Tax ID related questions - need answers!

I am excited at the thought of eventually opening up my very own online store and I know with a lot of hard work that I can eventually reach that goal. I may start out small by just opening an ebay store and seeing how I like that before I work at building my own online store.


I am confused though as far as the whole tax id is concerned. I am not 100% sure of the product I am looking at selling but I have a few ideas. When I looked at the application for the tax ID I need to put a business name. I don't know entirely what I would like to sell yet so I don't know what my business name should be. Is it a bad idea to have a business name that is irrelevant to the product that I'm selling? I have been looking at some wholesale websites that I may like but I can't become a member or view their prices unless I have my tax-ID. So it's not helping me in deciding what products I would like to sell!

I guess what I am trying to ask is what are the proper first steps in starting my very own online store whether it be an ebay store or a website of my own? I am overwhelmed with all of the information out there and my head is spinning. If someone could just jump start me in the right direction :) I would appreciate it oh so very much! :)

Hi jkzimm04,

Welcome to SaleHoo!

Exactly what you need to get a sales tax ID varies by State. You may need:

* To be a business entity. This means you are a company or sole proprietor. Being a sole proprietor means you are working for yourself under your own name. If you are working for yourself (which is how most people get started selling online, just fill in your own name under your business trading name). Being a company means that you have registered a company under a trading name.

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* To have a Federal Tax ID number. For more info, check out:

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Below are some articles that you might also find useful. Yes, it's a bit overwhelming but hang in there - you're doing great!

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Hope this helps you get started. Let us know if you have any questions.

Hi jkzimm04, and welcome to SaleHoo,

Looking at your question from a marketing point of view, the business name you choose at this point isn't really going to be an issue, I would suggest just something general that you like if you are going to register one.

Of course you may have to trade on ebay under a completely different id, just dependent on what's available.

Branding will become important once you start trading of ebay, but a brand doesn't have to be built around a business name, it can be built around the products you sell, around a logo, or the image you want to portray to customers, and any business name can be incorporated into those branding methods.

If you did decide that you wanted to incorporate a business name better suited to your branding somewhere down the track, then you could look at a name change at that point.

Regarding which is the best option to start with, well I would suggest just starting with regular ebay listings, no need for a store unless you have the products to stock it.

There are cheaper alternatives than ebay, but none have the traffic that ebay does, and learning the business is about making sales, so ebay is the best platform for any new seller to start out on in my opinion.

Thanks! I have been selling on Ebay for quite some time now. About 6 or 7 years now. I am looking at purchasing liquidated merchandise and it seems like Ebay will be my best bet for starters. I just hate the thought of paying the fees that they charge. We all have to start somewhere I guess.

Thanks for the info also on the tax ids. I appreciate it kindly :)

Hi

Here is my suggestions, I would suggest that you sell products from drop shippers. Before you get into applying for tax IDs, and pay for web hosting services. Just start selling at all the auction websites sites and see if you can sell the stuff that you have. There are to many times people spent a lot of money and end up with nothing.They buy a whole bunch of junk that they bought at liquidation sales and it sit in the garage. Because there is no market for the stuff you just bought at liquidation

Research, research, research
Also you might want to look at Tripleclicks on my signature below. Remember when ebay was simple & a person could make a buck, well tripleclicks is exactly like ebay once was..

John (aka bacpro)

Setting up a corporation with your sct. of states office will cost several hundred dollars. It will take sometimes 2 to 3 days, but then you will be able to go online and receive your federal tax id number within 10 minutes. A sole proprietorship is set up by going to the local courthouse and buying a business license using your own social security number instead of a fed number. All liability falls directly on you instead of being shielded by a different entity. The name of the corporation does not matter. You can add as many DBA(doing business as) names as you wish. You can call your company aaa, inc. but have as many specific names under it as you wish for whatever project you are undertaking.