My experience thus far

[shadowmyst87]

I hope this isn't seen as bragging, that's not what I'm doing at all. I just need some advice for a recent sale I just made.

I know it's not much, but I managed to squeeze a $38 profit (that's after PayPal fees, eBay listing was free). From none less then the electronics department, the most over saturated there is. I paid $119 and sold it for $162.

Is this considered a decent profit margin? Or am I wasting my time?

This was more or less an experiment to see how profitable it would be for me to continue in this area, not sure if I'll continue down this road or not. I'm still trying to find my niche, I love electronics and computers in general but I'm afraid it's far too saturated to make any real money in.

[jamcocktail21]

Not bad bro

If yo sell 10-20 items per day do the math?

Congratulations

[yotano211]

You made a 23% profit margin, that it really good after all the fees. My margin with HDDs are around 15-20%.

[AmazonStealth]

Congrats. Stick to it, and before you know it the money in your pocket will be unbelievable. Almost as if you win the lottery, every day.

[AmazonStealth]

Originally Posted by shadowmyst87

I hope this isn't seen as bragging, that's not what I'm doing at all. I just need some advice for a recent sale I just made.

I know it's not much, but I managed to squeeze a $38 profit (that's after PayPal fees, eBay listing was free). From none less then the electronics department, the most over saturated there is. I paid $119 and sold it for $162.

Is this considered a decent profit margin? Or am I wasting my time?

This was more or less an experiment to see how profitable it would be for me to continue in this area, not sure if I'll continue down this road or not. I'm still trying to find my niche, I love electronics and computers in general but I'm afraid it's far too saturated to make any real money in.

Not to be a buzz kill, but you can cut 1/3rd of that off for taxes.

[shadowmyst87]

Originally Posted by yotano211

You made a 23% profit margin, that it really good after all the fees. My margin with HDDs are around 15-20%.

I didn't realize it was that much. It wasn't a fast sale though, it was a 3 day auction. I started the bidding at $60 with free shipping. I find that auctions sell better then BIN's in my experience.

[slapped]

You have NO Idea how good that is,,,I Do electronics as well my Profit margin after Expenses is anywhere from 3-10%,,,on Average, depending on the Item,,

I make my money on VOLUME and LOTS of it,,and also Closeouts and Refurbs, I do get a LOT of good deals where my profit margin gets as high as 30%,,,and every once in a While Higher,,but that is RARE

[slim jim]

Originally Posted by shadowmyst87

I hope this isn't seen as bragging, that's not what I'm doing at all. I just need some advice for a recent sale I just made.

I know it's not much, but I managed to squeeze a $38 profit (that's after PayPal fees, eBay listing was free). From none less then the electronics department, the most over saturated there is. I paid $119 and sold it for $162.

Is this considered a decent profit margin? Or am I wasting my time?

This was more or less an experiment to see how profitable it would be for me to continue in this area, not sure if I'll continue down this road or not. I'm still trying to find my niche, I love electronics and computers in general but I'm afraid it's far too saturated to make any real money in.

congrats! btw a 3 day auction IS quick. i usually have to wait for about 3-4 weeks but i deal with high profit %, not volume. you have to test things out. if you can get 20% profit every 3 days and keep your inventory stocked, you will be killing it. be wise and NEVER get comfortable, always see how you can adjust your sales to be more efficient

[AmazonStealth]

delete post

[shadowmyst87]

Originally Posted by slim jim

congrats! btw a 3 day auction IS quick. i usually have to wait for about 3-4 weeks but i deal with high profit %, not volume. you have to test things out. if you can get 20% profit every 3 days and keep your inventory stocked, you will be killing it. be wise and NEVER get comfortable, always see how you can adjust your sales to be more efficient

Yeah definitely. I didn't have much success with BIN's, people for some reason seem more compelled to bid on an auction instead of just buying it.

I do want to find my niche on eBay though. I'm not settling just for electronics, I honestly didn't think it was possible to make a profit in that category. Everybody is selling the same thing that I want to sell for $20 to $30 cheaper! I can't compete with that unfortunately. Especially when all the sellers are top rated with a 1,000+ feedback and have stores

[GreenBean]

Originally Posted by shadowmyst87

I do want to find my niche on eBay though. I'm not settling just for electronics, I honestly didn't think it was possible to make a profit in that category. Everybody is selling the same thing that I want to sell for $20 to $30 cheaper! I can't compete with that unfortunately. Especially when all the sellers are top rated with a 1,000+ feedback and have stores

More important is the fact you are out there trying to work ebay.


Nice one

[rsot]

It is good you are working it out - take it slow with electronics. 20ish % is fine stats - now you build on VOLUME and away you...VOLUME x that % profit will yield good results.

[shadowmyst87]

Originally Posted by rsot

It is good you are working it out - take it slow with electronics. 20ish % is fine stats - now you build on VOLUME and away you...VOLUME x that % profit will yield good results.

Yeah, although it's a little difficult to buy volume of this product at $119 a piece. There's also no guarantee that I'll make that same amount of profit next time. Prices with auctions fluctuate wildely it could sell for $130 or less the next time and cut my profit very thin. That's one of the problems with auctions.

[slim jim]

Originally Posted by shadowmyst87

Yeah, although it's a little difficult to buy volume of this product at $119 a piece. There's also no guarantee that I'll make that same amount of profit next time. Prices with auctions fluctuate wildely it could sell for $130 or less the next time and cut my profit very thin. That's one of the problems with auctions.

so then sell fixed price . DO NOT spend your profits if you can afford it, use it to add to your original capital, you will see how quickly things build

[AmazonStealth]

Originally Posted by slim jim

so then sell fixed price . DO NOT spend your profits if you can afford it, use it to add to your original capital, you will see how quickly things build

This is a major key to beginner selling.

[shadowmyst87]

Fixed price doesn't work as well for me as auctions do. With BIN's you could be waiting forever until somebody buys it.

[slim jim]

Originally Posted by shadowmyst87

Fixed price doesn't work as well for me as auctions do. With BIN's you could be waiting forever until somebody buys it.

or it could sell quicker. could, would, should are words to not use with ebay. try it out, it is the only way to find out

[slim jim]

what if you can sell for $175 BIN and have to wait 10 days instead? maybe you are underselling yourself, maybe not. this is why experimentation is the only way to find out

[yotano211]

When you do more auctions, usually the average price goes down. There is only so much buyers in the world and everyone wants to sell.

[paypalpains]

I find doing BIN is best after you have sold a few auctions to build feedback and gage a mean price.

Then list BIN and do one auction for 10 days, people get fed up of bidding and just hit the BIN button .

There are many variables to work with, so is best to work with them and find out what works for you to maximize sales and profit

[astralman]

The best profit is knowing that at the end of the day you got cash for yourself after bills.