One of the biggest ways of making money online is selling product via eCommerce sites. Personally? I LOVE selling on eBay. I’ve been a member since 1999, somehow forgot about my first account and signed up again with a new account which has me registered as a member since 2003. I used to only buy from sellers. Then came my divorce. I became a single mom living on a crap income and receiving alimony from my daughter’s father. As we split custody 50/50, we didn’t do child support. But alimony wouldn’t last forever, right? So, I’d like to share with you, how to list your first item on eBay.
So I started selling on eBay. I first started selling things around my home. This was ideal because I had moved a house into an apartment and I had A LOT of things that I couldn’t put anywhere.
I know you’re asking yourself. Ok, what IS the point of this post??? Because the title sure as heck didn’t say she was telling a story! Dang, impatient readers, aren’t you?! 😉
Fine! Fine! I’m going to help you set up your eBay account and start the process to listing your first item.
Sign in or Register on eBay ~
Step 1 – You will need to register for an account if you haven’t already. At the top of the page you will see the links to sign in or register:
Step 2 – Once you’ve clicked that link, you will come to a very short register form. Once you’ve registered, you can update your address and link your PayPal account to your eBay account:
Step 3 – Once you’ve clicked the link to Register, you will come to a Welcome page:
For the sake of this post, I had set up this account and will delete it later as I already have an eBay account, so I did not have them text me a PIN. I clicked the link “No thanks. Let’s go shopping instead.”
So, those are the very quick steps to get yourself registered as an eBay seller to list your first item on eBay. Easy, right? Now, when you go to actually list your item on eBay because they’ve been around so long, there are tons of categories! And for the most part, all you have to do when listing an item is to enter the brand name and what the item is and eBay will provide you with the category.
List Your First Item on eBay ~
Step 4 – But first, at the top of the page, just click the link “Sell”:
Step 5 – You can either browse categories or just enter the name of your item:
Step 6 – I entered an item that I had a lot of luck selling on eBay. As you can see, the category’s are listed and the most common one I used was already selected:
Step 7: You continue to scroll down and fill out the rest of the listing details. You will select if the item is new or used. Then insert up to nine photos. You want to get great shots and make sure you capture all the details:
Here you will select the Country/Region of Manufacture if you are aware of it.
Bidding Options ~
Format options are Auction-style or Buy It Now. The auction allows you to set a “variable” price. You can set it at either a lower amount to gain attention and hope that someone bids it up. If not, you do take the risk of selling it for lower than you planned unless you set a reserve price which may cost fees. Or, you can set the amount at the lowest you are willing to accept. The duration for an auction-style setting is up to 10 days. If you select Buy It Now, this is the only price that you will receive unless you allow “Best Offers”. That option allows a buyer to offer you a lower amount. On this page as well, you can set the quantity if you have multiple items.
This next section allows you to pick your state for taxes to be applied. If you choose to allow returns, you can set up how quickly the buyer has to return the item. You also select who the return shipping is paid by. Keep in mind, if you made a mistake with the item, YOU are responsible for paying the return shipping. If you have additional return policy details, include them in the box they give you. If you do not accept returns, you have that option as well.
eBay Return Policy
Again, if you make a mistake, you are required to accept the return. Otherwise, the buyer will open a case against you and eBay 99.5% will rule in the buyer’s favor. At times, even if they don’t rule in the buyer’s favor, they will return the money to the buyer and you still get to keep your money. I had sold a corset once. Brand new. Listed that returns were NOT accepted if item was used. Even if tried on. The person returned it to me as it didn’t fit. I couldn’t sell that again! So, eBay refunded the borrower and I kept my sale. I charge a restocking fee for returned items and you would select that here.
You continue to scroll down and select shipping options. For the most part, I always used flat rate shipping boxes or the padded flat rate envelope. The USPS will ship these boxes directly to you if you don’t have time to go in and pick them up yourself. If an item is smaller, you can choose regular priority mail. I still offered flat rate shipping options if possible so I’m not limiting myself to the lower 48 states. Shipping to Alaska and Hawaii is very expensive! You will also choose here if you only ship domestically or internationally. Some people are scared to do this because once it leaves the US, you cannot track it. I always ship internationally. It’s a risk, but I’ve actually had more issues with losing packages domestically than I did internationally!
Final Steps ~
You will then finish up your shipping information and if you choose to create an exclusion list of where you won’t sell to. If you did “extras” for your listings, or you went over a number of free listings eBay gives you, your fees will be included at the bottom to review before you hit the button to list your item. You can also preview your listing, or save it and come back later to finish the listing. And of course, cancel the listing.
So, there you have it! You’ve completed the tutorial on how to List Your First Item on eBay. The step by step instruction on how to register for eBay and set up your first listing. Are you on eBay already? Are you a buyer or seller? What was your best or worst purchase or item sold?
Thanks for sharing the steps. They are really helpful.
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I use to buy on ebay all the time and got some great stuff at good prices. Never have I tried selling but you make it sound easy enough going through the steps. Might have to give selling a try over buying.
I used to resell. You can make some decent money with the right items. Thinking about getting back into it.
I have always wanted to try selling items on ebay, but it always seemed so complicated. Your tips definitely made it a simpler process. Definitely will have to give it a try soon. My daughter has some prom dresses I would like to sell.
This is something that I have been considering myself. Thank you for sharing this because posting something on a website to sell can be very confusing sometimes.
Thanks for the thorough information about ebay. I always struggle with whether to offer free shipping and up the buy it now price, or to have shipping as an add on. What do you think is better?
It’s a catch 22. I’ve done both and have been transparent in my descriptions stating “Due to fees eBay charges on shipping, I’ve included the price of US shipping in with the cost of the Buy it Now price. Free shipping does NOT apply to International sales. International buyers, please contact me for shipping rates.” Usually the item is still cheaper buying it and paying for shipping from a US seller than getting it in their own country.
I love selling on eBay!
It’s pretty easy to list things fro sale on ebay. I know a few people who make decent money selling things on ebay. Maybe I should give that a try too!
It definitely varies with income! One month I’d make over $1k, another month I made $50, lol. You have to find the trend of best hours to list. When I was selling, they say the best time to list would be Sunday evenings Eastern time. That was usually when everyone was home and after dinner Pacific time.
I’ve written articles for eBay, but I’ve never sold anything on there. I have several formal dresses I’d like to get rid of. They are taking up much needed space in my closet.
I used to be a Parent Panel Member with eBay several years ago. They flew the Panel to Florida at one point for their eBay On Location seminar, and several months later flew us out to California to their headquarters in San Jose and we trained with VPs from different departments :). It was a great experience and to see how they came up with ideas was fun :).
This is a great step by step for people wanting to sell on eBay. We used to sell some stuff on eBay and made some pretty decent money with it.
I occasionally browse eBay for some items I am looking for. I guess that classifies me as a buyer. I think the listings are reasonable enough and eBay makes it easy to contact the seller directly, plus of course, the seller ratings and reviews are really helpful. I am happy you have found a good source of income by being an eBay seller! Thanks for this post. I will bookmark it for reference when I need to get rid of items I no longer use.
This is great! I know quite a few people who always talk about wanting to sell their items on eBay. I personally just love looking through seeing all the great things people list!
I’ve never sold or bought anything on E-Bay but it sounds like a great way to get rid of stuff you don’t need and find a deal on stuff you want. Thanks for sharing this easy step by step guide.
This is a great guide for people looking to use eBay to make money! I’ve only been lucky finding good deals on eBay, never selling.
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This is awesome information for those new to e-bay. E-Bay is a great way to sell or buy items for sure. It is easy and convenient in so many ways. Thanks for sharing steps for registering and listing your items.
I have been pplanning to do this for quite sometimes now since I have so many things that want to get rid of. Thank you for the tips.
these are some great tips. i so wish i had this guide when i first registered. it would have made things a lot easier.
Great tutorial! This would have saved me so much time if it would have been around a few years ago! Perfect for beginners on Ebay!
I never knew about how to get started on eBay, but I have thought about it in the past… I’ll give it a go… I have just shared and saved this page for future reference… thank you
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