My wife has been operating her eBay business now for about 3 years.
I have watched her progress with great interest; the jubilation and sometimes her utter frustration.
Her original intention was (and to an extent, still is) to build a successful business to add to her other business interests.
Whilst personally, becoming a member of the eBay community has never really set my pulse racing, I have no doubt that for some, the business can prove lucrative and sometimes, fun.
As with any new business you are proposing to get into, it is important to have a plan.
Yes, the plan can be modified with the benefit of experience, but it really helps to determine in your own mind, what you want to achieve from the business at the outset and how you are going to achieve your goals.
This is as important with eBaying as it is with any other start up home based business.
It seems to me there are predominantly three types of eBayer profiles: First we have the "dabblers".
These are people who enjoy the experience of selling the odd item here and there.
The items they list are usually sourced from a clear-out of the attic, children's bedroom and garage etc.
Expectations in terms of earnings are usually very modest and if they end up getting a few dollars for unwanted items and at the same time de-clutter the house, well the exercise is worthwhile and satisfying.
The dabbler usually has no ambition to take the business any further.
In essence, eBaying from time to time, is a hobby.
Next we have the person with slightly more ambition; someone who wants or needs to make a part-time income from the business.
This could be a work at home mom or someone who is already working for an employer part-time and wants to continue to earn the same level of income, but working for themselves at home.
For such people, the need is to sell items on a daily or regular basis; therefore, the challenge is to find a product or products which are in demand.
For example, my wife is very smart at making girl's dresses and she also knits really nice sweaters.
She also sources kid's necklaces and bracelets.
These product lines form the basis of a nice little income.
I think the point about the products you sell is that you don't necessarily have to sell manufactured items.
If you have a talent for making or creating things, why not put those talents to good use.
Lastly, we have the Powerseller or wannabe Powerseller.
These are people or organisations that are deadly serious about making as much money as they can from their eBay business.
A new level of sophistication comes into play; bulk purchasing of products, storage facilities, often a fully customised e-commerce website and a finely tuned marketing strategy.
Given the number of sales the powerseller makes, some prefer to use the services of a drop-shipper i.
e.
they outsource the order fulfillment side of the business to concentrate on marketing their products.
They have also developed their own product niche and of course, made sure their pricing strategy is highly competitive.
The professional powerseller is always mindful of his reputation and therefore has to maintain a high feedback rating (as near to 100% as possible).
Yes, make no mistake, some powersellers make a very good living indeed, but the demands of being in the top echelon of eBay, in terms of time, commitment and energy are not going to be for everyone, even if they do have sufficient business acumen.
So, if you have been contemplating becoming an eBay seller, which category do you think you might fit into?