Selling ebooks on eBay was once a simple listing like any other. It’s now more difficult, but it is still possible to sell them by using eBay.
EBay once had a subcategory just for digital products such as ebooks but recently banned their sale on the site. Ebooks had become a cottage industry on eBay with many relying on it for a part of their income. Other ebooks sellers used it as a way to network and build their sales list. Little notice was given to sellers before ebook sales were banned on the site. For people who relied on ebooks sales through the world’s largest online auction site, there are a few ways that the site can still be utilized to sell ebooks.
Physical Ebooks
Ebooks are generally published online and are stored digitally on the winner’s website or on a third-party storage site. But with eBay’s new rules, the eBay ebook game has changed. The alternative delivery method is to save the ebook on a disc and to send it snail mail to the buyer. This has been introduced to the eBay market but these listings are not yet present in the numbers that the virtual ebook listings were.
Advertising Ebooks With EBay
The site no longer allows ebooks to be sold, but they do encourage their former ebook sellers to advertise their ebooks with eBay classified ads. These are more expensive than a regular eBay listing. They also provide no way to selling the ebook directly to the customer through the site. The classified ad instead directs people toward another site where they can buy the ebook.
Reports about how well eBay classified ads result in sales have been mixed in eBay forums. Many ebook sellers report that the money spent on each ad makes profits more diffcult. The classified area for ebooks is now located under the Everything Else category and the Information Products subcategory. The fee is currently $9.95 for a 30-day listing.
The classified ads generally feature a sales letter describing the ebooks and a link to the advertiser’s website where it can be purchased. If the actual ebook is downloadable from an eBay link rather than from a site that is linked, the ad will be removed.
eBay for Affiliate Sales
It is possible to create affiliate sales by advertising someone else’s ebook through an eBay classified ad. The ad would look much like any other affiliate sales letter that contains a link to the actual sales page.
This may be more cost effective than many other types of affiliate advertising, though it will likely not take the place of any PPC ads. The classified ads are simply one more way to market ebooks online.