Introduction
In the fall of 1995, an inconspicuous little ad was posted on Usenet, an uncensored online newsgroup on what was then the infantile Internet. The advertisement was for an online auction service called “AuctionWeb.” Soon a second ad appeared on the "What's New" page of the website for the National Center for Supercomputing Applications. The wording echoed that of the Usenet message: “The most fun buying and selling on the Web. Run an auction or join the fun of an existing auction.” However, these ads were overlooked and eBay did not generate a lot of interest, at least initially. The website attracted practically no visitors (except its founder Pierre Omidyar) in the first month.
But all that was destined to change. The day Omidyar found eBay earned $10,000 in fees in a single day; he left his regular day job and committed himself solely to eBay. In course of time, Omidyar became a multi-billionaire and made several “eBayers” millions. Today there are more than a million items listed on eBay every day, and more than five million people have sold something on eBay at one time or another. In addition, close to 650,000 sellers make a living selling full-time on eBay. Many new eBay sellers start by selling items from their garage and attic. Almost every major eBay Power Seller got started that way. Once these goods are sold, people start going to garage sales or flea markets to find new items to sell, and soon start purchasing in larger lots direct from manufactures or wholesalers anxious to clear out inventory.
There are ample opportunities to make money on eBay. The ever-changing economy keeps presenting such opportunities. Think about every time you hear of a business opening or a business liquidating; these openings or liquidating present an opportunity for you. On one hand, there is lot of merchandise available at throwaway prices, and on the other, there will be many businesses that need that merchandise. What eBay allows you to do is to reach out to all those buyers and sellers. Once you see exactly what you need to do and what measures you need to take to make money on eBay, then you can invest more money into your business by contacting a wholesaler to buy a larger amount of merchandise.
Summary:
In 2006, eBay transactions crafted a new economy worth more than $52 billion. eBay is a vibrant new marketplace that's here to stay, all you need to do to understand the pace of business today is to reflect on the companies making headlines. eBay, which mints money by staging auctions over the Internet, is a terrific case in point. However, eBay is not just a mere website, but a community of millions of buyers and sellers. Success on eBay depends not only on your capacity to master the simple technical tasks of bidding and selling, but on your capacity to reach out to other eBay members and your readiness to contribute to the community in a positive way.
Source: www.articledashboard.com