Getting Started on eBay

You’ve probably heard about how much money can

be made on eBay. With dreams of quick riches and

easy money, you are probably ready to jump in with

both feet – right now! The best thing you can do if

you are serious about making money with eBay,

however, is to slow down. In fact, just stop for a

minute. Don’t rush straight in. Take your time, and

do it right.

eBay has over 100 million members. Think about

that number for just a minute or two. When you get

your eBay business set up, that is how big your

customer base will be – instantly. 100 million people

- 100 million people who are just waiting for you to

get set up and running so that they can throw money

at you! Well, not quite. It is true that there are over

100 million members, but at this point, they don’t

know that you exist. In fact, no matter how well you

do on eBay, most of them will never know that you

exist. 100 million is a very large number.

The most successful eBay sellers started out as

buyers – and you should too. This will give you a

sense of how everything works. It will also show you

how things are from the buyer’s side of the fence.

Let’s call this period of time ‘consumer research.’

You are literally studying how eBay works, from a

customer’s point of view. You may not realize this,

but this eBay buyer experience will

actually make you a much better seller – right from

the very start.

Really pay attention to the customer service you

receive from the buyer. Think about how you want to

be treated as a buyer, and take notes. Take your

time during this process. Interact with the sellers.

Get involved in hot auctions to see what they are

like. In your spare time, start making notes about

the hot items that you see. These notes will come

in handy later.

eBay works just like any other business. You have

to determine what people want to buy before you can

hope to be successful. There are very specific items

that sell really well on eBay – you just have to figure

out what those items are. There are many

resources for finding out this information. Start with

the lessons that eBay offers to their sellers.

Strongly consider attending the eBay University as

well. This is the next step in the process. After you

have had the eBay buyer experience, it is time to

learn how to be an eBay seller.

Read all of the information eBay provides for you at

the site. The information is free and you will learn a

great deal from it. Take full advantage of this – before

you start setting up your first auction or your eBay

store! By reading through all of the resources, you

will avoid making numerous mistakes that so many

before you have made. This is another step towards

building a successful eBay business. Once you’ve

made it through the learning process, you should

know everything you need to know to get started

with a money making eBay business of your very

eBay and Drop shipping – Getting the Product to

Your Customer

If you hope to own an eBay business, and make a

full time living at it, you can easily make that dream

come true – even if you don’t have a product of your

own to sell. eBay provides many people who want to

quit their corporate nine-to-five jobs with a way to

make a good living, without having to put up a lot of

start up capital. This is made possible with the help

of drop shippers. Drop shippers send merchandise to

the customers of business owners. If you have an

eBay business, you are a business owner. This will

allow you to offer a wide variety of stock in your

eBay store, without having the need to warehouse

all of those products!

All you have to do is set up your auction, and sell

the product. You then pass the customer’s

information on to the drop shipping company. The

drop shipper does the rest, and they will even use

your company information, as well as your company

logo if you have provided it to them. When the product

arrives at your customer’s home, they will have no idea

that your company didn’t send it. The drop shipper

will package, label, and ship the products that you

sell, allowing you more time to set up even more

auctions, for greater profits.

You must establish a relationship with several drop

shipping companies in order to become successful.

In the beginning, most companies will require you to

pay for the items that your customers order before

they are shipped. You need to fill orders in a

timely manner, so you should pay for the items with

a credit card for speedy service. Eventually, you will

be able to have the drop shipper fill your orders, and

then bill you for them later.

When you set up your eBay auctions, make sure

that your reserve price is set higher than the price

that the drop shipper will be charging you for the

item. The idea, of course, is to earn a profit!

Depending on the item you are selling, a markup

of about 10% should be about right, but you should

do some research to see if the item is selling for a

lower price in another eBay auction, or through

other online sources.

By starting an eBay business using the drop

shipping method, there is essentially no financial risk

involved. The product will be sold before you pay the

drop shipper for the item. This is one of the few

businesses where you can actually turn a profit

before you have expenditures!