An instagram follower, @likemikecards, asked how do you keep track of profit.
I like this question because asking this means you are thinking about sports cards like a business and for many, sports cards is a part time business. Although sports cards are primarily a hobby for me, it is also a side hustle to make extra income.
Personally I keep track of my sales, costs, and profits diligently. I use old fashioned Microsoft Excel and enter the data.
In the excel, I keep track of the following. Note that I am more detailed in how I break everything out, but for simplicity, you can combine the s/h, fees, and item cost under one cost. Due to my marketing background, I end up splitting everything out because I consider this my CRM (customer relationship management) tool.
- What the item is
- How much I paid for the item only
- Any shipping and handling costs
- How much I sold the item for
- Any fees applied – I keep track of this separately from how much I paid
- Profit (if any)
- When I buy lots or collections, I will note how much the lot was and then as I piece off the lot, I keep track of the sales
- Contact (name, address, phone, email, Facebook account, Instagram ID)
- Location
- Any other details such as whether they are a player or set collector, what kind of conditions did the cards arrive and if I get them graded later, etc
What do you think is missing that you are tracking and is helping you?
