Showing posts with label revenue. Show all posts

Thursday, June 9

eBays New Instant Sale Site

Wow I wish I would have known about this site before my garage sale! If you are one of those people who always has to have the latest gadget then eBay's new electronics buying site may be your new best friend. The time and effort it takes to sell your used electronics on eBay or Craigslist typically does not make it very profitable. How nice is it to go to the Instant Sale Site and select a few options, see the price you are being offered and sell. Yes, you aren't going to get rich selling your used electronics this way but unless you are a neat nick with a lot of spare time, it beats the alternatives.

I will definitely be trying the site out the next time I have an old cell phone or gadget like my i Touch that has been replaced by the newest gadget I just had to buy. I definitely suggest checking out this site.

Friday, April 16

Inspiration Week - My Bathroom Buddy - An Ebay Success Story!

Image representing eBay as depicted in CrunchBase

Image via CrunchBase

This week I have decided to post some inspiring success stories I have seen lately. I need some extra inspiration to keep me going sometimes. These videos are also filled with some great tips and advice about how to become successful selling on eBay. Hope you enjoy!

YouTube - My Bathroom Buddy - An Ebay Success Story!:

Thursday, April 15

Inspiration Week- Benjamin Lang's Ebay business Young Entrepreneur

Image via CrunchBase

YouTube - Benjamin Lang's Ebay business Young Entrepreneur:

Wednesday, April 14

Selling Used Kids Clothing On eBay

If you have kids and they wear name brand clothes you should be selling their used clothes on eBay. There is a small fortune to made on eBay if you list correctly. Certain brands like Gymboree, Nike, and boutique brands sell for almost new prices. I sold my daughters clothes after she outgrew them on eBay for over a year and was making back almost all of what I paid for the clothes so I was practically dressing her for free. I have learned some techniques that helped me make money selling my kids used clothes:

Start by searching closed eBay auctions for the type of clothing and sizes you have to sell. This gives you and idea of the price these items are selling for. Also you can see if a certain day or time is showing more profit. I found that auctions that closed on Thursday evenings were the most profitable for me to sell my daughters clothes on. I guess more moms with baby daughters shopped at that time. Not sure what human psychology is behind it, but it does mak a difference. Here is how to search for the closed auctions:

On any page of ebay you will now find a search input at the top right corner of the page. Just below this you will find "Advanced Search". Click this link.
Now, in order to get a listing of completed items you will first need to search the current open items. Fill in your search parameters and click the "Search" Button.
Once the list comes up, scroll down the LEFT hand edge of the page and you will see more search categories and "SEARCH OPTIONS". In this area you will find a check box next to "Completed Listings". Click this box and an check mark appears in it.
Scroll down a bit further and click the "Show Items' Button. You will now get a listing of CLOSED items which are still on the system. Keep in mind that this search option only goes back 30 days. You will not see any auction older than 30 days.

Once you figured out about how much to expect to make off your items, decide how you want to sell them. I suggest selling clothing in bulk or lots which is just selling groups of items together instead of one piece of clothing per auction. Unless you have a very high value item it is always better to sell your items in a lot in my opinion. The reason I say this is because of how expensive shipping is. A buyer doesn't want to pay $6 in shipping for a $10 shirt. By selling a large lot of clothing you are giving the buyer a better shipping value. They will pay the $14 shipping for 10 shirts more readily. This will increase your bids as well. I would offer priority shipping and size my lots by the amount of clothes I can fit in the flat rate priority box. There are three sizes so you can sell different amounts based on what shipping box you are using.
When selling in a lot, have a theme. Sell clothes that are the same size, gender, and style. Sell clothes that are for the same season. Don't mix winter clothes and summer clothes together. Also if you can put clothes into outfits and sell them, the buyers seem to bid more. Its less work for busy moms to buy complete outfits than have to bid on auctions for all the separate pieces of clothing. On the other hand if you have a bunch of the same type of clothing like shorts an auction of multiple pairs of the same type of item does well also as long as you aren't selling duplicate items.
Organization is key so give yourself a room to spread out and group the clothes you are going to sell. Once you have decided what clothing you are going to sell together, you move to inspection. Look over each piece of clothing in very good (natural preferred) light.

To be continued...

SELLING ON EBAY: Secrets To Success.

I found this advice site and thought I would pass it along. It says a lot of the same things I have already said but says it different. Sometimes it takes hearing things in several different ways before it sinks in for me personally. Also, the more I hear something, the more likely I will be to try it. So here it is:

SELLING ON EBAY: Secrets To Success.

Inspiration Week - ebay success story from $800 to 3.3 Million in 3 years

Image via Wikipedia

Monday, March 29

Are eBay Stores Really Worth the Money?

So my boyfriend who is my sidekick in setting up my online store has been super busy with his own online projects for the past few months. Needless to say, I am still store-less and still considering my options. I decided to go and check out the eBay Store situation. I used to have an eBay store back in 2007 and it didn't seem to bring the traffic or sales I was looking for. They claim they have improved the exposure given to those selling in an eBay store. I almost fainted when I calculated how much it would cost for me to open a store up. I have been looking at the free shopping cart software programs before now because I don't need a host. My boyfriend has plenty of space on his server for my little site.

So here is the cost of an eBay Store:

Subscription fees

Store level	Fee
Basic	$15.95 / month
Premium	$49.95 / month
Anchor	$299.95 / month

This is to just have the store. Here is what you get for each one:

http://pages.ebay.com/storefronts/Subscriptions.html

But then...

Insertion fees

Price	30-day duration	Good 'Til Cancelled*
$1.00 - $24.99**	$0.03	$0.03 / 30 days
$25.00 - $199.99	$0.05	$0.05 / 30 days
$200.00 and above	$0.10	$0.10 / 30 days

You pay for each item every month. Yes it may not be much but what if you have a thousand items! Oh but that is not all. When you sell your product you then pay:

Final value fees

Price	Final value fee
Item not sold	No fee
$1.00 - $25.00	12.00% of the closing price
$25.01 - $100.00	12.00% of the initial $25.00 ($3.00), plus 8.00% of the remaining closing value balance
$100.01 - $1,000.00	12.00% of the initial $25.00 ($3.00), plus 8.00% of the initial $25.01 – $100.00 ($6.00), plus 4.00% of the remaining closing value balance $100.01 – $1,000.00
Over $1,000.01	12.00% of the initial $25.00 ($3.00), plus 8.00% of the initial $25.01 – $100.00 ($6.00), plus 4.00% of the initial $100.01 – $1,000.00 ($36.00), plus 2.00% of the remaining closing value balance ($1,000.01-closing value)

In conclusion, I feel that an eBay Store is kinda a rip-off unless you have an already established customer base and guaranteed sales or have a few items you sell and they have a large profit margin.

If you don't you would be better off paying for a shopping cart software like 3-D Cart and getting automatic exposure all over the internet for your products.

Tuesday, March 2

EBAYS LOWEST INSERTION FEES EVER COMING THIS SPRING

eBay announced in January it was going to reduce its fees. Now with March 30th quickly approaching those promises will soon be making it more affordable to sell on eBay. Starting March 30 the upfront cost of selling on eBay will be dramatically reduced for sellers of all sizes with eBays lowest Insertion Fees ever. Whether you’re running a business or selling to earn extra cash, choose from a range of options designed to make your selling easier and more profitable. So all of you procrastinators, me included, get your stuff ready to sell.

eBay may have finally figured out that sellers will just go find another venue if they keep raising prices. There is a ceiling to the profits you can make per seller. For eBay to make more money, they need to bring in more buyers and sellers, not make it more expensive to sell. Good job eBay, keep up the rational thinking.

Saturday, February 20

Sell Your Stuff: A Free Online Guide to Selling on eBay

Image by TechShowNetwork via Flickr

Sell Your Stuff: A Free Online Guide to Selling on eBay by Jamie Jefferson

EBay is one of the most successful and versatile auction sites on the web. Whether you are simply cleaning out your attic or you are embarking on a new work at home career, here are a few things that eBay insiders already know:

1. Your eBay reputation is of major significance. Many bidders will consult feedback from your customers before placing bids, so you will want to acquire lots of positive feedback to maintain an excellent rating. This means being a courteous and conscientious seller.

2. Descriptions sell. Pictures are wonderful, but they may not show every detail. That is why accurate descriptions are important. Most buyers know that used items are not in perfect condition. Be sure to describe chips, scratches, holes or any other defects. If you do happen to be selling collectible items, such as baseball cards or beanie babies that you have kept packaged and in mint condition, mention that in the title or heading.

3. Photograph your items carefully. When taking snapshots of your items, be sure there is plenty of light and clean or polish them first. Create a pleasant background and use a flash whenever possible. Dark, fuzzy, hazy pictures are boring and will not pull in the attention of the viewer. Many sellers post photographs taken from various angles showing the front, back and any markings, if they are selling highly desirable items such as collectible glassware.

4. Communicate well with potential buyers. Some potential buyers will write to ask questions about the article for sale. Be prepared, attentive and responsive. Do your research so that you will be able to answer their questions quickly. Remember, a minor detail to you may be very important to the buyer and may mean the difference between a successful sale and no sale at all.

5. Ship with care. When packaging delicate items, be sure to pad each one carefully using Styrofoam popcorn or bubble wrap, and plug any exposed areas using crumpled up newspaper. Glassware should be placed in boxes at least four inches apart and away from the sides, top and bottom to ensure safe delivery. Mark the outside of the carton "Fragile" and "Handle with Care."

6. Know the ins and outs of insurance. No matter how careful you are, there is always the possibility of breakage when shipping certain items, so it is a good idea to familiarize yourself beforehand with the claim process.

Getting serious about eBay

If you are serious about making money from your eBay selling, you will need to become adept at researching the eBay marketplace, especially before you decide which products you want to sell.

Here are some guidelines:

1. Search for the most popular categories. Look at the number of listings that exist under each category. Then look to see how many bids the products have.

2. Choose no more than one or two categories, especially when you are first starting out. When you are an expert in your niche, you build credibility and trust with your buyers.

3. Examine the ratings of the sellers who are listing products in each category. Read their profiles. See how many products they are currently selling and how many products they have sold in the past.

4. Analyze prices. Become an expert in your chosen category and know at which price a product is worth buying, as well as the expected final winning price of your auction.

Finding More Products to Sell

Here are a couple of additional considerations once you have exhausted your attic and need more products to sell.

1. Consider Dropshipping. Dropshippers will sell you products at wholesale and send them to the address that you specify. On these items, you will not need to carry an inventory yourself, which minimizes your investment. After the auction is complete, you simply send your dropshipper the address of the buyer.

If you decide to use a dropshipper, you need to make sure that the winning price is sufficiently higher than the wholesale price you pay for the items. At minimum, you should expect to double your costs.

It is also important to use care with companies that claim to be dropshippers. Do your research and work only with legitimate drop shippers, which are either the product manufacturers themselves or authorized wholesale distributors. If a prospective dropshipper asks you to place a minimum order or to pay a fee to set up your drop shipping account, consider it a red flag.

2. Buy from eBay. Many successful eBayers know how to buy at a good price on eBay and then sell the same products at a higher price. If you know your niche well, you can find opportunities that will allow you to buy and resell for a profit. Here again, research is essential.

3. Import Asiatic products. If you are willing to carry an inventory, you can invest in Asiatic products for a low price and resell for a profit. You can easily start importing Asiatic products from the Internet at Alibaba.com

4. Sell local products. If you live in an area that produces local products that can be bought at a cheap price and then shipped to other areas, where people would pay more, you should take advantage of the situation. What kinds of unique local products do you find yourself taking for granted?

Jamie Jefferson is a frequent contributor to several popular websites, including Momscape.com, Susies-Coupons.com, and BestSelfHelp.com.

Article Source: http://www.keywordarticles.org

Wednesday, February 10

19 Secret Strategies of eBay Powersellers, Part 4

Image via CrunchBase

19 Secret Strategies of eBay Powersellers, Part 4

Author: Ed Brancheau
As if you haven't already heard, millions upon millions of people of people buy and sell on eBay every single day. Some only make a few sales here and there. Others have figured out what it takes to become "Powersellers." Powersellers are the very small minority of eBay sellers that do at least $2,000 per month in sales on eBay and maintain a 99% positive feedback rating. Powersellers are the ones that really know what they're doing and if you really want to be successful on eBay then follow the secrets they revealed to me.

So, what are the secrets, tips and tricks that will cause you to become a Powerseller as well?

Well, I'll be completely honest with you... I may be well on my way but I'm not a Powerseller yet. However, one thing that I know from creating several successful businesses is that if you want to become the best at something, you need to copy those that are already successful, ask them to mentor you and ask questions and take notes. And now I am going to take what they taught me and pass it on to you.

This is part four of a four part article series. You will find links to the other parts of this article series at the end of this article.

SECRET STRATEGY #16 - OFFER DISCOUNTS

Every single Powerseller that I interviewed offers some type of discount. It could be something like buy one and receive a second at 50% off. Or it could be that you offer free shipping on another purchase. Just make sure that you offer some type of discount and also keep in mind that "free" always works much better than anything else. For example, rather than say "Buy two and receive 50% off" say "Buy one get one free". "Free" is a trigger word that really hooks people.

Furthermore, I have found that for most items, that offering free shipping can actually make you more money than if you didn't. For example, a few years back, I wanted to find out if this was actually true. I had two whole rows at a concert and for the front row, I had people pay for the actual shipping costs which was like $9 to send them via FedEx 2-day delivery. A set of two tickets sold for about $400. The row in the back had free shipping and they sold for about $490 a set.

I made $81 more by offering free shipping. And it had to be the shipping because everything else about the auction was the same. In fact the better tickets made me less money. Now, I am sure that there are some exceptions to this rule (like maybe you are selling bulk items for $.01 and really making your profit off the handling) but I can't really think of many examples. In fact the only exception that I can think of is international shipping.

But my point is that "FREE Shipping" works because it is very noticeable on search pages. Remember that the word "free" is a trigger word that catches people's attention. The only other words that catch people's attention like "free" is "you" and "sex". Hey, I'm scared to think of what might happen if you put all these words in the same sentence!

Finally, with regards to the word "free", always include it in your title IN ALL CAPS by simply adding "FREE bonus". And then give your customers something for free. You can tell them what it is or not but always be sure to put a dollar value on it. For example, when I sell my information products, my bonus is a subscription to my email newsletter which I always give away for free but I put a value on it of $9.95 per month because I really believe that it's worth that much since I know that I always over deliver. So I always tell my buyers that they are going to get a "bonus worth almost $120 per year!"

But here's the key: it's doesn't really matter what the bonus is... all you are trying to do is get eBay users to click on your auction because you can't start selling your product to them until the open the listing! Remember this every time you create a new listing. Your first objective is to get them to click on the auction listing. Think of it this way, you can't sell to someone unless you get them in the store!

SECRET STRATEGY #17 - KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN FOR GREAT DEALS!

Every single Powerseller that I spoke with told me several stories about one little deal or something that they found for free that made them a ton of money. One of them told me about how he goes to swap meets and watches the buyers all day looking for one item that a bunch of them seem to be buying. He then buys one for himself and tracks down the manufacturer so that he can sell the product on eBay. This is an awesome idea because really what he is doing is market research by watching the buyers at the swap meet. In addition, this same Powerseller oftentimes buys a large quantity off a swap meet seller at a really low price right before the seller is about ready to leave for the weekend because would the seller rather make a little money or haul everything back?

Another Powerseller went to Africa for his honeymoon and while he was there he found some fabulous African headdresses. He struck up a deal with the maker and bought 500 of the headdresses at $2 a piece for $1,000 total. When he and his bride returned home, he sold the headdresses on eBay for about $75 a piece, made over $36,000 and got to write off his $10,000 honeymoon as a "business expense"! He did so well selling the headdresses that he decided to "take a business trip... tax deductible of course... back to Africa" and order 2000 more. Also, to share the wealth, he "gave the maker a raise" and paid $5 each without the maker even asking for it! I bet he was pretty happy. But here's the really funny thing... he got such ecstatic reviews for his previous buyers that the headdresses became much more in demand that his average sale increased to over $125! With these headdresses, he has made over $270,000!

So, keep your eyes open and snatch up those great deals. On thing to remember, if you see a bunch of people buying something, then you can be sure that you will be able to find others that will buy. At the county fair? Ask the popular vendors if they would like you to sell their products on eBay and split the profit. See a great deal at Wal-Mart for some killer product? Buy a bunch of them and sell them to people that don't live near a Wal-Mart or other discount store (and always list your items internationally because international buyers will often pay you more and even pay the shipping for certain items because many times that item is much more expensive in their country... even if it's made there!) Basically, make offers that you can profit from everywhere you go. Sure, you'll get dozens of "no's" but one "yes" can make you thousands of dollars.

SECRET STRATEGY #18 - INVEST IN YOUR BUSINESS

Of course, you don't want to waste money on your business but I constantly see people that don't want to spend money on their business to make money. eBay, in particular, has some features that can make you more money when you use them and others that may not make a difference for your product.

For example, one of the biggest mistakes that sellers make on eBay is not spending $.35 to have the product's photo show up in the gallery. This is the biggest listing mistake! Gallery photos draw considerably more clicks and bids and yet do a search for a specific product and you will see that about 1/3 don't have gallery photos and always have lower highest bids. Without exception, all of my auctions have a gallery photo and are listed in bold as are just about every Powerseller listing.

And don't be afraid to invest in your business by purchasing things like auction software, a digital camera (especially now that you can get them for under $100), a postage system (I use Stamps at http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/stamps.html) or a web authoring program like DreamWeaver. Definitely be sure to invest in a high-speed Internet connection like the ones below because they will save you an incredible amount of time and frustration.

Comcast High Speed Internet Cable - http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/comcast.html

Earthlink High Speed Internet DSL -- http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/earthlink.html

Qwest High Speed Internet DSL -- http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/qwest.html

Verizon Online DSL -- http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/verizon.html

Time Warner High Speed Internet -- http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/tw.html

Or my personal choice:

Time Warner Digital Cable High Speed Internet -- http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/tw-dig.html

Just do some research and determine how it will make you more money before you buy anything.

SECRET STRATEGY #19 - ALWAYS BE LEARNING... ALWAYS BE UP TO DATE

As a personal coach, I recommend that people reinvest 10% of their income in their personal education so that they constant grow. And I suggest something similar for your business. Constantly read books about eBay and the Internet all of the time and you will grow year after year after year. Here are a few titles that I suggest to get started on eBay:

The Silent Sales Machine Hiding on eBay by Jim Cockrum

http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/silent-sales.html

eBay Cash Machine by Sebastian Foss

http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/ebay-cash.html

What to Sell on eBay and Where to Get It by Chris Malta

http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/what-to-sell.html

eBay Powerseller Secrets: Insider Tips from eBay's Most Successful Sellers by Debra & Peter Schepp

http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/powerseller-secrets.html

eBay Timesaving Techniques for Dummies by Marsha Collier

http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/ebay-timesaving.html

In addition to these titles above, the is one other great resource: EBAY!

Check out the following eBay pages:

Learning Center -- http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/ebay-learning.html

eBay University -- http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/ebay-university.html

Security & Resolution Center -- http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/ebay-security.html

Well, that's it! Armed with these secret eBay strategies, you too should be well on your way to making a very substantial income on eBay. However, should you wish to obtain even more information about how to make money on eBay and the rest of the Internet, please visit our eBay store for some fabulous informational products.

Unleash Life Success Coaching eBay Store

http://www.a-to-z-web.com/links/ulsc-ebay-store.html

And be sure to check out the extremely powerful A2Z Web Building & Internet Marketing Platinum Package. It's over $1,500 worth of the best web building and Internet marketing books and programs in the world for less than $50. Check out our eBay rating and you will see that people love this package!

http://www.a-to-z-web.com/A2Z-platinum.html

Finally, if you missed any of the four parts of this article, you can read the other three at the following addresses:

http://www.a-to-z-web.com/ebays-secrets-1.html

http://www.a-to-z-web.com/ebays-secrets-2.html

http://www.a-to-z-web.com/ebays-secrets-3.html

http://www.a-to-z-web.com/ebays-secrets-4.html
About the Author:
Discover several extremely powerful web building and internet marketing packages that uncover all of the secrets to making money with eBay, Google AdSense, affiliate programs and much more! We offer a 180-day, no hassle, satisfaction guarantee!
Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - 19 Secret Strategies of eBay Powersellers, Part 4

Starting an eBay Business

Thursday, June 9

eBays New Instant Sale Site

Friday, April 16

Inspiration Week - My Bathroom Buddy - An Ebay Success Story!

Thursday, April 15

Inspiration Week- Benjamin Lang's Ebay business Young Entrepreneur

Wednesday, April 14

Selling Used Kids Clothing On eBay

SELLING ON EBAY: Secrets To Success.

Inspiration Week - ebay success story from $800 to 3.3 Million in 3 years

Monday, March 29

Are eBay Stores Really Worth the Money?

Tuesday, March 2

EBAYS LOWEST INSERTION FEES EVER COMING THIS SPRING

Saturday, February 20

Sell Your Stuff: A Free Online Guide to Selling on eBay

Wednesday, February 10

19 Secret Strategies of eBay Powersellers, Part 4

19 Secret Strategies of eBay Powersellers, Part 4

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