Hi, thank you for submitting your question to Answers.Google, I hope I
can provide the information you are seeking.
To preface this I need to point out that I have an eBay store so
opinions I express have a factual basis.
First, you ask what revenue is possible for PowerSellers at the various levels.
This part of your question is based on a misconception. You don?t pay
or otherwise apply to become a PowerSeller, the various levels you ask
about indicate the amount of revenue each individual has on an average
basis.
To qualify you also need to maintain a very high level of customer
satisfaction (98% positive feedback and a minimum of 100 sales.)
http://pages.ebay.com/services/buyandsell/welcome.html
PowerSeller minimum monthly average gross sales levels
Bronze $1,000
Silver $3,000
Gold $10,000
Platinum $25,000
Titanium $150,000
That answers one part of your question because sellers maintaining
those levels obviously have that gross income (revenue).
For example, Bronze PowerSellers have average sales of $1,000 to
$3,000 each month and so on. If they made less then eBay would remove
their statis and if they made more they would be bumped up to the next
level.
PowerSeller FAQ
http://pages.ebay.com/help/basics/faq.html
The second part of your question can only be answered in general terms
because these PowerSellers, and all eBay participants are not required
to publish their profits.
That actually answers your final question ?Is real data available??
No, there simply can?t be any ?real,? verifiable data because there
just isn?t any way to collect the information or verify it if you
could collect it.
But that doesn?t mean I can?t provide you with real, unbiased
information which will let you decide for yourself. For example, do
you believe that millions of people would be doing this if they
weren't making money? In particular, store owners/operators are not
just selling old junk they found in the garage or something grandma
left to them. They are operating actual businesses so stores are a
good measure of whether people are making money. There have been
television reports about eBayers who were making so much money simply
reselling new items that they purchased several adjacent homes so they
could expand their businesses without moving out of their
neighborhood. Those stories are pretty reliable.
There are also many sites on the Web which talk about the fantastic
profits which are being made on eBay but all of them are trying to
sell you something and, since their statements are merely anecdotal,
they can?t be relied on. I'm NOT saying they are dishonest or that
their figures aren't accurate - just that you can't verify what they
say and that they have a profit motive in convincing people that eBay
is profitable.
Since I am not trying to sell you eBay tips, or get you to join eBay
because there is no profit to me in having you join, you can choose to
believe my numbers or not but I am giving you the straight
information.
I can tell you exactly what my profit margin is for several new items
I sell in quantity. Since it is only a hobby for me, other items I
sell are used and there is simply no way to measure ?profit? on those.
PowerSellers are mostly selling new or perhaps antique items so the
numbers for my new items should be representative.
One thing I sell regularly costs nothing but a bit of time (very
little time) so the only expense is the cost of the store listing
(2-cents) and shipping (40-cents) on a $2.50 sale. That is a $2.08
profit and the buyers have always been very happy.
Another item that I sell I purchase in quantities of 500 when they are
on sale, then break them down into various smaller size packages at a
60-90% profit per sale.
Other items I sell are on consignment where the profit on each sale is
between 25% and 50%.
PowerSelling requires a considerable amount of time and work so these
people are making money or they wouldn?t continue. Where I spend an
hour or two a month at the store, PowerSellers probably spend a
minimum of a few hours each day, depending on exactly what they are
selling.
I have had private discussions with other eBay?ers and, although I
have no way to verify their stories, they weren?t trying to sell me
anything either and I do trust them.
Most of the eBay store owners I know tell me they are making between
15% and 40% profit on gross sales of new items but they aren?t
counting their time, just the obvious expenses which would go on a
balance sheet.
You can estimatethe sales and gross income numbers for any selected
store very easily by looking at the feedback ratings and compare the
ones which operate the way you are planning to do business. You can
also easily calculate eBay costs for store items or auctions. The
Store itself will cost $15.52 per month. You can list as many items as
you want in the store for about 2-cents per item.
There is a complex cost structure for auction items and it is too
complicated to repeat here.
To estimate what profit someone is making, simply compare those store
numbers with what you can locate as the lowest possible price you
would need to pay for the item they are selling. They are almost
certainly paying less, so your estimate of their profit margin is
probably low. There may also be hidden profits in their shipping and
handling charges. I sometimes sell items where all the profit is
actually in the shipping and handling and the actual "sale" price is
below my cost.
My recommendation to you is to simply become an eBay member, then join
in the various discussion groups where people talk about this sort of
thing all the time.
Start here
http://pages.ebay.com/education/sellingtips/index.html
Registration is completely free but, since this qualifies you to
engage in purchases which are legal contracts, eBay needs to know some
personal details. The simplest way is to just provide a credit card
number ? you won?t be billed unless you either list an item for sale
or buy something.
If you don?t trust eBay, there are other ways to verify your identity
but that will involve a small fee.
You can see seller costs at
http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/fees.html
Sellers are only required by law to report profits to the IRS and even
corporate sellers don?t need to break out eBay sales and profit
numbers in their financial reports so I hope you believe me when I
tell you that this is the best answer you will be able to obtain to
your question.
Thank you again for turning to Answers.Google for help. I would like
to point out that one of the fantastic things about eBay is that, if
you have an idea, it is extremely easy and inexpensive to test that
idea and see if you can make money. |
