Shopster is one of the most popular of eCommerce programs available and one of my favorite. In essence, each individual acts as a retailer for products held in the Shopster warehouse. For a monthly fee of $29.95 they provide a website to create an online store through which orders can be placed and credit card transactions can be completed, and delivery arranged.
If you are looking for something to sell online, there is no better option as there is no hassle and no holding on to stock yourself. All you need to do is find places to sell the items, at a price you determine, Shopster does everything else.
I took advantage of the free 7 day trial and promptly selling stuff all over the place, including eBay. I focused on electronics as it is an area I sell, although it is possible to sell toys, books, clothing, plants, in fact there is a huge selection of products. It did take a few days and attempts to get my shop front looking like I wanted it to but once I was satisfied, orders started to come in.
eBay in fact seemed to be a good place to sell - by using the their dropshipping feature. I have to point out though that some of my stocks couldn’t be listed on eBay because of brand restrictions, but the Shopster site makes it perfectly clear what can and can’t be sold on eBay and Yahoo Stores. The Shopster dropshipping program is something I’d definitely regret if I didn’t make use of it.
Overall I couldn’t be happier with Shopster and I am making a nice little profit. And did I tell you that Shopster is an official eBay Solutions Partner?
The only downside I have ever found is that some of my most popular items are difficult to get onto my stock because they quickly sell out from the Shopster warehouse. Also remember to read the fine print to know the fees applied to profits you make. Honestly, Shopster is a trustworthy site I will hate to see you sign up. Click here to learn more about Shopster.
Bookmark, Share or Email
Posted in Wholesalers and Dropshippers | Post Feedback »
Consider these eBay alternative marketplaces for selling your items online:
- www.overstock.com Overstock is definitely picking up the slack as eBay sellers leave and look for a heavyweight alternative. They are offering good deals, making them a really viable alternative to eBay.
- www.webidz.com WeBidz is openly making a bid to become a viable eBay alternative. Its website is lightweight compared to eBay but it is attracting a lot of seller and buyer attention. Check it out.
- www.amazon.com The Third Party business has become huge for Amazon and this is where you as a seller can score. Amazon is no longer a book website; it is one of the biggest marketplaces on the globe.
- www.epier.com ePier is a well-established marketplace that deserves seller consideration. It has never picked up critical mass to turn it into a giant but its presence is well-established and steady. Take a look.
- www.bid-alot.com Bid-A lot is a large and growing community of sellers with a lovely user blog feature. Be warned that the FAQ and knowledge base are not so great. This is an affordable efficient seller site.
- www.onlineauction.com OnlineAuction’s little website is growing by leaps and bounds in popularity. It is comprehensive and easy to navigate. It vets buyers well through a verification process. Huge potential.
- www.auction.com Great search features are Auction.com’s strongest asset. There are no storefronts for sellers as yet but that may be in the pipeline and there is also no buyer registration as yet. A good find.
- www.ubid.com uBid.com is a well-established site (about 10 years) with a proud seller record. It operates strictly in the US and specializes in larger sellers with excess inventory. Not for the micro seller though.
- www.buyselltrades.com A recent startup, Buyselltrades.com has one interesting feature: sellers can barter and sell among themselves. It remains to be seen how the website performs. Neat interface, nice vibe.
- www.auctionaddict.net This comparison/ auction website features a mix of independent sellers and larger stores such as Bare Necessities, Petco, Shop.com, Overstock, etc. it has a neat user interface and no listing fees.
Continue Reading »
Bookmark, Share or Email
Posted in eBay Alternatives | Post Feedback »
Apple Inc. said Monday its online stores in the U.S. and UK are sold out of the iPhone. iPhone is one of the top eBay Pulse items. How can you make use of this information?
YES, SELL THE iPHONE!
If you want to sell it for more profit, you MUST UNLOCK IT.
Look through the search engine and you will find loads of websites which tells you how to unlock the iPhone, follow the instructions.
Buy some iPhones and unlock it. List on eBay in lots. You can easily fetch $500 or more.
Try it out for yourself and look at the prices now for an 8gb and 16gb iPhone unlocked:
Bookmark, Share or Email
Posted in eBay Seller Tips | Post Feedback »
Operation DropShip is another of the eCommerce sites that have popped up in the past couple of years. The design and role is familiar to any of those who have visited any of its rivals.
The basic premise is that an individual can sell any of the hundred and fifty thousand products on offer from their warehouse, without buy the items themselves. The idea is that these items can be brought at wholesale price and then sold on for any price that the individual can get for them.
I have had some hit and miss success with Operation DropShip. Only a couple of things which annoy me. Firstly whilst there are 150000 items to choose from a third of these are software items that I have no interest in. Looking at the computers and electrical goods I am interested in, there are only about 10000 items.
Second annoyance is that Operation DropShip only delivers to North America, and that excludes certain sections of my normal customers.
Ignoring the downsides Operation DropShip is decent enough, and offers a free 30 day trial, although the monthly fees are $30 plus additional fees.
For listing their items in your auction, the theory is pretty sound. An item is listed and either it sells or it doesn’t if it doesn’t sell then all you have lost is the price of listing an item, as you haven’t actually purchased anything from DropShop.
Just make sure that items are in stock as you are listing them otherwise problems can occur when you have a successful sale. There are tracking tools available from Operation DropShop that makes it easier.
Overall a decent enough wholesaler, there is nothing worryingly bad about Operation DropShip.
Bookmark, Share or Email
Posted in Wholesalers and Dropshippers | Post Feedback »
SolarCity eBay Campus (Image by SolarCity)
The largest commercial solar power installation in San Jose was completed on eBay’s North campus. The 650 kilowatt (kW) installation by SolarCity (California’s leading provider of solar power systems) includes 3,248 individual solar panels which spans 60,000 square feet on multiple buildings.
SolarCity estimates that over the next three decades, eBay’s solar system will offset 37 million pounds of carbon dioxide; the equivalent of planting 322 acres of trees.
And the main point… it is estimated that this solar-generated power will save eBay approximately $100,000 in electricity costs within its first year of operation.
Bookmark, Share or Email
Posted in Latest News | Post Feedback »
