If you’re reading this blog, then you probably have a good amount of knowledge about the latest in technology. It’s great to know everything there is to know about the latest mobile phones, cameras, and other gadgets, but did you know you can actually profit off of your hobby? With a little effort, you can turn your hobby into an income generating machine. If you’re able to scale, then you could potentially quit your job and earn a living doing something you love, rather than something that just pays the bills. If this sounds exciting to you, then keep reading, and I’ll tell you everything you need to know to get started selling tech products online.
Find a Drop Shipping Company
Don’t worry about investing a lot of cash into expensive inventory. Technology is often expensive, and you could end up with tens of thousands of dollars in inventory sitting on a shelf until someone hopefully buys it before it becomes obsolete. Instead, partner with a drop shipping company. They usually charge a small monthly fee to have access to their database of products at discounted prices. When you sell an item, they’ll ship it directly to your customer, and you’ll earn a profit. With this model, you can significantly reduce your risk, to test which products sell best to your audience. If you start moving volume, then you can even stock a few popular items that you ship yourself for higher profits, while the drop shipper takes care of the rest.
Sell on eBay
Now that you’ve got a source for your tech products, it’s time to find customers. A good place to start is eBay. They’ve got a lot of traffic from engaged shoppers, and if you get your product in front of them, you’ve got a shot at making a sale. Keep in mind however, that competition is stiff. You’re competing against people who may have better deals with drop shippers and manufacturers, so you may not be able to beat people on price. In addition, make sure you check the terms and conditions related to your drop shipping deal. Sometimes they prohibit you from selling on marketplaces like eBay and Amazon.
Sell on Amazon
If you’re able to sell on marketplaces, then Amazon’s a great place to be, too. Initially, you’ll want to set up an Amazon FBM (Fulfillment by Merchant) account. When orders come in, you’ll coordinate shipping through your drop-shipper. Eventually, if you get to the point where you stock your own inventory, you’ll want to consider an FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) account. There are pros and cons to FBM vs. FBA, so be sure to do your research.
Start a Website
You’ll have the greatest control over your inventory and customer data by starting a website. When you sell on Amazon or eBay, they essentially own the customer data. It’s nearly impossible to remarket to them to buy again from you, instead of other competitors on their platforms. By contrast, when you start a website, you own the customer database. This means that you can use email marketing, social media, paid ads, and other tactics to get your customers to buy from you again. To get started, read some hosting company reviews, and get an account set up with a reputable company. The challenge of course is that a new website has no traffic. You’ll need to invest time and money into driving traffic to your website.
Advertise Your Website
The fastest way to drive traffic to your website is to pay for advertising on Google, Facebook, and other digital platforms. You can immediately test which products sell, and which ones don’t. The challenge is that this is expensive. So, be mindful of your cost per order. Eventually you need to make sure you advertise profitably. In the meantime, start building out your social media profiles too. Get on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other social media platforms. That traffic is free, and over time, it can be a source for new orders. Also start working on your blog. As you post relevant content to your website, you’ll start to pick up some organic search traffic.
Launch an Affiliate Program
After you start generating some orders, it’s time to launch an affiliate program. You’ll know which products sell well, which ones have margin, and which ones are duds. You can easily get an account set up with an affiliate marketing platform like Shareasale or Clickbank for very little money up front. Then, you usually pay a small monthly fee, plus commissions to other website owners when they sell your products. If they don’t make any sales, then you don’t pay them any money. In other words, it’s essentially “free traffic.”
Get Online Reviews
You’ve now got your sales pipeline set up, so it’s time to solicit online reviews. Ask your happiest customers to write reviews, and you’ll see your conversion rate go way up as other potential customers do their research when making new purchases. Of course this means that you must maintain excellent customer service. But if you do that, then you can be on your way to making a substantial income selling tech products online.
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