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What are the pros and cons about opening an eBay business?

February 5th, 2013 Leave a comment Go to comments

Hello my name is Erick and my dad and I want to open up an eBay business selling old car parts. We have a bunch of old car parts and I wanted to know if it is worth opening a eBay business. Also, what are the pros and cons of opening it and if there is any tips on opening a business. Thank you.

Hi Erick

Opening an eBay business can be very rewarding and profitable. I would start small by listing a few parts and gaging your response from buyers as to the demand for your products.

You have 2 ways of listing your products,
1) to do the conventional auction listing.
2) Buy it now listing.

Both have their benefits and draw backs as you can imagine. I would be tempted in your case to go for the buy it now system as you are able to obtain a higher selling price I would imagine. Unless the parts you propose to sell are very rare and widely sort after.

Shipping is a very important point to think about. I would call your local UPS depot and talk to them to see what they can offer on shipping rates. Most shipping companies are always willing to talk about their prices and give brake’s to businesses who ship large volumes. Some of your smaller parts I would imagine could be shipped using USPS, Priority Mail. THey offer all the boxes free and you can pack quite a lot of weight into the boxes, up to 70lbs for a very reasonable rate.

Most eBay sellers miss a very simple listing point when selling items, that is to give good contact information. Buyers feel better and are willing to pay more if they feel they can contact the seller easy. I would not only allow them to contact me through eBay but I would also use a Skype telephone number. You can place a recorded message on it and get back to them later if necessary. This seems to give you more credibility and so more sales.

Photographs are another must have. The more pictures the better. Buyers want to see the item from many different angles. Don’t forget the buyer cant touch the item so they rely on the pictures to give them a better idea as to the condition of the item. I would not use eBay’s picture hosting as it is too expensive. Find a business’s that does picture hosting or a business the does both picture hosting and eBay templates. It will save you a lot of money over the course of a year.

eBay Templates! These are a must have. They make your listing look professional and neat. It is a proven fact that templates do increase the selling price of items. You can find many online businesses offering templates for you to use. Remember look for one that hosts your images as well as having templates. Expect to pay around $8.00 per month for their service. Some but not all of these businesses have a huge information system to help you sell on line so they are worth the investment. Also a lot offer the first 30 days free.

Payment is another option you need to consider very closely. Are you going to accept only PayPal? or will you allow customers to send you checks or money orders. The more payment options you have open the wider your market place is. A lot of older people do not like to use systems like PayPal and would rather send a check or money order. Obtaining your own payment gateway can be expensive when you first start. I f your business flourishes, then I would possibly consider one in about 12 months time.

Customers inquiries. These can be a pain, people do not tend to read the item description for some reason and will often send you a message asking about a feature you have explained in the listing. MAKE sure you always answer these questions quickly, as this shows you are a serious eBay seller and that your customers matter to you. I know it sounds stupid stating the obvious but you would be surprised at how many online sellers do not do it.

  1. Alex & Suzie
    February 6th, 2013 at 02:38 | #1

    Hi Erick

    Opening an eBay business can be very rewarding and profitable. I would start small by listing a few parts and gaging your response from buyers as to the demand for your products.

    You have 2 ways of listing your products,
    1) to do the conventional auction listing.
    2) Buy it now listing.

    Both have their benefits and draw backs as you can imagine. I would be tempted in your case to go for the buy it now system as you are able to obtain a higher selling price I would imagine. Unless the parts you propose to sell are very rare and widely sort after.

    Shipping is a very important point to think about. I would call your local UPS depot and talk to them to see what they can offer on shipping rates. Most shipping companies are always willing to talk about their prices and give brake’s to businesses who ship large volumes. Some of your smaller parts I would imagine could be shipped using USPS, Priority Mail. THey offer all the boxes free and you can pack quite a lot of weight into the boxes, up to 70lbs for a very reasonable rate.

    Most eBay sellers miss a very simple listing point when selling items, that is to give good contact information. Buyers feel better and are willing to pay more if they feel they can contact the seller easy. I would not only allow them to contact me through eBay but I would also use a Skype telephone number. You can place a recorded message on it and get back to them later if necessary. This seems to give you more credibility and so more sales.

    Photographs are another must have. The more pictures the better. Buyers want to see the item from many different angles. Don’t forget the buyer cant touch the item so they rely on the pictures to give them a better idea as to the condition of the item. I would not use eBay’s picture hosting as it is too expensive. Find a business’s that does picture hosting or a business the does both picture hosting and eBay templates. It will save you a lot of money over the course of a year.

    eBay Templates! These are a must have. They make your listing look professional and neat. It is a proven fact that templates do increase the selling price of items. You can find many online businesses offering templates for you to use. Remember look for one that hosts your images as well as having templates. Expect to pay around $8.00 per month for their service. Some but not all of these businesses have a huge information system to help you sell on line so they are worth the investment. Also a lot offer the first 30 days free.

    Payment is another option you need to consider very closely. Are you going to accept only PayPal? or will you allow customers to send you checks or money orders. The more payment options you have open the wider your market place is. A lot of older people do not like to use systems like PayPal and would rather send a check or money order. Obtaining your own payment gateway can be expensive when you first start. I f your business flourishes, then I would possibly consider one in about 12 months time.

    Customers inquiries. These can be a pain, people do not tend to read the item description for some reason and will often send you a message asking about a feature you have explained in the listing. MAKE sure you always answer these questions quickly, as this shows you are a serious eBay seller and that your customers matter to you. I know it sounds stupid stating the obvious but you would be surprised at how many online sellers do not do it.
    References :
    http://www.secrets2onlineauctions.com

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