No one wants to be taken for a ride when dabbling online, but most people offering tips on how to navigate those waters safely do so from the perspective of those buying goods.

You know, kind of like we did with THESE tips to avoid being duped by fakes.

Given that Gumtree South Africa sees an average of six million visitors each month, with many users generating a second income or financial boost by using the platform, we spoke to Marketing Head Claire Cobbledick and asked for some tips for smart online selling.

“Over the past month we embarked on a campaign to discover these real success stories from people who actively boost their income by selling online”, Claire said.

“We received over a thousand entries, and in analysing these stories we were able to identify some key factors that help our customers sell successfully on Gumtree,” she added.

We’ll break those factors down into five key points:

• When selling online, honesty is the best policy. Don’t forget, your buyer will ultimately discover the true nature and quality of your item so post truthful descriptions and pictures only.
• A picture is worth a thousand words. Always support your ad with clear, high quality photographs. Photographing items in natural sunlight goes a long way to boost image quality and close a quick sale.
• Safety first. Always bring a friend or family member with you to the trade location. Arrange the meeting in a public place and consider using Shepherd, a service that will facilitate your transaction from releasing funds to delivering of item.
• When listing an ad on Gumtree, list your area. Many buyers specifically look for ads listed in, or near, their neighborhoods for convenience.
• Download the Gumtree app for easier communication. When talking to a potential buyer or seller in the app’s message center, all communication can be tracked.

Seriously though, everything is a whole lot easier if you’re using that app (HERE).

Those might seem pretty simple, but they’ve been proven to secure sales and help users get the most out of Gumtree.

Buy smart and sell smart friends, because we could all use a little extra boost to the bank balance now and again.