Finally selling your used laptop in order to upgrade to a newer model is an exciting time. With all the new apps and programs that you can sell your laptop on, such as Kijiji, Facebook Marketplace, Gizmogo, and others, it’s easy to get caught up in the thrill of getting your cold, hard cash right away. But before you hit that “Post Ad” button, here are 5 common mistakes you need to avoid before you sell your laptop.
Not Backing up Your Information
In many ways, your laptop isn’t just a device, it’s an experience storage unit. From the many games you’ve played, to the hundreds of photos and videos that you have saved over the years, not remembering to backup your information onto your new computer or external hard drive can be a huge mistake. Think of all the data you’ll lose, from schoolwork to saved states. Want to continue where you left off in your old game? Too bad, the save file was left with your computer and you can no longer access it.
On a more professional level, if you used your old laptop for work, forgetting to back up all of your passwords, client information, and more, could severely hurt your business or your employer’s view of you.
Not Logging Out of Your Accounts
Between Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, and you name it, we have a lot of accounts on the go. Not Logging out of these accounts before selling your laptop could easily spell disaster. If you use your Google account to save all your passwords, then the person you just sold your laptop to now has access to your banking information, private data, and other highly sensitive information. Talk about a train wreck.
Not Cleaning Your Device
From chip crumbs to pop spills, our laptops go through thick and thin to make sure we can beat that boss we’ve been stuck on for so long. However, these battle wounds need to be cleaned up. Not removing your leftovers from the keyboard, or even giving your device a good wipe, could end you up with no cash at all. Who wants a dirty laptop anyway?
Not Taking Proper Photos
One of the best ways to quickly sell an item is to post as many photos as possible, so that people can see exactly what they are buying. Not posting enough photos of your laptop when you are selling it online, can lead to feelings of mistrust and suspicion in potential buyers, in which case you may not have any luck selling it at all. Would you buy a shirt online if all you had was a written description and a size? Probably not.
Not Erasing Your Personal Information
While it is good practice to fully format your laptop before selling, sometimes even the best of us miss this simple point of etiquette. However, similar to our point about not logging out of your accounts, not erasing your personal data can have massive consequences.
If you leave personal information on your computer, such as your phone number or banking info, if your device gets into the wrong hands, you could end up having your identity stolen. While that might seem like a stretch to some of you, it is a real possibility. A more realistic outcome of not erasing all of your personal information is probably a bad review.
Often, formatting a device properly can take hours, and if the seller has to do it before they can finally play their game or surf the web, they likely won’t be happy. Because of that, there’s a good chance they may leave a bad review on your selling page, that could potentially affect your ability to sell other items online in the future.
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