Starting an Online Business – Part 3

As I talked about in Part 1 and Part 2, this series is about showing you how I started my eCommerce business. This is by no means a complete guide, but it should give you some hints to help you get started.

My First Sale:
As you know from reading my previous post, I made my first sale! It came about three weeks after I first put listings up, so I was pretty pumped. I received the buyer’s information and submitted it to my supplier. My supplier then sent the item out and I paid them and collected from the seller. As I said, I think I’ll only make $5 from this sale, but pure profit is not the point right now. The point is to get some sales under my belt and figure out what works and what doesn’t. Once I’ve done that I can start maximizing my revenue and profit.

New Postings:
I was on Amazon the other night and saw the “Have one to sell? Sell yours here” button. I looked to see if any of the items I was selling appeared, and they did! I spent the next hour and a half putting nine items up for sale. This was super easy and all I had to do was decide on the price and Amazon did the rest. The best news is that my profits will be up to twice as large due to Amazon’s fee structure.

Today:
That brings us to today. I’ve still only sold one item (and the buyer won’t leave feedback, arg!), and I only have three items listed on EBay and the nine on Amazon. I know I need to find more products, but I have been putting it off for some reason.  Maybe I’m not in the mood to make money…

Next Step:
The website. I bought a domain for this business right after I had my business debit card, but I haven’t done anything with it yet. I already have a hosting account I can use, so there’s no monetary factor holding me back. My plan is to create a pretty simple WordPress-based site that has the products I’m selling on it. This should be pretty simple, but I just haven’t had the motivation to get working on it. Maybe another sale or two will convince me it’s time!

The steps I’ve taken to get here may not be the best, brightest, or boldest – but they all seem reasonable to me. If you’re planning on starting an eCommerce business, these steps should help you navigate the waters. Of course, if you have any questions – please just ask.