Today: Save Up to 65% when you buy multiple Job Posting ads at Yahoo! HotJobs
Coupons | Product Reviews | Contests | Articles | Forums | Search | Subscribe
Family Fun | Parenting Tips | Romance | Health & Fitness | Organic Living | Weight Loss | WAHMs
Welcome Momscapers!
Momscape.com is an award winning online magazine delivering
uplifting personal essays
from real parents - plus
practical guidance on parenting,
family fun,
romance,
travel,
health & fitness,
weight loss,
and more.
We invite you to share your
MamaWisdom and to help us
spotlight
products that make your life as a mom easier or better while you
enjoy our money-saving
online coupons and
family travel
discounts.
We want to help you enjoy the
simple (and fine) things life has to offer.
Subscribe to Momscape >
or
Get Our Daily Coupon Updates by Email
Bookmark and share Momscape with your friends:
Today:
More Coupons >
Online Coupons
Today's
Favorite Coupons
All Online
Coupons by Store
All Online Coupons by
Category
Printable
Grocery Coupons
Product Reviews
Momscape's
Favorite Things (Blog)
Top-Rated
Mom Product Reviews
Family Fun
Activities & Crafts
Family Travel
Deals
Free Scrapbooking Ideas
Parenting Articles
Baby Tips
Toddler Tips
All Parenting Articles
Inspiration/Essays
Relationships
Marriage
Romance
Friendships
Health
and Fitness
Fitness Tips
Natural Living
Nurturing Your Spirit
Weight Loss
Professional
Family Manager Tips
Home-Based Business
Community
MamaWisdom Forums
About Momscape
Subscribe
Site Map
Links
Link to Us
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service
About us
Contact Us
Insider's Guide to Selling on eBay
Article Description: Whether you're getting started - or getting
serious - about making money online from eBay, here's what you need to
know. Includes how to find items to sell for maximum profit.
If you’re like many people, over the years you’ve accumulated dozens of
items you no longer use. You may have stockpiles of boxes in your
garage, basement or attic filled with grandma’s old bric-a-brac and
mismatched cutlery or dishware. You may have toys from your childhood,
college text books, outdated clothing fashions, costume jewelry, sports
paraphernalia, and so much more, all waiting in a heap to be set out at
some future yard sale and sold quickly and cheaply.
The problem with yard sales is that they tend to be a lot of work for
little reward. People aren’t willing to pay what most items are worth.
If you label something for a dollar, they’ll only pay you a quarter. If
you want fifty cents, they’ll offer a nickel. Unless you give everything
away at the end of the day, you’ll only sell a small portion and you’ll
still be stuck with having to tote the rest back inside or to the town
dump.
Just because you didn’t sell the majority of your belongings over the
course of the weekend doesn’t mean it’s junk – it simply means that
there weren’t enough people to stir enough interest. The fact is, lots
of old knick-knacks and collectibles sell very well on
eBay.
While it may seem like a relatively simple task to list your items on
eBay, one of the most successful and versatile auction sites on the web,
there are a few things you should know beforehand.
1. Reputation - If you’re going to be selling often, keep in mind
that a seller’s reputation is of major significance. Many bidders will
consult feedback from your customers before placing bids so you’ll want
to acquire lots of positive feedback to maintain an excellent rating.
This means being a courteous and conscientious seller.
2. Descriptions - Pictures are wonderful, but they may not show every
detail. That's why accurate descriptions are important. Most buyers know
that used items are not in perfect condition. Be sure to describe chips,
scratches, holes or any other defects. If you do happen to be selling
collectible items, such as baseball cards or beanie babies that you’ve
kept packaged and kept in mint condition, you may want to mention that
in the title or heading.
3. Photographs – When taking snapshots of your items, be sure there’s
plenty of light, and clean and/or polish them first. Create a pleasant
background and use a flash whenever possible. Dark, fuzzy, hazy pictures
are boring and will not pull in the viewer’s attention. Many sellers
post photographs taken from various angles showing the front, back and
any markings if they’re selling highly desirable items such as
collectible glassware.
4. Communication – Some potential buyers will write to ask questions
about the article for sale. Be prepared, attentive and responsive. Do
your research so that you’ll be able to answer their questions quickly.
Remember, a minor detail to you may be very important to them, and may
mean the difference between a successful sale and no sale at all.
5. Shipping - Unless otherwise specified, the buyer is responsible for
paying the shipping and insurance costs. There are many features
available on eBay that make shipping packages easier. When packaging
delicate items, be sure to pad each one carefully using Styrofoam
popcorn or bubble wrap, and plug up any exposed areas using crumpled up
newspaper. Glassware should be placed in boxes at least four inches
apart and away from the sides, top and bottom to ensure safe delivery.
Mark the outside of the carton “Fragile” and “Handle with Care.”
6. Insurance – No matter how careful you are, there’s always the
possibility of breakage when shipping certain things so it’s good to
familiarize yourself beforehand with the claim process.
Getting serious about eBay
If you are serious about making money from your ebay selling, you will
need to get quite good at researching the ebay marketplace, especially
before you decide which products you want to sell.
Here are some basic guidelines:
1. Search for the most popular categories. Look at the number of
listings that exist under each category. Then look at how many bids the
products have.
2. Choose no more than one or two categories, especially when you are
first starting out. When you are an expert in your niche, your buyers
will be more likely to trust you.
3. Examine the ratings of the sellers who are listing products in each
category. Read their profiles. See how many products they are currently
selling and how many products they have sold in the past.
4. Analyze prices. Become an expert in your chosen category and know at
which price a product is worth buying, as well as the expected final
winning price of your auction.
eBay Seller Central
is a great resource to help you with the eBay marketplace.
Finding More Products to Sell
Here are a couple of additional considerations once you have exhausted
your attic and need more products to sell.
1. Find Dropshippers. Dropshippers sell products to you at wholesale
prices, but instead of sending them (in bulk) to you, they send the
individual orders to the addresses that you specify. That means you
don't need to carry inventory on these items yourself, which minimizes
your investment and your risk. After the auction is complete, you simply
send your dropshipper the customer's address. If you decide to use a
dropshipper, you need to make sure that your auction's winning price is
sufficiently higher than the wholesale price you pay for the items. At
minimum, you should expect to double your costs. It's also important to
use care with companies that claim to be "dropshippers." Do your
research and work only with legitimate drop shippers, which are either
the product manufacturers themselves or authorized wholesale
distributors. If a so-called dropshipper asks you to place a minimum
order or to pay a fee to set up your drop shipping account, consider it
a red flag.
2. Buy from eBay. Many successful eBayers know how to buy at a good
price on eBay and then sell the same products at a higher price. If you
know your niche well, you can find opportunities that will allow you to
buy and resell for a profit. Here again, solid research is essential.
3. Import Asiatic products. If you are willing to carry an inventory,
you can invest in Asiatic products for a low price and resell for a
profit. You can easily start importing Asiatic products from the
Internet at alibaba.com
4. Sell local products. If you live in an area that produces local
products that can be bought at a cheap price and then shipped to other
areas, where people would pay more, take advantage of the
situation. What kinds of local products do you find yourself taking for
granted?
More Resources:
eBay Seller Registration
Subscribe to Momscape >
or
Get Our Daily Coupon Updates by Email
Earn your degree online
Use your time as a Stay-at-Home Mom to work toward a new career once the kids are in school full time. Learn more >
Take the free Masters Course: Wahm-It (
Get a free education in how a work at home mom can run an online business.
Office Depot Coupon - Save $30 off $150
Click through link above to activate this Office Depot coupon. (Tech items excluded)
Franklin Covey:
Save $10 on $79 or more
Use Code: 16818
Moms are Raving About
> Site Build It Review
> Cricket Kids Remote
> Garmin Street Pilot c320 GPS Navigator
> SpamArrest Spam Filtering Software
> Targus TA248UTornado Notebook Chill Pad
Digital Camera Buying Guide
Find the notebook computer that's right for you
Coupon Codes: BestBuy.com
Coupon Codes: DellHome
Coupon Codes: Office Depot
Coupon Codes: WalMart.com