Selling new and used books online

Posted by in Creative Ideas, Hot Niche Markets | 6 comments
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One of the steadiest niche markets to get into for years has been the used books niche. I’m talking about “real” books (not ebooks).

You have to know what you are doing, but it can be a goldmine of opportunity with inventory available in abundant supply.

Some rules of thumb when buying used books:

Avoid these:

  • cookbooks
  • fiction books in general
  • any “book club” books
  • any reprints of popular books (look for first editions)
  • encyclopedias
  • mass market paperbacks

Buy these instead:

  • obscure non-fiction
  • plain looking books (no fancy covers or graphics)
  • old art books
  • hobbyist books (older is better)

Keep in mind that you make your money when you BUY your inventory…not when you sell it! This means you should check the recently closed auctions on eBay, or recent sell prices on Amazon.com before investing in a title for resell.  Any web enabled cell phone can do the job. Just go to amazon.com for example and do a title search to see current pricing. Once you get serious about the biz there are automated ways to scan and price check multiple books per minute while browsing a stack of potential inventory.

Finding inventory to sell can be as easy as placing a free craigslist.com ad in your local town. For example, and ad that says “I pay cash for quality, used, first edition books. Call at me ###-####”, will likely produce good results and costs you nothing to try.

Members of MySilentTeam.com have several resources available to them from the top experts in the “sell used books online” field. It’s all part of their membership. Most recently we’ve added a brand new book by Henry Neff.

Henry Neff began selling books on eBay in 2005. Having a lifelong love affair with reading and collecting books he decided he could help others become successful booksellers. Today he is an eBay Top Rated PowerSeller that is considered an expert in used and antiquarian books.

Henry is a an eBay Certified Education Specialist and Trading Assistant. Henry has taught many people how to sell on eBay as well as in community technology training centers. We are proud that hie is available to members to help them grow their online book selling business.

Just one more reason to join MySilentTeam.com if you haven’t yet!

If  want a copy of Henry’s book there are only two ways to get it (for now). Search eBay for the phrase “How to sell books on eBay Neff” and make sure to buy it from the seller “buckcreekmarketing” – that’s Henry’s account.

or…join MySilentTeam.com and enjoy Henry’s book as well as hundreds of other bonuses and benefits that come with your membership.

Thanks to Henry for this fantastic new bonus for MySilentTeam.com!

Leave a comment or tip about selling books online using the comment link at the top of this article.
  • http://takethetour.gbgpayz.com Gary

    Thanks for the heads up about this book Jim. I’ve been looking to get into this niche for a while and this looks like it might be the perfect book to use to get started.

  • Kit

    Been selling on half.com, part of ebay, for a year and ready to ramp up my business. Your book sounds like a great tool.

  • http://www.EasyInternetMillionaire.com Eruwan Gerry

    Hi Jim,

    Thanks for sharing this great piece of info.

    I’ve actually been searching quite a while for a reference material like this.

    Thanks again.

  • Reg B.

    Hi Jim…
    Yes it is a very easy way to make some fast money on line… I started selling books in January 2010. Didn’t do so well in the beginning… My business as started to really grow this month (Aug.)
    See I was just selling on half.com now am selling on Amazon & half.com and sales are going much better. I’m doing all the sending and packing of the books. But next month am going with Amazon’s FBA Program. To save me time to shop for more books… Oh,also I invested in a scanner which makes all the difference in the world… Thanks for the article…
    Reg B.

  • Jewel

    Your book sounds very good. I’m new in online bookselling and have been researching the internet for helpful and valuable information on how to be successful in this business.

  • Larry Guest

    I think these suggestions are a good place to start. But I must disagree about cookbooks! In my experience, cookbooks are often very valuable, and sometimes have a very low sales rank to boot (meaning fast turnover).

    But really, why allow any guesswork at all in this stuff? Just use a pda-scanner combo, or other technological solution, and KNOW whether the book is valuable (see recent Pacific Trail Books guide to this pacifictrailbooks.com/Blog.aspx#0008).