In brief: “EBay sellers represent many ideas and ways to make money selling on eBay. However, only a small fraction of these ways are good, established and sustained ways to become a successful eBay business.”
Commonly used eBay business ideas
Here are some of the most commonly used ideas for eBay businesses and tips for selling on eBay. These are bad ideas, not practical ideas or in a better case, partially-practical ways to make money on eBay:
Bad eBay business ideas and not-practical ideas
1. Left goods Sales: This is a description for the classic ‘end of the day’ offer: to buy all the left goods from eBay auctions and then resell.
• Pros – Spending up to 50$ and resell for hundreds of dollars.
• Cons – Cost (and time) spent on - buying/collecting/marketing/selling/shipping of these items. Do not forget that you don’t have the required information about these items and their selling methods/means..
2. Household Items: selling your “junk” on eBay.
• Pros – You clean out un-necessary items from your house/office.
• Cons – Building a sustainable business out of personal unused belongings is not practical idea.
3. Flea Markets/ Bazaars/Fairs: Buying items from your local neighborhood and then reselling these items on eBay.
• Pros – No pros.
• Cons – Buyers often buy these items in their local neighborhood. Why should they spend extra money on your shipment and other costs margin? Most of the goods are items that buyers like to touch, feel, look and like before buying.
Not-practical eBay ideas for most of us and practical for some of us
Another ways to make money on eBay are based on –
1. Storage items: Blindly buying storage items and then reselling these items on eBay.
• Pros – If you know (exactly) the sort of items you are buying, then go for it.
• Cons – You never know the real value of the goods. You have to unpack and select the valuable ones. Then you should spend money/time on marketing/selling/shipping some of these items.
2. Government Auctions: You buy on Government Auctions and then resell on eBay.
• Pros – If you know (exactly) the condition of the goods you are buying and the means to repair some of these goods then go for it.
• Cons – If you are not a pro, you never know the real value of the goods. You have to evaluate/fix some of these items and then select the valuable ones. Then, you should spend money/time on marketing/selling/shipping off these items.
3. EBay coins, Antiques, Stamps: buying items in deep discount on eBay and then resell.
• Pros – If you have all the knowledge required about the item’s value and have all marketing/selling/shipping means then go for it.
• Cons – Cost (and time) spent on buying/collecting/marketing/selling/shipping of these items.
Partially-practical ideas for most of us and practical for some of us
The following are well-known ideas for EBay businesses. These are notable ways to make money on eBay -
1. EBay Consignment: Resell items offered by “eBay Trading Assistant”
• Pros – eBay consignment will directs traffic (and buyers) to your web eBay store. Drop store business might be great as a secondary income (for low price items). EBay consignment might widen your customer base if you have an existing eBay store front.
• Cons – Low profit.
2. Retail inventors: Selling your hard-to-sell items (if you are a retailer) on eBay.
• Pros – As a retailer you have all the logistic chain supply. All you have to do is to spend on web marketing. Now, you have another stream of income and customer base.
• Cons – While there are no specific cons, one has to learn how to sell successfully on eBay for this system to work.
3. Drop Ship: Buy drop ship items and then resell on eBay.
• Pros – If you really know/trust the dealer/producer/firm and established good business relationship with him, then go for it.
• Cons – You have no control on the matters pertaining to logistics.. You can’t control the supply chain. You never know if the goods eventually arrive to the buyer.
Good eBay business ideas
1. If you own a retail business – eBay is a wonderful place to extend your business as a consignment depot.
2. If you own an online website store – eBay is a wonderful place to extend your businesses.
3. If you are new on the business world, – however:
b. Know the item’s manufacturer.
c. This manufacturer is from you local region.
Then, start working on having good business relationship with this manufacturer and start building your own eBay business based on drop shipping this manufacturer product. You have to learn how to start eBay business model from scratch.
