Contents
eBay Basics
How to Decide What to Sell on eBay
How to Budget Your eBay Business
How eBay Selling Works
How to Choose an eBay Listing Format
How to Choose an eBay Listing Price
How to Choose a Listing Timeframe
How to Improve Your eBay Listings
eBay Payment Methods
eBay Shipping Methods
Tools to Improve Your eBay Selling
How to Set Up an eBay Store
Customer Service for eBay Sellers
How to Run Your eBay Business
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- The process of selling merchandise on eBay, from start to finish
- Strategies for selecting, pricing, and presenting your merchandise on eBay
- The steps it takes to set up your own virtual storefront on eBay
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eBay Basics
With more than 275 million members, eBay is the world’s largest online marketplace. Whereas most e-commerce sites sell merchandise to customers, eBay carries no
inventory. Instead, eBay serves simply as a forum to unite buyers and sellers. Sellers list, or post, items for sale on eBay’s website, www.ebay.com, and buyers bid on those items in online auctions or buy them for a set price.
What Is an eBay Business?
More than 1 million people around the world make a full- or part-time living by running an eBay business, a business that uses eBay to market and sell its products or services. eBay businesses offer almost anything you can buy at retail locations—from toys to apparel to cars—plus items not available anywhere else, such as one-of-a-kind antiques and works of art. eBay businesses come in a variety of forms. You might start one to:
- Bring an offline business online: Small business owners use eBay to broaden their customer base. By selling on eBay, a local retail shop can instantly have access to millions of customers worldwide.
- Sell on eBay exclusively: eBay enables anyone with an internet connection to become an instant entrepreneur. Sell your old clothes, turn garage sale “junk” into riches, or offer your professional advice to the highest bidder—only eBay makes it possible.
- Turn a hobby into a business: eBay is one of the easiest ways for independent artists and crafters to sell their wares. You can profit from selling everything from cookie cutters to oil paintings on eBay.
How to Start an eBay Business
The first step in starting an eBay business is to become an eBay seller. To do so, you must become a registered eBay member and then set up a seller’s account.
- To register on eBay: Create an account with a user name and password on eBay’s website.
- To set up a seller’s account: Roll over the Sell link at the top of any eBay page and select Sell an Item from the drop-down menu.
- Provide the required information and you’ll be set up as an eBay seller.
Once you’ve established your seller’s account, follow these steps to get your eBay business off the ground:
- Decide which items to sell on eBay.
- Create a budget for your business.
- List your items on eBay and start selling.
Once you’re comfortable selling on eBay and certain you can make money at it, try your hand at a business by starting an eBay store and setting up your own website.
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