eBay 101: Selling on eBay For Part-time or Full-time Income, Beginner to PowerSeller in 90 Days (Paperback)

by Steve Weber (Author)
Key Phrases: sell your item, selling manager, consignment business, Steve Weber, Postal Service, Final Value Fee (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
With today's rocky economy and unsteady job market, there's never been a better time to earn extra cash online. And now there's a new book that guides you each step of the way: eBay 101: Selling on eBay For Part-time or Full-time Income, Beginner to PowerSeller in 90 Days. Access the world's biggest marketplace, right from your own home.

You'll learn how to:

-- Register at eBay and PayPal
-- Start part-time and expand your income when you're ready
-- Find great inventory at low prices
-- Auction to the highest bidder or sell at fixed prices
-- Identify niche markets for big profits
-- Get tax deductions for your eBay home-based business
-- Guard against scammers and rip-off artists

Starting a business on eBay is perhaps your fastest route to the American Dream. The payoff can be high, and the barriers to entry are low.

The world's most popular online marketplace, eBay has millions of registered buyers waiting to do business with you. For less than $100 and very little risk, you can start an eBay venture with profit margins rivaling those of any business. Exactly how much money you earn depends mostly on how much effort you put into your new enterprise and how efficiently you operate it.

In this new eBay guide, you'll see:

How eBay works ... Register your business ... Sell your item ... Build your listing

Timing, planning your auction ... Make a picture worth $1,000 ... Use Pre-filled Item Information ... Price your item ... Reserve Pricing ... Multiple Item (Dutch) Auctions ... The auction alternative: fixed prices ... Best Offer listing option ... Upgrade your listings ... The best time to list

Profit with a niche ... Start with used merchandise ... Win with niche selling ... Cash in on collectibles ... Autographed items ... Trust, but authenticate ... How to recognize fake autographs

Get more great inventory ... Estate sales ... Bankruptcy sales ... Thrift shops ... Local artisans ... Close-out merchandise ... Library sales ... Overstock distributors ... Find overlooked gems at estate sales ... Live auctions ... Postal Service auctions ... Treasury Department auctions ... GSA Auctions ... Government Liquidation ... Law Enforcement Auctions ... Classified ads ... Get merchandise on eBay ... Get merchandise on consignment ... Become a trading assistant

Expand your business ... Create your `About Me' page ... Cross-promotions ... Open an eBay store ... Set up shop ... Promote your store ... eBay Express ... Using eBay's Half.com site ... Google Base ... Why many would-be PowerSellers fail

Prevent problem customers ... Set Buyer Requirements ... Be a feedback fanatic ... Completing sales ... Communicate with a packing slip ... Respond to feedback ... Mutual Feedback Withdrawal ... Feedback policies ... Handle customers right ... Unpaid item disputes ... Work with PayPal

Avoid scams and fraud ... Spot shady buyers ... Recognize predators ... Avoid phishing e-mails ... Beware of hoax e-mails ... Avoid drop-ship, wholesale scams ... Recognize crooks and middlemen ... Warning signs of bogus wholesalers ... Know a fake from the real McCoy

Ship efficiently ... Choose a shipping company ... Communicate when you ship ... Pare shipping costs to the bone ... Sell Get It Fast Items ... Handle delivery snafus ... Print online postage ... Organize your inventory ... Design your SKU system

Get efficient with fulfillment software ... TurboLister ... Selling Manager ... Software for media sellers ... Research prices wirelessly

More eBay rules ... Prohibited and restricted items ... Shill bidding ... Keyword spamming ... Fee Circumvention ... Sales taxes ... Income taxes ... Business use of your home ... Hiring employees

 

 

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

From the Publisher
With today's rocky economy and unsteady job market, there's never been a better time to earn extra cash online. And now there's a new book that guides you each step of the way: eBay 101: Selling on eBay For Part-time or Full-time Income, Beginner to PowerSeller in 90 Days. Access the world's biggest marketplace, right from your own home.

You'll learn how to:

-- Register at eBay and PayPal
-- Start part-time and expand your income when you're ready
-- Find great inventory at low prices
-- Auction to the highest bidder or sell at fixed prices
-- Identify niche markets for big profits
-- Get tax deductions for your eBay home-based business
-- Guard against scammers and rip-off artists

Starting a business on eBay is perhaps your fastest route to the American Dream. The payoff can be high, and the barriers to entry are low.

The world's most popular online marketplace, eBay has millions of registered buyers waiting to do business with you. For less than $100 and very little risk, you can start an eBay venture with profit margins rivaling those of any business. Exactly how much money you earn depends mostly on how much effort you put into your new enterprise and how efficiently you operate it.

In this new eBay guide, you'll see:

How eBay works ... Register your business ... Sell your item ... Build your listing

Timing, planning your auction ... Make a picture worth $1,000 ... Use Pre-filled Item Information ... Price your item ... Reserve Pricing ... Multiple Item (Dutch) Auctions ... The auction alternative: fixed prices ... Best Offer listing option ... Upgrade your listings ... The best time to list

Profit with a niche ... Start with used merchandise ... Win with niche selling ... Cash in on collectibles ... Autographed items ... Trust, but authenticate ... How to recognize fake autographs

Get more great inventory ... Estate sales ... Bankruptcy sales ... Thrift shops ... Local artisans ... Close-out merchandise ... Library sales ... Overstock distributors ... Find overlooked gems at estate sales ... Live auctions ... Postal Service auctions ... Treasury Department auctions ... GSA Auctions ... Government Liquidation ... Law Enforcement Auctions ... Classified ads ... Get merchandise on eBay ... Get merchandise on consignment ... Become a trading assistant

Expand your business ... Create your `About Me' page ... Cross-promotions ... Open an eBay store ... Set up shop ... Promote your store ... eBay Express ... Using eBay's Half.com site ... Google Base ... Why many would-be PowerSellers fail

Prevent problem customers ... Set Buyer Requirements ... Be a feedback fanatic ... Completing sales ... Communicate with a packing slip ... Respond to feedback ... Mutual Feedback Withdrawal ... Feedback policies ... Handle customers right ... Unpaid item disputes ... Work with PayPal

Avoid scams and fraud ... Spot shady buyers ... Recognize predators ... Avoid phishing e-mails ... Beware of hoax e-mails ... Avoid drop-ship, wholesale scams ... Recognize crooks and middlemen ... Warning signs of bogus wholesalers ... Know a fake from the real McCoy

Ship efficiently ... Choose a shipping company ... Communicate when you ship ... Pare shipping costs to the bone ... Sell Get It Fast Items ... Handle delivery snafus ... Print online postage ... Organize your inventory ... Design your SKU system

Get efficient with fulfillment software ... TurboLister ... Selling Manager ... Software for media sellers ... Research prices wirelessly

More eBay rules ... Prohibited and restricted items ... Shill bidding ... Keyword spamming ... Fee Circumvention ... Sales taxes ... Income taxes ... Business use of your home ... Hiring employees

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Weber Books (January 16, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0977240630
• ISBN-13: 978-0977240630
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #5,807 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #1 in	Books > Business & Investing > Industries & Professions > E-commerce > Online Trading
  #3 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Business & Culture > eBay
  #4 in	Books > Business & Investing > Industries & Professions > Retailing

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I've been a Powerseller on Ebay so I know the information in this one is stellar and here's why, February 18, 2008

By	K. Corn "reviewer" (Indianapolis,, IN United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)

I read this book from cover to cover, amazed (and wishing I'd had this one with me when I STARTED on Ebay). What author Steve Weber has done with this book is to gather the information that can take sellers years to learn and created a virtual seller's encyclopedia of tips for selling successfully on Ebay.


What this means to you - the potential seller on Ebay - is the chance to hit the ground running, avoid embarrassing blunders and come across as a professional seller, minimizing fumbles and keeping your customers happy and your profit margin...extremely profitable.

For the relatively modest price of this book, you'll get the expertise of an Ebay seller who has racked up $1.4 million dollars in sales to 130,000 customers. I"m surprised by how much he was willing to disclose, the kind of secrets many sellers hold near and dear.

Not only that but Weber had the wisdom to let other top sellers and users weigh in. They have written specific articles on such important areas as taking great photos, writing top descriptions, 10 major auction mistakes and how to milk market niches for maximum profits (rare fishing lures, vintage clothing or old video games are some examples.

Before you create your first listing, Weber suggests you do some research that I'd call "due diligence" or "taking a trial run to get a feel for Ebay." How do you do this? By being a buyer and actually bidding on items or using the Buy it Now feature to purchase 10 items. I think this is brilliant strategy, allowing potential sellers to get a feel for the buyer's end of things. You'll get a feel for dealing with someone you've probably never met face to face and the sense of novelty that comes from using an online auction site. Once you've been in a buyer's shoes, you have instant knowledge that should make you a better seller.

I wish I had the space to describe all the sections and related material in this book. From registering as a user to timing your auction, expanding your business and finding inventory, Weber explains every aspect of the Ebay selling process.

Consider this: he started out with $80, bought four bags of items and doubled his investment after selling only half of those items! From there he went on to sell enough to move from a tiny one-bedroom apartment to a nice house, all by himself. He makes a convincing case for the fact that if he can do it, so can you. I'm convinced, especially since I've used similar techniques and I know they work - and work well.

PLEASE NOTE: I have had the pleasure of reading and reviewing another of Mr. Weber's books, Plug Your Book. I'm including that information here for full disclosure but I have not ever been paid for any reviews of these books and my opinion is expressly my own. Both books are wonderful. If you are a writer, bookseller or interested in exploring ways to market yourself, books or sell on Ebay, Mr. Weber's books are "must reads". eBay 101: Selling on eBay For Part-time or Full-time Income, Beginner to PowerSeller in 90 Days

44 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of three books on eBay retailing that I highly recommend. Get all three so you will know how to become a Powerseller!, February 6, 2008

By	Jeff Lippincott "www.Jlippin.com" (Princeton, NJ USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This is a really good book. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. And I think anyone who is interested in online retailing would do themselves a favor to get a copy and read it cover to cover. The author is an online retailer. And he has written four books over the past couple of years. So he's an author, too. All four books have covered aspects of his online used book business he started not too long ago. For some reason he becomes expert at doing things and then he writes books on what he has discovered works in business. This book is no exception.

There are 15 chapters in this book:

1. Introduction
2. Ready, set, sell!
3. Profit with a niche
4. Get more great inventory
5. Expand your business
6. Prevent problem customers
7. Avoid scams and fraud
8. Pack it up, move it out
9. Squeeze more profits
10. Stay on eBay's good side
11. Stay on Uncle Sam's good side
12. Make friends, sell more
13. Get your own place
14. Get more free advertising
15. Pay for advertising

I've skimmed a number of books on eBay retailing over the past couple of years. Unfortunately I haven't read too many I liked. Most of them seem to be hyping eBay as some great place to make a fortune. The instant book being reviewed is different. The author tells us early on that $40,000 a year on your own is a reasonable figure to expect selling on eBay.

Although I'm not a big fan of online retailing, I think many people can benefit from getting involved with it. EBay makes it easy for someone not self-employed to dabble in retail sales while holding down a full time job. And if that person finds a niche that can be made profitable, then that person very well may become self-employed at some point in the future and quit their day job.

Ebay also is a wonderful tool for existing bricks and mortar retail shops to use when slow moving inventory needs to be moved quickly or fazed out. And then eBay can also be used to support a service business known in some circles as an eBay Trading Assistant Shop where products are sold on consignment.

This book is not just about eBay retailing. It is also about self-promotion and promoting one's business and products online. And chapters 12, 14 and 15 regarding online marketing and how to do it to help your eBay sales is probably what makes this book especially unique as far as eBay books go. The other two books about eBay that I have reviewed on Amazon are 1000 Best eBay Powerseller Secrets (ISBN: 1402208057), and The eBay Entrepreneur (ISBN: 141958328X). Each book covers the topic a little differently and comes from a different perspective. If you are seriously interested in becoming an eBay retailer, then I HIGHLY recommend you get copies of all three books and devour them. 5 stars!

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great learing tool., January 31, 2008

By	Lance H. Schmidt "Anne Schmidt" (Cincinnati, OH.) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

My husband and I have purchased and sold on ebay a few times but never realized until reading Mr.Weber's book eBay 101, how little we actually knew about the process of buying and selling on ebay. None of the chat rooms designed for this very thing have provided half of Mr. Weber's Knowledge and suggestions. We now realize our past mistakes and are very anxious to put into motion our newly gained knowledge. This book will definitely help us earn more money by selling on ebay without being so confused!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Anne Schmidt