Description of Project:
This project has been a fairly long lasting side hustle. For about 1 year I have been selling old toys, Pokémon cards, video games, CD’s, and books on Ebay. This includes listing, packaging , and shipping these items. So far, I have earned a couple hundred dollars with Ebay and once sold a Pokemon card for $30! In total, I have sold around 20 items ranging from $0.99 (not including shipping) to $35 (not including shipping). My Ebay profile definitely needs work, but nonetheless, I have gained a lot of value from being involved with it.
Purpose of Project:
The initial purpose of this project was to build some sort of income for myself. I wanted money to save for investing and to buy supplies for my projects. However, this was not the only value I gained from this. I learned how the United States Postal Service actually works and how to sufficiently pack and ship items. I understood more about product photography. I further grew my knowledge on the working of the “seller-customer” business relationship. I gained experience on communicating with, dealing with, and understanding the customer. Many experiences and skills that I value today.
Challenges:
The biggest challenge I faced early on was about navigating the systems of the USPS. To give a concrete example: I thought it was “outside of the rules” to ship something that was inside of a colorful shoe box. It was because I knew so little that I wanted to know more. So I watched a lot of YouTube about how shipping works, how packaging works, how to list eBay items, and how to run an eBay profile. I also asked a more experienced friend about how to do certain things on the eBay website and in running an eBay store. Another big challenge was finding out what products and “things” people could potentially see value in and buy. Of course, for this I needed to perceive the act of buying my products from the perspective of other people which further widened my awareness on the dynamics of business as a whole.
