Where to Find Stuff to Sell on eBay

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Want to sell on eBay? Need to find something to sell?

Want to sell on eBay?  "Yes," you say, "but what will I sell and where will I get it?  Wholesale, drop ship, garage sale finds.  How do I find them and where do I start?"

While we can't say what the perfect eBay selling niche is for you, we are here to point you to some great resources and information that you can use to help make the decisions that will be important as you develop and grow your eBay or other e-commerce business.

Learn about purchasing wholesale items for resale, dropshipping, consignment selling, product sourcing for eBay with storage unit auctions, and more.  Besides our own comments, the materials that we present here for you include websites, e-books, print books, and more.  Many of the resources are free, some are not.  We believe every resource and provider to be legitimate and trustworthy and have used many ourselves.  Some will answer "how" while others answer "where" and even "why." 

If you're a seasoned eBay seller already, you may find a few fresh ideas for inventory, too, and we would be privileged to have you add a link to your listings or your eBay store in the section provided further down on the page. 

Before you go, please leave us a comment in our guestbook then consider adding us to your Squidoo lensroll and leaving feedback by giving us some stars (at the top of the page). We'd appreciate it!  Very best of luck with your eBay business, and thanks for visiting my lens!

 

 

P.S.  What? You don't have an ebay account yet?
        Just click here to get started!

How and Where to Locate the Merchandise to Sell on eBay 

Insider Information You Need to Know from the Experts Who Do It Every Day

How and Where to Locate the Merchandise to Sell on eBay: Insider Information You Need to Know from the Experts Who Do It Every Day

How and Where to Locate the Merchandise to Sell on eBay: Insider Information You Need to Know from the Experts Who Do It Every Day

by: Dan W. Blacharski

The title says it all. This book ranks #1 in the e-commerce category on amazon.com and has a solid 5-star customer review rating.

The authors tell you what to do before you start selling, what you can't sell, and give specific information on where to look and what to look for when searchiing for merchandise to sell or re-sell on eBay. They even discuss the elusive topic of finding your niche.

With 17+ chapters and 288 meaty pages, this book would be a great investment for anyone wanting to get started selling on eBay, as well as for established eBayers who want to broaden their selling horizons.

Consignment Selling on eBay 

How to Make Money Selling Other People's Stuff

Another idea when looking for stuff to sell on eBay is to sell other people's stuff for them. In fact, consignment selling on eBay can be very financially lucrative. Experienced sellers who sell items for other people on eBay are called Trading Assistants. EBay supports the idea and provides resources and a directory where you can list yourself as a Trading Assistant (TA) as well as provides training documents and a toolkit with research which you can study and use in order to build your TA business.

The first question most sellers ask when considering selling for other people is, "How much do I charge?" There is no set answer to that question as TA commission and fee structures vary widely. One suggestion is to research other TA's in your area, find out what they charge their clients and set your fees competitively. Another good piece of advice is to be careful and not under-charge your clients. Consider all the steps involved in selling an item, including taking possession of the item, researching the item (especially if it's in a category you are not familiar with), taking photographs, writing an excellent listing with a great title, packing and shipping the item, handling feedback or any problems, then paying the client his share of the profit. That's a lot of work and you deserve to be paid accordingly! A fee of 40 to 50 percent of the selling price with you paying the fees is not uncommon, with perhaps a sliding scale based on the value of the item.

Another question is, "Where will I find clients?" First, list yourself in the eBay TA directory. Then, begin to spread the word locally. Tell your friends and family members and ask them to spread the word, purchase business cards and distribute those to people that you meet, or place a notice on your local grocery store bulletin board with tear-off tags with your phone number. That should get you started. Provide excellent service for your clients and word will spread to the point that you may have more business than you can handle.

I recommend starting with this book, How to Start and Run an eBay Consignment Business, to answer all of your questions about how to get started selling on consignment, how to decide what kinds of items will be the most profitable, and how to set up your own eBay consignment business. You can find out from eBay about their Trading Assistant program here.

Make Money Selling Books Online 

Everyone needs books. Have extras? No where you can find some? Learn how to sell books on eBay, amazon, and elsewhere online.

Books are among the easiest items to locate (think used book sales and yard sales), store, pack, and ship, and everyone buys books at one time or another. Now's a great time to get started selling books. Here's where you can learn exactly how to sell books online.
The Home-Based Bookstore: Start Your Own Business Selling Used Books on Amazon, eBay or Your Own Web Site

The Home-Based Bookstore: Start Your Own Business Selling Used Books on Amazon, eBay or Your Own Web Site

by: Steve Weber

Books are a great product for a new seller to start with on eBay; most of us have too many and, if not, books are very easy to find at yard sales, church sales, and library sales. They're easy to handle, pack, and ship, and they're great sellers.

This book will teach you all you need to know about selling books on eBay or elsewhere online. The used book business is booming, so why not find out how to get started selling books on eBay today!

Product Sourcing 101 

Tapping eBay's "What's Hot" Page for Product Ideas

By Mikal E. Belicove, Director - Community & Education, Doba

If you're an eBay seller, you're well aware that eBay earns a commission on everything you sell through eBay. Because of this, eBay is highly motivated to help you sell more stuff. One way eBay helps sellers is through eBay Seller Central's What's Hot area.

This often overlooked eBay feature serves up a host of juicy details on fads, trends, seasonal merchandise, popular search phrases, and a whole lot more. To pull up the What's Hot page, go to eBay's Seller Central and click the "What's Hot" link.

The following sections describe the eBay research resources that you can tap for leads on your next hot-selling products, but be careful not to chase the hot sellers, as cautioned at the end of this article.

Merchandising Calendar

One strategy for picking hot-selling products is to time your product selections with...Read More


Especially for Stay-At-Home Moms 

Stay-At-Home Mom's Guide to Successful eBay Selling

Suzanne Wells is an impressive eBay Power Seller who truly does practice what she preaches. In this book she tells you how she fits her business into her busy stay-at-home schedule, and how you can, too.

If Suzanne can make a good living on eBay, and she does, then so can you by following the steps listed in this book. Highly recommended.

Want it today? Click here for the e-book.

Order the paperback copy from amazon.com below.
Stay-At-Home Mom's Guide to Successful eBay<sup>®</sup> Selling

Stay-At-Home Mom's Guide to Successful eBay® Selling

by: Suzanne Wells

Amazon Price: $9.94 (as of 07/06/2009) Buy Now

 

Sell Vintage Postcards on eBay 

This power seller does, and now she's telling everyone how to do it.

Avril Harper is an eBay power seller who has decided to share her secrets. Listen to this:

"When people ask what I think is the best thing to sell on eBay, I can only speak from experience, almost forty years of experience, and I can categorically say THE best thing in my book is vintage postcards. But not just any old postcard, there is just ONE postcard type that virtually anyone can sell, without experience, without prior knowledge, without risk. This one postcard type regularly breaks auction prices, rarely goes unsold, can be picked up for pennies and uploaded to eBay in three minutes flat."

Read more and learn how to sell vintage topographical postcards on eBay.

Look at these Examples of Vintage Postcards Selling on eBay Now 

Vintage postcards really do sell well. Look at the prices these are going for.

This is live feed from eBay showing bids on vintage postcard listings. Since it's live it changes regularly, but as I type this I see some awesome bids on vintage postcards from Hawaii. Got any of those lying around? Do some research and get them listed!

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Anyone Can Do This!  

Got Old Books and Magazines? Tear them up and make money on eBay.

How about selling old books and magazines on eBay, in pieces? In this book, descriptively titled Make Money Tearing Up Old Books and Magazines and Selling Them on eBay, you will discover, in precise detail, exactly how to operate one or a string of eBay businesses, all selling individual items removed from old books, newspapers and magazines, and how to turn every single page of those publications into a profitable earnings source for you.

Here's an extra hint. Consider advertising in the "Wanted" section of the classifieds for the type of old books, magazines, or newspapers that you'll need. Some people would love to get rid of boxloads and would be more than happy for you to take them off their hands. Make Money Tearing Up Old Books and Magazines and Selling Them on eBay explains exactly which books and magazines you should be looking for.

Additionally, look in the next section below to see auctions for vintage magazine ads that are currently running on eBay (this is current feed from the eBay site). I think you'll find that many of them are going for more than the cost of the book, so you're likely to make up your investment in no time! This is certainly a hot category that shows no signs of cooling down.

Vintage Advertisements Selling Now on eBay 

Do you have old magazines available? Sell those ads!

This is just one of the business ideas explained in great detail in the book discussed above. How many ads do you think are in the old, back issues of magazines you - or maybe your neighbor - have lying around the house?

Check out these prices! Then check out the book that tells you exactly
how to find and sell vintage magazine ads like these.

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Source Wholesale with SaleHoo! 

This wholesale directory service is definitely worth checking out.

Now you can have unlimited, lifetime access to the SaleHoo wholesale directory where you can find massively discounted items either for your own use or for resale.

Compete head to head with eBay powersellers today! As part of SaleHoo's service, if they do not have a source for a product that you are looking for, they will find it for you, such is their knowledge and understanding of the industry. No one else offers a service as good as that!

Check out SaleHoo, then join TODAY for instant LIFETIME membership.

Wholesale Directory

Looking For a Source for Wholesale Products? 

FREE information about how to find a reliable wholesaler.

No one takes product sourcing more seriously than Worldwide Brands/ OneSource. Not only are they the world's largest database of e-commerce wholesale sources, a paid membership, they offer FREE information to help you understand the wholesaling process as well.

Click on the link below to be taken to the home of the internet's most trusted source for real wholesalers. While you're checking out all the great information, be sure to sign up for their FREE weekly newsletter and receive the name of a guaranteed wholesale supplier every week!

This resource gets straight A's for education and trust, not to mention its great list of reliable wholesalers.

Here's a dropshipping source you will love! 

Thinking of opening an off-eBay store to supplement your business?

If you're interested in dropshipping, you really need to look at Shopster. Not only can you sell products from Shopster on eBay, now you can sell on eBay and have your own storefront, too!

Shopster is a full online business solution that enables you to create an online store with a full inventory within minutes. When you make a sale, Shopster ships the order directly to your customers anywhere in North America. You never have to deal with the inventory. You set your prices. Your profit is the difference between the price you sold the product for and the wholesale price in the Shopster warehouse.

And now, Shopster has created an easy-to-use dashboard so that you can view and manage all of your eBay listings from within your Shopster account. How easy is that?!

I'd tell you more, but you'll get a better picture by visiting the Shopster site to see all of the details. There's no cost and no obligation to look. I think you'll love what you see.

Buying Wholesale Lots on eBay 

Buy it wholesale on eBay, re-sell it on eBay. What a great place to get started!

If you're already a buyer on eBay, you may have noticed the category called "wholesale lots" when you are searching for an item. While there is a "wholesale lots" sub-category included within most of the main categories, you can access all of them on this page.

A word of caution about lots advertised as "wholesale" on eBay. More often than not these items are not listed by true wholesalers but are repackaged lots from ebay sellers who are cleaning out their own inventories. Sometimes they will be items that the particular seller could not sell individually. Often, though, they are smaller lots that the seller has acquired in bulk and broken down into smaller, more affordable lots for other sellers on a budget or without a place to store a large inventory.

You'll also find that some people don't take seriously the definition of a "lot" and use this category to offer single items at what they consider to be wholesale prices.

So, as should always be the case, buyer beware. Make sure you understand exactly what it is you are bidding on. I have found real treasures from the "wholesale lots" page and you will, too, if you spend some time being a wise shopper.

Wholesale Lots for Sale on eBay 

Buy Wholesale from eBay, Sell Retail on eBay or Elsewhere

Here's a selection of eBay items advertised as wholesale lots from the Clothing, Shoes and Accessories category. Interested in a different category? Use eBay's advanced search page.

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Still Haven't Decided on a Product Source? Look in your Own Backyard! 

How to find unique items to sell without leaving the comfort of your own community.

If you're still looking for the perfect place to find the perfect product to sell on eBay, why not start looking in your own backyard?

I'd recommend you seek some advice first from a man who calls himself "The Indiana Jones of local product resourcing." Dennis Hester can tell you exactly where to look, what to do, what to look for, and what to expect. His new e-book contains 27 chapters, plus bonus chapters, of brilliant ideas you would never have thought of on your own.

Dennis' advice is gold for both new and experienced eBay sellers. So, if you're serious about looking for unique items to sell on eBay, take a look first at his e-book, The Product Hunter's Guide for eBay Treasure Hunters, an inexpensive resource that could be the wisest investment you'll make in your eBay or other e-commerce business.

Build Your eBay Business Without Selling a Thing! 

Learn eBay from the Experts 

These authors know what they're talking about!

There's a lot of information on this page and on eBay about how to sell on eBay, but it's always nice to have a good reference book, something you can hold in your hands and mark up with highlighter and post-it notes. Here are some recommendations, all from authors who have been there and done that.

Click through on these titles and read the reviews from all the satisfied readers.
What to Sell on eBay and Where to Get It: The Definitive Guide to Product Sourcing for eBay and Beyond

What to Sell on eBay and Where to Get It: The Definitive Guide to Product Sourcing for eBay and Beyond

by: Chris Malta, Lisa Suttora

eBay Business All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies (For Dummies (Business & Personal Finance))

eBay Business All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies (For Dummies (Business & Personal Finance))

by: Marsha Collier

eBay Income: How Anyone of Any Age, Location, and/or Background Can Build a Highly Profitable Online Business with eBay

eBay Income: How Anyone of Any Age, Location, and/or Background Can Build a Highly Profitable Online Business with eBay

by: Cheryl L. Russell

eBay: Top 100 Simplified Tips & Tricks (Top 100 Simplified Tips & Tricks)

eBay: Top 100 Simplified Tips & Tricks (Top 100 Simplified Tips & Tricks)

by: Julia Wilkinson

The Official eBay Bible, Third Edition: The Newly Revised and Updated Version of the Most Comprehensive eBay How-To Manual for Everyone from First-Time Users to eBay Experts

The Official eBay Bible, Third Edition: The Newly Revised and Updated Version of the Most Comprehensive eBay How-To Manual for Everyone from First-Time Users to eBay Experts

by: Jim Griffith

Do You eBay from the UK? 

EBay International Sellers - These resources are for you!

Starting a Business on eBay.co.uk for Dummies (For Dummies S.)

Starting a Business on eBay.co.uk for Dummies (For Dummies S.)

by: Marsha Collier, Dan Matthews

Amazon Price: (as of 07/06/2009) Buy Now

Make Serious Money on eBay UK: The Bestselling Guide to Buying and Selling on eBay - and Beyond

Make Serious Money on eBay UK: The Bestselling Guide to Buying and Selling on eBay - and Beyond

by: Dan Wilson

Amazon Price: $21.41 (as of 07/06/2009) Buy Now

Ebay.co.uk for Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

Ebay.co.uk for Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

by: Jane Hoskyn, Marsha Collier

Amazon Price: $24.99 (as of 07/06/2009) Buy Now

The eBay Book: Essential Tips for Buying and Selling on eBay.co.uk

The eBay Book: Essential Tips for Buying and Selling on eBay.co.uk

by: David Belbin

Amazon Price: $15.60 (as of 07/06/2009) Buy Now

eBay Global the Smart Way: Buying and Selling Internationally on the World's #1 Auction Site

eBay Global the Smart Way: Buying and Selling Internationally on the World's #1 Auction Site

by: Joseph T. Sinclair, Ron Ubels

Amazon Price: $12.20 (as of 07/06/2009) Buy Now

From my Auction Tips Blog 

Tips & Tricks for Buying and Selling on ebay for Fun and Profit

Visit my blog and sign up for the feed. Sometimes I have some pretty cool posts!

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Research, research, research! 

More coming on this important topic soon, but Hammertap is a great place to start!

News About eBay, From eBay 

Keep up with eBay news from the eBay general announcements board.

EBay.com itself is a great resource for learning how to sell and how to grow your business, as well as just finding out what's new in the eBay world. Check their announcements regularly. The workshops are archived and are highly recommended resources for learning about specific current and important topics.

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Stay on Top of Ebay News with the AuctionBytes Blog 

Ina Steiner is on the case! If it's happening at eBay, you'll probably read it here first.

News, rumors and speculation about the online auction industry by Ina Steiner, Editor of AuctionBytes.com

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Take a Break and Have Some Fun 

Oh, those eBay videos!

featured lens EBay Video Showcase

From Weird Al to Judge Judy to more Weird Al to elevator commercials and - is that the real Weird Al? - everyone has their video take on the world's most famous auction site.  While you're waiting 'til it's time to snipe your late...

Love eBay? Show the World! 

Wear it on your chest, wear it on your head, carry it, or let your kids wear it for you, but let everyone know you sell on eBay!

online auction addict Baseball Jersey

online auction addict Baseball Jersey

From: Symbols on Stuff: T-Shirts Stickers Hats and Gifts

Price: 24.99 Buy Now

eBay Caps and Hats Cap

eBay Caps and Hats Cap

From: Occupation T-shirts and Gifts at Top Tee Designs

Price: 20.99 Buy Now

Women's Long Sleeve White T-Shirt

Women's Long Sleeve White T-Shirt

From: ReadMyChest.com

Price: 21.99 Buy Now

eBay Addict Diva 4 Tile Coaster

eBay Addict Diva 4 Tile Coaster

From: Renie Britenbucher Glass Tapestry Artwork

Price: 9.99 Buy Now

Online Auction Addict 1 Ornament (Oval)

Online Auction Addict 1 Ornament (Oval)

From: Renie Britenbucher Glass Tapestry Artwork

Price: 10.99 Buy Now

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What a great idea! 

A perfect gift for any eBay Shopper

It's a great gift for any occasion, perfect for anyone who loves to shop online! What is it? It's an eBay Gift Certificate!


Give an eBay Gift Certificate!

Need More Information About Selling on eBay? 

Subscribe to The eBay Seller's News - It's Free!

My philosophy is that I should learn something new every single day in order to further my eBay business. One place I go to learn is to the eBay Seller's News, the oldest and largest newsletter for professional eBay sellers.
Get your FREE subscription here.



Like this page? Leave a comment. 

Thanks for visiting!

Lensmaster

neonguy528 wrote...

Very nice lens. At this time offer on ebay what people need, not want. Great info here

ReplyPosted June 12, 2009

Lensmaster

TomHarvey wrote...

Great guide with some useful tools, resources and ideas. There are certainly a number of people making good money using dropshipping for Ebay sales.

The hardest part of Ebay is trying to be strict and focusing on selling without getting distracted and searching and buying!!

Brand New Automated Income Streams Course - Start Your Online Business Today

ReplyPosted May 16, 2009

Lensmaster

Mr_D_K wrote...

Best lens i have seen yet on ebay. Includes everything a new seller could possibly want to know

thankyou

ReplyPosted May 14, 2009

Lensmaster

ant333 wrote...

Hey Susan!

Great Lens here - getting started on eBay can be confusing, however you've got it in one i recon.

Check out my Guide On Buying Unlocked iPhone's on eBay.

ReplyPosted May 08, 2009

Lensmaster

ChineseKitesforKids wrote...

You know I really tried hard to make a living at Ebay but I just couldn't do it. Maybe I just wasn't selling the right items. It took so much time and there were so many fees I just couldn't see the point. Maybe I should have tried one of these great resources first? IDK. You have a great lens here! Very informative, good luck to you.

ReplyPosted May 04, 2009

 
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