Can I make a living on ebay?

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TheRallymethod

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is there a way to at least make $1,500 a month on ebay?

I've sold my two pair of used sneakers which were in great condition and a keyboard and mouse... where I made $300 altogether, a few months back.

Welp. I might have to turn back to selling full time on Ebay due to being laid off yesterday.

There's a thrift store 2 blocks from us... and I was thinking about risking $50 to buy some items to resell on ebay. Even if I have to gain small profits... that is completely fine. I just need some income pumping?

Is this possible to do in 2014? I'm not looking to become rich... just need to know is ebay still alive?
 
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You can absolutely make a living on Ebay.

Right now, I work with one of my relatives to sell items we thrift on Ebay. I can tell you that we profit over $100 on some items. The key to all this is to: 1) Be consistent. This means visit thrift stores everyday or every other day. 2) Build relationships. Become good friends with the workers at your local thrift stores, they usually give discounts and can call you up if something worth while popups up in a shipment. 3) Know when new shipments come in. The local thrift store here usually gets new items at around 10 am so we thrift at 10 am and find some amazing items. (For example, a new shipment straight off the truck had a pair of Beats by Dre headphones. I purchased them for $1.50 and sold them for $160). 4) Do research. This is probably the most important advice. Carry around your smartphone. Never pass up an item because it doesn't look like it will sell. Look on Ebay to see if there are any auctions for the item, look at completed listings.

Eventually, if you want to get into e-commerce you can start buying products wholesale and sell them on Ebay or on your own site. This is actually what I'm thinking of doing since my thrifting business is doing well.

If you have any questions feel free to PM me.

All the best,
TheeAriGrande
 
Hey, I'm new on BHW but I have years of experience making a living on eBay. I would go to Thrift Stores, Garage Sales, Storage Auctions, etc. Basically, anywhere that you can find a deal. Your best friend will be Craigslist because there are always motivated people selling stuff. Look for words like, "I'm moving and this stuff needs to be gone ASAP." If you find a motivated seller then you can easily talk them down in price because you have the cash ready. Also, don't limit yourself to selling on eBay, also sell on Amazon and back on Craigslist.

Another good thing to do is make sure everyone that knows you is aware of what you are doing. During college, I had tons of friends that would just sell me the stuff at a cheap price because it was easier for them. I still buy and sell things today but not as frequent. It DOES still work no matter where you are or what year it is.

Two things to add.. Always have your smartphone with you because you will be able to look up anything on the spot. And have a set amount that you would like to profit per item. My amount was $30.00. If I could profit $30.00 or more then I would buy whatever it was. If it was any less, then I would move on to the next thing. This gives you room in case you made a mistake on the cost / resale price so it limits the risk. It is always best to find high ROI, I've many had 200-300% returns. The $30.00 is mostly to keep you away from the small stuff.

Hope this helps and good luck!

Oh yeah, focus on items that people would actually buy. I tend to stay away from stuff that I think would be sitting around for a while. But that's up to you. I never liked inventory, sometimes I would have a buyer before I even found the item. :P
 
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Its hard but can be done, you got to prove yourself, get good feedback and get them to let you sell more then 1000 a month

10 years ago i used to go to chinatown buy fake perfume from the hindus, for 8.00 a bottle and sell it at a discount on ebay for 35....it worked but for every 10 i sold, 1 neg feedback so eventually got banned and overloaded. But i made about 700-1000 a week for a good 2 months! and when that got banned i did it again!


i sell now, but totally legit but its no where near making a living off of yet.
 
Yes. Ebay is still alive and is the world's largest online auction site. Since the thrift store is near you. It may help if you will have a talk to them and make a deal. Say that you will sell a couple of their products online for a number of days so that they will not sold it. If it is working, make it a regular deal.

I have not done this but this may help you while you are looking for a new stable source of income.
 
People are making more than enough money on eBay. Basically, any niche/site is still working, because people do not take time to try them.
 
[h=2]See my post (Buy direct from manufacturer. Once in a life time opportunity. Ebay/Amazon/online sellersI) was making ton of money on ebay. You just go to find your niche.[/h]
 
BELIEVE it or Not....I have actually figured out a way to make far more than that from ebay in a months time. HOWEVER it is very time consuming. Not too bad but it still sucks up a great deal of time and you must be able to react quickly at any given moment.

Best I ever did on Ebay was $4000.00 in one month. Bad thing about this and why I am not doing it now is because it was at the tail end of a divorce, I lost my home and everything in it, was so stressed I fell over dead from heart failure at the age of 28, woke up and just had to start new from somewhere else. Havent yet gotten back to eBay but I am working that direction. Wanted to try something new. But yes it it VERY VERY possible. I guess if you want get at me sometime and I will show you just what worked for me and how.......It may come at a small price but who knows you may catch me on a great day where I just made some money and I wont care. Just saying knowledge is money man.

TheRallymethod said:
is there a way to at least make $1,500 a month on ebay?

I've sold my two pair of used sneakers which were in great condition and a keyboard and mouse... where I made $300 altogether, a few months back.



Welp. I might have to turn back to selling full time on Ebay due to being laid off yesterday.

There's a thrift store 2 blocks from us... and I was thinking about risking $50 to buy some items to resell on ebay. Even if I have to gain small profits... that is completely fine. I just need some income pumping?

Is this possible to do in 2014? I'm not looking to become rich... just need to know is ebay still alive?
Click to expand...
 
I am making quite a decent amount of money on Ebay, however, from my point of view there are three major problems.
1. Fees. They are insane. Ebay owns Paypal and together they really rake it in on commissions.
2. It's a... don't remember the marketing term for it anymore... "flat market", I.E. the barriers of entry are low and everyone can join in. Unless you have a very unique product, somebody else will probably be able to undercut you. And they can almost always figure out where you get your products from.
3. By removing the possibility of giving negative feedback to buyers, Ebay has basically decided that the customer is always right (which most sales people realize is not the truth). As a matter of fact, 1 in 100 customers are nightmare customers, that will change their mind about the purchase, blackmail you with feedback or simply lie about a package not arriving.

My hints to gain an edge on Ebay:
1. Upsell. Sell products within a similar niche. Put a small advertising flyer in each package you send out, that direct people to your site for repeat orders.
2. Upsell also with links to your other ebay ads from within your listings.
3. Add the actual shipping cost into the price of the product and offer free shipping. It is much harder to sell a product for 10 + 2 shipping, than it is to sell a product that costs 12 that offers free shipping.
4. Use brandnames or buzzwords to your advantage. Unless you have access to branded goods (Sony, Apple, etc), then sell "Beyonce style shoes", "Jimi Hendrix guitar picks" or "Red Baron Fokker DR1 model". You get my point.
5. Use Terapeak or similar tools to spot the trends, or get used to reading "completed listings" on a daily basis. There is gold to be made by understanding those stats.
6. Never lock all your funds into stock. The wholesalers want you to buy as much as possible. Your goal is to get a good wholesale price and still buy as little as possible.
7. Put those listings up there as soon as you get your deliveries. Don't have boxes of stuff laying around thinking you'll put up your listings some other day. Act now.
8. If you are selling cheap products, look around to get the best deals on jiffy bags, boxes and postage. What you save here could mean the difference between offering the best priced product, or just the second best.
 
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Customers can be a pain in the ass! I dealt with a nasty customer who signed for the package and collected it but still claimed she never got it. Ebay as usual, ruled in her favor.
 
Yes you can but not now.. Ebay is dead now.. unless you steal items then sell it on ebay..
1- Fees
2- Suspended
3- Paypal limited access
4- Buyer scammed

I used to make $5k-$10k in profit 2-3 years ago.. Now its hard to make even $300 a month
 
Ebay is hell. Too many regulations and punishments. Be sure to know your LAW.
 
Dont use buzzwords. IF Ebay sees that you are doing that they will remove your listing and then suspend your account the second time.

ThreadKiller said:
I am making quite a decent amount of money on Ebay, however, from my point of view there are three major problems.
1. Fees. They are insane. Ebay owns Paypal and together they really rake it in on commissions.
2. It's a... don't remember the marketing term for it anymore... "flat market", I.E. the barriers of entry are low and everyone can join in. Unless you have a very unique product, somebody else will probably be able to undercut you. And they can almost always figure out where you get your products from.
3. By removing the possibility of giving negative feedback to buyers, Ebay has basically decided that the customer is always right (which most sales people realize is not the truth). As a matter of fact, 1 in 100 customers are nightmare customers, that will change their mind about the purchase, blackmail you with feedback or simply lie about a package not arriving.

My hints to gain an edge on Ebay:
1. Upsell. Sell products within a similar niche. Put a small advertising flyer in each package you send out, that direct people to your site for repeat orders.
2. Upsell also with links to your other ebay ads from within your listings.
3. Add the actual shipping cost into the price of the product and offer free shipping. It is much harder to sell a product for 10 + 2 shipping, than it is to sell a product that costs 12 that offers free shipping.
4. Use brandnames or buzzwords to your advantage. Unless you have access to branded goods (Sony, Apple, etc), then sell "Beyonce style shoes", "Jimi Hendrix guitar picks" or "Red Baron Fokker DR1 model". You get my point.
5. Use Terapeak or similar tools to spot the trends, or get used to reading "completed listings" on a daily basis. There is gold to be made by understanding those stats.
6. Never lock all your funds into stock. The wholesalers want you to buy as much as possible. Your goal is to get a good wholesale price and still buy as little as possible.
7. Put those listings up there as soon as you get your deliveries. Don't have boxes of stuff laying around thinking you'll put up your listings some other day. Act now.
8. If you are selling cheap products, look around to get the best deals on jiffy bags, boxes and postage. What you save here could mean the difference between offering the best priced product, or just the second best.
Click to expand...
 
One thing I hate about eBay you cant leave neg feedback for buyers. I believe there still are some people banking on eBay otherwise there wouldn't be so many sellers
 
I think you can make by selling products on Ebay but the problem I too face is tht i dont have credit/master cards but do have verified paypal and cant link ebay with paypal :breakpc1:
 
Its even more better then the past. You can even sell more easily now. Wish you best of luck with your sales..
 
IMpossible said:
Ebay is hell. Too many regulations and punishments. Be sure to know your LAW.
Click to expand...

I agree. As moneymo2018 said too, one jerk of a customer can end your business. eBay will almost always rule in their favor despite their dishonesty. I had one good year on ebay, but came to a screeching halt with a few bad customers.
 
TheHound said:
BELIEVE it or Not....I have actually figured out a way to make far more than that from ebay in a months time. HOWEVER it is very time consuming. Not too bad but it still sucks up a great deal of time and you must be able to react quickly at any given moment.

Best I ever did on Ebay was $4000.00 in one month. Bad thing about this and why I am not doing it now is because it was at the tail end of a divorce, I lost my home and everything in it, was so stressed I fell over dead from heart failure at the age of 28, woke up and just had to start new from somewhere else. Havent yet gotten back to eBay but I am working that direction. Wanted to try something new. But yes it it VERY VERY possible. I guess if you want get at me sometime and I will show you just what worked for me and how.......It may come at a small price but who knows you may catch me on a great day where I just made some money and I wont care. Just saying knowledge is money man.
Click to expand...

APPARENTLY I JUST NEED TO BE IGNORED on this particular topic. MY method although an easy common sense one, is not really a method; I guess. Either way have a great day and just dont ask me. LOL Worked for me thats it.

PS: dont try and reinvent the wheel or anything so someone call goodyear and tell them that tires are tires dude and there is NO possible way to make them perform better than they do LOL
 
Yes you can make decent income off ebay but only if you get the product for cheap at least 40-50% less than market price.
Here's an idea, Try setting up a mobile recycle website. Buy working phones for cheap price and sell them for good profit. I know a guy who make's a good living out of this.
 
I knew someone that was doing the eBay thrift store route and she basically was selling a lot of used sports stuff like Nike t-shirts, NFL jerseys, etc. Well to make a long story short they (eBay) ended up limiting her account. They told her that Nike complained that she was in competition with them selling their brand. Even though it is used items, you sometimes can't sell what you want there. She also had a Monster Energy hat listing removed by them. I would say you could make a few bucks from eBay but I wouldn't count on that for a steady income because you never know when they will pull the rug out from under you.
 
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