How to turn your eBay business into a serious business

There are few businesses where you can just wake up one morning, decide you want to sell something and be in business an hour later.

Yet that’s exactly what you can do with global internet auction phenomenon eBay. As anyone who has ever sold a DVD they didn’t want any more knows, eBay is quick, simple, reliable and easy.

But does selling on eBay count as a real business? Many people around the world seem to think so. There are hundreds of thousands of professional sellers whose main income relies on eBay.

When you look closer at the website, you realise that it is only a selling platform. The company itself doesn’t buy or sell anything. It is simply acting as a way for sellers and buyers to find each other easily.

And when you know that, it becomes clear that selling on eBay is in fact no different to selling through a traditional High Street retail store.

The difference is that set-up costs are minimal. And while you have the option of using advanced selling tools such as an eBay store, you can simply list multiple items and hope they sell.

What really makes selling on eBay a genuine business is that you must take into account many of the things that all other small companies do:

Market research: There’s no point setting out to sell an item at £10.99 if thirty other sellers offer it for £10.50. Before you pick the kind of items you want to sell, search for them on eBay and determine who your competitors are likely to be. If the item is not sold on eBay, is that because buyers don’t look for it there? eBay isn’t perfect for all items sold over the internet.

Good supply: If you decide to set up an eBay store specialising in model railways, do you have a good wholesaler who can keep you well stocked? Running out of stock is a threat to your business, especially if you build a reputation for trading in one particular type of goods. Smart businesses use multiple suppliers.

Pricing: This could be one of the most difficult issues with your eBay business. The way the eBay platform works makes it very simple to compare prices of similar products from different sellers. They have even tackled the way some sellers were loading extra profit onto the postage & packing cost, by showing the P&P price in searches.

Your pricing strategy should take into account the different types of buyers that use the site. People who use Buy It Now just want to get the goods and will pay your fixed price, whereas people who bid on auctions are more likely to invest time bidding in return for a bargain.

Your market research should tell you whether you can make a good profit. Do the costs of purchasing the item, paying postage costs and eBay fees still leave you with a profit? Don’t forget to look at the time cost of buying an item, transporting it to your home, storing it, photographing it, listing it, and sending it.

Marketing: eBay makes this easy by sending a supply of traffic to your goods. If someone wants what you sell, they will find it. But you can still apply basic marketing rules to your listings. Take great photos, give lots of information, and spend time getting your listings perfect. You can also think what kind of words people might type in to find your products, and ensure they are in your item headline.

Reputation: The eBay feedback system is the perfect way of developing a great reputation… and of seeing it quickly destroyed. Sellers are always happier buying from people with a high percentage of positive feedback. On eBay, your feedback is your reputation. Develop it then guard it jealously.

Customer service: And the key to great feedback is great customer service. Send items quickly, package them well and communicate frequently with your buyers.

Why not try some of our other eBay business guides.