Once you have sold an item, the next question is should I sell on Amazon or eBay? Or even perhaps Etsy?
Each site has advantages and disadvantages. And some products may sell better on one site than another. Today, we have several expert vendors stopping by to share their thoughts on the matter and some of the best buys and pro tips.
Meet Sean Carabine Alan: Sean is the Internet Marketing Manager shop.siammandlay.com.
Meet Marty Babayov: Founder of Marty thesuitdepot.com.
Are you a specialty seller or do you resell something with profit potential?
Sean: I sell something that is not sold by others, or a variation of a popular product. Instead of selling things I think are cool – I use Google keyword tools to determine what’s popular, then I try and find a variant of a product that hasn’t been pushed by a ton of people.
It mainly revolves around clothes, bags and jewelry. Because they are light, easy to ship, easy to hold, easy to modify and you can make a lot of money at scale.
Marty: When I started selling anything I could change at a profit, I eventually rebranded as The Suit Depot and focused solely on fine menswear.
Do you have a preferred selling platform (Amazon, eBay, Etsy, etc.)?
Sean: Etsy offers a price premium, so it’s my favorite, but they have strict guidelines on their handmade policy and not everyone can sell there – and they close shops without warning. eBay offers fairly free selling – I recommend eBay for beginners looking to earn a little extra – it’s hard to make a living on just one platform.
Marty:
- You don’t need to limit yourself to one platform. There is plenty of software that allows you to sync your inventory across platforms.
- Fee Structure- Amazon’s average fee structure is 15% while eBay combined with PayPal is around 12%. Get an estimate of PayPal fees here.
- Returns- Amazon buyers are more likely to return products, and since Amazon is buyer-centric, they offer return shipping to the seller in many cases, bringing the effective fee structure to 25%.
- Shopping Experience- While Amazon has much better customer service and a faster and smoother checkout, eBay allows buyers to filter their products much better than Amazon.
- Price- We can get higher prices on Amazon then we do on eBay, which offsets the higher fees.
Verdict: Learn how to sell on Amazon if you have a lot of private label inventory that you control the buy box. If you sell a product line like clothing, it tends to do better on eBay because of the better size filters, unless you have all sizes in stock, in which case Amazon will do better.
If you have the patience to dabble in technology, there’s no reason you can’t do both. A great resource for setting this up is a site called understandingE.com.
What are the motivating factors when choosing where to list a resale item?
Sean: The most important factors to consider are 1. How much traffic a site will get for this type of product – consider, Amazon for electronics, Etsy for handmade decor, and eBay for clothes, bags and jewelry. 2. How many other people are selling my item or something similar? If you are the only person selling your product, its value will not increase, but if you and someone else are selling the same product, your profit will decrease significantly.
Also consider:
Type of product: For example if it’s handmade – I’ll sell it on Etsy, because I can charge a price premium. If it’s not handmade I’d choose eBay, but only if very few people are selling – Amazon is my last choice.
Expected Sale Price/Popularity: If you are selling an in-season designer item that you think will be popular – eBay is the way to go – you can set up an auction and make a lot of money. All this depends on a group of people who really like the product. Attempting to auction your handmade products will lower the price.
Marty: While many vendors focus on the fee structure, I wouldn’t get caught up in it. I would test both platforms and see which one your product performs best and which one has the highest margins. A 3% difference in fees should not be decisive in where you decide to sell. If you can, you should list your products on all platforms. It can be done by yourself Magento As explained on understandingE.com
Have you found some items selling well on one site over another?
Sean:
- Electronics – Amazon
- Handmade Products – Etsy
- Clothes, Bags and Jewelry – eBay
It depends on the nature of the buyers – it’s something you have to think about. “If I want to buy my product, where do I look?”
Marty: Most definitely! Used items do much better on eBay than Amazon. Individual products will do better on eBay where people are looking for them. In the clothing category, if you have limited sizes available, eBay is the better platform, due to better filtering. Amazon really shines when it comes to basic products without much variation. If it’s clothing, make sure the maximum size is in stock. If an item does well on Amazon, you can usually charge more for it, and with less competition from short-time sellers, unlike eBay.
Where is your favorite place to source resale items?
Sean: I live in Thailand, so I shop at the market – I sell a fair amount of t-shirts at around 8-10x the mark up. But I also use iOffer and other wholesale locations.
Marty: We are constantly sourcing from different places but when I first started discount stores my favorites were; like a store TJ Max, Marshalls, Century 21 Department Storeetc. Their base prices are usually the going rate online so when they have sales where items are 50-75% off the original store price (90% off retail) it’s a great mark-up and the experience is a lot more fun.
Tell us about your best buy.
Sean: My best buy? My best buy – sell, in terms of ‘insight’ and ROI would be a pair of Dolce Gabbana factory second jeans – I bought for around $10 at a flea market and sold at auction for $150. But I consistently make a fair bit of t-shirts and clothing items.
Marty: The best buys are the ones you least expect I once found a seller on eBay selling this amazing quality coat. They were a high quality department store private label and were made using a very high quality designer fabric. He tried to clear these to bid on a weekly basis. After over 20 winning bids so I could resell them on eBay as “buy it now” with a better mark-up, I realized he probably had a lot more. I contacted him and found out that he has more than 600 in stock. We made a deal on them and I was able to sell them at a 250% markup over the next two years.
Are there any tools of the trade that you can recommend to new sellers?
Sean: Google Keywords Tools & eBay, Amazon & Etsy Search.
Let the numbers do the talking. Find out what people want and how many people are selling it – these are the most important elements. If you find a popular product that no one is selling – you’re hitting the bank.
Marty: UnderstandingE.com is a great resource for multi-channel selling. Also, I recommend investing in the right photography equipment and doing a little research online on how to get good quality studio photography. This can be done from home but you will notice a big improvement in sales with quality images.
Are you a reseller? Do you prefer Amazon, eBay, Etsy or a combination of the three?
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