Making money by selling items online might seem like a daunting prospect, involving various steps such as creating a website, setting up a business, and plenty of tedious administrative tasks. But the truth is that it’s remarkably easy to set up a selling business online, thanks to the platforms that are out there to help make your life easier. In this guide, we’ll introduce you to the easiest, most pain-free ways in which you can make a living selling products online in 2021.
Your Platform
The key to your online selling business will be which platform you choose to use to sell your products. You can, of course, choose multiple platforms if you wish, though this can make your life a little more complicated in terms of monitoring each eCommerce site you share your products on. It’s far simpler to just choose one platform. Among the best options are eBay, Shopify, and Amazon – all of which offer you the opportunity to share your products with millions of web users without having to build a website of your own.
Maximizing Yield
Anyone can sell a product on eBay. The website’s easy-to-use interface makes things swift and seamless for the seller. However, you might not be making the most cash out of items you sell there – and that’s because you may not be presenting your products in the best light. In order to boost the profits you achieve for selling online, make sure you:
- Do your research to ensure you set an asking price that’s fair to both you and the customer
- Take high-quality photographs of the product to show it off
- Write an accurate and eloquent description of the product, so people know what they’re getting
- Be prepared to open a Q&A feature on eBay so that consumers can ask questions about the product
- Be open to one-time offers if they could help you shift products faster
All of these tricks will help you make more money by selling your products online.
Shipping
Listing items on eBay and other eCommerce websites cost a little cash. This is an unavoidable tariff you spend in order to sell on their large and well-frequented platforms. Plus, another fee you have to contend with is shipping. And while you can’t ship for free, you can find ways to ship for less. Get up to 75% cheaper shipping by using reputable, good-value websites like Shiply, which caters for everything from auto parts delivery to the shipping of huge items that require specialist containers. Bringing down your shipping costs will help boost your profits.
Reputation
Over time, you’ll develop a reputation – both in terms of what people think of you and the reviews they leave of your performance as a seller. Seeing as this is something that consumers look at when deciding whether to trade with you, it’s well worth nurturing a good reputation on your eCommerce site, treating customers with kindness and respect, and posting items on time and with the right packaging.
If you’re looking to start making cash by selling products online, this short guide will help set you up to hit the ground running this autumn.