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Legitimate Amazon Account - How should I start?
 

I've got an Amazon seller account open for about a month now and I want to get started selling but I need ideas.

I know it's a petty request but I obviously know to stay away from items that e.Bay would consider VeRO. Does anyone have a sure-fire item that sells well with little-to-no difference from the real deal? No brand-name items, maybe? I understand if you want to keep it under the radar on the boards, so you can PM me any helpful info if you'd like. Thanks in advance.

All the best.

What you are looking for, is a popular item with a lot of sales that can be sold for a 300% - 400% markup.

Sorry, it does not exist.

You can make some good money by buying and selling collectibles, rare books, out of print movies, etc. And, if you find a good niche product, you might have a good profit margin, but relatively few sales. Some people have a lot of niche products.

But something that sells like hotcakes will always have a low profit margin, since everybody and his brother wants to get in on it.

I agree with that to an extent. The key target is a community (ie. eBay, Amazon, etc) that has little-to-no competition. Introducing a marvel product that you have a good feeling will sell well to this community is what we all (as business[wo]men) are seeking.

Fictional example: I find a supplier in China that makes a product that's HOT in France.. or Mexico.. or the UK.. and it sells so well in this country that it's nearly on backorder. People in a different country get wind of this product and hop on it even faster for the simple fact that they want to be included in the buzz. Soon enough, the product has made its way around the globe and people are sporting it everywhere. Unfortunately, this is the time when [most of] these products start to die out and the new "hot item" makes its debut.

This is where the search for THAT product begins. It's a gamble, but if the crowd likes it and starts growing on it, it could mean huge profits if you have the right supplier. Now, I know in this small community of angry ex-eBayers and PayPa| account holders, that you want in on "THE" secret product. I don't have it. But the thing is, there's a function on this forum called a PM box.. and that PM box can become quite a profitable tool if two or even five people can pinpoint a product and a cooperative, paying community that would even pay extra to have this product. Teamwork can work to its advantages in these situations. So if you know something and want to work out a deal, PM me. I will make your time worthwhile.

True, if you can find a new product that nobody else has yet, or very few people have - and can promote it through good ad copy - then you CAN make some decent money.

Still, Monkey See, Monkey Do. Others will see your success and try to duplicate it. Unless you can control the supply of the product, the profit margins will drop quickly.

I remember an item heavily advertised on TV called the "Topsy Tail". It was a piece of plastic along with an instruction manual that showed women how to use the plastic piece to style their hair. The hairstyles looked good on TV and the commercials ran constantly. I'm sure they sold a ton of those ten cent pieces of plastic for $9.95. A month later, I saw one in the checkout aisle at Wal-Mart for 99 cents....

Think the equivalent of that now is Bump-It or so.