Posted Jul-02-08 09:00:41 PDT
I came across a blog this morning that was "warning" others about opening an ebay store. The guy's opinion basically was that it's impossible to earn a living on ebay because of all of the outrageous fees ebay & paypal imposes. I left a couple of rambling notes on this person's blog- but I really want to say more. I've read similar from other ebayers, and I just want to point out some things I think they're missing.
First & foremost, I think way too many people have this idea that being self-employed is easy. That it's not real work or that one will 'get rich quickly'. I have no idea why anyone would think these things. I've been self-employed in one form or another since I was 13 and started babysitting and mowing lawns for my neighbors. Even at 13 I understood the basic premise that if you want to earn money without a 'boss' you're going to have to do some work & be creative about finding it. I loved babysitting but it was an infrequent job- I hated mowing lawns, it was harder work, but it was consistant- lo & behold grass always grows back. In the 20 years since I've both worked for others and been self-employed, and the same basic rules apply now as they did then. There are benefits to working for someone else & benefits to working for yourself, which is "better" is totally subjective and based on which benefits you value more. And there are negatives to working for someone and different negatives to working for yourself- again it's all about your opinion; but make no mistakes there is going to be a downside to everything.
Being self-employed dictates that you must also be self-disciplined. I'd like to head to the beach today, it's gorgeous outside and hot & sticky in my house. But I didn't finish the projects I have going last night as planned, so no beach today (well maybe if I get a move on soon) I'll be at my sewing machine & filing paper work today. Being self-employed dictates that you be attentive to your budget. I've put in about 15 hours this week, but there is no paycheck for me to pick up on Friday- if I want those 15 hours to net me anything, I'm not done yet this week. And if this week does net a profit, I need to remember next week may not and budget accordingly.
Ebay, for all it's flaws, is still an awesome tool for those who see the benefits & negatives of being self-employed as better than those of working for someone else. There is a huge potential for customers, the system is well developed & runs smoothly (compared to my brick & mortar store's trash removal for example) and if you look for it- plenty of directions, pointers & help available.
It's baffling to me that some people really think that the fees here are high compared to what you get in return. The brick & mortar store I owned was a pet store. I worked in my store about 60 hours a week, and then I worked about 20 more for someone else to pay the bills at the pet store for the first year. My rent was 500, substantially higher than the 16 for an ebay basic store- for 500 my landlords didn't advertise my business, didn't set up my merchant account to process credit cards, didn't give me handy forms to fill & post for my ads etc- hell that didn't even include my utilities.
I know I am preaching to the choir for those who have had an ebay store for any substantial period of time. But I am thinking more of the newbies who find there way to the blogs. It bugged me that this person's blog might be the first someone comes across. I myself just opened my store a couple weeks ago, after months of self-debating if it was a good idea. A blog entry like the one I read might have put me off completely- and what a mistake that would have been.
You get out of it what you put in to it, and you'll probably have to put in quite a bit before you start seeing a return; but if you feel the benefits of being self-employed are best for you then ebay is definitely a worthwhile tool to help you succeed.
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