Simplx Blog

Why Sell on eBay? (Part 1)
We talk a lot about new web-based businesses using eBay to springboard them into early success, but what about more mature businesses? If your website is already bringing you sales, is there really any sense diverting time and effort to auctioning things on eBay?

To answer that question fairly, we can start by looking at what the largest advantages are that eBay offers to a new business. Do those advantages carry over to an established one?

Advantage #1: eBay is a Huge Marketplace
One of the nicest things about the eBay marketplace is that it doesn’t care whether a seller represents a multi-million dollar company with divisions all over the world, or a single person selling something out of their garage. Whether big or small, everyone selling products on eBay starts on an even footing. This means that every eBay seller has a fair shot at one of the largest markets in the world.

And what a market it is! eBay’s Third Quarter Financial Report for 2007 indicates that there are over 257 million registered users on eBay and that sellers on eBay made more than 14.3 billion dollars in the third quarter of 2007 alone. That’s a lot of commerce by any standard, but it’s even more impressive when you consider how easy it is to participate in. Selling on eBay is as easy as creating an account and posting an auction, and it’s easy for new businesses as well as more seasoned ones.

Advantage #2: eBay brings Its Own Customers
Marketing is the biggest challenge of any online entrepreneur. Competition is fierce, and getting potential customers to even know about your online store takes skill and hard work. No matter how good your product is, how competitive your prices are, or how well your website is put together, no one will ever buy from you if they don’t find your store.

With eBay, a lot of this problem is avoided up front. eBay is the most recognized name in the world of online shopping; it’s the first (and last) stop for literally millions of shoppers. If you create your eBay auction properly, potential customers will come straight to you, already looking for the product you are selling.

Advantage #3: Sales through eBay Can Help Point Potential Customers Toward your Online Store
Selling a product on eBay doesn’t have to just be about a single auction. Although eBay does have specific rules about how you can advertise your web store, it is still possible to point your eBay customers to your store and comply with all of the regulations. Although we’ll discuss the specifics of this more next week, it’s important to realize now that many successful online entrepreneurs find customers through eBay sales they are conducting at the same time they are running their web store.

Mature Online Businesses and the eBay Potential
All three of these advantages can be applicable to online entrepreneurs, whether their web store is three weeks old or three years old. Selling on eBay can increase your sales without a huge investment of time and energy and without altering your web store’s marketing strategy. Next week we’ll talk more specifically about ways to magnify these advantages by also using your eBay sales to direct additional traffic to your web store.

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