Barcode Booty: How I found and sold $2 million of 'junk' on eBay and Amazon, And you can, too, using your phone

by Steve Weber

Learn how to use your cellphone as a treasure detector, and find items to resell at big profits. Find out which apps are the best, and how to use them. Check prices instantly, and know your potential profits before risking a dime. Learn to resell on eBay and Amazon, and rake in the profits. Find bargain inventory virtually anywhere--yard sales, retail stores, outlet malls, warehouse clubs, wholesale dealers, bargain basements, and online bulk suppliers. Learn to specialize in books, videos, games, toys, electronics, grocery, fashion, health and beauty, auto parts, niche regional products--or take them all! Many books promise to teach you how to start an online business. Look closely, though, and you'll see that very few are written by someone who's really done it. Author Steve Weber has been a full-time, five-star seller on Amazon.com and eBay for 10 years! Feed your e-commerce business with a continual stream of hot products. Learn how to leverage the "Long Tail" of retail for low-risk, high-return profits. Uncover niche products online shoppers want to buy. Diversify your product line. Learn to minimize sales taxes and write off the business use of your home office and car. Find new and hard-to-find products from real wholesalers. Know exactly how much potential inventory is worth, and how quickly it sells. Get dirt-cheap warehouse space. Get the best product research tools available for your phone. Outsource your fulfillment and customer service tasks. Benefit from advice from the most experienced, profitable online sellers. The Internet Gold Rush is just getting started. In this insider's guide to online selling, you'll learn the secrets to profitable trading. You can profit from price differences in local and global markets. This book teaches you how, every step of the way. From the Author1 ~ INTRODUCTIONGetting started | But this sounds too good to be true 2 ~ USE YOUR PHONE AS A TREASURE DETECTOR A whole lotta scannin' going on | Buy upside-down for profits | Pic2Shop | RedLaser | Amazon Price Check | Snaptell | Google Goggles | Getting started with Google Goggles | Google Shopper | Bakodo | Half.com app | Campus Books 3 ~ AVOID SCOUTING-APP MINEFIELDSBeware of generic, store brands | Troubleshooting barcodes and more | Troubleshooting your app | Seller profile 4 ~ FIND GOLD AMID CREATIVE DESTRUCTIONSupercharge your shopping | Find new books | Sidestep food allergies | Bargain down prices | Juice your grocery shopping | Seller Andrew Rigney 5 ~ PROFIT WITH RETAIL ARBITRAGEAn aversion to haggling | How to profit from retail arbitrage | Slickdeals.net | DealCatcher | eBay | Craigslist.com | Local sales and coupons 6 ~ USE ADVANCED SCOUTING APPS & SERVICES Amazon Sales Rank | Scan your choices | iBookSeller | Treasure Tester | ScoutPal | MediaScouter | FBAScout | A last word on scanning | Taking your business beyond time and space limits 7 ~ STAKE OUT THE BEST SALES PLATFORMeBay.com | Half.com | Bonanza.com | Buy.com | Facebook | Barnes & Noble | ABEbooks.com | Alibris.com | Craiglist.com | Seller Sue Johnson 8 ~ OUTSOURCE YOUR FULFILLMENT | Fulfillment by Amazon | Costs of FBA vs. self-fulfillment | Basic fulfillment | Competitive advantages of FBA | FBA disadvantages 9 ~ USE AUTO-REPRICING AND LISTING TOOLS Listtee.com | RepriceIt.com | Aman for Amazon Sellers | Online postage | Heavy-duty services for mega-sellers 10 ~ DIG UP LONG-TAIL INVENTORY LOCALLYSupermarkets | Off-price retailers | Wholesale clubs | Library sales | Estate sales | Thrift shops | Used bookstores | Local retailers | Storage unit auctions | Bankruptcy sales

Genres: Business, Nonfiction, Self Help, Reference, Technology, Education

154 pages, Paperback

First published April 18, 2011

Reviews

[Jay French · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book, this explains the small armies of folks with barcode readers at library sales on their first days. It describes the tools they use and how they (attempt) to make money by buying books and other items and selling on Amazon and EBay. While I have done a little book selling I haven't used these tools, and I don't think I will. I have seen the used books I have sold are going for much less than in past years, so either I've lost my eye or used book prices have been forced down through so much supply. I tend to think the later. Nevertheless, this is quite a good overview of this method of making money, although I feel it is becoming dated due to specific mentions of tools and changes in the marketplace.

[Todd & Brandy Foreman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing

I didn’t realize how little I knew about Amazon until I read this book. I have so many ideas to think about now.

[James Hildreth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Read

This book is Fantastic for beginners and educating intermediate eBay sellers.Learned a lot about selling on Amazon and learning the tips and tricks of selling on other sites.

[Tammy Sutton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book love

I chose the rating of 5 because this book has it all. Every question I had was answered with plenty of example to back it up! This is a must read to anyone thinking of starting an online Amazon account!

[Prince · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet book

Chock full of information on where to get stuff for reselling, how to store them, get the best deals and platforms,

[Ponder Stine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not super useful unless getting into reselling. Some good info on amazon and selling on amazon, but outdated already

[Deborah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good book, well written, interesting practical information.

This book has 150 pages, 154 including the index. There are 14 chapters including the introduction, but the chapters aren't numbered. Some of the information included covers apps and tools, finding bargains,and keeping your business legal.

I like that he has an associated website (myBarcodeBooty.com) for updated information. He includes short interviews with several sellers. Most of the information is about selling on Amazon, not ebay.


I won this from the first reads program on May 6th. Received this on May 12th.

[TC · Rating 5 out of 5]

Originally, I had won this in one of the Goodreads giveaways and I was really excited about receiving. Unfortunately, the book never arrived but I was able to borrow a Kindle copy.

Great stuff! I have been an Ebay seller for more than 13 years and thought I knew everything there was about online selling. Little did I know. This book is extremely informative and chockful of information. I think I may just need to purchase my own copy now.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Received this as a first reads book. Read it, enjoyed it, digesting and will write more of a review later.

Very interesting book. I have been toying with the idea of selling on eBay and this book opened up the possibilities of selling through Amazon. I have downloaded the barcode apps for my iphone and ready to tackle the marketplace (I think). Mr. Weber makes it seem possible and almost easy.

[Emily (Heinlen) Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a part-time online seller, I found the topic of this book interesting, but once I read it...WOW! It's way more than just interesting! It contains such a wealth of knowledge that even someone like me whose been doing this for seven years still learned some new tips. Definitely a good book for anyone who is interested in finding and selling deals, either as a hobby, side business or full-time job. Great reference book!

[Alexa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book! Full to the brim with useful advice about creating your own home 'business' in reselling items obtained for next to nothing. Helped me with ideas on how to get good deals on certain products, and it also had a good list of useful apps and tools for doing this!
I'd suggest this to anyone wishing to earn some cash through the internet, and its an easy, quick read as well!

[Kristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful & filled with great info!

I feel well prepared to conquer my adventure into a small business with which I plan to support myself! This book has so much information packed in it! Thank you for sharing all of your tips and tricks..... I am sure to keep this book close by as I go forth from here.

[Shane · Rating 2 out of 5]

The title led me to believe that there might be more to the book than there actually was. About half the book is reviews of tools and lists of websites. Valuable? yes. But, nothing I couldn't have found online if I had looked around. Needed more meat.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very good book for people learning to sell on amazon as a seller on amazon myself I enjoyed getting another perspective on making a living out of selling on amazon.

-David
Forum for new and experienced Amazon Sellers
http://www.sellerzon.com

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a current Amazon seller. This book is a great book for those who are looking for a lucrative side business that can be turned into a full-time business. It explains the concept very thoroughly and provides many good resources.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lots of information on apps you can use, but not a lot of other information. Many times the author said "if you know what to look for..." but then never explained what it was you should indeed be looking for.

[Bonnie1750 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of wonderful information in this book.

[Joe Waynick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book about selling not only books, but merchandise of all kinds online using a common barcode scanner.

[Kristy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was very informational. Its a very quick read.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! I am embarking on a new business and am excited to read all the information I can get my hands on.

[Emily Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very helpful. I didn't know where to start when I decided to sell books online and this book gave me a clear map that was easy to follow.

[Edward Boyle · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not really worth it

[Cynthia]

Great if you want to get started in retail arbitrage.