Getting Started Selling on eBay!

As an entrepreneur, I've had many successes on the eBay. Although I won't tell you how to make millions of dollars, I do believe that you can generate a comfortable amount of pocket change with minimal effort.

Several years ago, I began selling fat quarters on the eBay. For those of you that don't know what a fat quarter is, let me explain. If you take 1 yard of fabric and cut it in half, and then cut each piece in half again you will have 4 fat quarters.

I would watch for sales on interesting fabric that was 100% cotton. Quilters prefer 100% cotton fabric. Usually I would pay $3 per yard or less. At $3 per yard, each fat quarter cost .75 cents.

When loading my auctions on the eBay, I would set the price of each at $1.99. I also charged a flat shipping fee of $1 to cover the cost of the mailer and drive to the post office. I would often combine shipping for multiple purchases.

Over a 2 year period, I sold hundreds of fat quarters. Often the winning bid was $1.99, but many times bidders would become frenzied in a bidding war driving the sale price up to $10 or $20 dollars. One piece went for $32.50!

I'm not out to earn millions, I do enjoy selling odds and ends. Over the years we have used the funds generated from our sales to vacation every summer, and for our children's sporting endeavors.

A number of friends and family members have also found their sales niche at the eBay. Although they have not made millions either, they each enjoy the small income and satisfaction that comes from creating an auction and selling each item.

Often, and item that you least expect will become a hot item for sale. My parents ran a small hardwood shop for many years. While running their business they always had on hand burls. At their business, these rarely sold gathering dust over the years. Just to pass the time, they put one of the burls up for auction on the eBay netting a sale amount of 2/3^rds more than the sale price in the business.

Since that time, my folks have moved into the sale of jewelry, which is lighter and easier to ship. Another family friend sells home schooling supplies.

To help with your sales, it often helps to have a Paypal account to allow your customers the ability to pay with a credit card or from their checking account without sending you a check through the mail. A Paypal account is simple to set up, and easy to use.

For those budding eBay enthusiasts, let me offer up these tidbits of advice:

1. Start your sales in the fall. Summer is unbearably slow for most sellers.
2. Sell a lot of something very inexpensive to build a feedback rating quickly.
3. Look for a niche market.