Auction Power Guide

A wholesale drop shipper allows you to sell items without keeping a physical inventory. The company provides and stores products, then, when someone buys an item from an EBay business owner for example, that owner simply processes the order and sends it and payment onto the drop shippers who then package and ship the product to the customer. All you have to do is sell the products listed on the pages of a wholesale drop shipper’s web site for more than the drop shipper is charging and you’ll be on the way to an easy profit.

Drop shippers and wholesalers are an invaluable resource for all EBay store owners. They provide a means of simplifying the entire ordering process and enable entrepreneurs to make greater profits. The customer never knows that a third party exists because drop shippers will package the product using the EBay business owner’s labeling. By purchasing the products at wholesale prices, the EBay store owner profits the difference between that price and the winning bid amount while the drop shippers take care of everything else.

The beauty of drop shipping is that it is virtually risk free. Any business which fails to use a wholesale drop shipping company must bear the expense of buying the inventory and waiting until a sale is made before recuperating an investment. By using drop shippers, nothing is paid out until the customer’s payment is received. It is an ideal arrangement for people with little start up capital.

Basically, time is the only thing that an EBay business owner must invest when using drop shipping. And the majority of that time is spent on research, trying to find the best wholesale drop shippers to supply the quality products they wish to sell.

However, be warned, it is not all smooth sailing. It can take hours to find a reliable source. Believe me, searching for wholesale drop shipper companies using Google turns up middleman and broker network offers almost exclusively.
‘Brokers’ often have a very elaborate system of steps you need to take. Effectively, all that these companies are offering you is a commission sales situation. They require a W-9 to participate, something no real drop ship supplier would demand. In general you should NEVER, EVER pay a fee just to talk with someone about what they offer. No reputable business would require this.

A middleman drop ship company positions itself between the manufacturer/distributor wholesale drop shipper and the retailer. They generally aggregate many different suppliers and present them under ‘one roof’. Many charge a monthly fee and also have per order drop ship fees. In general, middlemen are best avoided as it is difficult to find profitable product lines given their mark up, participation fees, and per order drop ship fees. However, some companies do offer money making potential and if you have lots of time to spare this may be worth pursuing, for example the free trial at Doba.

The true wholesale drop shipping companies referred to throughout this article are manufacturers and distributors who are willing to work directly with internet retailers. You can use these sources to stock your EBay store or other online marketplace and stand to make a good profit. They require little or no money of EBay business owners, and they even take care of the entire logistics involved in getting an item to your customer. So if you are serious about making money on EBay look into the world of drop shipping today. Visit salehoo for a great list of wholesale drop shippers.

Paul Buntrage
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-business-articles/wholesale-drop-shipping-how-to-make-money-from-home-using-ebay-71488.html

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.

I currently sell on ebay but want to expand to start selling on Yahoo small business? Is this a good idea? What is better ebay or yahoo for selling stuff? Would people look more on yahoo or ebay for buying stuff they need? What would you do if you were me?

Depends on what you sell.

Ebay is for bargains. Ebay is good for Selling cheap low price products.

Yahoo is more for high end products. Similar with Amazon.

You can find high end products for drop shipping at :

http://www.chiactivate.com/signups/wholesalesignup.shtml

They don’t allow you to sell certain products at Ebay

Hi, I am a private seller at the minute but I love selling on eBay and am wondering the necessary steps to becoming an eBay business? I.e. with a business account. I am unsure of each step I must take such as registering as a business, tax and VAT, selling fees differences. I am asking this question also as I want to do everything properly and legally so I don’t break any eBay rules or UK laws on becoming a business through eBay!

Sounds good,Because you want to make your business in a legal way.Determine if you are required to pay taxes from your sales on eBay. Subtract any allowable deductions and calculate your adjusted net income by following the form’s instructions. If the calculated amount is positive, you owe taxes from your sales on eBay.Pay your taxes from your sales on eBay in one of three ways: by mail, by phone or online.
To pay by mail, write a check or obtain a money order for the amount you owe, made out to "United States Treasury." Send the check or money order, along with your complete tax return form, to the appropriate IRS office in your state. To pay by phone, contact the IRS at (888) 729-1040 after filing your tax return. You can use the automated system to pay by credit card or debit card. To pay taxes from sales on eBay online, visit the IRS website after filing your return and use your credit card, debt card or bank account.
But i also give you some important tips-
If you sold only your own used items that you no longer wanted, you likely do not need to report these sales. Unless you made a significant profit–i.e., you purchased an antique clock for $25, decided you no longer wanted it, and then sold it on eBay for $3,500–this is not counted as income. Think of it this way: if you were selling items on eBay the way you would sell your old belongings at a yard sale, you are not required to pay taxes from sales on eBay. If you are buying and selling items on eBay with the intention of turning a profit or earning income, however, you will need to report your earnings and pay taxes.You also can try izzonet for successful eBay selling tips.
http://www.izzonet.com/streetwise-ecommerce/tips-for-successful-selling-on-ebay
May it can help you also.

I am currently trying to start an ebay business due to financial problems in the family. But before I start, I need to know what the most popular items sold on ebay are, how to get more customers, and just basically what makes a good ebay account.
Thank you for your time and concern for reading this!!

What should you sell on eBay? As a seller, the most popular selling items in the world’s best marketplace are also the most profitable. Hot products in hot niches make the most money for sellers because buyers are always looking for them and willing to compete to buy them.

Some of the most popular selling items include designer clothing, designer accessories, especially handbags and shoes, cell phones, and video games. There are many more hot products that are sought after by buyers, some of which come and go.

Currently the most popular video game system is the Nintendo Wii, and other popular systems include Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Video games are popular with eBay buyers, including vintage games from older systems. Some vintage video games bring extremely high prices. For example, an old NES video game recently sold for more than $17,000.

The average sell-through rate for products sold on eBay is about 30%. This means the average product sold on the popular auction site has a 30% chance of selling. For this reason it often takes 3-4 times to list an item before it sells.

Popular selling items on eBay have a sell-through rate of 50% or higher. Some niches even enjoy a sell-through rate of 75% or higher. When sellers sell in these lucrative niches, they have a much higher chance of having auctions end with the item sold.

By sticking with hot products in lucrative niches, sellers sell more products for higher prices, and pay less in listing fees because the majority of items sell the first time without the need to re-list them.

When choosing products to sell online, it is always best to stick with the most popular selling items on eBay, because buyers are always searching for them, willing to pay more for them, and they bring high profits for sellers.

What and why should I sell on eBay to increase my feedback score rapidly and become a eBay Powerseller?
Hi. I am a new eBayer. But I wanna be a powerseller as well as increase my feedback score rapidly. I wanna know what I should sell the buyers will buy and leave feedback. I also wanna know how to be a powerseller? What are the requirenment? Thanks

It took me 7 months from the time I started using eBay to become a PowerSeller. The fastest way to become a PowerSeller IMO is to sell a large amount of inexpensive items.

There are many different levels of PowerSeller status. At the bottom of the PowerSeller food chain is bronze. To be a bronze PowerSeller, you need to sell at least 100 items a month or make at least $1,000 a month for 3 consecutive months. It’s really not hard to do but it does take a lot of work.

If you have zero feedback currently, the fastest way to increase your feedback is by buying a lot of cheap items from eBay. By cheap, I meant items that cost you no more than $1 for both the item and the shipping combined. I don’t recommend trying to sell until you have at least 10 positive feedback from buying. That will cost you a grand total of $10.

You have to understand that to be a PowerSeller means that you’ll be making eBay your business. It took me a lot of 8 hour days shipping small items to get me where I am today. It also took a significant investment in inventory.

There is not one magic product that can make everyone an eBay PowerSeller. It’s best if you specialize in selling a product that you know a lot about. This will save you tons of headaches when answering potential customers questions about your items. You’ll also need to find a wholesaler to buy the item from at a price low enough to be able to resale it for a profit. This is one of the hardest things involved with starting a successful eBay business.

Hello everyone I live in Ontario Canada and I wanted to get something started with my life and I was thinking about starting a business selling car parts. I was thinking about getting them from japan for a cheap price and selling them here for a low price, this is all completely new to me and I just got the idea from my father and was wondering if I would need to have existing contacts in japan or if u can gain them through the internet or from another source.

Another question would be about the financial aspect of this. I have bad credit right now and close to bankrupct so it would not be possible for me to get a bank loan, what other options do I have? Also how much would i need aproximatly to start a new business like this one. Not a huge shop just small enough to run something.
If anyone can help me out with tips, info, web sites, or anything else would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks again

here’s a link to them on ebay business.

I just lost my job and would like to start a home business selling on ebay. I dont have anything to sell though. Is there a way to start this up without having items in my home. Is there sites or something to get these things?

Generally, you want to save on listing fees and let the (ebay) market to set the closing price. In most cases, this means starting the initial price at $9.99 or less. However, the only exception is for expensive items. With the current recession and sales at ebay (and most everywhere else) soft now, you don’t want to get burned. Use you discretion with expensive items.

Some tips that may be helpful to you……….

Be honest and accurate in your descriptions – One-sentence descriptions are for lazy sellers. One paragraph should be sufficient for most items. My general guideline is the more expensive (read higher priced) an item, the more you should ‘talk it up.’ It won’t be time wasted. Use lots of adjectives in your descriptions. Adjectives make prose and your items come alive. Without them, prose is dull and your items less appealing. Just add a little ‘sizzle’ and even have a little fun with it. In short, make your descriptions stand out above the crowd.

Be professional – use good English with no spelling errors

PICTURES:

ALWAYS include at least one picture, more pictures for higher priced items. Make sure your pictures are clear. There are far too many pictures on ebay that are dark. If prospective buyers can’t see your items clearly, your items, more than likely, will not fetch the closing prices they deserve. To remove darkness, use any photo editor to add some brightness and a wee bit of contrast.

Eliminate clutter. Prospective bidders don’t want to know what kind of cereal you eat or what kind of kitchen table or bedspread you have. Use a SOLID backdrop when taking your pictures as you want to focus all of the attention on your item. In short, the one and only thing you want in your picture is the item being sold. A SOLID white or light blue backdrop is best. However, there are certainly items that won’t show well on a light backdrop. In these cases, use a darker backdrop. And for gosh sake, don’t even think of using a plaid blanket as a backdrop for your pictures as I once saw on ebay. You should also crop the photos in your photo editor. Good pictures can add 5% to 10% to final closing prices.

GOOD DESCRIPTIONS + GOOD PICTURES = GOOD PRESENTATION. This is what you should strive for.

COMMUNICATION:

GOOD Communication is a must – Always notify buyers when you mail their items. It is not only a courtesy you would want and expect as a buyer but it is also both good customer service and good business practice. After all, you are the ‘President & CEO’ of your ‘company’ running your business but using ebay as your selling medium. In short, conduct your business so that it reflects well on you as a person. Treat everyone as a human being, not a living being and this includes people who have inquiries about your items, not just your buyers. Prospective buyers making these inquiries could ultimately be the winning bidders and possible repeat customers.

TIPS TO MAXIMIZE PROFITS:

Do not limit your auctions to one country. SELL WORLDWIDE. The reason is elementary. You now have access to the largest market ebay has to offer. Limiting your auctions to only one country also limits your potential profits. A basic business tenet is, ‘the greater the potential market, the greater the potential to maximize profits.’ But do note in your listing that PayPal is the only form of payment you will accept from overseas bidders/buyers. Through experience, you will learn that there are certain problem countries. Italy seems to be one of them. Mail sent to buyers in Italy very often ‘mysteriously disappears.’ If this is the case, just note in your listing you sell to all countries EXCEPT (name(s) here).

However, if you decide to limit sales to only one country, such as the USA, never say NO when you receive an email asking if you would ship to Taiwan, Germany, Australia or wherever. The reason is that you have a ‘FISH ON THE HOOK!’ This person will bid! When he or she does, this may force a previous bidder to enter another, higher bid or force later, first time bidders to come in with higher bids. So always say YES to these emails if you want to maximize your profits. But do say that PayPal is the only form of payment you will accept from these overseas bidders

Avoid selling ‘nickel and dime’ items. People who list and sell a steady stream of items that close for $5 or less are wasting their time. Less expensive, similar items ($5 or less) are best sold as a group to save time. If you have a large number of these cheaper, similar items, divide them up into sub lots of three, four or five.

More expensive (higher priced), similar items are best sold individually to maximize profits. There are ebay ‘vultures’ who just love to swoop down on similarly grouped items in one listing. When they win these auctions, they turn around and sell the items individually and, in most cases, get one and a half to 2 times and sometimes three times what they paid for them on an average item basis. I know this

I have baby items to sell, mostly designer clothes. What do I need to do? What are the costs involved? Do things like baby clothes sell quickly usually? I appreciate any tips and advice. Thanks!

As an eBay seller for 11yrs here is some advice as to what you do

To sign up for an eBay seller account you must list a credit card and/or bank info . Register also for Paypal
Most buyers pay through paypal and you would want to offer that on your auction.
Accept credit card payments, echeck payments through paypal with a CONFIRMED ADDRESS ONLY and ship only to that confirmed address or you might get taken by shady buyers .

Do not ship your item until all payments clear.

ebay charges a listing fee,designer fee, final value fee
Paypal charges a % of the sale . All in all your total out of pocket will come to approximately 6% -10 % of your auction

Generally shipping is paid by the buyer and you can use the ebay shipping calculators for estimates.

You can also include shipping in your sale too.

You need to have an opening minimum bid listed

You can list your auction with a reserve or not
a reserve is the absolute lowest amount you will take for the item but is not outwardly made available to the potential buyers – you as the seller will be charged a fee by ebay to list with a reserve

You can also list a BUY IT NOW price ( ebay charges you a fee for this) This is an outward purchase by the buyer.

Most people list for 3-5-7 days.
Hint : most auctions end on Sunday evenings

http://cgi5.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?SellHub3Visitor&_trksid=m37

http://www.ebayuniversity.com/gotraining/How_To_Sell_Audio_Tour

https://www.paypal.com/

http://www.auctiva.com/

Good luck in your endeavors ..Welcome to eBay !

I want to make some good money on the side selling on ebay. I am not sure what to sell though. Can someone help me out?

Thanks.

You only need 1 type of items: short supply. That goes with anything. Since Ebay charges outrages fees, you might as well make a good amount and make it worthwhile. That could be anything in short supply, from watches to games. Remember when the xbox 360 sold out? Remember when the Nintendo Wii sold out for about a year? There was only one place for sure you can find, although it would cost a customer double price: EBAY. Ebay is the largest free-market in the world! People go to this website to find things they would not find anything else in the world.

If you are willing to make some good money on the side, that could also mean waking up early to go to them special sales. And be prepared for Black Friday next year. Go to places that are going out of business as you can find great deals there. Your local thrift shops are a treasure made to be found. There you can find books that you can sell at the true value as some college students find great deals on books on the website that they would normally pay hundreds for them. And best of all, you get a good profit. You do not need to invest that much, just invest most of your ebay business on your researching to give a convincing credibility on the item you are selling.