Introducing eBay business. Introduction. Who should read this book? ; eBay's place ; eBay's competition ; You're in business now ; Customer service ; Find your niche ; Be prepared to work ; State of retail ; Call to action -- Getting started. Setting yourself up legally. Sole proprietorship ; Partnership ; Corporations ; Hybrid business forms ; Virtual businesses ; And then you grow ; Taxation ; Resources ; Conclusion -- Business details. Sales tax license ; Business license ; Regulations ; Employees ; Independent contractors ; Insurance ; Bank accounts ; Tax number ; Merchant credit card account ; Trademarks ; Accounting ; Branding ; Inspiration ; Resources -- Equipment, supplies, and space. Hardware ; Software ; Internet access ; Home router ; Long distance service ; Business machines ; Office furniture ; Office supplies ; Office premises ; Storage, packing, and shipping ; Home office tax deduction ; Inexpensive home office ; On the road -- Borrowing money. Business plan ; Savings ; Credit cards ; Relatives ; Angels ; Banks ; Other lending sources ; Lenders for eBay businesses ; Resources -- Amnesty for criminals like you. The case ; The situation ; The agreement ; The reality ; Pandora's box ; Summary -- Conducting business. Selling on eBay. Types of auctions ; Listing an auction ; Taboo items ; Illicit practices ; Your marketplace ; Passive endeavor ; Text-box and banner advertising on eBay ; Power sellers ; The heart of the matter -- Auction details. Advertising ; Placement ; Timing ; Valuation ; Linking ; About me ; Final details ; Where the work is -- Photography. Taking photographs ; Digital cameras ; Image services -- Using image software. The digital darkroom ; Image editing ; File formats ; Summary -- Pricing. Prices ; eBay research ; Online research ; Analytic research ; Offline research ; Appraisers ; Trial and error ; Selling strategy -- Special auctions. Special section auctions ; Separate auctions ; The reality ; Non-eBay marketplaces -- Fulfillment. Drop shipping ; Normal operations ; The digital goal -- Receiving payment. Merchant credit card account ; If you can't get a merchant account ; Money orders and cashier's checks ; Checks ; Online payment services ; Cash on delivery (COD) ; Bidding qualification ; Don't sell on credit ; What should you do? -- Finding inventory. Basics ; Hot tip ; Go for it! -- Handling the unpleasant. Dealing with buyer fraud. Fraud ; Remedies? ; Some afterthoughts ; Pawnshops -- Security. Equipment ; Software ; Passwords ; Accounts ; Social engineering ; Free email ; Safe transactions ; Case study ; Backups ; Counterfeits ; Disaster plan ; Security checklist ; Summary -- Making it work. Software features. Auction management software ; eCommerce software -- Software assistance. eBay's programming aids ; PayPal extended ; Andale ; Broadband ; Auction management services and software ; Custom programming ; Accounting software -- PayPal today. Extended services ; Website services ; Summary -- Expanding your market with datafeeds. Datafeed markets ; Craig's list ; Summary -- Selling internationally. Selling ; Buying to sell ; Buying ; Merged markets ; New Yankee traders in force -- Customer service. Feedback ; Credit card chargebacks ; Guarantees ; Warranties ; Payment ; Escrow.com ; Bonding ; Square trade ; Authentication services ; Returns ; Communication ; Full information ; Software ; Offline customer service ; Experiment ; Know your customers ; Not just this or that -- Operating smart. Storefronts. What is a storefront? ; Informal eBay storefront ; eBay stores ; An eBay business ; Marketing ; Website ; eCommerce software ; Bonding to eBay ; About me webpage ; eBay's hidden market ; Summary -- Determining your profit. How are you doing? ; Expenses ; Profit ; Your time as a resource ; Summary -- Developing a strategy. Building a product profit model ; Finding inventory ; Commodity products ; Value-added products ; Time ; Not the same -- Education. eBay university ; Books about eBay ; College extension courses ; eBay audios ; eBay videos ; eBay WBT tutorials ; Business seminars ; Business books ; Web development tutorials ; Web development books ; Community ; eBay live ; Summary -- Other eBay business. Selling services on eBay. Advertising ; What to sell? ; Strategy ; Elance ; Buying services on Elance ; Summary -- Integrating eBay with offline retail. Trial ; Combined accounting ; A special business ; Customer service ; Summary -- Using eBay for marketing. Compared to what? ; The plan ; Other businesses ; Summary -- Consignment selling and other businesses. Consignment ; Other businesses ; Use Elance -- Buying on eBay. Normal buying ; Buying for your business ; Organizing your buying ; Guarantee ; Services ; Software ; We have stories -- Marketing media. Blog ; Podcasting ; Summary -- Appendix I: The top 10 tips for beginning an eBay business -- Appendix II: The top 12 tips for seasoned eBay businesses -- Appendix III: The top 9 tips for business buyers -- Appendix IV: Cross-promotion example -- Appendix V: HTML tutorial. Defining a webpage ; Markups alphabetically ; Anchors and hyperlinks ; Example webpage ; Viewing the webpage source ; eBay HTML ; Summary.