Why Start an Online Business on eBay? - By Tara Kane

Why start an online business? The answer to that can be as varied as the number of people who ask themselves that very question. I would not consider myself much different from the average person. In asking that question, most of us are motivated by at the very least, three of the same things. Not to put too fine a point on it but they are: Money, Power and Greed. Oh, I can hear you saying now, " Well, I am motivated by recognition, or by the satisfaction of a job well done….., " and so on and so on.

What ever your reason or reasons, (my particular favorite happens to be greed), you should be aware of some facts about online businesses. It is now easier than ever to get yourself up and running in a reasonably short time. I am not going to sit here and tell you that in ten minutes you can become fabulously wealthy. This does not even happen over night. I am not going to sugar coat it and tell you that with no experience, no money, and no effort that this, or anything else for that matter will make you a dime.

I am here to tell you that with the resources and tools available on the Internet right now and the traffic generated every day by sites like eBay, you can be in business in a few hours. Will you make money? The answer is yes. Will you make money right away? The answer is quite possibly. Will you make enough money to satisfy your reason for being motivated to attempt this? That is where the work begins.

An "Old Guitar" Started It All

I will tell you my story so that you can get a feel for how these things progress. I had an old guitar and amplifier sitting around collecting dust. I had asked different friends if they wanted it but had no takers. I dusted it off and was about to load it up and head off to my local pawnshop, and then it hit me. I will have that garage sale that I have been putting off for months and months.

I mentioned it to my husband along with some tentative dates and he was willing to help if there were no scheduling conflicts. The operative phrase here is Scheduling Conflicts. Here is his list of conflicts; Root Canal, Re-primer his old jeep, and my particular favorite, Getting his Feet Scraped, (I have no idea what that means).

So obviously, the garage sale idea was out. I remembered that I bought a hard to find video game for my daughter on eBay. Bingo! I signed on, filled out the basic personal information, completed a step-by-step form for listing the old guitar and waited. I did not have to wait for long because after three days the guitar and amp sold for $200.00. Wow, I am gonna get rich on eBay.

I have to stop right here because I could go on forever. I am not here to advocate cleaning out the garage and your closets and hitting up everyone that you know for things to "eBay". I just wanted to illustrate how simple it is to get started. From my initial experience, greed kicked in and I decided to get serious about developing this into a full- blown business opportunity.

The Search Seemed To Go On Forever

I searched the net for resources, how to books and anything else that I could find. I spent huge amounts of time and wasted way too much money trying to find that one trick or tip that would turn my part time eBay business into a money machine. I was fortunate enough to come across some of the most amazing books that literally transformed my little auction into a real business.

Fast forward to the present. I now have an eBay store, several websites and the thing continues to grow. I am on a journey, so to speak. You can start small and stay small or you can take it farther and farther as opportunity and new ideas push you along.

My Advice For What It's Worth

My advice is to start out small, test the waters. Read all that you can about your particular field either in eBooks or on one of the many user forums around the net. With some research, persistence and some imagination you will be able to satisfy that thing that motivates you.

Mine just happens to be greed.

Tara Kane is Managing Partner and Media Coordinator for Elson and Associates; A Dallas, Texas Consulting and Marketing Firm.

http://www.elsonandassociates.com