Debunking the Myths of Wholesale Buying

Written by SaleHoo.com © All Rights Reserved

Buying and selling wholesale goods is frequently viewed as a sort of 'get rich quick' scheme, where sellers can make enormous profits from very little investment or work. Three months after they started, people just don't understand why things haven't gone according to plan! There are four myths in particular that seem to lead would-be sellers astray time and time again.

Myth #1: Ebay is the best place to sell your wholesale goods.

Now this is a particularly popular one. As the world's biggest marketplace, eBay has made its fair share of millionaires. What you don't hear about so commonly, is all the people who struggle to make a profit from eBay because 100 other people are selling the exact same products - for more competitive prices.

This is not a new situation. Supermarkets and large discount stores often run at a loss on some items in order to attract more customers. For small or new sellers, this is a deadly scenario.

The fact is, eBay is simply too competitive in some categories. Electronics, jewelry, designer clothing and computer games are all dangerous territory for the new seller. You won't stand a chance against established sellers who've already got a strong following and highly competitive prices.

So what should you do? If your product falls into these or any other highly competitive category, I recommend shifting your focus to less competitive markets such as selling through classified newspapers in your local area.

While you won't be reaching audiences of the size that online auctions sites such as eBay provide, buyers that use these alternative mediums to purchase goods are 9 out of 10 times more likely to pay significantly more for products. Not only will your margins can be much higher, you'll also have far less competition to deal with.

It's also a good idea to try using eBay international sites such as www.ebay.co.uk or www.ebay.com.au, as well as other auction sites with less competition such as www.trademe.co.nz and www.ubid.com. I find that these sites give consistently higher margins compared to eBay US, and the number of buyers is still very high.

One advantage of eBay US however, is that the huge amount of competition makes it a brilliant place to pick up cheap as dirt goods to sell elsewhere! It's not uncommon to find best prices on eBay.

Myth #2: You can find all your wholesale sources online.

The Internet provides easy access to a great many wholesalers these days, and it's a quick way of making initial contacts. However, it certainly doesn't provide access to all wholesalers. If you're serious about finding the best wholesale prices for your products, then it pays to check out other sources as well.

Try looking through trade magazines such as Closeout News and Wholesale Merchandise, to name just a few. With less people vying for stock, there's a good chance you'll find some exceedingly good prices tucked away in the corners!

And another thing, in my experience, building up personal relationships with sellers is absolutely essential for getting the best priced goods. So whether you've found your supplier online or in a magazine, make a phone call, start up an email exchange, or have regular chats on MSN and get to know them.

The time you spend building a relationship will not only mean you're in a stronger position to get better prices, but, because you know your supplier, you'll be more confident that things will go smoothly when you finally do place your order.

Myth #3: Pricing research is unnecessary and takes up too much valuable time.

Whenever I mention this one, people always chorus:'But of course we know research is important!' Well why don't you spend more time doing it then?

The amount of people that pass over pricing research constantly amazes me. Everyone always agrees that it is important to research prices, but when it comes down to it, they seem to think that they just 'know' how much items cost wholesale, and how much profit they are likely to make later.

But how can they just 'know'? This is not information we're given at birth!(Or perhaps I'm just unlucky!) Prices are constantly in flux, and carrying out some decent (and yes, time-consuming) research is essential to a successful business for two important reasons:

1. Firstly, it's important to get a good idea of the average resale price for your item before you get started. For a number of popular items (DVDs, electronics and computer games in particular), the profit margins tend to be very low. Despite this, many sellers just see the popularity of the item and dive in head first. Overly-saturated markets just mean a hell of a lot of work for very little in return. Throw big, established sellers into the mix and it's almost impossible to compete. But you won't know this until you research it first! So visit auction sites, read classified ads and any material you can get your hands on until you have a good idea of exactly what you're going to get.

2. The second reason for research is that your preconceptions of value may be completely wrong. People have a tendency to believe that 'wholesale' automatically means a fifth of the retail price. This is usually totally out of line! Some sellers have emailed me in shock when they realize that they actually have to spend a significant amount of money on their wholesale stock. 'I always thought that purchasing a container of wholesale plasma TVs would only require a few hundred dollars investment, but it looks more like several thousand,' wailed one seller recently, 'Am I looking in the wrong place?' Well, I'm sorry to shatter your hopes and dreams, but buying wholesale doesn't always mean huge profits for very little investment. For some items, such a scenario is possible - but only if you do the research!

Myth #4: Niche items can be bought from individual wholesalers.

Finding a niche item that no-one else is supplying at a competitive rate is every sellers dream. However, if you think you're going to be able to find a wholesaler supplier for the item by doing a quick Internet search for 'Left-handed Guitar necks' then you couldn't be more wrong.

Niche products are hard to find precisely because they aren't wanted by absolutely everybody. Thus, finding a supplier will take quite a bit of work on your behalf as these items usually can't be purchased from individual wholesalers. Instead, you'll have to contact large wholesalers, or even contact the manufacturer directly.

It'll be a lot harder than you think, but if you've done your market research effectively and you take the time to find a good supplier, then your hard work will pay off.

About the Author: SaleHoo is one of the fastest growing product sourcing portals on the internet. It contains a database of drop ship, wholesale, closeout and manufacturing suppliers offering thousands of product suppliers to consumers! Located at http://www.salehoo.com, visitors are allowed to sign up for unlimited and lifetime access to the completely searchable database of products and suppliers. The database is regularly updated, ensuring that the latest retail products are always available for purchase and SaleHoo carries the BBB Reliability Seal!

Join SaleHoo Today for their Special Startup Offer!

Catching the Crooks: Is Your Wholesaler Dodgy or Legitimate?

Written by SaleHoo.com © All Rights Reserved

Fleeced, ripped-off, cheated, conned. We're all afraid of losing money to wholesalers who turn out not to be the real deal. The horror stories can certainly be very off putting - especially to those just getting started. The trick is to spot it and stop it before it's too late!

So what are signs that you're dealing with a crook?

In our experience, there are 6 particular indications that you may not be dealing with a legitimate wholesaler:

• The wholesaler doesn't sound business-like or professional when answering the phone. For example, he will answer with a plain 'Yes?' or 'Hello?', without identifying himself or the business name.
• The wholesaler doesn't request your business license or sales tax ID during the initial contacts. Most true wholesalers will require one of these. While this is not a hugely important deal, if you are looking at dealing in large amounts you will need to get registered and should check that the wholesaler is registered as well.
• The wholesaler gets shifty when you request a product sample. Most wholesaler are only to happy to offer a sample of their product (usually at a higher price) so if they do not offer this be careful and question their reasons for not offering one.
• The wholesaler's claims to take a secure form of payment (credit card, Paypal etc...) but later turns around and says they only accept wire transfer or western union. Not all wholesalers that take western union and wire transfer are scammers, but this is the most common way scammers operate and you should always steer on the side of caution if you are asked to pay be these methods when not having dealt with or knowing the person first.
• Their website offers no physical address or contact phone for you to get hold of them. Be blunt, ask them for a contact address and phone number and if it is ok if you come in and have a look around their offices. If they are serious this will be no problem at all for them.
• They claim they don't currently have stock in and still expect you to pay up front. If this has been happening make sure you get some photographic evidence of their stock with the days newspaper or something (while this doesn't always work, it means some one must have stock that they know

Although these are not hard and fast rules, you should certainly proceed with caution if one or more of the above apply to a new wholesale contact you have made. If you have any tips to add or past experiences then we'd love to hear from you. Your experience is valuable to the SaleHoo community and I'm sure others would appreciate your comments.

About the Author: SaleHoo is one of the fastest growing product sourcing portals on the internet. It contains a database of drop ship, wholesale, closeout and manufacturing suppliers offering thousands of product suppliers to consumers! Located at http://www.salehoo.com, visitors are allowed to sign up for unlimited and lifetime access to the completely searchable database of products and suppliers. The database is regularly updated, ensuring that the latest retail products are always available for purchase and SaleHoo carries the BBB Reliability Seal!

Join SaleHoo Today for their Special Startup Offer!

Expanding Your Online Business By Building a Website

Written by SaleHoo.com © All Rights Reserved

As business grows, it can be a good idea to support your eBay sales with a website.

The first step is building a web presence outside of eBay by creating your own website. Building a website is not a difficult task. These days you don't necessarily need the know-how to do it all yourself - there are plenty of people who will do it for you. Turnkey stores are an option, or you can have a designer create the basic design for a website and then purchase shopping cart software separately.

Either way, you need to think carefully about branding at this point. Branding is recognizable design features that are carried across your entire business from product to business cards, to your website and brochures.

A brand helps your customers associate your products with an over-riding concept and identify them as part of their lifestyle. For example, some brands are associated with natural and organic concepts while others are associated with fine quality or a particular lifestyle. When establishing your online business, take care to make sure the branding you have already established on eBay remains consistent across your new website.

There are thousands of stores on the web, so to be successful, you'll need to do something to make people visit your site and stay there for longer. One of the most effective ways of doing this is by providing people with information about your products. For example, if you sell small kitchen appliances, why not add articles to your site on how to use each appliance, tasty recipes to make with each, how to fix problems, and so on? Not only are you giving your users a reason to come back to your site, you are also increasing your chances of being placed in the top search results for keyword searches relating to the items you sell. Search engines give higher priority to good quality, unique information, so this is an effective way of keeping rankings high and getting traffic from organic search results.

Another way of getting more traffic to your site is by carrying out link exchanges. Just remember to limit yourself to related sites, otherwise you may find that you end up with a lower rather than higher search engine ranking! Linking to sites not related to the content on your site can actually give you a lower search engine ranking, so stay away from sites that offer hundreds of links for a fixed price. The best idea is to link to other sites that relate to what you are selling. For instance, keeping with the appliance example above, a site such as this could exchange links with sites selling china, cutlery, linen or recipes.

Finally, you can drive traffic to your site through advertising. Your ebay listings are one way of advertising if you add your site URL to your About Me page. Google Adwords is another very effective way of getting traffic to your site. A targeted campaign can do wonders for your website.

Done well, a website should increase overall sales, increase traffic to your eBay listings, and increase your reputation as an expert in your area.

About the Author: SaleHoo is one of the fastest growing product sourcing portals on the internet. It contains a database of drop ship, wholesale, closeout and manufacturing suppliers offering thousands of product suppliers to consumers! Located at http://www.salehoo.com, visitors are allowed to sign up for unlimited and lifetime access to the completely searchable database of products and suppliers. The database is regularly updated, ensuring that the latest retail products are always available for purchase and SaleHoo carries the BBB Reliability Seal!

Join SaleHoo Today for their Special Startup Offer!

How do I Find Something to Sell?

Written by SaleHoo.com © All Rights Reserved

Many people wanting to start an eBay business spend a lot of time fretting over what they will sell. Perhaps these questions are familiar: Where do I find ideas? Should I sell the most popular items? How do I know a good idea? These are important questions everyone faces.

eBay already contains so many items for sale that some sellers feel overwhelmed from the start wondering how they can possibly find a product idea when the market appears to be full anyway.

So where should you start then?

1. Your hobbies

This can be a great way of establishing a niche. Perhaps you love embroidery or making model airplanes? Chances are a lot of other people share this passion and are looking for related supplies. Crafts and hobbies is big market - however, before you jump in headfirst, make sure you do some research to back up the feasibility of your idea. eBay is a numbers game and no matter how great your idea is, it won't work if not enough people are interested. So be sure to use the completed listings search and test the market with some of your own supplies first.

2. Listen to what your friends and family are talking about

Sometimes the best ideas can arise from your friends and family. One seller says she overheard some women at the table next to her talking about the trouble they were having finding a particular brand of baby slings. This got her thinking, and, after a bit of research, she realized they were a foreign brand and hard to find in the USA. A wee bit of research later and she had found a supplier and was successfully selling online. So keep your eyes and ears open! If people you know are looking for a particular item, chances are others will too.

3. Research newspapers and magazines

Newspapers and magazines can provide a ton of information on trends and styles. Just browsing the headlines can often be enough to spark a new idea. Try sitting down with a pen and notebook and skimming the pages of popular magazines and daily newspapers. You should have a list of at least 10 ideas by the end.

4. eBay Seller Central

eBay itself has a fantastic resource in the Seller Central area 'What's Hot'. Every month, a list of super hot, very hot and hot items are published. This is a great way to find ideas but remember that everyone on eBay also has access to this information! The merchandising calendar is also a useful resource.

All successful sellers sell several products, rather than putting all of their eggs into one basket. Not only can trends change with the wind, but some products are only popular during a particular season. For example, dehumidifiers are more popular during winter than summer, while lawnmowers are super hot in spring and have a practically non-existent market in the winter.

5. Find out what your buyers are buying

A good way of expanding your product range is by 'spying' on your buyers. After making a sale, check your buyer's feedback and find out what other items they have been purchasing recently. This will help you get to know what your target market are interested in and expand your range accordingly.

Finding something to sell can seem daunting at first, but I guarantee that once you think of one idea, plenty of others will quickly follow!

About the Author: SaleHoo is one of the fastest growing product sourcing portals on the internet. It contains a database of drop ship, wholesale, closeout and manufacturing suppliers offering thousands of product suppliers to consumers! Located at http://www.salehoo.com, visitors are allowed to sign up for unlimited and lifetime access to the completely searchable database of products and suppliers. The database is regularly updated, ensuring that the latest retail products are always available for purchase and SaleHoo carries the BBB Reliability Seal!

Join SaleHoo Today for their Special Startup Offer!

Sourcing Items to Sell on ebay

Written by SaleHoo.com © All Rights Reserved

I've got my idea - now where do I go?

Not sure where to turn to find your stock? The best idea is to find a couple of supply sources for your items so that if one dries up during a busy period, you won't be left high and dry.

1. Garage Sales

Garage sales can be a great opportunity to pick up potentially valuable items selling for pennies. However, they do require a regular time commitment and a lot of patience! You'll quite likely travel around 5-8 sales before you find anything suitable. Going around garage sales requires planning and rising early. The best idea is to look through the morning papers as soon as they arrive. Plan your route to make most efficient use of your time so that you are not doubling back. Make a list of items you would like to find and the maximum amount you would pay to make a profit. And finally, don't forget to take cash! Take small bills and some change as most garage sale owners only have a small amount on hand. It's a waste of everyone's time if you have to race down to the ATM machine. Garage sales can be useful sources, but they rely on luck and have a high time cost per item. Thus, serious sellers don't rely on garage sales as their sole provider.

2. Liquidation sales

Liquidation sales are a fantastic way of finding brand-name items at enormous discounts. Check your newspapers and look for sales in your area. Before buying from a liquidator check to see why the goods are being sold. Most of the time liquidation sales take place for legitimate reasons such as company bankruptcy, store relocation and so on. However, it always pays to check as you don't want to end up with a pile of stock you can't shift. Another thing - don't bother with liquidation stock that is outside the scope of your business. There is no point buying liquidation bicycle equipment just because it's cheap when you only sell jewelry.

Alternatively, you can find liquidation sites on the Internet - one such site is http://www.liquidation.com. These sites make it extremely easy to buy liquidation, particularly if you live in an outlying area. One thing - just make sure that the possibility of damaged stock and used or returned items included in the lots is small or non-existent.

Liquidation sales are a great way to supplement your stock, but they can't be relied upon to restock the shelves.

3. Estate sales

Estate sales can be a goldmine for anyone selling jewelry, vintage clothing, books, furniture and so on. Once again, you need to have an idea of how much you can afford to spend before you go. Don't forget to buy items your customers would like, rather simply getting caught up in your own enthusiasm for what is for sale. Note that estate sales run by an agent are unlikely to garner the same bargains as one run by the family.

4. Clearance stores

At certain times of the year, most major stores will have a stock clear-out sale. Some of these sales give you the opportunity to buy goods 50% or more below the regular retail value. This can be a fantastic opportunity to find items to sell - or replenish your stocks. Good clearance sales can be equal to or even below a good wholesale price. Don't forget to overlook small hobby shops in your area with clearance sales either. If you know the store is going to have clearance sales regularly, then this can be one method of getting stock.

5. Wholesalers

Wholesalers are the most reliable method of sourcing goods. While the initial process can be time consuming at first, it is effort that pays off. When you have found a wholesale, you now have certainty of when you are going to receive stock and how much you will have to pay for it. The best way to find wholesalers is to use a directory. Directories remove the risk of dealing with illegitimate wholesalers and give you some peace of mind when dealing with wholesalers and manufacturers from China. Wholesalers should be the mainstay behind your product sourcing.

About the Author: SaleHoo is one of the fastest growing product sourcing portals on the internet. It contains a database of drop ship, wholesale, closeout and manufacturing suppliers offering thousands of product suppliers to consumers! Located at http://www.salehoo.com, visitors are allowed to sign up for unlimited and lifetime access to the completely searchable database of products and suppliers. The database is regularly updated, ensuring that the latest retail products are always available for purchase and SaleHoo carries the BBB Reliability Seal!

Join SaleHoo Today for their Special Startup Offer!

What Not to Sell on eBay???

What Not to Sell on eBay

Written by SaleHoo.com © All Rights Reserved

1. Items under $10

It sounds like a great idea - after all, everyone likes a bargain don't they? But items that sell for under $10 have one big problem: Shipping. It's quite likely that the shipping for the item will cost more than the item itself and this can be very off-putting to buyers. For example, if the item costs $4.50 and shipping costs $6, the total cost for the item is $10.50. If the buyer can purchase the item at their local store for $8, then this suddenly becomes a much better deal. For small items and accessories, the way to get around this problem is by grouping the items together, such as sets of 6 golf-balls or 5 tea towels.

2. Products everyone else are selling

Many sellers think that the best way to get started on eBay is to sell items that everyone else is selling. Surely those super hot items such as ipods, cell phones, psps and so on will be a quick route to riches? Well, no. The sellers who are already selling these items are not only more established on eBay - and thus familiar to and trusted by buyers - but they will be able to buy wholesale stock in larger bulks lots than you will, so their prices will always be better. Thus it will almost certainly be very difficult for you to make a profit in a market that is already well supplied.

3. Things you love...but no-one else does

Hobbies can be a great way of making money, but only if plenty of other people are interested in them too.

Another scenario is when you find a product that you think is absolutely wonderful and could be the next best thing...but no-one seems interested in buying it. Oh well you think, it's only short term, eventually they'll learn about my item and start flocking to buy it. Ah, no they won't. It's lonely work trying to educate people on the benefits of a product all on your own. As fabulous as the product might be, it's nigh-on impossible to start a trend on your own. To make money from a trend, you need magazines and newspapers, word of mouth and television to do some of the work for you.

4. Difficult items to ship - e.g. fragile china and plants

Now I'm not saying that these are bad items to sell altogether. Many sellers do very well from these items. But I don't suggest you sell such difficult items when you are first starting out. Both these items have an above-average shipping risk, particularly if not packed properly. As a new seller, any negative feedback you receive at this early stage could be especially damaging to your career.

5. Very large items

Thinking of starting with furniture or pianos? Unless you already have experience selling and shipping these items, then it might be wise to start with something smaller. Shipping such large items is a major operation. Not only that, these items will sell less often than mid-priced items as they won't attract the same number of impulse buyers.

About the Author: SaleHoo is one of the fastest growing product sourcing portals on the internet. It contains a database of drop ship, wholesale, closeout and manufacturing suppliers offering thousands of product suppliers to consumers! Located at http://www.salehoo.com, visitors are allowed to sign up for unlimited and lifetime access to the completely searchable database of products and suppliers. The database is regularly updated, ensuring that the latest retail products are always available for purchase and SaleHoo carries the BBB Reliability Seal!

Join SaleHoo Today for their Special Startup Offer!