How to Actually Make Money on Ebay

The fundamental 4 ways to succeed on Ebay

I know you've heard it over and over form people you know, "you can sell that on Ebay."

But do you really know how to sell your items and make top dollar?

I can tell you how in these five crucial steps:

1) Choosing what to sell- If you don't already have the items I will tell you how to find things to sell that will ACTUALLY sell. Mostly anything that is either NEW in box or NEW with Tags or name brand. If you have one or the other then you are in good shape. Garage sales are a good source of items that you can find new in boxes since most of the time people are selling things they don't want and you can find things are that haven't ever been opened-this is what you need to look for. Baby items are hot sellers. Electronics sell well too.

2) Marketing you item- You can sell anything if you know how to make it look good. Take a great picture of your item. Take the picture during the day to get the best light. Put your item in front of a neutral background that is of a contrasting color. If your item is shiny then take the picture without the flash and during the day to avoid the glare. This is your chance to make your item look better than it actually is.

a. Listing on Ebay- Do research before listing your item. See how much competition is out there. You don't want to list your item when the market is flooded; chances are your item won't sell or worse-sell for way below cost. Start your auction on Sunday and run it for 7 days until the next Sunday since the most people are online at that time. Use auctiva.com to set up your listing to look professional. They provide a free listing service that is connected with Ebay. They also offer hundreds of free templates. Templates will make your listing look professional and therefore legit. Your customers will trust a listing that looks professional more than one that doesn't so will you gain more watchers on your item and the more watchers you have usually means the higher the price will go.

3) Price your Item strategically- Research your completion and start your auction lower than theirs if you can. This will give you an advantage and lots of bids right off the bat. If your item is something that you know has value and you know will sell high and there is little to no similar items then you have the advantage of starting your item low since you know there will be many people vying for the win. If your item has value but you aren't sure how much it is worth to other people then you will want to start your item about 25% less than what you want for it. Put a reserve on items that you wouldn't want to sell below a certain price.

4) Be honest- Describe your item exactly. You don't want to be misleading trust me; it will pay to be honest with how your item looks. If your item is used-say so. If your item is scratched or otherwise damaged then state it so. You will also gain more bidders if you offer an honest return policy. A good way to weed out dead beat bidders is to select the options that Ebay provides you to decline bids from bidders with zero or negative feedback. Once your item is listed check back everyday a few times a day to see if you have questions and answer then ASAP. You could lose bids if you don't answer questions promptly.

Follow these steps and I promise you that you will make money on Ebay, after all if I can do it then anyone can. Good luck!