How To Increase eBay Profits

Some sell on eBay to clean out their garage or attic.Some sell to make a little extra money here and there. Butfor some, eBay represents a chance to create a secondincome or start a home business. Product choice isimportant. But to really increase profit you must know how toincrease the number and amount of bids per item. An eBayseller must maximize each product's profit margin. Thisarticle describes techniques to make as much profit aspossible.

1. Sell like products at the same time. Bidders look tosee what else you have for sale they might be interestedin. Combined shipping saves postage for the buyer. Packingin the same box saves time and packing costs for the seller.

2. Bundle a less desirable item with a more desirable item increases sales. This is an old offline auction technique.If the bidder wants the better item he has to buy both. Iftwo sellers offer the same item, the buyer bids on the twoitem auction. Bundling two low cost items together alsoincreases bids. A buyer may not be willing to pay shippingfor one item, but would for two.

3. Remember seasonal issues. Don't sell snow skis in July,water skis in January. Be sure to offer seasonal itemsearly enough to allow for shipping. Don't expect to sellmany Christmas items that must be shipped during the secondweek of December.

4. Understand profit margins. Don't buy to resell foronly a $5 profit when you can make $20 on a different item.Determine your desired monthly income and choose productsappropriately. Want to make 1000 a month? That is $250 aweek. That's ten successful actions at $25.00 profit, orfive items at $200 a month, or ten items at $100 each. Alsopacking 10 items takes less time than packing 20 items.Always consider time as a cost.

5. Don't forget back end sales and secondary products.Offer similar products during the payment process or onyour auction store/web site. If you sell underground fencesfor dogs, an up-sell item is a customized collar. Asecondary product could be a pet door. Another secondaryproduct could be a ebook on "Travel Safely With Your Pet".A back-end sale to the ebook could be a item that helpsyour family travel safely with your pet.

6. The List - For many successful online sellers themailing list is where their money is made. Using aautoresponder, sellers automatically email customers ontheir list at regular intervals. Including content withannouncements of upcoming sales increases back end sales.Once a customer buys, they are more likely to buy againfrom same person or company.

7. Customer demographics should be considered. Collectorshave expectations non-collectors don't. Example, some bookbuyers that are allergic like to see "book from non-smokinghome" in ad. This would earn you a higher bid. What doesthe customer expect to see in a description?

8. Auction terms and conditions should be included witheach auction. What shipping options are available? Do youtake questions? Do you ship only certain days? What kind ofpayments do you take? Type whatever standard terms youoffer in a word processor and cut and paste into yourauctions. This saves time. For some sellers, typing thecontent for each auction is one of the most time consumingtasks.

Profit involves keeping costs reasonably low and creatinghigher bids. We've described some techniques for increasingprofit. Sit down and mentally run through the process of auctionselling and come up with some of your own ideas.EBay is a great business opportunity but like any business, sellers must be wise in their product choice and sales techniques.

Author info: L. C. Peterson is a writer and web marketingconsultant. Her sites include http://www.new2auctions.com, http://www.LCPeterson.com, and http://www.publishingebooks.com. For more information on online marketing, content and ebook creation and online auctions take a look.