Ebay

How do I Know What to Sell on eBay?

This is a fair question. There are some guides for potential sellers, but the truth is that a little creativity and a lot of research are what will really help a seller do well on eBay. Ebay Pulse is a guide that will give you an overall idea, but remember that many of these products are within markets that are already over-run with sellers. Categories like electronics and phones have so much competition, it’s almost impossible for a new seller to compete. So how can you compete?

Find a Niche Market

Niche markets are the key. Are you involved in social media? What topics are trending? Justin Bieber  has been a popular topic as of late. Could you sell a product based on a celebrity or news? You bet.

I  had a professor suggest that his students sell shirts with funny slogans about the latest celebrity scandals. By watching what key words are popular on Google, he said we’d know what kind of shirts to sell. Looking at current trends and news may inspire you. Just remember that in this type of business, you have to know when to stop selling. You don’t want your product to be old news.

Stay Ahead of the Game

Trending products can be the same way so don’t wait until you see that an item is gaining popularity in retail stores to move forward with it. Why? 1. Retailers will be hard to compete with because they buy in bulk and can get lower prices than the average seller. 2.The fad will be ready to end and you’ll get stuck with unsold merchandise. You have to stay ahead of the game.

My alma mater allows the business program to sell items on campus as part of their entrepreneur curriculum every semester. For some students, it’s their most dreaded semester.  For others, it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity they’ll never forget.  Some of them included things like stick-on covers for laptops and cell phones, and wood plaques with etched poems, photos, and pictures on them.  But some of the most profitable businesses included a hot dog stand, a sunglasses booth, and a garbage service.

The less saturated your market the better.  But then you’ll have to create a need for your product. You’ll need to advertise your product extensively to create awareness. But if competition already exists, don’t worry. Let them open the door of awareness and you can enter the market as another, perhaps, better option.

There’s a rule of thumb in advertising that I’ll call the “Business Triangle.” Each corner of the triangle represent three things. 1. Price 2. Quality 3. Speed. Like the principles above, you can’t have all three without at least one corner of the triangle suffering. If you pick speed and price, quality will generally suffer. If you pick price and quality, the speed will be affected. Think about this and use this to market your products. If you take more time because you are looking to deliver quality to your customer, advertise this on your website. Pick two of these qualities and apply the principles to your products and your website.

Lastly, if you want to be innovative, be innovative.  Retail chains like Walmart do well because they offer everyday items, but there is something to be said of the smaller company that offers unique, handmade, or one-of-a-kind items.  There is value in it.  Take Etsy for example.  They have become a popular website for this very reason.  So although there is plenty of thinking and products to offer “inside the box,” don’t be afraid to venture outside of it.

So as a recap, remember:

Be fair to yourself and sell a product that can be successful. By doing your research and taking into account these tips, you can build yourself a profitable business on eBay. Good luck, but then again, with the right product you won’t need it.

Want to get more tips for having a successful online business? Visit us on Twitter: @gogodropship or read other posts on our blog.

Northeast Coffee Company
Nantucket Brand
Swimsuits for All
Fat Brain Toy Co.
P&S Fishing Tackle, Inc.
Tire Wholesalers
Bait N’ Hook
American Recreation Equipment, Inc.
Karate Depot
Handbag Crew
Bargain Wholesaler
Dog Supplies
RMF Scrubs LLC
Allegro Medical Supplies Inc.
All Authentic Sports Memorabilia
Wholesale Gifts Direct
Sport Supply Group
Puppia International Inc.
ATAFA
Alternative Healthcare
Vitamix Laboratories

For more information about dropshipping or to sign up for a package or a free trial (no credit card required), please visit GoGo Dropship.

The reason for this is that the wholesale price is generally based off of the amount of product you are willing to purchase at one time.  At the dropship level, for instance, you are receiving a wholesale price, but your price point is going to be lower, because you are ordering a single item at a time.  If one of your competitors approaches the supplier, and asks if they can get a better price if they purchase ten items at once, for instance, most suppliers are willing to do so.

The strength of having a dropship site is that we are not having to carry any inventory, or do any of the shipping ourselves, but that of course comes with downsides.  Our profit margins can be solid, but if we are trying to compete price per price against a competitor, it is he who orders the most at once who will be able to negotiate the lower price.  Purchasing at wholesale is the natural evolution of our business, which is why it is important to realize that there is not any singular wholesale price, but it is instead a fluid concept, that we can use to our advantage as our business grows!
 

I’m talking once again about the dreaded middleman, the proverbial whipping boy of the dropship world. These rapscallions get continually better at hiding themselves as wolves among the sheep, but as good as they are, they still slip up, and red flags can be raised.

While its easy to flag oneself as a wholesale dropship company, it can be pretty easy to find out just how true that statement is. Let’s examine it bit by bit. Wholesale? No brainer. Means you’re not buying at retail. Dropship? Its a wholesale company that ships a single product at a time, usually for some nominal fee if at all. Company? Company. Simple terms, simple rules to follow.

A middleman will try to muck up the rules, but being inherently simple, its a pretty easy task for you to see past the deception. When a “wholesale dropship company” violates even one of the three words, you know you have cause for alarm.

Wholesale is a big world, so sometimes you can see some discrepancy between one “wholesale” price and another. To be expected, but still something to watch for. If one wholesale price is precariously high above all the rest, perhaps caution is the way to go.

Next, we have dropship. If your “dropship company” requires a minimum order that is much higher than the cost of an individual item, you’ve got a problem. The concept behind dropshipping lies in single items, and if your company doesn’t know that, chances are they’re not quite on the level.

Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. There are often products that have high demand, but apparently very little competition. Sounds like the heavens have opened up, and you have found your manna from heaven. Often when something sounds too good to be true, that’s because it is. These great numbers are almost always because there just plain isn’t a wholesale dropship company out there that’s going to be able to help you.

There are a variety of reasons why a product may just be unavailable. Perhaps its not a popular item on the internet; athletic shoes are a good example of that. Maybe someone else has a stranglehold on the market; big brick and mortar stores that have carved out a niche often don’t want to be sharing any piece of that pie with online stores.

Whatever the reason, you have to realize that such situations exist, and be able to plan accordingly. It can be frustrating at times, but you just have to keep your eyes on the prize, and keep on searching!

Having scoured your handy wholesale dropship directory and finally come to the point where its time to get in contact with a supplier, you’re going to have to wow them, but the way to do it isn’t with a snazzy new suit, but a fine toothed comb. The most common way these wholesale dropship companies ask you to get in contact with them is by filling out an online application. While a lot of it is simple fill in the blank fields for business names and license numbers, you are often going to be asked for a little bit about yourself.

A supplier isn’t going to expect the next great American novel, but they are going to expect that you’re going to pay attention to grammar and spelling, and generally make sure any information you put in isn’t at a sixth grade level. This is your first impression, and as everyone knows, a first impression goes a long way, so you’re not going to want to mess that up!

Once you’re sure you’ve no typographical errors, the next step is to follow the suppliers’ instructions to the letter. They will generally have a lot of applicants, and they can easily afford to stop considering one or two if they show that they’re not willing to follow the rules that the supplier has set up. We understand that many are eager to get things moving, but skipping steps, or badgering the account department is a quick way to a bad impression and a possible rejection on your dealer application.

Follow instructions, pay close attention to details and exercise an extra little bit of patience, and you’ll be working hand in hand with your wholesale dropship companies like a pro in no time!