EBay

Earning from eBay

Trading on the belief that one man’s trash is another man’s treasure, online auction site eBay has taken the world by storm. This online community, allows you to sell items and hidden treasures that you no longer need or want.

How to get started

Step 1: Identify the items you are looking to sell, take a digital image of them and jot down a brief description of each item in Word or similar program.

Step 2: Go to http://www.ebay.com.au and register with the site. At this stage you will have to click a link in your email to activate your account.
It is also recommended to sign up to PayPal (http://www.paypal.com.au), the largest online transaction company in the world, owned by eBay and is the preferred method of payment on eBay.

Step 3:
Log into your eBay account.
At the top right of the page, there are a number of tabs. Run your mouse over the Sell tab and a dropdown menu will appear.
Click on the “Sell an item” tab.
On the next page, click the “Start selling” button.
You will now have to enter three words that are relevant to the item category.  For example, if you were selling a computer monitor, you would put in the brand name (dell), size (17”) and type of item (computer monitor). A list of categories will appear, select at least one. You may have to pay additional fees for more than one category. Select a title carefully and try to be as descriptive as possible.
Attach at least one photo of the item to your listing.
Insert the prepared description into the area. Think carefully about how you describe it in the title and body content, as this will set you apart from similar items.
You will also need to fill in details about the merchandise, i.e. condition, colour, size, etc.

Step 4: Select the reserve price, which is the lowest price you will accept for the item. You can also select a “Buy Now” price, which is a price you would be happy to skip the auction for and take straight away. You also need to select the duration of the auction (3 days is normally optimal), and how you wish to be paid for the item. Select how a potential buyer can contact you (email is best here).
Select your postage options, eBay can calculate the postage or you can specify your costs for all buyers. You can also list pickup from your house if the person is in the same state to save on postage costs for the buyer.

Step 5: Review all the information and once you are happy that it is all correct, you can now post your ‘treasure’. Buyers are allowed to ask you questions, so be prepared to check your email.

Step 6: You will be advised of the details of the winning bidder and provided with the final price and contact details. Contact and arrange payment, remember, never send the item before you receive payment!

Step 7: Once payment is received, send the item and leave feedback on the purchaser’s eBay with positive feedback, as the person will leave you feedback when they receive the item, which will gain you a positive reputation and increase bids on your items in the future.

Congratulations, you have become one of millions of people buying and selling on eBay every year!

While eBay may be the biggest, there are more websites offering similar services.
Other sites include:

Gray’s Online – this site specialised in liquidation stock and bulk buys direct from manufacturers and retailers.

Oztion – this site is an alternative to eBay and is an Australian based site.

Bidsell – You’ll be hard pushed to spot the difference between this site and eBay but they are not the same.

Successful bidding on EBay

Almost everyone has looked at items one EBay or tried to purchase something, many unsuccessfully. Here are three handy tips for successful bidding.

Tip 1. Set yourself a limit and do not go over it. Make sure you know how much the product would cost retail, and subtract the postage fee from this price, then you will see the price level to which you need to bid.

Tip 2. When bidding, only bid in the final hour. Bidding before this time generally will only raise the final purchase price. If you cannot be at the computer at the time of auction ending, set your limit ahead of time, and put this as your maximum bid.

Tip 3. The last minute bid. Everyone gets frustrated at the auctioning system, but you can use it to your advantage to get the product every time. As long as you have a fast broadband connection, you can keep refreshing the auction page (F5 button) to see how long is left on the auction and post your bid in the last 10 seconds to secure the product.

Good luck and happy bidding!