By Mitz
When starting an Ebay business you will need to weigh up the costs involved in selling items this way. In no way will it cost you as much as renting a retail shop outlet. There is no insurance to pay or electricity bills because you can sell on Ebay Auctions from your own home. Ebay has different costs that add up and have to be considered when listing items in an auction.
- The price you paid for the item
- Listing fees
- Final Value fee
- Postage and Packaging prices
- Lost or damaged goods, returns and refunds.
- Store fees (if you have one)
- Paypal and Credit card fees
The price you paid for the item you are selling is the number one factor to consider. There is no point buying a product for $2.00 and selling it for $3.00.
Final Value fee is calculated on the sale price you get. If you do not sell it you don’t have to pay it. An Auction listing final value fee is cheaper than a Store inventory final fee.
Listing fees can turn into a creeping hidden cost. You have to keep track of all the dozens of different ways they can add up. The basic listing fee alone, varies according to what price you start your item at. Then you can add a gallery picture, make the listing bold, feature it, highlight it, and a lot more. You get cheaper listing fees if you have an Ebay store and list your item as store inventory.
Postage and Packaging prices can be the silent killer of your home business if you do not take all costs into consideration. Do you send it the cheap way in a Ready made plastic post bag that you cannot register, or the safe and more expensive way. It takes time, petrol money, packaging and postage costs.
Lost or damaged goods, returns and refunds. What happens when the items is damaged in the post because you didn’t package it properly. An unnecessary cost to add to the list. Then it has to be posted back to you, another cost, then you may have to give a refund or post another item out.
Store fees are usually a set monthly fee depending on what caliber of store you have. A basic Ebay store in approx $15 a month.
Paypal and Credit card fees are added to the equation when your buyer pays with either of these payment methods.
Once you have taken all these costs into consideration then you can finally see what profit you are actually making.
