Ebay

I have sold my children's outgrown, gently-used clothing on eBay ... to support my shopping habit for them! ;) I only sell their name-brand items though. I think that's all that makes enough to be worth my time. I sell their Gymboree, Janie & Jack, GAP, and other similar items.

I, personally, only accept PayPal as payment (which does take a chunk of the money as a fee), and eBay takes quite a bit of money, too. I usually end up making about 75% of what the item actually sells for ... and to be honest, I think I make more money selling on eBay (and have met loyal customers that have become repeat buyers) than taking name brand stuff to a consignment store.

I ship everything via PayPal printing my own USPS labels and mailing from home. And, I only sell "in season" clothing, too ... just to make the biggest amount for my clothing. I store the off season clothing in storage bins until time to sell. I usually try to sell twice a year (fall/winter & spring/summer) and try to put up as many auctions as I can at the same time and offer combined, discounted shipping (I think that draws in some buyers).

Good luck! I bought for quite a while on eBay, and then started selling. This is the first year I'll be selling my son's and daughter's clothing ... it is very time-consuming, but I'm hoping to make some good money! ;) Best wishes to you!

I have made my living selling on eBay for the last three years. I started selling when my firstborn was about 6 mos old as a way to get out of a traditional job and stay at home. Now I resell for large companies that are liquidating overstock and obsolete business and industrial equipment. I have found it is a good way to make a living, but like a traditional job, it is still really hard work. I have a 4-month old at home now too! It can be quite time consuming, but is not hard to do at all once you get the hang of it.

You do not have to have a tax ID, although you should report your income each year when you do your taxes. eBay fees are high at times, it all depends on what you are selling, how much you are selling it for, etc.

There is a strategy to selling to maximize your earning potential. I have a lot of experience with kids' clothes and I have found that designer clothes and shoes sold in lots sorted by size sell the best and make the most money. Don't expect to get back what you have in the items, even for items that are new with tags, unless they are very high demand items. eBay will typically bring in 50% of retail value, so you will want to price your items realistically. Say you have a lot of 4 pair of name brand shoes, Children's Place, Gap, etc. You have maybe $60 in all the shoes. You'll probably be lucky to get around $20. More expensive items like Stride Rite shoes you can sell individually, but should still plan on getting back about half of what you paid for them, assuming they are in good shape.

You will want to mark up your shipping fees to make a small profit, either by increasing your handling fee - realistically, no more than $5 for packaging and transport to the post office, FedEx or wherever. USPS Priority mail is popular and affordable for small, light items, while FedEx Ground is the most affordable for larger, heaver items. UPS and DHL are the go-to guys for HUGE, HEAVY items. For International shipping, use USPS International Priority - they are the easiest and cost the least on duties and taxes on the receiving end. To quote your shipping cost, go to USPS.com or FedEx.com and click the links to 'calculate shipping', add your weight and package dimensions in there and it will spit out an estimated shipping cost. I usually take that cost, add $5 and put that as my ship fee. I have had no complaints and have a 100% feedback rating.

Your overhead will be:
1) cost for your time
2) eBay fees (they charge listing fees on the front end and final value fees - a small percentage of your sale price on the back end)
3) PayPal fees (2-3% of your sale price - this is kind of like a credit card transaction fee)
4) packaging fees for supplies like tape, bubble wrap, etc. USPS Priority Mail boxes and envelopes are FREE and they will deliver them to your house if you order them from USPS.com
5) GAS to drive to the post office

Make sure you have a good digital camera, a scale - a digital bathroom one works, but make sure it will read items under 5 pounds, as most won't. And ALWAYS describe your items completely. Has it been worn/washed/dry cleaned? Any stains or defects? Does it come from a smoke/pet free home?

Make sure that you have the time to devote to maintaining your auctions. A standard auction can go for 1 day, 3 days, 5 or 7 days. Most activity on auctions that do not have Buy it Now options happens in the last 2 days. You want to list your items at night so that the auctions will end at night - when Moms are at home on their computers bidding it away after the kids go to bed. I sell business equipment, so I start and end my auctions during the week during business hours to reach my core market. Make sure you check in frequently to answer any questions potential bidders may have about your items.

It is also good business to offer a shipping discount if someone buys multiple items from you. You can waive your handling fee or discount it in some way. I do not suggest shipping multiple items in the same package though because I have had buyers that tried to say they didn't receive something when I KNOW I put it in the box just so they could get a refund. Which brings me to...

Crazy eBay people. They are there, you can't avoid them. It doesn't happen often, but when you get a nutcase, it is always a MAJOR headache. The new eBay rules do not allow sellers to leave negative feedback comments for buyers that flake out on paying or who cause headaches, so it is harder for sellers to protect themselves against crazy eBayers.

Please feel free to email me if you have any questions about how to get started, etc. eBay has great tutorials on how to start selling. I use their Turbo Lister application to list multiple items at once. It is free, and not the most convenient tool of its kind out there, but it works for me.

I started like you, selling stuff I had around the house like old printers and baby gear. Then I went to work for an eBay store and I sold things on consignment for people. I have sold everything from Barbie dolls to Harley Davidson motorcycles and everything in between. Now I operate from home consigning things for businesses and have found it a great part time job to enable me to stay at home with my second baby. Now I am a PowerSeller on eBay and I am about to expand my business. Good Luck and please don't hesitate to let me know if I can offer any help! eBay is complex, but not as bad as you might think.

I sold a bunch on Ebay a couple of years ago. It is very time consuming, and there are too many fees, so if you want to do well you have to really research what items actually make money. Like someone else said, your best bet is the name brand clothing. I joined a group called "Here comes the stork" for helpful advice on selling. Their forums were especially helpful. I also would look at completed sales to see how high things were selling for. I made some great money selling my baby's swing (was popular) a large outdoor plaything (pick-up only) and sets of baby clothing "lots". Now I prefer to take my stuff to a local consignment shop as I make decent money and don't have to do the work.

Oh, I almost forgot... It was extremely helpful to buy a postal scale and print out the postage online. I bought my scale on Ebay (very reasonable) and then it allows you to use Paypal funds (which your customer has paid) towards the shipping costs. Much better than waiting in line at the post office and paying your own money (while waiting for the paypal funds to kick in)

Best of luck to you. It can be rewarding, but be careful.

R.

Hey S., yes I sell from on ebay from my home. I can sell it for you or you can do it yourself. Some weeks are better than others. Your best investment would be a nice digital camera you can purchase ____@____.com don't neccessary need a business id, you can get one from ebay. Be cautious of the 'buy a cd' to ebay deals b/c you may purchase it for $1.95 and then they charge you $39.95 a month forever. :) So your best thing would be to continue doing research via ebay only. They have so many workshops you can read up on. Also everything Rachel said is correct, that is what I do also. I purchased a cheap scale, I buy my postage on line, and do everything with paypal. If you still have questions contact me and I will try to help you. Also some sites you can list on for free.

Hi, I've done some selling on Ebay and it is fairly easy. I, also, only take paypal as payment. Even if you want to sell non name brand items, I would recommend selling them as a big lot. For example all your spring/summer items in one age/size range would be great to list now. I take my items to the post office first to find out what the shipping would be. I only ship US. Make sure you use a zipcode the furthest away from you. I lost a little on shipping once.

I tried e-bay. I had some really nice things to sell too, but honestly I made more money selling them at a yard sale. Ebay was very time consuming and I really did not enjoy it. I got caught in shipping charges and re-list charges and then had to pack and ship everything. I have put my time to better use selling something I actually enjoy. I sell toys, specifically Educational toys for children! I searched for about 6mths and found a company called Discovery Toys. You may have heard of them, or even played with them. Discovery Toys has not had a recall in 30years. Not many companies can say that. I make a generous commission, get lots of free toys and all tons of free training and support. I love what I do, because I get paid to play. Part of my "job" training is to play with my son. No other company can offer that!

Feel free to visit my website: www.discovertoyslink.com/rassega

or you can call me ###-###-####

I would be more that happy to share more about what I do and how you can get paid to play too!

I honestly tried selling on ebay as well in my journey to looking to earn money from home without any succes because the shipping always took most of the money, but i did find a legitmate business that I do from home that has blessed me and my family both financially and with more quality time together if you are interested check it out www.momstakeaction.com
hope this helps
C.
director.

Hey,

Have you ever considered becoming an Independent Consultant for Arbonne. You could still stay at home with your daughter and earn a supplemental income while doing it. I began my Arbonne business just a few months ago and am having an amazing time meeting other people and building a home based business to boot.

Check out my site www.abriggs.myarbonne.com.

My number is on the site please feel free to call or email me with questions.

Are you in Jacksonville or buy camp lejeune. Because there is a great website lejeuneyardsales.com that is just like ebay but no shipping. And you can always find a buyer for kids clothes.

Hi. I saw your message. I sell some stuff on ebay still but its not worth selling as a business. It took so much of my time and I have 2 kids, it didn't work for me. I live in Central North Carolina. The only thing that has worked for me is selling Avon, and I have tried everything, and make enough to suffice my hubby working more hours. As I said I am a stay at home mom with 2 kids and we were totally broke. I couldn't afford these "businesses" because they want so much money to start and they have obligations. With Avon it is wonderful. 10.00 to start nothing more, you can get your own website, no contracts, no obligations to buy anything, everyone knows the company, you can sell anywhere in the world with your website, you don't have a minimum order. If you don't place one it doesn't matter. If you want to talk about it, please call me at ###-###-#### or email me at ____@____.com or visit my website at youravon.com/jryan3086. thanks

J. Ryan

Hi S.!
I did Ebay for awhile but it didn't work for me. I did find something else though!
I am the mom of a 2.5 yr old and one on the way!
If you are looking for a work at home business, I would love to talk to you about mine. I have worked for someone else my whole life. It makes me sad to think about all the firsts I missed with my son. He is growing up too fast! So now with the one on the way - I have been blessed to be able to stay home and work. It is so worth every minute I put into this business. I am able to work when and where I choose. I have the freedom to see my son grow up , and I'm not a stranger. I can work anywhere and everywhere without losing time with my family. If you wish you could be with them instead of your 9 to 5 job, please contact me. I can help.

www.themomteam.com/familywellness

I used to sell quite a bit on ebay until I started doing local consignment sales. They usually cost $5 or less to enter and you get a percentage of what the items sell for. You also get to price your items yourself. I usually do 3-4 a season.

It doesn't take much to set up a seller account on Ebay. Clothing sold it lots seasonally seem to do really well. Also if you have a Just Between Friends sale in your area that is another good way to get rid of items that are in good condition.

Ebay has some hidden fees so you need to read up on what you sign up for but in all it is a great place to shop. I'd would suggest you set up a buyers account and have good feedback before you set up your seller account as people tend to be a little leary about purchasing from someone who doesn't have any positive feedback.

Hi Everyone,

This message is really for anybody but especially for those that sell on ebay. I don't know if any of you have heard of Big Crumbs? Big Crumbs is a free site where anybody can link to stores and earn rebates back on their purchases. It doesn't cost anything to join, there are no minimums to buy and they pay you monthly by pay pal. Basically they give you a free website and when you want to shop online at stores such as walmart, kohls, ebay, etc. you go to your site and link to the other sites that you want to shop at. By doing this, you accrue commissions on your purchases. It's really a great way to make an income or to just make some extra money back on your own purchases. When you go onto the site, you will see that there are two different accounts that you can sign up for and they are both easily explained.

FOR EBAY SELLERS..I"m going to copy and paste this info directly from the site so that you can see how it can greatly benefit you!

The eBay Seller's Opportunity

eBay sellers have an audience with savvy, active eBay buyers who are looking for ways to save money.

BigCrumbs is a natural fit for these buyers, so it only makes sense that eBay sellers have had great success in referring them.

Here are some tips, directly from the front lines:

Do's:

1. Use your "touch points" with buyers to let them know about BigCrumbs, this includes payment confirmations, answers to bidder questions, etc. Some sellers even include printed cards about BigCrumbs in their packaging.
2. Be sure that such messages are subtle, but obvious. For instance, a simple sentence in your signature or footer that reads "Get cash back at eBay...Free"
3. Post links to and/or info about BigCrumbs wherever permitted.
4. Always use your referral link where possible when referencing BigCrumbs
5. If you have an eBay Store, list it with us (more on this below)!
6. Be creative!

Dont's:

1. Overwhelm buyers with information about BigCrumbs. For instance, a one sentence answer to a bidder's question with three additional paragraphs about BigCrumbs, is not a good idea!
2. Post information about BigCrumbs in a manner that is in violation of eBay's policies regarding third party links.
3. Be overly aggressive or too persistent. It's tempting because BigCrumbs is such a no-brainer that you'd think everyone would get it. But, you won't be able to refer everyone!

Listing your eBay Store with BigCrumbs

BigCrumbs invites you to list your eBay Store in our Member eBay Stores Directory. This gives you exposure to a savvy base of eBayers who have made millions of dollars in eBay purchases through BigCrumbs.com!

It also helps your referral activity because this "deeper" integration between your store and BigCrumbs builds upon the trusted relationship you've already established with the Buyer. The already simple process of joining BigCrumbs then becomes more of a natural "transition" for your buyers!

To sign up for free go to http://home.bigcrumbs.com/laurenceann

Hope it will help you all with your sales!
Have a great day ~ M.