How to Start Selling on eBay: 10 Tips from a 6-Year Reseller

When Flippedit co-founder Matt first started selling on eBay six years ago, he had absolutely no idea what he was doing. He didn't know if he was buying the right items. He didn't know if he was profitable on the items he was selling. He wasn't.

Six years later, things have changed. In this video, Matt breaks down the 10 things he wishes he knew from the start, lessons that would have taken him from beginner to pro much faster.

Here's a summary of each tip and how you can apply them to your own eBay business.

1. Accept Lowball Offers

This sounds counterintuitive. We all want to make as much money as possible. But when you're starting out, any profitable sale is worth taking.

Matt's very first eBay sale was a plush toy for $25. After shipping costs he barely made a dollar or two. But it didn't matter. He was pumped that a random person in Australia wanted to buy something he listed. That excitement bred motivation, and motivation drove more sales.

More importantly, accepting offers gets you closer to your first 100 sales. That's a key milestone for reaching Top Rated Seller status on eBay, which signals to buyers and to eBay itself that you're trustworthy. You also need $1,000 in total revenue (the easy part) and 100 completed transactions (the hard part when you're new).

Once you hit 100 sales, you can start being pickier. But until then, stop rage-declining lowball offers and let them accelerate your progress.

2. Focus on One Category

When Matt first started, he'd walk into a thrift store and buy everything that was cheap. A dollar here, two dollars there. He'd hope for the best and do some minor research after the fact.

The better approach? Niche down from day one. Pick one category and learn it inside out. Understand the nuances: which brands sell, which editions are valuable, what condition issues to watch for. The devil is always in the detail.

Matt personally leaned into media: CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays, and video games. Any of those would be a great starting category. Spend six months going deep on one product type, then expand to another. After a year, you'll have expert-level knowledge in two categories rather than surface-level knowledge in twenty.

3. Send Payment Reminders Early

eBay gives buyers up to 5 days to pay, a policy Matt considers flawed. Waiting around for payment stalls your momentum and ties up inventory.

His approach: send a polite one-sentence message the same day asking when they'll be able to pay. If they don't respond, follow up the next day. It's not aggressive, it's just a gentle nudge.

Since adopting this habit, Matt's cancellation rate from non-paying buyers has dropped dramatically. Most buyers just need that little prompt to complete the purchase they already committed to.

4. Build Connections

Your sourcing shouldn't be limited to thrift stores, flea markets, and garage sales. The real advantage comes from having a contact in your pocket that other sellers don't have.

Matt shares the story of Mel, a seller in his 12-week challenge program. Mel established a Lego connection, someone who could supply her with Lego sets at a price point where she was still very profitable on eBay. The result? $10,000 in revenue in her first three months with only 25 active listings.

The key is to speak up about what you do. Don't wait until you're an expert. The more people you talk to, the more chances you have of finding the right supplier. There's an element of luck, but luck favours those who put themselves out there.

5. Research Every Item Before You Buy

This is the discipline that separates profitable sellers from hopeful ones. Before buying anything, Matt recommends:

Check sold listings - Open the eBay app, hit the filter button, and look at actual sales data for the product you're considering.
Check active listings - Toggle off solds and see who you're competing against and what they're asking.
Find the sweet spot - Based on that data, identify a competitive price point that will drive a quicker sale without undercutting the entire market.

Matt never did this when he started. If you're not doing it either, start now. You'll see a dramatic uptick in both your sales velocity and your margins.

6. Say No to 90% of Stock

Think like Warren Buffett. Buffett wasn't the world's greatest investor because he made the most transactions. He swung at the right opportunity at the right time within his area of competence.

When Matt goes to the flea market now, he comes home with six or seven items and spends about $100. He turns that into $400 to $500 by only picking items he knows will move. He could fill his car with cheap 50-cent finds, but the time, effort, and energy required to list, store, and ship items that may never sell isn't worth it.

It's not about how much you buy. It's about what you buy. Quality matters more than quantity, especially when you've only got three or four hours a day to commit to your eBay business.

7. Treat It Like a Business from Day One

This is the tip that everyone hates but nobody can argue with. Matt waited nine months before getting a business bank account, something that took 20 minutes to set up and was completely free.

Once he separated his personal and business finances, everything became clearer. No more digging through personal bank statements at tax time trying to find business transactions.

This is actually what led Matt to build Flippedit. After years of wrestling with spreadsheets and manually tracking profitability, he created a tool that plugs directly into eBay and pulls all your sales data automatically. You just add your cost of goods and shipping costs, and Flippedit shows you the true profitability of your eBay business. Not just individual item sales, but how the whole business is performing.

Even if you're calling it a side hustle or a hobby right now, in the eyes of the tax office, you're a business. Start acting like one early and you'll save yourself a lot of pain later.

8. List an Item Every Single Day

Gamify it. Create a streak on a calendar and see how many consecutive days you can put at least one item live into your store.

The secret weapon here is a draft bank. On days when you have extra time, prepare listings but save them as drafts. Then on busy days like birthdays, weddings, or days when you just don't feel like it, publish a draft to keep your streak alive.

eBay rewards activity. Consistent listing keeps you visible in search results and keeps sales flowing. If you're not making sales, Matt says it bluntly: it's a you problem, not an eBay problem.

9. Pick One or Two Creators to Learn From

When Matt started, he watched every eBay seller on YouTube. Every creator had different advice, different strategies, different opinions. It got overwhelming fast.

His recommendation: pick one or two creators and go deep into their content. Implement what they teach, see if it works for your store, and then decide whether to stick with them or move on. Trying to absorb advice from ten different sources at once leads to analysis paralysis and inaction.

10. Get to 30 Positive Feedbacks as Fast as Possible

A zero feedback score next to your name kills trust. Buyers won't feel confident purchasing from someone with no track record, regardless of your 100% positive rating.

Matt's benchmark: aim for 30 positive feedbacks within your first 80 sales. The industry average is about one feedback for every three sales (33%), which means you'd normally need 100 sales to hit 30. But you can accelerate this.

How? Once an item is marked as delivered, send a simple one-sentence message: "Hey, if you enjoyed the service, I'm brand new and trying to build up my account. I'd really appreciate a feedback." Be honest about where you are. Most buyers are happy to help, they just need the nudge.

Thirty feedbacks isn't a magic number, but it's enough to signal that you've been at it for a while and that buyers can trust you.

Start With Your Numbers

If there's one thread running through all ten tips, it's this: know your numbers. Know what you're buying, what it costs, what it sells for, and what you actually keep after every fee and expense.

That's exactly what Flippedit was built to do. It connects to your eBay account, imports your sales and fees automatically, and shows you the true profit on every item you sell. No more spreadsheets, no more guessing.

Start your free 7-day trial and see your real numbers for the first time.