We were just like you. We wanted to open an eBay Drop Off Store. We had a million questions and no place to turn.

The process of looking for a location, designing the store layout, working with the contractor and pulling building permits can be pretty frustrating especially with no frame of reference. While we knew that there were a lot of steps involved it was still surprising how much time this process can consume. We also discovered that the order in which the steps are carried out can make a big difference in how quickly the store can be set up. Once the store opened there were even more questions such as how to run the shipping and packing side of the business, figuring out an accounting program, paying customers, managing inventory, what software to use to automate most processes, and plenty more!

So, for benefit of potential future franchisees, we painstakingly mapped out every process. We built a 300 plus page owners’ manual. We designed our store and patented the name. We even designed and built our own software to integrate with eBay and FedEx in order to save time and money. In the end we built a great program that kept our labor costs low and our efficiency high.

We were all set to apply to the U.S. government to franchise our business when we took a step back.

We thought about our future franchise owners. It’s true that in the beginning you will need a lot of help. Someone to teach you the ropes. Things like building permits, taxes, registration, construction, signage, trademarks, eBay itself, PayPal, etc., can be very difficult to tackle on your own. Then, what do you do once you are open? How do you check in an item? How do I pay my customers? What happens when I get busy? These are all questions that need answers.

The problem with the franchise model is that you keep paying the franchise royalties, advertising fees and even software licensing fees after all your questions have been answered. YOU SHOULDN’T! We just couldn’t justify taking money month after month when you did all the work. IF EBAY IS THE PRODUCT, WHY PAY A FRANCHISE FEE?

In the program we outline the steps in the proper sequence. We also provide plans and specs for the store layout which include the custom designed counter as well as all of our vendor names and contact information.

What you say to your customers, your commission schedule, how the benefits of your organization are presented and the process of getting items into the store, up on eBay and then out the door will have a tremendous impact in the success of your business.

We initially did everything using paper forms and Excel spreadsheets. However, we eventually determined that we could raise our commission if it was presented better and we could maximize the output of our flexible labor force by retooling the methodology of taking in items and getting the items on eBay and out the door. Basically from the day we started to the way we operate now just about everything has changed.

In the program we divide the business into two parts: the front and back of the house. The front of the house operations like in most organizations is focused on sales, marketing and customer interaction.

The back of the house operations is run like a lean factory. The back of the house operations include storing items, picture taking, writing descriptions, loading auctions onto eBay as well as packing and shipping. With the help of an ex-GE process engineer we have developed a system and methodology to maximize speed and quality with the intent of reducing labor costs. This is an area commonly overlooked when initiating this business. However, if the goal is to list a lot of items on eBay if you do not have an efficient process you can literally grow yourself right out of business due to costs. We have also developed a software package that further automates these tasks.