#1 Sales and Clearance

Most people start here with sales items and clearance. There are a few great ways to find product on sale that will make you a profit on eBay. First you want to make sure that the product is marked down at least 50% to allow yourself a decent profit after eBay fees. People will generally purchase an item on eBay for 30% below manufacture's suggested retail price.

Department stores are a great place to find product to sell. Quite often department stores will have days where there is an additional 30-40% off sale items which is the best time to buy up for eBay since quite often this product is still current too.

Another way to get a great deal is to talk to a manager about getting a discount on entire clearance rack in a clothing store such as Abercrombie. Quite often they will give you an additional 50% off the sale price if you will take the entire rack off their hands.

Occasionally you can find hot sellers at discount stores like Big Lots so keep your eyes open.

#2 Product Available In Your Area, But Not Everywhere

You may have stores in your area that people do not have in other parts of the country such as outlet stores. For example, a top seller on eBay is Coach Handbags. The only place you can get Coach Handbags at a price discounted enough to make a profit on eBay is from a Coach outlet.

Specialty chain stores are also great sellers such as Pottery Barn clearance items. Many parts of the country do not have access to a Pottery Barn except through the catalogue and the miss out on in store sales.

#3 Classified Ads in Your Area

The first time we tried this we found a brand new sealed-in-box laser copier for $200 and we saw that it was going for $400 at Office Depot so we knew we could bank on this item. We hurried over and picked up the copier. The guy selling the copier could sense our excitement and made a comment that he might be underselling the machine. We sold the copier for $380 on eBay. Nice profit for an hour of work!

#4 Wholesalers

Once you start growing your business on eBay it will come to a point where purchasing from wholesalers makes the most sense because you can set up a standard operating procedure for your business that will keep it organized as you grow. Finding 10-20 top sellers on eBay through a wholesaler could easily ensure a six figure income without having to run around town and constantly create new ads. Pick a niche that you are interested in and that sells on eBay, and then look for wholesalers in that category.

You will need to be set up as a business to start purchasing from wholesalers with a valid EIN and Resellers Certificate.

#5 Buying Products Directly From the Manufacturers

China is by far the largest resource for product directly from the manufacturer. It can seem overwhelming purchasing from China for the first time. A good place to start to find product and manufacturers are the following sites:

www.Made-In-China.com

www.Alibaba.com

Just contact the company through email that you are interested in their product and they will guide you through the whole process. Usually there are large minimum order requirements, but most companies are willing to allow a few sample orders so you can test the market for the product before investing thousands of dollars. These companies will also guide you through shipping and customs. Be careful buying known brand names since many are fake. Ordering from China is best for product where people aren't sold by the brand name but the function of the product.

Online Business Expert and Author