There are a lot of websites on the Internet but only a few of them are popular worldwide. Among the most popular ones are search engines like Google and Yahoo! But when buying and selling over the World Wide Web is the main concern, only one website stands out, and that is eBay.com.
With over 147 million registered users in 30 countries worldwide, eBay is undoubtedly the largest online auction, garage sale, shopping center, or whatever-you-may-call-it site on the Web. With this large number of customers, it is understandable why a lot of businessmen, newbies, and experts alike, would want to sell their stuff on eBay. This is aside from the fact that selling products on eBay is extremely easy and, according to successful sellers, extremely profitable.
Before starting an eBay business, businessmen are often faced with the question: “What product would I sell on eBay?” Well, this is the easier question to answer. The more difficult question would be: “What product would be extremely profitable if sold on eBay?”
Now, let us answer the two questions one at a time.
What Products to Sell on eBay
Everything that can be sold locally can also be sold at eBay. For a general idea of the kind of products a person can sell on eBay, you may want to visit eBay’s website and on its homepage, find a section labeled “Categories”. In this section, one will find product categories like Antiques, Art, Books, Cell Phones, and Collectibles, among others. If you’ve got a product that can fit into any of the categories, then your product can be sold on eBay.
But just like in any other shopping center, online or offline, eBay also prohibits some products from being sold. Among those products that are listed on eBay’s Prohibited List are:
• Airline and Transit Related Items
• Animals and Wildlife Products
• Alcohol
• Catalog and URL Sales
• Counterfeit Currency and Stamps
• Counterfeit Items
• Credit Cards
• Drugs & Drug Paraphernalia
• Embargoed Goods and Prohibited Countries
• Firearms
• Fireworks
• Gift Cards
• Government IDs and Licenses
• Human Parts and Remains
• Links
• Lockpicking Devices
• Lottery Tickets
• Mailing Lists and Personal Information
• Multi-level Marketing, Pyramid, and Matrix Programs
• Plants and Seeds
• Postage Meters
• Prescription Drugs and Devices
• Recalled Items
• Satellite and Cable TV Descramblers
• Stocks and Other Securities
• Stolen Property
• Surveillance Equipment
• Tobacco
• Travel
• Special
• Real Estate
Aside from these prohibited products, there are still other products that may be prohibited by eBay based on certain conditions. These products are filed in eBay’s Questionable List and would include:
• Artifacts
• Autographed Items
• Batteries
• Catalytic Converters and Test Pipes
• Charity or Fundraising Listings
• Contracts and Tickets
• Electronics Equipment
• Event Tickets
• Food
• Freon
• Hazardous Materials
• Imported & Emission Non-Compliant Vehicles
• International Trading – Buyers
• International Trading – Sellers
• Manufacturers’ Coupons
• Mature Audiences
• Offensive Material
• Pesticides
• Police-Related Items
• Pre-Sale Listings
• Slot Machines
• Used Airbags
• Used Clothing
• Used Medical Devices
• Weapons & Knives
• Wine
• Potentially Infringing
• (copyright & trademark)
• Academic Software
• Anti-circumvention Policy
• Authenticity Disclaimers
• Beta Software
• Bootleg Recordings
• Brand Name Misuse
• Celebrity Material
• Comparison Policy
• Contracts and Tickets
• Downloadable Media
• Encouraging Infringement Policy
• Faces, Names and Signatures
• Importation of Goods into the United States
• Misleading Titles
• Mod Chips, Game Enhancers, and Boot Discs
• Movie Prints
• OEM Software
• Recordable Media
• Replica and Counterfeit Items
• Promotional Items
• Unauthorized Copies
What Products Would Sell Profitably on eBay?
Now, this question is a bit harder to answer than the first one. Even eBay experts would disagree on what type of products would sell well on eBay and what products would not. As an eBay newbie, however, analyzing the eBay market before selling anything would help you much.
One thing to analyze before deciding to sell anything on eBay is the popularity of the products being sold on the auction site. In general, eBay experts would advise newbies to avoid selling products that are “hot” or very popular. In most cases, you’ll have a great number of competitors in selling this product and as a newbie, you may end up in a disadvantageous position.
But as you avoid selling products that are too “hot” for you to handle, you must also avoid selling products that have become too cold. These are the products that don’t sell well either because they are out of season (like jackets and raincoats during summer) or because they just don’t sell well over the Web. Although there would be fewer competitors if you sell products like these, the chance of eventually selling it on eBay is also very slim.
Avoiding products that are too hot and too cold, would leave you selling products that are positioned in the middle of the popularity scale. As a beginner, this should do well for you. Should you decide to sell a more popular product and to compete with big-time eBay traders, better do it at a time when you’ve already got much eBay selling experience?
