Book Description

Selling Used Books Online is a comprehensive how-to bible for America's newest and fastest growing group of entrepreneurs, the sellers on Amazon Marketplace and other online venues. Author Stephen Windwalker, a successful online seller himself who has also operated a brick-and-mortar bookshop, provides a treasure trove of up-to-date information with verve, clarity, and wit.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has reported that the number of third-party sellers on his company's website grew from over 100,000 in the fourth quarter of 2001 to over 150,000 in the first quarter of 2002, and roughly one-third of these appear to be entrepreneurial sellers who are operating full- or part-time businesses in competition with each other, with Amazon, and with very large Amazon Marketplace sellers such as Powell's, the Strand bookstore, and Alibris. For these 50,000 entrepreneurs, Selling Used Books Online will be a powerful business resource that will help them level the playing field, stay in business, and prosper.

Selling Used Books Online meets the needs of booksellers and business readers who want to stay current on market changes, best sources, insider's tips and tactics, and best practices, and is also a essential addition for public libraries, the small business and entrepreneurship market and related agency and educational markets, and publishing industry and bibliophile readers. Back matter includes several useful appendices that online booksellers will use on a daily basis: a glossary, a list of standard bookseller abbreviations, a casual bibliography of resources on bookselling and collecting, and an online bookseller's "Rolodex."

The Most Up-To-Date Book In Its Field, Covering:
· THE BOOKSELLING BUSINESS· SUPPLIERS AND SOURCES
· WHERE TO GET YOUR BOOKS
· WHAT BOOKS TO GET
· WHERE TO SELL YOUR BOOKS
· GRADING AND DESCRIBING YOUR BOOKS
· POSTING AND PRICING YOUR BOOKS
· ORGANIZING YOUR BUSINESS AND HANDLING TAX ISSUES
· FULFILLMENT AND CUSTOMER SERVICE
· EXPANSION ISSUES AND FUTURE PLANS
· HANDY REFERENCE TOOLS YOU WILL USE EVERY DAY

Average Customer Review: ( 64 customer reviews )
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Whoa, hoss. Yes, this is exactly how many people start selling used books online. But before you grab those Grisham and Clancy paperbacks at your neighbor's yard sale, do yourself and the marketplace a huge favor: Read this book.

Whether you've been selling used books for years or just barely getting started, there's much to be found between the covers of "Selling Used Books Online". It's a well-organized, thoughtfully presented and thoroughly readable business resource. The selection and pricing strategies alone, if conscientiously applied, will likely return your investment in this book many times over. But this should also go hand-in-hand with appropriate book grading and description, as well as good customer service; these, too, are covered quite well and amount to best-practice models which would significantly improve the buying and selling experiences alike if widely adopted.

The only book of its kind (at this writing) with relevant and up-to-date information specific to selling at Amazon, "Selling Used Books Online" is far more than a narrow formula for success in that venue alone. A cover-to-cover read will leave you more knowledgable about the used book marketplace in general, help you to avoid common mistakes, and give you the tools you need to achieve your goals. From a part-time "kitchen table" enterprise for extra spending money to a full-time career, there aren't many who wouldn't benefit from the advice of an articulate mentor with a great sense of humor who really knows his business. If you buy only one book on the subject, you can't go wrong with this one. You'll refer to it time and time again.

44 of 45 found the following review helpful:

Some Excellent Advice for the New & Experienced Seller!Dec 18, 2003
By Silmarwen
Stephen Windwalker has written a very good how-to guide on selling used books online, specifically on Amazon.com's own website. He begins with a brief section that must be required for any author to write if they are writing about something entrepreneurial - is this business for you? and continues with a brief overview of the bookselling business in general. Then he walks the beginners through setting up an account online so that you can begin selling. The middle section was one of the strongest with sections on suppliers & sources (who to buy from, how to find suppliers, mailing materials, etc.), building your inventory: where to get your books, which contains some interesting ideas as to where to go to buy the books (libraries, garage sales, dumpster diving, local churches, etc.), and what books to get, which provided some excellent advice, especially for beginners, on what books to avoid purchasing because they do not sell well or there is a big glut in the market for ($0.01 book, anyone?). I feel that these chapters in the middle would be a great reminder and resource for anyone who is already selling, as well. Still, take the author's advice with a grain of salt because I have been quite successful doing some of the things that the author encourages sellers to avoid. The author then continues with basic selling advice including where to sell your books, grading & describing your books, and posting and pricing your books, all of which are pretty obvious to the experienced seller, but may be of use to newer sellers. Probably my favorite section was on book repairs, which was by no means extensive, but did provide some good, basic tips on what to do with books that are slightly damaged so that you can maximize your profit from them. The end section is mainly for serious sellers, as it contains sections on business organization, taxes, dreams of getting bigger, and some fulfillment & customer service advice.

Again, I would recommend this book to beginning sellers as it does answer quite a few questions that they may have and experienced sellers will find some value in there as well, but it is a pretty expensive trade paperback so if you already know what you are doing, you may not feel that you are getting your money's worth. My only complaint with the book is that the author doesn't deal with a few issues that I feel are very important if you are going to be selling on Amazon.com's marketplace. The number one thing that he didn't deal with is the shipping charges issues, as in Amazon keeping $1+ per transaction as "shipping charges" that the seller never sees, but the buyer is always complaining about. It would have been nice for him to go over this, or at least mention it, as it is one of the most difficult things for new sellers to understand. A few more specific tips would have made this book a 5 star instead of a 4.

50 of 52 found the following review helpful:

Do It Now!!Sep 10, 2002
By Barbara L. Neilon "tipsntyme"
If you have ever had a passing thought about selling books online, either as a business, a hobby, or a decluttering project, do yourself a BIG favor, and read this book first.

It's true that you can wade through lots of online Discussion Boards which contain the same or similar material, but Windwalker has shared his own experience in a thoughtful, conversational way, thus condensing the best of the online discussions to a short read.

It's true that you can plunge in and learn by trial and error as many of us have, but the time and grief saved will more than pay for this book, plus you have the advantage of having your own reference work at your fingertips & can take it with you to read away from your computer.

It's true that experienced book sellers may offer differing opinions on a few issues, but Windwalker's ideas and methods are tried and true, and offer a great starting point for examining your own strategies and business plan.

It's true that the online bookselling arena changes rapidly, but I trust that we'll see regular updates and new editions because the author is passionate about books and bookselling.

51 of 54 found the following review helpful:

Windwalker's book is an online bookseller's friendJun 24, 2002
By Donny B. Seagraves "Donny Seagraves, Author"
As an online bookseller since 1998, I have often wished for a friend to sit beside me, guiding me through the complicated maze of selling used, rare and collectible books .... Stephen Windwalker's new book, Selling Used Books Online, is that friend for new booksellers and seasoned veterans alike.

Windwalker gives the reader all the inside tips and information needed to succeed in online bookselling. He begins with the basics, including background and history, and progresses on to the nuts and bolts of the business such as finding your books and supplies and building your inventory. Much of the book is devouted to selling on Amazon.com, one of the most profitable selling venues available to seller's today. But most of the information in the book also applies to just about any sales venue on the Internet.

If you are new to the business of online bookselling, this book is an absolute must-buy. It will teach you the basics and will continue to provide useful advice and valuable information as you grow and progress in your online business. Veteran sellers also will appeciate this source of bookselling information at their fingertips.

Buy it, read it, absorb what you've read, then keep it by your computer as a friend while you list, sell and profit from online bookselling. In my opinion, it's the best book out there for aspiring, beginning and veteran online booksellers.

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