How to Start An eBay Business

How to Start An eBay Business - Background Info:

Today you can buy almost anything on the Internet. Most retailers now have an Internet business website that complements their physical storefronts.

E-commerce sites that sell strictly on the Web are proliferating. And for budding entrepreneurs, or simply folks who want to sell off their treasures, there are sites such as eBay's well-know auction site.

If you are ready to start a company based on your online, eBay, or Internet business idea read on.

Internet auction website eBay is one of the fastest growing retail phenomenons of our time. The opportunities offered by an eBay business stretch way beyond the chance to sell unwanted bric-a-brac or discarded Christmas presents.

eBay has allowed millions of people to go into business who previously wouldn't have considered it, while growing numbers are making healthy second incomes by buying items and selling them online for profit.
The simplicity of setting up an eBay business is a big attraction for many people.

EBay at one time was the leader in online buzz and attention, just as facebook is today.

Well I'm please to let you know, eBay is back, because of these hard economic times more and more people are losing their jobs and instead of looking for a new job they are turning to eBay to replace their income.

One of the great things about an eBay business is that you can do it from home. Another great thing about it is that if you pick the right thing and learn how to sell on eBay effectively, an eBay business can be very profitable.

Starting an Ebay business is a great opportunity to take hold of your own financial future and secure your own prosperity. Ebay is an exciting community that sells a wide variety of items and has an unbelievable customer base. There is no limit to what you can sell and how much you can make with the right amount of hard work and dedication.

You can run your eBay business from home or from an actual brick and mortar consignment-type of shop.

How to Start An eBay Business Tasks And Skills Needed To Run This Business:

Business Specific Tasks:

If you are planning to do all the business tasks or hiring or subcontracting tasks, here's a list of tasks that need to be attended to when it comes to the business side of running an eBay business:

Bookkeeping

Online Advertising

Scheduling

Computer literacy

Industry Specific Tasks:

Same as above if you plan to do everything yourself or get help, here are some of the tasks necessary to operate an eBay business:

Research trends

Compose thank-you notes via email or to send with item(s)

Use seller strategies with listing times

Take photographs of items and products

Compose listings: write complete information about item and include photo(s)

Monitor and answer questions

Ship items sold: know how to ship internationally if you ship outside your country

Leave feedback for buyers

Calculate commission fees or flat rates if selling for others

Advertising and marketing

How to Start An eBay Business - Approximate Daily Hours This Business:

General Hours of Operation: - When your business is open - Having an eBay business is 24/7, 365 days per year unless you specifically say that you will be gone for a period of time and not available (such as on vacation).

Hours Needed to Prepare - Before Opening and After Hours Activities - Preparation involves the gathering, photographing, pricing and listing items at various times on different days, depending on your selling strategy. Many eBay sellers take one day to gather items together to sell during the upcoming week, another day to photograph the items, and another day to compose the listings and post the items for sale in their appropriate categories on eBay.

While this may sound like a lot of work, bear in mind that you do have breaks in between these tasks to tend to other work or just have some down-time.

Number of Employees Needed To Run An eBay Business:

Minimum Number of Employees - During the Start Up Phase: You can start this business yourself on a full- or part-time basis.

Number of Employees - Once Your Business is Up and Running Successfully:

Researcher

Advertising (especially in case of an eBay consignment shop)

Inventory

Listings

Bookkeeping

Skill Requirements for This Business:

Retail sales

Garage-saling

Auction sales

Calculate estimates

Importing

International sales and shipping

Licenses:

Before you start your eBay business, you should obtain the business licenses and permits required by your state, county and city. These documents will be needed to avoid paying sales tax when purchasing goods for resale and for properly filing your business taxes at the end of the year. For tax issues relating to eBay, see eBay Tax Issues for more information.

There are different legal and tax ramifications, depending on the choice you make. For most people starting a new eBay business, becoming a sole proprietor is the best and simplest option. If you are going into business with a spouse or friend, selecting a partnership is something to consider.

The federal Tax ID, also known as the Employer ID is a nine digit number assigned to businesses by the IRS. This number is required if you have any employees or if your business collects sales tax. To apply for a Federal Tax ID, fill out IRS form SS-4. You can file SS-4 online at the IRS website SS-4 Online Application. Filing with the IRS is completely free. Unless you don't like doing paperwork, there is no reason to pay a service to do it for you.

Your local county, and sometimes your city, will usually require you to obtain a business license. All required forms can be found at your city hall or county government offices. Usually they require you to advertise your intent to open a business in a local paper and to pay a nominal yearly fee. After your business has been approved, you pay a renewal fee once a year to keep your business active.

Some states may also require you file for a business license. Check your state government website or local library for more information.

Since you will be buying and reselling products on eBay, you will need a state seller's permit or license. These are usually obtained from your state Franchise Tax Board. When you have a seller's permit, you don't have to pay sales tax on goods you purchase for resale. You do have to collect sales tax when you sell those goods within your state. The collected sales tax must be paid to your state Franchise Tax Board on at least a quarterly basis. Your eBay listings can be set to automatically charge sales tax to buyers only in your state.

A seller's permit is required to do business with wholesalers and liquidators. You will also need one to attend retail trade shows. Trade shows are a great place to find merchandise for your eBay store.

Depending on the location of product suppliers as well as who you sell to, you may need import/export licensing.

Approximate Minimum Start up Cost of An eBay Business:

Bare essential: - The average startup cost may vary from $20 bucks if you already have a lot of items to sell, to hundreds of dollars if you want to buy top-of-the-line products from wholesalers. You can start off small and expand your operation as you grow.

Although you might have ideas of selling hot items like DVDs, software, computers, and digital cameras, most of the large electronics companies don't sell to small business owners so you will probably have to go through wholesalers and buy in bulk for these items. That can take a lot of money on your end.

Minimal exposure - Many eBay sellers swear by having an eBay storefront (virtual/online). Fees vary according to how much you sell per month and what type of exposure you want on eBay's promotional pages. If you don't want to start right off with a fee-based store, you should make sure you have a really well-done "About Me" page at the very least.

Necessary Equipment to an eBay Business:

Necessary Start-Up Equipment & Supplies:

Computer with internet access

Digital camera

Scanner

Postal scale/meter

Shipping supplies: boxes of various sizes, shipping tape, padded envelopes, mailing tubes, scissors, packing filler (newspaper, 'peanuts', etc.)

Shipping service such as USPS.com or Stamps.com

Photo imaging/enhancing software

Accounting software

Calculator

Tape measure

Good lighting

Supplementary Equipment: - Equipment or helpful products that you can acquire to once your business is off and running:

Laptop with internet access

Truck or van for item pickup service

Storage facility for items

Tables, display cases and shelves (for a shop)

International phone service such as Skype, Ring Central, etc.

Printer/Fax

Filing cabinet

Cell phone with web access

Credit card processor

Good lighting/studio area for photographing

Camera lenses for photographing small items in detail

Photographer's loupe (for viewing small items to assess markings on items)

Monthly Expenses To Consider:

Answering and/or cell phone service
Warehouse or other storage rent
Wages
Advertising
Internet access
Certifications
Electricity
eBay seller's fees
Paypal transaction fees
Shipping charges and supplies
Commercial bank account fees
Credit card processing fees

Special Requirements For This an eBay Business:

One of the fun things about starting a business is choosing the name. You can chose any name you like, but you may want to check if the domain name and eBay ID is available. It is surprising how many names have already been taken. You can check the availability of a domain name at www.godaddy.com. I like using godaddy as they give you a list of alternative domain names if the one you want is already taken. To check the availability of an eBay ID, use the eBay Registration page.
When starting an eBay business, one of the first things that you can do is to clean out your garage, basement, or attic. Not only will this help you clear out some unused items, but it will also give you some experience selling items. You should really have some experience before you start purchasing inventory in bulk.
Start out by selling items such as small appliances, used items, old books, clothes, and gifts that you never used. If you have a lot of clothing but none of it is particularly fashionable or designer, then consider selling it in a lot. Put 5-10 items together and list them like that. When you are starting an eBay business one of the first things that you will learn is that people like thinking that they are getting a great deal on items, and many people use eBay to stock their own inventory. Lots of clothing is good for buyers who own thrift stores or consignment stores.
You should then take a look at your hobbies, as well as things that you are interested in. A lot of sellers, when starting an eBay business, think that they should only sell those items that are trendy and hot selling. The problem behind this idea is that most other sellers have the same idea. If you are a new seller, then working your way up to this can be a good idea.
Even if you are running your business from your home, you should get separate business insurance. At a minimum you will need insurance coverage for storing and transporting your store inventory. If customers or vendors come to your place of business, you will also need liability insurance. Contact your local insurance representative for a quote. If you are have trouble finding an underwriter for the business insurance, have your agent look into offerings from Hartford Small Business Insurance Center. If you are renting a space for your eBay business, your landlord will likely require that you obtain business insurance.
You need to keep your business and personal finances separate. If you don't, you will have a nightmare at tax time.
DO set up a Paypal account. A Paypal account is credit card and bank funds processing and it can help you keep your personal finances separate from your eBay income.
To find out what items are selling the best go to pulse.ebay.com; this page will give the top searches in every category. You can also do an advance search on a keyword to see how many items with that keyword have been sold.
Choose your niche wisely before you join. Tһіѕ іѕ crucial to building and establishing a client base that you can send an email out and make money off. Do your research to find out what items are selling the best that are related to your passion. Then choose your name to reflect your niche, for example; if your niche is website flipping you should choose a name like websiteflippingmaster or websitesrus etc. It's very important that you are looked at as an expert in the niche.
Although it can be trial and error when it comes to knowing what to sell and how much to sell it for, experience will win out over most of the ebooks and expensive guides that are on the market.

Pros And Cons:

The Pros of Running an eBay Business:

An eBay business is one of the easiest and lowest-cost to start.

You have the advantage of being your own boss and setting your own hours.

You get to stay on top of best-selling products and trends.

There is plenty of work to keep you in business.

This business is completely expandable.

Seller's fees can have "low-cost" listing days on special by eBay.

Easy to work from home.

You have a chance to 'meet' very interesting people.

Running an eBay is fun and can be very lucrative.

The Cons of Running an eBay Business:

eBay seller's fees can go up, affecting your bottom line.

It can be difficult to determine pricing for many types of items. Antiques may require paid appraisals.

There is a lot of trial and error before you can count on a good monthly income.

There can be non-paying buyers you have to deal with (don't ship without payment first).

People can leave bad feedback on you that may be unfair but still affects your rating---which, in turn, can deter potential buyers if your rating gets too low (generally lower than 96%).

You have to stay on top of eBay's ever-changing rules.

If your shipping costs are not accurate, you can lose money.

Very competitive.

Type of Customers You Need to Attract:

The types of customers you need to attract are those who are getting rid of garage sale items that didn't sell, people who would like to sell items with part of the proceeds going to a charity and, most of all, the bulk of your customers are people who don't have the time, equipment, patience, or inclination learn how to sell their own items on eBay.

eBay Business Statistics:

See eBay's real-time research and trends at Terapeak for eBay.

Revenue:

See eBay's real-time research and trends at Terapeak for eBay.

online auction

eBay Business Resources:

Industry-Specific Websites:

eBay: Seller Information Center

eBay Business Guide

Floodle

eBay: Reviews and Guides

Courses:

Starting a Successful eBay Business (Video Training): Start Selling Today and Achieve Business Success Tomorrow!

Powerseller Pro

Andrew Minalto's Easy Auction Business DVD Video Course

Earn Money on eBay

Equipment and Supplies:

DHGate

Doba

USPS

Stamps.com

Forums:

eBay Discussion Boards

Home Business Blog

Affiliate Information:

Succeed as an eBay Affiliate

Associations:

Professional Ebay Sellers Alliance

Online Selling Association

Books and eBooks:

Ebay Fortune eBook by an eBay Powerseller

Better Business Bureau's Starting an eBay Business (book)

Starting an eBay Business for Dummies

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Starting an eBay Business

Software:

Palo Alto Software (US)

eBay-Endorsed Various Software

Top-Rated and Reviewed eBay Software

Activa

Hammertap

Other:

How Bidding Works

eBay's History

7 Tips For Selling On eBay

Starting An eBay Business - Accounting and Tax Tips

eBay Entrepreneur

Startup Nation

Starting an eBay Business – Useful Links

Related Businesses:

Auctioneer
Retail sales
Product Import/Export
Appraisals
Website/shopping cart design and maintenance
e-Commerce
Wholesaling and dropshipping