One of the simplest, easiest ways to make money online doesn’t involve a lot of work: creating a bookstore. An online bookstore can be managed through any type of website that allows you to sell your own items. Ebay and Amazon are probably the two most popular websites for selling books, but you can also sell books on Half or Craig’s List.
The first step in creating your online bookstore is to acquire books. You can do this at garage sales or estate sales, but perhaps the most lucrative method of building up your book collection is by visiting library sales. Talk to your local library and find out if they have a yearly sale. If not, there may be monthly or annual sales in nearby towns where libraries purge their book collections. Books may be available for $.50 each or $1.00 each, but some library sales sell books for as little as $.10 each.
While you can start up a bookstore with only a few books, it’s a good idea to have several routine methods for collecting new books. Maybe you’ve found a reliable thrift store that always has something special just for you, or maybe you’ve got a knack for finding the best garage sales. Regardless of your method, you should regularly shop for books for your store.
It’s a good idea to stay away from Bestsellers or books that are in poor condition. These books sell for very little money on the internet. If you want to sell textbooks, be aware that it’s difficult to sell anything but the most recent edition. Textbooks also are a very slow market except for the beginning of each semester.
Once you have a set of books to sell, you can begin listing them on the internet to sell. You can sell lots of books, or you can sell your books individually. Selling your books individually generates the most money.
You will need a shipping method for your books. USPS “Media Mail” is generally the least expensive method for shipping your books. As for packaging, you can wrap paperbacks in small envelopes from Wal-Mart or Target, or you can order mailing envelopes in bulk from a company such as ULine or UPS. The amount of money you spend on mailing utensils will vary greatly based on how much time and effort you plan on putting into your bookstore.
For more exposure, you may want to register a domain name for your bookstore and print up business cards. You can get inexpensive business cards at Vista Print or Kinkos, or you can make them at home on your computer. Send out a business card with each book you send, and many customers will shop with you again simply because they have your card at their house and remember your store.
Running your bookstore is a pretty simple process: you buy the books, you list your inventory online, and you mail the books once sold. The more books you have available to sell, the greater your profit will be. As time passes, you will figure out whether you want to sell only one type of book, or whether you want your store to be a general one that encompasses all genres. You will also discover what books you are best at selling.
You can advertise for your bookstore online, by mailings, or by posting flyers on local telephone poles or bulletin boards. One of the benefits of using a mass website such as Amazon for your bookstore is that you will generate visitors simply by using their website.
Owning your own bookstore is a rewarding and exciting experience. You will be able to set your own hours, decide exactly how often and how much you want to work, and have the flexibility and comfort of working from home. You will get to interact with customers online or on the phone, and will gain the inner joy of knowing you shared a great new book with someone who will enjoy it and glean hours of pleasure from reading it.
