If you’re looking for new business opportunities, then reselling online might be an excellent choice because it offers flexibility, time freedom, and the ability to scale, and you can be your boss.
Whether you’re brand new to reselling or looking to turn your hobby into a legitimate business, there are a few steps you will need to take to start a reselling business online.
Register As A Business
If you are serious about turning reselling into a business, you need to check with your city or local municipality to learn about business laws and register as a business.
A business license grants you the right to operate your business in the state and helps the state government track your business and revenues so they can tax appropriately. You’ll want a business license even if you’re operating out of your home. Having a business license will make getting a business bank account easier too.
During that process, you may receive a resale certificate. A resale certificate provides a sales tax exemption to sellers who purchase products they plan to resell. So if you’re shopping for your business and don’t want to pay sales tax, present your resale certificate for potential savings. Not all businesses will accept resale certificates either.
It’s important to know that you can’t use the permit to avoid sales tax on business expenses like office supplies or personal expenses; it’s only valid for items you plan to resell.
Source Items To Resell
To start a successful reselling business, you need items to resell. When you’re just starting, you might not have much money to put into the business for buying items, and that’s okay. Start by clearing out the clutter in your own home. Find gently used items that you no longer want, and put them in a pile to sell. Talk to your family and friends about the business you are launching, and ask them if they have any items they’d like to donate to your business. Check the apps like OfferUp, Facebook Marketplace, and Craiglist for free items you can resell. Stop by yard sales on the last day to see if sellers are willing to part with items for free or cheap.
One of our Flipper University alums, Stacy Gallego, has an incredible story about how she turned $0.50 into more than $100,000. It’s possible to start with low investment and grow your business from there.
You don’t need any money to start an online reselling business. The business opportunities are tremendous if you start sourcing free items within your networks.
Stock Up On Shipping Supplies
Before you start reselling online, you’ll want to stock up on shipping supplies. Tape, packing peanuts, bubble wrap, packing foam, and boxes are some of the supplies that will be helpful as you package items before shipment. You don’t have to go out and buy all these things, though. Check Craigslist or your local Facebook groups to see if anyone is giving away packing materials or boxes for free.
So many people get Amazon packages these days, so there are probably tons of boxes in your neighborhood just waiting to be recycled. Put a call out on your neighborhood app, and soon, you’ll have tons of boxes. Make sure to collect boxes of various sizes as you’re first getting started. Once you figure out your niche, you may determine you only need bubble mailers, or you only ship via freight shipping and don’t need any boxes, but it’s essential to have the supplies you need as you’re first starting.
Look At Niches To Determine Business Opportunities
There are many different reselling niches, so it’s important to find what works for you. Think about what you like or are passionate about, and start with that niche. Maybe you love golf and know enough about golf club brands to know which ones have value. That would be a good place for you to start your reselling business. Or, if you love designer clothing, that could be a great place to start, and you could list it on Poshmark. If you’re passionate about what you’re selling, you will want to learn more about that niche and do better in your business.
Other reseller business opportunities include dropshipping, using Amazon FBA, creating vintage online boutiques and subscription boxes, and selling to consignment stores. There are many ways to customize your reselling business to make it work.
Start Reselling Items
Once you have your license and items to sell, the next step is just to start listing your items. Take good pictures of your items. Try to keep a clean background and use good lighting. Photograph any defects on the items, and then write a description that notes any issues with the item. Make sure to report whether the item is new or used, and be honest. We always say used and really try to undersell our own things because we don’t want to create false expectations with the buyer. The buyer is usually happy with it when it shows up because it’s in better condition than expected. We underpromise and over-deliver.
Once you have pictures and a description, get your items listed. When putting in measurements for shipping and weight, ensure you’re using the dimensions of the box with the item inside. The box and packaging materials can add weight, so your postage might be off if you don’t measure it correctly.
Build Feedback On eBay
Feedback on eBay is so important for sellers. It establishes credibility and trust, so buyers are likelier to pick you over another seller. For new sellers, you want to get feedback built up to at least 50 reviews as quickly as possible. You can do this in a couple of ways. If you shop on Amazon, consider switching your shopping to eBay. When you purchase items on eBay, you can leave a review as the buyer and will also receive a review. Another way to get sales, in the beginning, is to sell items extremely cheaply. If your item is the lowest priced item, it will sell, and the more items you sell, the more quickly you’ll get reviews. As you are selling items, if you notice the buyer has not left feedback, reach out to them and ask. It’s okay to tell a buyer you enjoyed working with them and ask if they would leave you a positive review.
Make Connections With Vendors
As you grow your business and start sourcing items from stores, yard sales, and flea markets, you may notice you repeatedly deal with the same people. Be friendly to those vendors and give them your contact information. Start networking and building relationships, so those vendors think of you and call you when they have an interesting item. Once those relationships are in place, you won’t have to go sourcing as often because you’ll have vendors contacting you directly to make deals.
Scale Your Reselling Business
As a business owner, consider your goals regularly to see if you are on target. As you start growing, don’t be afraid to scale your business. If it gets too overwhelming, you can outsource some tasks to make them more manageable. For example, you could hire a photographer to take all of your photos. Or you could hire a virtual assistant to help you list your items. More sales mean more profit. Don’t be afraid to scale your business so you can hit your goals.
If you want to make money from home and enjoy more free time, give reselling a try. Start your online reselling business today!
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