home items from
How do I start a successful part time ebay business after selling home items? want to wrk 20 hr wk $3-4k per m
I've started selling items from home, and I'm trying to figure out what my next step should be. I do not have a niche market yet. I've only sold a few items so far, but it's pretty interesting. I can commit to 20 hrs per week doing this thing. I'm just wondering what would be the best route for me to take in order to make this a successful part time gig? Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance
The key to a successful eBay selling is simple -- Sell products that people actually want.
Buying from garage sales or selling items from your home and selling on eBay is fun, and good getting a few dollars here and there from ebay. Sometimes, you luck out on an item and hit big, but many times it will just be so-so (assuming you can even get the price you paid for it). In terms of fun factor, it is great. But from a business stand-point, it is not sustainable.
If you want to earn serious money from eBay, you need to have a well-thought out business model. Selling on eBay is not as easy as some portray. In fact, go to eBay and check out the number of auctions that end without a single bid. Competition is getting tough, as more sellers go to eBay; even the big boys are joining in the eBay marketplace. Add to that the increasing listing and final value fees.
One success model of ebay is the couple Jay and Marie Senese (username jayandmarie) of the 1-cent CD fame. They have the highest positive feedback number of all sellers on eBay. Their business model is to buy very low cost CDs in bulk (those that CD stores sell in their discount bins) and offer them on ebay at a starting price of 1 cent http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_23/b3886080.htm Their success is based on the fact that they stumbled on a sustainable business model with products that people really want.
eBay has several ways for you to determine exactly what the hot items to sell on their marketplace:
Items In Demand = the most popular items currently within that particular category. To see the In Demand page, go to http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral/sellbycategory.html
Hot Items by Category Report = a monthly report that lists the fastest growing categories on eBay for the previous month. Go to http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral/whatshot.html and select "Hot Items by Category" from the menu on the left.
eBay Pulse = "a daily snapshot of current trends, hot picks, and cool stuff on eBay". Go to http://pulse.ebay.com/ to see eBay Pulse in action.
Merchandising Calendar = eBay promotes specific categories on its home page each month. Savvy eBayers know that this home page exposure results in more interest in such categories. Go to http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral/calendar.html to view the current Merchandising Calendar.
 |
PetSafe PDBC-300 Deluxe Bark Control Collar List Price: $99.99 Sale Price: Too low to display  |
 |
Olive Wood Rosary with Water From River Jordan List Price: $19.95 Sale Price: $14.00 |
 |
Howard Leight R-01526 Impact Sport Electronic Earmuff List Price: $73.23 Sale Price: $47.37 |
 |
Tripp Lite TR-6 6-Outlet Surge Protector (1500 Joules) List Price: $59.95 Sale Price: $24.99 |
 |
Whirlpool 1901 Ice Machine Pump Kit List Price: $499.99 Sale Price: $359.99 |
 |
The Greatest Adventure Stories From the Bible: The Easter Story List Price: $9.98 Sale Price: $1.18 |
 |
Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day Spring Clean Up Kit, Snap Pea Scent List Price: $15.00 Sale Price: $11.99 |
Save Money on Your Home Improvement Projects by Shopping Online
I love to improve my home, but my project plans are almost always much larger than my modest home improvement budget. Like a lot of people, I shop online when it comes to things like buying books or music but I never looked for anything other than entertainment media and electronic gadgets until recently.
If you really want to save a lot of money on home improvement projects, though, you might want to consider buying your supplies online instead of visiting that big mega hardware store on the other side of town. Shopping online isn't the chore it used to be.
I learned about this when I was working on the exterior of my house earlier this summer. I found some carpenter bees building nests in the wooden eaves of my home so I needed to buy some copper meshing to put into the eaves.
I went to four local hardware stores and only one of the stores actually carried something similar to what I was looking for, but I had to buy a full roll of the copper though I only needed a couple feet of it.
Frustrated, I went home and as a last resort started looking for my supplies online. A quick internet search turned up dozens of sites all selling exactly what I needed. I had to shop through a few of them and compare prices but I finally found someone who was selling just enough of what I needed for about a quarter of the price I would have paid in the hardware store!
Since that time I've learned that I can buy a lot of different home improvement supplies online than are even available in most stores. I have learned some tricks for buying home items over the internet:
Watch the shipping charges - You have to be careful with home improvement projects and shipping because many items that you buy for your home are heavier than your average pieces of mail. Even if the price is lower at a website the shipping on certain items may make things more expensive than buying them from a local store.
Don't always take the first deal - If you're searching for something be sure to shop at several different sites to weigh your options. Compare shipping charges, warranties, guarantees and other details to make sure you're getting what you really want for the price you want.
Compare brands and models online - I'll sometimes go to my local hardware store and find exactly what I need. I'll note the brand and model and then come home and shop online for that exact item. I saved over $75.00 on a kitchen faucet using this method of shopping in the store and online.
And while I've only mentioned supplies for home improvement projects you can obviously also get tools, books and just about every else you'd ever need for your home projects with a little internet searching!
About the Author
The Home Improvements Depot explores home improvement tips and tricks for the average homeowner and amateur handyman or handywoman.
How to make wine from household items