TIE #034: The Best Online Business for Beginners: Book Arbitrage
Nothing out there has less risk and more upside potential.
Apparently you hate money. If you didn’t, you’d be using Rakuten every time you shop on websites like Walmart and Target to save money.
They have paid me over $13,943 for things I was already going to buy for my one-person business:
They are also the reason this post is free to read. Sign up here and get $30 for free after your first use.
After being in the online business game for over a decade, I’ve tried a million different side hustles and business ideas.
I even went as far as building a successful dropshipping business that I turned into a traditional e-commerce business and sold for six figures in 2020:
If you can think of it, I’ve tried it.
What I found after several years is that few business models will allow someone with no experience to immediately make money.
As a beginner you shouldn’t be trying to build an empire. You just want to receive more money in return than you are spending, without risking much.
Starting a one-person book arbitrage business is the best way to do this.
Trust me on this one.
If you want to see exactly how money can be created out of thin air, keep reading.
1. Why This Opportunity Exists
Before I explain how it works, you must understand why it works.
Below is a graph of the number of Amazon Prime subscribers over time with a small preview of the future:
Humans as a whole are becoming more familiar with the idea of ordering something and having it arrive in a few days or even a few hours.
This will only continue.
Think about your own experience buying things online. Don’t lie, you LOVE when something arrives fast.
Non-fiction books are no different and the have a few unique characteristics that make them a great money making target:
Some of them sell for several hundred dollars each
They have “conditions” and are sold as both new and used
Most book sellers ship via “Media Mail” which is a USPS service that makes shipping books cheap, but the service is very slow
No other items have this dynamic and that is why we can use them to make money.
2. How it Works
I found out over ten years ago that non-fiction books on Amazon have two prices:
Price #1: The price with Media Mail shipping (1-2 week delivery time)
Price #2: The price with “Prime” shipping (1-3 day delivery)
Price #1 and Price #2 are sometimes the same or close, but it is not uncommon to see Price #2 be double or even triple Price #1.
Most sellers on Amazon sell at Price #1 because they sell on multiple platforms and do not use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA).
Making money is as simple as buying at Price #1, listing it on Amazon, sending the book to Amazon, and then selling it for more money:
Humans will pay more money to get something faster. Yes, they will even pay double or triple the price.
Just because you won’t, doesn’t mean they won’t. You have to understand that there are people out there with way more money than patience.
It is your duty to take their money.
The best part? You don’t need a ton of money up front to start (the more the better obviously). I started with only $300.
Scaling this business is a simple matter of gaining experience while leveraging automated systems that make the book searching process more efficient.
Is this a giant simplification of a process that takes time, effort, and experience? Absolutely.
Is this still something worth considering if you want to make money online? Absolutely.
3. Frequently Asked Questions:
Q1: Can this be done outside of the US?
A: Yes. Check this great thread by
about in the United States while living outside of the country.Q2: Is this going to stop being profitable due to books going digital?
A: It’s just as profitable as it was a decade ago. I don’t see that happening.
Q3: Is this a get rich quick scheme?
A: No. It takes work (like all things worth doing). You will be buying physical books, shipping them, and pricing them to sell.
Q4: Have you seen people other than yourself make money with this as a beginner?
A: I’ve lost track of how many people at this point. Here is a recent example:
To do this and be successful there are a few simple requirements:
You must start
You must have a real reason to start
You must not give up, even if you struggle or fail
You must be willing to put in the work
If you can do those, you will make money. If you can do those well, you can change your life.
The choice is yours, I can’t make it for you.
When you are ready, there is one way I can help you:
The Conference Room: Join 700+ members inside my private mentorship group. It teaches you exactly how to build an efficient, lean, and focused Amazon FBA business.
Come inside and receive help from myself and several of the premium guides included with group access.