5 Simple Steps To Posting Your First eBay Auction

Getting started on eBay and posting your very first auction is surprisingly simple. Here’s all you need to do.

Step 1: First off, you need to open an eBay seller account.

Now, If you’ve previously bought things on eBay, then you should already have an account. Just log in to your account and click ‘Sell’ in the toolbar at the top of the page. Next, click on ‘Create a seller’s account’.

If you haven’t used eBay before, you’ll need to creat an account first using the ‘register’ link underneath the toolbar, then click on ‘Sell’ and ‘Create a Seller’s Account’.

The eBay site will then guide you through the process. This will involve submitting your paypal details as it may cost a small amount to post an auction depending on your starting bid price. Plus they need it so you can get paid.

Step 2: Decide what you are going to sell.

For your very first auction with eBay, it doesn’t really matter what you sell. Take a look around your home. I’m sure there’s something there that you’re not that attached to that you could auction off. Look for something you haven’t used, read or listened to for at least a year. If it doesn’t have sentimental value, sell it.

Small books and CDs are ideal first items. Everybody has those lying around the house, plus they are easy and less expensive to ship.  One note: always make sure you know how much it is going to to cost you to ship the item, as you’ll need this information when you post your auction. Use the eBay shipping calculator when your setting up your auction.

Step 3: Submit your item and set up your auction.

At the time of this writing the cost for listing an item for auction depends on your starting bid from free up to $2.00. You’ll also be charged a 9% fee on the final selling price ($50 cap). Setting a minimum reserve cost is $2.00 (for reserve price up to $199.99). One of the ways of covering this cost is to pad your shipping costs. Be careful when you do this because it can affect the success of your auction.

Okay, time to get started. Click ‘Sell’. The ‘Sell your item form’ will walk you through the steps of submitting your item. Basically you’ll need to choose a category – it’s best to just type in what the item is and let eBay choose for you. You’ll need to write your title and description. Include key words you think people will search for in the title box. Be specific as buyers will be searching for specific things. Include all the information you have about the item in the description box. Be honest about the items condition. This will help your eBay rating. You don’t want buyers thinking you purposely withheld information to get the sale.

Now it’s time to set a starting price. $0.01 is the best starting price, as it draws people in to bid who otherwise wouldn’t, and items will almost never finish at such a low price. Keep in mind that if you have a minimum price that your willing to let the item go for, say $5.00, then you’ll need to set a reserve price. This will cost you an extra ($2.00). If you don’t want to pay extra for a reserve, then you need to start the auction at your minimum selling price (this will affect your auction cost).

Next up is setting the duration of the auction: 1, 3, 5, 7, or 10 days. This is up to you. Longer sales will usually get more bids, but will also seem to drag on forever. On the other hand, many buyers watch items for a while and think about them before placing a bid. So a longer duration may be to your advantage.

If you’ve taken a picture, add it now. In my opinion you should always add a picture. Even with a book or CD. It shows the item’s condition and has a visual psychological effect of making it real to the potential buyer. Items with pictures always sell for more. The first picture is free, each additional picture is $0.15.

Finally, check off the payment methods you will accept (just PayPal is best for now), and where you will ship to (limit yourself to your own country to begin with). Selling and shipping to other countries can cause you a lot of problems unless you know what you’re doing. Submit your auction and you’re done.

Step 4: Wait for it to sell.

This is just a matter of sitting back and letting eBay do its thing. Buyers will find your item and leave bids on it. Some bidders might email you with questions about the item so it’s a good idea to check your email multiple times everyday. You should do your best to answer these questions as quickly as you can. This will help you get more bids.

If your item doesn’t sell, then you have to decide if you want to try again. Keep in mind this may cost you an auction fee depending on your starting price.

Step 5: Collect payment and ship the item.

Once your item has sold, eBay will send your buyer emails guiding them through the process of sending you payment for the item. Make sure you have the money in your account before you ship the item.

Once you’ve received payment, all you need to do is pack the item for shipping (make sure to use some bubble wrap and/or packing material), take the buyer’s address from the confirmation email eBay sent you, write it on the package, ship it out and your done. If you use UPS or U.S. Postal service eBay has it set up where you can print out the shipping label on your printer. Make sure when you ship the item that you send the buyer an email and let them know it’s on its way.

So there you have it. It’s pretty easy and once you get the hang of it the sky’s the limit. You can sell products you buy at flea markets, garage sales and estate sales, or find dropshippers and sell their products.

One final note. Before you get started I recommend you move your mouse over the help button at the top right of the eBay home page and click on learning center. This is a great resource that will answer any questions you might still have.  Also, Francis Ochoa, eBay’s first ever eBay Entrepreneur of the Year, has put together a great set of 28 videos where you can watch over his shoulder as he buys and sells on eBay. You can get them here for FREE!  Live eBay Training Videos