Make money from YouTube videos

 

Remember that viral video you laughed at yesterday while chowing down on your doughnuts? That video could have earned the maker more than £100,000.We’re not kidding when we say you can earn some serious dollar from YouTube videos and it might just be the funnest money making gig like EVER.
While it sadly isn’t as easy as clapping your fingers and the money appearing in your bank account like magic, making money out of YouTube videos is still a relatively simple concept.
And, in an effort to help you earn some dollar, we’ve put together this step by step guide. Send us some of your earnings maybe?

 

How much money can you make?

Straight in there with the killer question, you shrewd lot. Well, the answer is a bit of a mixed bag really, if we’re honest.
While you might be lucky and find a video clip of yours goes viral and earns you £100,000 (like the guy who uploaded a clip of one of his son’s biting the other one’s finger), this is very unlikely. That said, if you have got something funny, by all means give it a shot.
You’re much more likely to build up revenue by getting an audience through constant content, whether you’re making vlogs, cat videos or just talking about custard creams.You might remember the tale of 17 year old Fred Pye – he hit the news recently for earning £24,000 a year by making walk-throughs for Grand Theft Auto.
But as we said, it isn’t all like this. Livie Rose, a beauty blogger from Brighton says her pay fluctuates from thousands one month to £50 the next, and some people only report a few pounds here and there.

What can you realistically expect?

As a benchmark you can expect to make around $1.50/1000 views. This means that 1million views = $1500… That’s around £880 to us English folk.
However, keep in mind that a lot of the channels (such as Epic Mealtime) sign advertising contracts with certain companies or even promote their own merchandise, like T-shirts, which can earn them even more on top of their views alone.
It’s hard to put a total on this but the possibilities are endless depending on what your videos are about.

How does it work?

The basic deal with this is Google Adsense, a nifty little programme that allows you to monetise (we love that word) your website or videos with adverts.
After you’ve signed up with the beast that is YouTube and built a decent amount of followers and views you’ll receive an email asking if you want to monetise your videos. You’ll then be able to select videos you want to earn dollar on.
The basic gist of this is companies pay Google to advertise on your videos and you’ll get a cut of the profit.
Just to be clear, you can’t monetise any videos with copyrighted material in them. So no nicking other people’s stuff y’hear?

What do you need to get started?

Depending on what you’re planning on filming you’ll need to get your setup sorted from the beginning.
There’s no point having good content if you’re filming it on your iPhone. A decent setup goes a long way towards showing that you’re serious and having people respect your videos.
You’ll need:

• A decent camera – Quality is important and you’ll need to record your videos in full 1080p HD.
• Video editing software – Both PCs and Macs have pretty decent video editing software (Movie maker & iMovie) but Adobe Premier is a decent option for advanced users.
• Sound recording equipment – Most cameras come with a microphone but if you’re looking for top sound quality you might need to purchase a decent microphone.
• Lighting – This is not an essential but some top Youtubers swear by it.
• A decent backdrop – If you’re filming a vlog or pieces to camera you might want to set up a decent backdrop. You can stick with plain white or jazz it up a bit with a collection of posters for example.

How to make your videos the bestest?

As we said before, the way this works is you get popular then you get paid. You can’t sign up to monetise videos no one has watched yet.
It makes sense really, who wants to pay to advertise on a billboard no one walks past? Yet while building up a decent audience might seem daunting, there are some easy tips that might help you get there sooner:

• Choose your genre: One of the most popular genres on Youtube is gaming walk-throughs but it’s a pretty competitive. Take some time to think about what you can do well and whether you think you can make a success of it. Other genres that work well are: product reviews, comedy, how to’s, sports and films.
• Choose a good username: Sounds trivial, trust us, it isn’t. You need to make your username memorable and steer clear from numbers and random characters. Yes, that means Xxx_ponysrock92_xxX is a no go. Sorry.
• Catchy relevant titles: Make your title both catchy and relevant. That way people will remember it, and more people will stumble across it if they’re searching for something similar.
• Upload regularly: You won’t build an audience if you stop posting! Remember, the longer you keep that audience locked in, the more monies you get.
• Be original: There’s nothing wrong with tried and tested formats such as reviews or cat videos, but you have to make sure you stand out from the crowd. Go forth and be different kids!
• Show your enthusiasm: You need to be creating videos about something you love. Having a passion for your videos will show! If you don’t love what you’re doing you’ll soon get bored and the videos will start to show that. The passion comes first and the money comes second…

Always make sure to follow the rules too; no inappropriate content, copyright or spamming. Play nice and you’ll be fine.

How do you make more?

If you’ve built up a pretty sizeable base and have a dedicated audience, there is one other avenue to explore aside from Google Adsense and YouTube itself.
Patreon is a great little web tool that allows your fans to sign up and donate money directly each time you post something new.
The key to this is building up an audience that appreciates you – if they like what you do the chances are they can be persuaded to part $1 or more each time you upload. Yes it’s US money, but money is money!
Also, as mentioned above, you can approach companies to talk about advertising or at the very least free sample for you to review/talk about.
You might even want to branch out into creating your own merchandise once/if you make a name for yourself.
Some of the big shots on here are earning about three thousand dollars everytime they post a new video. Yes you read that right.

Sell It Now — how to make hundreds of dollars on eBay in 37 minutes

 

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Today, tips on how we’ve earned $1,000 over the last two months from selling things on eBay. Plus, we surveyed readers who make more than $1,000/month using eBay (including one who earned $50,000 over the last year), and we spoke to a senior executive at eBay to get insider tips.
Below, you’ll find:

• Specific tactics on how to make a significant amount of money on eBay (with screenshots)
• Tips from readers who make 4-5 figures from eBay every month: Why the same items can sell for dramatically different prices — and how to make sure your sale price tops the charts
• Case study: We sell something on eBay
• Expert interview (audio download below) with the dean of eBay University: Which items should you sell?

Over the past few months, I’ve been working on a few projects with my friend Susan. (You’ll be seeing those projects soon.)
One day, I mentioned that I was going to be selling a few things on eBay and she looked at me skeptically. We’re both fans of Big Wins, so I understand the skepticism — can you really make a lot of money selling on eBay?
But it also surprised me how reluctant she was to try it, since she’s a master of earning more money (she negotiated thousands of dollars for a new job and routinely receives freelance offers).
We decided to spend some time creating a useful guide to show how you can earn significant amounts of money using eBay. I’ve earned over $1,000 in the last 2 months by selling stuff there.
Rather than just writing generic advice, Susan went to the source: a senior executive at eBay. We also asked I Will Teach You To Be Rich readers who’ve earned over $1,000 on eBay to share their specific tactics for selling at higher prices.
Here’s an excerpt of what she learned.
* * *

eBay: too much work, too little gain

True or false?
You’ve heard Ramit talk about the CEO model. Saving more money isn’t just about cutting spending, and your income ISN’T always fixed.
You probably already know that you can sell stuff on eBay, but, like me, you probably also haven’t gotten around to doing it. What’s the point of learning and getting involved in a whole new system if all you’ll get out of it is $15 for a pair of your Sevens jeans?
I was thinking the same thing you’re thinking:
Too much work, too little gain
Then recently, I ended up having a phone conversation with Jim Griffith, the dean of eBay University. Griff teaches thousands of people how to use eBay as a platform to build their businesses, was personally hired by Pierre Omidyar (one of the eBay co-founders) as one of their earliest community / customer focused employees (15 years ago), and has been an expert seller since eBay got started.
After Griff shared a few really good tricks and tips with me, I started to feel bad about being such a hypocrite about eBay.
“Your income’s not fixed, earn more don’t just save” … I’d say these things to my friends all the time, but I never lifted a single finger towards it.
So, I decided I’d list something to see exactly how much work and how little gain it would be.

We ask the experts

Before setting up my listing, Ramit and I asked a few IWillTeach readers who’ve made upwards of $1,000 on eBay to share their secrets.
Here’s how they optimize their eBay sales, in order of importance:

1. Pictures

• Quality: They use really good pictures – not blurry and not old-looking. They don’t have to be perfect, but should show NOT ONLY the item BUT ALSO that the item lives in a nice environment. I don’t care how much of a deal it is – I’m not buying a designer sweater that’s being photographed in a coal plant.
• Quantity: They use lots of pictures. If you’re buying something from an unknown eBay seller, your confidence goes up with the number of real photos of the item in question. One reader told us her secret was “LOTS of pictures. Use an outside app to manage listings (I use Garage Sale) and to upload photos to your own server so you don’t have to pay eBay’s prices for extra photos.”

2. Description

• Completeness: Fill out all the fields in your listing, and make sure your textual description gives a LOT of information about the item. It’s just stupid not to, and yet SO many sellers don’t do this. Laziness I guess? Whatever the reason, don’t be like them.Think like your buyer – if I’m dropping $200 for a rare book on eBay, I want to know EVERY detail about it. I don’t care how mundane or even repetitive it is, I want every reason to have faith that my $200 will be well spent.
• Search optimization: Use targeted keywords in your item title AND description. You don’t have to be a tech wizard for this. It’s as simple as asking yourself, what would a potential buyer for this item type into the search box? The more closely your description matches that search query, the more visible your products will be. If it’s a brand name thing, then people will probably be typing in the brand, not just the name of the item itself, so make sure to include the brand –eg. [pottery barn queen duvet] versus [queen duvet]. One reader told us “Don’t misspell brand names” – who’s searching for Calfin Kline, anyway? Yeah, it’s obvious. But people still get it wrong. Just make sure you differentiate yourself from this:BAD
  to this:GOOD
  

3. Research

• Is there a market for your item? Taking 5 minutes to Google your item and learn its true market value – on eBay AND on a bunch of other e-commerce sites – helps you to sell it more competitively because you’ll find out whether or not there’s a market for your item, you’ll see the right price, and you’ll figure out the right search keywords to write into your listing.

4. Timing + Reserves

• One reader gave us a good tip for timing your listing: “Use the 10 day listing starting on a thursday, that gives you two full weekends of eyeballs. Weekends typically have the highest traffic.”
• This same seller told us even more about reserve pricing: “99.999% of the time I never use a reserve price. My goal is to make as much money as I can, so I reduce the amount of upfront money I have to pay. I also do this by using a low starting price of $0.99. This keeps me competitive with everyone. I would rather get little for it than have it sit on my shelf and have it COSTING me money.”

5. What to sell

• The survey respondent who made the most money off of eBay ($50k+ in the past 12 months) gave us an interesting tip on what to sell: “Find a niche market, and go deep (do you have a hobby – if so, can you sell supplies for it? If selling hobby supplies, make sure your customer has purchased everything necessary for a successful project (i.e. provide fantastic customer svc/support. Selling “irregulars/seconds” can be lucrative.”
• This was also one of the key takeaways from my interview with eBay’s Jim Griffith. Keep reading for more on this point.

Case study: How to make money on eBay

With all these tips in mind, I decided to go for it myself.
Here’s exactly how I did it (with screenshots):

Step 1: Sign up for an eBay account

This was very straightforward. If you know how to use email and read this blog, then you don’t need additional explanation.
Total time: 2 min

Step 2: Find something to sell

Almost everyone has something lying around for eBay. Last month, for example, Ramit sold his broken laptop (the one he ruined with a latte, of all things) for $661. (In fact, he used an assistant to do the market research, write the eBay page, and ship it, but that’s a story for another time).
Apparently, someone out there knew how to fix it. This highlights one of the greatest things about eBay – its wide reach means that you’re likely to find a buyer for almost anything that you have to sell. While most people don’t have tons of spare high-value electronics laying around, you probably do have something else. As for me, I had these too-big shoes in my closet that I’d never worn.
Remember, the point of this post to understand and optimize the process, so let’s use the shoes as an example.

Step 3: Research

I didn’t want to make the mistake of setting an arbitrary price based on emotions, or not knowing what the hot keywords are for describing these shoes.
Here’s how I researched:

1. Searched for the product name with Google Product Search [ Seychelles Share the Wealth ]
2. Looked at the top 5 ecommerce sites selling the product. This gave me the price AND, more important, lots of details about the shoe and the brand to put in the description to make it look super professional.
3. Saw the item I have has one major distinction – a hard-to-find color. I’ll highlight this in the description.

Note: it’s hard to Google ‘value of broken laptop,’ but in this case, Ramit’s damaged computer was making $0 sitting on his shelf. Remember the tip about pricing at $0.99 we heard from our power seller-it’s always better to make some money from your item than to get all emotionally attached to it and not make any at all.
Time: 5 min

Step 4: Market it

Since I already did the research, this was the easy part. I took photos and then determined the title and description copy from the other sites I saw that were selling this product, making sure to highlight the major distinction (its color) along with the standard brand distinction.
I took the reader tip and decided to list on a Thursday, for a 10-day auction to get in two weekends’ worth of eyeballs.
Here’s what I did:

1. Borrowed the title and best descriptions from the other sites I saw. (5 min)
2. Took photos and did some minor editing. (10 min)

Note: when Ramit was trying to sell off his broken laptop, he used brand identification (it was an Apple Macbook), photos of the actual item being sold, and added an honest, thorough description – ‘this laptop has some damage, but it’s definitely reparable and it’s a steal if you know how.’ The brand name draws in lots of viewers, and the honest, thorough description targets the listing to just the right person who’ll end up loving the purchase.
Time: 15 min

Step 5: List it

eBay makes this really easy. I chose to offer free shipping because this attracts more buyers. I bundled the estimated shipping cost into the price of the item.
Time: 5 min

Step 6: Fulfillment

It’s really, really important to get those good seller ratings, even if you’re not quitting your day job. Fullfillment means being a reliable seller, packager, and shipper, and getting the item to your buyer ASAP.
Time: 10 min
Total time: 37 min

Bonus tip from my interview with Jim Griffith, from eBay University

When I asked Griff for any secrets on getting inventory to sell on eBay, he told me, “think local.”
Instead of thinking only about how to sell YOUR stuff on eBay (like your old stereo, computer, designer jeans), think about how to make a micro business selling OTHER stuff on eBay, that you obtain locally, such as….

• Stuff that’s on major sale at retail discount stores (TJ Maxx, etc, may be selling stuff for really cheap that’s actually going for full price in other marketplaces, like eBay. Griff has a great, real-life example of this.)
• Undervalued things you find at garage sales, swap meets, thrift stores
• Brand name stuff or items with a certain following that are being discontinued
• Items already listed on eBay that are undervalued (either badly marketed and not using any of the tactics discussed above, or just priced wrong). Ok this one is not local, but it’s a similar idea.

How to Make Money on eBay

 

 

If you're looking to bring in some extra cash or maybe start a new career, selling on eBay could be the answer you're looking for. There's money to be made by becoming part of the eBay seller community. Put in a little time reading the steps below, and that investment could pay off for you in a big way.

 

Steps

Method 1 of 4: Getting Started

1. 1
   Create an eBay account. If you don't already have one, you'll need to go online and create an account on eBay. The account is free and allows you to operate as a seller or a buyer.

   • Once you have an account, you can log in to My eBay and track your auctions, view bids and send and receive emails.
   • Put some thought into the name you choose for your eBay user ID. This is how you'll be known in the eBay community. Pick something that's memorable but not weird, inoffensive and positive.
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2. 2
   Look into fees. When you sell on eBay, you can operate under the standard fee arrangement or choose to become a subscriber. Among the differences are the number of free listing you get per month and the add-on fees you'll pay.

   • As someone who's new to selling on eBay, you'll probably want to operate under the standard fee agreement. You'll pay no insertion fees on up to 50 listings per month and be charged a flat 10% final value fee when your item sells.
   • There are three paid subscription accounts available on eBay. Each comes at a slightly different cost per month (from $15.95 to $179.95), a different number of no-insertion-fee listings per month (from 150 to 2,500) and final value fees that range from 4 percent to 9 percent.
3. 3
   Open a PayPal Account. PayPal allows your buyers to use a credit card or a checking account to pay for the items they buy from you. It also allows you to sell internationally. Buyers initiate the payment transaction with PayPal, and PayPal, in turn, transfers the money to your account.

   • It's not required that you have a PayPal account in order to sell on eBay, but it can be difficult to succeed without one. Almost 90% of eBay users have a PayPal account.^[1]
   • There's a feature on eBay that allows users to search for auctions by checking a box that says “only show sellers who take PayPal.” It's a popular choice for people who don't want to be bothered with writing and mailing a check or using some other form of payment.
4. 4
   Decide what to sell. It's best to start by selling things that you already have around your home. Go room by room and look for things you no longer need or wear or perhaps have never even used.

   • Ebay offers an online tool called "Selling Inspiration House." Use it to navigate through a sample home and click on items you could sell and see how much you might earn for everything from shoes to computers.
   • It's also a good idea to look around on eBay to see what other people are selling and at what price. Check to see how many "bids" an item has to try and gauge its popularity.
   • Sell what you know. Not only will you need to write a detailed description of your item, but potential buyers may contact you with questions. It can be difficult to thoroughly explain the benefits of a product and answer detailed inquiries if you're not all that familiar with the item yourself.
   • Determine what sells well and look for more of it. Local garage or estate sales can be a good way to buy things inexpensively that might sell for more on eBay.
5. 5
   Start small. While your ultimate goal may be to become an eBay Power Seller, you want to take things one step at a time. Starting with just a few items to sell gives you the chance to learn the ropes and establish yourself as a reputable seller.

   • Like any new enterprise, selling on eBay may present you with some unexpected challenges, and you're bound to make a few mistakes--everybody does. Begin by selling just a few items so you can familiarize yourself with the responsibilities that come with being a seller.
   • To become a truly successful seller, you need to have lots of positive feedback. When you're first starting out, you won't have any. Build your business slowly and give great customer service so that you can earn positive feedback. That way, you'll earn the trust of buyers, who will be more likely to do business with you once they see you're an established and honest seller.
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Method 2 of 4: Creating Your Listing

1. 1
   Choose how you want to sell. eBay originally functioned as an auction site only, but now you have other options when it comes to putting your items up for sale. Consider how quickly you want to sell your item, whether or not you'd be willing to let it go at lower price than you'd hoped for and how much effort you want to put into the whole selling process.

   • Traditional auction. If you list your item auction-style, you establish an opening bid and then allow a set number of days for buyers to submit their own bids for your item. Whatever the highest bid is at the end of the auction period, that is the final selling price of your item. The hope, of course, is that interest will be high and the price will rise over the auction period so that you come out a winner.
     • You can set an auction to last 3, 5, 7 or 10 days. Sellers with a feedback rating of 10, will also be given the option of a 1-day auction. Many buyers watch items for a while and think about them before placing a bid, so a longer auction could be to your advantage.^[2]
     • This choice may not be a good one if you're faint of heart as you have to contend with the stress of watching and waiting to see if the selling price will go up and if you'll break even or ideally make a profit on your item.
     • While it may bring a bit of unwanted drama to your life, using the traditional auction method could pay off. eBay says buyers are twice as likely to buy an item when it's listed auction-style.^[3]
   • Reserve. If you want to ensure that an item you list for auction doesn't go for a price you can't live with, you can set a Reserve on the item. A Reserve is the minimum bid you must receive in order to sell your item. If you set a Reserve, be aware that interested buyers may be in touch to find out your Reserve amount, so you may be spending some additional time answering questions. eBay also charges a fee for adding a Reserve.
   • Buy It Now (BIN). The BIN feature lets you set the price you want for an item right from the get-go. Buyers who look at your listing will immediately know the price, and they can purchase straight out. BIN gives you the opportunity to perhaps sell your item quickly for the price you want and be done with it or move on to your next listing.
     • You can list for 3, 5, 7, 10 or 30 days or choose the "Good 'Til Cancelled" option for your Buy It Now listing.
     • You can add a BIN option to an item you have listed for auction.
   • Best Offer. You can add a Best Offer feature to a BIN listing. That way, interested buyers can submit to you a price they'd be willing to pay for your item. You do not have to accept any Best Offer bids that come in unless you want to. You can hold out to see if anyone will purchase your item at the BIN price.
2. 2
   Decide on your price. The best way to price an item is to see what similar items have sold for on eBay. Log in to your eBay account and choose "Advanced Search" and check the box marked "Completed Listings" to see what items have sold for across multiple categories. Look at how the items were sold (auction, BIN, Best Offer or Reserve)and pay particular attention to those that used the selling method you've decided to use for your own item.

   • It's important to look for items that are similar to yours in as many ways as possible. That means condition, age, color and a variety of variables should be taken into account when comparing your item to those that have recently sold.
   • You can see information about items that have sold within the last 90 days and for items that didn't sell within the last 30 days.
3. 3
   Take photos. It won't be enough to simply talk about your item, you have to show buyers what you're offering. In fact, as of July 31, 2013 eBay requires at least one photo for each listing. Photos must be border-less, without seller-added text or artwork and be at least 500 pixels on the longest side.^[4]

   • When taking photos of your items, keep your background as simple and clean as possible. Set them up against a white or neutral background. Try clipping a piece of white poster board to a stand and bending it onto a table to serve as a backdrop. If your item sparkles (it's a piece of jewelry, for example) place it on a black background instead.
   • Don't use lighting that creates shadows, hot spots, reflections or gray areas. Avoid using the flash on your camera. Opt instead for soft, natural light or diffused light created by a lightbox or by putting a sheet, gauze or frosted glass in front of your light source.
   • Put your camera on a tripod. No matter how steady you think you can hold your camera, you're better off setting it up on a tripod for taking photos; that's especially true for close-up shots. Blurred images won't show buyers what they want to see, and they'll quickly move on from your listing.
   • Take multiple shots. Take not only a straight-on shot of your item, but photos from multiple angles as well. Be sure to include close-up photos of important details on your item. With the exception of cars, you can post 12 photos per listing for free.
4. 4
   Determine how you'll ship. Once you've photographed your item, pack and weigh it so that you can arrive at an accurate shipping price. You can have shipping costs automatically calculated for you, double check the costs yourself or offer free shipping.

   • You can choose "calculated shipping" when you list your item. When you do so, shipping costs will be automatically calculated for your buyer based on the buyer's ZIP code, the weight and the dimensions that you enter for the package.^[5]
   • You can preview what shipping costs will be using eBay's Shipping Calculator. You'll enter detailed information about your package (weight, dimensions) your zip code and what shipping services (USPS, FedEx, UPS) you want to use.
   • Offer free shipping. Free shipping allows you to attract more buyers and get higher placement in search results. Also, once a free-shipping transaction is confirmed, it'll earn you a 5-star rating on your "Shipping and Handling Charges Detailed Seller Rating."
5. 5
   Write a description of your item. Writing a great description is really key to making money on eBay. You have to tell potential buyers as much as you can about your item and do it in a way that's clear and appealing.

   • Create a clear title. Say what you're selling using appropriate keywords and adding any useful information that might catch a reader's attention (brand name, designer, color). Don't try to be cute or clever; instead, be clear as to exactly what the item is that's up for sale.
   • Write all the pertinent information. Include the item's color, size, model names or numbers, if it comes with accessories, whether it’s new or used and if used, how old it is and what kind of condition it's in. Refer to the photos you've taken to write an accurate and complete description.
   • Talk about benefits. It's not enough for potential buyers to know all the features of your item, they need to understand how those features can benefit them. For example, if the the boots you're selling are waterproof, be sure and say "your feet will stay warm and dry."
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Method 3 of 4: Completing the Transaction

1. 1
   Contact your buyer. Once you've received a winning bid or a buyer has purchased your item, you need to be in touch. If you've chosen to use the online "Checkout" feature, some information will be sent to your buyer, or you can send an invoice via My eBay.

   • Be sure to confirm the following information with the buyer: total price, tax (if applicable), accepted forms of payment, shipping cost, shipping method, expected delivery date and a tracking or Delivery Confirmation number.
2. 2
   Receive payment. Before you ship an item to a buyer, you have to receive payment. Buyers are typically good about paying on time--they know their reputation via feedback depends on it. In some cases, you may have to send a gentle reminder to a buyer who is slow to pay.

   • If you fail to receive payment from a buyer, do your best to work it out between the two of you. If your efforts fail, you can go to eBay's Resolution Center and submit an "unpaid item case."
3. 3
   Ship the item. As soon as you receive payment, plan to ship out the item. Be sure it's securely wrapped and cushioned with enough packing material so that it'll arrive in good shape. Buyers are often eager to receive their items, so ship on time to ensure that your customer is satisfied and leaves positive feedback.

   • eBay gives you the option of creating a shipping label and packing slip on its site.
   • Get a provide your seller with a tracking or Delivery Confirmation number, doing so can protect you if a buyer claims they never received the item. If you created a shipping label on eBay, the tracking or Delivery Confirmation number is available to you and the buyer in My eBay.
4. 4
   Leave feedback. It's not just buyers who leave feedback about their sellers, sellers, too, should leave feedback. This lets others know what it was like to do business with your buyer, helps your buyer improve his reputation (provided it was a good experience) and earns you a reputation as a thoughtful and appreciative seller.
5. 5
   Pay your eBay fees. The sale price of your item along with any add-ons (gallery photos, Reserve, etc.) will determine what fees you must pass on to eBay. Be sure to make your payments in a timely fashion to establish yourself as a trustworthy seller.
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Method 4 of 4: Growing Your Business

1. 1
   Be a great communicator. Being responsive to interested buyers and your customers is important in any sales situation, but perhaps even more so on eBay where auctions can move quickly and people must rely only on email as a way of being in touch.

   • Check your email frequently so that you can give prompt responses to questions about your items or inquiries regarding payment or shipping.
   • Considering downloading the eBay app to your smartphone so that you can manage your communications more easily.
   • Be friendly in your emails. It's always a good policy to treat people with courtesy. On eBay that can earn you repeat customers and great feedback.
2. 2
   Give timely feedback. You have the opportunity after every transaction to give feedback about your buyer. Do it. And do it in a timely way. eBay success is built on reputations. Be generous and quick in giving feedback in the hopes that your buyers will do the same for you. Don't withhold feedback--waiting for comments from buyers first before you post feedback about them; you'll seem petty.

   • Unless a transaction was particularly horrific, come up with something positive to say to your buyer. Even a simple "Thank you for your business" is better than not leaving any feedback at all.
3. 3
   Go wholesale. You can purchase small wholesale lots of products that most people use on a daily basis and make those the focus of your eBay business. There are a lot of products that fit this description. Do you want to sell clothing or home decor, beauty supplies or kitchen items? Make a decision, do some research on your market and learn how to target buyers and meet their needs.
4. 4
   Find a niche. One of the most common reasons buyers turn to eBay is to find unusual items that they can't find anywhere else. Browse through eBay's community groups to see all the folks who share common interests (stamp collectors,knitters, stay-at-home moms, vegans, etc.) and sell items that appeal to their specific needs and desires.
5. 5
   Become a Power Seller. Power Sellers represent an elite 4 percent of eBay sellers. A Power Seller designation tells buyers that you are trustworthy, honest and offer a fair deal, which in turn brings more buyers your way. Not only that, Power Sellers enjoy a number of advantages and benefits and special access from eBay. Depending on their level, these can include priority customer and technical support, discounts from UPS and even health insurance. Power Seller must meet a list of eligibility requirements.^[6]

   • Be an active member for 90 days.
   • Average a minimum of $1000 in sales per month for three consecutive months.
   • Maintain a minimum of four average monthly listings for three consecutive months.
   • Have an overall feedback rating of 100, of which 98% or more is positive.
   • Have an account in good financial standing.
   • Uphold the eBay community values, including honesty, timeliness and mutual respect
   • Comply with all eBay listing and marketplace policies.