How to Start an eBay Business at Home

Several hundred thousand people earn their living selling full-time on eBay, all from the comfort of home. Learn how to make money on eBay either full-time, part-time, or as a profitable hobby.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Computer with internet connection
• Digital camera
• Items to sell
• eBay account

1. Visit the eBay website and watch the eBay Seller Audio Tour. This video can be found by going to the help pages and searching for "seller audio tour."
2. Once you have decided that you want to give eBay a try, open an eBay account.
3. If you are unfamiliar with eBay, buy a few small things that you will actually use (such as office supplies or cosmetics) to learn the process and get a feel for how eBay works. You should buy a few small items before you start to sell for 2 reasons:
   
   1) You want to accumulate a few feedback points on your profile. It is very difficult to sell anything on eBay with zero feedback.
   
   2) You want to become familiar with how eBay works before you jump in a start selling.
4. Register for a Paypal account. Over 80% of the 244 million eBay members will use Paypal to pay for their items. Not having a Paypal account will drastically reduce your customer base, and your sales.
5. Join groups, forums, and support websites where you can interact from other sellers and learn from them. The best way to learn about eBay, as with anything in life, is to talk with other people about their experiences. You will save a great deal of time and money by learning from other sellers' mistakes.
6. Experiement with new products. Make small investments and try new products to test them out and see what kind of results you’ll get. eBay is constantly evolving and no trend will last forever. Experience is the best teacher.
7. Read blogs, article sites, printed books, and eBooks on eBay selling. Be careful not to get duped into buying "Get Rich on eBay" kits. As a power seller with over 4 years experience, and 13,000 sales, I am here to tell you that you aren't going to get rich selling on eBay, very few actually do. eBay selling is a fun, profitable, and convenient way to make money from home. eBay is just like any other entrepreneurial adventure - it takes time, patience, dedication, and hard work.