eBay can be an excellent source of
supplemental income for anyone, but especially for stay at home
moms. It can be challenging finding the right merchandise to
sell on a small budget.
All those getting started in eBay should begin by selling off
the extra, useless items contained in their own homes. Practice
your research and listing skills while you clean out your
clutter! This is an excellent way to make some extra cash.
Once done with that, ask family
and friends for items they no longer want. Tell them that you
are learning how to sell on eBay and that you could use the
practice. The money you make with these two methods can then be
put towards the purchase of more products to further your eBay
career.
For those without a great deal
of money to spend, start small. Take your eBay earnings and see
how far they will take you.
Garage Sales
Nearly every eBay seller has at one time or another converted
something found cheap at a garage sale into a lot more cash on
eBay. Last week, I picked up a brand new fishing shirt with tags
on it at a garage sale for $3.
My husband rolled his eyes.
This week, I sold it for $59.95 plus shipping. Spending a few
dollars here and there and reselling for $20, $50, or $100 can
be a great way to earn money!
Look for inexpensive items at
yard sales that might bring you some extra money. Things to keep
on the lookout for: high value items, brand new items, name
brand items, unique items.
Estate Sales
Estate sales are just like upscale garage sales. And their
prices are upscale too! Figure on spending a lot more at an
estate sale than you would its yard sale counterpart.
The good thing about estate
sales is that you can still get an awesome deal, on more
expensive items. This usually means your profits will be much
more.
Get familiar with a certain
type of item, such as porcelain dolls, for example, and seek out
estate sales in your area that feature them. Just be careful
buying items you are unfamiliar with.
Craigslist
If you haven't checked out your local craigslist yet, now is the
time! This free, local, online classifieds website is an
excellent source of eBay merchandise.
Most people who choose to post
on craigslist do not want to take the time to list on eBay. The
prices vary; sometimes sellers want more than eBay values, while
other times their prices are next to nothing. You can negotiate
all prices on craigslist.
FreeCycle
Would you believe that some people give away valuable items for
free? Your local freecycle is a great resource to find all kinds
of treasures that others simply don't have time for.
You may want to volunteer to
become a moderator for your local freecycle. Often, moderators
see posts before the rest of the group and have a slight
advantage (deservingly for all the time and work they put into
freecycle for free) over the rest of the members.
Hopefully these suggestions
have got the wheels in your head turning. Have fun with your
eBay treasures!
