The advantages of selling items on eBay are many and over the years they have fine tuned many parts of the process to make it faster and easier for sellers. The eBay I started selling on the 90s looks like a clunky cousin to the efficient process a seller experiences today. By now, eBay is a well oiled machine and there are literally hundreds of tools that make the listing and selling process faster and more efficient. Bulk listing tools, third party services and a wealth of information available online can make even the most wide eyed newbie a seasoned professional in a short amount of time.

The marketplace also has so many regular browsers and visitors that your items will usually find their buyers even if you do no outside promotion. This is the main reason eBay remains the king no matter how many clones or rivals websites pop-up. Other sites may have lower fees or other gimmicks but eBay has the eyeballs of buyers and that usually translates into faster sales for a higher price. Another thing that should not be discounted is the eBay Partner Network affiliate program which ensures that bloggers and other content providers around the web are helping to promote the items you sell for you.

But, if you have already sold items on eBay, then you know some the challenges of the marketplace. Selling on eBay itself comes with its own set of considerations so be sure you understand the realities of the platform and marketplace before diving in and offering your services to others. I’ve been selling on eBay since 1997 and, while I know it is a powerful tool that has helped me to build my business and earn a income working from home, I will also be the first to admit that it sometimes drives me crazy. (There’s a reason my blog is called TheWhineSeller.com.)

This warning is not meant to scare you away, simply to make you aware that the challenges of starting and running your own Selling Assistant business come part and parcel with understanding the process of selling on the eBay Marketplace. I have found that eBay’s little foibles are well worth the effort it takes to deal with them. Once you have mastered the nuances of the site, you will find that is a powerful platform and money making tool.

Some challenges to consider

  • eBay policies change frequently and meeting them can be a challenge, especially when these changes force you to change the terms of your Selling Assistant service.
  • eBay knows they are one of the the biggest fish in the e-commerce pond so their fees are often higher than other similar sites
  • With new eBay policies, feedback plays a much more important role than it did in the past. Lower buyer feedback can raise fees, decrease item visibility or otherwise effect your eBay sales. Keeping your feedback scores up is more important than ever to your business.
  • Selling on eBay can be time-consuming and a lot of work, especially when you are first starting out and haven’t developed an efficient routine. Consider subscribing to a third party listing service to take some of the time burden off your shoulders.

This is an excerpt from Beyond Amazon, eBay, and Etsy: free and low cost alternative marketplaces, shopping cart solutions and e-commerce storefronts.