Sell on eBay

What Items Sell Well on eBay?

Sell on eBay.

So you've decided to open an eBay account and get started, but now you need to figure out what to sell?



No problem.

There are a lot of things you can sell.

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Garage and Estate Sales

Many sellers, myself included, start their eBay career selling items obtained from garage sales or estate sales.

Items to sell on ebay can also be found at rummage sales, yard sales, and flea markets.

Early in your eBay career, this can be a good path for a number of reasons:

• --Items are inexpensive, so not so painful when you lose money
• --You will gain experience
• --You will start to find a niche that you are interested in
• --The thrill of the hunt is fun
• --There are plenty of places to find inventory
• --Sometimes you can find a real treasure for pennies

The method I used for bargain hunting at garage sales was simple: if I could describe it, and it was cheap, I bought it.



For instance, if I found a teacup and saucer with a brand name on the bottom at a yard sale, with no chips or cracks, for only a quarter, I bought it. But if that same teacup cost $5 I would pass. Or if the teacup did not have a recognizable brand name on the bottom for me to reference in my title, I would not purchase it.

This method worked well for me. I would bring a set amount of cash with me, usually around $25, and when that money was gone, I'd go home and list!

Some of the best things I have gotten at garage sales to sell on eBay:

• --an ugly troll I paid 5cents for that was worth $200
• --a box of macramé beads I paid $15 for that was worth $350
• --a flute I bought for $5 that was worth $110

Most items I purchased for around $2 and sold for around $20.

Garage and Estate Sellers Resources
Buy and Sell Antiques and Collectables
For those interested in garage sales and estate sales.

Garage Sale Strategies for eBay Sellers
For those who would like to build an eBay empire by purchasing inventory at garage sales. Inexpensive, and a great starting point to break into this business.

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Crafts

A very popular use for eBay is distribution of crafty items.

I have seen everything from home crafted soy candles and soaps to gorgeous miniature fairy houses.

If you craft, this can be a great outlet for your projects.

A few things to keep in mind:

Be specific in what you craft. Make sure that whatever you are doing can be found by your buyers. For instance, if you make earrings out of fishing lures, make sure that you don't list your earrings as "cute earrings", make sure you list the specific type of lure in your title.

Find a niche. For instance, if you like to create folk artsy things, maybe your niche can be sheep, specifically. So make sheep mugs, sheep clocks, sheep blankets, sheep towels. This would be easier to find than, say, "farm animals". Investigate your interests and see what the market needs.

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Home-Sewn Items

Another option if you like crafting and creating items is to look into the possibilities of adding your own home-sewn items to your auctions to sell on ebay.

These can be great things to sell on ebay.

People are will pay for home sewn goods that they are too busy or not talented enough to make.

What kinds of things?

Costumes: I see creative Halloween and dress-up costumes going for top-dollar. Some year round even.

I once paid $50 for a simple pirate outfit in July for my son to wear to a festival.


Also, people who are into Medieval or Civil War reenactments pay for things year round as well. Simple cotton bloomers and chemises can fetch a good price.

Baby items: cloth diapers, cloth diaper wipes, outfits, blankets and the like typically do pretty well. If you can offer some sort of customization, like the baby's name or birthdate, that could set you apart from other sellers.

Women's items: Cloth menstrual pads, aprons, and traditional clothing sell on eBay well. Things like Amish or modest clothing for women and children are a niche that needs to be filled.

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Wholesale Niche

As you explore some of your interests, you might find that you have a passion for a certain niche. Maybe you are interested in organic products. You might find it advantageous to purchase product wholesale, and sell on eBay in your own eBay store.

Research your desired niche and see what is out there, and what is NOT on eBay. Find a way to market to your group and bring them the items they desire.

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Dropship

Have a good niche market but don't want to deal with inventory?

You need a dropshipper for products to sell on eBay.

What's a dropshipper? A dropshipper will allow you to sell their merchandise without possessing it.

You list the products on eBay, and when you've made a sale, you order the item through your dropshipper, pay, and have the item sent directly to the customer.

You are acting as the middle man, without ever having to go through the hassles of storing or shipping inventory to sell on eBay.

You can choose multiple dropshippers that have products that you like and that will fit your business.

A word of advice on dropshippers: some will charge you a monthly or annual fee to become involved in their program and to sell on eBay. Before signing up, make sure you do a little research on eBay first. Make sure that the eBay market is not overly saturated with the products you are interested in selling, and make sure that no one has undervalued the price.

What do I mean by undervaluing? Many times, inexperienced people who sell on eBay will see others selling the same product that they have. So in order to compete, they drastically lower the price of their item.

Then another inexperienced seller comes along and does the same thing. Soon, ignorant sellers will be selling their items at pennies above cost, forgetting that eBay and PayPal fees still need to be assessed.

These sellers end up paying money out of their own pockets for each sale they make.

Not a good way to sell on eBay.

This is common in dropshipped items, because the inexperienced sellers know they can "get that" at such-and-such price.

Or maybe its because they don't physically have to see the products or do the work like shipping and storing that is usually required. For whatever reason, some items are simply over saturated. Stay away from them.

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Direct Sales Merchandise

Many people in the Direct Sales and Network Marketing Industries sell on ebay their excess inventory. Everything from extras they are not using or maybe received as an award, to business materials.

Many Direct Sales and Network Marketing companies have strict rules regarding eBay; most will not allow their active distributors to sell any items on eBay.

Some companies have taken it a step further and will allow NO ONE the ability to sell any of their products in online auctions. They say specifically that you cannot sell on eBay. But some don't mind, or even encourage it.

Look through your policies and procedures before you decide to sell on eBay.

Oh, and if you ever decide to leave a company, and the policies do not apply to you anymore, your left-overs usually will sell well on eBay.

I have also, in the past, looked for those who have left the Direct Sales industry to buy up their inventory for sale on eBay. My favorite company to buy excess products from is Mary Kay. They have their consultants buy thousands of dollars worth of product, and most ex-consultants will get to a point where they just want it GONE!

I have bought four lots of Mary Kay from ex-consultants since I started to sell on eBay. I got these lots from between $50-150 each, and made $125-800 on them. Let them know that you want all the business materials too, in addition to the product. Consultant supplies are HOT on eBay.

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Free Items

Want to get all your inventory for free?

I have done this in the past as well.

Using coupons and refunds, I have sold thousands of dollars in brand new items, usually health and beauty, from my eBay store.

It is very profitable, very fun, and very, very time consuming.

I have sold the following items on eBay that I got for free, or for pennies on the dollar:

Diapers
Huggies Pull-Ups
Name Brand Formula
Diabetes Monitors
Battery Powered Razors
Tampons
Maxi Pads
Toothpaste
Toothbrushes
Electric Toothbrushes
Batteries
Candles
Air Fresheners
Makeup
Bath and Body Works Items
Victoria Secret Items
Lane Bryant Bras
Pregnancy Tests
Body Wash
Soap
Toys (Lots of Toys)
One Time Use Digital Cameras
One Time Use Digital Video Cameras
And on, and on

It is a rush getting the stuff for free, or nearly free. I can't tell you the number of times I have filled every orifice of my car for less than $5 out of pocket.

And the great part about selling it on eBay: because I got it free, I can sell it low if I need to! No need to hope that I make my money back! Pure Profit!!

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Clearance and Liquidation Sales

Another method of gaining inventory, especially for those who choose to go the coupon and refund route, is to acquire merchandise through clearance sales.

One of my favorite stores to do this at is Target.

Their clearance sales, after major holidays, are great. They eventually reduce their prices to 90% off!

The best two holidays to get stuff for eBay are Christmas and Halloween.

When I go to Target for the 90% off sale after Christmas, I am not interested in the Christmas décor. I am looking for toys. And boy to they have them!

All the extra toys they overstock for the holiday go down to 90% off. None of them say "this is a Christmas toy", they are just regular toys. So I snatch up all that I can to sell on ebay! It is not uncommon for me to fill 3, 4, 5, even 6 carts in one trip.

Last Christmas, my favorite find was a few hundred boxes (went to 4 Targets) of wooden blocks.

These blocks were originally $7.99 a box, for 100 wooden blocks. When I got to them, they were marked down to $1.99 each (they stayed at 75% off though all the other stuff had gone down to 90%).

So I bought all of them.

When I got home, I listed them in sets of two boxes, or 200 wooden blocks. I started the price at $15.99. They fit perfectly into a Flat Rate Priority Mail box for around $9.

Those blocks, which I paid a total of $3.98 for, were selling for $16-25 consistently!

It took seven months, but eventually I sold every last one of them!

Some of the toys I bought did great, while others were duds.

I had 90 days to return toys I didn't want, but eventually I just took them down to our church for next year's holiday drive.

Another place to find awesome clearance deals is Amazon.com.

Does that surprise you? Last year, a week before Christmas, they had the Polly Pocket Cruise Ship go on clearance.for $18.99 with free shipping. I rushed online and bought three. Within hours, the price had risen to $60. (They do that sometimes, change prices multiple times throughout the day.)

I managed to sell all three cruise ships on eBay, days before Christmas, for $55 each. All three buyers paid an additional $30 for overnight shipping so their little girls could have their presents on time.

Oh, and I had done a test drive offer earlier that month and had received a $50 amazon.com gift card, so those cruise ships were nearly free for me!

Sign up for my newsletter for information about deals like this that I find.

I mentioned that Halloween was the other great holiday.

If you have the money and the space, go shopping on November 1st. You will find tons of deals on costumes.

The most profitable store is The Disney Store.

Buy up everything that you can afford at 75% off.

Those costumes will generally sell for full price the following Halloween.

Other stores, when they go down to 90% off, its still a good idea to buy them and store them. Halloween costumes are very popular on eBay. (Don't forget to sell the ones your kids outgrow the following year!)

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Public Domains Works

A new, and incredibly lucrative way to earn money on eBay is to republish public domains works.

Honestly, I cannot believe you can do this legally!

People are making thousands each month on eBay from this one source of FREE material.

The basic idea is that you find out of print books at free sources, such as your library, and so long as the copyright is expired (or nonexistant) you are able to scan the materials to print on a CD or in a binder.

You can then resell these materials completely free!

Find Out More About Public Domain Works Here

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Trading Assistant

For those who do not want to spend their time gathering inventory, you can be an eBay Trading Assistant.

A Trading Assistant (TA) advertises their services as an eBay seller, and sells items belonging to others for a cut of the profits.

Usually, TAs have built up a strong feedback history, and have gained massive eBay experience before becoming a TA. eBay has requirements to become certified TAs and be listed on the site.

Click Here for eBay's TA information


You do not have to be approved by eBay to list items for others, but it is helpful if you would like to make a business of it.

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Other Stuff to Sell on eBay

Here are some useful information sources to check out if you have an interest in any of the following topics:

How to Make Money Selling Auctioned Storage Units
Featured on Entrepreneurial Magazine Radio, this will tell you all about how you can buy someone's forgotten storage unit and make it sell well on eBay.

Build Your eBay eBook Empire
Business guide for putting together an eBook business.

Make Money Tearing Up Newspapers
Interesting guide on how to make money tearing up old magazines and newspapers to resell on eBay. Think outside the box.

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The following links will show you more about listing and selling items on eBay. Each link has more detailed information about each specific subject than what was listed here. Enjoy!

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