When we began selling on eBay, we began by selling our extra things. Most people start this way.

We Most Up to Consignment Selling

We quickly ran out of extra items around our home and much of what we now sell together belongs to other people. We sell on consignment. That means other people give us their extra items to sell. We sell them, keep a percentage for our time, and give them a check for the remaining amount. If the items don't sell, we return them and the owners pay the fees we're out. We don't charge our own fee if the items don't sell.

The pros and cons of selling on consignment are debatable. Some who refuse to do so say the income isn't worth the effort. Many consignment sellers charge 25% and more for their services. If the final auction price is $100, the seller makes $25, sometimes the listing and final selling fees are included and sometimes they are not. Whether you include them depends on your agreement with your clients.

The advantage of consignment selling is that you will probably find consignment selling to be the easiest way to add to your selling inventory.

Your First Clients Are Family and Friends

The obvious benefit of consignment selling is that as long as you have family and friends, you'll have things to sell.

Should you limit your consignments to family and friends? I would strongly suggest the answer is yes when you first begin consignment selling. You need a few understanding clients while you iron out the kinks you will run across. Once you're comfortable selling several items for several people, you'll be better prepared to take your consignment business into the world to sell for clients you've yet to meet.

eBay's Trading Assistant program is a great way to get consignment clients.You sign up as a Trading Assistant and wait for people with stuff to sell in your area to contact you.

In the 7 years or so we've sold on consignment, we have never registered as a Trading Assistant. We might some day but currently the items we sell belonging to family and friends keeps us too busy to want more to sell.

You'll find eBay's Trading Assistant Program Here: http://pages.ebay.com/tahub/index.html

Family and Friends Are Understanding... Usually!

In spite of our best intentions, we invariably take longer than planned to list most of the consignment items we accept. Life gets in the way. Even when they're friends and family, don't make promises that you'll sell the items quickly. Always play down how fast you can get their items listed. If you sell them quickly, they'll be happily surprised and if you're slow, they won't be disappointed.

I write a lot about computers and eBay. In addition, one of my primary strengths is teaching how to implement simple Direct Marketing techniques that maximize your eBay sales. Yet, what good are eBay sales if you have nothing to sell?

Finding new inventory is vital. It's the lifeblood of a selling business. Keep your eyes out for consignment opportunities are you'll never run out of inventory again!