Meticulous market
research doubles your chances of making a tidy profit from the
wholesale goods you buy. Start off with a list of 5-10 different ideas.
Then check completed listings searches on eBay to see what the item
generally sells for and the sell-through rate for each one.
Use Yahoo's free keyword tool http://inventory.overture.com to find out
how many people are searching Yahoo for your product per month. You can
double this figure for Google. Add the numbers together. If there are
ten thousand or more searches per month for an item, this indicates a
healthy market.
2. Calculate the REAL
cost of your item
One big reason why
people fail at the wholesale game is that they don't do the numbers. In
other words, they don't treat wholesale like a real business. To
accurately discover your true profit potential on an item, you need to
add the shipping cost and insurance, eBay fees (or equivalent for other
advertising), Paypal and/or credit card fees (these can be a real
profit killer), packaging costs and labor involved packaging, and any
storage costs to the cost of your item.
3. Verify ALL
suppliers found on the Internet
Getting caught out by
scammers is a common stumbling block for people new to wholesale. If
you are searching for suppliers off your own bat (rather than using a
wholesale directory like SaleHoo), it is CRITICAL to check authenticity
before making a purchase.
Always take the time to:
- Check that the
website gives a full business name and a registration number.
- Check for a
legitimate contact telephone number - this will involve ringing the
number. Do not accept a mobile phone number alone. All real companies
should have a land line number.
- Go to http://www.whois.sc
and search for the name of the website. A legitimate
company will have
a domain expiration date in several years time. Most legitimate
companies reserve their domain names for 3-5 years or more at a time.
- AVOID suppliers who
won't agree to use secure payment methods such as Escrow.com, Credit
Card and Paypal Verified.
- Still uncertain? Ask
other sellers what their experiences have been with the company you are
interested in on eBay forums.
4. Chinese suppliers
give the competitive edge
Chinese suppliers are
an essential source for anyone wishing to make money selling online.
Manufacturing costs are currently extremely low in China, thus it is
the secret to gaining a competitive edge. Dealing with China does have
risks, but these can be alleviated if you place a small order first,
use secure payment methods, get shipping insurance for 110% of the cost
of the items, and use suppliers with a good reputation.
5. A common stumbling
block for liquidation and closeout
Always obtain the
reasons for liquidation and closeout sales before you buy. Liquidation
and Closeout sales can be a fantastic source for cheap products, but
you usually have to buy by the pallet load and these can sometimes
include broken or returned goods that aren't in saleable condition. To
be safe, ask specifically whether broken items and returns are included
before you buy.
6. Negotiate on
shipping and save
Shipping economically
is critical to importing success. Profits can easily get swamped in
shipping costs, so take time to get a good deal on shipping. If
possible, negotiate CIF (Cost, Insurance & Freight) or DDP
(Delivery, duty paid) shipping terms with your supplier as this takes
much of the risk - not to mention organization - off your shoulders.
FOB (Freight on Board) is the most common shipping term, but don't be
afraid to negotiate for better.
7. Drop shipping - can
you really afford it?
Drop shipping sounds
great in theory - someone taking care of packaging, wrapping and
postage - but it can be difficult to profit from this method. Think
about it, drop shipping can add another $2-10 to your costs - sometimes
even 10% of the cost of the item. By the time you add in eBay fees and
any other costs, you may find it is not worth it.
8. Warehouse storage
checklist
Asset management is the
most important consideration when locating warehousing to store your
items. Believe it or not, items can go missing while in storage,
causing massive disruption for you. When comparing warehouses, ask
questions specifically on how you will authorize the release of stock
(by phone or fax?), what will happen if you need to cancel an order,
frequency of damage claims, dust management, and whether there is an
area you can use to photograph items.
9. Powerseller wealth
It's a fact - eBay
powersellers are able to command higher prices for their items than
ordinary eBay sellers. To get the best profits on your wholesale items,
you need to aim to get and maintain powerseller status.
10. Growth with a
website and eBay store
The way to increase
profits from wholesale is to build your own website and/or open an eBay
store. This allows you to cross sell items plus it also makes it easier
for people to find what they are looking for. For example, if you sell
shoes, then customers can easily navigate to browse all black shoes in
size 9 and so on. Always include a sentence at the bottom of your
descriptions encouraging visitors to check out your other listings -
most people will.
If you are looking for
genuine and trusted wholesale suppliers then look no further Click Here!
to gain access to over 4000 drop ship, wholesale and closeout suppliers
that are independently reviewed and rated by eBay Powersellers and
Industry experts.
