Earn a Good Income on Ebay - Not pie in the sky!

Sorry but I don't mean "make £hundreds an hour..." "Become an Ebay Millionaire..." "Do Nothing and Earn £££££s..." "Join me and make £1000's a week..."

I mean, you can make a very good living using eBay (and some of the other auction sites) - and, by make a "very good living", I mean £20,000+ per annum. A realistic and achievable income.

But there is a catch, you will have to work for it - probably harder than a "normal" day job! But, there  is also a good side - it's very enjoyable too! And, you will have more freedom - when you plan your day effectively.

Okay that's the introduction out of the way, so how can I earn £20K+ per annum I hear you ask!

Well first of all lets look at the concept of eBay (and Tazbar, Amazon etc - I trade with them all) it's really quite simple. In the UK approximately £7Billion per annum is spent by buyers on the Internet. The Auction sites are HUGE shops with a WORLD-WIDE shop window.  A large percentage (the largest) of sellers are "amateurs" selling their bits and pieces from the loft and garage.  But a growing number of amateurs are joining the professional businesses on eBay and competing very well - so well in fact that many are now full-time eBay Professionals. You can be one of them!

There are no "secrets" to be learned (yes I've seen the Ebooks promising to "unlock the Secrets to eBay Success..." Nonsense! Buy the genuine Ebooks that show you the skills to market your internet business.

• Yes - there are things that you have to learn.
• Yes - you haven't got all the "inside knowledge" yet
• Yes - I can set you on your way!

Firstly - you need a product that,

• People want - okay it's an obvious statement, don't laugh - I have seen products on eBay that even the seller wouldn't buy back!
• The price is right - not only to encourage people to buy but also to allow you - the seller - to make a reasonable profit. Ideally you need to make £5.00 minimum per sale average profit. The economics of this business premise is too complex to go into in this Guide. A good Ebook featuring "Profit Margins" will show you the way.  
• That is easy to ship - with the least packing, least weight, the most compact size, will save you time and money.  I used to sell items that were 60" long and weighed 6kg.  It used to take me 2 hours to pack each one, and I couldn't really charge for all the packing and the postage costs, otherwise the product would have cost the customer too much! So, I made less profit for far too much time and effort - I did make a profit but not enough.
• Preferably a repeat sale item or one that your customers could buy again as a present - by this I mean you and I buy certain goods on a regular basis - by regular I also mean not just every week but perhaps only two/three times a year - and as a present?; well, if I'm happy with an item I've bought, I just might buy it as a present for a friend.
• Have items that you can "up-sell" - sell merchandise that you can increase your profit by selling another item as an "add-on" to the sale or a more expensive item with a higher profit margin. Usually once your customer is "hooked" on a product and the customer is happy with your "customer service" you can either "up-sell" or "repeat-sell" again and again.
• Your customer service must be 110% - fail at this side of your business and you will be on the road to failure very quickly.  More so with eBay and the other top Auction sites.  This is due to the open and frank way in which we trade i.e. we invite "Feed-back". This is our life-blood, our trading history for all to see.

What are the products?

There really is not an easy answer here. If you have read my other Guides you will see that I tried to "challenge" some of the eBay high achievers and I failed.  Where I am successful on one Auction site, my merchandise has been slow to take off on another. But overall I have stuck to these general principals,

• Sell products that you are familiar with - don't sell "sports equipment" if you haven't got a sporty bone in your body! Don't sell "gardening gear" if you don't love gardening yourself. If you haven't got a particular favourite product that you know lots about - take the time to research the new product well, don't rush into selling "new experience" products.
• Try to find a product that is not already sold in the 1000s - check the listings, if you are competing with items listed 15000 times FORGET IT!
• Ask your friends - What do they buy on eBay? What would they buy if they could? Ask them what they buy on-line (not everyone uses eBay!)
• Try a low risk strategy - Research the listings for your favourite merchandsise - say T-shirts (yes I know listed in the 1000s) check out the ones that sell quickly (either the number of bids or sold before the auction time limit is up - you can put a "watch this item" monitor on the listing) either on Auction Bid or Buy It Now. Then check the sellers feed-back to see how many customers have left feed-back over the period you have been researching. Then buy some of your own merchandise and "test the water". Don't spend a fortune on marketing just use the basic "Selling Tools".  This should cost you about a £1.00 plus your selling fee and paypal merchandising costs. So, not an expensive way to "test the water".  Also it's a good way to gain some experience in buying stock and selling on Auction.

Where can I find the merchandise?

Ah! The biggest question of all!

How to find the right product at the right price.  Some would lead you to beleive that Wholesale buying is easy or using Dropshippers is the answer - both areas are a mine-field and littered with buyers that have got their fingers burned. Again, buy a good Ebook on " Buying Wholesale - For Profit" or research on the internet; but please be warned: there are a number of profit-mongers out there just waiting for your money. Unfortunately quite a few are also getting fat on the neebie-traders.

In the early days (until you have a few weeks of trading) my advice to you is, search for merchandise in bonafide "SALES", there are plenty going on (and believe it or not, not everyone loves to go SALE shopping!) or try the "End of Line Shops" like TK Max.  I made a good few bob selling all kinds of stuff I bought from TK Max. Another favourite of mine used to be Costco Wholesale (look on the internet for your nearest store) you can register as a Trade Buyer or Non-Trade it costs about £40 a year.  They sell just about everything you could want to resell on eBay.  I have noticed one or two eBayers doing it - the odd one is a Power Seller too! If you have Macro Wholesale near you this is another outlet you could cut your teeth on. Check your local wholesalers out in Yell.  Have look at what they do; then check out the eBay listings, see if you have competition and at what price etc.  Once you have built a track record, made a few sales and you have found your niche market, then start to widen your search for the pukker wholesalers.  I can name half a dozen wholesalers that I have dealt with but you will need a track record. Drop me an email via eBay.

Do the basics to calculate your income

If you want £20K+ per annum you need to:

Sell the achieveable target of 15 items per day with a £5.00 clear profit (after all selling fees and packaging costs) and you will clear the £20K with ease.

Spread the chance of success by using another Auction site such as Tazbar.  Good site but not as big as eBay.

Research Auction sites on the internet - you will be surprised just how many there are.  But not one of the others has the back-up and expertise and of course the shoppers as eBay. They are getting there though!

I hope this Guide has been useful to you. Please leave feedback if it was. Contact me by eBay email if you wish to receive answers to business questions - happy to be of help.

And Good Luck with your business!