I Sold It On eBay Wholesale Secrets Using SEO Keywords For eBay Selling Success Part One

If you are trying to sell wholesale products using auction sites and you'd like to increase the "I Sold It On eBay!" factor, most top eBay sellers know they have to research their SEO keywords.

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization (a good thing when you are trying to attract new customers to your wholesale products or business), and it's a lot easier than you think. Plus, using SEO keyword tactics works equally as well with your website as it does with your eBay seller auctions. Although it may take you a little bit to get the hang of the process, once you lea this crucial technique you'll be eBay selling with the pros.

First, visit eBay's Pulse section, which offers anyone who visits the page a quick view of what's hot on the auction site. I'll walk you through this process using some SEO keywords that I'm personally interested in: wholesale and retail doll supplies. (For a list of wholesale companies that offer doll supplies, visit WholesaleGopher.com).

My eBay Pulse search shows there is only one "wholesale doll" item listed, 46 items matching "retail doll", 82 items matching "doll supplies" and 84 items for "wholesale doll". (Of course, your results may differ from mine, since eBay sellers are constantly changing their auctions, offerings and products). You can also use the scroll down list on the site to pick an item category that interests you, and then write down the top terms from there, too.

Next, you need to check and see how popular those keywords are. Using a freebie keyword suggestor, I find out that my keywords "wholesale and retail doll supply" were searched 564 times last month over many of the search engines (explaining this process will take too long to go into in this article; hopefully we'll touch upon it a bit more in another piece). Because my SEO keywords are so specialized, I'm not seeing any other results than the ones I stuck in there, but you'll probably get a whole slew. Any that describe your wholesale wares well, plug them into eBay Pulse as well to see what their demand is on the auction site, too.

Then, I visit Google and type in "wholesale and retail doll supply" (WITH the quotations - this is really important), and find that there are only eighty-four websites listed that meet the search term requirements. (Let me add here that these are incredible odds; you won't see search results like this often).

Are you still with me? Okay, now comes the hard part: figuring out which search terms are the best to populate your eBay auction with. Read the next article in this series for an in-depth explanation how to use these SEO keywords so you can start yelling, "I Sold It On eBay!" sooner, rather than later.

Jim Staley is the is the CEO for WholesaleGopher, one of the most trusted dealer and distributor directories on the Inteet, offering visitors wholesale items, import and export goods, surplus and closeouts from true wholesale sources. Lea more about wholesaling with his free, bi-weekly blog at http://www.wholesalegopher.com/blog/.

How to Win on eBay

I've bought over 100 items on eBay over three years and am ready to share my knowledge of how to win at eBay and buy from reputable sellers.

1. You can find anything on eBay. When searching on eBay I suggest first doing a general search such as "ionic breeze" and checking what the items are going for. I noticed the items by companies with eBay stores were selling much higher than those by individuals. This is true for all categories. So don't be scared of buying from an individual as it could be much cheaper.

2. Before bidding look at the seller's rating. I only buy from those with 99% or higher ratings.

3. Next check the shipping cost. Quite a lot of eBay sellers are willing to sell their high priced item at NR or no reserve but make the money back with outrageous shipping costs. How do you know a shipping cost is too high? When checking out the auctions for your item such as "ionic breeze" keep an eye on the shipping cost. The average cost for shipping quadra ionic breeze machines seems to be $20. If someone is charging $30 then you know you're getting had on the shipping. I make my maximum bid less on those auctions where the seller is charging too much for shipping.

4. To have less search results to wade through limit the search by using the minimum and maximum amounts setting. Think of what you'd really like to get the item for and put it as the maximum amount. By combing the listings for "ionic breeze" I've found it is possible to get a Sharper Image Ionic Breeze Quadra for $50 if I buy it used from an individual or reconditioned from a business. That's ok with me as I just want to pay less than what Sharper Image is charging!

5. One of the most important tips is to read every word in their auction page. People sell broken items on eBay. Some of the auctions for ionic breezes looked great but in between their text stating how great ionic breezes are, how much square feet it covers, was the sentence that the item was broken. Imagine how I'd feel if I had bid and won only to find out I didn't read the auction carefully! Yes it's a nasty way to do business selling items that are broke and tricking people into buying them. But if you bid you legally have to pay for it.

6. Ask questions before you bid. If the auction does not state how the item is being packaged then ask. I once bought a wall mounted barometer, temperature, humidity item that was shipping in a shoe box with no packaging! It was busted, glass shattered. So make sure you ask how they are going to ship it and what packaging they are going to use.

7. Also ask if the item works, do they have the manuals, does it still have a warranty if ownership is transferred, are items sanitized, does it come from a smoke free pet free home? You need to ask these questions as it's "buyer beware" on eBay.

8. The cheapest prices on items is during the summer when people are on vacation and not stuck at home during the winter. The worst time to buy is before Christmas. Everyone is trying to outbid each other for a gift. The prices are unbelievable!

9. After spending time doing the legwork I mentioned above, you'll find that a few eBay sellers seem to be ideal to buy from. Add them to your favorite seller's list. Then it's easy to go straight to their store, or items for sale page, and bid on what they have. You've already checked them out so don't forget who they are!

More ebay tips at ebay tips

Online Auction Sites Oh The Possibilities

Online auction sites are set up in such a way that they can be very profitable both for you and for the auction house itself. But, what most people do not realize is that there is a world that is beyond that of Ebay! Yes, there are many other online auction sites for you to consider. Take a look at your options and see just what they offer you before you get started bidding on the web.

Let?s face it, Ebay is the largest online auction site. It has become so very successful because of its vast marketing plan and the ease of use it offers its users. Everyone knows that if you can find something in the local retail area or you can find it online that you will likely find it too right on the Ebay auction site.

So, how does it all work? Online auction sites are set up to allow for a meeting place of bidders and sellers. They do not sell products themselves but provide a meeting environment for you to find the people you are looking for. Of course to list a product to be sold, or in some cases to purchase a product on the web, you will be charged a fee. This is a necessary part of doing business on these websites but in cases like Ebay, it has become an excellent source of revenue as well

So, who else is out there? There are other online auction sites that you should take a good look at. These include the following:

? TradeMe
? Yahoo!
? EBid
? Inteet Bargain Center
? Marktplaats
? Bidville as well as many more

There are many benefits to using these online auction sites including the ease of connecting with prospective buyers, the use of 24/7 availability, and worldwide exposure to say the least. Many people find excellent reasons to get into the online auction site as a business as well. There is no limit to what can be found on these websites. Taking a look at those that are less well known can be an excellent opportunity as well.

Article Source: http://www.articledashboard.com

For more information please see www.online-auction-sites.co.uk

Looking to Buy High Quality Cheap Electronics Here s Why an Online Auction Site May Be the Place

Since they began back in 1995, Inteet auction sites have become one of, if not the, hottest phenomenon on the Web.

And today, the popularity of these sites is growing faster than ever before due to a new wave of sites that auction off brand name products at deep discounts; offering their members cheap electronics and other items at up to 80% to 90% off their regular retail price

In effect, these online auction sites allow members from around the world to save significantly on brand-name products (including collectibles, cheap electronics and much more) with a few simple clicks of their mouse. But is joining one or more these websites that auction off brand name products right for you? Are there any risks involved? According to the Federal Trade Commission, auction fraud – where a seller takes your money and never delivers a product – can be a problem at sites that regularly auction off brand name products. Here are some additional auction fraud statistics:

• In a recent FBI study, online auctions ranked No. 1 as a source for fraud on the Inteet.
• The Inteet Fraud Complaint Center (IFCC) has received 1,000 consumer complaints per week since opening its doors.
• EBay says one in every 40,000 of its listings ends in a confirmed case of fraud.
• Online auction fraud entails 64% of all Inteet fraud that is reported.
• Complaints against individual subjects, as opposed to complaints against businesses, account for 84% of all complaints received.

That's why, should you decide to join an online auction site, you must be careful to select a reputable one that keeps its members; best interests in mind at all times. For example, at one well-respected online auction site, www.ahmoze.com, members can instantly send their feedback to site officials and most of the brand-name products the site features in its online auctions come with warranties. Another factor you will want to consider before taking the plunge and joining an online auction site is what type of online auctions does the site offer? Most experts consider blind online auctions, which are offered at www.ahmoze.com and several other sites, as the best approach for ensuring members have the best auction experience possible. Why? Because in blind auctions members never have to worry about competitors using automated bid monitoring tools, which are very common at other sites.

Ultimately, whether you're in the market for cheap electronics or another type of product, you're sure to find exactly what you're looking for at one of the many sites online that auction off brand name products.

Most online auction transactions are easy and smooth. However, auction fraud can be a problem. You may find that the item you receive is not what the seller promised. Or, you may never receive the item that you won the bid on.

Fortunately, you can help to prevent online auction fraud by doing a little research and by choosing to join only a reputable online site. In the end, the benefits of being able to purchase brand name products at deep discounts certainly outweigh the limited risks that exist.

Copyright 2005 Ahmoze.com cheap electronics, All Rights Reserved

Ken Dare is a freelance writer based in Tampa, FL. Ken has over 15 years of writing experience in the marketing communications field - which includes over seven years of web writing experience. Ken founded WriteDare Copywriting at the beginning of 2004 and now specializes in crafting online copy that sells - specifically corporate websites, online direct response sales letters and emails.

Buying Tips For Maximum Profits On EBay

Buying on eBay can be lots of fun and profiting. If you love bargains, and am yet to see anyone who doesn't, i stand corrected, if there is anyone one out there who doesn't, then eBay is the right place for you. 24 hours a day and the whole year through in the comfort of your own home, you can find and profit from lots of bargains.

From eBay antiques to eBay motors, real estate to sought after event tickets, consumer electronics to collectibles, there is something for everyone on eBay. And these are just a few of the categories i have mentioned. At any one time, eBay has hundreds of thousands of items for sale on its network of sites.

Items are organised into categories on eBay, and these are listed down on the left hand side of the screen. It's amazing what's on sale on eBay. Rather than moving through all this categories, it's a better idea to use eBay's search facility.

Because eBay has such a massive number of items for sale, it's very likely you will be presented with hundreds if not thousands of items when you search for items to buy on eBay. The first thing to have in mind, when you need to buy on eBay will of course be the price.

EBay is supposed to be the bargain warehouse, but over the years, there have been so many items that have exchanged hands for way above their retail value because of the bidding frenzy that comes with certain items offered for sale on the auction site.

It's always a good practice to compare bids if you are involved in an auction, and if this has already exceeded the pre - determined amount you are willing to pay, don't be tempted into a bidding war, just move on and find similar items with a different seller, you are always bound to find these because remember there are thousands of items available for sale on eBay.

Items you buy on eBay will be mailed to you unless stated otherwise, so be very wary of postage and delivery costs when determining the amount you are willing to pay for an item. When you have decided on these, also consider the condition of the item. EBay is an auction site, and as is the case with all auctions, there are always old and new items for sale. So be very careful, usually the seller's description of the item should give you an idea about its condition.

When in doubt you can always email the seller through eBay's mail system. All good sellers will answer questions regarding their items.

Some auctions come with a "Buy It Now" icon, you can end the auction immediately by paying for the advertised price using the "Buy It Now" icon. I suggest you should only do this if the "Buy It Now" price is within the pre - determined amount you are willing to pay.

Copyright © David E Nettey

David E Nettey is the webmaster of http://fishing-lures.lyecryads.com and http://podiatry.lyecryads.com He has helped several new online business owners get started, For Inteet Business Ideas and Opportunities visit his website http://www.Profits-Web.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=David_E_Nettey

A Huge Selection of Office Chairs are Available Everyday on eBay

Ebay can offer great options when purchasing a new office chair for your business or home office. With a huge selection and new models constantly being added, you should be able to find the right office chair for you with relative ease. Auction style listings with a 1-10 day fixed time limit, which go to the highest bidder are how eBay started out drawing a crowd. Now they have many different ways to purchase.

Buying office chairs through Fixed Price Buy It Now listings and through eBay stores seems to be the quickest and offers the best pricing available on eBay. Although, auction style listings can sometimes end for pennies on the dollar, they are more time consuming and can end in prices way over the normal retail price.

In order to see the items that are listed under the Auction Style price Category, simply enter the keyword term into the search box on the eBay homepage and see what listings appear. The listings directly below the box are the auction style listings all with a fixed time frame of start and end that appears with each listing and current bidding price as well as a photo, if available, and a shipping cost.

With eBay Stores, you get the same display, but with auctions at a set price and easy to compare statistics, most with buy now options. You know how to compare pricing because you know what price the auction will end at. This makes price comparison and even "window shopping" of a sort, possible and quick.

With easy to view photos and up to 25 listings per page, it is better to narrow down your search to a more specific type of chair in order to find the right model quicker. This small search step can save you time and help you to find exactly what you were looking for. Many keywords such as ergonomic, leather, executive or mesh are commonly used to help in the search.

Office chairs offer a huge range of pricing and options available but so does eBay, making it easy to find a great chair for a terrific price. Once you know what you are looking for in both a chair and a listing on eBay, you are halfway done and the rest of the battle is simply picking the right chair for you and getting comfortable once it arrives.

Amy Lieberfarb has been in the office fuiture and interior sales industry for 11 years and currently runs two online websites dedicated to Office Chairs and Fuiture. Providing information on how to pick the right ergonomic chair and featuring hundreds of different chairs, the site is very informative.

http://stores.ebay.com/liebswholesale

Specializing in Office Fuiture and Ergonomic Chairs.

http://www.liebswholesale.com

Please see her other articles for more information on buying online and on eBay, and ergonomic information for the workplace and home office.

She is an expert in most things office chairs and is an eBay Gold Level Powerseller with years of experience and great positive feedback from all of her loyal customer base.

Online Auction Fraud

eBay sales may have grown 51% last year over the previous year, but general online complaints jumped by 66.6% over the previous year to some 207,000+ complaints in 2004. The Inteet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), a partnership between the FBI and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C), stated in its yearly report that 71.2% of all complaints received pertained to auctions.

Online fraud is a growing problem on the inteet and the auction segment is far from immune. The IC3 reports that most complaints consist of late or no shipment of products, items that don't match advertised condition and bogus payment or escrow services.

If you decide to offer "all items to be shipped within 24 hours", make sure you keep your word, and go to great lengths to honestly represent and describe the item in your auctions. Your bidders will appreciate your honesty and it will eventually show up in your feedback.

As consumer fears increase, there are a number of common sense ways to help protect you from fraud, as well as enhance your reputation as a trustworthy seller and set you apart from the crowd.

Watch Out for Bad Checks, Money Orders and Cashiers Checks Years ago I had a buyer who complained rather loudly when I didn't ship an item as soon as I received the check in the mail. In hind site it was a good decision to hold the shipment since the check ended up being fraudulent. Bad checks, money orders, and cashiers checks are rampant in ecommerce today. The simplest way to offset the danger of bad paper is not to ship the auction item until the check, money order or cashier check clears your bank for payment.

Overpayments

Never accept any overpayments for any item. One of the more popular scams today is for a buyer to send a cashiers check for an amount that is higher than the agreed upon final price. They then claim it was in error and ask the seller to kindly retu the overage when the item is shipped. Off goes the item, the overage amount in good money, and the defrauded seller finds out too late the cashiers check was fake.

Use an Escrow Service for High Priced Items

The primary purpose of escrow services is to protect buyers and sellers from fraud. Basically what they do is to accept the money from the buyer and hold it until the buyer receives and approves the merchandise. Please note that fake escrow services are increasing on the inteet. If a buyer contacts you after a sale and recommends an escrow service you are not familiar with BEWARE. At present eBay only recommends one escrow company: www.escrow.com. For information go to http://pages.ebay.com/help/confidence/payment-escrow.html

Records, Records, Records

Keeps a copy of every transaction detail from the original auction listing to the last email. You will need that kind of proof to validate your claims if you should find you need to file a complaint.

Protect Yourself by Being Educated

At the very least you need to be knowledgeable about your legal obligations as a seller and familiar with the fraud protections and policies for the auction sites and payment processing services you use. eBay and Paypal have extensive sections on their websites dedicated to fraud policies and protections. You should take the time to read through these or similar information pages for the sites and services you use on a regular basis and be very familiar with the material.

A few of the key recommendations from Paypal's Protection for Sellers section include:

Ship only to the address listed on the Transaction Details page

Use a shipping service with tracking

Check out the buyer's reputation

Accept payment from only one Paypal account per buyer

Limit credit card payments

Enhancing Your Safe Seller Image

Here are a few tips that will help improve your image as a safe seller for your bidders.

Identify Yourself - Make use of the about me pages to let your customers know who you are, how long you've been in business and how much their business means to you. Be honest.

Feedback Ratings - Auction buyers want to see 100% positive feedback.

Methods of Payment - Make it easy for your customers to buy but consider convenience, cost and security in choosing any payment method you offer.

Full Disclosure - Your auction listings should clearly state the condition of the item you're auctioning, your shipping/insurance and retu policies.

Bonding programs - A number of bonding programs are available on the inteet. One of the more popular is BuySafe (www.buysafe.com). In a bonding program the seller agrees to certain obligations such as shipping on time, representing the item correctly, and standing behind the transaction. In retu the seller can display a seal on their auctions showing bidders they are honest sellers and providing transaction insurance in some cases up to $25,000.

Other programs you should be familiar with include:

IDVerify
SquareTrade
Trust-e

If You Become a Victim of Online Fraud

You need to know exactly what should be done in the event you are victimized. Make your plan now, before it happens. The most recommended steps to take if you are victimized are listed below but please keep in mind these are general recommendations and you should have you own plan based on your needs.

File a complaint with your auction site
File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission
File a complaint with the IC3
File a complaint with the National Fraud Information Center
Contact your local and state law enforcement agencies
Contact the local and state law enforcement agencies in the perpetrator's home area
File a complaint with the shipping company you used
It the perpetrator is a business and a member of the Better Business Bureau you should also file a complaint there.

Further reading

Paypal Seller Protection Policy (go to your Paypal account)

FTC recommendations http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/online/auctions.htm

To read the entire 2004 IC3 Inteet Fraud Report http://www1.ifccfbi.gov/strategy/2004_IC3Report.pdf

More Important Fraud Links

Find Your Local Police http://www.usacops.com
FBI Inteet Fraud Unit http://www1.ifccfbi.gov/index.com
FTC Inteet Fraud Unit https://m.ftc.gov
USPS Mail Fraud http://www.usps.com/postalinstpectors/fraud/

© Copyright 2005 Steven Woodward - All Rights Reserved

Steven Woodward is the owner, editor and publisher of the Auction Sellers Network (ASN); a web site for individuals and companies who are serious about utilizing the online auction marketplace for their business. In addition to topical articles, ASN provides an extensive resource center, news feeds, member forums and classified ads. For more information or to become a member please visit http://www.AuctionSellersNetwork.com

No permission is needed to reproduce an unedited copy of this article as long the About the Author tag is left intact and included. We do request that we be informed where it is posted and reciprocal links will be considered.

Learn How To Be A Successful eBay Seller

Anyone can sell anything on eBay. Open an account, list your product, and wait for the bids to start coming in. While it is true that anyone can sell, to be successful, you need to know the inside secrets.

One woman made over $250,000 last year on items sold on eBay. She is just one out of thousands and thousands of people that make a ton of money just selling merchandise.

Are you ready to lea how to be an eBay seller? You will find it to be easy, fun, and exciting. Here are some of the things that you need to know to get started.

Just eBay

Although there are several other quality auction websites, eBay is by far the most popular and most successful. Although you could start using all the other sites, by spreading yourself out too thin you take the risk of getting things mixed up. In reality, it is better to use eBay and focus your attention and efforts on this one site. You will not be disappointed.

Look Around

Navigate through each section to familiarize yourself with all the different pages. You will find a site map and help tab, which are very useful tools. It will take a little time to get used to the site but start by looking. As you start selling, navigating will become much easier.

Terms & Conditions

You will run into all types of buyers that try to move past the terms and conditions provided by eBay. Know the Terms & Conditions inside and out and if you have problems, contact eBay immediately. A few examples of the insider secrets are listed below:

* Bid Shielding – Two buyers work together. One person bids high to protect a low bid place by the other person. Right before the auction closes, the high bidder cancels, meaning the low bidder gets your items for a huge bargain.

* Bid Shilling – This is where the seller actually uses a separate ID set up to inflate the number and price of the bid.

* Deadbeat Bidder – The deadbeat bidder bids on your auction and then simply fails to pay.

* Sniping – A "sniper" is a bidder that waits until there are only minutes or seconds left on an item and then quickly bids just a little higher to get the items. Although not against the T&C's, it is considered unprofessional and limits competing bidders from driving a high price.

Excluded Items

Although eBay accepts just about every type of item, there are a few exclusions such as explosions, corrosive material, etc. Before you go through the entire process of listing your items, make sure you are not listing something forbidden by checking out the do's and don'ts listed on eBay.

Competitor Analysis

Just like any other business, you need to know what your competitors are doing. This will help you make the best possible decision when it comes to your own auction. Before listing your items, do a search for the same type items to see what their descriptions looks like. Find different aspects from different sellers and use them to form one comprehensive site for yourself.

Community Boards

Pay attention to the community boards provided by eBay. They offer valuable information and helpful tips that can ultimately save you time and effort.

Category Guide

Use eBay's Category Guide, which is a helpful tool to ensure you place your auction items in the appropriate category.

When to List

The time of day you list your auction is important. The start time will be the same as the end time, which is why it is so important. If you want your auction to end at 10:00 p.m. on a Sunday night, you need to have the auction start at 10:00 p.m. For this reason, be sure to set the start time accordingly.

Do your Homework

In addition to researching what other people are selling similar items for, you need to conduct your own research outside of eBay as well to determine the going rate for your items. As an example, if you are selling artwork, jewelry, or collectibles, you need to state in your description the going price. Although you may or may not get that price from the buyer, it shows buyers that you have done your homework and will stand a little more firm in your price. It also tells buyers that they are getting quality for a good price.

When it comes to selling on eBay, the door of opportunity stands wide open. Opportunity is what you decide to make of it. As mentioned in the beginning, people literally buy and sell just about everything on eBay. For this reason, do not think that items you have would not be of interest to anyone because more than likely, they will be.

Lewis Leake helps people make money from home. His website at GrowNetProfits.com contains tools, resources, articles, newsletters, product reviews and traffic builders to help you make money from your home based business. Click here to get additional Online Auction articles.

How to Spot Fake Deals On eBay

With millions of auctions running at any hour of the day, there is no doubt good deals abound on eBay. From flea treatments for your dog, to a mini-van for hauling your family around, the selection runs the gambit. With everything under the sun for sale, the only thing an auction surfer needs to know is whether or not to actually put in a bid.

Recently I was auction surfing for a new 20.1 inch flatscreen LCD monitor. Like anyone else working from home, my equipment costs fall on my shoulders, and I must undergo a delicate balancing act between, do I really need it, and can I get a good deal. Having already perused a few dozen price and spec comparison websites, I had a good idea of which model I wanted and the average price I could expect to pay. A simple search for 20 inch LCD monitor brought up a few hundred to choose from. Prices ranged from absurdly high, to "you know it's a scam" low. There were however, dozens of monitors priced at reasonable, yet believable prices. Too good to be true?

The model I had focused in one was from Dell. It had gotten good reviews, and the discount from dozens of eBay sellers was tempting enough to almost make me click the "buy it now" button. The shipping was indicated as "calculate," so I clicked it and input my zip code. Almost $100 to ship an LCD monitor. High? Seemed that way, but I've never had one shipped, and anything is possible.

Hopping over to Dell's site, I pulled up the same monitor. The price was much better on eBay, but the shipping from Dell was free. After some basic math, the cheap eBay price with shipping tued out to actually be one of the worse deals on that particular LCD I could get. Checking around, I soon found the stock photos and specs the sellers on eBay were using in their auctions, and putting two and two together, I figured out what they were doing.

The eBay sellers were using a rudimentary low price tactic. They mark down the price, and count on the buyer not checking the shipping until the auction has been purchased. Even with the high shipping, a buyer may still equate the price paid for the monitor as being a good deal, and just assume the shipping price from everyone is in the same ballpark.

What the eBay sellers were actually doing, was acting as their own dropshippers. They created an auction using Dell's stock photo's, claimed they had the items in stock, and used terms like "special purchase," or "largest seller on eBay." In actuality, they were selling the LCD to buyers, and then purchasing one from Dell after they had received the buyers payment. They then have Dell send it to the buyers address, and pocket the massive markup in shipping; in this case, $75.

The same tactic was used for desktop systems, laptops, flatscreen TVs, and several other items I looked at. While the "buy it now" price was substantially lower than anyone else was offering, the price plus shipping actually exceeded the final cost of everyone out there.

In this case, a little homework and price checking saved me $75. Unfortunately, after looking at the various sellers completed auction results (see my previous article for how to do this), I found there were a lot of people who had not bothered to check. Hopefully, after reading this article, you won't fall into their ranks.

Chris Yarbrough writes for Ebay Guides, a free resource site with hundreds of articles and guides. You can view his guides at http://www.ebay-guides.com. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_Yarbrough

Killer Tips To Succeed With eBay Auction

For just a moment, try to comprehend the power of the Inteet. Every day, there are millions of people from around the globe "surfing the web."

People run their business from the Inteet, search for love, research succulent recipes, plan vacations, and best of all they SHOP! People that shop are always looking for a bargain, not just any bargain, but something spectacular.

The most popular public auction site, eBay, is where people gather to find anything from dishes to jewelry to houses and just about everything in between. Last year there was even a mother sold on eBay!

You can purchase amazing original artwork from China, have it signed by the artist, and shipped directly to your home. Perhaps you are trying to find 12 yards of Toile to reupholster your couch. You might even be looking for a new lawnmower or different power tools. The great news is that eBay has it all!

The other side of buying is the selling. Anyone can sell anything on eBay. Open an account, list your product, and wait for the bids to start coming in. There are secrets to being a power seller on eBay. While it is true that anyone can sell, to be successful, you need to know the inside secrets. One woman made over $250,000 last year on items sold on eBay. She is just one out of thousands and thousands of people that make a ton of money just selling merchandise.

Are you ready to lea how to be an eBay seller? You will find it to be easy, fun, and exciting.

1. Collectibles

Hot sellers on eBay are collectibles such as coins, stamps, or dolls. You can check out the collectibles category to get a better idea of what people love to buy. Anything that will move up in value would fall in this category.

2. Consumables

This popular category would include anything that people use and then would need to buy again such as lotions, perfumes, camera film, candles, etc.

3. Information Products

In this category, you would sell anything that can be sent on a CD or floppy disc or downloaded from the Inteet. This is another popular category.

4. Start at Home

When you first get started, it can be a little unnerving. The best option is to start by looking around your own home. Think of items that you would sell in a garage sale. However, instead of pricing each item and lugging it outside hoping for a nice sunny day, you can advertise them on the Inteet.

5. Just eBay

Although there are several other quality auction websites, eBay is by far the most popular and most successful. Although you could start using all the other sites, by spreading yourself out too thin you take the risk of getting things mixed up. In reality, it is better to use eBay and focus your attention and efforts on this one site. You will not be disappointed.

Anantha krishnan is a writer and seller of high quality eBooks covering various topics. He gives 90 days money back guarentee for all his eBooks, because he is so confident that his eBooks are of very high quality and nobody will be unhappy about his ebooks and ask money back.V.Anantha Krishnan is a resident webmaster at http://www.ebook-retailers.com/

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My Secret Fear About Using Drop Shippers When Selling On eBay

I spent nearly three months trying to sell products on eBay using a strategy called drop shipping. For those of you not familiar with the concept, here's how it works. You find a wholesaler who is willing to work with you on a drop shipping basis. (Note: there are several fine directories available of just such wholesalers.) You put some of this company's products on eBay, sell them, and then pay the wholesaler who packs and ships the products for you.

Sounds pretty cool, huh? You never have to take possession of any products so you don't need warehouse space.. There's no packing and shipping. You just market the products and count your profits.

As the punch line in one old joke would have it, "not so fast there, Abeathy."

First, the market niche

First, you have to find a profitable market niche and this just ain't easy. You might say that eBay has been too successful as it is now da near impossible to find a market niche that isn't already very, very competitive. If you don't believe me, go to eBay and type in some uoffbeat search term such as "emperor penguins." I did this when writing this article and found two pages of stuff related to these birds, including penguin crossing signs (who would have guessed?), penguin art, and glass penguin figurines.

Second, you have to find a niche where you can expect a good mark-up. This is because your profit is the difference between what you will have to pay the wholesaler and what you can sell the item for on eBay.

And there's the catch. Since you know what you will have to pay the wholesaler, say $25 for a nice lambs wool sweater, you have to either start the auction at $25 to keep from losing money, or do a "buy it now" for maybe $40 to get a $15 profit. But wait a minute. You have to pay your wholesaler to pack and ship the product – say $5 -- so your profit drops to $15. Plus, you check eBay and find the same sweaters are selling for $25. So, what are the chances you'll be able to sell yours for $40 or even $35?

Now comes my secret fear

I tried to sell a lot of products from a lot of different wholesalers. What I found is that no matter what products I put up for auction or buy it now, the same item was always available for less. In fact, hmm, some were available at the exact same price I had to pay my wholesalers.

So my secret fear is that there are wholesalers who are selling products on eBay for the same amount they wanted me to pay for identical items – making it almost impossible for me to make a profit.

Can I prove this? Of course not, because the sellers on eBay always had these really generic names such as "bargainprinters" and "memory4less." But who's to say what companies are really behind them?

Am I being paranoid? It's possible. But if you want to try drop shipping, I would suggest two things. First, stay away from computer stuff and consumer electronics. It is a jungle out there. Second, try to find a small market niche where there isn't enough volume to attract the big guys and where you can ea a fair mark up.

It's not easy but it is doable.

Here's an alteative that is both free and easy. It's called HD radio, a new technology that enables AM and FM radio stations to broadcast their programs digitally, a tremendous technological leap from today's familiar analog broadcasts. These digital broadcasts provide listeners with radically improved audio quality, more radio channels through multicasting, and new data services. To lea more about this amazing new technology, just go my Web site, http://www.hd-radio-home.com, to get all the buzz.

Douglas Hanna is a retired marketing executive and the author of numerous articles on HD radio, old time radio and family finances.

12 Tips To Make Your eBay Business More Profitable

Sometimes it's the simple things that can make your eBay business more profitable and run smoother. Here are twelve things you can do that will lead to more sales and increased profits on eBay.

1. Use auction management tools or services

Using an auction management tool or service allows you to automate most of your day-to-day auction business and frees up time for other activities. There are numerous ones available and the majority of them offer a free 30-day trial period. Find one that fits your needs and budget, lea how to use all of it's features, and then stick with it. Make certain the one you choose supports eBay's Item Specifics and Pre-Filled features.

2. Target all your items toward the same market

There's nothing wrong with offering several different items on eBay, but try to sell things that target the same general market or 2-3 markets. You will find this makes it much easier for satisfied customers to buy from you again. The majority of my customers have retued to buy five or more items from me in the past year. You should strive for this also.

3. End all your auctions on the same day and during the same general time frame

Whatever you are selling, test different days and times of the day to determine what works best for you. Once you determine what day and time works best for you, stick to that time. Your customers will come to know your auctions always end on a certain day at a certain time and know that they can go on the computer on Sunday night at 10 PM, for example, and be able to bid.

4. Fast shipping equates to repeat sales

We live in an instant gratification world. Once an item is paid for, get it in the mail as quickly as possible. This will lead to higher customer feedback and repeat sales. If you aren't seeing comments about how fast a customer received their item in 60 to 70 percent of your feedback, it's taking you too long to get things in the mail and it's hurting your business.

5. Give your product a vacation once in a while

It pays to stop listing an item, or type of item, every once in a while so that potential customers don't begin to take it for granted that it will always be available. You will find that if you don't list an item for two or three weeks, when you do it again, it will almost always result in increased bidding and higher bids.

6. Make use of eBay's "Second Chance" offers

If you have multiples of the same item and more than one person has bid on it, make a "Second Chance" offer to the next one or two unsuccessful bidders. You will find the response rate to these offers is quite high. If you simply choose to re list, there's a good chance that many of the under-bidders will never see your item when it is re-listed.

7. Use a template to create a recognizable identity

Every auction you run should have a similar layout, graphics, and style that your customers can quickly associate with you. When one of your customers clicks on an item link and first arrives at your auction, they should instantly be able to say, "This is one of Bill's auctions." They will instantly feel at home and be more ready to bid.

8. Make use of eBay's Keyword program

Most people associate eBay's Keyword program with eBay stores, but it can be used very successfully in conjunction with your auctions too. The Keyword program is usually running some kind of free trial. Take advantage of it and see how it can increase both the number of bids and the ending price for your auctions.

9. Use Google's Adwords program to attract buyers

Used correctly, Google's Adwords program is an excellent way to attract potential bidders who would otherwise never see your auctions. As long as you use search words or phrases that are tightly targeted to the item you are selling, this can be a cheap and effective promotional tool.

10. Sell only one item per auction

There are exceptions, but bundling similar products into one auction almost always leads to fewer bids and decreased sales. While there may be times you do this to get rid of inventory that hasn't sold, it's normally not a good way to do business.

11. Sell inteationally

The simple truth is that if you don't allow inteational buyers to bid on your auctions you are throwing money out the door. This is a lucrative market with lots of money to spend. Since many sellers exclude these buyers, it only makes sense that you give them the opportunity to spend their money with you.

12. Accept PayPal

If you're not accepting payment by PayPal, you may be loosing a lot of bidders and money. Buyers love the convenience of using this service and many won't bid on an item if the seller doesn't offer it as a payment option. If you're not doing it, you are throwing money away.

Gary Hendrickson has been making his living selling on eBay for more than six years. He's the author of two eBay related ebooks, has a blog for eBay sellers, and is the owner of ColdItems.Com.

ColdItems.Com The Auction Rebel Blog

Make Make Even More Money on eBay

Over the years, eBay has introduced all sorts of different auction types, in an effort to give people more options when they buy and sell their things on eBay.

For every seller who doesn't like the idea that their item might sell for a far lower price than they intend, there's another who wants to shift hundreds of the same item quickly. eBay tries to cater to all tastes. This email gives you an overview of the different kinds of auctions and their advantages for you.

Normal Auctions.

These are the bread-and-butter of eBay, the auctions everyone knows: buyers bid, others outbid them, they bid again, and the winner gets the item. Simple.

Reserve Auctions.

Reserve auctions are for sellers who don't want their items to sell for less than a certain price – a concept you'll know about if you're familiar with real auctions. They work just like normal auctions on eBay, except that the buyer will be told if their bid does not meet the reserve price you set, and they'll need to bid again if they want the item. If no-one is willing to meet your price, then the auction is cancelled, and you keep the item.

Fixed Price ('Buy it Now') Auctions.

Buy it Now auctions can work in one of two ways. You can add a Buy it Now button to a normal auction, meaning that buyers can choose either to bid normally or to simply pay the asking price and avoid the whole bidding process. Some sellers, though, now cut out the auction process altogether and simply list all their items at fixed price. This lets you avoid all the complications of the auction format and simply list your items for how much you want them to sell for.

Recently, eBay added a twist to fixed price auctions: the 'best offer'. This means that buyers can contact you to negotiate a price, which could be a good way to get sell some extra stock at a small discount. The only downside to reserve and fixed price auctions is that you pay a small extra fee to use these formats. In general, it is more worth using reserve auctions for higher-priced items and fixed price auctions for lower-priced ones – but remember that you can combine the two formats.

Multiple Item ('Dutch') Auctions.

These are auctions where you can sell more than one of a certain item. Dutch auctions can be done by bidding. Buyers bid a price and say how many items they want, and then everyone pays the lowest price that was bid by one of the winning bidders. If you have trouble getting your head around that, then don't worry – everyone else does too! These auctions are very rare.

What is more common is when a seller has a lot of one item, and lists it using a combination of two auction types: a multiple-item fixed price auction. This just means that you can just say how many of the item you they have, and offer them at a fixed price per unit. Buyers can enter how many they want and then just click Buy it Now to get them.

Paul Duxbury has spent several years leaing what not to do on eBay! He now sells quality eBooks through eBay and through http://www.pk-ebooks.co.uk. He has written many articles about eBay and these can be obtained through his Free Course at http://www.ebay-profits.co.uk

eBay and How to Play the What If Game

If you've never played the 'What If?' game before, this is how it goes. You take a common item, say an empty bottle, and you ask yourself: What if it was bigger? What if it was smaller? What if it was packed with sand from Brighton Beach? What if it was painted red with white stripes?

It's a strange pastime, this What If? game, but from it has emerged some of the most profitable products of all time, the most prominent being Coca-cola which allegedly started life as a cough syrup, rather thick, very gooey, and leaving a strong after-taste. Until someone said 'What if we add water and drink it'. The rest, they say, is history.

Here are a few What If? questions, and products they must surely have spawned:

* What if we fill it with something silly?

Tins filled with holes from Polo mints, offered as competition prizes in the 1970s, are valuable collectors' items today and like one I saw in a recent sale of advertising memorabilia they can fetch hundreds of pounds a time.

Tins filled with London Smog - a kind of dirty fog that hung across London and caused hundreds of deaths daily in the early 1950s - were offered as souvenirs to American tourists who sometimes sell them on eBay.

Bottles filled with Irish Turf sold like hot cakes to Irish-American families when they first appeared in the 1980s, before copycats moved in and killed the market.

* What if we broke it and sold the pieces?

Witness the former wooden Brooklyn Bridge, to down and replaced by the current metal and concrete variety, which was sold piece by piece by Paul Hartunian and generated millions of dollars.

The same technique helps sell pieces of turf from well-known football grounds, pieces of meteorites (see www.themeteoritemarket.com - they sell lots of the stuff), even pieces of Plymouth Rock that sold on eBay last year at between $609 and $2165 apiece and none bigger than a walnut.

When the Berlin Wall fell a friend transported hundreds of fragments home, framed them, and sold them in pre-eBay times at £20 a time. Goodness knows what they'd be worth now with an inteational audience to target.

Demand and price can be inflated by linking items to specific events. So pieces of Plymouth Rock (from where originated America's Pilgrim Fathers) sold well during Thanksgiving Week and strips of turf flew out of the tustiles when Wembley's historical football ground was closed for refitting!!

* What if we buy this stuff that doesn't sell and add it to something else that does always sell?

One hundred plus Penny Black postage stamps offered at an auction in Yorkshire last month attracted no bids, not from stamp dealers unused to selling anything quite so to and tattered as these pathetic specimens. My daughter bought them instead, made them into charms, and sold them as charm bracelets under her 'Hobo' vintage jewellery banner with stamp catalogue value of £100 and £200 a time highlighted in her eBay descriptions. Those stamps costing a few pounds each, added £50 and more to bracelets normally fetching ten or twenty pounds each.

Here are some questions for you to answer and tu ordinary items that nobody wants into products that sell like hot cakes on eBay.

* What if we paint it red with white stripes? (Bearing in mind England's presence in the Football World Cup this year and a national flag of similar colours!)

* What if we look for anniversaries that might lend themselves to unique product ideas? This is one of the most profitable ways to play the What If? game so you'll be happy to know that this year:

- May 24th marks 100 years since the The London Ritz was founded by hotelier Cesar Ritz.

- Marmite was created in Staffordshire one hundred years ago. The 'Love It, Shove It' relationship we all have with Marmite might be worth exploiting. I'll be hunting through vintage magazines for cartoons and advertisements from Marmite's early years to recreate as prints, postcards, key rings, place mats, or hundreds of other popular items. Be careful not to break trade mark and copyright laws if you decide to copy early designs, they won't normally be public domain until 70 years after the artist's death. But why bother with copies, I recommend you stick with original items, they're prolific in early magazines.

- Poet Laureate John Betjeman was bo 100 years ago, the same year that the British Labour Party was bo. The perm is also one hundred years old, as is the first diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease. And the Japanese are currently celebrating the centenary of The Book of Tea, written by art historian and curator Okakura Kakuzo (1862-1913) and representing the first study in English to explain the philosophical and aesthetic background of the tea ceremony. Now I wonder if that book is still in copyright or could I reproduce it, maybe bundle it with some special tea bags, or use it to sell vintage tableware, use it as the basis of a book I want to write about healing teas …. OR WHAT IF?

Avril Harper is a triple eBay PowerSeller and editor of eBay Confidential and webmaster of http://www.publishingcircles.com. She has produced a free guide - 103 POWERSELLER TIPS - which you can download with other freely distributable reports and ebooks at http://www.toppco.com

5 Secrets for Increasing Auction Profits

1. Include your ebay seller name, store, and website information with all items you ship. THis can encourage re-orders and help the buyer leave feedback. I remember one particular incident, as a buyer I wnated to reorder a product from a seller but I couldn't remember their ebay seller name and so never reordered the product.

2. Email customers after you have shipped their item to ask them if they recieved the item and if they are pleased with it. This not only builds trust by showing you care but also gives you the opportunity to add a link to your recently lited items on ebay or your website in your signature line.

3. Put a subscription box on your about me page to capture email addresses and follow up with visitors with news about your products, industry, sales you may be having, product information and inprovements, specials, etc.

4. State in all your auction listings that customers can save on shipping costs by bidding on multiple items at the same tim. Include information about other auctions you have listed at that time that may be related to the product in the auction. Try to link to the items and open the page in a new window so the bidder does not lose his place. Use a picture of the item to encourage bidders to look at your other items.

Many people use an auction listings gallery which inserts pictures of their other items into their auction descriptions like the the one at andale.com.

5. Try to add bonus items to your auctions where applicable to encourage bids. Free ebooks, extra ad space (if you're selling ad space), free software, free samples of related items you sell, coupons for free shipping of the next item the bidder wins, etc.

There are several ways to skyrocket your eaing with your auctions, be creative and you're sure to see a difference in your bottom line.

Jennifer Parks is the author of Selling on Ebay Now with free information, software, resources, and secrets for selling on ebay.

Make Money Selling on eBay What to Sell How to Sell

The biggest question people have when starting an Ebay business is what to sell. We will get to that in a minute. First, here are some general guidelines to help you know how to sell:

1. Make sure you have a quality picture of the product: The last thing I want to see when I trying to decide to buy something is a blurry picture or one that doesn't show the product well. You can sometimes raise the price of a product by taking an appealing photo of it.

2. Write an good description: When writing a product description use words to build value but don't over do it.

3. Build up positive feedback: If you don't have enough good feedback you won't make a lot of money. Concentrate on smaller items that you can deliver quickly and that are in great condition and then you can move on to bigger items.

What to Sell: Once you build up some positive feedback and reviews you can move on to selling stuff that will make you money. Just some beginning tips for what to sell: Sell something that will need to be replenished - such as vitamins, energy drinks, protein shakes, etc…. That way you can create an income stream that builds with time and more customers instead of just selling one time items. You should also plan on building a main website separate from Ebay so that you can maintain a list of customers. You can sell them your products and also cross sell them new items. This is a strategy that uses Ebay an alteate source of leads for your main website.

Another good strategy to get started is to find a product you think will do well and then see how popular that item is by using a keyword analyzer tool: http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion/ You can use this tool to see how many times a keyword is typed into a search engine each month. Once you find out how many times it is searched for each month, you then need to see how many websites there are out there about this keyword or product. If the keyword is searched for a lot and there are only a few websites pertaining to it, then you will have a good chance of being successful with that product and make good money. Be creative when searching for what to sell and you should be able to come up with something that will sell.

After you are making a decent amount of money, you can then teach others how to do the same and charge consulting fees or mentor fees. A lot more money can be made from this than selling products on Ebay. Begin to sell your services on Ebay and use the items as just a way to gain new clients. If you have any experiences with Ebay and making money this way, share it with the people here. Helping others helps you.

Kent Hamilton - founder of http://www.moneygenius.net shares his making money tips for Free to help others get started. Lots of useful information. He has been developing and promoting websites for over 10 years.

List Your Item The Wrong Way And Your eBay Auctions Will Fail

It is a sad fact that most first time sellers have one thing in common; they fail in their auctions. Many of them fail time and time again, never understanding what is going wrong with their listing. They do hours of research looking for the perfect item to sell, get the auction set up, and wait for the bidding to begin. Hours go by and no bids are placed. Days go by, and there are still no bids; or there are very low bids. Finally the auction ends, and it tus out to be a total failure; no one bought the item. Considering the huge number of sellers who run eBay auctions, there are specific things you must do before you can expect to sell any item, and specific things you must not do if you are to be successful selling in eBay.

There are a number of reasons why auctions fail. The most common reason is quite logic, this is,the item is not in high demand. This problem can be avoided by doing the necessary research to determine which items sell well, and which items should be avoided if you expect any profit. This research can take a great deal of time, but in the end, you will find that it is time well spent.

Another important reason for eBay failure is related to pricing. No matter what your reserve price is, your opening bid price should never be more than $50 or so, always remember that. This is how you will attract potential bidders to your auction. If you set that opening bid too high, most people won't even click the link to read the description for your item, and they will simply walk away. Another pricing problem is lack of research. Before you set your reserve price, you must determine what the item is really worth, and the price similar items have sold for in past eBay auctions.

Poorly written descriptions are another cause of failed auctions that you must consider. Poor grammar and misspelled words drive people away. Failing to post a picture of the item will also keep people from visiting your auction page. Always use good pictures. Make sure that your description is well written. This is essentially your 'sales copy' and must be taken seriously.

Shipping prices scare people away from auctions if they are too high. Find the lowest shipping prices that you can find, and consider paying for the shipping yourself if it won't cut into your profits too much. Do not charge handling fees.

Offer great 'customer service' for all of your auctions, this is of vital value and always ask your buyers to give you feedback, this will keep your business marching. If the items that you sell are everything that you said they would be, and you offer a great customer service, you can with no doubt expect wonderful feedback from your buyers and this feedback will help a great deal in your future auctions.

If you want to lea more bout Ebay and how to sell and buy like the pros. You should visit:

http://www.ebay-auction-advice.com

Auctions Make Money

An untapped online business resource--outside of your basic Yahoo and Ebay, among others--is setting up your own auction sales venue.

Since most families have items in their home that have outlived their usefulness, they can get started at online auctions for mere pennies.

And, most selling online at auctions does not have start-up or membership fees. There is a nominal fee per item listed and a percentage commission on each sale. Still, you come out ahead.

With this minimum investment, many are flocking to auction sites to gain additional income to get their families and selves through the seemingly ever present economic downtu.

Besides the low financial risk, individuals see auctions as one of the select few online vehicles where scams are not associated, or not as prevalent as with most online business opportunities. Plus, a majority have ongoing fees which you must absorb; auctions do not.

As with most home business opportunities, to be successful at online auctions also takes time to lea the ropes. Many auction sites do much of the work for you, providing standard formats for the sellers to insert data. Sites further assist in communications between buyer and seller as well as additional support.

Perhaps the toughest part is finding the right products to sell. Don't think for a moment that Uncle Charlies' false teeth in a jar that you've preciously held onto for years will fetch thousands of dollars, although nowadays you never know. Irregardless, with sites such as Ebay with over a thousand categories, that remedies that headache!

With over 30 years of media experience plus background in special events, fundraising, development, grant writing and administration plus Inteet marketing, Walt Pfarr is now writing his own e-course, ebook and soon will publish the PfarrOut ezine newsletter. He and his wife, Joann, reside in Oklahoma and he may be reached at walterpfarr@lycos.com

How To Use Ebay Listing Tools

Listing tools automate the process of adding listings to eBay, to stop you having to go through the Â'Sell Your ItemÂ' process every time. There is a surprising amount of choice out there when it comes to eBay listing tools, to the point where you might not know what to choose. HereÂ's an overview of whatÂ's useful and whatÂ's not.

Turbo Lister.

Turbo Lister is a free download from eBay, and allows you to sell on eBay without ever having to actually visit the site. You can write descriptions, save them and list them over and over again – if you want to, you can even do most of your eBay work offline, and just go online for a few seconds to upload it.

You can list in bulk and schedule your listings to start any time. Since this is eBayÂ's officially supported program, youÂ're guaranteed that upgrades to eBayÂ's site will never break it and leave you out in the cold. Personally, though, I find the design quite bad – itÂ's not really that much easier than just going through eBay directly.

Blackthoe.

Also from eBay, this is what used to be called the Â'SellerÂ's AssistantÂ'. ItÂ's a downloadable program, but itÂ's more powerful than Turbo Lister is. It lets you do everything in bulk: listing, re-listing, and even feedback. You can export your sales data to an accounting program, and track your auctions while theyÂ're still going on. You only have to enter things like payment choices and shipping details once, and theyÂ're saved forever.

So whereÂ's the disadvantage? It costs $9.99 per month, or $24.99 for the pro version, which also lets you print shipping labels in bulk and manage an inventory.

Andale Lister.

If you want to try something thatÂ's not been made by eBay, AndaleÂ's lister is still web-based, but aims to streamline the process.

You can create Â'profilesÂ' with different selections for your auctions. For example, you could create a Â'NormalÂ' profile that doesnÂ't include any of the listing upgrades, a Â'PromoteÂ' profile that includes Bold and Highlight, and a Â'Super PromoteÂ' profile that buys Bold, Highlight and Featured Plus. This makes it easier to choose the set of options you want for each item.

ItÂ's all about saving things youÂ've done. Each time you upload a picture, it gets added to a Â'Picture LibraryÂ' for you to use again, and you can store an inventory and choose from it to create a listing. You also get nicer-looking templates than eBay provide.

Of course, if eBay had their act together then this is what their own process would be like – but theyÂ're happy for third-parties to make money doing the work instead of upgrading their own site. Andale Lister can cost anywhere between 20c and 4c per listing, as you get discounts for volume.

Now that youÂ're listing in bulk, you can spend more time trying to attract people to come and bid on your auctions. But how should you be doing your marketing? In the next email, weÂ'll go through some of the options available to you.

Article Source: http://www.articledashboard.com

Kirsten Hawkins is an Ebay and inteet auction enthusiast from Nashville, TN. Visit www.auctionseller411.com/ for more great tips on how to make the most from Ebay and other online auctions.

How to Supercharge Your eBay Feedback Rating

Quickly boost your eBay feedback score in just three days using these simple tips.You can use this system to buy liquidation or wholesale lots and double or even triple your bid.

Your feedback score on eBay and any of the other auction sites allows you to have instant credibility with both buyers and sellers. I will explain in the following paragraphs a quick way to add 10 to 50 positive feedback points for under $5, and you may get also get some great new information.

Important - You will only receive one feedback rating per eBay User ID, no matter how many products you buy from that user. For example, if you purchased 10 books for 1cent/each from the same seller, you would only be credited with one positive feedback point. In the beginning, my advice to you would be to buy multiple low cost items from different seller id's. This will allow you to build a great feedback record in a matter of hours instead of the normal 2-3 months time frame it usually takes.

There are many people selling information products for pennies on eBay. Log on to eBay and do a Search. Types in book then choose Lowest Priced Listings; you will see a multitude of offers, many as low as a penny, for books that can be downloaded with no shipping charge. This is a great way to build instant feedback. You can pay via www.paypal.com. Click their link to sign up. You can send payments in seconds with PayPal, which was purchased by eBay last year.

I also recommend you buy any consumables, such as inkjet and toner cartridges on eBay. You will find they are super values! When you shop smart on eBay, you can pick up many items at wholesale or below. You can buy these using the auction sniping service Bidnapper. This will allow you to become familiar with auction sniping (winning the bid in the last seconds with automated bid software). The ideas and concepts will be much clearer when you actively participate in the eBay community as both a buyer and a seller.

There are definitely many positive aspects to having 10 or more positive feedback points. First, it allows you to use the Buy It Now feature when you are selling products on eBay. Many eBay buyers search for these listings if they don't want to wait for an auction to end.

Your auctions will receive more bids, and in tu sell for higher amounts, when your feedback is over 10. Auction studies have shown that when feedback achieves 50 or greater, you will see an additional 10% increase in views and prices.

Tim Gilberg is able to provide information and insight from a unique perspective - that of someone who is actually doing what others just talk about. Ebay Power Seller Platinum Status was Attained by Tim Gilberg, which is one of the highest sales levels attained selling on eBay. Tim is active on Ebay and liquidation.com as well as consulting and working with other Top ebay Power Seller's to give you real life in use insight, not theories. Visit Tim Gilberg at his website Make Money on eBay.

How you can Obtain Life long Customers from eBay

How do you do this?

It's as simple as creating a newsletter you can offer along with your eBay ® listings.

In this article I'm going to briefly cover how you can use a newsletter to do the following:

Tu Your eBay Browsers Into Customers
Tu eBay Customers Into Life-Long Customers
This article will be a two part lesson. Watch for my next article (lesson) covering the basics of creating an effective newsletter. It can be very simple to create a newsletter following a few easy steps!

1.Tu Your eBay Browsers Into Customers

Remember that although your initial goal is to tu your eBay ® "browsers" into buyers, you can't stop there. Many eBay ® sellers assume if they don't have something the "browser" is looking for, then they aren't going to sell anything to that person at all. But, that is far from the truth.

You've already overcome the most difficult part, which is getting the "browser" to your listings. The important part is to make sure each visit counts. You have to make sure that once you get a visitor to one of your listings, they don't leave until you have tried everything possible to get their contact information such as name and email, to try and convert them to a future customer.

Let's say you sell home décor products and someone visits your listings while looking for a particular window treatment. The visitor views the auction they were led to and also visits your "other listed items." This particular visitor doesn't find what the item he/she is looking for. So, he/she leaves your auctions and you never have the chance to do business with this person, right? Wrong!

It would be very simple to invite each visitor to your About Me page, with something like, "Click here to visit my About Me page and receive free, weekly tips to help you redecorate your home like a professional designer for half the cost."

Once the visitor reaches your About Me page, you can provide them with simple instructions on how they can receive your weekly newsletter for free to get the tips they are looking for.

Sounds easy doesn't it?

It is and, in just minutes, you can have this set up and will be collecting valuable names and email addresses.

2. Tuing eBay Customers Into Life-Long Customers

This is so easy, but SO overlooked in the eBay ® industry. If eBay ® is your business, than you have to treat it as such. Like any "typical" business, you try to do your best in every aspect of the sale to ensure your customer will retu. However, online it is so easy to get lost in the shuffle.

Once you pick up a customer, you need to be sure to stay in contact with that customer so there is no doubt in your mind that, if they retu to eBay ® to purchase something, they will come to you first.

There are auction programs such as Vendio that offer great customer management software. You can easily include a "join my mailing list" link to all of your post-sale emails. Remember, once you sell to an eBay customer, they are your customer so you're allowed to email them off eBay ®.

You want to present them with an offer such as, "Join my monthly newsletter and receive updates on my product line including notification of newly listed items, and member discounts."

Doing this allows you to stay in touch with your past customers to keep you fresh in their minds. And it also gives you the opportunity to invite them to your auction listings on a regular basis. But, remember you have to treat your customers well. You have to provide them with good offers so they appreciate you and want to retu.

Whether you obtain the names and emails of those who are visiting your auctions, or those who have bought from you, collecting the information of those who are in the market for your type of product is absolutely priceless.

If they are on eBay ® to purchase a product "like" the products you offer, they are more than likely going to purchase this type of product again in the near future. If you offer them sound information and special discounts, as well as keep in touch with them, chances are they will come to you first for their next purchase.

Janiece Smith is the author of Inteet's top-selling eBook teaching everyday people how to make their own small fortune selling on eBay®. Discover The Secrets Janiece Smith Used To Ea Up To $11,212 Per Month Selling On eBay. Her New eBook allows you to easily and quickly apply the author's secrets of finding and selling products on eBay® to create huge amounts of instant profits! For more details see http://ebay.dotpacket.net

Auctions a Game of Who Can Be the Weirdest

The auction website eBay is known as a place where you can get almost anything at a very respectable price. Even with the small amount of fraud on eBay, its popularity and revenue continues to grow year after year. One other thing that continues to grow on eBay is the number of weird and entertaining auctions popping up everyday.

In the last week auctions for breast advertising, neck tattoo advertising, and even a person selling himself have been listed. Many people that list those outrageous auctions walk away with a fistful of cash because they know numerous people spend their time hunting for those weird auctions. In most cases, people hunting for those auctions do it for the laughs, while others just like buying stupid stuff.

With more and more weird stuff being placed on eBay everyday, it seems that the people selling those items don't just care about money they can make. They seem to care more about publicity and being the first person to do something new. Whatever their reasons, weird auctions are at an all time high on eBay and they will only increase as people get more creative in their hunt for money and fifthteen minutes of fame.

Andre Bias is the creator of http://www.MustSeeAuctions.com a website that points you directly to the weirdest, funniest, and sexiest auctions on eBay.

How To Use Ebay s Second Chance Offer Feature

When someone wins your auction, you might think thatÂ's the end of it. In fact, you can offer the item to anyone else who bid in the auction but didnÂ't win.

Why Would I Do That?

There are three reasons you might want to do this:

1. Your top bidder never paid. Unfortunately for sellers, it is all too common for buyers to win an item and then decide they donÂ't want it after all. Making a second chance offer lets you offer the item to a buyer with a better reputation.

2. You have another one. If you have another item just like the one you just sold then you might as well sell it to another bidder – after all, you know theyÂ're interested and what theyÂ're willing to pay.

3. A buyer emails you directly to ask. If they got Â'snipedÂ' at the last second, or just werenÂ't around when the auction ended, then a buyer might email you to ask if youÂ'll sell them one for however many dollars. You might as well make them an offer – itÂ's a free sale.

So How Do You Make a Second Chance Offer?

Well, itÂ's easy really. The easiest place to send a second chance offer from is the My eBay screen – simply go to the Selling page and click Â'Make a Second Chance OfferÂ'. eBay should also provide a link for you to make a second chance offer in the email you will receive after the sale of an item is completed, or you report a non-paying buyer.

What Happens Next?

The buyer can choose to either accept or reject your offer. If they decline, thatÂ's the end of it, and you pay nothing for making the offer. If they accept, then things work exactly the same way they would if theyÂ'd won the auction – you pay a final value fee, they pay you, and you can leave feedback for each other as normal.

Making a second chance offer on all your auctions can be a great way to make extra sales. You will probably find that about 50% of the buyers you make offers to will take them up, and you save the effort of relisting the item and paying another insertion fee.

The only disadvantage is the time that it might take you to send so many second chance offers, but the chances are it will be time well spent. If you find that it doesnÂ't work for your particular kind of items, though, donÂ't keep pushing it – just re-list the item and let people bid again. It might be that the buyers for your items just arenÂ't the negotiating type – or perhaps they hope that the next one will sell for less.

By now, youÂ're probably starting to make a success of your eBay business – I hope youÂ've enjoyed it so far! But the chances are you still want a few more strategies to increase your profits. Well, in the next email, weÂ'll take a look at what you can discover from taking a good look at your competitorsÂ' auctions.

Article Source: http://www.articledashboard.com

Kirsten Hawkins is an Ebay and inteet auction enthusiast from Nashville, TN. Visit www.auctionseller411.com/ for more great tips on how to make the most from Ebay and other online auctions.

Clueless About What You Can Buy On Ebay

Being clueless on what items to buy on E-bay is a phase.

In fact, it's the very first step to online shopping. With every new day, online shoppers conquer more E-bay buying techniques, and slowly lift off the novice's launch pad.

From then on, online shoppers realize there's more they can buy on E-bay than meets the eye.

Generally, E-bay is comprised of almost all the things a buyer would want and need under the sun. In fact, it seems that E-bay's selling almost everything.

Because of its diversity in items being sold, E-bay categorized each item for easier search. Though, each listing varies from one country to another.

Generally, online shoppers may choose to buy things under the category of antiques. These may include old-fashioned decors; house wares; vintage cars, clothing, and accessories; historic collector's item; and old postcards.

Buyers may also deliberate on buying items classified under the automotive category. These may range from cars to accessories to almost insignificant extras like car stickers, car perfumes, and collectibles.

Those who are looking for computer gadgets, electronic bolts, or printers may look at the Electronics and Computers category of E-bay.

E-bay listings also have the basic necessities like clothes, shoes, and accessories. It also includes different kinds of jewelries like trinkets, charms, necklaces, bracelets, earrings, rings, watches, and oaments.

Those who are looking for stamps and other collectables like postcards, old papers, even different kinds of minerals, rocks, and fossils will find E-bay a very lucrative place to do online shopping.

E-bay also caters to people who are into sports. Buyers can find different sorts of sports gadgets, sports get-ups, and tools. Those who are hobbyists may also find practical tools for their respective hobbies like gardening tools, cross-stitching paraphealia, cooking and baking utensils, or scrapbooks.

Best of all, E-bay offers a great line of entertainment appliances and high-tech gadgets like mobile phones, mp3 players, pc tablets, PDAs, memory cards, flash cards, video cameras, digital cameras, audio recorders, sensors, and camcorders.

Aside from these common items that reflect fads and fashions in today's contemporary society, e-bay has also that special section that consists of "everything else." These are the things that do not fall under the basic categories. These are ephemera, costumes, children's themed gift sets, party packages, mobile sim card, and mobile load, even a Google account.

With these things, buyers can be assured of a wide array of things and gadgets that would serve them best provided that it does not fall under E-bay's prohibited list.

Article Source: http://www.articledashboard.com

David Riewe is a Publisher and Online Marketer. Visit his eBay Blog to Discover 101 Ebay Auction Tips in this FREE ebook www.push-button-online-income.com/ebayblog

eBay Eighteen Profit Busting Listing Tips

How you describe your goods is vitally important to your chances of making a little or a lot of money from every listing.

Your listing comprises not only words used in the title and body text; it includes layouts and colours, too, as well as fonts, size of text, even the length of sentences and paragraphs. These tips will help you list more products, create better listings and eventually make more money:

* Inside your listing, give viewers a reason to call back later if they are in a hurry now or not quite ready to bid. Ask them to visit your 'About Me' page for a free eBook or newsletter and be sure they give their email addresses for you to contact them later. You can also begin a mailing list for later sales outside of eBay. Remind them, too, to add you to their Favourite Sellers list.

* Choose keywords to describe your items and use them in the heading and body of your listings. People can choose to search according to heading (title) or by checking body text too, but few remember to check the box to include this second option. Most people will find your product by either going directly to category listings and clicking through to their appropriate sub-category or, most likely, by simply keying words to describe the item into eBay's search tool. This means if your title does not include those keywords your listing will be missed. Check what keywords are most common when people search for items like those you are listing by going to http://pulse.ebay.co.uk (or .com or other) and continue through the sub-categories until your product type appears. Now check the most commonly keyed search terms at the left of the screen. Alteatively, go to 'Advanced Search', top right of screen and on the next page use keywords to describe your item and tick the 'Completed Auctions' box. From the results choose 'Price: Highest First' to locate similar items, check the keywords used in the heading on which to model your own. Be careful not to breach eBay's stringent rules on 'Keyword Spamming'.

* Avoid using too many bells and whistles in your listings. One that is guaranteed to make me move away really fast is the wizard that flits about the screen thanking me for visiting and generally getting in the way of everything I am trying to see. Music, flashing lights, moving conveyor belt pictures of other products from which to choose a selection – if you're quick enough - have roughly the same effect, as do many other totally useless and generally hugely frustrating devices.

* Use colour, sparingly, in your listings, as well as experimenting with different fonts and font sizes. It all adds interest for the visitor while also creating a professional image for your business.

* Never write titles in full upper case – CAPITALS. IT LOOKS AWFUL, UNPROFESSIONAL, AND FAR FROM ATTRACTING ATTENTION IT MAKES YOUR TITLE MUCH HARDER TO READ. IT IS OKAY TO USE UPPER CASE ON ONE OR TWO WORDS IN YOUR TITLE.

* Try using html to create a more professional appearance especially in highly competitive product fields. For old postcards and other rare, sometimes one-off collectibles, basic text is fine. Where similar or identical items are available from numerous sellers, such as CDs, mode jewellery, make up, improving the appearance of your listing will help distinguish your business from others with hastily created listings packed with spelling mistakes, poor descriptions, and so on.

* Basic html is very easy to use and stunning auction templates can be created in Microsoft Word or FrontPage. Alteatively, choose from thousands of free and low-cost auction templates available online.

* Use templates where possible, it saves listing time later, and can create a more professional appearance. They can look especially good with subtle use of colours, different fonts, background designs; subtle meaning delicate, not garish or gaudy.

* Use light coloured backgrounds, not vivid red or dark blue with black text (Yes, I saw one like this only yesterday where the text was completely unreadable). If you must use pattes, use simple pastel pattes, not bold tartans or flashing backgrounds or dazzling stripes.

* Use fonts that make reading easy. Never make it too hard for visitors to read your listing or they will do the most intelligent thing. Click out and look somewhere else to buy! Most popular fonts are Times, Times Roman, Arial, New York, Verdana.

* When you find a font you like, stick with it, don't change fonts between templates. It isn't worth it and time wasted would be better spent on listing new items. Avoid using too much italic or other embellishing device such as embossing or shadowing in your listings.

* Do not use large fonts in your listings, except for headings and sub-headings, and even those do not need to be more than two or three sizes bigger than body text. Size 12 or 14 is adequate for body text, 18 for main headings, 16 for sub-headings.

* Very large text is a big put-off and is also difficult to read, while also absorbing more memory and taking longer to upload and download.

* Use a maximum two or three different colour fonts (including basic black or navy or other appropriate choice) and never use different colours within the same word. I know major companies like eBay do it but they are well-known, their logos are professionally created, anything less would look trashy and cheap. Not to mention hugely unprofessional.

* Keep text aligned to the left, sometimes to the right where the graphic is placed extreme left. Don't center or justify a column of text without good reason. And there are few if any goods reasons for doing so. Centre text is difficult to read and creates odd lengths that create a totally amateurish appearance. Justified text is even worse with lengthy gaps between words which themselves are longer than average.

* Keep listings fairly narrow especially when using html. Wide listings are okay on wide screen computers, but on narrow screen computers the entire right side will be missing and few people will scroll left and right every few seconds to get the gist of your listing. eBay's own listing boxes, that is where you type directly into eBay, and those created in Turbo Lister, are just the right size, never too long, never too short. When using html or creating your own designer template, practice using eBay's systems first to get the desired length.

* Keep paragraphs short and always with a gap between them. And actually USE PARAGRAPHS where text extends beyond two or three lines. Notice how some listings containing hundreds, sometimes thousands of words, are created in one L – O - N - G chunk which no one in their right mind would read. Others with long, long descriptions actually use paragraphs though the effect is hardly noticeable.

* Try to stagger listings even if you list just once a week. This helps people who are bidding on several of your items and might want to check last minute bidding against them on those items. Too many of their chosen items ending within seconds of each other is confusing and frustrating for them, and means you lose out on last minute impulse bids. Using Turbo Lister you can choose how many already listed items to upload at any time, say in units of 20, and you can also alter the order of items to hopefully prevent 'same item' products selling within seconds of each other.

Avril Harper is a triple eBay PowerSeller and editor of eBay Confidential and webmaster of http://www.publishingcircles.com. She has produced a free guide - 103 POWERSELLER TIPS - which you can download with other freely distributable reports and ebooks at http://www.toppco.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Avril_Harper