Using CSV Feeds

Last time I did the online sales thing I loaded each and every item I sold one by one. It was very time consuming and not very efficient. This time I have learned about using CSV feeds. I actually had no clue that my wholesale distributor provided a feed that had every item listed on it with all the information I needed to list it on my store. I am lucky enough to have a boyfriend who knows how to write script but I think with a little research, even a novice could learn how to convert these feeds into a useful tool for their website. With the use of script to transform the data provided by the wholesaler to the data required by my web host, I am able to upload my csv file and add 500+ products in less than 30 minutes.

Before it was taking me about 30 minutes to load one item!  More information can be found about CSV files at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comma-separated_values. More information can be found about scripts at: http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/interact/scripts.html. You can even use CSV files with eBay. They have a page with details of how to upload CSV data. This page can be found here: http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/import-csv.html.

Well this is my knowledge sharing for today. I know some of the more experienced sellers will already know what I am saying but if you are as inexperienced as I was, I hope this comes as a helping hand to you. Good luck, tis the season for sales.

Great Free Websites

I just wanted to post a quick blog about some of the really nice free website hosting sites I have found lately. I am starting my store at: http://buyitsellit.com/. This site is free for a small store and then is more for stores with a larger product base.

A great place to make a beautiful Flash website for free is: http://www.wix.com/. These sites are really nice looking. I think I may make one for fun after I get my store up and running.

If you feel secure with html and having more control over your site. Then justhost.com is a great place to start your online business. http://www.justhost.com/#ic

Well hope you enjoy the links. I will add more as I come across them. Good luck with all your e-commerce ventures.

Back in Business

So after taking a break for awhile I am going to venture back into the world of online sales. I am really debating on how much I am actually going to use eBay this time though. It seems like it is becoming increasingly difficult to make a profit on eBay selling regular products. eBay is so full of sellers, selling the same thing. Homemade and one of a kind items seem to be the ticket. I am opening my own store where I will be selling swords and blades. I will probably use eBay as a way to advertise and get business. I will also be relying on eBay to show myself as a reputable seller since I have a great feedback score there. I changed my eBay ID to Dantotsu (which is the name of my new store). Sounds more like a sword store than Toria's Treasures. I will again start updating this blog. I still believe a lot of good advice can be found in my previous posts if you are new to this blog.

Till next time...