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Interview: Person who Sells Items (by Rachel) ​

Reason ​

Our app is dedicated to aiding individuals with Hoarding Disorder by providing them with a comprehensive solution. Through our research, we have identified a key barrier to tackling this disorder: the difficulty in discarding items. Often, people with hoarding tendencies struggle to part with their possessions, even if they have monetary value. To address this issue, our app aims to incentivize and simplify the process of item disposal, whether through selling or donating. For items of value, our app aims to provide a seamless way to sell them, allowing them to benefit from their possessions while reducing clutter. We understand that selling and donating are common methods for decluttering, and we strive to streamline this experience. By offering a user-friendly and integrated platform, we aim to motivate people to reduce the number of items they hoard, taking steps toward managing and treating Hoarding Disorder.

Interesting Findings ​

To gain insights into the needs of sellers using our app, I conducted an interview with Omar, a MIT Junior with a wealth of sales experience. Omar's journey as a seller began during middle school when he became an online sales specialist for a store his father was associated with. He continued selling his personal items through OfferUp in high school and has been engaged in selling his photos and photography services since the last semester. Notably, Omar has also mentioned that he has Vinyl that he has been looking to sell but has not started yet. He said that he is “looking for the sales to appreciate” and “wants to wait to sell in the future”. While, from my understanding, Omar does not have Hoarding Disorder, his statement mirrors the many thoughts I gleaned from my research. Many people who hoard times that have some sort of monetary value do not want to sell or discard them in the hopes of the value of the items appreciating in the future. This raises the distinction between being a collector and having Hoarding Disorder, where hoarding goes beyond the realm of collecting and begins to have a detrimental impact on one's life. While our app may not provide a complete solution for treating Hoarding Disorder, it can potentially assist in managing the condition, preventing it from reaching a point where it negatively affects a person's life. Omar also mentioned that for the records he does want to sell, he still does not because “the process of making a seller profile and handling shipping is confusing”. This process can be confusing and overwhelming, even for someone without Hoarding Disorder, and can significantly deter individuals with hoarding tendencies from selling their belongings.

To address these challenges and create a user-friendly platform that encourages individuals to sell their items, I asked Omar about the features he would prefer in our app. Unsurprisingly, he stressed the importance of tracking expenses and items sold. Providing users with a historical record of their sales not only helps in managing their transactions but also promotes organization. From my interview with Omar, it's evident that the key to our app's success lies in simplifying the selling process as much as possible. This approach will not only benefit individuals like Omar but also play a crucial role in preventing people from developing Hoarding Disorder.

Notes ​

Can you tell me a little about yourself? (Hobbies? School? Background?) ​

  • MIT Junior currently studying 6-3
  • Might change majors due to interest being around audio visual media
  • Do a lot of photography on campus which stems from interest in film and video studies.
  • Through photography made a small side hustle through selling photos and services.

Can you tell me about your experience selling items/service? ​

  • Started in middle school and was an online sales specialist for a store that his dad worked at.
    • Worked over the summer with OfferUp and interacting with customers
    • A few thousand dollars of merchandise
  • Started selling some of his stuff through OfferUp in high school.
  • Haven’t started selling stuff on Discogs yet which is an online store and database for Vinyl
    • Whenever he buys Vinyl for himself, he also buys more copies with the hopes of selling it in the future.
  • Mainly selling his photography services
    • Haven’t started advertising yet. Most gigs through connections.
    • Most he has done is responding to dorm spam listings.

What is holding you back from selling Vinyl? ​

  • First is waiting for the record of sales to appreciate. Plan to do it long term.
    • Most valued record has gone up 2 to 3 times in value
  • For the records he wants to sell, the process of setting up a seller profile on Ebay or handling shipping and logistics is confusing.
    • Not sure how shipping factors into the price. Not sure where to get shipping materials from.

Would you consider it a small business or yourself as a small business owner? ​

Unofficially yes. Have looked into registering an LLC but have not registered yet. Have a whole website set up. Have a way to track expenses. Have invoices written down.

At what scale was your business? ​

  • Currently the business is contained within MIT but hopefully will change this pretty soon.
  • Did personal work in Mexico and with a host family.
    • Shot an informal commercial
  • LCC historian and putting together a video.
  • Do some video work with LDC.
  • Startup work with a friend

Why did you decide to sell photos? ​

  • Started doing photography because it was fun. Did it for 7 years.
  • Just started charging last semester. Helps fund photography hobby.

What was the most challenging part of the experience? ​

Balancing school and work. Working on his own time. Managing his own money and business expenses.

How did you sell photos? Did you have a website, social media, or was it through word of mouth? ​

10% of work through dormspam. 90% through people he knows. Exec board on different clubs. Work primarily through connection at the office of first year. People who are on the executive board of different clubs. Also in Questbridge. Other Questbridge scholars and friends see websites and work so offer work.

Who was your target audience? ​

Little bit of everything. Like to focus on photo journalism (MIT Tech) and concert photography. Find very interesting. Inside of a lot of stories.

If you had an app that you can use in your business, what kind of features would you like it to have? ​

  • A way to view a snapshot of my portfolio.
  • Better way to display portfolio.
  • Webstore
  • Example app: The Shop app integrates with your account (ecommerce account) and shows shipments.
  • A way to compile how much you pay for materials. Way to keep track of stuff I bought and sold will be great. Can’t see visually what I bought and what I sold.

Did you engage in marketing or promotions for your products? ​

No.

Did you sell your items locally or beyond? Was there any difficulties with shipping and getting the items to your customers? ​

  • Stuff ready to sell in the future.
  • Closest thing to shipping is the vinyl
  • He wants to know how much he brought something for. Want how to easily buy shipping material. How to keep track of his own profit and loss.
  • Want how to export data if he needs to use it in the future.

If you had a magic wand that could help you achieve your goals most effectively or change the situation most dramatically, what would it be? ​

  • Store optimized to mobile.
  • Concerns with Ebay
    • No way to check historical data of sellers *As a seller there is no way to get verified so for customers it is a big risky. May run into a bogus listing.
    • Feels sketchy.