eBay Suppliers

This article guides the reader in how to successfully source products and ship directly to them.

Copyright (c) 2008 8 Keys To eBay Success

Most people starting out on eBay will not have the capital behind them or indeed the storage facilities to buy goods in wholesale. There is however a way around this which I will describe below and this is to use suppliers who will dispatch goods directly to your customer - the drop shipper.

Drop shipping on eBay can be an extremely profitable venture as long as you ensure that you do your research on the drop shippers prior to use. So what is drop shipping?

Drop shipping allows you to sell products and dispatch them without ever seeing the product. The process goes something like this: i) You research your niche products from a supplier whom will drop ship your goods to your customer; ii) You become a member of their service by joining their service, usually for a low one off fee; iii) You list the products on eBay; iv) Once the auction has ended and you have a winner, you order the product from the drop shipper who then dispatches the goods in plain unmarked packaging to your customer; v) Your customer receives their product and leaves you positive feedback.

Prior to employing the services of a drop shipper it is essential to find a supplier who is trustworthy and whose prices allow you to profit from the auction. A way I have tested the suitability of my drop shippers in the past is to order a number of products from them, shipping to different friends or family member's addresses; these goods are then sold on when they arrive. This then allows me to check the packaging and delivery methods.

Drop shipping to different countries can be expensive and custom taxes a problem and therefore not many suppliers will provide this service (especially on heavy items). There is a way round this problem however and this is to list items solely in the country of the drop shipper. I live in the United Kingdom however I list items on eBay in the United States and drop ship directly from the United States. The process is exactly the same and my customer still receives excellent customer service and promptly receives their goods. Finding a supplier can often be difficult however I have tried to make this easier on my blog.

One thing to always keep in mind when sourcing suppliers is the mutually beneficial supplier agreement philosophy encompassed within management practices throughout the world. It is good practice to remember that when sourcing products online, treat suppliers with respect and in turn expect nothing less than the same back. We are all in business and without each other we would not last long.

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