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The_Secrets_Of_Starting_A_Successful_Ebay_Business
| The Secrets Of Starting A Successful Ebay Business
Q: I hear so much about people who started selling on eBay and
eventually turned it into their full time business. Is it really
possible to build a profitable business just selling junk on
eBay? -- Alex K.
A: If Fred Sanford were alive today, Alex, I'm sure he'd be
earning his ripple money by selling quality junk on eBay. While
it's also true that one man's junk is another man's treasure (I
have a garage full of treasure to prove this point), your
chances of building a profitable business selling "junk" on eBay
(or anywhere else, for that matter) are slim to none.
While there is a lot of junk/treasure for sale on eBay, it is
typically sold by individuals who have "I break for yardsales!"
bumper stickers on their cars and not serious business people.
For serious entrepreneurs, however, selling on eBay can be a
good way to start a new business if you are willing to put in
the time and energy required to make the business a success.
eBay is also a good option for existing businesses to expand
their reach by selling online.
Everyone from small used car dealers to giant companies like
Dell Computers have discovered that eBay is an excellent place
to hawk their wares simply due to the huge number of folks who
visit the eBay site on a daily basis. Nowhere else on earth will
you find such a large pool of potential customers.
Consider these numbers: · There are nearly 69 million eBay users
who spend $59 million every day. · Most eBay sellers are
home-based businesses that sell every- thing from porcelain
dolls to locks of Elvis' hair to $100,000 Mercedes convertibles
to $5 million dollar vacation homes.
· Every minute of every day more than 150 new items are listed
for sale, more than 500 bids are placed, and seven new people
register to shop on eBay.
· At any given moment, eBay is conducting some 12 million
auctions, divided into about 18,000 different categories.
· About two million new items are offered for sale every day,
and 62 million registered users scour the site to find them. ·
One company is grossing more than $5 million dollars a year
selling brand new pool tables on eBay. Their eBay store is so
profitable that they have closed their retail location and now
sell solely online.
That's right, $5 million dollars from the sale of pool tables:
proof that you can sell just about anything on eBay if you know
how to do it.
Be aware, however, that eBay is no magic bullet. As any eBay
Power Seller (a seller who sells a minimum of $1,000 in goods
per month) will tell you, building a profitable eBay business
takes hard work and requires long hours, and often the financial
rewards do not make it worth the effort spent.
When it comes down to the mechanics of it all, running an eBay
business is no different than running a brick and mortar
business. You still have the same considerations regarding
product selection, inventory purchasing, product pricing,
inventory management, order processing, fulfillment, customer
service, etc.
You must also consider the legal and accounting aspects of the
business. Just because you're selling online does not mean that
Uncle Sam won't expect his piece of the pie. Revenue generated
by an eBay business is just as reportable and taxable as revenue
generated from a brick and mortar store. And if you sell to
customers within your state you may also be responsible for
collecting city, county or state sales tax.
One of the biggest obstacles to building a successful eBay
business may be the stiffness of the competition. Many sellers
sell identical items and the price wars often get ugly, but
that's to be expected in a free market place, which is exactly
what eBay is.
You may be the only store in town that's selling that one of a
kind, custom made just for you, broke the mold after they made
it, Dale Earnhart Memorial Bobble Head Action Figure (Earnhart
fans would string me up if I called it a Doll), but do a quick
search on eBay and you'll probably find a hundred others just
like it.
So, can you build a profitable business selling on eBay?
Certainly, thousands of people have done it and so can you.
Here are a few tips to help get you started.
Sell Quality Products Don't sell junk! Leave the knick-knacks
and fake leather jackets to the less informed. You should offer
only quality products at a fair price.
Research The Competition Once you have your product in mind,
don't invest a dime on inventory until you have spent some time
on eBay to see what the competition is doing. If you want to
sell motorcycle helmets, for example, you should look at current
auctions to see how many others are selling similar helmets and
what prices they are charging. This step is vital since you may
discover that you can't compete with current sellers on price or
there is simply no market for what you have to offer.
Start Slowly Many people believe that the more items they have
for sale on eBay the better. They will invest thousands in
inventory and spent hundreds on listing fees (yes, eBay charges
you to list items for sale and collects a final fee if the item
sells). Those are the folks that usually end up with ten
thousand Ginsu knives forever in their garage.
Test, Test, Test A fair portion of eBay auctions result in no
sales, so it's best to test the waters before jumping in with
both feet.
List a few items and see how they sell. If an item doesn't sell,
list it at least twice more. Some items might not sell the first
time, but may the second or third, then sell steadily from then
on.
If an item gets no bids the first time, consider adjusting your
price or your terms. If an item sells well, keep it in stock and
then experiment with another item.
Do Your Homework eBay is too broad a subject to be covered fully
here, but there are a multitude of books available that can help
you start an eBay business. In fact, I bet you'll find most of
them for sale at this very moment at eBay.
What's my bid
Here's to your success.
About the author:
Tim serves as the president and CEO of three successful
technology companies and is the founder of
DropshipWholesale.net, an online organization dedicated to the
success of online and eBay entrepreneurs http://www.prosperityand
profits.com http://www.dropshipwholesal
e.net http://www.TimKnox.com
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