Free course · Lesson 2 of 8
Set up your eBay and Amazon accounts the right way
Account setup feels boring, so people rush it. Mistakes here (a mismatched name, a shared login, a half-finished verification) are the ones that stall you later, usually at the worst moment.
Your eBay seller account
- Use your real identity details. eBay will ask for identity and bank verification before paying you out. Details that don't match across eBay, your bank and any tax forms cause payout holds.
- Decide personal vs. business early. A business account (even a sole proprietorship) is common for people planning to scale. See sole proprietor vs. LLC.
- Expect limits at first. New and returning sellers usually start with caps on how many items and how much total value they can list per month. This is normal. More on selling limits.
- Set your policies. Create shipping, payment and return policies once and reuse them. Choose a handling time you can actually meet.
Your Amazon buyer account
- One account per seller business, with two-factor on. Use an authenticator app rather than text messages when you can; it is more reliable for tools and harder to hijack.
- Don't share the login across people or devices casually. Amazon notices unfamiliar sign-ins and may send "new device" emails or lock the account. Our new sign-in email guide explains why.
- Add a payment method you control and keep enough available credit for a few orders at once.
A simple checklist
- eBay seller account verified and payouts working.
- Shipping, return and payment policies saved.
- Amazon account with authenticator-based two-factor.
- A separate email address you only use for the business.
Synked helps here: connecting eBay and Amazon takes a few minutes, with stored sessions so you are not logging in fresh on every order.
Next: Lesson 3: Pick your first products.