Full Disclosure Required
eBay's main requirement when listing presale merchandise is full disclosure. eBay's policy, in fact, requires that sellers denote this disclosure in an item's description using an HTML font size of at least 3.

Explicitly stated or not, it's in your best interest to be absolutely certain your bidders and buyers are fully aware that your presale goods are not presently in your possession and there may be a longer-than-usual delivery time due to the fact that the goods are on-order or will be delivered by a third party. To disregard such disclosure (or worse, to misrepresent what you're auctioning) can lead to buyer dissatisfaction, refund demands, negative feedback, and complaints to the auction site or a consumer protection agency.

(For more information about presell business rules from the Federal Trade Commission’s perspective, visit the FTC Web site.)

Satisfaction Guaranteed
Here's the heart of your business: Do you stand behind everything you sell? If so, then you'll need to go to extra lengths to ensure that your customers are happy with their presale and/or drop-ship purchase. Though it's within your right to state that all sales are final, such a policy isn't well suited to sales of goods you don't own at the time of listing. Whether an item arrives differently from what your supplier (and ultimately, you) described or it arrives damaged, late, or not at all, you must absorb the fallout to avoid alienating your customers. With that in mind, it's wise to offer some sort of return or exchange privilege for presale items.

Be ready to accept returns and deliver refunds. If shipping inventory back to a supplier, you might encounter special return policies, including a return or re-stocking fee. If you intend to pass along any fees to your customers, you should do so only in cases in which customers have changed their minds about the purchase, but not in cases of item misrepresentation (that's your liability).

Though some sellers have tried to blame problems of item delivery, quality, or content upon their suppliers, it becomes the seller's ultimate responsibility to guarantee that whatever they sell is "as advertised" in all aspects of the phrase. If not, buyers have the right and responsibility to take protective counter-action.

Shipping Larger Items Packing Merchandise Packing Merchandise Part 2