Online Auction Ideas

There are several tools and resources available to help with your research when deciding what to sell on eBay. Some are free, some are subscription based and others are available for a one-off fee.

A useful free resource is eBay Pulse. It shows the most popular searches, largest stores and most watched items within any category on any given day. Below is an image of the main eBay Pulse page which shows an overview of the whole eBay marketplace on July 9 2010 and, as you can see Continue reading ‘Researching Things to Sell on eBay with eBay Pulse’ »

The vast majority of eBay users are legitimate buyers and sellers and no one should be put off using the site by the occasional negative and sensationalised stories reported by the media.

However, it is inevitable that a marketplace the size of eBay will be a target of the occasional online fraudster. Being aware of the scams, staying alert and taking a few simple precautions should go a long way to ensuring that you don’t become a victim of any internet scams.

Both eBay and Paypal have lots of useful security advice on their sites and I recommend Continue reading ‘Avoiding the Scams’ »

Unless you already have a business and are using eBay as an additional outlet, deciding what to sell is possibly the biggest stumbling block for anyone starting out on eBay. It is a personal decision which only you can make, but here are a few things to take into consideration.

You will enjoy the experience far more and probably have greater success if you have some interest in what you are selling online. Small, lightweight, unbreakable items are far easier to pack and carry to the post office than larger, more fragile items.

You will need to take the size of your budget into consideration. If you are intending to sell used goods you could get started for little or no cost and expand by reinvesting your profits.

If, on the other hand, you want to sell new goods you will need to Continue reading ‘What Sells Well on eBay?’ »

One is a very precarious number in any business, but many eBay sellers seem to be oblivious to the risks they are taking.

One Product : It is possible to achieve a good online income by relying on just one high-demand product but that income could disappear overnight if supplies dry up or if the product declines in popularity. A portfolio of products is a safer route to take.

One Supplier : No matter how well-established a supplier may appear to be, there is never any guarantee that they won’t Continue reading ‘Do You Have All Your Eggs in One Basket?’ »

Selling collectibles online is not only potentially very profitable, it can also be great fun, especially if you specialise in one or more niches that are of particular interest to you. You will be much more enthusiastic if you are working with items that you enjoy, and it is likely that you will already have a good knowledge of the products, which will enable you to write more compelling auction descriptions and position yourself as an expert.

Specializing also provides the opportunity to Continue reading ‘Product Sourcing Part 2 – Used Goods and Collectibles’ »

Selling consumer goods online  can be a very profitable business, but locating reliable bulk suppliers can seem like a daunting task.

There are several different types of supplier (such as wholesalers, manufacturers, liquidators, and dropshippers) and each have their own advantages and disadvantages.

Dropshippers may seem like an easy route to take because the goods are delivered by the supplier direct to your customer so there is no stock for you to buy upfront and no deliveries for you to worry about. It also eliminates the risk of being left with a lot of expensive stock if the product you have chosen turns out to be a poor seller. However, Continue reading ‘Product Sourcing Part 1 – New Merchandise’ »

The first step to becoming an eBay seller is to sign up for an eBay account. It is free to register, just go to the eBay site for your country, click on the ‘register’ button at the top of the homepage and complete the registration form. To set up a seller’s account you will also need to verify your identity.

As eBay require you to offer at least one electronic payment or Internet merchant credit card option to your buyers, it would be wise to sign up for Continue reading ‘Selling on eBay – Getting Started’ »