A successful e-commerce business is the dream of almost every individual. The reason is obvious: a passive income stream. But to be honest, it doesn’t work like that!
There is a lot to do for sellers, from product sourcing to shipping. Studies claim an almost 80% failure rate of e-commerce startups, which is something to ponder.
This guide will share alternatives for e-commerce entrepreneurs who want to learn how to make money on eBay without selling anything. That has nearly 3.5% market share of the e-commerce industry as reported by Statista.
How To Make Money On eBay Without Selling Anything?
Here are 5 ideas for someone who wants to make money on eBay without selling anything.
1. eBay Affiliates
eBay Partner Network (EPN) is a platform that connects publishers, bloggers, and influencers with the marketplace. You get affiliate links to promote them in your videos, blog posts, and social media content.
A certain amount of commission reward is offered for partners paid within 24 hours of the order completion. There are dozens of product categories that you can choose from. Which is a must to align with the interests of your audience.
You can’t sell a gadget to someone visiting for a bit of nutrition advice. That is how the intent of users is important to become successful as an affiliate.
How Does EPN Work?
EPN works similarly to other affiliate networks like Amazon Associates, ClickBank, and ShareASale. Where you implement a 4-step process to start earning money.
- Sign up as an affiliate
- Choose the desired brands and products
- Start promoting them with unique affiliate links
- Earn commission from qualified sales
eBay Partner Network gives the flexibility of promotional material and a variety of products. Its comprehensive affiliate tool and advanced analytics give full control of the process.
2. Dropshipping On eBay
This business model involves fewer headaches of inventory management and minimal investments. A dropshipper becomes a medium between the supplier and the consumer.
They can create their online store and source the desired products from trustworthy suppliers. You can make good money in terms of dropshipping profit without maintaining a product stock.
Here is the 3-step dropshipping method to make money on eBay without selling your products.
- Source the picked products from suppliers on wholesale platforms like AliExpress
- List that product on your eBay store
- Look after the order fulfillment by the supplier
However, you need to review eBay’s dropshipping policies before jumping into this hustle.
eBay Dropshipping Policy
eBay allows dropshipping on its platform only for those sellers who source products directly from suppliers instead of other marketplace retailers. You have to provide the agreement with the supplier for listing the products, and they should be aware of the delivery terms of eBay.
If you violate the terms or list the prohibited items on your store, it will result in an irreversible account ban due to the strict policy of the marketplace.eBay dropshipping tools help source qualified domestic and international suppliers.
3. Become A VA Of eBay Sellers
Assist the existing eBay sellers in maintaining their stores, inventory, and establishing feedback channels with the customers. Professional VAs help busy sellers with various types of tasks, including:
- Maintaining the product inventory and listings
- General administrative support in daily operations
- Handling customer communication and feedback
- Order fulfillment and returns
Virtual assistants on eBay charge an average of $15 per hour for the product listing. Most of them capitalize on their e-commerce experience through this side gig to establish an additional income stream.
4. eBay Consulting
If you have a good understanding of the eBay ecosystem, get paid by sharing your expertise with other sellers. Give consulting and coaching in maximizing sales.
Share industry insights, trends, and best practices with your clients. This way you can make money on eBay without selling anything. Look for consulting opportunities on different freelance marketplaces and join eBay communities to get noticed.
5. eBay Guides And Handbooks
Create your step-by-step guide to start selling on eBay. You can use free resources like Visme to make a handbook from existing templates. Take help from AI tools for the outline and the coverage of important things in your PDF guide.
Promote your guide through social media, landing pages, and personal websites. Publish your handbook on free book-selling platforms with competitive pricing to get more downloads.
What Services Are In Demand On eBay?
Product photography services:
Product visuals play a vital role in enhancing sales. If you are a good photographer, so offer items for photo shoots, light and color correction, background removal, and compressed image sizes for desktop and mobile view.
Pricing Strategy and Market Analysis:
With time, the prices of the products are changing in the market. So the seller is facing these challenges in how to price the items competitively.
An expert pricing consultant needs to observe the market rates and analyze the historical sales data. Through these services, you can help the sellers adjust prices for seasonal trends, and discount strategies, set competitive prices, and manage profit margins.
Frequently Asked Questions
Conclusion
eBay gets millions of visitors each month and carries huge income potential. Dropshipping has experienced exponential growth in the past few years due to the flexibility and ease of doing e-commerce.
Shopify is another preference of most dropshipping lovers. You can set up your store in a matter of minutes with a lot of integration options for sourcing and promoting your products.