[Journey] Get Rich or Die Trying! My LONG Journey from $0 to $10,000,000/yr on Ebay

WeChat Screenshot_20250404000044.jpg VS WeChat Screenshot_20250404000618.jpg

Many people here have asked me how does the ebay algo work. My answer is that, I have no idea. This is a AB test we did on our account. These two new accounts different accounts but are identical in every single way. Registration date, account holder etc.

Each listed 20 listings, with identical title/descriptions, identical listing time, no ad spend or mark down promotion. But the one on the left is doing substantially better than the one on the right. My conclusion is that ebay is really a numbers game, don't over think the algo, you will hit gold if you do enough and have a little bit of luck.
 
business accounts have higher limit, so we always use business account

1. Other than higher selling limits, are there other advantages to having a business seller account?
2. Does having a business account make the review or verification process easier?
3. You mentioned business accounts only need the last 4 ssn and the llc number.
- At what point does that come in?
- Do I go straight from opening an account to converting to a business seller profile (after 1-3 months regular history), or do I need to start as an individual seller first and then switch?
4. If I stay as an individual seller, will they ask for the full ssn?

Thanks so much!
 
Great journey! Keep pushing man I'm rooting for you!
 
1. Other than higher selling limits, are there other advantages to having a business seller account?
2. Does having a business account make the review or verification process easier?
3. You mentioned business accounts only need the last 4 ssn and the llc number.
- At what point does that come in?
- Do I go straight from opening an account to converting to a business seller profile (after 1-3 months regular history), or do I need to start as an individual seller first and then switch?
4. If I stay as an individual seller, will they ask for the full ssn?

Thanks so much!
1. Not that we can tell, but high limit is very important for faster growth.
2. it is the same risk of getting suspended.
3. You have different kind of business structure, corporation, LLC, non profit, religious, each one will require different number for ebay. It comes into play when you register for the account, once you input something, you can't change it later on. our practice is to go direct with business account.
4. asking for full SSN was a long time ago, ebay will never do that again because they are too scared of data leak and then they will be subjected to class action lawsuit. With a partial ssn, it is less liability for them and it is easier for people to be willing to open an ebay account.
I following you

What your net profil?
go back a few pages, my 2024 net profit was listed in my annual summary.
 
Thanks for the info! And sorry for more questions below.

It comes into play when you register for the account, once you input something, you can't change it later on. our practice is to go direct with business account.

1) Do you mean signing up as a business account from the start, or starting as an individual, letting it age, and then converting to a biz account?

2) I recall you mentioning they’re on the safe side after the one month mark, or something similar. Possible I got this from someone else, but did I get that right? If so, does it refer to one month after opening the eBay account, or after converting to a business seller account? If not, what timeframe would you consider safest for a seller?

3) It looks like biz accounts require full info (EIN, address, BOI, etc.). I remember you mentioning there’s a limit even w the business info. How many accounts can I use the same business info with before it gets risky?

4) If I pair the same biz info with both my ssn and someone else’s, would that raise any risk? Or is that actually recommended?

5) You also mentioned that the account owner can be different from the llc holder. Does that mean it’s okay to use different owner details (different ssns, addresses, etc) with the same business info?

6) If I register as a sole proprietorship instead, can I just use my (or someone else’s) ssn and skip the full business info?

Thanks again!!
 
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Interesting thread, didn't know E-bay was still that good in the 2020s. Following your journey!
 
Thanks for the info! And sorry for more questions below.



1) Do you mean signing up as a business account from the start, or starting as an individual, letting it age, and then converting to a biz account?

2) I recall you mentioning they’re on the safe side after the one month mark, or something similar. Possible I got this from someone else, but did I get that right? If so, does it refer to one month after opening the eBay account, or after converting to a business seller account? If not, what timeframe would you consider safest for a seller?

3) It looks like biz accounts require full info (EIN, address, BOI, etc.). I remember you mentioning there’s a limit even w the business info. How many accounts can I use the same business info with before it gets risky?

4) If I pair the same biz info with both my ssn and someone else’s, would that raise any risk? Or is that actually recommended?

5) You also mentioned that the account owner can be different from the llc holder. Does that mean it’s okay to use different owner details (different ssns, addresses, etc) with the same business info?

6) If I register as a sole proprietorship instead, can I just use my (or someone else’s) ssn and skip the full business info?

Thanks again!!
1. sign up as a business account.
2. after you open up the account, you will need to wait a bit to see if they suspend you before you start selling. I found one month time is a good time period to be able to tell whether the account is afe or not.
3. it is unlimited, but you just cant use the same business every other day, you need to wait some time after using it before you can use the same info again
4. you can only enter 1 account holder into ebay for every account, so you can only enter 1 set of ssn.
5. the ebay account holder does not need to be the business owner on file.
6. you will still have a FEIN number from the federal if you register for sole proprietorship, FEIN tax ID is what ebay want.
 
Pristine. Thanks a lot. A few more follow ups if you don’t mind:

3. it is unlimited, but you just cant use the same business every other day, you need to wait some time after using it before you can use the same info again
1. If I can’t use the same biz info every day, what’s a safe wait time between accounts?
2. Say I have 50 accounts, fully warmed up, ready to go. How would you plan out the rollout?


4. you can only enter 1 account holder into ebay for every account, so you can only enter 1 set of ssn.
3. Since I need 1 ssn per account, does it matter whose ssn I use, as long as it’s real and matches the account holder info? Is it okay to have different info per account?
For example: Accounts 1,2, 3 with ssn 1, accounts 4,5,6 with ssn2, 7–9 with ssn3, and so on, all under the same Business A info. Would that be fine?
4. If I do this, the idea would be to spread things out a bit to stay under the radar, hoping to avoid detection. Do you think this is a smart approach, or it doesn’t make much difference, so youd recommend I just use one person’s ssn for all accounts with the same biz info?


6. you will still have a FEIN number from the federal if you register for sole proprietorship, FEIN tax ID is what ebay want.
5. For sole proprietorships, do I still need a FEIN if I’m already using my personal ssn? That’s my understanding, as I’ve only used my ssn for any signups under sole props.
6. And if I already have an llc, can I register for a separate FEIN and use that as a second source of biz info? Safely?


Thanks a million again!
 
Pristine. Thanks a lot. A few more follow ups if you don’t mind:


1. If I can’t use the same biz info every day, what’s a safe wait time between accounts?
2. Say I have 50 accounts, fully warmed up, ready to go. How would you plan out the rollout?


3. Since I need 1 ssn per account, does it matter whose ssn I use, as long as it’s real and matches the account holder info? Is it okay to have different info per account?
For example: Accounts 1,2, 3 with ssn 1, accounts 4,5,6 with ssn2, 7–9 with ssn3, and so on, all under the same Business A info. Would that be fine?
4. If I do this, the idea would be to spread things out a bit to stay under the radar, hoping to avoid detection. Do you think this is a smart approach, or it doesn’t make much difference, so youd recommend I just use one person’s ssn for all accounts with the same biz info?



5. For sole proprietorships, do I still need a FEIN if I’m already using my personal ssn? That’s my understanding, as I’ve only used my ssn for any signups under sole props.
6. And if I already have an llc, can I register for a separate FEIN and use that as a second source of biz info? Safely?


Thanks a million again!
1. 2 months
2. just listed the items, there is no special procedure, list the item and wait for it to sell or not sell.
3. info needs to stay the same, you can use different people, but info needs to stay consistent per account
4. you can use 1 person's name and ssn, the whole idea of using multiple is to grow faster, since you don't have to wait
5. TBH, I have not used sole proprietorship for a while, you may be right that no FEIN is requried.
6. if you have a LLC, you will need to apply with IRS for a FEIN.
 
Wow, it's been two years, is your business on ebay doing well, Leon Lai, looking forward to seeing your reply!
 
1. 2 months
1. Do you mean I need to wait 2 months between accounts in order to use the same business info?

2. If so, if I have 50 warmed up “individual” accounts to convert to biz, it’d take like 100 months to get through them all using the same business info? Did I get that right? And if I’m creating new accounts as business from the start, it means I should wait 2 months before signing up the next one to reuse the same info?

info needs to stay the same, you can use different people, but info needs to stay consistent per account

you can use 1 person's name and ssn, the whole idea of using multiple is to grow faster, since you don't have to wait
3. Gotcha. Is there a limit to how many times I can use the same individual’s info (name, ssn, and address) or that’s unlimited too?

if you have a LLC, you will need to apply with IRS for a FEIN.
4. I think you meant ein for llc, and yes, I already have one. If you’ve used fein before, what was it like? Any difference? And if I get one too, would that mean I can use both fein and ein as two different business entities? Would you recommend this? Any risks?

5. If banned after converting to business accounts, can I still use the same biz/ ssn info for new accounts (unlinked)? And is there a wait time like w ssns for individual accts?

6. After creating accts, if they email me asking to contact them to verify my accounts (happened before), should I respond or just deactivate them without speaking to them instead?

7. Regarding bank info, my accounts from my bank are in sequential numbers. Does it matter or raise flags? How would you recommend managing this part? I know no matter where you open your banks, they will probabaly come in sequential order.

Thanks a mil again!
 
1. Do you mean I need to wait 2 months between accounts in order to use the same business info?

2. If so, if I have 50 warmed up “individual” accounts to convert to biz, it’d take like 100 months to get through them all using the same business info? Did I get that right? And if I’m creating new accounts as business from the start, it means I should wait 2 months before signing up the next one to reuse the same info?


3. Gotcha. Is there a limit to how many times I can use the same individual’s info (name, ssn, and address) or that’s unlimited too?


4. I think you meant ein for llc, and yes, I already have one. If you’ve used fein before, what was it like? Any difference? And if I get one too, would that mean I can use both fein and ein as two different business entities? Would you recommend this? Any risks?

5. If banned after converting to business accounts, can I still use the same biz/ ssn info for new accounts (unlinked)? And is there a wait time like w ssns for individual accts?

6. After creating accts, if they email me asking to contact them to verify my accounts (happened before), should I respond or just deactivate them without speaking to them instead?

7. Regarding bank info, my accounts from my bank are in sequential numbers. Does it matter or raise flags? How would you recommend managing this part? I know no matter where you open your banks, they will probabaly come in sequential order.

Thanks a mil again!
1. yes that is what I normally do, since we have many business to rotate, waiting time can be longer.
2. there is no need to create individual accounts, those have the same ban rate as business account.
3. as long as there is wait time between, you can recycle info for individuals.
4. fein and ein are them same thing, they just somtimes called it differently.
5. yes, you can use business that has been banned before.
6. once the account is flagged, I never was able to save any of it, it is always like they will ask you a whole bunch of questions, and then at the end, they will still proceed with the ban. so you should just move on from the start.
7. all banks have their bank account formatted in a certain ways, but since those are such of a large number, it does not really matter on the sequence, ebay won't be able to detect it. It is impossible for your to get two bank accounts that are right in sequence of each other anyways.
 
When ebay account suspended, Where you get these account? these account come with paypal or any other back account?
How much you pay for each ebay account? and Which country ebay account are you using?
 
Congrats of the results. Would love to learn more about this ebay method if possible
 
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