How to Start a Profitable Business on eBay

By Donna Knight

Unless you’re new to the internet, you already know that eBay is the most popular online auction site. Here’s how it works: Sellers get potential buyers to bid on an item, with the highest bidder buying the product for the price he or she offered.

Like all successful sites, eBay started out as a simple site created by Pierre Omidyar for his girlfriend Pam (who is now his wife) to help her find other Pez dispenser collectors in the Bay area. Now this site is a billion dollar industry.

Why should you care about Pierre’s success? Because Pierre is not the first or the last person who will become a success with eBay. Many people have quit their jobs by selling on eBay. Likewise many businesses have found untold riches on eBay.

First thing you need to do is open a seller’s account in eBay. You will be asked for verifiable personal information so eBay can make sure you are not a criminal trying to scam people. This information will allow them to catch you if you are. Let’s assume you’re not a scammer though.

Next step is to choose what payment methods you will accept from buyers.
Most important is choosing what item you want to sell and how much you want to sell it for.
Once you’ve chosen what item you want to sell, get your camera and take a picture of it. Upload the picture to the site and decide on the starting bid. Then sit back and relax. Let the bidding begin. If you’ve chosen your product wisely, people will be fighting to bid on it.

Many people have found financial freedom on eBay. I’ve personally spoken to people who left high-paying jobs because their eBay business become so successful that they couldn’t do both. And why would they want to, when their eBay sales were more profitable? If you could choose to be your own boss, work your own hours from the comfort of your own home, wouldn’t you?

One thing you must know is that these people hit the jackpot with eBay because they are trustworthy sellers, and that is essential in making buyers come back for more.

Another ingredient for a successful eBay business, which I’ve already mentioned, is choosing the right product to sell. You don’t have to be the first to sell it, but you do have to sell an item that has few enough sellers to keep the demand high and keep it profitable.

Some sellers set up online stores on eBay so that they can offer buyers a variety of products to choose from.
There are almost no limitations on what you can sell on eBay, as long as it’s something that’s legal to sell. You can sell items like wedding dresses and all kinds of clothing, furniture, books, jewelry, and electronics, and lots more. Many items you might have difficulty selling offline do just fine on eBay, such as antiques and eccentric items.

In fact, eBay has a ‘Weird Stuff” category in its items-for-sale directory and that category is subdivided into ‘Slightly Unusual,’ ‘Real Weird,’ and ‘Totally Bizarre.’ You can’t imagine just how eccentric and unusual the items being sold under these categories are. You should take a look for yourself. You won’t believe it.

Let’s say you don’t want to sell weird items but still can’t think of an item to sell. Take a look around your home and see what you can get rid of. eBay is the ultimate proof that one man’s garbage is another man’s treasure. You probably won’t get thousands of dollars from your trash, but then again you never know. You’ll certainly get more than you would by throwing it away if it’s any good. Sometimes even broken items can be sold for the parts.

There once was a seller who thought no one would bid for his broken transistor radio, but he decided to put it up for auction anyways. He was shocked when an engineering student bought it. When the seller asked the student why he bought it, the student said he wanted to learn about repairing electronic gadgets.

Here’s another crazy story: Jay Leno from The Tonight Show confirmed that someone actually paid for a Doritos chip shaped like a Pope’s hat for a thousand dollars. That’s not the first or the last time food shaped like a religious symbol has commanded seemingly ridiculous amounts of money.

Now that you know how to get started and understand that you can sell almost anything, there’s no reason not to. Whether you’re an individual who wants to make some extra money or a business owner who is already selling a product offline, there is literally money waiting to be made on eBay. All you have to do is get started today.
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Donna Knight is a Computer Trainer and Website Promotion Specialist. She has built over 200 websites and helps new site owners promote their site cheaply. For tips that will help you save money and save time when marketing online, visit her Internet Marketing Tools and Reviews blog at http://www.DonnaKnight.com
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Copyright (C) 2005 Donna Knight. All Rights Reserved. Permission granted to post this article in newsletters, free ebooks or websites as long as the article and resource box remain intact.