For those who haven't chatted me me...
Been selling on eBay/Amazon/Etsy/Bonanza/eCrater/own website since 1999
Longest live stealth account from 2007
Expected sales of $600,000 with 55% gross margin in 2015 across 20-30 stealth accounts plus 2 legit ones
4 legit LLC's filing taxes
Import from China, Philippines, Vietnam, Korea plus producing domestically
Drop ship for others
As you can see, I am pretty vertically integrated (have had a hand in every thing from production of goods to selling on my own account without outside help).
My ecommerce philosophy is to always prepare for the long run, and to do it right from the beginning so that there are no problems down the road. Generally, you should not ask me to spoonfeed you answers like "If X happens, do Y", since policies and conditions change. You should learn how to think so that you can come up with answers on your own.
10 Commandments of Running Stealth eBay Accounts
Been selling on eBay/Amazon/Etsy/Bonanza/eCrater/own website since 1999
Longest live stealth account from 2007
Expected sales of $600,000 with 55% gross margin in 2015 across 20-30 stealth accounts plus 2 legit ones
4 legit LLC's filing taxes
Import from China, Philippines, Vietnam, Korea plus producing domestically
Drop ship for others
As you can see, I am pretty vertically integrated (have had a hand in every thing from production of goods to selling on my own account without outside help).
My ecommerce philosophy is to always prepare for the long run, and to do it right from the beginning so that there are no problems down the road. Generally, you should not ask me to spoonfeed you answers like "If X happens, do Y", since policies and conditions change. You should learn how to think so that you can come up with answers on your own.
1. Thou shalt never give reason for humanoid eyes of eBay drones to scrutinize your account. The human mind wants to see patterns in a steam of data. Less human contact with eBay means less chance for eyeballs to link your accounts.
2. Thou shalt use separate everything for each eBay account...and that means EVERYTHING (name, address, credit card, bank account).
3. Thou shalt keep all your DSR's above 4.6 and defect rate below 5%, as those are the magic numbers where you go "below average" and subject yourself to MC999 selling restrictions. Also don't forget that the defect rate has to be below 5% in BOTH your domestic and global ratings.
4. Thou shalt always keep in mind that even the lowest minion at eBay can escalate something which leads to your account closure. That means that even a snarky note on their customer survey may lead to a cascade of events that lead to your account closure.
5. Thou shalt remember that 50% of buyers on eBay are idiots who won't read your listings. You must include as much information into the pictures and title as possible, since that's what half the people will make their buying decisions on.
6. Thou shalt always contact customer to let them know if there are problems. NEVER let customer find out that their is a problem by package not being delivered on the day they're expecting it. Vast majority of people are understanding if you explain it to them before they are aware that there is even a problem.
7. Thou shalt not cut corners. Building a successful long term eBay account requires patience of a saint. There are no real short cuts other than your product being as described, the price being right, quick shipment and customer service.
8. Thou shall always promise less than what you can deliver. Never promise something to a customer and not come through.
9. Thou shall not compete with chinese sellers who can make a living off 25 cent profit per sale.
10. Thou shall shut up and read free information available on the internet and follow its teachings. Like anything on internet 99% of what is written is repetitive or useless, but the 1% makes up for it.
2. Thou shalt use separate everything for each eBay account...and that means EVERYTHING (name, address, credit card, bank account).
3. Thou shalt keep all your DSR's above 4.6 and defect rate below 5%, as those are the magic numbers where you go "below average" and subject yourself to MC999 selling restrictions. Also don't forget that the defect rate has to be below 5% in BOTH your domestic and global ratings.
4. Thou shalt always keep in mind that even the lowest minion at eBay can escalate something which leads to your account closure. That means that even a snarky note on their customer survey may lead to a cascade of events that lead to your account closure.
5. Thou shalt remember that 50% of buyers on eBay are idiots who won't read your listings. You must include as much information into the pictures and title as possible, since that's what half the people will make their buying decisions on.
6. Thou shalt always contact customer to let them know if there are problems. NEVER let customer find out that their is a problem by package not being delivered on the day they're expecting it. Vast majority of people are understanding if you explain it to them before they are aware that there is even a problem.
7. Thou shalt not cut corners. Building a successful long term eBay account requires patience of a saint. There are no real short cuts other than your product being as described, the price being right, quick shipment and customer service.
8. Thou shall always promise less than what you can deliver. Never promise something to a customer and not come through.
9. Thou shall not compete with chinese sellers who can make a living off 25 cent profit per sale.
10. Thou shall shut up and read free information available on the internet and follow its teachings. Like anything on internet 99% of what is written is repetitive or useless, but the 1% makes up for it.
