When is Wholesale Really Wholesale

You've finally found the wholesale source for the high demand widget that is selling like hotcakes on the Internet. Thoughts of watching the money pouring in and celebrating the new found success selling widgets has you so excited that you can't wait to buy 5 widgets at wholesale and double the investment.

After a lot of effort to market your widgets, you haven't sold any. Then, much to your surprise, you find others selling the same widget at a much lower price and doing a great business. You can blame the wholesaler for your lack of success or you can face the truth about wholesaling and volume purchasing.

So, after an unsuccessful attempt to sell widgets, you decide to do the research to find out why you couldn't compete. The first eye opener is that you can find the widget at a number of places selling for less then your wholesale cost.

Lets look at the reasons for this.

  • The retailer can buy in bulk and receive quantity pricing

  • In many cases this also qualifies the retailer for manufacturers wholesale rebates

So it now seems that the word wholesale is a relative term. Small businesses get first level wholesale pricing. Large businesses (with great buying power) get 2nd and 3rd level wholesale pricing plus incentives. As an example, the small business may pay a price of $10 each buying wholesale widgets in quantities of 1-10. The large business may pay $5 each for the same widget in quantities of 500-1000.

So, is there any recourse for the small business?

Yes, The simple answer is Market Research.

OK, how can market research help me with wholesale buying?

The problem that needs addressing is buying widgets at to high of a price to be competitive. Plus, there are hundreds of places that sell widgets for a lot less then you can. If the demand, competition and average selling price of widgets can be determined, then you can make an informed decision about the selling potential of the widget.

That is the simplified version of the answer, but touches on the main points of market research.

You can do the research manually but by far the best bet is to use one of the existing market research tools available on the Internet. A moderate investment is required up front but the information compiled and presented is essential to profitable marketing.

A clear understanding how wholesale works in an open market along with good research can multiply your chances of successfully operating a small business. This applies to online storefronts, auction sellers, or anyone doing business from home.

About The Author

Johnny Burke is a successful online seller and webmaster for E-MarketingAmerica http://www.gtsystem.net/e-commerceamerica/ offering resources and information for the online marketer

webmaster@gtsystem.net

More Resources

Mistakes to Avoid in your eBay Auctions
Online auctions continue to grow in popularity as an easy and efficient way to make money on everything from unwanted household items to rare and expensive collectables and even to bulky items like cars.Log on to eBay and you will see countless auctions on any item you can imagine.
When You Need Extra Cash Ebay Fits the Bill
We all have items in our closets and stuffed in drawers that we no longer have a use for. Some of us use our free time to manufacture craft items that we give to our friends and families for gifts, and still others of us buy candles and other items in bulk to sell to family and co workers for a little extra cash.
The Ins and Outs of Dropshipping on eBay
Dropshipping is an attractive marketing technique, but when you take it to eBay it becomes a real phenomenon. There are tens of thousands of people running dropshipping business as you are reading this article.
8 Collectible Dolls That Sell Well on eBay
From the beginning, eBay's primary growth came from thecollectibles market. There are two basic models for eBaysales:1.
Photos on my eBay Auctions: How Do I Add Them?
On another forum I'm involved with, someone's asked a great question: I want to sell products on eBay, but I want to include photographs with my items. How do I do that? What kind of camera do I need, and what settings should I use?The first step is to buy a digital camera.
Image Hosting For Online Auctions
Use eBay picture service or host your own photos?If you use the eBay picture service, your first photo is free. But each additional picture will cost you $0.
Real Estate Auction Action - Buying A Home At Auction
Due in part to the popularity of the U. S.
12 Tips To Make Your eBay Business More Profitable
Sometimes it's the simple things that can make your eBay business more profitable and run smoother. Here are twelve things you can do that will lead to more sales and increased profits on eBay.
Low Cost, High Profit Dream Products To Sell on eBay and Amazon
Finding quality products to sell is the key to continuing success. Keeping a pipeline of low cost, fast moving items to sell is also a must.
Sell Your Items at Cost and Make a Fortune on eBay!
Like all ebay sellers I wanted to sell all of my items at a profit and what I found was that when I was getting to the end of line items that I was ending up selling them at cost, even though the items were finally selling at a profit price, because I was having to factor in the ebay relisting fees etc.So I took a moment and sat down and thought how I could deal with these items and still make money.
eBay: Dont Believe All the Hype
Three billion dollars (that's billion with a "B") in revenues, 135 million users, millionaires all over the place at eBay! Yeah, eBaby!!!, to steal a line form another great author. (See "EBay: No Way?Yes Way (Ten Seller Themes) by Barbara Snyder M.
The Down Side Of Using Dropshippers In The Ebay Auction Arena!
Ok, let me just say right up front that I am not against drop-shipping! I love the concept. If you are dealing with a particular wholesale drop-shipping distributor that is serving your Ebay ambitions well, then hold onto that company with bonds of steel, for truly good drop-shippers are hard to find!Drop-Shipping sounds like the utopian business model.
6 Reasons Why an eBay Business is the Easiest and Safest Home Business to Start
Calling internet auctions an "Entrepreneur's Dream" isn't poetic license or part of the get-rich-quick rhetoric. Net auctions are the simplest, easiest way on this planet for the little guy to make money.
Can You Really Make Money Selling New Release CDs & DVDs On eBay?
Being an active eBayer, I am often being asked about products to sell. A common question is "Where can I purchase products such as new release CD's DVD's and Video Games for Playstation and X box at a 75% to 100% discount.
Tips on How to Profit from eBay Buy It Now Auction Listings
eBay is an online auction site so it stands to reason that most users will tend to auction off their items aiming to get a high price.The problem with auctioning items is that eBay can be a very fickle place, one week an item may sell for hundreds of pounds but the next week the same item may sell for pennies.
Easy Money on Ebay?
Ebay was only two years old when I discovered it.A friend I worked with was also starting to sell on Ebay at about the same time, and we exchanged ideas and experiences constantly.
The Top Sellers On eBay & What We Can Learn From Them
A fascinating eBay case study is the number one seller on eBay, a little outfit called Marie's CDs, but is better known under its old name "1 Cent CD." Jay and Marie, current ID "jayandmarie", are an institution on eBay and are a big part of what makes eBay such an amazingly popular phenomenon.
Earn Money Now from Selling Childrens Items on Ebay
Kids Items You Can SellClothes, toys and videos are good money makers on eBay.Go to eBay and look up a "lot" of size six girl's cloths.
Five Ways To Detect Shill Bidders On eBay So That You Dont Pay Absurd Prices
There is as a lot of buzz about shill bidders on the eBay forums. But in actuality, shrill bidding isn't that common and is rather easily detected.
Drop-ship or U-ship: That is the Question
For small Internet retailers, drop-shipping is one of the best innovations since sliced bread. How else can a start-up offer a wide variety of products and convince customers that they have a fully-stocked warehouse-while investing virtually nothing in inventory or warehousing? Before you jump right onto the drop-shipping bandwagon, however, there are some pitfalls to avoid.

More Auction Information:

Related Articles

Your Junk is Another Persons Gold
Saving money can be quite hard to do if you are on a tight budget, but all of us can do it very simply by selling the things that are cluttering up our homes and which we no longer need. I am fairly sure that most of us, if asked, would like some extra cash to help pay off a loan or other debt, or to put towards something nice like a holiday or something else that you would like to save up for.
Selling through Auction Marketplaces
Consumers are increasingly feeling more comfortable in buying products through the Internet. According to a report released recently by the Department of Commerce first-quarter retail salesrose 23.
Online Auctions: 5 Ways Your Business Can Benefit From Online Auctions
Online auctions are now the new gold rush on the internet.It seems as if everyone is talking about online auctions.
The Powerful eBay Bidding Strategy That Claims A 99% Success Rate
Don't you just love it?You've found that special item on eBay that you've just got to have!No If's Ands or Buts, you've got to win that item.You've checked and double checked the "End Of Auction" time and date and you're at your computer, signed in and raring to go at least 30 minutes before the auction ends.
Online Auctions Business
Online auction sites are a great way to find a bargain on almost anything and an excellent way of getting the best price for selling something of your own. Online auctions are different from their real-world counterparts.
Royal Memorabilia -Smart Trading and Fake Dodging
This is my second article about trading royal memorabilia on eBay and other online auctions. We're going to explore just what items are really tradable, how and where to find your stock and mention some definite pitfalls to avoid.
Four Huge Mistakes Ebay Sellers Make (Even Some Moderately Successful Ones)
No matter how many times I see it happening, I'mconstantly amazed at the number of people who areliterally throwing money away by making incrediblysimple mistakes when they sell items in an onlineauction. Over the last seven years, I've been making a greatliving buying and selling products on eBay and otheronline auction sites, and I've perfected a techniquethat pretty much guarantees anyone can start making aprofit right away.
Selling on Ebay-Get Started in 7 Easy Steps
Ebay auctions are definitely the easiest and fastest way to start earning money online. Ebay.
eBays Hot Selling Books, Find Out Which Books Sell & How To Find Them
Selling books on eBay can be a very lucrative business! There are eBayers who sell only books and make a nice little income doing it. Where do they get these books to sell? At thrift stores, estate sales, flea markets, book fairs, yard sales, library sales, grandmas attic, etc.
Get More for Your Money Shopping for Designer Shoes on eBay
The worlds online market place.In just a few short years eBay has become a household name and millions of people are registered users benefiting from the enormous variety of auctions listed every day.
The Effects of eBay on American Merchandising
With one brilliantly simple idea, eBay was born just a few short years ago.From its humble beginnings in the Collectibles business, it went on to achieve the lofty heights it enjoys today.
eBay - Getting More Bids Using An Auction Preview
If you sell in small niches as I recommend and are organized enough that you know what you will be listing on eBay 1 to 2 weeks ahead of time, you should give serious thought to previewing your upcoming auctions for your customers. The result can be increased sales and higher final bids.
eBay - Profiting With Books By Janette Oke
Janette Oke is a Christian writer whose books about life, love, values and faith have a huge following among women today. Each of her Christian books for adults falls into one of six different series she wrote.
Four Reasons Why You Should NEVER Use Animations In Your eBay Auctions
Inexperienced auction sellers, or those lacking in confidence, often want to make their auction listings more dramatic and exciting. They dread the possibility that buyers will be bored by their auction and turn away with indifference.
Drop Shipping Your Way to Increased Profits
Drop shipping, for those who are unfamiliar with it, is a system whereby you promote the products of a particular manufacturer, take orders directly, and the manufacturer/source handles all the inventory and fulfillment functions for you.In a nutshell, here is the drop-ship system:==>You generate and accept the order.
Selling on eBay? Heres a Success Tip for Your Online Auctions
Are you planning to sell on eBay? Or have you tried in the past but not had much success with your online auctions? If so, here's a strategy that has worked very well for me.In my experience, the auction lots where I created a useful collection of related items got more bids and closed at higher prices than auction lots that were all one thing.
A Picture Paints a Thousand Words and Creates Auction Euphoria on eBay
Ever since I sold my first item on ebay I have been addicted to the site and I have steadily developed it as a supplementary source of income over the last two years. As I gained experience from listing items, I rapidly became aware that the inclusion of pictures in the listings was a major selling point as buyers could literally see what they were buying and as such create a greater interest and desire within them which in turn led to greater selling prices.
Fed Up With eBay?
For many people, their first experience of working online involves selling products on eBay. This was how I got started back in 1998 and I know countless other people that have done the same.
How Professional Ebay Auction Templates Can Boost Your Ebay Sales
Do you like to sell on eBay ? It's easy and fun, isn't it ? In fact, it's one of the easiest online business you can start almost overnight, without any major investments. That's the best thing about it.
Profitable Paper Piecing on eBay -- Part 2
Basic Paper Piecing TipsHere are some tips that will help you create paper piecings that will sell!Save some time by eliminating the "tracing" of patterns. Take your pattern, lay it over your cardstock and use your stylus to "trace" it onto your cardstock.