Use the Power of e-Bay to Make Money Online
Share: With millions of visitors each day,e-bay is a crowning success on the Internet and
proofpositive of its astounding potential for profit and opportunity to make money.
Of course, there are literallyhundreds of detailed books out there promising to help one and all make big profits selling their"gently used" household items and collectibles. This report will not pretend to go into the detailof any of these other resources but will provide the reader with an overview of the auction side ofthe e-Bay business along with tips and strategies to help optimize success and make money online.
Hard Facts About e-Bay
Make no mistake about itthe idea of making money from the comfort and privacy of yourhome is very alluring. So, when someone hears that they can take a picture of their old unwanteditems and sell them to the highest bidder to the point of perhaps even quitting their job and doingso full-timewell, many of us leap before really thinking it through.
Inflated Profit Myth
If you post enough items or those with enough value, there is no doubt that you will makemoney in about a weekbut is that really what you made? One of the biggest mistakes made bynewbies to the e-Bay scene is to overestimate the amount of profit made from every sale. Intruth, the profit would be the difference between what was originally paid for the auctioned itemand what it sold for (not including any potential profit from shipping).However, because many believe that since they plan to never replace the item that all proceedsfrom the sale are thus profit, a self-destructive cycle begins. At the end of the day, a businessmust generate a product or perform some type of service. Unless there is a structured plan tocontinually obtain more products to sell for profit, your home will eventually be empty and yourcash flow will come to a screeching halt.
Sustained and Successful e-Bay Auction Strategies
Concentrate on niche market
Writing Sales Copy for Web
Reinvest consistent percentage of profits
Build solid reputation
Market your company and services using sources outside e-Bay
Diversify
Niche Market
To raise capital for more merchandise and to make more money, you will most likelyauction off clothes, sporting equipment, old doll collectionsetc. But when you have sold youritem, packaged and shipped it safely, and received your moneywhat do you invest in?
The Internet and the search engines that essentially guide people through the InformationSuperhighway are great at getting surfers to the products they want. However, to make moremoney on e-Bay or in any Internet Marketing ventureyou need to concentrate on a specificniche. This will help you save money because you can lump lower end products together in a"lot" sale. Plus, by consistently selling products from the same niche, it will be easier tostandardize processes, vendors, and to become a true expert in your field.
Now there are really two ways to choose a niche market: with your heart or with your head. Ifyou love antique furniture then it would be perfectly natural to want to sell items from this largeniche. However, antiques and furniture are not the most popular categories and they can be bigitems in your inventoryfailing to make a sale or two may cause a cash flow crunch or you totake a large loss. It can sometimes be more difficult to maintain objectivity and make soundbusiness decisions when you develop a personal attachment to the merchandise.
To help you find your niche, you may want to visit http://pulse.ebay.com.From this page, youcan discover the most popular item searches that day to see what is hot. While you may not wantor be able to sell those particular items, you should be able to see a trend or dominant category.
For instance, the most popular items searched on e-Bay when this report was written include:
1. PS3
2. wii
3. Playstation 3
4. Nintendo
5. Xbox360
6. TMX Elmo
7. iPod
8. PSP
9. iPod Nano
10. Apple iPod
As you can see, the entertainment electronics genre is a very, very popular category right nowwith some dominant sub-niches developing. However, if you wanted to follow your passion andsell antique furniture, you could also check on Pulse to find the most popular search termsrelating to that category as well so it is a very useful tool in both finding your niche and learningthe market better. The important thing to remember is that the Internet naturally favors thecreation of niches so you need to specialize early onno matter what!
Writing Sales Copy
If you have any hope of selling $700 worth of merchandise on e-Bay in a week or lessthe goodnews is that you don't have to write that "killer sales copy" in order to be successful. However,there is a distinctive difference between copy writing for printand crafting copy for theInternet. To get the maximum number of people to view your product and potentially place abidyou need to write descriptive copy that is accurate and keyword richespecially the title.What you really need to understand about e-Bay in order to get the most people to view yourobject, increase the bidding pool, and ultimately drive up trafficis the words those potentialcustomers are using to find your product. Using the same Pulse feature, you can determine thebest keywords to use when creating your ad for the product. It is especially important to use thekeyword in the headline or title but don't be afraid to look at other ads selling similar productsfor inspiration and to borrow some good ideas! The copy needs to be descriptive, accurate, andbe keyword rich in order to be pull potential bidders in and possibly boost your profits.
Consistently Reinvest in Business
If you are only looking to raise $700 in a week or so while possibly cleaning out your attic orgarage, then there is no need to reinvest profits. But if you are looking to start a revenue streamand grow it into larger, then you will need to invest a consistent percentage of your profits intothe company. Just a few of the common necessities most Internet businesses, including e-Bayauctioneers, need in the first two years include:
Accounting/Tax Software
Server/Other Computer Hardware and Equipment
Office Supplies
Increased Office Space
If you were an e-Bay auctioneer who specialized in refinishing/repairing old antique furnitureand then reselling it for a profit, then you would possibly invest in tools and equipment related tothat activity. The point here is that for tax deductions and the possibility of building the businessto a higher, more consistent level, you must reinvest a significant portion of your profits.Ultimately, your determination and consistent hard work will pay off and you will start buildinga solid reputation as an honest and dependable business. In time and to grow your business evenfurther, you will want to market your products or services in venues outside of e-Bay. Ideally,diversification will become a priority as you look to grow the business through new revenuestreams that help solidify your financial foundation.
Yes, you can make money with e-Bay (although it may take a little moretime for the funds to transfer into your actual checking account) selling off collectibles, furniture,and other unneeded items that have accumulated over the years. Your initial cost (if sellingmerchandise that ultimately sold for $700) would include the Insertion Fees ($4.80) and another$20 or so in Final Value Fees (you are assessed 5.25% on the first $25 of the final sale price andthen 3.25% on the remaining amount which in this case is $675 X .0325%, or roughly $20).
Other fees and/or costs that may eat into your bottom line include:
Paypal or other merchant account fees
Electronic transfer fees by your bank
Buy It Now Fees
Seller Tool Fees
eBay Picture Service Fees
Listing Upgrade Fees
Reserve Fees
eBay does indeed offer a lot of bells that can really wreak havoc on your bottom line but thebasic listing service, a compelling ad with relevant keywords, and a little hard work is all youshould need to successfully sell $700 in 7 days and walk away with approximately $650 in actualmoney. Remember, this is not actual profit in the classic sense but you could use that money tosecure more merchandise and begin establishing yourself as a legitimate force to reckonwith.or, you could go out and splurge on something you don't really need and return back toyour job the following day no closer to financial independence.
Six million people visit eBay every day and you really can turn your old unwanted things, acomputer, digital camera, and an Internet connection into a sustainable and growing home-basedbusiness. Most people, however, just use it to raise a little extra "mad money" and fail to realizethe true potentialwill you?
Use the Power of e-Bay to Make Money Online
By: Dan Wilton
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