How to Get Facebook Marketplace Success

I wanted to share this post with you to encourage you to try secondhand shopping on Facebook Marketplace if you haven’t already. You never know what you’ll find and it’s a treasure trove of good deals!

Our current dining chairs are in pretty rough shape, not comfortable, and not kid friendly (not wipeable). But they were $5 each from Goodwill, so the have done the job fine for the last few years. I had been eyeing these dining chairs that another blogger linked to on overstock.com for the last month or two.

They are about $85 each, which actually isn’t too expensive for dining chairs, but I wanted to at least try to find a similar look secondhand first. So the last few weeks, I have been searching high and low on Facebook Marketplace for “black dining chairs.” There was nothing in my area similar at all, so I was beginning to become discouraged.

But then, one Sunday evening the exact chairs popped up for $20 total, so $5 per chair!!! I could not believe it! I messaged the seller right away, and we jumped in the car to go pick them up! They are not in perfect condition, a few dings here and there, but for $5 each I don’t mind at all.

Tips for Facebook Marketplace Success

Tip 1: Encourage the algorithm to work for your benefit

I am not an algorithm girl at all, but I do appreciate the algorithm for Facebook Marketplace – it works wonderfully for me. Basically, it takes notes on what you click on in Marketplace. Then, presents similar things in your Marketplace “home feed.”

For example, we were looking for a used car a few months ago, and I was searching on Facebook Marketplace. We were mostly searching for a Honda or Toyota, so not only would I search these terms, I would click on any Hondas or Toyotas that were similar to what we were looking for, even if we weren’t totally interested in that particular model.

Pretty quickly the algorithm caught on and only showed me these brands of cars. And eventually we found a 2008 Toyota Sienna that we purchased!

Right now my Facebook Marketplace feed is full of espresso machines, vintage furniture, pop-up campers and Doc Martens because those are the things I’ve been clicking on most. But it’s always changing based on what I’m looking for!

Tip 2: Search using specific style words

Searching using specific style words also feeds the algorithm what you want to see. If I’m looking for furniture for my home, I tend to use words like “vintage,” “antique,” “solid wood,” “pine,” “oak,” “brass,” etc.

Or, if modern is more your style you could use terms like “modern,” “minimalist,” “industrial,” “matte,” “mid century,” etc.

If I’m looking for a more practical everyday item, I use terms like “gently used,” “brand new,” “like new,” etc. We’ve found our toddler carseat, Mockingbird stroller, jogging stroller/bike trailer, and baby backpack hiking carrier all on Facebook Marketplace in gently used or almost brand new condition by using these search terms.

Tip 3: Check regularly & be patient

Like all thrifting, shopping on Facebook Marketplace requires time and consistency. It may take a little while to find exactly what you are looking for, so keep searching and be patient. The motivation usually comes after you’ve found your first success, and then you’ll be so inspired to keep shopping secondhand!

More Facebook Marketplace Finds

These are a few other furniture pieces that I have found on Facebook Marketplace – our nursery rocking chair and metal storage lockers.

I really hope this post inspires you to try secondhand shopping on Facebook Marketplace!

If you feel overwhelmed with the idea of thrifting, check out this blog post, or download your Thrifting 101 FREE Ebook here for all my thrifting tips and tricks.