I sell jewelries. Do you think it's better to sell it on ebay or start my own online business?

I would say it depends on what you want with your business. If you have a steady supply of product to sell (not just based on what you can find in your attic), I would go create a website - and THEN use eBay as an additional sales channel. You just have more room to operate and grow your business with having your own store.

Note that many online businesses have succeeded without using ebay at all. Or those who have used ebay say that they sell better -- and cheaper -- on their own websites than on ebay. So you can very well start your own online store.

Look at ebay as an additional sales channel. Even big companies are using ebay as another way to sell their products -- e.g. Samsonite luggages, Sears, Dell computers, Novica (of National Geographic), etc. Novica, for example, sets their prices HIGHER on ebay than on their website (possibly to cover the listing and other fees).

To help you think through your decision, I have listed below the pros and cons of ebay and creating a website.

CREATING YOUR OWN WEBSITE

Pros
- allows you to establish your own "real estate" on the Web;
- allows you to attract a bigger audience; not limited to eBay buyers (not everyone buys on eBay)
- scaleable as it allows your business to grow;
- allows you to give more information about your business to your visitors and give them reasons to trust you
- alliws you to give more information about the product, play around with factors that can increase conversion
- gives you a more professional look
- makes you look like a "big" business (an e-commerce seller that also sells on ebay "looks" so much bigger than a purely ebay seller)
- you can put in as many items you want without paying listing fees
- you can sell as many items as you can without paying value added fees
- less restrictions than eBay (you are more free to write your sales copy)
- easier to market on the Web

Cons:
- requires technical knowhow to create a website (or money to pay someone to do it for you)
- fixed price (price you set is what you get)


SELLING ON EBAY

Pros
- auction format; prices can go up higher than you originally set it for
- eBay's brand and size of its market

Cons
- listing and final value fees
- lots of restrictions
- harder to get onto search engines
- link exchanges are more difficult
- increasing competition (it is not as easy to sell now on eBay compared to others)

start on ebay, amazon, or some other well known site, get yourself a storefront there, then if you become well known, start your own online site. its incredibly difficult for an unknown seller to make their website popular, however.

Ebay makes it easy. They do cost but you will have free advertising, millions upon millions of lookers. How would advertise your own online business? Ebay already has the customers. If you have a good customer base already then start your own business. Try looking into getting on yahoo shopping or something if you want to save a little in the selling costs. But if you are selling a good product Ebay with definitely get you the sales.

Personally I would start on e-bay becaue its your first time. See how it goes for a while. If you feel like you're making a profit then may be in a year-or how ever long you feel necessery to wait then I would start up the business. Only after you've aquired some money so that just in case thnigs dont work out the way you planned then you have something to support you. Good Luck!

It depends on how much money you have to invest. If you can afford start up fees, then it is better to start your own online business. It will cost to create all the ads though but you will eventually be bringing people specifically to you and not to a larger group like you would do if you went on ebay. Go to ebay only if you don't have to fund to set out on your own.

do both, ebay will advertise your store whenever you have a viewer