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What to do Now? $$$

by jthall89
7 replies
OK first of all, this will me my first dive into making money online, so please excuse me if I sound like a clueless noob.

Here is the deal. I have alot, and when I say a lot, I mean a whole lot of sports merchandise I would like to sell online, with unlimited access to tons more.

I have had booths in the local mall and flea market but am really wanting to get the ball rolling with some online sales. The only problem is I have no clue where to start. I would love to eventually have the bulk of my sales come from the internet so I want to start off in the right direction, doing things the right way. I figured this would be the best place to come to get some great advice but if there are other places that you know of that would be more suited for this type of business please share.

So to sum it all up, I guess what I'm asking is, if you walked into your garage and it was magically filled to the brim with merchandise that was in high demand, and you wanted to start a business selling it online what would you do step by step to make sure it would be profitable, organized and successful?

Thanks so much for your time. I cant wait to read the replies!!
#$$$
  • Profile picture of the author webapex
    Setting up a store on eBay or Amazon is probably the easiest way to test the waters, you benefit from their big names and product directories so you don't have to do so much advertising.

    Making first rate quality photos is a big plus for online sales, items with more than one copy available are probably a better chance, though some sellers represent scarcity to up the value, then repeat the "one of a kind" item a month or so later.
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    • Profile picture of the author jthall89
      Originally Posted by webapex View Post

      Setting up a store on eBay or Amazon is probably the easiest way to test the waters, you benefit from their big names and product directories so you don't have to do so much advertising.

      Making first rate quality photos is a big plus for online sales, items with more than one copy available are probably a better chance, though some sellers represent scarcity to up the value, then repeat the "one of a kind" item a month or so later.
      Thanks my friend. I got your pm but due to the fact that i only have 14 posts I cannot reply. Do you have a skype?
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  • Profile picture of the author pennington33
    Set up a store on eBay or Amazon is probably the easiest way to see if your products will sale. Also set up a youtube account and start vlogging about yours products.
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  • Profile picture of the author InternetMarketingIQ
    I'd first figure out if there was a Market for what you want to do.

    Who is the buyer? Are they men or women? Are they regional or National? Is this product a commodity or specialized.

    Spend time looking at your competition... what are they doing, and what tools are they using?

    That's the kind of thing you need to know. Building the site is the easy part. FIND your traffic FIRST, then build. Build it and they will come doesn't work!!! That's a plan for failure. You need to create your plan first so you won't be lost a month from now wondering what to do when you have your fancy new site and no business.

    Another thing often overlooked and absolutely critical is how easy it is to buy while at the same time preventing fraud. I personally buy online and I get so frustrated with sites that want ever little piece of information. You should ask for minimum information to make a sale.

    And shipping is another hang up, I want to know BEFORE I enter my Credit Card or I won't buy. Some people are stupid and don't mind paying $20 shipping for a $20 item, but not me. Is you customer base stupid.

    Now having said all of that... I'd investigate the cost of these things while creating my plan.

    1. Selling my products through 3rd parties like Amazon and eBay who already have loads of Traffic.
    2. Setting up an Affiliate Program to have other people work for me for free for a commission.

    Sounds like you have plenty of product... make that plan.
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  • Profile picture of the author brianboyer
    Yeah I definitely agree with eBay and Amazon. Less fees on Amazon though. You could also create a website about sports and do giveaways for some of that stuff to increase your sales and traffic.
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    • Profile picture of the author Pat T
      I would agree with others who state set up an eBay store and test the waters.

      I owned an e-commerce Golf store 2001-2005 and sold exclusively to women golfers and it took time to build the store, market it, and see the profits. It takes money to make money.

      We also sold some items on eBay which was less expensive and very profitable.

      My vote would be an eBay store and get your feet wet selling online.
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  • Profile picture of the author Quirpo
    I can help set you up with good (modern design) web store with great seo and blogging features. Part of this will include a marketing niche that I can pretty much guarantee you sales...even within your first two weeks (if not days)!

    I will do this for $0 up front (but you will need to pay me for your domain ($10/year) and hosting ($10/month) and I will market you and get you thousands of targeted buyers a week for a % of the sales I bring you!

    If you are serious, send me a message and we will talk!
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    I give thanks everyday for my wonderful family......but I still work way too much!

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