I often keep things listed for weeks or months before dropping the price. I'm never in a hurry to sell things though, it's always something that I've made an upgrade from and want to find a new home for.
If you need the money or want it out of your house right away, drop the price every few days and it will sell.
Otherwise wait for the right buyer to come along. There are people that browse ads daily and there are those that only look when they decide they want to buy.
Here are some things I do when selling.
- Use hifishark to see what similar items have been listed for and start with my price in the middle of that range.
- Always price things a little higher than what I actually want for them. If I get my asking price, that's a bonus. If someone wants to play "let's make a deal" then I've left some room for them to feel like they are a super duper negotiator. Know beforehand what the lowest is you'll accept. If they ask "what's the lowest you'll go", don't tell them. Tell them to make an offer and consider it based on your pre-determined limit. Stay in the driver's seat, but make them feel like they are getting a good deal.
- Take good photos.
- Be descriptive.
I disagree with the person who said rating it a 9 is not realistic because others have owned it. I use the Audiogon rating scale and grade the condition on... yes, the condition. If it's been taken good care of and is in good cosmetic condition, it doesn't matter how many owners, at least not in terms of grading. Some people are interested in the "history" of the item, how many have owned it, how it was kept, if there were smokers, pets, etc. (which are all valid), so keep that in mind.
When buying used gear, unless it's a really highly sought after piece and hard to find, I rarely pay more than 50-60% of the original retail price.