We live in a digital age, where anything is becoming more possible by the day; the internet dominates the global market. The online super highway contains more content and more information than any of us will ever be able to comprehend. We have fan sites, Social media, blogs, online markets and auction sites. We have gaming sites, film and television sites, businesses of all types, and so much more. There are of course a few that draw more traffic because of their originality, uniqueness, niche, and simplicity. We all know Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, and hotmail. We all know about the auction sites as well, the main one's being eBay and Ebid. This post will look at why we love sites like eBay, how so many businesses are turning to the online platform to run their store from and some ideas for would-be entrepreneurs.
For as long as I can remember eBay has been around to assist buyers and sellers. I myself have made a few hundred pounds over the last few years selling my junk to eBay users. However in our new digital age it has become somewhat apparent that online stores like Amazon and Play are contributing to the destruction of the high street market place. Less and less consumers make the trip to their town centres to make purchases on clothes and other amenities. Many high street retailers have shut down, or are in process of going out of business. Thousands are out of work, and it’s all down to the convenience of the online store.
So the shop keepers and business owner’s hands were forced to play the online game, by starting their own eBay stores and creating seller accounts on websites like Amazon. I have made a few purchases from eBay stores, and to my surprise a lot of store owners had adapted and had created visually appealing eBay pages that in some cases linked to their own websites. So the digital age has forced business owners to learn basic SEO and website design, making our generation and older ones more advanced.
I have a friend who lives on eBay, every day he spends a few hours surfing the auction site for all manner of products. This is the beauty of eBay, you can sell anything you want, provided you add an accurate description and send what you’re selling in a timely fashion. I have seen garden sheds, motor bikes, cars, laptops, phones, clothes, candles, toys, collector’s items, even foreign money for sale. I remember selling less than £10 worth of Falkland Island coins, which are pretty much the same as our coins and being a British colony as well for over £10.
Ok so I promised some advice for you would be eBay sellers, I want to provide some basic information for those of you that wish to either start their own online business or perhaps just want to get rid of their junk. First of all remember that one man’s junk is another man’s treasure, I have sold all manner of different items on eBay, I have sold a van, model soldiers, money, coins and notes, old games, old DVDs, even a jacket that I won through a competition. So remember no matter what you want to get rid of you could probably make some money from it.