If you've never heard of drop shipping, then prepare to be impressed - it sounds like every eBay seller's dream. With drop shipping, you don't have to keep any stock at all. You simply list auctions for what your drop shipper sells, without actually seeing it yourself.

Each time something sells, you let them know, and they deliver it for you - directly to the customer. They'll charge you a near-wholesale price for the item they delivered, you charge the customer whatever price you agreed, and then you pocket the difference as profit.

The Magic.

Just think of the sheer amount of trouble this takes out of eBay selling. You don't have to find space in your house to keep your stock in, or money to buy it with. You don't have to take any risk by buying things that might not sell. You don't have to deal with suppliers. You don't even have to pack or post the auctions yourself. Wow! Can you imagine how good this would be if you could pull it off?

But, as with all things in life, if it sounds too good to be true...

The Myths.

Drop-shippers don't do deals with just anyone - any drop shipper who says they'll take orders from unregistered businesses is likely to be a scammer. They might not send out anything at all to your customers, or you might send out very poor quality merchandise that they will then return to you for a refund.

Also, beware of companies that claim they will put you in contact with drop shippers for a fee - they are inevitably rip-offs. At the end of the day, the best way to find drop shipping companies is to contact them in the 'real world', not by typing 'drop shipping' into a search engine.

Doing it for Real.

If you want to make a profit with drop-shippers, be prepared for it to be quite a small one: you're not going to make sales on eBay at a big mark-up from drop shipping prices. You will also have to accept that you can't inspect stock before it gets sent out, and some of your descriptions might not be as good as they could be.

You should also be prepared for a few frustrating experiences with your drop shipper, as they might not share the same customer service values as you. The first time you'll realise that they never sent something to one of your buyers is when you hear about it from the buyer a week later.

If you can accept all these things, though, and find a reputable drop shipper, then there's money to be made. Good luck!

If you'd like to give up a little more profit and control over your eBay business to save the trouble of doing everything yourself, then you might be interested in eBay consignment centers. You can sell your items at an eBay consignment center by just leaving them there. Stay tuned to these emails for more.

About the author:

Kirsten Hawkins is an Ebay and internet auction enthusiast from Nashville, TN. Visit http://www.auctionseller411.com/ for more great tips on how to make the most from Ebay and other online auctions.