A short guide on how to sell on eBay and create a successful brand
eBay is a huge online marketplace where you can sell and buy almost anything. This platform has got 165 million buyers from 190 different countries, and it represents a very important tool if you want to expand the reach of your business or if you are considering opening an online store.
How to sell on eBay: Product categories
If you are reading this, you probably want to understand what you need to do in order to sell on eBay. In this article, we will explain to you in a simple and concise way the various steps that can turn you into a successful vendor.
Before we start, however, you should consider what do you want to sell on eBay. If you already have your own business, you might be already specialized in a sector, if you don’t then you will have to decide what products you want to sell. This marketplace allows you to sell pretty much anything you want, provided that the products you want to sell are not forbidden in your country or in that of the buyer.
eBay is accessible to everyone, both to sellers with VAT IDs and those who do not have them, and it offers accessible rates and conditions.
If you want to make a good profit margin you could consider buying y products from China at very advantageous prices and sell them in your home country.
However, bear in mind that some product categories have got restrictions, such as food, that must have all the necessary certifications and it’s got be sold before the expiry date, and electronic equipment, that has limitations imposed by law.
eBay’s best sellers products
If you want to know what are the best-selling items on eBay, check out the 2018 ranking see them in order of preference:
- mobile phones and related accessories (according to the data released by the company, there a purchase every 4 seconds);
- IT objects such as tablets and PCs;
- audio systems such as mp3, headphones, stereo, etc.;
- dermo-cosmetic products for body care;
- anything related to gardening, from tools to bulbs.
Focusing on one of these categories means embarking on the sale of highly demanded goods, which can have greater earning opportunities.
Alternatively, you could decide to sell private label products on eBay: these are products made by a supplier, but sold under the brand of the store owner (the distributer), in this case, you. These products are cheaper than those of the designer industry because their value is determined only by the materials and production costs. This does not mean that the quality of said products is lower than the designer’s ones since it is very possible that the two items are produced by the same factory, especially in China.
This is why it could be a good idea to create your own brand and sell private label products on eBay.
How to sell on eBay and to open a professional account
If you want to open an account on eBay, you must go on its home page and click on “Register” in the upper left corner, after the registration you will be able to access your account by simply clicking on “Log in” and by inserting your credentials to view your personal page. You will be asked to enter your company name and the type of activity you want to do, the VAT ID, which will also be visible to buyers, and a valid email address. Your user ID is not only a way of accessing the platform, but it is also the name that your customers will see. This is why we suggest choosing a name that represents your business. After you enter the password and answer the secret question, you will need to validate the registration by clicking on a link that will be sent to you by email.
At this point, you are set to start seeing but bear in mind that:
- if you have not entered the VAT ID, eBay will automatically apply the VAT rate in your country;
- you must also open a PayPal account and connect it to your eBay account to receive payments and commissions.
How to sell on eBay 
There are two ways in which you can sell your products on eBay:
- the “Buy It Now” format at a fixed price, suitable for new items;
- the “Online Auction” format, widely used by collectors.
The website also offers you the chance to open an eBay store where you can group all the goods you sell. eBay allows you to customize your offers, you can, therefore, build up your brand identity, which is very useful if you sell Private label products.
In order to make a sale, you must create an effective ad which should include:
- title and subtitle;
- beautiful photographs;
- an exhaustive description of the product for sale;
- the price;
- the delivery conditions and transport costs;
- the security conditions of payments;
- consumer rights, including the right of withdrawal.
Info on costs and shipping
When you sell items, you have listing fees you pay to eBay. These differ according to the type of advertisement format:
- “Online Auction” listings these can be paid in 1, 3, 5, 7 and 10 days;
- “Buy it now” listings you can choose to pay in 3, 5, 7, 10, 30 days or without expiration.
- For shops, it is possible to benefit from free tariffs for 30-day or “no-deadline” advertisements.
- A commission is paid on the value of each item sold, excluding transport costs. If your item was not sold, you do not need to pay anything.
- Online stores have to pay monthly space fees to eBay.
- The members of the Premium Shop benefit from free insertion rates on the sites of Spain, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. While the subscribers to the Premium Plus Shop automatically have the following advantages: free insertion rates on the sites of Australia and Europe, free insertion rates for the first 2500 monthly insertions on the eBay.com and eBay.ca websites.
How to organize your shipping logistics from eBay
As a seller you can take advantage of the eBay Shipping Manager to organize your shipments: this is a reliable service with special shipping rates that eBay has agreed with the most important forwarders. You can manage your shipments in a few steps, by using eBay credentials and importing orders.
What you need to do is to choose the courier that best suits your needs, enter the shipping details and print the labels; you can also create shipments manually or upload them all together, you can pay either every time you ship, or every 15 days via PayPal or credit card.
How to sell on eBay your products bought from China
Now that you understand exactly what you need to do in order to sell on eBay, you need to find low-cost products that can be competitive on this platform.
A good solution could be to buy products from China that fall into one of the categories mentioned above:
- mobile phones and related accessories;
- IT accessories;
- audio systems such as mp3, headphones, stereo, etc.;
- dermo-cosmetic products for body care;
- everything related to gardening, from tools to bulbs.
Since these products are generic and non-branded products, they have the advantage of being very cheap and easy to sell, however, at the same time, they can face very strong competition.
Another route you could take would be to purchase products of the same category from China and to customize them with your own logo to create a real brand and a stronger relationship with your customers.
But how can you buy generic or customized products from China? How can you find the right supplier? How can you organize the shipment and customs clearance?
Don’t worry Yakkyofy will take care of everything for you!
