eBay is one of the few genuine work at home opportunities
available in the world. eBay is one
of the largest online marketplace with 1.7 million registered users from 240 cities in in India (as of February 2006)
. It is a risk free method to start earning from home since you receive payment even before you send the goods to the customer.
One of the common questions asked by visitors to this website iswe do not have any product of our own, how can we
start selling? Here is a step by guide to earn money by selling to buyers who will pay in
advance, even if you have
no "contacts" with traders, manufacturers,
wholesalers
1. To sell, you should be a registered user with eBay. Join eBay
a. You will have to enter your basic contact information like name,
address, telephone number
b. Enter your email address which will be used for receiving all
communications. Choose a reliable email service
which has large
mailbox size, so that you do not miss any mail.. We have found that
Gmail is fairly reliable, and
you can download email messages to your computer. Request a free Gmail invite.
You can change your email at a later
date also.
c. Agree to terms and conditions and create an eBay user ID and
password. Also select a secret question and password,
to retrieve your
account, in case you forget your password later
d. Click on the confirmation code provided in the activation email to
become a registered user of eBay.
e. Before selling, you should bid on a few items posted , to get an
idea of how online auctions and sales work. Many
expensive products are are available for as low as USD 5, so you can bid at a low price. If you win you get products
at a low price, if you lose, you do not have to pay anything. If you are selling for the first time, eBay
will ask you
to verify yourself . They will either send the
confirmation code by SMS to your mobile phone, by entering your credit
card number or they will send the security confirmation code by post.
2. eBay has section where buyers can post their requirements -
products which are hard to find in India. This
section on eBay is
called " Want it Now" and consists of the following categories:
Apparel & Accessories
Beauty & Health
Bollywood Memorabilia
Books & Magazines
Cameras &
Optics
Cars & Bikes
Coins & Stamps
Computers & Peripherals
Consumer Electronics
Fitness and
Sports
Home, Tools & Appliances
Jewellery & Watches
Mobiles & Accessories
Movies & Music
Musical
Instruments
Services & Real Estate
Toys, Games & Baby
Travel, Tickets & Vouchers
Video Games
Everything
Else
These buyers have probably spent a lot of time searching in nearby
shops, so they will be happy to pay
a little extra if you are able to
supply the products they are want to buy. You should select the product
category
you are familiar with.
3. For some products, like books and magazines, may be available and
lying unused in your house. You can also
check in the neighbouring
"raddhi" shop. Most people in your neighborhood, will dispose of their
old books
and magazine for Rs 4-5 per kg and the "raddhiwala" will let
you purchase the book or magazine you want for Rs 5-10. You
can also
check prices of products from websites like Indian prices or Indian
price lists and accordingly
place offers
Another source of products in demand are neighbors who are renovating
their house and wish to discard all the
old stuff in their house. They
usually give it to their servant, you can offer to sell it for a small
amount.
You should set the price taking into consideration your profit
margin, cost of book and courier charges
4. After the buyer finalizes the order, you should reply to buyer
queries promptly. After you receive payment,
the goods should be
dispatched promptly. You should ask the buyer to rate your service. A
positive rating will help
you get more orders in future.
5. After you have sold more than 4 items on eBay and receive
satisfactory feedback, you can register as a Trade Assistant
on eBay.
You will be listed in the Trade Assistant directory free and will be
contacted for help by manufacturers
and traders interested in selling
their product. You can then charge a fee for selling on their behalf.