Selling on eBay

Selling on eBay is a great way of making money from home. Signing up as a seller on eBay is a simple process. The challenge is finding the right items to sell, selecting the best selling process to use, knowing the value of your products, creating a successful listing and managing the selling process. Use these practical guides to help you get started.

About an eBay home business

How to start as a seller on eBay

Finding products to sell on eBay

How to list on eBay

Here we look at how to select the best selling format for your items and how to price your items.

What are my options for selling on eBay?

eBay offers a number of different ways to sell your items. Selecting the right format for your particular merchandise is key to making a profitable and successful sale. You can choose the format that you feel most comfortable with from one of these options:

• Auction-style listing. You sell to the highest bidder on your items. You can select an auction period from 1,3,5,7, 10 days or 30 days. Your eBay fees will include your insertion fee for the listing and a final value fee when your item is sold. You can choose a starting price for the auction. This is the lowest price you will accept for the item unless you set a reserve price as well. You can set a reserve price which is the lowest price at which you will sell your item. The bidders do not see your reserve price but they can see that the auction has a reserve that has not been met. You do not have to sell your item unless the reserve price is met. The advantage of having a reserve price when selling on eBay is that you can set an enticingly low starting price for your item without the risk of having to sell your item at too low a price. You can also offer a Buy it Now price which allows a buyer to purchase the item before the listed end date of the auction.
• Fixed Price Listing. You list your items at a set price and buyers can purchase right away withour any bidding. Again you can select a duration period for your sale from 3,5,7,10 or 30 days. You can list different types of one item, for example different colored candles, in one fixed price listing. Insertion and final value fees apply.
• eBay store inventory listing. You can become an eBay store owner and list your items at a fixed price. There is no bidding involved and buyers can purchase straight away. You do need enough inventory for selling on eBay to set up a successful eBay store.
• Classified ad. You create a traditional classified ad with a set price and your contact details. You then handle the sale personally with the buyer.

Selling on eBay is not just a matter of deciding what price you want for your item but rather of finding out the true market value of your item. There are a number of ways to research what your item is worth and to determine an accurate price for your product.

• Research pricing on eBay. Use eBay's "Whats it Worth" facility to see what similar items are selling on eBay for. This gives you the average price of items sold and a price range for the item. Visit completed listings (listings that have ended within the last 15 days) to get an idea of prices for similar products. Scan the list and view some that sold and some that didn't. This will give you some guidelines to what your item is likely to sell for on eBay. Visit online eBay stores that sell similar items to help you set your price.
• Consider your expenses. You want to make a profit so factor in the cost of your item, your eBay fees, your Paypal fees and your packaging and shipping costs when deciding on the lowest price you will accept for your item.
• Research elsewhere on the internet. If you are selling a new product then search for the current retail price of these items to help you in setting a realistic sale price for eBay. Google your item and see what comes up. Apart from helping you with pricing it may give you valuable information that you can use in your listing.

There are a number of options for receivng payment. PayPal Merchant Tools is the preferred way to get paid. eBay offers this service to help you cost-effectively manage credit and debit cards as well as bank transfers and PayPal account balances.

Successfully selling on eBay requires careful thought and planning. Use these guides to help you.

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