You don’t need lots of products.  All you need is one product, so figure out what that product will be.  Think of this product as something you could make yourself or obtain it at a low wholesale price that you can resell for a profit.  Don’t run out and build up an inventory of items.  You just need one to get started then when it sell get more or get a different item.   The goal is to have one product that you can sell at a price that is higher than what you paid for it.

See product ideas below.

Decide on the name of the business.  You will setup your business and sell your product under this business name.

You don’t need to go through the process of filing incorporation papers.  You can eliminate this cost by acting as a Sole Proprietor.  When required you will use your Social Security Number as your tax ID.

Why do you need a website?  You need a website because some buyers will go to the extra step to check out the company’s website to see if they are legitimate.  All you need is a 3-5 page website that showcase your product, provide contact information, etc.

Purchase your Domain Name based on your business name and setup your website.  Most Service providers will also throw in several free email accounts.  A Domain Name Service provider such as Godaddy offers these services at a very low cost.  If you’re looking for a low cost way to get someone else to setup your website check out web.com and twix.com. 

You don’t need to setup a shopping cart on this website.  We will address that in the next step.

Here is a breakdown of the cost to register a domain name and get the hosting service for your website based on Godaddy pricing.

This is the good part.  This is what you couldn’t do a few years ago.  There are several ways to put your product before millions of customers worldwide.

Amazon.com
Amazon.com is a great online ecommerce platform that lets you reach hundreds of millions of customers worldwide.  You can signup and sell your product under one of two programs, the Professional or Individual programs.  The difference between the two programs is the pricing and additional tools that you can access with the Professional program that does not come with the Individual program.  However, starting out the Individual program will meet your needs.

Professional Program:  $39.99 per month. 

Individual Program:  This program has a $0.99 per item fee as well as other fees such as Referal Fee: 15%, and Variable Closing Fee:  $1.35.

Ebay.com
Setup a shop on Ebay and sell your products  to hundreds of millions of potential customers.  Ebay does charge fees for this service.  Fees include 2.9% + $0.30 per sale for payment processing, an Insertion fee,  and a 4% Final value fee (per item).  Use the fee Calculator to calcualte fees.   

Etsy.com
Etsy is an online marketplace that lets you setup shop and reach tens of millions of customers around the world for a fee of $0.20 per item.   On Etsy you can sell handmade or vintage items, supplies, as well as unique factory-manufactured items.  These items include art, photography, clothing, jewelry, food, bath, beauty products, toys, etc.  Vintage items must be at least 20 years old.

Shopify.com
Shopify lets you create an online ecommerce site where you can sell your products to millions of potential customers.  The basic service goes for $29.99 per month.  They will take a 2.9% plus $0.30 as transaction fees on any sales.  No need to get a separate website ifyou use this service.

TOTAL COST:  $64.98