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Here are ten steps from Brian McGregor which I’m sure will help to improve your eBay earnings.

Step 1: Find a Market
Conduct your own research, primarily on eBay. Watch for what sells well, and what doesn’t. Make notes on your research. You’ll identify some possibles quite quickly - those one or two items that always seem to sell for a good price.

Step 2: Locate a Product
Use all the available resources you can to find a supplier for the products you wish to sell. Use the internet, wholesale directories, telephone directory etc. You’re after the best deal possible. Fundamentally, if the eBay selling prices you’ve seen are substantially higher than the cost suppliers are quoting you, you’re on a potential earner.

Step 3: Spy on your Competitors
Before you buy any supplies of your product, do a double check on eBay to see how other sellers in your category are doing. Observe their strategies, and see if you can identify anything you could do better.

Step 4: Begin Small
Once you’re ready, start by dipping your toe in the water. Don’t throw thousands at the opportunity just yet! You need to find out what works and what doesn’t. With eBay it’s relatively affordable to try things. Get your creative juices flowing - you never know, you might just hit on a gold mine!

Step 5: Rinse and Repeat
Once you find an eBay sales methodology that works for your product, keep re-listing while you’re making good money. At the same time, go back to step 1 and find another market or product.

Step 6: Maximise Your Income
Every eBay member who buys from you is now your customer. This means that you have built a trusted relationship with them. It also means that if you should offer them another (related) product at a special price, they may well be inclined to take up your offer.

Step 7: Investment and Growth
If you unearth a product that sells well on eBay, you may wish to consider investing in more auctions for the product. In this circumstance, eBay is basically a numbers game. You can now run as many identical auctions as you wish.

Step 8: Automation
With increased volume, you’ll probably notice that you’re writing the same things again and again in emails or item descriptions. Now is the time to turn to automated software that can create and renew listings for you, generate automated emails, apply feedback automatically etc.

Step 9: Ensure Legality
Once your sales get to a certain level, it may be difficult to consider your eBay activities to be a hobby. In some countries, the tax and revenue people are looking more closely at those who are deriving income from eBay. It might be appropriate to register yourself as a business. There is a huge amount of information on the internet about the steps you need to take to achieve this.

Step 10: Persevere
There is one fact you need to keep in mind as you go - and that is, eBay works. It may be that you’re not there yet. But this is because you haven’t quite the right market, product, method of listing etc. But you will! Just keep at it. If you’re having problems, need some advice or inspiration there is a team of eBay experts & a community of eBay enthusiasts on call 24/7 to help at My Silent eBay Team

You can do it!!