EBay has been around for a long time and it has a good track record. Many people use eBay as way to test out how well their items sell before they create their own dedicated website (as it costs next to nothing and it’s easy to use).
Due to EBay being around for so long, it has developed tools and programs to help assist you in selling your items and running a store. EBay also has many options for you to either sell your own items or sell their items for a commission.
EBay started out as an auction site meaning that people would bid on the items but eBay sellers can also offer set price purchases for those users not wanting to bid. Setting a set price and selling your items in the traditional sense requires a special account.
When you first start out in eBay, you’ll have to sell your items like an auction. Once you have sold some products, EBay will offer a store account, but this has a monthly recurring fee. Your best bet is to use an auction type store as it costs very little money and there are no monthly fees.
Starting Out On Ebay
After you register on eBay there are several tasks you’ll want to do. EBay works in conjunction with PayPal (EBay connects with PayPal for the majority of all transactions) so you will want to get an account with PayPal.
You can also get a merchant account with your bank so you can accept credit card payments.
In order to sign up for PayPal and eBay you need a credit card and a bank account. We recommend you have a credit card and bank account that you strictly use for business so that you can follow all the transactions better.
Be sure to fill out all the information in your eBay account, including the “about me” page so that customers can see what you’re all about.
The way people price items on eBay can be a bit different from traditional businesses so before selling your items, check out your competitors on eBay to see how they price their items.
When doing research on your competitors, search for your type of items and organize the results by what sold the best and for the highest price. Take note of the following information:
- What keywords did your competitors use?
- Which category did your competitors place their items in?
- How do they advertise and pitch their items?
- How can you be different?
- Are the items being sold quickly?
- Is there a lot of demand for your type of product?
The Benefits Of Running An Auction
Depending on the type of product you have, running auctions may be preferable to having an eBay store.
You should definitely consider doing auctions if you’re selling:
- Unique, one of a kind items
- Expensive items
- Collectors items
The benefits of running an auction are:
- It’s more interesting to people (it gets noticed more).
- Auctions sell items faster because it creates a sense of scarcity.
- Auctions only costs you a small initial fee as oppose to a monthly fee.
- Having an auction is a great way to test the waters and lets you see how much people are willing to pay for such an item.
Feedback
EBay uses a feedback system that’s used to represent how trustworthy every user is. Both sellers and buyers have feedback scores, the better score the more trustworthy you’ll be considered. If you want to have a successful eBay business your feedback score must be as high as possible.
Feedback scores are given after the transaction, the buyer fills out a form scoring your service and you, the seller, leave feedback to the buyer. Other sellers and buyers will see the comments and feedback score, so they know that they’re business will be good.
Ebay Store
An eBay store is a storefront and you may see that many eBay auctioneers will also have a store to sell their goods. A eBay store is great for those selling large quantities of items. (If you’re going to have an eBay store it’s recommended you focus on a niche and not sell a wide variety of products).
With an eBay store you can sell your items at a fixed price. Unlike an auction which expires after a certain amount of time, the products you sell in you store can remain up forever.
With an eBay Store there is a function that allows you to export all your sales information from PayPal and eBay into QuickBooks.
If you advertise your products from outside of the eBay website you can earn extra cash by referring the users to eBay.
By using an eBay store, you’ll have access to various templates which will assist you in marketing your eBay Store. Also you will have access to an email newsletter function. To help you will statistical information, EBay Stores have built in analytics that allow you to see which pages are viewed most and other user information.
An eBay Store can cost anywhere between $15.95 and $299.95 and so we recommend it’s always best to get the basic plan and move up as your business grows.
While you are paying to acquire an eBay Store, getting it isn’t as simple as just giving them your credit card and purchasing the account. In order to get an eBay Store you must have a feedback score of 20 or a PayPal account with a good history.
Setting Up Your Ebay Store
Once you’ve gathered a feedback score of 20 and have the eBay store account acquired you will need to set it up. Go into the “Manage My Store” part of your account and you’ll see that you have many options and controls for you to customize your store.
When it comes to store design there are many templates offered by eBay. Also a great feature is that each template is customizable. You can add custom pages for your policies page, shipping page and etc.
There is also option to control such things as:
- Marketing
- Promotions and deals
- Logos, graphics and branding
- Store design
Powerseller
Power sellers are eBay users who sell a steady amount of items on a recurring basis. They’ve earned a high feedback score and are in good standing order.
To become a power seller you must sell a minimum of $1,000 per month for the bronze status (there are many different levels each with their own benefits).
The greatest status you can have is that of the Titanium status which requires your total sales to be above $150,000. Being a power seller has its benefits and best of all it’s free!
EBay normally incurs a fee from you posting but these fees are reduced with a power seller’s account.
There are several third party tools you should check out. If you become a power seller these tools will help assist you in making more sales:
- www.auctiva.com
- www.channeladvisor.com
- www.marketworks.com
- http://solutions.ebay.com
Once you become a power seller you’ll have access to the Resellers Marketplace. The Resellers Marketplace is a market that allows you to buy items in bulk directly from manufacturers, wholesalers or even liquidators.