If you know exactly what you are looking for, eBay has a great page dedicated to wholesale items and the list is broken down by category…

CLICK HERE FOR EBAY’S WHOLESALE LOTS PAGE

Please note that you will find a bunch of junk with this general listing that eBay has created. However, I have come up with a link that will help in two ways…

1. It will attempt to weed out some of the stuff priced too high and help you find wholesale lots you can purchase for resell. On eBay, most of these wholesale lots will be in the form of collectibles and used items. Brand New items usually sell too high on eBay to be able to resell for a profit (though you can find a few deals out there).

2. This link will give you a good list of items to search through to help find a niche. You can see what people are grouping in lots to sell on eBay. For example, I helped someone find their niche in vintage hats by using this link. She had no idea what she wanted to sell on eBay. I gave her this link and after researching the search results provided by this link she was in the vintage hat reselling business. She went on to sell vintage hats exclusively and did really well with it.

So, here it is… The link I have used many many times to source items to resell on eBay…

CLICK HERE FOR MY WHOLESALE LOTS SEARCH QUERY

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You can find some great treasures on this site… Here are some of the things you might be able to purchase for resell on eBay:

• Antiques
• Art (Some Originals)
• Vintage Cameras
• High-End Designer Clothing
• Glass/Figurines/Collector’s Plates/Collectibles
• Jewelry
• Gem Stones
• Musical Instruments
• Toys/Video Games
• CDs/DVDs
• Plus Much More!!!

With over 10,000 auctions running all the time, you never know what you will find. I have found some great deals on this site especially when the worker at Goodwill had no idea what he/she was listing and I knew actually what kind of treasure they had.

One great strategy is to find auctions from a store that is located near you. That way, while everyone else faces a shipping charge you can bid without that charge.

There is not enough potential for this to be your only eBay product source, however if you are looking for another place to find some great deals, I recommend giving it a look!

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I popped over to their site this morning and the very first auction I looked at had a potential profit margin if it was purchased for resell on eBay…

I then did a completed item search on eBay to find the same item selling for up to $250…

Sam’s club shipping on this item was $23 for a total cost on this item of $130.

Now, take that information to the eBay Fee Calculator and enter all information. If we use the information on the one auction that ended for $250 with free shipping on eBay, we will get a net profit of $76.13 (or a 59% profit margin). Not bad for a simple eBay flip.

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Recalculating Feedback percentages without neutrals: Effective in late August, neutrals will no longer be counted as part of the Feedback percentage. This means we will be recalculating Feedback percentages retroactively for users worldwide. In the interim, no one will lose their PowerSeller status as a result of neutrals being included in their Feedback percentage.

I was a supporter of their feedback changes in May except for a few little issues. This is one of the issues I had a problem with. Neutrals were being counted as negatives. It just didn’t make sense to me. Neutral had always meant neither positive nor negative. I am glad to see this being changed back.

Secondly, eBay announced a plan change for the fall:

Helping you resolve issues and satisfy buyers: By the end of October, we will roll out a new process to help you resolve issues with buyers, even after the buyer has left negative feedback. Everybody makes mistakes – buyers and sellers alike, and buyers should have a mechanism to change feedback if they make a mistake or if the seller rectifies an issue in a timely manner. Unlike with our previous Mutual Feedback Withdrawal system, our new process will enable buyers to change their feedback of the seller, not just withdraw the rating.

This is also another issue I had with their feedback policy and I am glad to see it getting reversed. However, this change does bring eBay another step closer to having the same feedback policy as Amazon (Click Here to see my original post on how eBay’s feedback is becoming more like Amazon’s). I wonder if eBay is intentionally becoming more like Amazon or if Amazon had it right in the first place and eBay is just taking longer to get there.

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The eBay merchandising team combs trade magazines, gathers predictions from respected industry experts, and looks at eBay sales data to determine what’s in demand. Here’s the scoop on which hot products will be promoted on the home page, emails, and buyer catalog this season.

This page not only gives you what’s currently getting a lot of bidding action on eBay, it also is great at helping you find a niche. Some of the items on the What’s Hot page are in very narrow niches. There are hundreds of ideas on this page.

The other benefit on this page is it lists items that will be featured on the front page of eBay and in the buyer’s catalog that eBay send out quarterly.

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In addition to seeing where you rank and some of your friends/competitors rank, SellerDome.com also offers some other valuable information…

• Finding A Niche - Everybody knows what the top 10 sellers sell on eBay, but with this site you can search for sellers that are not well known but still make a living off of eBay. My best guess is that most of the top 3000 use eBay as a major source (if not their only source) of income. Being able to scroll through these sellers to get ideas of what to sale is huge!
• Monthly Sales Data - Within each detailed seller page you can find the monthly sales data for a specific seller. This gives some insightful information as to how a seller’s eBay business is doing.
• Items Currently Listed - There is a break down of what type of items and how many of each item type is currently listed for each seller. Again, valuealbe information if it is used right.
• Blog - The blog section gives some statistics on eBay sellers that just aren’t available elsewhere.

SellerDome.com has quickly become a site that I check out each day. It is fun to see how many positions I have climbed up the eBay ladder on a daily basis and it gives me inspiration to find different niches to try to sell in on eBay.

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Buying Lots on eBay to Resell
This is probably the largest source of used products you can find. There are hundreds of lots available at any given time that can bring you profit if you turn around and sell each DVD individually. I recommend you use the following two search links so you don’t miss any available lots in your search results:

DVD Lots

Blu-Ray Lots

Wholesale Suppliers
In the post “Wholesale Directory of DVD & Blu-Ray Suppliers“, I gave a wholesale list of all the distributors that I knew of. Just to recap, here are the largest two suppliers in North America:

Ingram
Baker & Taylor

Retail Sources
There are also opportunities to buy from online retailers and make some profit reselling on eBay. The lowest priced internet retailer in general is Deep Discount. In addition, retailers are all the time having huge sales that you can take advantage of. The best place to get information on the best sales is the DVD BARGAINS FORUM at DVDTALK.COM.

Local Sources

Pawn shops are the best source locally to find DVDs and Blu-Ray discs at unbelievable prices (especially if you buy a large quantity). See the recent post “Find DVDs & Blu-Ray Discs Locally To Resell On EBay” for more information on Pawn Shops.

Here are some other local sources:

• Garage Sales
• Flea Markets
• Used Book & Record Stores
• Thrift Stores
• Library Sales
• Retail Stores

DVDs are a huge seller on eBay. Now that you have the information where to find the products to resell, it is up to you to put in the work to get it done! Research, Research, Research and make sure the DVDs and Blu-Ray discs you are buying for resell will bring you a profit. Then, get the items listed and watch the profit roll in!!

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]]> http://www.auctionarena.com/sourcing-dvds-blu-ray-to-resell-on-ebay/feed/ http://www.auctionarena.com/estate-auctions-a-beginners-guide-for-sourcing-ebay-products/ http://www.auctionarena.com/estate-auctions-a-beginners-guide-for-sourcing-ebay-products/#comments Fri, 13 Jun 2008 22:33:57 +0000 Jason Watson http://www.auctionarena.com/?p=15 SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "Estate Auction Guide For Sourcing EBay Products", url: "http://www.auctionarena.com/estate-auctions-a-beginners-guide-for-sourcing-ebay-products/" });]]> One of my early product sources was estate auctions. This is a fun and exciting way to find stuff to sell on eBay. You just never know what you will find and sometimes you will uncover a hidden gem with an unbelievable profit margin.

I assume everyone knows how an auction works, so I will skip the mechanics of auctions and get right to the important information… How to source products at an estate auction to resell on eBay.

• Locate The Estate Sale You Want To Attend - There are usually large auction ads in your local paper for upcoming estate sales. Be sure to check up to a week in advance as many of the auctions are advertised in the previous weekend’s paper. Also, many items will be listed in the newspaper ad so you can start your pricing research right away.
• Pick The Right Auction - This is a little subjective and there is no one right way to select the auction you want to attend. I try to find one with a lot of collectibles and not too heavy in furniture and other large items. It is always great to find an auction with specific items you are interested in selling on eBay. I used to really enjoy selling collectible paper (e.g. postcards). If I saw one that had a lot of old paper items I would choose that one. If some of the auction items are advertised in the newspaper I will do a little research to see if those items are selling well on eBay. Mostly I just go with my gut to which one I think will be the best.
• Ask If There Is A Preview Time - Most estate auctions will offer a preview time either before the auction begins or even the day before. If there is a preview the day before, I sometimes will spend up to 2 hours writing down all the notes I can on the items for sale so I can take that information home and do research on eBay. Even if the only preview available is a couple hours before it starts, make sure you use that time to do as much research as possible. If you know what an item will sell for on eBay, you are well ahead of the competition when it comes time to bid on an item.
• Have Someone Available To Call - I always have someone I can call if I see an interesting item getting ready to be put into the auction ring. Make sure that person knows how to look the item up on eBay to see what value the item will bring at online auction. Better yet, have an internet capable cell phone with you so you can look up the value of items on the fly. When I use that internet capable phone, I can really dig for some great deals. It is one of the best investments I have made for buying at estate auctions.
• Don’t Get Caught Up In A Bidding War - Know what you will pay for an item and stick to that price. Don’t get emotional… This one is easier said than done. With my competitive spirit I have a hard time getting beat out on an item I really want. However, the more research you do prior to bidding the easier it will be to stop bidding when the bidding exceeds what you want to pay.
• Buy Items In Box Lots - Some of my best finds have been in box lots. Pick out one or two items in a lot and access the value. Only bid up to the value of those two items and you will basically be getting the rest of the box lot for free. Those “free” items is where you can find some real treasures. I have found countless $100+ items at the bottom of a box lot.
• Stay Until The End Of The Auction - Many people will have left by the end of the auction so your competition will have decreased substantially. Also, if the auction is set to end at a fixed time the auctioneers may be in a hurry to get the stuff sold and get out of there. The lots will get bigger and they are likely to miss something valuable that they should have given more details about.
• Bring a Notebook And Take Notes - This is a very important step for me personally. I always took notes on what items brought at the live auction and would come home and research the value of those items on eBay. This was a key to gaining valueable knowledge that I used again and again when I would see a similar item up for bid. The more knowledgable about what sells on eBay the better you will be at spotting great deals in the future. Another thing I like to take notes on are unique items that I suspect another eBay seller is buying to resell on eBay. I will wait a few days and see if that item appears on eBay (do an advanced search on eBay for that item and narrow the results to locations within 50 miles). With it being a somewhat unique item I can be sure that I have the right item and person. Many of the same people go to the local estate sales time and time again. By researching that persons buying habits at estate auctions and selling habits on eBay you will get great information that will help you later when you are bidding against that person at the live estate auctions.
• Keep A Log Of Your Purchases - Always know what kind of profit you are making from the estate auctions by logging your purchases and what each purchase sold for on eBay. This will let you tweak your buying processes at estate auctions to get the best deals possible. It will also be a valuable research tool if similar items appear at a future estate sale.
• Get To Know The Auctioneers - If you like the way a certain auction company runs their auctions, try to attend as many of their auctions as possible. All the auctioneers of the auction company I would frequently use knew me by name. They knew what type of items I liked and would alert me if something was coming up I was interested in. Also, I could tell that during the bidding process I would get a slight advantage over other bidders by these auctioneers. It seemed like they would try to help me get a great deal on items. It is hard to quantify this, but it just seemed sometimes they would end bidding a little early if I was the high bidder or point to me if I bid at the exact same time as another bidder. It just seemed to help in many small ways.
• Don’t Reveal Your Intentions - This one is very hard to do when someone asks you what you plan to do with the stuff you buy. I usually tell them, but many times it has hurt me in future auctions. I used to buy every vintage video game lot (e.g. Atari, Nintendo) that would come up for auction. Well, someone found out how much I was making off these purchases and I had new competition. The price I had to pay for a box lot of vintage video games went from $5 to $40 just because I told this one person that I sold on eBay.

I think sourcing products at estate auctions are a very important step for new eBayers to learn the skills to become successful online seller. Also, out of all the ways I have ever sourced products, this is probably my favorite. Auctions are a very exciting place and the profits that can be made are even more exciting.

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