Is it still possible to scratch out an income from e-Bay?

[Syrinx]

If so, can you point me to a credible quick-start guide? I do have a few ideas for product sources.

And are there any alternatives to e-bay that are better, from the sellers' point of view?

I apologize for such a generalized question, but I've been mulling over ideas for what seems like eons, and I think it's time to just get started.

I may've just waited too long.

Thanks everybody!

[dipsydoodle]

1. Be aware

Ebay's listing fees might be cheap but they charge 10% of sale price. In addition Paypal , which is owned by Ebay , charge an additional 5%.

[Syrinx]

5. yeah, they eat you up in the margins.

[Tunkamerica]

2. what are you selling?

etsy?

[Syrinx]

4. nothing hand-made

I saw an article about etsy, I think. No, I'm not doing arts and crafts. I'm not talented enough for that. ;)

[Maraya1969]

10. You can always sell vintage things on Etsy. I sell vintage necklaces

on there that I have gotten from Goodwill type places and they sell better than any of my handmade things. The other thing you could sell on etsy is supplies but they would probably need to be supplies for making things, (like I sell loose beads too)

[Uben]

3. You can still make money on Ebay....

...but you'll need a good source for product and you'll have to charge 30-50% to make a decent profit. Ebay has gotten so greedy with their fees, I quit listing last year. I'm sick and tired of them courting the "big" sellers amd selling out the little guys.
They have really gone downhill the past couple of years, IMO.

[Syrinx]

6. I saw something on tv about they were going to crawl back on their "commissions"

But I don't remember where I saw that.

What's the best alternative outlet?

[ejpoeta]

7. i remember when i could go on ebay and find used stuff for a great price. i bought 1984 for like $2

back in the early 2000s. No way I could do that now. Has turned into such a racket. I do buy stuff on there though if it is a decent price.... but a lot of stuff on there is just ridiculously priced! I can see why from what you say. But if I can go into a store and buy it cheaper, I am going to do that. If it's reasonable, then I will get it online. but I miss the days when it was a good place to go to find a good bargain on holly hobbie stuff.

[Uben]

8. You can still get good deals as a buyer.....

....if you're willing to engage in bidding wars and know how to snipe. I've got sniping down to two seconds. No way anyone can outbid me if their proxy is not high enough. You have to be willing to walk away if you don't get it for your price.

[MineralMan]

9. I did OK selling miscellaneous antiques for a while.

But, everyone else had the same idea, and I started seeing the same faces at the estate and garage sales and even at Goodwill. It didn't take long before there was no more stuff available to sell, and I'm in a metropolitan area. For a short time, I still managed, by picking obscure items that few knew about except collectors of that class of stuff, but the expenses of driving to all the places I had to visit ended up making it unfeasible. Worse, margins got smaller and smaller, until it just wasn't worth bothering with. Now, when I find something at a spectacularly low price, I still sell it on ebay, but I gave up trying to make a living doing it.

[AlabamaLibrul]

11. Let me be brief, honest, and upbeat -- I am making money on eBay right now, weekly, at a steady clip

Let me ask you a few questions, and if you're already familiar with all this just disregard it:

Are you familiar with the eBay and PayPal process?

How to ship in such a manner to never have issues (I am down to the USPS Priority Mail Small Flat Rate box, the $5 one, with delivery confirmation for 90% of my shipments now and it all goes swimmingly)

You have product sourcing but do you have a market? A niche? A place to get eyes? I've gotten a lot of stuff over the years that was great but just didn't sell. I'm happy to say I have managed to source a VEEERRYYY hot category at a low price, high quality used items through totally legit channels. Margins are insane to the point where I would like to beat eBay out of its 10% one day, but I'm probably still pulling triple digit margins for a decent amount of sales. Perhaps some here understand coded language, but there you have it.

I am definitely not "making an income" at this point. That's mostly because you can't if you have a limited amount of money and have to wait for everything to ship, and buying again, etc. etc. My sales figures are very impressive but I figure half of it is gone before I ever see it -- that of course being the margin and the cost of inventory.

So on and so on.

Of all people, Syrinx, if you think you've got it in you, you should PM me for more. It's not a sales pitch or anything, but I can point you in the right direction of some stuff.

I believe I could move into the "very respectable money on eBay" portion soon enough and wouldn't mind taking you along with me.

I will give everyone here a hint:

EVEN THOUGH I LOVE THEM, I DON'T SELL 50 YEAR OLD FILM CAMERAS FOR THIS DECENT EBAY MONEY.

I don't mean to be arrogant about it but I did enough eBay when switching camera brands etc, to see at least that category is not the place to make good sales all the time.

You need to be the place where you're not talking about 20 buyers and maybe one is interested, you need a million buyers.