell me that dress, no matter how great of a deal I got, I will not give you a good rating if it shows up with a hole in it that you did not disclose.

One of my favorite purchases ever is a white North Face jacket. The seller noted imperfections, took pictures, and even messaged me after my purchase to make sure I read her description and was aware of the imperfections. It was a great price, and I was ok with the wear that she had described. I was so pleasantly surprised when I received it that the wear and staining were nowhere near as significant as I thought. Wouldn't you rather be pleasantly surprised than majorly disappointed? Of course the listing with the full disclosure is going to get a better rating.

Of course you will need to price the item accordingly, but you should be doing that anyway. You won't win over repeat customers with unfair prices!

I had a great buyer this week give me five stars on a necklace after I specifically offered to cancel the order for her. When I was wrapping it up, NWT, I saw that there was significant tarnishing on the back. She told me to ship it anyway. And then she came back with that rating!! Guess who now has a $25 credit in my closet? Yep, I like to take care of my customers. And I really did feel terrible that she purchased an item that had wear that I hadn't disclosed.

I also made a sale awhile ago on an item that was in pretty bad shape. But it was a cute little Coach purse and I couldn't bring myself to throw it away. I honestly didn't think it was even in good enough shape to donate. But I listed it, and made sure in the description to specify that it was in bad shape, but I thought I would take offers on it before throwing it away. Someone was thrilled to find that bag, and offered me $20 for it. Win win!

I also learned the hard way to shop closets from smoke free households. It is really hard to get the smell of smoke out of clothing, especially wool. I am ok with pets, but not everyone is. So it might be a good idea to disclose that you have pets in your listings if you do.

So what do you do if you miss something? You make it up to her!

I think what it comes down to, is that you want to set it up so that the only possible complaint your buyer could have is that the item didn't fit. And even that can be headed off by providing measurements.

No surprises, unless they are good ones! And always strive for good reviews and repeat customers.

Check out my closet at Poshmark.com/closet/corporatebarbie

A Negative Review!

Oh the horror! How dare she?! She got a great deal, and I packaged it so nicely! She is ruining my perfect record of excellent reviews! 

I know how you feel, Ladies. Before you react, let's think about this. First, let's all take a deep breath and recognize that a three or four star rating is not, in fact, a negative review. Without specific guidelines, each individual approaches reviews differently. 

Some people are super generous and automatically rate five stars, unless there is a glaring offense. And some people consider all purchases average, unless you go above and beyond, like wrapping in designer paper and including a free gift. Performance reviews in the working world are like this too. All that really matters is the recognition for things you have done well and the suggestions for ways you can improve. 

What is the point of a review anyway? Is it to show other potential customers what a good seller you are? Kind of. But primarily, it is a tool to help you improve. 

I know there are unfair or unkind reviews. For example, a negative review from a buyer because the item did not fit. We all know that is on her, unless you provided inaccurate measurements. Or a buyer who expected overnight shipping and was angry that it took 2-3 days to arrive. We are not Amazon prime!

But, by design, reviews are supposed to be a feedback tool. How can you as a seller improve? Were there imperfections not noted in your listing? Was the lighting misleading and that blue dress is actually white? Did your packaging fail to protect a fragile item?

You need to know these things so you can take them into consideration when preparing future listings!

And if you handle the feedback graciously, you may even win over a repeat customer. 

What do you do when you get a review that is shy of stellar? Please don't tell me that you coerce (bully) your buyer into a better review. If her review was fair, and provided useful feedback, then you have no right to tell her that her review is ruining your perfect record. That just tells her that you care more about your image than you do about your customers. 

If you get an average review, make sure you thank your buyer for her purchase. Just like you would a five star review. 

What if you get a bad review with no specific feedback? You can phrase it however you want, but I suggest something along the lines of, "Thank you for your purchase and for taking the time to rate it. I am sorry you were not completely satisfied. I am always trying to improve and would be grateful for any feedback you can give me."

And if you get negative feedback that is justified, maybe the condition of the item was poor and it was not noted or obvious in the photos. I suggest you try to make it right with your buyer. Give her options. Remind her that Poshmark will facilitate a return for items misrepresented. And if she wants to keep it anyway, offer her a great discount on her next purchase. Share her closet. Something. Just let her know that her satisfaction is important to you. 

Welcome the feedback embrace the feedback. Improve from the feedback. 

And because we are buyers too, be thoughtful in your own ratings and feedback. Give specific and constructive advice on how your purchase could have been better. Your seller will appreciate that. 

 

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Pricing Strategies

Whether you are trying to clean out your closet, or make a little spending money, or you are using Poshmark as your primary source of income, there are several different pricing strategies you should consider. I will discuss some here and give examples of when you would want to use them. 

Introductory Offer

If you are new to Poshmark and looking to make your first few sales and earn your first few good reviews, you can list an introductory offer. You can do it many different ways, whether through a separate listing, in the title of each listing, in the description of each listing, or by commenting to people who like your items. Some things you can offer would be:

20% Off for My First Five Buyers

Buy One Get One Free First Five Buyers

You might lose money, but you are building credibility. 

Free with Purchase

This is a great option for moving items out of your closet, if you are trying to make room, and logging a sale at the same time. Things you might want to offer free with purchase include anything you wouldn't be able to sell for more than $5 or so. Poshmark's fee for anything under $15 is $3, so it isn't really worth it to sell a $5 item on its own. 

If Bundled Price

This is an offer you can use for something that you aren't willing to let go for free, but you aren't likely to get more than $10 or so for it. You can list it for $10, but in the title of the listing put $5 If Bundled. That way you will be sure to pay no more than Posh's 20% fee, rather than the $3 fee. In this example, it is only a $2 difference, but at this price point $2 could mean the difference between a trip to the post office being worth it or not. Plus, you get to sell whatever else is included in the bundle. 

Clearance

If you have an item listed at the rock bottom price you would be willing to accept, go ahead and advertise that baby as Clearance. You might even specify in the description that you are going much lower than what you paid, what it's worth, etc. People want to know when they are getting a deal. And you also want to give them that little nudge to Buy Now. If something is marked as clearance, other buyers are surely going to see it and snatch it up. Get it quick before someone else does. 

Make Your Money Back

Whether it was an impulse buy, or something that doesn't fit and you can't return, we all want to make our money back. To make your money back, you'll have to calculate how much you spent on the item, plus tax and shipping. Then take that total and divide by 0.8 to account for the 20% that Poshmark is going to take. Sounds iffy, doesn't it? That's because it is. The only way someone is going to pay 20% more than you did, is if you got some kind of amazing deal to begin with. But if you paid market value, you might have to take a loss. 

Market Value

An item is worth what someone is willing to pay for it. If you want to list your prices as firm, your best bet is to price at or below market value. Luckily, Poshmark makes it really easy to determine market value. Search for items similar to what you are selling. Then filter so that only the sold items are showing. See what they sold for. And if there is a wide variety, read descriptions. What condition is yours in compared to the highest priced similar item? If you have amazing pictures, you might be able to get away with pricing yours a little higher. If it is a rare or limited edition, you might be able to price it higher. 

Making a Profit

The holy grail of Poshmark. It is possible, I swear! It isn't that reliable, but there are ways to increase your chances. How do you make a profit? Your profit depends more heavily on the price you pay for the item, than on the price you sell it for. That sneaky market value thing again! You have to work really hard to find deals. People rarely pay more than market value, you have to hunt down the bargains and then turn them around and sell them at market value. Make your listings stand out. And be really

Involved in the Posh community. You need as many eyes on your listings as possible if you plan to make a profit. 

Drop Prices

So you have a hundred likes, but no offers. If you drop your prices by 10% or more, everyone who liked your listing will get a notification that your item is on sale. And they may even get reduced shipping if Poshmark is offering their shipping special. Even if they don't buy then and there, it is a nice reminder to them that they liked something in your closet. They might come back again to browse some more. Build this price dropping strategy into your original listing price knowing that each time you drop the price you are reminding the buyers that they want your item. You could even list it as a Flash Sale for that extra incentive to Buy Now. 

Make An Offer

I am not quite sure how this one works in practice, since I haven't been successful with it yet. But in theory, the idea is to price something insanely high so that it is obvious that is not the true price. But be clear that you want your buyers to make an offer. It may be an option for an item that you are on the fence about selling. I have listed a few things that I would only be willing to part with if I got quite a bit of money for them. Obviously, only people who are desperate to have your item are going to be willing to pay a price so high that you would be willing to part with that item. I have been the buyer in this scenario a few times (guilty!), but not yet the seller. You might want to list something like this if it is an item that is a common search term, like Coach Bag or Tiffany Necklace. Even if you might not sell that specific item, someone might find it in a search and browse your whole closet. Then you are in business. 

As you can imagine, each of these strategies has pros and cons. You might apply one to your closet across the board, or you may try different things on different listings. Either way, you know you have options. 

Check out my closet if you want to see how my items are priced. I use a mix of these strategies. And you never know, I might offer Secret Sales to my repeat buyers or PFFs. 

https://poshmark.com/closet/corporatebarbie

You Win Some and You Lose Some

Sometimes it is worth it to accept an offer that is lower than you thought you were willing to take. Especially if it is only a few dollars difference. "But I am here to make money, not lose money!" you say. Right, but don't view each sale in a vacuum. Each package you ship out is a chance to create a repeat customer. If she is happy with her purchase, she will return. 

Here is an example of an item I let go for a steal. This dress was listed for about a year in my closet and I didn't have a lot of interest on it. I originally listed it around $250 and was slowly lowering the price. I got this offer for $100 and accepted it immediately. Let me explain why. First of all, this dress is huge. It was taking up lots of precious closet space. But more importantly, the offer came from a "power user." She has a huge following, a successful blog, and she wears my size!! So I could reap the benefits of losing money on this dress in two ways 1. I could impress her and win over a repeat customer and 2. If she blogged about her wedding, wearing the dress I sold her, I could capitalize on that exposure. Unfortunately the dress didn't fit her perfectly and she went with something else. But it was worth the loss to me. 

It might also be worth it to lose money on a transaction if you are trying to clear out space in your closet, whether it is your real closet or your Poshmark closet. Don't underestimate the value of making space. Certain items just don't photograph well, and those listings aren't doing your closet any favors. Let somebody buy them if they want them. Get them out of there!

You'll make up for it on another sale. You know it happens once in awhile. You marked up the price on something you were on the fence about selling. And then a silent buyer swoops in and buys it at your listed price. Cha Ching. That's a nice profit right there. 

You win some and you lose some. 

https://poshmark.com/closet/corporatebarbie

How To Get Your Closet Noticed

Everyone says to share share share. And you should, because that is a nice thing to do. And when people return the favor, all of their followers see your listings. This is a huge help, especially if you are new and don't yet have thousands of followers. 

But I like to be more purposeful with my shares. Here is a strategy that I use whenever I have 30 minutes or more to spend "poshing."

Get your closet set up. Nicest items at the top. If you are having a sale, or want to specify that you follow all of the Poshmark rules, put a listing near the top with that information. Now you are ready to invite people in. 

How do you invite people in? First, you have to follow them. When they follow you back, share 3-5 of their items. Most folks will return the favor. And if they share your first few items and those items interest them, they may decide to stay and browse your closet. 

There are several ways you can go about your following and sharing. You can either follow tons and tons of people or you can target folks who are active at that moment. Or, you can even target your style mates. 

Follow Active Poshers

Attend the parties! Most Poshers are logged in and sharing during party times, 12pm, 3pm, and 10pm EST. Follow party hosts. Follow folks who are sharing to the parties. If you are already following lots of people, you can find active Poshers by refreshing your feed. See who is sharing at that moment and share some of their items. 

Follow Lots of Poshers

Search for "follow game" and "follow, like, share" and join in. Depending on the closet, these posts can generate hundreds, even thousands of followers. Make sure you follow the host and everyone else who liked the post before you. Like the post so future Poshers will follow you. 

You can also visit a "Power Closet". That's what I call Poshers who have 75k followers or more. Usually party hosts fall in this category. Click on their "followers" or "following" lists and just go down the list and follow everyone until your fingers get tired. 

Follow Your Style Mates

Search for items you love and filter by your own size. Follow everyone who has posted or liked those items. These are your style mates. 

The more you follow and share the more traffic you will get in your own closet.  And if your first several listings look good, folks will stay and have a look around! 

After you have built up a good following, rearrange your listings and invite people in again. That way folks who did not stay and browse the first time they visited your closet will see what else you have to offer. Repeat often!

https://poshmark.com/closet/corporatebarbie

It's Pay Day!

Today is the day to promote your closets. Right now is peak selling time. Why? It's the perfect storm.

1. It's pay day! Fridays are pay day for many folks. And the 15th is pay day for those who get paid twice a month. Our Federal employees just got paid Tuesday. Lots of people just got paid and are looking to splurge.
2. Tax refunds still need to be spent.
3. We haven't had to shell out for summer vacations yet.

Go ahead. Share your closets! Promote your items! Offer discounts! Summer is coming and sales will slow down for sure. Take advantage of pay day!

https://poshmark.com/closet/corporatebarbie

Free $5 in Credits

If you are new to Poshmark, use my invite code to get $5 in credit free! Go to my link. And use code BTBHA. 

https://poshmark.com/closet/corporatebarbie

Who Is Corporate Barbie?

Hello Everyone. It's nice to meet you. Thanks so much for checking out my blog.

I am Corporate Barbie. Why Corporate Barbie? Ask my cousins: Malibu Barbie, Soccer Mom Barbie, and Laid Back Barbie.

They gave me my name one day about 10 years ago. Having grown up together, they were used to seeing me in shorts and a t-shirt. Until we all met for happy hour one night, and I walked into the restaurant, fresh off an airplane, back from a business trip, dressed like I dress for work. From then on, they have called me Corporate Barbie. It stuck. And now they have their own Barbie names too.

Anyway, it suits me. Especially now that I have started to get active in the clothing resale community. It's perfect for branding. So that's who I am. Check out my closet. https://poshmark.com/closet/corporatebarbie

What Does Corporate Barbie Sell?

I love to try out different styles and switch out my wardrobe often. Because of a lack of closet space, I have to let things go that I am not wearing often enough. I have tons of new and gently used items just waiting for a new home. My clothes range from size 2 to size 12 and my shoes are 6.5-7. Here is a sampling of what's available now.

https://poshmark.com/closet/corporatebarbie