Do I Need A Business License To Sell On Facebook?

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Selling items online has become the new trend and people are pursuing this version of shopping wholeheartedly. Especially because of the global pandemic people are left with no option than shopping online if they wish to follow health safety.

Ecommerce platforms like Amazon, eBay, and Alibaba are the old fish in online shopping but today we will talk about a new comer, “Facebook Marketplace”. 

Our today’s topic is do retailers require a business license to sell their product on facebook but as the marketplace is relatively new i will try to cover all the tips and bits of facebook marketplace that you will need to do business in.

What is Facebook Marketplace?

What is Facebook Marketplace
Facebook marketplace is where people come to sell or buy products according to their requirements. Facebook launched it Oct 13, 2016 but it isn’t as explored yet as ecommerce platforms like amazon and eBay.
Facebook is the world’s biggest social media platform where people share their funny, sad, educational, and motivational every experiences with their closed ones and even too far ones. Many started to take facebook marketplace as an alternative to eBay because of the simplicity that facebook offers.
At the initial stage people were used to selling and buying their used product but later as the time went professional business owners also started to collaborate with their new products in the marketplace.

Why Should We Go For Facebook Marketplace?

Why Should We Go For Facebook Marketplace

Now the first thing is why should we go for facebook marketplace? There are a couple of differences between facebook marketplace and the typical ecommerce platforms like amazon, craigslist and eBay.

Such as to be able to use amazon, eBay like platforms you have to install their apps separately but if you use facebook then you don’t need to install any separate apps to use the marketplace.

As most of us use facebook that means we already have the marketplace in our phone and ready to use anytime. Another thing is reaching out to the local community. 

Facebook works best with the local community because the vision of a facebook account is reaching out to everyone you know.

Apart from these there are small but significant differences that are 

  • Security

Before buying a product online, most of us look for reviews where we get to know the authenticity of the product. With typical ecommerce platforms without reviews there is no security of whether the product is authentic or not.

Let’s overlook the product’s authenticity for a bit but what’s about the sellers background?

Without famous brands, no ecommerce platform will provide you any security in this matter. With facebook things are different. You can check the seller’s background by inspecting his/her personal profile. 

With the basic information like where they are from if you wish you can also get an idea what their life is like. So there is a lot by which you can feel the out and out security of facebook marketplace.

  • Messaging

Another significant differentiable thing is communicating with the seller directly. Sites like craigslist allows you to communicate with the seller directly but you have to provide your personal number there.

Whereas, you can chat with the seller via facebook messenger without sharing your personal details.  Facebook messenger is simple, easy and user friendly. 

Moreover, you don’t need to go through or obtain any extra nuisance and security measure and you can also pay using messenger.

  • Convenience

Building a marketplace isn’t just a platform where you can sell and buy products. Building an impressive interface is also important to make people use the facebook marketplace. If you have any experience using craiglist then i am sure you must curse it most of the time. 

The UI of craigslist is complex and less user friendly. On the other hand, facebook marketplace is the most user friendly app in an ecommerce platform.

Items For Sale On Facebook

Items For Sale On Facebook

Now you must be looking for items for sale on facebook marketplace but i can assure you that there is no specific item to sell on marketplace. But in a survey it is found that there are a couple of products that perform well in facebook marketplace.

You can see the items that perform well below and if you can provide any of them you can also start your business in facebook marketplace.

  • Children Items
  • Electronic Gadgets
  • Furniture
  • Handmade Items

How To Sell On Facebook Marketplace?

How To Sell On Facebook Marketplace

To sell any items on facebook marketplace the first thing you need to do is listing the product you want to sell. You have to upload the products photo and description accurately then you can start selling.

Follow the steps below:

Step 1: Open the marketplace from the Facebook app.

Step 2: Click + to Create New Listing, then click Item for Sale.

Step 3: Click on Add Photos to upload a photo of your item from your computer.

Step 4: Enter the info about your item. To mark an item as Free, you can enter 0 as the price

Step 5: Click on Next. If Next is grayed out, make sure you’ve entered the information that’s required.

Step 6: Click Publish to post your Marketplace listing.

Now you can upload your product photos and write the best features that your product offers and sell on the marketplace.

Do I Need A Business Licence To Sell On Facebook?

Do We Need A Business Licence To Sell On Facebook

As people from different countries use facebook and it’s a global thing, the requirement of business licence depends on the law of that country. But there are a couple of products such as real estate, liquor, mortgage loan products, food and beverage (may require inspection/testing).

On the other hand, in the UK there is no such thing as a business licence. If you are going to sell digital products then you don’t have to worry because you don’t need any business licence to sell them.

I would suggest you to consult with a legal consultant to know about your country’s policy on selling goods in facebook marketplace. 

Facebook Marketplace Rules

Facebook Marketplace Rules

Like all the other online marketplaces, facebook also has some rules, regulation and requirements for its sellers and buyers. So to work with facebook marketplace following these rules will be profitable for both the parties.

  • Facebook never allows abusive words. So avoid any sorts of abusive words in the comment or messening section. 
  • To avoid any sorts of scamming, facebook marketplace never encourages any transaction outside the marketplace.

I mentioned what items for sale on facebook marketplace but there are also some products that are prohibited by facebook.

  • Pets
  • Alcohol
  • Illegal Drugs
  • Health Kits
  • Adult Products
  • Weapons
  • Tobacco

Providing accurate product description and photos are also one of the rules of the marketplace.

Tips For Selling On Facebook Marketplace

Tips For Selling On Facebook Marketplace

Though there are no shortcuts to sell products, I will give you guys a couple of tips for selling on facebook marketplace better than your competitors.

Provide All The Detail Accurately

It’s not like any extraordinary tip that no one knows. Everyone knows about this but still a lot of sellers miss this or ignore the importance of it. Providing accurate detail will help your brand to become trustworthy to consumers and also your brands reputation. Offer potential purchasers an excuse to believe you, and they will be readier to purchase from you.

Choose The Correct Product Category

Choosing the correct category is really important especially if you want your targeted consumer to find your product quickly. It improves the product searching process for your product and shows your product more accurately. 

Provide Competitive Price

Keeping the product’s price within the consumers reach is an important tip for facebook marketplace. See competitors price and research the market for demand of that product then set a competitive price that no one can beat.

FAQ

Most frequent questions and answers

1. How long does it take to get marketplace on facebook?

After posting a product on the marketplace by following all the rules the administrator will approve the post within 24 hours and your product will be available to purchase by the consumer.

2. How to get facebook marketplace?

You can get the marketplace on both the facebook mobile app for iOS/Android and also on the desktop/tablet. For mobile apps go to the top right corner for Android and Bottom right corner for iOS. If you are using a web browser then you will see an icon for the marketplace in facebook.

3. Can you get facebook marketplace without facebook account

You can’t have the features of facebook marketplace without having any facebook account. As facebook marketplace is integrated into facebook there is no way to be able to use it.

Bottom Line

Facebook marketplace isn’t just for used products. People and brands are more focusing on the facebook marketplace day by day. As of now we all are going through a tough time because of the covid-19 (coronavirus the global pandemic), all sorts of online stores and shopping came to the limelight.

In this editorial, i try to answer for the beginners who are willing to start their business on facebook marketplace but hesitating and thinking do i need a business licence to sell on facebook.