19 replies
My mom lost her job this past month and she's been selling stuff on eBay like crazy. Made around $500 now which was pretty surprising to me. She's also been looking into different ways to make money online and I've been trying to help her with that.

The only thing she's interested in is eBay because it's what she knows. I've tried getting her into other things but hey it's her choice after all. To her this is just temporary anyways until she's working again.

Anyways she's been researching dropshipping and that's the direction she wants to go. Can anyone recommend a good dropshipping company and share any other advice on the topic.

Thank you all!
Dan
#advice #dropshipping #ebay #needed
  • Profile picture of the author RAMarketing
    Don't know anything about drop shipping, but I used to make 1-2k a month just going to garage sales and selling stuff I got for less than $5. Just an idea :-)
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  • Profile picture of the author MaxReferrals
    Drop ship is exactly as it's described. Typically you don't hold the product
    you are selling in inventory.

    You sell the product on your site, and then provide the order details
    to the vendor who fulfills and ships the product on your behalf.

    HIH
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  • Profile picture of the author johnmorales
    Originally Posted by Dan Allard View Post

    My mom lost her job this past month and she's been selling stuff on eBay like crazy. Made around $500 now which was pretty surprising to me. She's also been looking into different ways to make money online and I've been trying to help her with that.

    The only thing she's interested in is eBay because it's what she knows. I've tried getting her into other things but hey it's her choice after all. To her this is just temporary anyways until she's working again.

    Anyways she's been researching dropshipping and that's the direction she wants to go. Can anyone recommend a good dropshipping company and share any other advice on the topic.

    Thank you all!
    Dan
    Dan
    Go to Skip McGrath's website and get on his mailing list. I learned a lot from him. He has a lot of information on drop shipping and other selling tips. He can tell you the pros and cons of this type of business. (Skip McGrath dot com)

    Hope this helps,
    John
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  • Profile picture of the author perfectlovehere
    Dropshipping has a VERY low profit margin most of the time unless you go directly to a manufacturer usually. I would suggest she look into light bulk wholesale. Or ebay "wholesale" and see what items come up that she may be interested in selling. Good luck!
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    • Profile picture of the author salegurus
      Originally Posted by johnmorales View Post

      Dan
      Go to Skip McGrath's website and get on his mailing list. I learned a lot from him. He has a lot of information on drop shipping and other selling tips. He can tell you the pros and cons of this type of business. (Skip McGrath dot com)

      Hope this helps,
      John
      Good idea, Skip knows eBay inside out.

      Originally Posted by perfectlovehere View Post

      Dropshipping has a VERY low profit margin most of the time unless you go directly to a manufacturer usually. I would suggest she look into light bulk wholesale. Or ebay "wholesale" and see what items come up that she may be interested in selling. Good luck!
      Correct, the margins with dropshipping business on eBay are very slim, remember there are thousands using the same dropshippers.
      Good wholesalers are few and far between and it also depends on the items you are selling.
      Example: Consumer electronics, every beginners favorite is almost impossible to break into.
      Another option is Liquidation lots, but again you have to know what you are doing and buying by truckload or by pallet will cost a bit but per item price will be good.

      If your Mom has the funds World Wide Brands is a good investment, they have thousands of legit suppliers in their data base...

      Goodluck
      Theo
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      ― George Carlin
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  • Profile picture of the author onegoodman
    She can work as eBay trade assistant but she need to increase her sales first to be Top rated sellers.

    If there is no many people in her area doing the job, she can get people stuff & sell it for a good fee.
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  • Profile picture of the author ry6782010
    IMHO I don't recommend drop shipping, just for the reasons perfectlovehere suggests. Drop Shippers usually take a piece of the pie so to speak, with fees per item, between that, and all the Ebay fees you have to pay, I just don't see how it's worth it. Your best bet is to buy low, and sell high. Look at auctions/items on Ebay, Ebid, Amazon, etc and see if you can find popular items for low and then sell them for a higher price. Make a budget so you know just how much you're willing to spend.

    But, if your mum is dead set on drop shipping, tell her to check out "World Wide Brands" as they are an Ebay certified drop shipper. If you need anymore help go to Google and type in "Where to look for wholesalers" and click the first link that will take you to an Ebay page. (I'd post the links, but I can't due to have not enough posts).

    Hope this helps!
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    • Profile picture of the author imon32red
      Originally Posted by ry6782010 View Post

      IMHO I don't recommend drop shipping, just for the reasons perfectlovehere suggests. Drop Shippers usually take a piece of the pie so to speak, with fees per item, between that, and all the Ebay fees you have to pay, I just don't see how it's worth it.
      The OP is looking for a drop shipper, not a reason not to dropship. I would say if you are only looking to sell an item or two you would probably be alright with the above advice. If you are looking to make a living with this I would disagree completely. If you sell any type of volume you quickly run out of hours in the day to ship products.

      It always amazes me how often someone can ask for advice on this forum, and within a short period of time the naysayers are saying that "******" doesn't work anymore.

      To the OP. I don't use any dropshippers, but I can say that I know friends that use World Wide Brands and like it. I actually have been doing something similar, without the drop shipper. I have been finding products locally made where the inventor is struggling to market their product. I am not talking about arts and crafts or homemade necklaces and the like. I am talking about legitimate products that are professional looking. I then market those products online using strategies similar to those talked about on this website.
      Signature
      I'm not selling anything.
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      • Profile picture of the author Joe J
        Originally Posted by imon32red View Post

        ....... I actually have been doing something similar, without the drop shipper. I have been finding products locally made where the inventor is struggling to market their product. I am not talking about arts and crafts or homemade necklaces and the like. I am talking about legitimate products that are professional looking. I then market those products online using strategies similar to those talked about on this website.
        I was going to suggest what imon32red said here. If it was a situation to where your Mother can't, or don't want to do the shipping herself, She can find a product owner who would handle all that for her. Or, someone to partner with to do the shipping.

        As with dropshippers, the same concern is there regarding the way Her partnership with them will affect her Ebay feedback. So please be careful and do your own research for a reputable company or person to work with.
        The suggestions you are offered here is a great resource to start that research.

        I have an Ebay account with a perfect feedback rating and protecting that feedback is always my first concern.

        Good Luck and Kudos for helping Mom !

        Joe
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        • It never ceases to amaze me that people offering quite reasonable cautions are instantly branded as "naysayers."

          I'm sorry to break it to ya, me bucko, but just because you wish something to be golden doesn't make it so. And there are thousands of eBay sellers who have no real idea if they're making money or not. Cash flow does not equal profit. World Wide Brands thrives off these sellers.

          There are a whole host of excellent reasons why an inexperienced eBay seller should avoid dropshipping. You do Dan's mom a real disservice by disparaging people who are trying to help her out.

          fLufF
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          • Dan,

            I was a full-time eBay seller for 10 years. I made a living at it. My feedback is over 25,000. IOW, I know what I'm talking about.

            Your mom is best off selling what she knows, at least at first. Later, once she's really established and bringing in a comfortable income, she can take risks and try new product lines. I was primarily a jewelry seller but I've made lots of money on fine china, American Flyer trains, antique sterling silver holloware and flatware, carnival glass, handbags and so many other things.

            If she buys what she knows, she can check out the jobber sites like ViaTrading.com or Liquidation.com and be able to make an educated purchase. Someone earlier mentioned garage sales -- there are always some great bargains to be had there as long as she keeps learning about stuff. I bought a sterling silver bowl earlier this year for 50 cents and flipped it on eBay for more than $500. Fun times. If she has any interest in jewelry at all it's really worthwhile to learn marks. I've bought 18k gold jewelry at garage sales from people who didn't know what it was because it was marked "750" instead of 18k.

            Someone else mentioned buying on eBay for resale on eBay. You can do that, but you really need to know the merchandise.

            fLufF
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            • Profile picture of the author RichMag
              Originally Posted by fluffythewondercat View Post

              If she buys what she knows, she can check out the jobber sites like ViaTrading.com or Liquidation.com and be able to make an educated purchase. Someone earlier mentioned garage sales -- there are always some great bargains to be had there as long as she keeps learning about stuff. I bought a sterling silver bowl earlier this year for 50 cents and flipped it on eBay for more than $500. Fun times. If she has any interest in jewelry at all it's really worthwhile to learn marks. I've bought 18k gold jewelry at garage sales from people who didn't know what it was because it was marked "750" instead of 18k.

              Someone else mentioned buying on eBay for resale on eBay. You can do that, but you really need to know the merchandise.

              fLufF
              --
              Some great advice here. Have her sell what she knows.

              Here is almost a full proof, profitable way to make money but it will take SOME WORK (some people hate that ).

              For example, I know/collect sports cards. When I get in the mood what I do is buy collections on eBay and sometime Craigslist (raely on CL though). For example, I might buy a complete set of 1973 Topps Baseball Cards for around $500-$600. Once I get the item, Ill offer it for $900 to $1000 (depending on condition) on Craigslist for a quick flip. Every once in a while Ill get a bite and make a quick profit. Most of the time it's low ball offers that I dont want even though I would make a profit of $100-$200. I know I can do better back on eBay.

              Ok, now here is where the work comes in. I scan all 600+ cards individually. Then I list them using Turbo Lister (there are other free listing tools out there for bulk listing as well). This whole process takes me 8-10 hours. I usually do it over 2 or 3 days. I have a template and a good scanner that I use to speed up the process a bit but really, it does take some time and is very boring work. When I first did this, it would take me almost 20 hours but after I get a good template and a scanner, I really cut the time down dramatically. The more you do it, the better and faster you will get.

              I then list everything as a 7 day auction starting at $.99 to save on listing fees. While some of the cards will go for up to $100 each (ie. The Mike Schmidt RC) depending on condition. A lot will sell for $.99. On something like this example, I can figure that the average sale price per all 600+ cards will be right around $2.45 each (once again, I know my market).

              I ship for $3.50 and offer combined shipping so the MAX my clients pay on shipping is $3.50, no matter if they buy 1 or 100 cards. The $3.50 is a bit high for 1 card but I want to encourage people to buy more cards so I always link to "My Other Items" within the auction listing.

              On this example, after FVF, listing and paypal fees, shipping costs, supllies, etc. Ill end up profiting anywhere from $300 all the way up to $650. Even on the low end of $300 for 10 hours of work, you are still making 30 bucks per hour (before the time it takes to ship which isnt too bad since most people buy multiple cards. Usually 2.5 hours topps).

              The cards I dont sell (yes there are some) I either throw into my eBay Store or I put them all in a lot and sell them that way the next week.

              Im actually in the process now on waiting for a few collections/sets to arrive so I can list them as I want/need some extra money for XMAS this year (buying wifey a cruise vacation).

              So in a nutshell, like Fluff said, find something that she really knows about to minimize the risk. Since she has some time on her hands, I think buying lots and breaking them up could work for her. Will she get rich doing this? Probably not but she can support herself pretty well with some hard work.

              Hope this helps,

              Rich
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          • Profile picture of the author RichMag
            Originally Posted by fluffythewondercat View Post

            There are a whole host of excellent reasons why an inexperienced eBay seller should avoid dropshipping. You do Dan's mom a real disservice by disparaging people who are trying to help her out.

            fLufF
            --
            Once again I agree with Fluff. Let's say Dan's Mom setups with a dropshipping company. She lists a 100 or so items on eBay. Someone comes along and buys 7 or 8 products. Dan's Mom goes to the DS company to place her customers order only to find out they are out of stock. Uh ohhh. Thats 8 negative feedbacks which is pretty tough for a new seller to overcome.

            With that being said, I have used DS in the past but I didnt use a middle man (95% of the companies you find online are really just middle men selling DS lists) but rather, went to a manufacturer directly who offered to DS some items for me. Trust me, the profit margin is much higher going this route but manufactuers wont touch you unless you have some sort of Sales Tax ID or even a FEID. In other words, a real business entity.

            If you find a DS company that doesnt ask for a Sales Tax ID then they are not true dropshippers but rather "middle men".

            Rich
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  • Profile picture of the author clove
    Banned
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    • Profile picture of the author Anthony C
      A few years back I had pretty good success re-selling government surplus on ebay. Some lots I won for less than a few hundred dollars then resold on ebay for a few thousand in profits. That was a lucky lot. If your mom lives near a DRMO site then that could be an option. Gov liquidation dot com is a good place start.
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  • Profile picture of the author Meharis
    Originally Posted by Dan Allard View Post

    My mom lost her job this past month and she's been selling stuff on eBay like crazy. Made around $500 now which was pretty surprising to me. She's also been looking into different ways to make money online and I've been trying to help her with that.

    The only thing she's interested in is eBay because it's what she knows. I've tried getting her into other things but hey it's her choice after all. To her this is just temporary anyways until she's working again.

    Anyways she's been researching dropshipping and that's the direction she wants to go. Can anyone recommend a good dropshipping company and share any other advice on the topic.

    Thank you all!
    Dan

    When you did have your dream you wanted so bad...right?
    Now, let your Mom follow her dream. Just push, don't pull.
    That's a very good start for her and eventually will lead her to do other things.
    I strongly suggest you give her as a present "The Silent Sales Machine" by Jim Cockrum.
    I doubt it if she goes back to find a job if she wants to be her own boss.
    Your Mom will love you for it.

    Meharis
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  • Profile picture of the author paulie123
    I like Clove's suggestion about the autographs and in general collectibles always seem to move well on eBay. Here is the thing about collectibles-the best way to maximize their selling point price is to buy and than hold on to them and let them appreciate. Too many people pay a premium for a collectible and turn around and sell it to quickly. And while a good profit can be made doing that, a better one could have been made if they just kept it for a while and let its value appreciate. My 2 cents.
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  • Profile picture of the author Kal Sallam
    Stay away from DropShipping. I know it sounds tempting and all but, it's not worth your time.
    Buy In Bulk after you research the prices. Try: WorldWideBrands.com They are the best!
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  • Profile picture of the author feliciayapsl
    You can go to salehoo.com.
    Signature
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  • Profile picture of the author Dan Allard
    Wow, I posted this yesterday and had to leave right away. Didn't expect to get this many responses. Thank you all! You gave me many great ideas to think about.

    Cheers to the Warrior Forum!
    Signature

    Facebook page for inspiration & JV opportunities-

    facebook.com/WantrepreneurToEntrepreneur

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