[AMA] Importing & wholesaling for resale on eBay.

[s168]

@mosdef

Put yourself in the shoes of a buyer of a product you're considering, and ask yourself what your criteria is for buying from seller A vs Sellers B, C, D and E.

Is this something you're likely to want to wait 30 days for, for a cheaper price, given the uncertainty that comes from a China-shipped item? Is the price difference or savings worth it for you? What about import taxes? What if something goes wrong? Do you want to risk that, having to possibly send something back at your expense, waiting possibly weeks before they receive the returned item, do their checks to confirm it's faulty, then resend you another one that isn't guaranteed to be faulty as well? That's another period of waiting for you.

Example: a wireless mouse or bluetooth keyboard. Would you prefer to pay £7 all in for each of those items from China given what I've mentioned above, or pay double at £14 and have it at your door tomorrow with insured tracking, a national phone number for any enquiries, free return postage and easy to get a replacement or refund?

Well, you may or may not buy local, but LOADS of people will because they may not think like you. There's value in convenience and peace of mind. That's the money right there.

 

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[Ecom man]

@Ecom man

Don't think I've seen you mention this yet, but of the many products that you try out, how many of them do you abandon as a percentage of your total tests? And how many products do you try out every month / year in the last few years?

How many of the products do you sell now have been sold by you for over 3 years?

Probably close to 10% of my tests are what I would term a failure. That number has dropped considerably as I have become more experienced in looking for products. The 10% that I term failures are ones that I order and get samples of and then either don't sell for way too long (a couple months) or won't sell at a high enough profit to make it worth it.

I normally try to test 5-10 products a month. I would rather be way ahead with products I have tested than to be behind the curve and not be selling anything.

I have probably 3 items that I have sold for over 3 years. Most items come and go within a year so you have to be constantly looking. The items that last years are hard to find but a complete oil well once you hit them. (They keep pumping out the money) I'm sure sometime in the future they will stop being good products but that is why you have to research regularly.

 

[Ecom man]

how much higher can one price the product from chinese sellers? They are basically selling it for same price as alibaba

It really does depend on the product as other people have said. You can sometimes get double the price over China sellers and sometimes 50% more. It varies depending on how fast they need the item. (Something they have to have to fix a product vs something that is just an impulse buy) Around Christmas the margins over China sellers will get even higher. People want to know that their gifts are arriving on time and don't want to have to scramble because a China seller didn't deliver on time.

 

[s168]

Probably close to 10% of my tests are what I would term a failure. That number has dropped considerably as I have become more experienced in looking for products. The 10% that I term failures are ones that I order and get samples of and then either don't sell for way too long (a couple months) or won't sell at a high enough profit to make it worth it.

I normally try to test 5-10 products a month. I would rather be way ahead with products I have tested than to be behind the curve and not be selling anything.

I have probably 3 items that I have sold for over 3 years. Most items come and go within a year so you have to be constantly looking. The items that last years are hard to find but a complete oil well once you hit them. (They keep pumping out the money) I'm sure sometime in the future they will stop being good products but that is why you have to research regularly.

I think that highlights to people new to importing and reselling that this is not totally passive. Great products are great up until the competition makes it not so great. Most hotter selling things have a shelf life before something better comes along or its lifespan reaches an end due to market changes. That has very much been my experience.

Would it be fair to say that you're probably averaging around 100 or so trial products a year? And that of the products you stock, probably just 2-4 of those make up the bulk of your income?

 

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[Dicky Dee]

@econ man

I was wondering besides ebay, amazon and perhaps a website for your specific products do you use any other platforms for selling?

 

[Ecom man]

I think that highlights to people new to importing and reselling that this is not totally passive. Great products are great up until the competition makes it not so great. Most hotter selling things have a shelf life before something better comes along or its lifespan reaches an end due to market changes. That has very much been my experience.

Would it be fair to say that you're probably averaging around 100 or so trial products a year? And that of the products you stock, probably just 2-4 of those make up the bulk of your income?

It is probably close to 100 but honestly I've never sat down and counted the trial products that didn't make the cut. The products i stock probably 7 of them make up 90% of my sales and the other 8 or so make up 10%. It is passive in that once you find products you don't have to go out and work a job, but as with any business what sells the best is constantly changing.

A product that I can sell 1,000 of in a months time could sell 20 the next month. I had something similar happen with Christmas last year. I literally was selling 100's of one item at $100 each and I was only paying $20 for the item! I literally couldn't keep it in stock no matter how many i ordered. It took me 3 months to sell the remaining 50 at $45 each I had left after December. Retail is constantly changing because consumers are fickle. It is our job as importers to supply the products they want/need at a good price for both consumer and importer. If you can hit on a gold mine at Christmas than more power to you, but don't expect to sell that item next Christmas as well. Most likely it won't be a hit 2 years in a row.

 

[s168]

If you are able to share, what would be good examples of products have you sold in the past 1-2 years that you no longer stock because it's no longer worthwhile for you?

(For me it was mobile/cell phone accessories as that was one of my starting products. I would check websites reporting monthly sales figures for recently launched phones and check DHGate to see what accessories I can order to resell. It used to work well for a few months, and then totally tail off when newer model launches were imminent. Since then I've moved onto more evergreen products as a more sustainable option. But now my next step is looking at having my own products made.)

 

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[Ecom man]

If you are able to share, what would be good examples of products have you sold in the past 1-2 years that you no longer stock because it's no longer worthwhile for you?

(For me it was mobile/cell phone accessories as that was one of my starting products. I would check websites reporting monthly sales figures for recently launched phones and check DHGate to see what accessories I can order to resell. It used to work well for a few months, and then totally tail off when newer model launches were imminent. Since then I've moved onto more evergreen products as a more sustainable option. But now my next step is looking at having my own products made.)

I did iPhone and other cell phones chargers as well as cases for all of them. The market just got so saturated you were like one of a million dogs hoping to be picked for a new home. Wayyyyy to much competition and then people started cheating and putting a cleaning cloth on the same listing as chargers so they listed the cleaning cloth for 99 cents and the charger for considerably more. I refused to be dishonest like that so I jumped out of that line.

I've ordered samples/ researched so many different products it's really hard to remember them all. I did some kitchen faucets for a while but again so much competition that my listing got lost in all the other ones. I did some baby robes/ towels that had animals on them but apparently I overestimated demand for those and ended up donating them all to Salvation Army. I bought $3,000 in clothes that all ended up being donated as well as again too much competition and you cant keyword spam or risk getting shut down.

 

[SarahSH]

I have a few things on ebay right now and one thing I was selling earlier this month was also listed by a bunch of Chinese sellers. All of them used the exact same title for their buy it now listings for this item. Being a noob at this, I did the same and my sales were averaging about 1 per week of this item at a higher price plus free shipping. My margins are pretty thin and for the slow speed that I am moving this product, I don't know if it is worth it. I might try raising the price eventually but one thing that I tried in the last few days was changing up my title, reordering some key words, and getting rid of one that didn't make much sense to me. My title is now different than all the Chinese sellers and I noticed an increase in page views and watchers. I think redoing my title helped people find my listing without coming across theirs immediately. I don't know for sure but it seems to have worked for now. I also made a quick sale and am purchasing a few replenishing items from one Chinese seller that dropped the price below what I paid on aliexpress. I don't know that my item is all that great for ebay but I think they would sell locally and I might try that as well. I hope this helps someone who may have gotten into selling an item with lots of competition on ebay.

 

[Kristof]

Just got my first shipment of samples delivered, looking ok so far. Does anyone have any tips for making great product images with limited photography equipment and skills (old Canon zoom camera is all I have)?

 

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[SarahSH]

http://revision3.com/diytryin/build-a-light-box-on-the-cheap/

this is a video tutorial on making a light box...it is what I use. Then brighten up the white background with fotofuze.com

 

[Ecom man]

I have a few things on ebay right now and one thing I was selling earlier this month was also listed by a bunch of Chinese sellers. All of them used the exact same title for their buy it now listings for this item. Being a noob at this, I did the same and my sales were averaging about 1 per week of this item at a higher price plus free shipping. My margins are pretty thin and for the slow speed that I am moving this product, I don't know if it is worth it. I might try raising the price eventually but one thing that I tried in the last few days was changing up my title, reordering some key words, and getting rid of one that didn't make much sense to me. My title is now different than all the Chinese sellers and I noticed an increase in page views and watchers. I think redoing my title helped people find my listing without coming across theirs immediately. I don't know for sure but it seems to have worked for now. I also made a quick sale and am purchasing a few replenishing items from one Chinese seller that dropped the price below what I paid on aliexpress. I don't know that my item is all that great for ebay but I think they would sell locally and I might try that as well. I hope this helps someone who may have gotten into selling an item with lots of competition on ebay.

Awesome advice keywords really are key.

 

[Azif]

Great Thread Ecom Man,
Has anyone ever negotiated with DHGate Suppliers? I want to know if they are as negotiable as alibaba suppliers. Every cent counts, as those last few dollars are what I usually profit on after fees/shipping.

 

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[Ecom man]

Great Thread Ecom Man,
Has anyone ever negotiated with DHGate Suppliers? I want to know if they are as negotiable as alibaba suppliers. Every cent counts, as those last few dollars are what I usually profit on after fees/shipping.

I never have tried that but I'm sure it's possible as everything is negotiable.

 

[Harley]

Great Thread Ecom Man,
Has anyone ever negotiated with DHGate Suppliers? I want to know if they are as negotiable as alibaba suppliers. Every cent counts, as those last few dollars are what I usually profit on after fees/shipping.

Aliexpress will, so can't see why they wouldn't

 

[Azif]

Also guys, I don't remember if someone mentioned it in the previous 24 pages but if you are on dhgate and want to see more than a few items a page, click the 48 on the bottom right part of the search result where it says items per page. Then when the new page loads you should see this line on the address bar: pagesize=48, you can change the 48 to any number you want, so if you change it to pagesize=500 you would see 500 results per page.

 

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[s168]

Yes I have negotiated with suppliers on dhgate via messaging them back and forth. Even got them to create a separate listing just for me to pay for, with my specific order quantity.

Just assume everything is possibly negotiable and go from there. You have nothing to lose.

 

[mosdef]

Yes I have negotiated with suppliers on dhgate via messaging them back and forth. Even got them to create a separate listing just for me to pay for, with my specific order quantity.

Just assume everything is possibly negotiable and go from there. You have nothing to lose.

im talking to a few manufacturers regarding a product with good margins, for 11kg they want 200 dollars in shipping? That means the products is almost 1kg and cost me 20 dollar each for shipping.

 

[Harley]

im talking to a few manufacturers regarding a product with good margins, for 11kg they want 200 dollars in shipping? That means the products is almost 1kg and cost me 20 dollar each for shipping.

I'm finding shipping to be the biggest hurdle at the moment - In Canada we get hosed on postage.
So, even if i send a light weight item to a customer we are talking $10. I want to offer free shipping on my listings, but this means jacking up the price to be profitable. Or, order 1000 units. I'm looking at FBA, but there are several charges there too - Anyone one have a real world cost comparison between shipping yourself, or using FBA. Obviously time savings are a big part and people on Amazon prime will bundle (plus they trust Amazon more), so there is chances of selling more with FBA.

 

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[Zarek]

Hi, been browsing and reading for awhile. Just wanted to say that this is an awesome thread. I tried in the past on importing but came to a dead in pretty fast. This thread has completely renewed my vigor to try again full force. I've contacted 7 companies so far but have only heard from 1. Just waiting for the email back on being able to order from the 1 company. One of my questions is, do you only look for companies that accept PayPal? If not what's some of the safer payment options?

 

[soul]

I'm finding shipping to be the biggest hurdle at the moment - In Canada we get hosed on postage.
So, even if i send a light weight item to a customer we are talking $10. I want to offer free shipping on my listings, but this means jacking up the price to be profitable. Or, order 1000 units. I'm looking at FBA, but there are several charges there too - Anyone one have a real world cost comparison between shipping yourself, or using FBA. Obviously time savings are a big part and people on Amazon prime will bundle (plus they trust Amazon more), so there is chances of selling more with FBA.

I'm from Canada and looking to start off with something small. Have you been using amazon.com for your selling? Have you considered the .ca for a more local base of customers? Or does it cut your market too thin? I've been looking at this to see if it is worthwhile or whether going to the larger .com market is the way to go.

 

[twdavis]

Not to hijack the thread but my products just arrived today. Finally. Pretty psyched!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

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[Kopp]

This thread js a gold mine, thanks a lot.
Any insight on how to deal with the fact that you 0 feedback when you start. How did you overcome that obstale ?

 

[Zarek]

This thread js a gold mine, thanks a lot.
Any insight on how to deal with the fact that you 0 feedback when you start. How did you overcome that obstale ?

If you can you could buy small ticket items. You usually always get feedback for buying. An example my fiance wanted some cute post it's for marking pages in her books. 99¢ with free shipping, and upped my rating.

 

[Harley]

I'm from Canada and looking to start off with something small. Have you been using amazon.com for your selling? Have you considered the .ca for a more local base of customers? Or does it cut your market too thin? I've been looking at this to see if it is worthwhile or whether going to the larger .com market is the way to go.

Hi. Just started doing this and will be starting with ca. .Com has it's own issues for Canadians in regards to increased postage, lots more sellers and delivery times, although I will be doing my best to get in to that market too. Ideally I will find a trustworthy supplier, with quality I have verified and get them to drop ship in to U.S.

 

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[ForestL]

Hello, Thanks for the thread. After finding product/supplier. They want to use my DHL express account for shipping and payment to be made with T/T. I'm fine with the bank transfer payment. How do I protect myself when giving out my dhl account number? Has anyone had problems with giving out your express shipping account numbers?

 

[Ecom man]

Hi, been browsing and reading for awhile. Just wanted to say that this is an awesome thread. I tried in the past on importing but came to a dead in pretty fast. This thread has completely renewed my vigor to try again full force. I've contacted 7 companies so far but have only heard from 1. Just waiting for the email back on being able to order from the 1 company. One of my questions is, do you only look for companies that accept PayPal? If not what's some of the safer payment options?

On Alibaba I want companies that will accept paypal or accept Alibaba escrow(which all seller are supossed to accept but in reality many don't) Dhgate and Aliexpress both are paid to their escrow and then released to the seller after you receive it. Escrow doesn't stop you from being scammed but it makes it a lot more difficult for them to scam than if you send them a western union or a bank wire and they walk away with your money.

 

[Ecom man]

If you can you could buy small ticket items. You usually always get feedback for buying. An example my fiance wanted some cute post it's for marking pages in her books. 99¢ with free shipping, and upped my rating.

Great advice! Don't buy multiple things from one seller as it will only count as one feedback. Also don't go overboard buying tons of .99 items. eBay frowns on feedback manipulation and it you are buying tons of cheap items on a new account it could be viewed like that.

 

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[Ecom man]

Hello, Thanks for the thread. After finding product/supplier. They want to use my DHL express account for shipping and payment to be made with T/T. I'm fine with the bank transfer payment. How do I protect myself when giving out my dhl account number? Has anyone had problems with giving out your express shipping account numbers?

So you are concerned about protecting your DHL shipping account but not concerned about handing hundreds of dollars in cash to someone with no recourse if they simply walk away?

 

[ForestL]

So you are concerned about protecting your DHL shipping account but not concerned about handing hundreds of dollars in cash to someone with no recourse if they simply walk away?

Your right, It was just a sample order of $50 plus shipping. They most likely would send the sample, I would be happy, then keep the bigger orders cash.