Auction Builder

The Unearthed Secrets Of An Ebay Powerseller

2009-03-03T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Seth Chong

Have you seen any sellers on eBay which shows a "star" and the word "PowerSeller" by the side of their names? PowerSellers are eBay's top sellers who have sustained a consistent high volume of monthly sales, a high level of total 98% positive feedback or better, and have met a threshold of compliance with all marketplace policies.

Sounds hard? Nope, not at all, in fact anyone can do it. Shortly, if you want to qualify for being an eBay seller you need:

To be an active member for 90 days.
Average a minimum of $1000 in sales per month for three consecutive months.
Achieve an overall Feedback rating of 100, of which 98% or more is positive.
Have an account in good financial standing.

Now we'll learn about the methods used by our fellow eBay PowerSellers. A successful auction has three elements which are: the title, a description and pictures of your selling item.

When listing, always write a clear, attractive and concise title. The first thing any potential buyers see will be your title so you should grab their attention once they enter. It should tell what the buyers want, make them nod their heads when they read your title. Some descriptive words like old, vintage, runs, works or condition statements like "New in Box", anything that is appropriate can get you better results than a bold headline.

Many people left a lot of money on the table when they depended just on "see photos" instead of writing a good description. A large number of auctions are filled with paragraph after paragraph of information about where to send the payments, how to send the payments, when to send the payments, who can bid and who can't which sometimes clutters the auction.

It's really simple to include a good description which can make your potential buyers stay glued to what you say right until they make a bid or purchase your item and everyone in the world should do it!

By writing an accurate description you will make bidders more confident about your item. Not certain on what to describe? Search for similar items on eBay, and read the description, take down the catchy words then use it in your listing. The confidence can translate into higher prices.

As for your auction's pictures, use big clear photographs. The best way to get nice and clear photos is to take them using a digital camera. Other than that, it is also easier for you to upload the photos into your computer with a digital camera. Try and improve your pictures by adding suitable lightings as well, it can help produce better results in your picture's quality.

Now, all of us know that feedbacks are based on the seller's customer service. Whenever we go out somewhere for a meal, customer service is very important. Let's say DOME, people likes going there because the food has low calories, and of course, it tastes great. But what makes people feel comfortable eating there is the customer service. Good customer service is always defined by: a smile, fast service, and simple.

We'll need to always be pleasant to our customers. Don't be shy, be more humble than your customers and treat them as though they're your boss. When people know you have good customer service, they won't mind considering buying more items from you. Since you are a trusted person and easy to communicate with it, being your repeated customer in time to come will be great. If you have excellent customer service, it just hurts if I don't write you a good feedback and keep your items, right?

Selling the item to your customer doesn't mean he or she is done for good. There are a lot more ways to benefit from your current customers. After they've purchased your item, try to offer a bonus, like a free e-book or something that is useful.

But first, they will need to sign up for your newsletter, or subscribe to your opt-in list. You can instead not only offer the bonus for the buyer, but all the other bidders. This way, you add up your opt-in list, make everyone happy, and all these current bidders can be potential buyers of your items in the future.

In your auctions, you can always put a link to your other auctions in your description and inform the surfers that you have more items for sale. By telling the viewers you have similar items for sale and can offer cheaper shipping & handling cost, it urges people to buy more items from you.

A guarantee is always part of the most important factor in your auctions. This can be a simple statement like if the item is not as represented you can return it for a refund. Using a strong guarantee can greatly increase your response. If you offer a guarantee you need to honor it, but if you're diligent, you will definitely not have many returns. If you want to know how a good guarantee statement sounds like, you can refer this one:

"100% SATISFACTION GUARANTEE IF YOU ARE UNHAPPY FOR ANY REASON JUST RETURN YOUR ITEM FOR A COMPLETE REFUND INCLUDING SHIPPING BOTH WAYS."

How does it sound? Safe enough to buy definitely! It doesn't matter if they refund your item in the future, you just need to sell your items to your customers and let them make their choices after receiving it.

At the end of your auction's description, always make it easier for surfers and maintain their urge of buying by listing the shipping & handling costs for your items.

Refrain from letting them do the math or turn to other pages just because it's troublesome inquiring for the fees. A good example is:

"$5.00 shipping to US Destinations by Priority Mail. I will pack with care and ship with delivery confirmation for your protection. International shipping are sent by Airmail letter Post. I will combine items that end on the SAME day to lower your shipping cost."

This is absolutely clear and to the point. When you include this information, surfers will not have to figure out anything extra or look at other pages to find out the shipping information, and it can help increasing your response in sales!

People have many different opinions when it comes to how long they should list an auction. There's no definite answer to it, but five to seven days are the peak ones. Search results are presented by newly listed items or those items which are ending on the same day, which means the first and the last 24 hours are when most people will see one's auction.

Pack well! By packing nicely you inflict the message of how valuable your item is, and it increases your customer's satisfaction for the product. Chocolates like Ferrero Rocher or Kit Kat have nice packing and that urges people to buy it as well, noticed it before?

To be an eBay seller isn't hard at all, it takes a little time and effort, but that's it. Slowly build your customer database, keep the opt-ins, add up your positive feedbacks, continue providing good customer support, and you're almost there.

Seth Chong is the owner of IMViral, one of the largest, greatest viral Internet Marketing Newsletter which is being spread around the world, you can sign up for the Newsletter(worths $297) for Free at http://www.IMViral.com

Ebay Feedback And Customer Confidence

2009-03-02T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Cathy Stucker

When my voice mail system recently gave up the ghost, I discovered that the equipment I had been using has not been manufactured in years, and no one makes anything quite like it.

After learning more than I really wanted to know about phone and voice mail systems, I narrowed my decision to two systems. One seemed to be a better choice, and was even less expensive than the other. However, when it came time to place the order I got nervous. The manufacturer seemed less 'corporate' and not as well established as the maker of the other system. I started wondering if paying the higher price was the safer thing to do, rather than dealing with a lesser-known company. Would my credit card information be secure? Would the company provide a quality product, and would they stand behind it?

The factor that won me over was eBay. Although I was not shopping for their products on eBay, it turns out that this company sells a lot on eBay, and their feedback score is 100%. Of course, the raw number isn't enough to go on. They have enough ratings that the feedback score appears to be genuine, the feedback comes from many users with established feedback scores, and the feedback is primarily for selling the type of product I was planning to buy.

eBay had a great idea when they came up with feedback scores. While a good feedback score is not a guarantee that you will be happy with your transaction, it is a good indicator. In this case, even though I wasn't planning to buy on eBay, the fact that this merchant had good feedback there gave me the confidence I needed to do business with them.

Positive feedback from eBay customers is just one way you can build credibility and create trust in the online community. The more confidence your customers have in you, the easier it will be to get their business.

Copyright Cathy Stucker. As the IdeaLady, Cathy Stucker helps authors, entrepreneurs and professionals attract customers and make themselves famous. To learn more about marketing and get free marketing tips, visit Cathy at http://www.IdeaLady.com/

Ebay Feedback How To Grow It And Keep Positive Feedback For Your Business

2009-03-01T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Avril Harper

Positive feedback is vital for growing a business and good reputation on eBay, especially when building feedback to sell BUY IT NOW or open a shop on eBay. Bad feedback can be avoided, even removed, read on to learn how.

eBay Feedback is the process where buyers and sellers rate one another based on actual trading experience. If the transaction is good you can expect positive feedback from buyers and sellers. Neutral feedback indicates room for improvement; negative feedback denotes an unacceptably flawed transaction

Usually!

I say 'usually' because things don't always go according to plan. Feedback is subjective some people are more easily pleased than others, some more forgiving while some are more honest. I have seen positive feedback left by people who haven't even received their product yet, and negative from others who just enjoy being cruel or haven't even paid the seller. Jealousy, bad hair days, downright nastiness, all contribute to negative feedback which few sellers can avoid.

Positive feedback is vital for growing a business and good reputation on eBay, especially when building feedback to sell BUY IT NOW or open a shop on eBay. Feedback positive and negative (neutral doesn't count for % rating) is represented as a proportion of overall feedback. So the lower your feedback rating, the higher the impact negative feedback has, unlike PowerSellers with, say, 10,000 feedbacks, for whom one more negative has little or no effect.

Once feedback is given, even in the heat of the moment, it can't be changed, so a negative stays with you for life. That's more or less what eBay says, but the reality is different. Feedback can be retracted by mutual consent (learn more via 'Feedback' in your eBay account) and via firms like SquareTrade www.squaretrade.com who mediate between members to remove negatives.

It's vitally important to understand why people leave negative feedback and take steps to avoid these most common reasons:

* Delay in sending product. 'Delay' for some people is more than a day between paying and receiving their product, for most three or four days is acceptable. Seven days is too long. If there is a delay, be upfront about it, write to buyers, apologize and give an explanation and revised delivery date.

* Sending product badly wrapped. Pack products carefully, using bubble wrap or padded bags. It can be expensive but you are allowed to add packing charges to postal costs.

* Not sending product at all. More than three negatives for this will get you suspended or barred from eBay. Not sending a product is inexcusable and you should only list items you already have or can easily obtain.

* Item not as described. Describe items as carefully and comprehensively as possible and always include a message like: 'Item described to the best of our ability. Money back on all items with inadvertent listing mistakes or errors.'

* Not answering emails. Often the problem isn't yours, the other person may have spam filters preventing your email getting through, often they just don't check before leaving negative feedback. An estimated one-third of emails miss their intended destination, mainly due to spam filters.

But most PayPal letters make it through spam filters and they're rarely missed by people who've binned many of your earlier communications. Virtually everyone opens emails saying 'There's money in your PayPal account'. Poor communications can be solved by sending a small amount of money via PayPal with a message 'You have spam filters in place, contact me asap'. Or similar. Be careful, remember the recipient of money usually pays PayPal a transaction fee. Not so where you partially refund someone paying you through PayPal. Do this by entering the appropriate transaction within your PayPal account, scroll down to 'refund', pay a small amount back. The recipient won't pay but he will get your message. Don't refund by PayPal for buyers paying you by cheque or cash. They will be charged. The exception is where you send a token amount, plus PayPal charge, to the recipient.

* Charging high postage and trying to make more money that way. You can charge extra for packing and processing but be realistic. Don't charge $10 for a package costing $3 to post and $2 for packing materials. It's unprofessional and will earn negative feedback and complaints to eBay.

* In retaliation for leaving negative feedback for other eBayers. This is the most common reason for negative feedback and something you must learn to live with. If you're honest and leave negative feedback to warn other buyers and sellers against a member you consider dishonest or untrustworthy you will get negatives. You must decide if warning others is worth the red mark!

* Just Because! You will never please them all and it isn't worth your time trying.

Getting Good, Avoiding Bad and Managing Problem Feedback

* Retaliatory negative feedback is the most worrying aspect of all for serious business eBayers who, though they know it's their duty to warn other sellers about undesirable customers, are often too afraid of incurring negatives in return. I only give feedback when it's already been left for me. In my listings and compliments slip I say: 'If you have a problem email us at myemailaddress and we'll sort it out right away. Otherwise, leave feedback to let us know your product has arrived in good order and we will reciprocate within 24 hours.'

* 'Reciprocate' is the important word, and if someone leaves positive feedback we normally leave the same; if they leave neutral or negative we contact them to ask why. If we consider reciprocal neutral or negative feedback is warranted, that's what they get. To my mind it is totally, totally wrong to leave neutral or negative feedback for anyone without first trying to resolve the problem. In this case our negative or neutral feedback isn't retaliatory, it's simply to warn other sellers about the buyer's lack of care and communications skills.

* You can pre-approve bidders, allowing you to sell purely to individuals who have no negative feedback themselves and don't leave it unnecessarily for others. You might get people to email you before bidding, you check them out, you approve or bar them from bidding. Personally, I can't see the point.

* You can cancel bids or forbid certain people from bidding. Visit eBay's Feedback Forum for lots of advice and comments from seasoned sellers.

* A friendly, considerate disposition, and the ability to handle difficult people, all help avoid the 'Big N*' which can seriously damage your business. (*Negative feedback!!!). Now let us get real, bear in mind the bigger you get, the more items you sell, the more negatives you might genuinely earn, and the more difficult people you will encounter. Be careful, considerate, communicate.

Learn from earned negative feedback, try to avoid undeserved complaints, and learn to live with whatever else happens.

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 free to distribute reports and ebooks at http://www.toppco.com

What Is Your Reputation Really Worth On Ebay

2009-02-28T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Paul Duxbury

Your eBay reputation is everything you are on eBay without it, you're nothing. Your reputation is worth as much as every sale you will ever make.

If you've ever bought anything on eBay (and the chances are you have), then think about your own behaviour. Buying from a seller with a low feedback rating makes you feel a little nervous and insecure, while buying from a PowerSeller with their reputation in the thousands doesn't require any thought or fear it feels just like buying from a shop.

A Bad Reputation Will Lose You Sales.

In fact, a bad reputation will lose you almost all your sales. If someone leaves you negative feedback, you will feel the pain straight away, as that rating will go right at the top of your user page for everyone to see. Who's going to want to do business with you when they've just read that you "took a month to deliver the item", or that you had "bad communication and sent a damaged item"? The answer is no-one.

Your next few items will need to be very cheap things, just to push that negative down the page. You might have to spend days or even weeks selling cheap stuff to get enough positive feedback to make anyone deal with you again.

It's even worse if you consistently let buyers leave negative feedback once you get below 90% positive ratings, you might as well be invisible.

You Can't Just Open a New Account.

Besides eBay's rules about only having one account, there are far more downsides than that to getting a new account. You literally have to start all over again from scratch.

You won't be able to use all the different eBay features. Your existing customers won't be able to find you any more. Your auctions will finish at a lower price because of your low feedback rating. Opening a new account is like moving to a new town to get away from a few people who are spreading rumours about you: it's throwing out the baby with the bathwater.

A Good Reputation Will Get You Sales.

When a PowerSeller tells me something, I tend to believe them. They can be selling a pretty unlikely item, but if they guarantee it is what they say it is, then I trust them they're not going to risk their reputation, after all. This is the power of a reputation: people know you want to keep it, and they know you'll go to almost any lengths to do so.

This is true even to the point that I would sooner buy something for £20 from a seller I know I can trust than for £15 from someone with average feedback. It's worth the extra money to feel like the seller knows what they're doing, has all their systems in place and will get me the item quickly and efficiently.

You really will find selling on eBay so much easier, and there's only way to get a good reputation: make sure you please your customers every time.

Paul is Head of Training for a major UK Charitable Organisation with a wealth of experience in personal development, management development, e-learning and operational management. In addition he owns PK eBooks (http://www.pk-ebooks.co.uk) two sites specifically aimed at those who want to successfully sell on eBay http://www.ebay-profits.co.uk and http://www.info-entrepreneurs.co.uk

Improve Your Ebay Auction Success By Using All Of The Free Product Sourcing Tools At Your Disposal

2009-02-27T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Chris Vendilli

Selling in-demand items on eBay is by far the most profitable choice you can make when doing your product sourcing. With so much competition on eBay, there's simply not room for error or choosing to sell anything less than popular.

The problem eBay sellers face however is that the state of the market is constantly evolving. Last months best-seller may be this month's total flop.

No matter how difficult or competitive selling on this auction giant may become, eBay will always try to make the process as painless as possible. Fortunately, eBay itself provides a number of tools that can help you identify the latest selling trends. This article will briefly explain these tools to you, show you how to access them, and evaluate their usefulness.

The first tool that eBay provides is "The Hot Items Report" (http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral/hotitems.pdf) - In the words of eBay itself "Hot...Very HotSuper Hot! Discover which categories and products are on firewhere bid to item ratios are high and demand is outpacing supply." This is certainly an invaluable resource that will help you keep a check on the current state of the eBay marketplace and stay on top!

Second up there is the "The eBay Pulse" (http://pulse.ebay.com) - This allows you to view the most popular searches, largest stores, most watched items and more. It's an extremely useful tool, but a word of warning sometimes only the most unusual and intriguing items show up here, and not the ones that are in the highest demand. It may not always be a true reflection on what is really the most popular item(s) on eBay. To demonstrate this, on the day of writing several items featured in The Pulse were what you might call "get rich quick schemes," whilst another was someone offering to have your advert tattooed on their back for all to see!

Marketplace Research

(http://pages.ebay.com/marketplace_research/index.html) is a new service that allows you to analyze data on completed auction listings. Although the service does incur a monthly charge, it may be worth a look if you'd like in-depth data and statistics already collected for you. If you're familiar with eBay's advanced search features you may be able to accomplish something similar to Marketplace Research on your own.

The eBay Community (http://hub.ebay.com/community) is another useful section to the site if you're seeking out popular items. The chance to talk with other sellers, network, and discuss the latest trends may mean you can keep ahead of the pack. It's nice for a good old elbow-rubbing session with fellow eBay nuts too. eBay is such a humongous marketplace most sellers realize it's not a bad choice to share your success stories with potential competition, since you may pick up some tips for yourself.

Of course you can also simply keep an eye out yourself. Take a look at completed auction listings. Is the item you're thinking of selling doing well for other people? Is this a seasonal item? How many other sellers are in this niche?

With this wide range of tools at your disposal, you've got a ready-made resource to search for those hot items. I've got dollar signs in my eyes already!

Chris Vendilli is the owner, founder, and CEO of The 3 Rivers Auctions Company. Chris has helped numerous people start successful online businesses mainly focusing on eBay and affiliate marketing. Chris is also an eBay Power Seller, indicating he has in depth knowledge of the way eBay works! If you're interested in getting more information regarding eBay tips, trends, strategies, & secrets please visit Chris's site using the link below:

http://www.3riversauctions.com

Drop Shipping Is Your Perfect Home Based Business Solution

2009-02-26T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Michael Nalbone

Drop Shipping Is Your Perfect Home Based Business Solution

Drop shipping is one of the greatest businesses to operate from home. With drop shipping you sell another company's products, use their warehouse and shipping facilities, and they provide you with the sales tools you need like product descriptions and images and more - free of charge!

Drop shipping is great for small businesses because you can start with literally nothing & gradually increase to higher levels of success. Drop shipping allows you to leverage other, much larger company's resources!

Any business owner who needs the an inexpensive & efficient means to market items online should look into drop shipping. Drop shipping allows you to sell almost any type of product you want with no warehouse & no inventory.

No inventory = low risk! You only purchase an item from the dropshipper after you've already made the sale! You never get stuck with a garage full of products that won't sell.

Drop shippers packages all of the products for you, they place your name on the return address of the package & then they ship it to your customer. You'll look like you're a multi-million dollar outfit to the customer!

In order to do business with a real wholesaler, some of them (not all) may require proof that you're in business & not just some consumer looking for great prices. So, you may need to file for a Resale Tax ID for your State. It's easy to do I filed my application online in just 10 minutes & even received a temporary certificate that I immediately printed out. I was literally in business within 10 minutes!

If you're SERIOUS about running a business you MUST have one! No ifs, ands, or buts. And, it's so easy to get one, there's no excuse not to.

If a wholesaler doesn't request a Resale Tax ID from you, they're a very small company or they're not real wholesalers, just middle-men.

When you find wholesale companies that drop ship many different types of products, everything from toys to electronics, and they don't request your Resale Tax ID, be aware that probably aren't a real wholesale company. Most legitimate wholesalers focus on a specific product type, like electronics or toys alone.

These middle-men companies just forward your order to the real wholesale company. You won't be able to compete on a level playing field with your competition if you do business with these guys. Chances are your competitors have Resale Tax IDs.

So be aware that you're dealing with a middle-man wholesaler who will have the real dropshipper dropship your products for you. Do yourself a favor & avoid dealing with the middlemen and get a Resale Tax ID. You'll save yourself a lot of money by be able to compete with the big-guns.

After your account is set up with the real wholesaler, you'll get a printed catalog and possibly a CD-Rom with product descriptions and images that you can use.

Middle-men usually don't provide these "bonuses". You just upload the image & description to your web site, decide on the price & wait for the orders to come rolling in!

Drop shipping will allow any person to run a successful & competitive business from home regardless of a lack of start-up funds.

Mike Nalbone is the creator of "The Wholesale Detective" http://www.nalbone.org/detective/ which is a complete resource for people seeking to utilize drop shipping to start or expand their own business.

How To Select Items To Use The Featured Auction Section Of Ebay

2009-02-25T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Donny Lowy

On eBay it is utterly simple to list an item in the featured auction section! If you are able to spend on substantial extra fee, you can get your auction featured. There are two price tags for two different kinds of auctions featured viz. for $99.95 you can have a regular auction featured on eBay. And for $19.95 you can have your auction featured in its special category. You will find the featured auction appearing at the top of its category. In the regular auction listing it shall appear in bold.

While you are opting for featured auction section of eBay you have to judge for yourself whether your item for auction is worth it or not ? For most items auction featured section does not work since when potential bidder is looking for something specific, they are least likely to browse through the featured sections. So you have to be very careful while selecting items to be in the featured auction section. Items that are supposed to be bought on impulse might get sold well in the featured sections. It is mostly seen that many people who visit the featured sections are actually browsing only to look for something to buy.

If an item of yours is not being identified with keywords or is really difficult to search for then the section for featured auction is best to sell your product as the visitor shall find the same on a listing with a huge number of auctions. Featured sections also prove to be good when the eBay users are new and are unable to search effectively with proper keywords. Even if you are selling a popular consumer item, featured sections help you to sell well.

Donny Lowy runs http://www.closeoutexplosion.com an online wholesale and closeout business that supplies eBay sellers, retailers, and flea market vendors.

Louis Vuitton Avoiding The Ebay Nightmare Fakes

2009-02-24T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Rufus Steele

Without a doubt, eBay was one of the cleverest on-line ideas that anyone has had so far. The idea of creating a site where you can bid on and buy items ranging from an eggcup through to a disused Boeing 747 or a Nuclear Missile Silo was pure genius.

Sadly though, whenever a good idea comes along, the seedier side of humanity is sure to be not that far behind, sliding along in it's wake leaving a gooey trail behind themselves.

So it is on Ebay. Current estimation holds that nigh on 37% of the worlds counterfeit and fake goods are sold daily on Ebay.

Having seen some of the listings I can fully believe it.

Especially where designer label goods are concerned.

Take a look at just about any page of Louis Vuitton items listed on Ebay and on average you'll find 95% of them on each page are fake.

So how can you avoid the easy to make mistake of buying a cheap quality fake LV?

Learn.

Learn as much as you can about the specific item you're interested in.

Don't go trawling ebay for ideas on what to buy and expect to be able to find a prize, hidden away deep in the listings. There are LV addicts who spend the best part of the day doing just that, trawling the auctions, checking and rechecking, looking for the bags that are being sold by owners with little knowledge, owners who are selling at a price away below what it should be. Then they'll "snipe" the auction in the last few seconds - right out from under your nose!

If you really want to buy a pre owned LV then your best bet would be to go to a consignment store and see if they can get hold of one for you. They'll have a constantly changing stock of second hand authentic items for you to choose from and you're fairly assured of it being genuine.

But if you really must buy your LV off eBay then try to use one of the approved LV sellers.

Who or what is an approved LV seller, you may well ask?

Well, there are two sets of LV sellers and buyers who have proven themselves, over a period of time as well as a set number of successful sales of authentic goods, and who have a distinction awarded by one of two "bodies".

The two bodies are MyPoupette and ALVA (Authentic Louis Vuitton Addicts).

A MyPoupette recommended seller is known as an MPRS (My Poupette Recommended Seller) and an ALVA recommended seller is known as an ALVA SS (ALVA Seller Select).

Both of these lists have a criteria that any seller MUST meet before being granted the "badge". That criteria requires a certain number of authentic only items to have been sold with supporting feedback and good trading practice before they can qualify.

Once they are awarded this distinction they are then allowed to use that title and badge in their auctions.

Now, although nothing in life is guaranteed, you can be much more assured and comfortable buying your used LV through one of these sellers.

Why?

Well, two reasons really.

Firstly, many of the resellers who have earned this level treat their selling and buying as a business. To sell a fake would result in their being stripped of their titles which could seriously affect their turnover! They only deal in authentic items and HATE fakes.

Secondly, both of the bodies who issue these distinctions have an interest and a duty in ensuring that their members behave and sell properly.

Should a buyer have an issue with one of these sellers they can take their complaint to either MyPoupette or ALVA and ask that they intervene. Although neither of these bodies are legally responsible for your sales and purchases with their listed resellers, they do take any complaint seriously and will investigate and assist where possible.

On past record, when you deal with a seller with either of these titles you are going to have a good time!

And that means you avoid buying a fake LV on Ebay!

Rufus Steele is the author and creator of the Louis Vuitton website, a site dedicated to all things Louis Vuitton

Have You Got Ebay Powerseller Potential

2009-02-23T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Darren Yates

What exactly is a PowerSeller?

PowerSellers are the eBay members that have made it, you can recognize them by the 'PowerSeller' badge next to their name. You've probably seen these people across eBay as you go about your usual business to succeed on eBay, you need to think the way they do.

How do you get Awarded PowerSeller Status? eBay decides who can be a PowerSeller and who can't, and they have strict rules. To get in at the minimum PowerSeller level, you must have a feedback rating of at least 100 (minimum 98% positive) and sell at least $1,000 worth of items every month for three months in a row.

There are different levels of PowerSeller membership as you sell items of greater value:

$1,000 is bronze
$3,000 is silver
$10,000 is gold
$25,000 is platinum
$125,000 is titanium

If PowerSellers ever fail to meet the required amount of sales, or their feedback falls below 98% positive, then they lose their PowerSeller status. Essentially the only eBay users that get to be PowerSellers on eBay are the users that have been successful for a while and are on track to stay successful.

The Marketplace and the Shop.

This is the most important part of understanding how PowerSellers think. They don't see what they're doing as being some random bazaar, or a hobby instead, they see themselves as a business.

For example, if you run a stall in a marketplace, the chances are that you have a general area of business, but you mostly just sell whatever you can get your hands on that week. If your dodgy buddy got his hands on a job lot of something at a discount, then that's what you'll be selling. This might be fun and when you have a good week, you'll have a really good week but it's no way to run a real business in the long-term.

PowerSellers think far more like shops. They sell the same things again and again, every week regular stock for regular customers. They do 'boring' business things like keep inventories and budgets. They know what they're going to be selling, how much they buy it for and how much they expect to sell for. Just like a real shop, there can be hard times sometimes, but their income is stable and their business can grow slowly.

The best advice I can give you on thinking like a PowerSeller is this: don't take long-term risks for short-term gain. Look after your reputation, manage your selling properly, provide good customer service and the rewards will come to you in due course. And you'll get a little badge next to your name that makes people trust you more!

One option that you may of missed is - What can eBay do for any other businesses you have. Millions of people visit eBay every day why keep everything separate when you're starting to tap into that kind of power?

In fact $14 out of every $100 spent online is spent at eBay!

Darren Yates has learned of Brandon Dupsky a guy making $22,000 a DAY! on eBay selling everyday stuff. Do you think you could too? - http://www.how-to-make-money-online.info/eBay-millionaire/

This article comes with reprint rights. Feel free to reprint and distribute as you like. All that we ask is that you do not make any changes, that this resource text is include, and that the link above is intact.

Traditional Marketing Techniques For Ebay Auction Ads

2009-02-22T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Chuck Mullaney

Ya know, I sort of giggle when I look at an ad on eBay that's just a black and white description of the item or product that's up for bid. It wasn't long ago at all that I would have done the exact same thing, but once I understood some traditional marketing techniques, not just been exposed to them; everything looked totally different.

It's been a few years now and I can't imagine how I got by in a "sales" career beforehand. I had been a fairly successful salesman in the mortgage business, or the term the public uses; Mortgage Broker. A commission only job with no promised monthly salary. My income was totally based upon my sales success or "lack of", each month. How was I able to eat without knowing how to write ad copy or how to use the "hook", or how to effectively use a "take away" move..?

Simple answer: Born for it.

If you're like me, in that you enjoy selling something that you, yourself are sold on, then eBay is where you need to be and learning traditional marketing techniques is the way to have any type of success. There is no other way for, us po folk(not millionaires), to reach such a huge amount of potential buyers for ANY type of item at all. One hundred twenty five million users! Whoa. At this point, they have daily new user sign ups in excess of one hundred thousand people...100,000 each day!

THE PRODUCT IS NOT WHAT YOU ARE SELLING!!!

Things are much more technical than that. Here's a short list of the different focuses:

Gallery picture is to grab attention only. It's not about looking nice and neat or pretty or professional; it's about human instinct, the power of basic colors, and their contrast with each other. It's about getting noticed on a page of 25 items in a list! We all just browse lists...there is no reading lists word for word! Of course I know that there are exceptions, but the majority are predictable.
The title is not for describing the item! Don't think for a minute that you will get noticed by enough people to make real money if they don't see you when they search. The bottom line is that most purchases are the result of a search at the top of the ebay page. Knowing this, you'd think that the search would be checking the entire ad text for matches, ...not! There is a specific checkbox to choose this option right next to the search area, but most don't "check" it, so normally the search is only checking the title. Think about that. Now do you understand why some of those auction titles sounded so stupid..? You got it! They are the smart ones. There's a real art to creating a title that sounds somewhat normal while being keyword rich.
Feedback must remain clean, if not perfect! It's an opinion and mine will not sway. There's an inherent communication problem on the internet already. Why would you do anything at all to place more doubt in a prospective buyer's head..? Well, one bad comment can ruin the whole record for, at least 10 more sales because they're structured like this blog, backwards! The bad comment will be there until you fill the page again with positive comments! Just keep it perfect at all costs or don't get upset when they bypass your item for someone else's.
Pricing. Again, more of a marketing or psychological factor than most think it is. Information products are even more suited to this because their value is based, partly, on perception or what people think it should cost. That literally means that a new product can sell more units priced higher than comperable products just because it's more expensive! Now, what I just said was not that they sell for more so they make more. I said "units". It's possible to sell 10 for one price and 10 for a higher price, quicker. If the whole dynamic, or feel of the ad, gives the item a higher perceived value, rather than a "ripp off", they may even move faster because of being more expensive. I'm beating this horse because most people are trained the opposite of this, that cheaper is better... Pricing is a tool, just a really important one to get right.
Traditional ad copy is usually a sales letter that is absolutley focused on purchasing your interest with well placed, and sometimes viosually appealling, words. Just as the title was only to get you to click the ad, the headline or first words in the desciption should be focused on getting you to read it and go to the next line. That's where the hand off takes place and now it's the second area or headline's job to kepp you and send you to the next. Just that methodical. The only way I can see to do this effectively is being obsessive about it. Invest some time in this because it directly effects your income, period. Sometimes I like to write most of the ad, right off the top of my head, then go over it with a fine tooth comb, making adjustments, over and over and over and over... Till it works and flows properly. Every great marketer has seemingly strict opinions as to which words to use or not and which colors to use or not. The funny thing is that a huge part of a marketer's job is to test new things and question there skills to hone them. I'm caught up in this circle all the time...
Your "store" policies. The only way to really get the idea of why you need to be particular about things such as this is to look around at the other auctions. You will definately run into some cheesy ones and some really well done policies. Now pick which seller you feel more comfortable paying money to "up front" for a purchase... Get my point..? Be a pro at all times, trust me; everyone is watching. Make your store policies more fair than most and make them easy to read and understand. Don't write them exactly the way you want to see them, smarter people than you will read them AND dumber people than you will read them. You need to make each of us feel good about you here.

Once you grasp these as the truth that they are, you'll see the potential of eBay just because you will simply be in the minority! These are the first steps of becoming an extremely over paid telecommuter or PJExec.

I've sold almost a half million dollars worth of products this year, from my bedroom, without employees, and in my PAJAMAS! Not one of my sales were drop shipped and almost every one of them was an Information Product.

I'm a High Level Powerseller on eBay, AND, I'm a Certified eBay Education Specialist, trained by eBay. When I took the acceptance exam to be an Education Specialist, in September 2004, my exam ranking was number 1! There were 582 other trainers at that point.

I have gross eBay sales of more than $300,000 this year.

I also have gross website sales of more than $140,000 this year.

I have 100% Positive Customer Feedback!!!!

I have Zero Employees.

I work, at home, in my PAJAMAS!

http://www.PajamaExecutive.com

Five Top Tips For Successful Ebay Selling

2009-02-21T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Brian McGregor

Here are five of the best tips I've come across when you're selling on eBay:

1. Keywords in titles and descriptions

When creating an auction for an item, try and catch a bigger audience by including related popular words in your title or description. For example if you're selling an XYZ make of DVD player, in your description you could say something like "it doesn't matter if you're looking for a Sony, Panasonic, Philips etc, you will find the XYZ competes on all features." So when people search for a Sony in the description, your auction will be returned in the list.

2. See my other auctions

Although your auction page on eBay provides a facility which lets people click over to see your other auctions, always include a link within your auction description. Many people don't know of the standard links which are at the top of the page, or they immediately click down the auction page to get to the item description.

3. Shoulder the risk

If you think about it, buyers bear all the risk in an auction transaction. They will probably have to pay the seller before the item is dispatched. This risk could be the final reason why someone may not bid on your auction. Think about removing the risk, and see if you can "afford" to offer a moneyback guarantee in your auction description. If you are honest and your item is as described, this tactic could be a win/win for you.

4. Save time on repetitive keying

You may have noticed during your auction activity how often you key in the same words or phrases over an over again. You can use a lovely little piece of software called Shortkeys which will reduce this keying by around 95%. You can find out about Shortkeys here:- http://www.shortkeys.com

5. Feedback promotion

If you have a web site, include its address in every feedback you give to your buyers. It's free advertising for you which will grow and grow as your auction business develops. For example, you could use something like this as feedback:

Excellent buyer. Prompt payment. A1 recommended www.more-auction-sales.com

Use these tips, and your eBay business will be greatly assisted.

Brian McGregor is an eBay and internet entrepreneur. He recently created the 'eBay Master Class' for eBay sellers. For your free copy, please go to http://www.workwinners.com/ebm-request.htm

How To Take Advantage Of Reverse Online Auction When Buying A Motorcycle

2009-02-20T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Richard Verker

Consumers in the market for a new motorcycle may want to consider the reverse auction process as a means to pick up a new or used motorcycle. You probably have made the rounds to the local motorcycle shops and priced out the motorcycle that you are hoping to purchase. The prices for motorcycles as with many products are often directly proportional to the amount of competition there is and a vendor with no competition is just not motivated to lower the price. That's were reverse motorcycle auctions may be able to help you obtain the best price available.

Motorcycle auctions of this type work in reverse of the normal auction. Basically, as a buyer, you list the motorcycle that you wish to purchase, complete with model number and all specifications that you are interested in. Vendors of motorcycles respond with their best prices and if there are a number of vendors they will bid down the price in order to obtain your business. As a buyer, you will quickly be able to understand if these prices that are being bid during the motorcycle auction are better than what you may have found during your trips to the motorcycle shops.

Using a motorcycle auction of this type is a great way to make your purchase. Not only will you receive the best price available based on real competition, you can do all of this from the comfort of your home. Using your computer you can list your motorcycle auction request and then sit back and relax while the vendors bid on your auction request. Completing the sale and purchase of your new motorcycle is simple and straightforward as well. Once the auction is completed, get in touch with the winning vendor to make arrangements for completion of the sale and delivery of your new motorcycle.

Richard Verker has been writing business articles for 15 years. After studies in general economy and e-commerce, his work on online auctions makes his articles top-rated by magazines and thousands of readers. Visit the Reverse Online Auction Site for more information.

Auction Image Hosting For Ebay Auctions Free Single Most Recommended Tip

2009-02-19T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Bob Tabor

It is a well known fact that the more pictures taken of an item, the better it will sell. Not only will you get more bids, but you will make a superior final profit. This is probably why this tip is the single most given tip when it comes to ebay.

Naturally, You will not list as many pictures as you should because E-bay's service charges per picture. Because of this you tend to ask yourself, do I really need another picture? This kind of thinking is bad for business. You should instead be asking yourself, how many useful pictures can I take of this item? This brings us to the big dilemma. Ebay charges you for every picture they host. So more pictures means a more expensive auction.

The best thing you can do as a seller is to look into subscribing to an Unlimited Picture Hosting Service. These services will host an unlimited number of pictures for you and some are very easy to use. Let me show you an example. My favorite is FoamTemplates.com.

I hope next time you put auction together you will consider posting more pictures, even if you have to use a free photo service. Some of the more popular are photo bucket, or snap fish but any will do.

If you do deicide to go with paid hosting, look into FOAMTemplates.com $8 a month will get you unlimited image uploads with no bandwith requirements, and that is unheard of. They do also offer a free template designer that is also nice.

Until next time, Have a great day!

I operate many affiliate programs in my spare time for sites including but not limited to FOAMTemplates.com. If you need leads, contact me today! or Visit Foam for Auction Image Hosting

Where To Find Items To Sell On Ebay

2009-02-18T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Lewis Leake

One question that always seems to pop up is, "Where do I find products to sell on eBay?" Here are some ideas to get you started.

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 Internet.

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.

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.

Information Products

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

Hobby into Profit

If you have a favorite hobby, such as creating custom wreaths or swags, making homemade soaps or lotions, sewing stuffed animals, whatever it might be, put it to work for you. Turn your hobby into a business using eBay. People do it all the time and make good money.

Small but Expensive

One of the best ways to make good money on eBay is to sell small but expensive items. This allows you to move more items without the bulk of heavy shipping and to move fewer items while making more money. This type of selling provides you with a much higher profit margin.

Specialize

While many sellers on eBay sell anything you can imagine, many of the power sellers specialize. Rather than offer 100 different items with no real connection, focus in on something that you can offer several varieties and then change those varieties out from time to time. Two great examples are purses and shoes, and paintings. You are staying in the same category but providing a multitude of options. Gotham Online is a perfect example. They have their website, shopgco.com, listed with eBay and offer a tremendous value on high quality men and women's shoes. Once the buyer finds the value of this site, the next time they need shoes, they will go back to this site, either through eBay or directly to the URL. However, the buyer will not become bored since the styles and brands of shoes rotate on a consistent basis.

Wholesale Products

Some eBay sellers create a business relationship with suppliers. As you find reliable suppliers, you can be assured of the quality and bargain of the merchandise. If you are not sure where to find suppliers, you can visit stockmystore.com where there are thousands of wholesale products, with the majority coming from reliable suppliers.

Drop Ship

Another option many power eBay sellers use is to Drop Ship. This is where the seller acts as the agent between the buyer and the merchandiser. In fact, the merchandise sold does not belong to the seller and the seller does not even have to make the shipments. This is actually a strategy used by many small businesses. The Drop Ship option allows the manufacturer to sell more merchandise while the eBay seller makes money. On eBay, check out the Drop Ship Source Directory if you are serious about selling.

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.

An Emerging Market In Ebay Consignments The Ebay Trading Post Part Ii In A Series

2009-02-17T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Carolyn Schweitzer

In 2002, the eBay consignments business was born, referred to by eBay as the Trading Assistant Program.

It's possible that eBay didn't foresee just how much they would benefit form their eBay consignments program. Designed to unite experienced eBay sellers with people who want heir merchandise sold on eBay without having to do it themselves, the Trading Assistant program has enjoyed enormous success.

As big as eBay had become -- larger than all other online auction venues combined -- they were still missing out on a large segment of the population; the technophobes. These people would sell goods on eBay if they had access to a computer and a digital camera, and had the time and inclination to learn how to run an auction. But they either don't have the technology or they lack the desire to become auctioneers, or both. Since they're not on line, they're not likely to learn about Trading Assistants who advertise primarily through eBay. And even if they saw the ads, they probably wouldn't trust them.

You see, people active in the online community are already comfortable with the environment, which has an element of anonymity. But a non-computer person is more likely to want to deal with a real, brick-and-mortar retail business. They may not trust someone who runs auctions out of their home.

How to reach these people? Introducing the concept of the "Trading Post"...

A Trading post is to eBay consignments what the typical consignment shop is to the average community. It's a drop off location that allows consumers to drop their stuff off and have it sold for them as a service. It's a retail location that markets itself to consumers as a local, experienced ebay consignments seller -- a Trading Assistant with a brick-and-mortar store.

While any ebay trading assistant can establish an ebay consignments service out of a retail location, only a Trading Post can put the eBay brand on their physical storefront. (A trading assistant can only advertise inside their store). With this privilege comes a higher standard, ie, eBay has "raised the bar" on their requirements.

A Trading Post must meet the following additional requirements:

-Offers a staffed drop-off location or storefront with regular drop-in hours, so that clients can visit the location without calling ahead.

-Has a feedback score of 500 or higher

-Has at least 98% positive feedback

-Has sales of at least $25,000 on eBay each month

Online, clients can search for Trading Posts specifically, and Trading Posts may receive priority placement in search results. (Yes, even some online clients prefer the retail setting). Also, Trading Posts are displayed with a special icon next to their User ID. If you're a Trading Assistant who also meets the requirements, you automatically qualify as a Trading Post and do not need to take additional steps.

Walt Duflock, Director of the eBay Trading Assistant Program and a real life trading assistant, has announced eBay's intention of having "secret shoppers" and "customer satisfaction surveys" to see if there are certain Trading Post locations eBay would like to support more than others.

Regardless of your status on ebay, there are tools that everyone can use to build their success as TAs, available on the ebay site. I've found many of them quite valuable. For example, among their efficiency tools, they recommend using contact management software. eBay regards this as a great tool for getting "a better understanding of how many prospects it takes to actually create one new client and how long it takes for a client to go from initial contact to hiring you as a TA."

And as far as support, some of the Trading Posts have become so large that they no longer rely on eBay for help. Some have developed their own proprietary systems for tracking customers and inventory, and managing their auctions. The largest and most successful ebay consignment business will even get you started with your own franchise which includes the use of their proprietary systems. All you need to come up with is $55 K plus operating expenses.

But, never fear. You can start your ebay consignment business on a shoestring, and this is how the majority begin. Since 1998, eBay and similar auction sites have been growing by leaps and bounds. eBay consignments are still in their infancy, but I predict a very bright future!

© Copyright 2004 Carolyn Schweitzer DDS. Dr. Schweitzer was a family dentist for 20 years and is now owner and editor of several websites. You can learn more about where to find specific links to the Trading Assistant and Trading Post programs by visiting her website at http://www.netbrainer.com/site/500041/page/449460.

The Powerful Ebay Bidding Strategy That Claims A 99 Success Rate

2009-02-16T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Ian Major

Don't you just love it?

You've found that special item on eBay that you've just got to have!

No If's Ands or Buts, you've got to win that item.

You've checked and double checked the "End Of Auction" time and date and you're at your computer, signed in and raring to go at least 30 minutes before the auction ends.

You're happy to beat the latest bid and with nervous fingers you tap in the amount you're willing to pay.

Then you read those dreaded words-

!You Have Been Outbid!

Now you remember, there are sneaky eBayers out there who use deviously cunning tricks, like placing high hidden bids and proxy bidding.

You heard somewhere that you should wait untill the closing minute of the auction before placing your bid.

Great, theres still 20 minutes to go, time to grab another cup of coffee.

Back at your computer you count down the final minutes, how can 5 minutes seem to last so long?

You constantly hit the refresh button so that you can check how long there's left to go.

At last the final minute of the auction arrives.

You tap in the next highest bid and hit "Place Bid". You're waiting for that page. The one that says'

!Congratulations! You Won The item!

But your heart sinks when yet again you see those dreaded words-

!You Have Been Outbid!

This cant be right! They cant do this to you! It's just not fair!

But wait, theres still 15 seconds left to go.

You frantically type in a higher bid and you're greeted with-

!Listing ended!

No. No, It cant have ended.

But it has.

Does this scenario sound familiar to you?

I think every eBayer has experienced this at some time or other.

I know I have!

There has to be a simpler way. And there is.

Enter the Sniper.

SniperWare, as it has become known, is a program that will place a last second bid on your behalf.

Many of these types of Auto-Bid Programs claim a 95% to 99% success rate at placing the winning bid.

No more sitting staring at your computer counting down the minutes to try and place that winning bid because with Sniperware you simply enter the details of the auction you want to bid on, the maximum bid you are prepared to make and that's it.

You don't even have to be at your computer. You don't even have to be at home come to that.

SniperWare generally comes in two flavours.

1. Web Based

With a Web based program you will usually pay a small fee per use (although you are not usually charged anything if you fail to win the auction). Most of the on-line programs will allow you to make the first few Snipes at no charge.

2. Downloaded Sniper Software.

In this instance the Sniper Software Program is downloaded onto your own computer. The upfront cost is more but there are no ongoing fees and many of these programs can be downloaded on a trial basis for free.

There are many Sniper programs to choose from. Just go to your favourite Search Engine and type in "Sniper Programs".

My personal choice, having tried several, is PowerSnipe and I have won some great auction using this particular program.

You can try PowerSnipe for free for 30 days.

So if you don't want to see those dreaded words-

!You Have Been Outbid!

Get Sniping.

For more information about PowerSnipe, email me at iandmajor@ebay-articles.com

Ian D Major is the creator of http://www.eBay-Articles.com, the one stop resource for information, reports and articles about all things eBay.

To subscribe for free to eBay-Articles and get Articles, Reports and Bonuses delivered to your inbox weekly, just send a blank email to ebay-articles1@majorian.par32.com

The Pros And Cons In Establishing An Ebay Store

2009-02-15T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Mark Flavin

Ebay has provided some amazing opportunities for many people to earn online. This widely popular auction site has become the primary destination for users who wish to purchase anything ranging from tangible products to digital items hence making eBay a website visited by millions of people every day. Because of the volume of transactions happening in its pages, eBay has also become a virtual market place where thousands, if not millions, of dollars exchange hands on a daily basis as well.

Do you want a piece of that big, big pie?

Then you must first have to establish an eBay store.

Now, this is not a strong recommendation. This article is not meant as a sales pitch for a membership with eBay, rather, it seeks to present the advantages and disadvantages of building your own eBay store. You must remember that eBay isn't the only place where you could peddle your goods. It is a good place where you could sell your items, but there are other alternatives you could consider. Should you settle with eBay? Or should you explore the alternative options? Let's study the matter more closely.

There are most certainly a lot of benefits that could be gained from establishing your own eBay store. Let's take a look at them.

* You'd be able to sell in a hotly visited environment. You'll be able to expose your products to a wide array of prospects.

* Once you have upgraded to a Featured Store, you'd be given $30 worth of PPC keywords per month. This means that your store would appear prominently in the results for the particular keywords that users will search for. Such would most certainly drive more traffic to your auctions.

* A Featured Store would also deliver some advanced reports for your auctions. You could use the statistics delineated therein to improve the way you construct your sales pages, and the way you present your items for better efficiency in your future offers.

* A Featured Store will also allow you more eBay pages, which would mean more exposure for your products. It's still a numbers game. The more auctions you have running, the more earning opportunities you could capitalize on.

* A Featured Store would allow you to reduce the size of the eBay banner appearing in your every auction. This would give you the chance to work on your page and bring the focus of your visitors to the items you will be selling.

* Ebay provides a certain level of seller protection and dispute resolution for potential problems you might encounter with your buyers.

Though these are great advantages for your online business, please bear in mind that they do not come without cost. There are also other disadvantages that are attached to having your own eBay store.

* Ebay stores don't come free. A basic store setup would cost $15.95 per month. A Featured Store status would cost an even higher $49.95 per month. And the king of all kings, an Anchor Store, would require you to spend an onerous $499.95 per month.

* Having your own eBay store would pressure you to perform well when it comes to your sales. Though some may consider this as a benefit since such will motivate the seller to plan his course of action, the dangers will be experienced when you fail to earn enough profit to cover the cost of your subscription.

* People go to eBay expecting the best deals in the online market. You have to compete at this level, otherwise, the moment people would see the going rate for your auction, they'd immediately hop to the next item up for sale.

* You'd be bound by eBay's selling policies. You cannot go around some of these restrictive policies, otherwise, you account can get suspended, or worse, terminated.

Establishing an eBay store is a solid choice for a business model. But you have to determine your goals as well as your marketing plan. Would an eBay store help you accomplish them? Or would selling your own goods in your own website, or through some affiliate automation program like www.clickbank.com , www.paydotcom.com or www.cj.com be better for your online business?

The choice is yours.

Mark Flavin is an online marketing expert. Mark specialises in website traffic generation, affiliate program promotion & email marketing. You can find out his secrets for free at http://www.markflavin.com

Mark recommends The Business Professional for increasing your profits online - http://www.markflavin.com/business.html

Warning Ebay Scams To Watch Out For

2009-02-14T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Jason Cooper

There are many eBay scams out there to keep an eye out for when you are buying or selling on eBay. This article will cover some of the known and not so well known scams to be aware of. Whether you're a causal buyer or seller, or a professional on eBay, you need to know about these scams so that you can take measures to prevent or recognize if it's happening to you.

Bid Shielding - This scam is something you need to watch out for as a seller on eBay. Basically the scam is run using two separate eBay accounts. The scam works like this. You put your item up for auction. Let's say your item is worth $100 and you have no reserve. The first bidder (scammer) comes along and bids $5 on your item. Right after that, another bidder working with the first bidder comes along and bids $200 on your item. Since your item is only worth $100, you receive no more bids for the duration of your auction. Right before your auction ends, the first bidder backs out and cancels their bid, leaving the $5 bidder the winner, effectively shielding all other potential bidders because of the $200 bid.

Because of the potential for this scam it is always good to have a reserve on your auction. Also, I would put some sort of disclaimer on your auction stating that if you suspect bid shielding on your auction, you reserve the right to back out of the sale. It's always a good idea to keep an eye on your auctions and watch for this type of behavior. If you suspect this is happening to you, be sure to report the parties involved to eBay right away.

Wholesale List Scam - This scam takes advantage of the fact that many people don't pay close attention or read the fine print on an auction. This scam is targeted at buyers who are looking for deals on electronics and technological items on eBay. The wholesale list scam is basically an auction that looks like the seller is offering a great deal on a product like an iPod for example. They may have a buy now price of $40 for an iPod that is worth $150. However, if you actually read the fine print on the auction, you will find that you are not really buying the iPod. In fact you are purchasing a wholesale list.

To avoid this scam, just be sure that you read the entire details of the auction before making a bid or a purchase. Basically, just use common sense. If it looks too good to be true, it probably is, so read the auction carefully.

Bad Check Scam - This eBay scam is exactly what it sounds like. The bad check scam is simple. Someone purchases your item and sends you a check as payment. You receive the check, and send out the item. However, 2 weeks later you find out the check bounces and now you are out your item and the money.

To avoid this, simply do not send out any products until the check has cleared.

Spoof eBay Emails - This eBay scam is an attempt to get your personal information and/or eBay account information. Basically the scammer sends you an email that looks like it's from eBay. The email may direct you to a website (that also looks like eBay) where it asks to you verify your information. In reality, the website is created by the scammer to collect your personal information and use it for identity theft. The scammers can be very tricky and make everything look very official.

To avoid this scam, you need to be wary of any emails that you get. The first thing you need to check is the email header. Emails from eBay, will have "@eBay.com" as the last part of the senders email. Also any links that are in the email may be directing you somewhere other than where they say they are. Also copy and paste the links into your browser, and only visit official links that start with "www.eBay.com". If anything seems suspicious to you, forward the email to eBay and wait for their response. They will let you know if it's legitimate or not.

In conclusion, most people you run into on eBay are good honest people and not out to scam you. You may do business on eBay for years and never run into any of this. However, occasionally these things do happen so it's important to use common sense and use your best judgment when it comes to this stuff. Just be aware that it can happen, and take the necessary precautions and you will be fine. There's a lot of money to be made on eBay, so don't let anything scare you off. Keep yourself armed with knowledge and information and you will be successful out there in the auction world!

This article was written on behalf of eBayBusiness.net by Webmaster and Internet Marketer Jason Cooper. Visit http://www.ebaybusiness.net today and get started on the road to eBay Business Success. Download 3 Free eBay Business Success Reports at http://www.ebaybusiness.net/free-reports.html and skyrocket your eBay business profits. This article may be published on your website or ezine as long as this tagline remains unchanged.

Online Antique Auctions

2009-02-13T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Eric Morris

According to strict definitions, antiques are objects that have collectible value and that are more than 100 years old. There are a number of auction sites that sell antiques online. Some sites specialize in items from a particular historical period, while others offer a wider range of antiques. While some online auction houses have stellar reputations, a specialist may better serve a new buyer with specific interests. A major advantage of online auctions is that prices for a particular antique tend to be lower than they might be in an antique store or show. However, not being able to see and assess an antique for signs of authenticity can be a drawback.

How can one determine authenticity? It is important to research online auction sites and to find one that enjoys a good reputation. Experienced buyers share certain tips, such as asking for close-up photographs of the base of an object. Even if carefully maintained, most antique objects show some wear and tear at the base. However, in the case of ceramics and glassware, chips can reduce the value of the antique.

To assess if a fair price is being asked, compare the price to that quoted by online auction guides for similar antiques that have recently been auctioned. These guides are usually helpful tools to estimate the value of an antique for both buyers and sellers. Sites should also offer a full refund if you end up with a reproduction instead of the real thing. Some sites only offer refunds for a limited period, but this should give you enough time to have the item appraised. As an alternative, paying a little extra to have an antique appraised before purchasing it online is well worth the cost and the knowledge that what you are buying is genuine.

Online Auctions provides detailed information on Online Auctions, Online Antique Auctions, Online Auto Auctions, Online Auction Sites and more. Online Auctions is affiliated with Auction Services.

The Read Between The Lines Ebay Sales Technique

2009-02-12T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Tim Gilberg

When someone first starts selling on eBay, it is drilled into every seller's head to list every possible bit of information into their eBay ad. This includes shipping, condition, color, terms, etc. While I do agree with this, I have also used this subtle sales technique to generate large volume sales outside of eBay. As it states, you put information in your eBay listing which will cause the customer to contact you with opportunities. This is not in violation of any eBay policy; no one is linking to an outside website, or referring any customer to such site. The ads just state what products will be sold on eBay, and a photo of the entire stock of that product is attached to the ad.

If you buy a large quantity of product, you do not want to flood the eBay site with many listings of the same product. This will decrease buyer urgency, and also bring down the final sales price. It is a supply and demand factor, using the "read between the lines" sales technique to overcome this.

For example, I have 200 laptop batteries for model a2000 laptop computers that I want to sell. In my eBay ad, I will show a picture of the whole stock of batteries ( or whatever product you have in large quantity, whether it is cables, dolls, tape guns, etc.). I will also note in my ebay ad that I will be listing these up for sale on eBay.

The standard eBay buyer will not read between the lines, because they are only looking for that 1 item right now. It is easy to sell large purchases to volume buyers not even registered on eBay, but who search through the ads for contacts for large lots of product. The batteries sell on average between $79-$89 on eBay, and I make approximately $40 on each battery

A potential customer can be emailed about quantity pricing. I have found eBay sales prices to be very near to wholesale, so you normally only have to drop at most 20% from the eBay sales price. With this technique you do not erode your single customer sales price, but you are still able to move a large volume of similar product quickly outside of eBay.

You will soon have a great list of contacts who know and trust you, and you won't even have to put up an eBay ad. You just email your past customers and let them know what you have in stock. This is a great way to cultivate these large repeat buyers. They feel safe contacting you because they can see you are reputable via your eBay feedback.

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

Why Use Pictures For Your Ebay Auctions

2009-02-11T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Chris Ryerson

There are many sellers on eBay that slave away each day listing hundreds of auctions daily and reaping very small profit margins. This is unfortunate because there are many ways to easily increase your auction profits without a lot of extra work. One of the ways is by simply adding pictures. Study after study has shown that auctions with pictures will have a final ending value much greater then auctions without pictures.

eBay buyers are very internet savvy and they are looking for a great deal on a quality product. Adding pictures will help them feel more comfortable in purchasing from you.

Build Creditability

Since buyers are forced to purchase based on your auction they are often reluctant to bid on an auction without pictures. A picture builds trust and credibility in the seller. It ensures that the seller has the item and the condition of the item is also clear.

Make Your Auction Stand Out

Having a picture in your title makes your auction stand out from all of your competitors. Face it people are often to lazy or in too much of a hurry to read much. Therefore the average buyer on eBay will browse using pictures. If you have a picture on your ad you will get the traffic.

Here are some simple things that can easily be done to increase the final value or ending price of the auction. Just follow these steps to taking better pictures.

Too Many Pictures?

Honestly it is pretty difficult to provide too much information on eBay, especially in the area of pictures. The more pictures you add the more concrete information you provide the seller with. Therefore bombard them with tons of pictures.

Take Better Quality Pictures

Take the time to set up your lighting and the composition of the photo. While you do not need a professional studio or any expensive lighting you should think about these things. Take pictures during the day when there is lots of natural light in your home. Use lights in the house to provide extra lighting. Plan the composition of the photo a little bit. Maybe add a small background using a sheet or some old paper. This reduces the clutter from the background and makes the item stand out. Also consider taking close shots of the item.

Improve Picture Quality

No picture is perfect and using a picture editing software can great improve the quality of the picture quickly and easily. There are tons of great free image editing software programs out there. Two programs you will want to check out are Google's Picasa or ifranview. You can use these and then later purchase a higher quality paid image editing software program. That is after the money really starts rolling in. Then you might want to consider Adobe PhotoShop.

By simply adding good quality pictures to your auction page you can quickly and easily increase your auction profits. This can easily give a 10 to 20% increase on the closing bid price. By just taking a few extra minutes when creating your auction ads you will reap the benefit in pure profits!

***Free 5 day eBay Auction Profits Course***. Or learn more abouteBay's Want It Now Program and software that will help you profit from it.

Top Internet Businesses

2009-02-10T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Jon Evans

The internet is packed with web businesses jockeying for the attention of regular users. Selling everything under the sun and offering a substantial array of services, the internet is quickly becoming the favorite of users, surpassing traditional catalog and store shopping. In addition to phenomenal sales and dynamite deals, the internet offers access to all types of stores with just a click of the mouse. Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, it is no wonder why the internet is such a popular shopping alternative for individuals all over the world. Especially with such popular online sites such as Overstock.com and eBay, the online marketplace is quickly filling up with top internet businesses. If you are interested in joining this elite group of successful businesses, today is the day to start! In additional to the popularity of owning a web business, the remarkable ease will make it a popular alternative to the traditional job market. Working from the comfort of your own home and setting your own schedule around your pre-existing responsibilities, owning and running a web business will certainly fit into everyone's lifestyle.

Retail sites are by far the most popular type of web business currently based on the internet. Whatever types of goods you decide to sell; there is undoubtedly an audience on the World Wide Web. Instead of having your items dwarfed by the magnitude of the stores on the internet, consider joining an online marketplace instead. Popular auction site eBay has a special section for retailers in their storefront web pages. Owning an ebay small home business is an excellent way to quickly become a top e-business. By joining Ebay's marketplace, you gain the name and exposure available only with a top website. Instead of setting your home business set sail on the vast sea of the internet and compete for attention with all of the other web businesses, your business will be located on a highly visible website that millions of internet users frequent.

Starting a web business using eBay is extremely easy for even the most non-technical individuals. The step-by-step instructions allow you to quickly and easily create the best website for your business. Think of eBay as an online shopping mall with everything possible under its roof. This place could never exist in the real world, but on the internet, it is exactly what the public expects. Instead of renting a space that may only be accessible to a fraction of your town's audience, imaging moving your store to a space that is easily accessible by the entire world. Not having to worry about things like utility bills, cash registers, shelving, store displays, and employees to staff your store during its opening hours will save you thousands of dollars in start-up costs and dramatically lower your overhead. For a nominal fee, you can set up shop on eBay and be up and running in no time. With minimal equipment like a personal computer and digital camera, you can run your entire business from the comfort from your own home without having to hire employees.

Having a top web business is a lofty goal but readily attainable through venues such as eBay. Save money while working from home while adding or replacing an income. Everyone can set up shop on eBay, as there is not advanced technological experience necessary. Furthermore, your web business will be exposed to a large audience of dedicated eBay users who regularly turn to eBay for their purchasing needs. If you have the desire to start your own business but lack the excessive funds necessary for starting a traditional brick and mortar business, joining with eBay is an excellent way to live out your dream for little cost. Using one of the best retail websites on the internet is a sure-fire way to become one of the best businesses on the internet.

John Evans runs http://www.SuccessAlert.net and has written the book Success Alert - Conversations with Successful Internet Entrepreneurs which has been widely acclaimed in a variety of media. If you want to hear about Top Internet Businesses this book is a must-read!

How To Think Out Of The Box Selling On Ebay

2009-02-09T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Tim Gilberg

Jeff, wanted to use eBay to supplement his income. He is an electrical engineer in the manufacturing sector; and we all know that manufacturing has been hit very hard for the last few years. His company was closing down a satellite operation; and Jeff noticed some old Allen Bradley electrical controllers in a container headed for the dumpster. He was given permission to retrieve these controllers, and he was hoping he could find a way to market them... or if, in fact, there would even be a market for them. It was worth a chance!

Jeff had never sold on eBay and he realized there was no sales history on the electronic parts he had acquired. Jeff used these steps (listed below)

Steps To Take If A Product Has No Sales History On eBay:

1. Set a high reserve. (A reserve is a price set by the seller, which needs to be met before a sale is made.) This protects you from selling an item too low when you don't have any idea of its market value.

2. Take multiple pictures of the item.

3. Include pictures of any serial or model numbers or any unique markings.

4. Include as detailed description as possible.

5. Include in your description that you welcome email questions from bidders. to take when this situation occurs. He had no eBay feedback, he listed the items, and was able to sell them for over $4200. The bottom line is to get products and list them for sale with the techniques outlined above.

The important thing is to get your products up for sale on Ebay quickly. If you do not know where to set your price level use the steps outlined above.

Products do not sell unless the are put up for auction, This is common sense but many new Ebay sellers try and get all possible relevant data on the products they are selling which is not neccessary to sell on Ebay.

Can You Really Make Any Money On Ebay

2009-02-08T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Frank Lomax

eBay is now a prime market place for selling just about anything online from antique buttons to sexy photographs of your girlfriend. And if there's a demand for your item then it will probably sell. You should then make a nice profit and be encouraged by your success.

But can you always make money on eBay? Is it as easy as we're all led to believe?

Well, common sense tells us that it all depends on what you're selling, the competition and the market for your product.

After all, eBay is essentially an online market place that brings together international buyers and sellers to do business and the basic economic law of supply and demand applies.

So what basic factors should we consider before we start to sell on eBay? Can virtually anything sell and make us a handsome profit?

The answer must be a definite 'No' - especially if the profit motive is important. And it must be, because we don't want to waste our time just breaking even or - dread the thought - making a loss.

But, for example, if you've really got your heart set on selling nineteenth century sweet wrappers on eBay because it's you're passion in life - you've already been divorced twice because of your obsession - then you just need to stop and think for a minute.

And before you rush out and invest £500 in a gold plated, digital camera, hand crafted by Balinese maidens, just because you know it will produce the finest quality images of your antique wrappers, it might be wise to first consider the following essential factors.

is there likely to be a healthy demand for your product? Is it something people need or want to buy - hopefully on a regular, repeat basis?

is the potential market big enough so as to make a decent profit (say a 'minimum' of 40% mark up on cost) and can that profit be sustainable?

are there others already selling the same item? If so can you compete on a price basis or offer something different to justify a higher price?

and finally

can you maintain a reliable supplier of your item so that you can consistently buy at the 'right price' and sell at a profit?

So what I'm saying really here is that before you dive into the eBay ocean make sure you've got your swimming costume on!

Or, to put it simply, before you decide what you want to do, or what niche you want to concentrate on, you need to be fully aware of whether it's even possible to do it at a profit.

So the basic message is: Don't let your enthusiasm or obsession for a particular market blind you to the basic economics of what you're doing. After some careful consideration, you may have to totally 'rethink' your plans and abandon your previous, cherished, pet ideas. If it's not going to pay then you don't really want to do it.

But sometimes you will never know unless you try and you shouldn't be afraid of trying to sell something totally different. However, always make use of eBay's 'feedback' feature as a useful research tool. And what I mean by that is studying the feedback of existing sellers in your general and particular area of interest.

You can quickly discover what volume of sales they are achieving; what their average selling price is; which country they are operating from (this can be important for some products); how long they have been trading etc.

All this information can help you get an overall 'feel' for that market and you can then test out your idea with some confidence based on facts rather than a personal, well intentioned 'gut' feeling.

And if you find that someone else is already selling what you had in mind then this isn't necessarily bad news. Maybe you can offer the same product cheaper ( but try to avoid a 'price war' if you can), or promote it in a different way or sell it with some other product as a free bonus. Try to think creatively and 'outside the box' to make yourself different.

If you discover that you're the only seller dealing in a particular item then perhaps it just can't be done profitably. Maybe someone has already tried it and abandoned the venture as a waste of time. Or, conversely, you may have discovered a unique and hopefully profitable niche!

Another vital consideration is your view of just how much income you want to make from eBay trading.

Do you see it a just a part-time, weekend affair or as a full time career alternative? If you're aiming high then what you intend to sell is very important.

Would there be enough 'in' the antique sweet wrapper market for you to reach, say, your £50,000 profit target? Probably not, you must be the judge, but you might easily achieve that figure dealing in more high ticket items.

So, in conclusion, you need to be absolutely sure of two things.

The first is to ask yourself if your market is financially viable. Are you going to make any money?

And, secondly, if you believe that money can be made then does the amount compare favourably with your income goals.

The answer to these essential factors should determine your activity. You may have to take some tough decisions but in the end you will benefit financially and develop a successful and fulfilling eBay business.

After 30 years business experience, I'm always searching for genuine online opportunities. Here's one worth serious consideration.

Are you looking for the best way to start your own eBay business but find yourself tied down with family commitments? Well this could be the answer. It's a proven system, making an average of $10,000 per month (working part time hours) and it was created by a hardworking mother who just refused to quit!!

For her full story please visit: http://ebayprofits.salesplease.com

More Resources For Ebay Sellers

2009-02-07T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Pamela Bruce

While eBay can seem confusing to the beginning seller, there is a wealth of great advice available. Here are some particularly useful sources, many of them on eBay itself.

Bob's Tips (http://www.bulls2.com/indexb/bobstips2.html). A long list of links, with an emphasis on photography. Topics include such areas as use of borders, HTML, proper sizing of pictures and watermarking.

Zoicks.com eBay Tips (http://www.zoicks.com/ebaylinks.htm). More tips in the areas of graphics and photography, from using external photos hosts to basic HTML courses.

Shipscript's Page (http://cgi3.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewUserPage&userid=shipscript) Great tools for sprucing up your auctions - and the best thing is that these programs are free.

Mioka's Favorite Links (http://cgi3.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewUserPage&userid=mioka). Great link collection with an emphasis on avoiding spam, online fraud and copyright theft.

Postal Shipping 101 (http://cgi3.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewUserPage&userid=*zip). Everything you could possibly want to know about mailing items.

Special HTML Tags (http://pages.ebay.com/help/account/html-tags.html). Information about eBay-specific HTML commands that you can use on your About Me page.

eBay Acronyms (http://pages.ebay.com/help/newtoebay/acronyms.html). Confused about BIN, FVF and NARU? Here are explanations of these terms and many more.

The eBay Pulse (http://pulse.ebay.com/). Do you want to find out what people are looking for on eBay right now? The ebay Pulse tells you what is hot on eBay today. Ignore the front page and dig down into your specific category do see what is in demand.

Don't forget to check out the discussion boards (http://pages.ebay.com/community/boards/index.html) which cover everything from photography, store ownership, HTML and shipping to category-specific topics such as antiques, coins, jewelry or electronics. At first some of these boards might seem a bit forbidding, and there is some flaming going on, but overall there are full of friendly and helpful individuals. Just lurk around for a while before posting.

Another great resource are the online workshops (http://pages.ebay.com/community/workshopcalendar/current.html) which cover many of the technical and design aspects related to eBay stores.

Pamela Bruce lives in Austin, TX. She has been beading since her teens. She is the owner of Love Beads Unlimited and sells the sterling silver and Swarovski crystal bead jewelry she designs and creates both in her eBay store (http://stores.ebay.com/LOVE-BEADS-UNLIMITED) and on her website at http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

How To Make Money On Ebay

2009-02-06T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Joe Clare

Today, many people are choosing to work at home and make money selling on eBay. As you're reading right now thousands are making a full or part time income with online auctions. Why? Well, because the concept is simple, you can make money from home and you can have a lot of fun doing it. Of these people who choose to start an online auction business and make money from home, many will use dropshippers to get their business up and running. Then once they have products that are selling really well, they will look to locate these products at a better price. But where? Where does one find products at a better price? The answer is right here is this article.

You see, once you are comfortable with what you are doing, have run several regular auctions and have products that are popular and selling really well, it's then time to do some research on getting these products at a better price. This will allow you to offer these products to your customers at a better price and thus increase your auction sales which in turn will increase your auction profits. O.K. I can hear you asking "But Joe, where do I get these products for a better price?"

The answer is Liquidators! As explained in my book, a Liquidation Company is a company that buys surplus, over runs, bankruptcies, going out of business inventory and the like. They purchase this merchandise for pennies on the dollar, and can afford to sell this merchandise at below wholesale prices and still make a profit. Therefore they sell for less and you reap the benefits.

There are many Liquidators who could have just what you're looking for. There are General Merchandise Liquidators who basically purchase and sell all sorts of general merchandise. At any given time you can find anything from housewares to kids toys. Collectables to clothing. Jewelry to cosmetics. All for a fraction of the price of dropshippers.

Then, there are Liquidators who specialize and only purchase and sell merchandise in a specific niche. This niche could be electronics, jewelry, brand name clothing and so on. Whatever the niche is, this will be the only type of inventory that Liquidator will carry. For example, a Liquidator who specializes in only kids toys would purchase products from toy stores or department stores with a kids toy section that are going out of business, declaring bankruptcy or have overstock. From that inventory, you can find some of the latest and most popular products on the market.

Liquidators are similar to Wholesalers and Dropshippers in that you will have to become a member to have access to their inventory. Most require no fee to become a member, while others may charge a nominal fee. The one thing that does differ is that Liquidators have a set number of units you must purchase in order to get a great price. A Liquidator will purchase their inventory in bulk enabling them to get the merchandise for pennies on the dollar. Therefore, they will want to sell the merchandise in cases or lots.

If you have done your due diligence, have ran several regular auctions and you know you have a Hot Product, then Liquidators are your answer to more auction profits. Remember that selling products is all about research. What products are Hot? How much can you sell the product for, and where can you get the product at the best price.

Want to make some Real Money on eBay? We have access to over 200 Reliable Wholesale Dropshippers and Liquidators, and the eCommerce know how to make it Profitable. Joe Clare http://www.ebooksnsoftware.com

Free Tools For Online Auction Sellers

2009-02-05T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Pamela Bruce

If you have been selling on eBay or another online auction venue for a while, you know that various fees can really eat into your profit margin. The last thing you would need is having to spend a lot of money on software to help you run your business. Here are some software tools that are absolutely free:

Irfanview (http://www.irfanview.com/). You do not need an expensive program such as Photoshop to improve the photos you take for your auction. Irfanview is a nifty free program that contains many photo-editing functions.

Auction Shark (http://www.auctionshark.com/). It is always good to compare your prices against the going market rate. If you sell on eBay, you probably already know how to look up completed auctions to get an idea of market prices for specific items. However, you can broaden your search by having Auction Shark searching (current) auctions on eBay, Amazon, Yahoo and Overstock auctions.

X*Sell Cross-Sell Gallery for eBay (http://www.isdntek.com/tagbot/xsell.htm). This freeware tool lets you enter your eBay auction numbers (or photo URLs) and descriptions on a website and then generates the code for a scrolling marquee that shows thumbnail pictures of your items. Just paste this code into your auction or website, and customers can see all your other offers scrolling by while they are looking at one of your items.

1st Page 2000 (http://www.evrsoft.com/1stpage2.shtml). A freeware WYSIWYG HTML editor that helps you build your own website without having to enter actual HTML code.

Convert (http://joshmadison.net/software/). The internet is a global market. Don't forget that there is a whole world out there that does not use inches and feet and ounces and pounds. This utility lets you convert measurements.

Pamela Bruce lives in Austin, TX. She is the owner of Love Beads Unlimited and sells the bead jewelry she creates at http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com, where she also offers a free downloadable e-book entitled "A Consumer's Guide to Buying Bead Jewelry Online".

How To Spot Fake Deals On Ebay

2009-02-04T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Chris Yarbrough

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 turned 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.

Ebay Shipping Basics 10 Tips To Get Started Right

2009-02-03T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Mason Hipp

1) Always Pack the Item Properly
The biggest mistake you can make when shipping an item is to go lighty on the packaging and send an unportected item. Buyers will instantly leave negative feedback if the item arrives damaged due to bad padding. Make sure you look into the proper packaging for the item you are shipping - a book is different then a china doll, and both require proper materials.

2) Never Pay For Packing Materials
Right behind improper packing is over paying for shipping materials. There are far too many sources of free boxes and free padding to need to buy them. I have been a powerseller on ebay for 4 years and not once have I paid for packing materials. EBay and USPS offer free boxes, UPS offers free shipping labels. Local retailers will generaly have old boxes lying around also - this is perfect for those large items.

3) Ship Promptly After the Auction Closes
So you've just spent $400 on the newest game console - purchased it from an eBay Seller. Do you want to wait a week just for the seller to ship the item? Neither do your customers. Always ship the item as soon as possible after the ebay auction is closed.

4) Box the Product Before the eBay Aucton is Over
It is a good habit to get into packaging your items before the auction is finished. This makes it exceedingly easy to ship within a day of the buyer paying. Shipping quickly will grab good feedback more than anythign else.

5) Use UPS Ground Shipping for Large Items
It is generally the best to use UPS ground for anything that weighs more than 10lbs. It is very inexpensive to ship large items with UPS. Though slower than USPS, it is far more cost effective on larger frieght.

6) Use USPS Priority Mail for Sending Small Items
Anything less than 10lbs is best shipped with priority mail. Priority mail is very fast, and very inexpensive for small things. Shipping with priority mail is also very good for your buyer, as it will get them their item quickly and effectively.

7) USPS Media mail is Best for Shipping Media Items
If you are shipping a book, cd, dvd, or any other item that fits in the media catagory - it is probably best to ship with media mail. This is a very cheap service, and is great for the items it is meant for. If your item is expensive, however, it may be better to use priority mail to please your buyer.

8) Include a Thank You Note in Each Package
This is one of the most overlooked methods of creating return customers. You need to ship the package anyhow, why not attempt to get another eBay purchase out of each customer? Almost all of the big players on eBay use this tactic.

9) Use Paypal to Print Shipping Labels
Printing eBay shipping labels from Paypal is one of the easiest and most time saving features availible to new sellers. Larger eBay sellers might want to look into furthor ebay shiping automation, but for everything under 50 packages per week - electronic labels from Paypal are the way to go.

10) eBay Shipping Takes Getting Used To - Don't Quit
Not everyone gets into a rythm immediatly. Shipping on eBay can be a trying task - but keep going and you'll soon be rewarded with happy customers and efficient practices. It is important to learn and rethink and establish you're own personal best practices. With time, anyone can ship like a PowerSeller.

Mason Hipp is a long time eBay PowerSeller and has commited much of his time to teaching others about selling on eBay. He has mentored many students to full time work on eBay. To learn more about shipping on eBay click the following link: http://www.selladeal.com/guides/shipping/

7 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Joining Any Ebay Membership Site Part Three

2009-02-02T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Trinity Tooke

eBay membership sites can be the quickest way to jump on the eBay bandwagon & start building an predictable & reliable cashflow from the internet. With the popularity of eBay growing every day, if your not yet selling on eBay your already losing sales. In this series of articles, I've been compiled the top seven questions you should ask before you join any eBay membership site.

4) How often is your content updated?

Ideally, the answer should be weekly or even daily. One of the main reasons to join an eBay membership site is to learn of the latest auction trends & niches so that you can cash in on them.

eBay membership sites should also contain

- Articles on marketing on eBay
- eBay ebooks & special reports
- eBay blueprints for selling successfully
- Interviews with successfull eBayers

Also, your eBay membership site should include reviews of the latest auction products so you can get an honest opinion before you part with your cash.

5) How long has the site been established?

The longer the better most would would assume, but if the site is not updated regularly any information may be out of date. So, look out for eBay membership sites that are ran by high-profile marketers. Do a bit of research by googling the name of the owner or the site name to see the results. You should quickly establish the credibility of any site online.

Trinity Tooke makes a full time living from turnkey websites, purchasing them cheaply from eBay & running them on a full time basis. You can check out her blog at: http://turnkeywebsites.blogspot.com/

Ebay Explained Escrow

2009-02-01T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Mark Kenny

Some eBayer users on eBay insist on a service called escrow to complete a transaction successfully. If you use eBay at all you should really be aware of what escrow is, and how to use it properly.

So, What is escrow?

Escrow is a service that adds security to auction deals that involve higher amounts of money. Escrow acts as a middle party, between both the buyer and seller.

Basically, as a buyer you will send payment to the escrow service instead of directly to the seller. When the service receives payment, they will email the seller and tell them they can saftely dispatch the item to the buyer.

When you as the buyer receives the goods, you are able to log into the escrow service and release the funds to the seller. Only you can release the funds to them, & only they are only able to release them back to you.

In most cases, you'll probably have some terms of the sale, that allow you to inspect the goods first before you release the funds.

Overall, it's a very safe method of dealing with high value items.

Like eBay, Escrow does however attracts fraud & scammers. Many scammers have been know to setup fake escrow websites & then insist on this service being used after the auction.

In these cases the seller, will insist you send payment though their own service claiming it is safe as they do not have access to the funds until you release them. Of course in reality once you send funds they are sent direct to the scammer & you have lost your money.

Alternatively, if you are selling the item(s) the buyer may insist on their own escrow service. They'll normally tell you that the funds have been sent via the escrow service and you'll even get an email from the website informing you payment has been made. You recieve such an email & feel you can now ship your goods securely.

Of course the website is fake as well, no funds have ever been deposited and once you send off your item your unlikely to see it again. The website will simply disappear.

eBay only recommends one secure escrow service. This is escrow.com & is one of a few verified escrow companies. To stay safe online if you need to use escrow, follow eBays advice.

Mark Kenny runs an independent eBay forum where you can discuss any aspects of eBay & get rewarded for your contribution to the forum. For any advise or eBay problems, visit the forum at: http://eBusinesseBooks.com/forum

How To Find A Market Niche On Ebay

2009-01-31T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Douglas Hanna

The eBay experts I have read are all in agreement as to what it takes to build a successful business on eBay which is that you must find a profitable market niche.

For those of you who are not familiar with niche marketing, here's an easy way to think about it: Women age 18-34 are a market. However, it's a difficult market to crack because it's huge and its members are very diverse. And it would be very, very expensive to advertise to it.

So, what a smart marketer would do is look for a market niche, or slice of this market, that's smaller and easier to define.

For example, one possible slice would be woman age 18-34 who spend a lot of time with their hands in water. You could then define your market niche as "women age 18-34 with dry, chapped hands." This gives you a smaller, market that would be easier to target, and your advertising message practically writes itself.

So, how do you find a profitable market niche on eBay?

You need first to pick a market, for example, "dog lovers." However, like women age 18-34, that's a pretty big and diverse market. So, the next step is to define a potential niche within that market. For example, one niche might be dog lovers with small dogs (10 lbs. or less). Another could be dog lovers who own a specific breed such as Beagles. You could narrow things down even further by defining your niche as dog lovers who own Beagles and want to protect them in cold weather.

Here's another example. Start with the market male golfers. Next, narrow it down to, say, left-handed male golfers. Finally, to get even "nichier," how about left-handed male golfers who are having trouble putting?

Next, comes the profitability part

How do you determine whether your market niche would be profitable? The answer is simple. You test, test, test.

Find products that you think should appeal to your market niche, put them up on eBay and see what happens. eBay is a great research tool because it costs so little to list items. You can list different items to see which attract the most attention. Or you can list the same items but with different sales messages (descriptions) to see which message does best. You can even test pricing by listing the same items at different "buy it now prices" or by starting the auctions at different levels.

It may take time and effort but, yes, you, too, can become a successful niche marketer on eBay.

Here's something that takes no effort. It's called HD Radio and its 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 learn 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 and family finances.

Ebay Inquiring Minds Want To Know

2009-01-30T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Michele Meyer

Today, more and more people are gradually opting for eBay as an alternative market site for their items. And the more people try on selling their products on eBay, the more they conclude that eBay is the best market site to sell products online.

So, for people who want to know why eBay had fast become one of the best website for selling items, here are some reasons online shoppers need to know:

1. It is not just a marketing website; it acts like a "virtual" garage sale as well.

Usually, a marketing website caters to people who need to sell their products. But most of these marketing websites only allows people who are really into business and that the products they offer should be of high quality.

However, eBay does it differently. It acts like a virtual garage sale, in which, a seller can still sell items that are already old. And so, ordinary people who wanted to make profit out of some old item that still has value or those who want to simply get rid of it, eBay is the only site that can provide such service.

2. EBay builds the seller's character.

There are features on eBay that serves as ways for sellers to build integrity at the same time establish rapport.

The "seller's feedback" section and the "ask a seller question" tab create a solid foundation based on trust among the eBay members. In this way, the buyer gets the feeling of security while doing transactions with the seller. Just the same, the seller's reputation is solidly established.

3. It offers a low investment.

For those who really want to make a business out of selling on eBay, they are guaranteed of a low investment capital. Actually, there is no capital that has to be paid. It's the selling fees that only need to be accomplished by the seller. If compared to charges of other marketing websites, eBay's selling fees are relatively lower.

4. The selling process on eBay is a lot simpler.

EBay does not require sellers' additional requirements like trade name, domain name, or any other pertinent documents being asked by other marketing websites. The only thing eBay requires a seller to do before posting an item is to create an account, after which, he or she can already start the posting the items to be sold.

5. It has an "autoresponder" system.

This means that the seller do not have to stay online most of the times just to get hold of any response from the buyers. EBay eliminates the hard-selling type of sale.

What are some of the pros and cons of using eBay?

In today's fast changing world of e-commerce like EBay, people find shopping online the most convenient way of purchasing items. The fact that a person doesn't even have to drive to and from the store is exhilarating enough.

To date, EBay is the most celebrated and the most world-renowned online mall today.

However, there are advantages as well as disadvantages when buying on EBay. So, it's important for shoppers out there to take note of these facts before buying items on EBay.

THE PROS

1. It's relatively simple and within reach.

Why? Because eBay makes ones shopping spree just a click away.

2. Great access.

With EBay, buying items had never been this varied.

3. It's twice as fun.

With colorful graphics, unusual items, and weird but quirky listings, entertainment is just around the corner.

4. A viable online price indicator.

Buying on EBay can give a shopper an insight and update on the present price of certain commodities these days.

5. Money-back possibility.

Most often than not, there's a higher chance of getting back the buyer's money if things slipped up.

THE CONS

1. "In good condition" not guaranteed.

There may be a lot of sellers who use the words "in good condition," but because the buyer cannot visually and personally examine the item before purchasing it, most often than not, the items sold were definitely not scratch free.

2. Additional postal fees.

The common delivery method of items bought by the buyer is through mail; additional charges screw up thereby adding hefty charges just for the delivery alone, plus most transactions are on international basis, so international rates applies.

3. Lack of human touch.

There are people who still prefer to go to the mall not just because they want to go shopping but also they want to tag their friends along, have coffee breaks, and chat along the way.

Buying on eBay may provide an interactive mode of shopping but it's not a form of socialization.

4. Too risky.

If Internet is jungle, then there might be big bad wolves lurking on EBay ready to gobble probable victims. These refer to scams, frauds, and identity theft.

5. A form of enslavement.

Once hooked, shoppers will never get the hang of it. There were cases wherein people buy things on EBay almost everyday. After all, with the convenience online shopping and credit cards give, who wouldn't?

Just like any financial decisions, it still pays for shoppers to contemplate first on things before jumping into conclusions.

Michele Meyer provides EMF emitting devices for the whole family. You may contact her at bioharmonichealth@gmail.com Or visit her website at http://www.bioharmonichealth.com.

How To Write A Traffic Pulling Ebay Auction Title

2009-01-29T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Ben Catt

Selling an item on eBay should be simple but it is surprising how many people make some very silly mistakes.

As a buyer this is fantastic, you can pick up some absolute bargains by finding poorly listed items. However, if you are a seller you need to ensure that every item you put on eBay will be found and therefore have a better chance of commanding a high price.

Your auction title is really the most important part of your auction, after all, it is this feature which attracts buyers to view your description.

You have 55 characters to use to attract the bidders, try and use all of them - it is free and the more relevant keywords you can add, the more search results your auction will end up in.

For example:

A listing with the title: "Band of Brothers Region 2 6 DVDs UK Version Mint"

is likely to receive a great deal more interest than one with the following title:

"band of brothers dvd"

Also, try and avoid writing the entire title in capitals or using unrelated words like "L@@K" and "W@W". This simply annoys other eBay users and is not good netiquette.

Never keyword spam either. You see this all of the time on eBay, sellers add unrelated keywords to the title so their auction lands in more search results.

The problem is that these keywords won't attract more bids but simply attract users who are searching for something else entirely.

If you list an auction for a Playstation 2 but use the title "Playstation 2 not Xbox not Nintendo" it will attract people who are not looking for a Playstation 2. Quite simply, people who are not looking for a PS2 will not buy one.

Your time would be better served adding more relevant keywords to the title. "Sony Playstation 2 (PS2) Mint in Box - No Reserve" is a much better title.

Where possible, try and include descriptive keywords to attract bidders. Some good examples are the following:

Rare, Mint, OOP (Out of Print), Low P&P, No Reserve or NR, Low Starting Price, 1p Starting Bid, Brand New etc

Ensure you spell check your title before you list it. This is easy to do if you write the title in Microsoft Word first. If you spell an important keyword incorrectly you will miss out on a lot of potential bidders.

To make the title look more attractive, add a capital to the front of every major keyword.

"Microsoft Xbox - Mint in Box with 4 Games - No Reserve"

looks more attractive and stands out more than

"microsoft xbox - mint in box with 4 games - no reserve"

If you are unsure of the best way to write your title, try searching for the same item under Completed Listings and see how others have done it before.

If their auctions have commanded high winning bids then their titles have worked.

Don't be afraid to copy them.

Ben Catt is an active eBay buyer and seller and runs an eBay Tips and Tricks website found at http://www.BenCatt.com. He also runs a business opportunity information site - http://www.BizOppsUK.com

Ebay Auction Selling Secrets Using Ebay To Launch Your Very Own Highly Successful Website

2009-01-28T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Michael Turner

Launching your very own successful website is the dream of many people worldwide because it is a new way to make money and be employed by oneself with little overhead. So, once you have your website you will need traffic to make it successful. The question is, how will you get the targeted traffic you need to support your website, sell your products, and realize your dream of a highly successful website? The answer is eBay. Yes, eBay is an auction site and regardless of whether or not you are interested in auctioning off your products, eBay is the perfect forum for generating that targeted traffic you are so interested in. You may be skeptical, but read the following reasons why eBay will get you the traffic you need.

First of all, eBay is affordable and you can run an auction for up to 10 days at a time. During this period you will have use of a small portion of the web and can advertise and describe your product or service for sale in any way you see fit. You can even add links. Ah, now you are starting to understand. These links on eBay will instantly begin to generate traffic to you site. You do not have to search out qualified websites, contact their webmaster, and grovel for a link. All you have to do is pay pocket change to auction off your product or service and add links to your site. This has several benefits.

One, you will be actually auctioning off a service or product so you might even sell it. And two, you will have the links you need to drive people to your website, and this is targeted traffic. Since eBay has billions of pages and millions of members worldwide, you will immediately realize many hits on your web pages from people who are interested in your particular products and services. Your sales will increase and you will have spent very little money to get those visitors to your site.

You certainly will save a lot of time by using eBay as part of your online marketing strategy. On eBay, you can list a lot of auctions in one day and continuously re-list them. That means you are in control of getting your company linked and noticed on the web. You won't have to be so concerned about other companies not linking to you or waiting long periods of time for them to do so. Using eBay will reduce the pressure a little bit and make the job of promoting your site much easier. Go ahead and try it. You might be skeptical, but you'll be amazed with the results.

Michael Turner reveals step-by-step how you can increase search engine traffic in his free 7 part mini-series. Grab it now at http://www.powertraffictactics.com/

Smart Ways Your Business Can Benefit From Online Auctions

2009-01-27T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Julia Tang

It seems as if everyone is talking about online auctions. And why not. There are thousands of online auctions on the internet with more popping up everyday. People love them because they can usually find great bargains. Businesses are now also seeing the benefits of online auctions. Below are five ways your business can benefit from online auctions.

1. Get Rid Of Excess Inventory

You could sell your excess or discontinued products at an online auction. Your unsold inventory is doing you no good sitting around, collecting dust. It's an effective way to make extra income and it won't be a total loss for your business. You could even get lucky and make a profit depending on how much people will bid for your excess inventory.

2. Test Pricing For New Products

An easy way to test new product prices is to see what people will bid for them at an online auction. First, sell your product at three different online auctions. Next, calculate the average selling bid from all three auctions and that will be your selling price for your new product.

3. Sell Your Products

You can get your product in front of a large audience by selling it at an online auction. Some of the bigger auction sites draw over millions of hits a year. The key to being successful is to sell your product at multiple online auctions at the same time. Let's say you sold one product a day from just one auction site. If you sell your product at one hundred online auction sites that would be one hundred sales a day!

4. Start Your Own Online Auction

Drive traffic to your web site by starting your own online auction. People will visit your web site to find bargains and to sell their own products. You will get plenty of repeat visitors from people rebidding on products and adding new products to sell. You could also charge other businesses to advertise on your web site.

5. Lower Your Business Costs

You can find lower prices on business supplies and equipment at online auctions. I'm not saying all the time, but before you go pay retail for a new printer try bidding on one first. A company may be selling them at a lower price at an online auction because they have excess inventory.

---------------------------------------------------------
Julia Tang publishes "Smart Online Business Tips", a fresh
and informative newsletter dedicated to supporting people
like you. To find out the best online business opportunities,
to discover hundreds more proven and practical internet
marketing secrets, plus FREE internet marketing products
worth over $200, visit: http://www.best-internet-businesses.com
----------------------------------------------------------

7 Tips For Selling Expensive Collectibles On Ebay

2009-01-26T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Sydney Johnston

Recently, a friend asked me to help her brother sell his collection on Lladro glass figurines on eBay. These are expensive glass collectibles and I knew nothing about them - but I don't have to. The principles for selling expensive collectibles on eBay are the same, regardless of what is being sold.

Obviously, like any eBay auction, the seller must have a powerful listing with great pictures. This is always true regardless of what the merchandise is. Expensive collectibles offer splendid opportunities, but also need special precautions.

1. Price: decide the lowest amount you will accept for each figurine and set that price as a reserve. Then make your opening bid absurdly low - yes, absurdly.

Example: if you will accept $1,000 - make your opening bid $25. There is no risk in this, because you don't have to sell unless the bidding reaches $1000, but the low price attracts buyers, (assuming there is demand, of course).

Looking at completed eBay auctions allows us to track prices, Again and again we learn that starting the price where the seller hopes it will end is not a wise tactic.

For instance, a seller wants to get $750 for his figurine. An opening bid of $750 won't attract nearly as many buyers as an opening bid of $25 and - surprisingly - the lower bid almost always gets higher prices. There is some psychology at work with the cheap price. It may not make logical sense, but it's the reality of life on eBay.

2. Devote space in your auction listing explaining how you will pack your item to ensure safe transit. This is critically important because in the back of every buyer's mind is the dread of receiving a package that rattles. A collectibles buyer will inevitably be thinking of the hassle she will have to go through - and the possible loss of purchase price - if her item is broken. She needs to know that the seller has carefully considered this issue and has a solution.

3. For the protection of both of you, insist that the buyer pay for appropriate insurance. Don't allow this to be an option. You definitely do not want the liability of a broken collectible that costs hundreds of dollars. In fact, if a customer objects to paying for insurance, this might possibly be a red flag. A genuine collector is very eager to add to her collection and wants her figurine to be protected.

4. We can safely assume that every Internet buyer has heard stories of fraud on eBay and elsewhere on the Net. Therefore, anything you can do to prove the authenticity of your collectible is well worth your time. Is there a marking on the bottom? Do you have the original box or other container? Does it have a label? Is there a certificate of authenticity or an appraisal by a respected organization? If the answer to any of these is "yes", then be certain to emphasize your authenticity in your auction. Taking pictures of your proof is especially effective.

5. I don't suggest offering a guarantee except in the most general way - that is, you, the seller, are telling the truth about the product. Anyone bidding on a collectible is knowledgeable and therefore they know what they're buying so there should be no reason for a return. If someone expresses dissatisfaction and mails your merchandise back, there is every likelihood of it being broken. You do not want the hassle of trying to collect on broken merchandise or putting yourself into a litigious situation with someone who refuses to believe that the collectible was broken via return shipping.

Also, you don't want to take a loss on your eBay fees, which might be substantial if the price is high.

6. With a really expensive item, always offer the option of an escrow service - at the buyer's expense, of course. They may not take want this service, but make certain they have the option. You, of course, know that your merchandise is legitimate, but the buyer isn't so certain. eBay recommends an escrow service that is available to all members.

7. If you're willing to ship worldwide, you need to take special steps to protect yourself. In the US we have AVS (Address Verification System) which offers some protection. A very large portion of the fraud suffered by buyers occurs outside the United States and you are justified in protecting yourself. Losing the purchase price on a $5 item isn't such a big deal - but a $1,000 collectible absolutely does matter.

Your bank can advise you on the time it will take to verify foreign funds. Be certain to let any prospective buyer know in your auction that there will be a delay if they are outside of your country. Do not let your merchandise out of your hands until you are sure!

If you follow these 'rules', the chances of selling your expensive collectibles at the highest possible prices will be greatly increased.

Sydney Johnston has been an eBay seller since 1996 and is the originator and teacher of the famous 'Auction Genius Course'. She is the author of the best-selling auction book on the Internet, 'Make Your Net Auction Sell' and offers an 11 Day Course that teaches how to sell on ebay: http://auction-genius-course.com/11days.shtml

Ebay Eighteen Profitbusting Listing Tips

2009-01-25T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Avril Harper

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. Alternatively, 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, modern 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. Alternatively, 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 patterns, use simple pastel patterns, 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

10 Things You Should Know Before You Bid On A Business Product From An Online Auction

2009-01-24T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Rojo Sunsen

1. Know the value of the product before you bid. If the product is brand new, check to see what price retailers are charging for it. If the product is used or reconditioned, you will want to pay way less than the retail value.

2. If the product's description or picture isn't detailed enough for you, contact the merchant to get more information before you bid. You don't want to take a chance to waste your hard earned money.

3. Know the highest price you will bid for the product and stick with it. Don't get caught up in a bidding war; you may end up paying more than the product's worth. Don't forget to add in the shipping price with your bid.

4. Visit a few online auctions before bidding because some merchants auction the same product in many auctions. You usually can purchase the product for a lower price in a unpopular auction because there are less bidders.

5. Know the time the auction begins and ends. You also want to know how long it will take to ship. If you need the product by a certain date, you'll want to estimate the time it will take to receive it.

6. Know the payment options the merchant accepts before you bid on their product. If they only accept checks or money orders, it may take even longer to get the product because the payment has to clear. If they accept credit cards make sure they have a secure server.

7. Know if the merchant offers a warranty or money back guarantee or before bidding on a product. You don't want to get stuck with a product that does not work or you're not satisfied with.

8. Online auctions will, sometimes, allow you to check the merchants history with their auction. Check to see if people have complained about the their products or business practices before you decide to bid.

9. It's important to place a bid early in the auction to show other bidders you are interested in the product. If someone does out bid you, don't be afraid to out bid them. Remember not to go over your maximum bid price.

10. Another reason to know when the auction ends; you can place a last minute bid. The other bidders may not be keeping track of when the auction ends or may not have the time to bid again.

About the author:

Rojo Sunsen is a specialized bounty hunter who prefers to work quietly/confidentially for the benefit of her clients.

Ebay Can Help You Build Your Business

2009-01-23T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Donny Lowy

eBay is not only a great source for sales, but it can also be a great source for general business building.

Being on eBay can help an entrepreneur build their business in a much faster manner than through traditional business building methods.

eBay is a fantastic online market that matches up sellers and buyers through an auction process.

Sellers can put up products and services for auction, and then use an array of tools to make their auctions professional looking.

Instead of relying on a simple store front, or an small site, eBay sellers can latch on to the millions of customers who frequent the eBay site.

There are many stories of eBay sellers who once had brick and mortar businesses which they gave up to focus exclusively on eBay.

Stories of eBay sellers closing their stores to sell only through eBay auctions are common.

Here are some great ideas to building your business through eBay.

Idea #1

Focus on one line of products. By focusing on one line of products your customers will come to know you, and will follow your auctions for your type of merchandise.

Idea #2

Have great customer service. The better you can serve people, the more they will want to participate in your eBay auctions. And you will benefit from word of mouth referrals.

Idea #3

Use all of the eBay tools at your disposal. eBay offers many tools that can help your auctions look like they were prepared by thousand dollar an hour web designers.

Idea #4

Have a listing system in place. A listing system for your eBay auctions will save you plenty of time in starting and running auctions.

Donny Lowy operates the following wholesale sites:
http://www.closeoutexplosion.com
http://www.wholesalequest.com
http://www.wholesalecloseoutforum.com

How To Win Your Favorite Collectibles And Other Items At Auctions

2009-01-22T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Monique Hawkins

Some people are interested in obtaining more collectible items for their collection. Some are seeking music boxes and other mechanical music. Many others are looking for items such as cars, houses, jewelry, and household items for a cheap price. There is a very inexpensive way to get your favorite items. How? Auctions!

You can find auctions in your area. Most local towns and cities have an auction house. You can usually check your local newspaper, which should have a section in the classifieds for upcoming auctions. Another good source is the Internet when looking for auction houses. Sometimes, you might be driving down the road and see a sign for an upcoming auction as well. Your local library is also a resource.

Once you find the auction or auctions you are interested in, make sure you check the time it starts. You want to do this because it is important to view the collectibles, music boxes, mechanical music, or other items you are looking to bid on before things get rolling. You will want to carefully assess their condition. So give yourself plenty of time for this. Make sure you also take a notepad and pen to make notes of the items and the top dollar you are willing to bid. You also will be able to find out who the auctioneers and auction workers are. You will want to get to know them since they will have important information about the particular items you are interested in. This also helps them recognize you when you bid and maybe cause them to be more apt to look your way for a bid.

Next, you will want to find out where the auction will start and what direction it will likely go. This is necessary because sometimes there may be more than one auction ring if there are many items. Believe it or not, some auctions last for several days! Each auction ring will have an auctioneer, a recorder, and helpers. It is best to figure out how many rings and which auctioneer will be in which ring. Some auctions have multiple estates represented, so don't be surprised if some sections of items may look like they do not belong with particular items.

In addition to the auctioneers, recorders, and helpers at an auction, there will also be a payment table and registration table. At many auction these two tables are the same table. It will be necessary to stop at the registration table before the auction starts. You will need to register your name, address, phone number, picture ID, and tax number if you have one.

Keep in mind that the auction can be indoors or outdoors, so make sure you dress appropriately. Otherwise, you might be too hot or too cold! You might want to think about taking a snack or lunch since there might not be a vendor available near the auction. Getting a good parking spot is also important so that you can transfer your music box, mechanical music, collectibles, and other items to your vehicle easily.

When you are at the auction, you will notice that items will have lot number or description associated with it. This information may not be on the actual item, but the recorder will have it. It will be on the tickets for each of your winning items. It is always is a good idea to keep track of what are your winning bids and what the winning bid was. This way, you can match each up to your ticket when you check out.

The items up for auction are usually kept in boxes or flats. The items may be auctioned per box or per item. If need be, you should be able to request a certain item be pulled out of a box to auction separately. A lot of times, however, you can get a better deal and bargain if the item you want is grouped together in a box with other stuff that may not be as desirable.

The more expensive item are kept in locked cases with an attendant close by to open the case for inspection of the items. The auctioneers usually will determine beforehand how valuable pieces and will be which items should be auctioned individually. Get yourself positioned so that you can see the items as they are auctioned and so that the auctioneer will readily see you for your bids. Make sure you have your bidder numbered card ready to show the auctioneer when you bid and when you win an item.

Sometimes, prior to and during an auction, as people look at the items, some may get moved from box to box. Make sure you pay close attention to what is being auctioned as in some case some things are moved. Depending upon the auctioneer, bidding could start at what the auctioneer thinks the item will eventually sell for. That offer may not get any bids, so in order to get people bidding; the auctioneer will lower the starting bid. If you are really interested in a music box, mechanical music, a collectible piece, or other items, you may want to bid first thing. This quick bid may scare off other potential bidders and you will win the item. Toward the end of the auction, there may not be as many people still at the auction. This is a great time to get some good deals also.

If you win, take your things straight to your vehicle. Once you win the bid, the item or items are you possession and you are responsible for them.

At the end of the auction, or when you are ready to leave, make sure you take the payment or registration table to pay for your winning items. They will have a list of items or a ticket for each winning item. Make sure the item and price match what you have recorded. It will be much easier to resolve any conflicts immediately rather than later.

Follow the above tips and you will be sure to win that coveted music box, mechanical music, collectible, or other item you were looking for!

Established in May of 2005, http://www.My-Music-Box.com is a music box gift store specializing in music box products such as inlaid ballerina music boxes for ballerina rooms décor, whimsical carousel music boxes, and musical jewelry boxes. The company provides interesting information for music lovers of all ages. Owner Monique Hawkins is also the author of the blog "What You Never Knew About Music" http://whatyouneverknewaboutmusic.blogspot.com , and owner of the eBay store "Monique's Music Box" at: http://stores.ebay.com/Moniques-Music-Box Monique can be contacted at (540) 858-2885.

How To Price What You Are Selling On Ebay

2009-01-21T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Stephen S Alison

One of the most crucial areas of decision making for sellers on eBay is "Pricing". How much should I sell my item (s) for? Consider the following questions. And when you address these questions always ask yourself the rationale behind your answers:

Do you have an overall pricing philosophy?
What is it? (high end, medium, or low end)
What are the characteristics of the people who will buy at your eBay auctions?
For what reasons will they buy at your auction? (for low prices, for convenience, for service, etc.)
How will you compute prices?
When setting prices, will you take all of your operating costs into account? (including your own salary)
Will your prices be "fair" to the customers who will buy at your eBay Auction?
What does the term "fair" mean to you?
Will you visit similar auctions to check on your competitors prices
Will you use odd prices ($4.95, $4.97, $9.95, $9.97 ) rather than even prices ($5.00, $10)?

Setting Your eBay Prices

Fair Prices - From your perspective fair should mean "your prices reflect your overhead operating structure" in a way that enables you to earn a satisfactory profit without profiteering i.e. overcharging the customer.

You should use selling price = 100% calculations, with selling price = cost of goods + desired profit = 100%.

Odd Prices - Although the impact of odd pricing on customer behaviour may be overrated, there is one significant reason to use this practice. Consumers are more likely to believe that you have planned your prices very carefully and have worked hard to keep the prices as low as possible.

Competitors Prices - When setting your prices you should look at similar auction items and check out competitors to be sure that your prices are consistent with your pricing philosophy and the market place. Review the notes you made when you reviewed the Going, Going, Gone pages and collected first hand information on what items are selling, the selling price and the number of bids;

Low Prices - Consider pricing your item(s) low to attract bidders especially if you have an item that you know or suspect will sell quickly. Start it off at $.01 to attract bidders.

Reserve Price - If the item is valuable and you know it will sell, you can place a Reserve Price on it. This way you can still start off your auction at $.01 to attract bidders but avoid making a loss on the transaction.

eBay Category - Consider placing your item in a non-conventional category to attract more bidders and a higher final price. But make sure you don't violate any eBay Category Listing Policies.

Factoring in eBay Fees And Merchant Providers Fees in your Prices

As a seller, you should learn and understand about the types of fees you'll pay to use eBay's tools. Also you must know what fees PayPal or your chosen merchant provider will charge to service your transactions. Fee types to know and to consider when pricing your item(s):

Insertion Fees: There is a non-refundable Insertion Fee for listing your item on eBay. Insertion Fees vary by the type of listing;
Picture Services: If you use eBay Picture Services, there are different features from which you can choose. The first picture is Free;
Final Value Fees: When your listing ends, you will be charged a Final Value Fee based on the final sale price (or "final value") of the item(s) you have sold;
Listing Upgrades Fees: As a seller, you can choose several optional features to help promote your listing. These fees are non-refundable;
PayPal Fees: Sellers have the option of listing with PayPal. PayPal charges Premier and Business accounts to receive payments. Personal accounts are free, but may not receive credit card payments. Fees are assessed at the time of the transaction and will be deducted from your PayPal account;
Other Merchants: Fees are similar to PayPal;

Reducing eBay Fees as an Input Cost

You can slightly reduce the eBay Insertion Fees and Final value fees by reducing the auction price of your item(s) and charging a handling fee especially if the product you are selling is being delivered via a zipped file or file transfer e.g. software download or eBook via email.

eBay Policy Guidelines do allow the charging of reasonable shipping & handling Fees. BUT be aware of the eBay Fee Avoidance Policy which clearly states that Sellers must refrain from activity that circumvents eBay fees including the Listing of items in a manner that allows circumvention of eBay fees and low prices but unreasonably high shipping or handling costs.

Do not make a habit of overcharging your customers on shipping and handling costs as this could affect your credibility and possible repeat business. It is also unethical! You should charge what it normally costs you to pack and ship. This is a grey area so be careful.

Stephen S Alison is a retired "bean counter" who spent 26 years in middle management positions for major US financial institutions in Europe and a further 10 years as an adviser/consultant to a number of European financial institutions. He has traded successfully on eBay for over 2 years using the same strategies and tactics published in his websites: http://www.howtomakeyourfortuneonebay.com http://www.learntomakeyourlivingonebay.com

How Do You Find A Reliable Dropshipping Source

2009-01-20T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Lindsay Blades

A Dropshipper is someone who will anonymously send the goods you order to your customer! There are no markings on the box and no invoices enclosed! Finding a reliable dropshipper can prove to be a strenuous task. When selecting a Dropshipper you want to be sure to find someone that has a large inventory and quickly replenishes items that become sold out!

You also want to find someone that is helpful and knowledgeable about the products they are selling! Make sure to contact them before you consider reselling their items, see how quickly you get a response and how helpful the response is! Remember this is the same service you can expect once you are in business with them! If it is less than your standards consider using someone else!

How do you find a Dropshipper? There are several ways to find a Dropshipper perhaps the easiest is to purchase a list from an online auction! Thoroughly read the context of the ad and ask questions if need be. Make sure you are buying the list you need! Once you have made your purchase you will receive a list of contacts that you can easily view without having to find them one by one! I personally sell Dropship Lists on Ebay at www.stores.ebay.com/Dropship-Specialists , to give you an idea what to look for. For the most part they are already thoroughly checked out, and deemed to be good upstanding Dropshippers.

The second, more time consuming method is to do your research! Use the various search engines and type in keywords like "dropship" and specific keywords to the category you are thinking of selling for example "electronics"! This will take a lot more time. Make sure that when visiting the website you thoroughly read their policies! Do not commit to anything until you have done all of your research!

Once you have found a reliable Dropshipping source, you are ready to start selling. The research is gruelling but in the long run you will be rewarded! Statistics say that 9 out of 10 online businesses fail in the first 3 months. Being well prepared will optimize your chances for success!

Lindsay Blades
Dropship Specialists
lindsayblades@hotmail.com
http://www.stores.ebay.com/Dropship-Specialists

Finding Products To Sell On Ebay

2009-01-19T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Nowshade Kabir

Do you know how many people in US are earning their livelihood with the help of eBay? According to a new survey conducted on July 2005 by ACNielsen, a leading research firm, an astounding 724 thousand Americans respond that they rely on eBay for their main or supplemental income. Apart from these professional sellers, another 1.5 million people confirmed that they generate additional income by selling goods on eBay. Last year alone, around 150 million registered users have sold over US$ 34 billion worth of goods on eBay. Isn't it amazing?

Why entrepreneurs are flocking into eBay? Some of the reasons are quite apparent.

Starting a business on eBay is easy and quick

You don't require large investment

Anybody can start an eBay business, no special skill is required

You can sell virtually anything on eBay

With your eBay business you can have flexible work time

You have a ready-made market of over 150 million people and counting

eBay get 1.5 billion page views each month. You get access to this massive traffic almost paying nothing.

So, there is no wonder that anybody with slightest penchant to have their own business will jump into this great opportunity. But, there are two major problems that many of the would-be eBay sellers encounter. The first is what to sell and the next is where to find it.

What to sell?

According to Forrester Research, a major research company, this year, categories with products purchased by women will have the most growth in online retailing. Some categories are already getting more than ten percent of their overall sales through the Internet, which include: computer hardware and software, tickets, travel, books, consumer electronics, cosmetics and fragrances, toys and video games, and flowers, cards and gifts. While choosing items to sell on eBay, you should also explore the features available on eBay and other places on the Internet that show items people search and items people actually buy.

eBay has a complete section called "Seller Central" dedicated to delivering utmost information to help you succeed in selling products through eBay. Two links from this section should interest you. One is What's Hot (http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral/whatshot.html) and the other one is Category Tips (http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral/sellbycategory.html).

When you go to the subsection 'What's Hot', check out the following three areas:

Hot Items by Category

This is a comprehensive report of categories, and products within a category by the ratio of bid to listings growth rate in PDF format. The report gets updated monthly and shows which products have increased demand in comparison to last month. Super hot products, for example, have over 35 percentage point difference between bid growth rate and listing growth rate. According to the latest report, by the way, Sunglasses for men, in particular Prada sunglasses are super hot.

eBay Pulse

This is another area where you can see the top ten searched categories, ten most widely watched auctions, list of stores with most active listings, and other cool stuffs on daily basis.

eBay Summer Catalog

This is a new subsection. It's a real catalog with pictures and average price of products. In each category of products there is a list of top ten summer trends. You, definitely, should check this out if you are planning to start selling now.

In Demand

On the page "Category Tips" under each category you will see a link under the name "In Demand". This area will show you a list of ten most sold items of this category as well as most searched items for each subcategory.

You might also like to see what people buy on non-eBay part of the Internet. The Shopping.com Consumer Demand Index (CDI) (http://www.shopping.com/CDI/cdi.cmp) makes a weekly list of most sought after items. This list could give you the needed glimpse to the future market trend!

Where to find items to sell on eBay

Your own home

If you are just planning to start selling on eBay, your first option is to go through your attic, closets and garage. Find those long stashed items that you will probably never need. These may include: books that you will perhaps never read, CDs that you out grew, gifts that you received but did not like much, the list can go on! Take them out, brush them off and post them on eBay for sell.

Flea markets and garage sales

Every body knows that garage sales and flea markets can be real treasure troves! Well, now you can look at them from a business point of view. Your sales experience with own home items, hopefully, will help you understand what will sell well and what won't. Don't go for any costly items as yet.

Local liquidators and auctions

Classified sections of local Newspapers' week-end editions are good place to look for estate auctions. While buying items from local auctions determine what are you going to buy and for what price beforehand and stick to them no matter what! At an auction there is always a risk of getting carried away!

Go visit some local business liquidators. These are excellent places to find items for bargain price.

Drop shippers (http://ezine.rusbiz.com/article/39)

When a manufacturer, wholesaler, distributor or importer, after receiving an order from their retailers, individually pack and deliver the product to the customer of the retailer with retailers address as shipper, this selling technique is called drop-shipping. This is an excellent way to find products to sell on eBay. Drop ship source directory (http://www.worldwidebrands.com/wwb/?8188) is the place to go if you are looking for drop-shippers.

eBay

eBay itself can be a great sourcing place for you. Check out wholesale items and eBay business marketplace from your chosen fields. In order to find wholesale listing, while searching a product select "Items listed as lots". You can buy goods in wholesale and then sell them piece by piece and make decent money. Of course, you have to develop good knowledge of the products before doing this.

If your business has grown and you are considering importing products to sell on eBay, read my article "Importing Products to sell on eBay" (http://ezine.rusbiz.com/article/52).

The bottom line is there was never a better time to start a business. If you feel this is really your cup of tea, just go for it!

Nowshade Kabir is the founder, primary developer and present CEO of Rusbiz.com a Global B2B Exchange with solutions to create e-catalog, Web store, business process management and other features to run a business online. You can read various articles written by Nowshade Kabir at http://ezine.rusbiz.com.

Search Search Search Your Way To Ebay Cash

2009-01-18T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Tim Gilberg

One of the most valuable things in life is the ability to learn a skill. One of my dad's favorite sayings was "You can give a man a fish and he will eat for a day, or you can teach a man to fish and he will never go hungry." This can be applied to searching on eBay.

The main things I search for when I am mining Internet gold is by Product Title or Listing as it is called; but you need to remember that we always want to view Completed Auctions. It doesn't matter if a computer is listed at $1, and there are 2 days left...that information doesn't help us. We need cold, hard facts of what that computer sold for, how much it sold for and who bought it; and this is available to you on Completed Auctions. Many times when I search by a product and see that it is a hot seller, I will then check for the top sellers of that product. Then I check the sellers other auctions.

Very Important - Successful eBay Sellers Are Just That For A Reason! They know the tricks and techniques that get those sales. View all the items and incorporate your own ideas to make your sales successful. Don't reinvent the wheel. Your goal is to Make Fast Cash! Clone what works, and integrate them with your own ideas. Use the following guidelines as an aid in your search:

1. When do the "hot sellers list?

2. What starting prices do they use?

3. What is the wording in their ads?

4. What is the duration of their auctions ( 3, 5 or 7 day auctions)

Eliminate trial and error. Concentrate on successful power sellers. With all of this information at your fingertips you need to realize that you don't need to be an expert in any product you want to sell. Focus on hot, selling products and the techniques the top eBay sellers use to sell them.

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

Sell Corkscrews On Ebay

2009-01-17T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Avril Harper

I knew I'd found something special when a colleague who normally sells vintage postcards turned to listing corkscrews instead. She's someone I check out often, use as a role model, she regularly achieves high prices for her postcards, I've learned a lot from her. But I stood to learn - and earn - a great deal more from this new-found interest of hers: vintage corkscrews.

The very first of her offerings, a corkscrew with handle shaped like a mermaid, made over £1,000. Others, also with novelty and ornate handles, have fetched double figures and, from my experience, they're commonly found at offline auctions and flea markets where price tags of two or three pounds are common.

Marvel at these recent eBay finishing prices: a rare 'flip out' (misspelled, should have been flip out) made from brass and resembling a flick knife made £2,051.61; an Italian stirrup shaped corkscrew went for £2750.00; a ratchet corkscrew from 1869 fetched $1812.77, not one of which were well described or blatantly unusual.

Tips to Help You Buy and Sell Corkscrews for Profit

* Corkscrews have been around since the mid-1600s but it's those from 1850 onwards that fetch the highest prices at auction. Before this, most household objects were made to be used, not looked at, so they were plain, functional, not ornate and grandiose such as some appearing in the late 1800s which now fetch fabulous prices on eBay. So, generally speaking, the more ornate and elaborate the corkscrew the higher its price is likely to be.

* That said, I've seen very plain corkscrews priced about £1 a time at flea market fetching a fiver or more on eBay so it's worth buying anything that's genuinely old and very cheap. 'Dirty' usually indicates old and because few plain corkscrews become auction best sellers you'll rarely find them faked or made to look older than they really are. They're always worth buying!

* The earliest designs comprised a steel spiral fixed to a wooden handle. Subsequently handles became precious works of art, made from silver or gold, encrusted with diamonds or inlaid with ivory or mother of pearl. In time the simple spiral was replaced by mechanical devices to make opening bottles easier still, some even had a small brush attached for cleaning dust from bottles removed after years of maturing in dusty cellars. More desirable and consequently more valuable are specimens with unusual attachments such as brush or bell cap (a metal piece to fit over the bottle neck), containing precious jewels or painstaking artwork.

* The Victorians' love of all things new-fangled, somewhat risqué, and heavily ornate, spawned some of the most beautiful and highly prized items. They include a multitude of corkscrews just sold on eBay, with 'Victorian' in the title, that fetched forty to eighty pounds each, and all looking rather ordinary, with simple wooden handles and commonplace screw. Similar vintage items not labelled 'Victorian' reached lower prices. That word 'Victorian' could double your corkscrew's value, as long as it's true!

* My research revealed antique French creations fetching two to three times their corresponding English manufactures.

* Add something a little unusual or with separate use and corkscrew prices rise, such as a folding antique corkscrew that fetched £158.00, a French creation depicting a champagne bottle with pocket knife in the handle that made £159.99, and a UK corkscrew shaped like ladies' legs that went for £185.00.

* The screw is sometimes called a 'worm' or 'helix' and was made from twisted wire or cast into shape. Because corkscrews were constantly used and in regular contact with water and alcohol, the worm on older corkscrews is frequently found broken, damaged or heavily rusted. Rust can be cleared or reduced with oil which also keeps moving parts in working order. Serious damage or sloppy repairs to screw or handle can render a common corkscrew almost worthless and will seriously reduce value of most highly prized specimens.

* The most collectible corkscrews are those with ornate handles, unusual mechanisms, popular maker's name. Precious metals add significantly to resale value. Popular makers include Merritt, Gaskell and Chambers, Lund Lever, Samuel Pemberton.

* A past famous owner increases value significantly, and there are collectors specializing solely in items once owned by the likes of Al Capone and other gangsters alongside more respected citizens such as U.S. Presidents, well known entertainers, writers, and so on. Study the long list of corkscrews with past famous owners at the Virtual Corkscrew Museum: http://www.bullworks.net/virtual/signat.htm

* As for virtually any collectible, the addition of a popular theme or subject, for instance a dog or frog depiction, a sport or hobby, leads to multiple bidders from several eBay categories and can fetch unexpectedly high prices. By far the best corkscrew-related web site I studied values a corkscrew with rare Swedish penknife attached at £150 and another with a boy's head made from a golf ball at £170. (http://www.corkscrewcentre.com - based in Brackley, Northants, UK).

USEFUL SITES

http://www.corkscrew.com
http://www.corkscrewcentre.com
http://www.bullworks.net/virtual/signat.htm (Virtual Corkscrew Museum)

Avril Harper offers Internet Marketing Articles to help new and experienced marketers and also offers a range of downloadable free reports including 103 EBAY POWERSELLER TIPS at http://www.toppco.com

Ebay Selling As A Business The Reality Of It All Part I

2009-01-16T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Karen Grant

As an eBay Powerseller, I have had a fair amount of experience selling on eBay. One thing I can tell you for certain- it can be quite a ride! Most of my customers (but unfortunately not all) have been extremely pleasant and honest to work with. That in and of itself makes the eBay experience well worth the time and effort you put in to it. I have met, virtually speaking, some very nice people and have had some wonderful conversations with an interesting variety of people from around the world. If you are looking for an opportunity to interact with some fascinating people, then selling on eBay may be well worth your time.

That being said, there have been many, many articles written about how to sell on eBay and how to make great amounts of money. The possibility does exist but it may not be as simple as some would suggest. You cannot just go to a wholesaler and buy a pallet load of dollar store or overstock items, resell them on eBay and expect to make a lot of money. It just won't happen. First of all, it is very difficult to locate wholesalers with quality, name brand items who will be willing to work with you. Secondly, if you purchase off brand or slightly defective items, you won't be able to sell them at a profit.

Now don't be completely discouraged because there are things you can do to make money on eBay. There definitely are people who do. I will let you in on a couple of selling secrets. One, you need to sell name brand items,. People often search for items on eBay by the name brand and that is what they are most willing to buy. Second, don't sell extremely low priced items. If you are selling an item that you can get $20 for and you paid $10 that may seem like a good profit. However, once you deduct eBay fees, PayPal fees, possible auction management fees, and your time, your profit is next to nothing. Then consider how many of these items you would have to sell and ship in order to make a decent amount of money. Yikes! The trick to solving this problem is to find a niche in higher cost items that you are able to purchase at lower prices and leave yourself a considerable profit margin. You will need to do a bit of research to determine what your niche should be but this is an important step in developing your eBay business. We will discuss some ways to do research in future articles, but for now consider the areas you have the greatest interest or knowledge in as a starting point.

Finally, if you are going to sell on eBay as a business, make it a true business. Take it seriously and set up your business structure and your bookkeeping as you would any other business. You can find more information on this topic on our website, Inc to Wealth. Come back and check our future articles in this series for more information on the eBay experience.

Happy selling!

Karen Grant is CEO of Divine Finds, Inc. and has written the book "Incorporate Your Way to Wealth" which is included as part of the company's business start-up package for eBay and internet entrepreneurs. This package is currently available at http://www.inctowealth.com She has also developed several websites, the latest being http://www.FindMoreFacts.com an informational website for home decorating, remodeling, and organization and small business resources.

Dropship Or Uship That Is The Question

2009-01-15T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Cari Haus

For small Internet retailers, drop-shipping is one of the best innovations since sliced bread. How else can a start-up offer a wide variety of products and convince customers that they have a fully-stocked warehousewhile investing virtually nothing in inventory or warehousing? Before you jump right onto the drop-shipping bandwagon, however, there are some pitfalls to avoid.

While a quality drop-shipper is truly a dream come true for the Internet retailer, there are plenty of painful pitfalls to avoid. Things can get embarrassing and costly in a hurry when a drop-shipper:

sends products out late
forgets to process your orders
sends out poorly packaged products
double-bills your credit card for orders on a regular basis
provides cheaply made products and/or shoddy workmanship.

A Matter of Credibility

In addition to the above drawbacks, many customers are not very impressed when they find out you retail drop-shipped products. This is especially the case with the rustic log furniture I sell on the web. Many phone customers ask if we make the products ourselves, or are "merely" drop-shipping.

They are relieved and impressed when they find that we manufacturer, finish or pack most of the log furniture we sell at our warehouse. We sell to a lot of people with expensive vacation homes, and quality is of utmost importance. It's always easier to testify to the quality of furniture when you have seen it yourself, and we are able to offer a more unique line by going to Amish suppliers whose products aren't sold elsewhere on the Internet.

Advantages of Drop-Shipping

With this said, there are still some sizeable advantages to drop-shipping. As the volume of our orders grows, it becomes more and more difficult to package all of that furniture. Fortunately for us, our largest supplier is only two miles away and we have a pretty good deal going: we finish all the log furniture they want finished, and they drop-ship the unfinished furniture. So they make it, we finish it.

That means if somebody orders unfinished furniture, it can go directly from the factory. This might have made me nervous about quality control at one point, but I have developed a high degree of confidence in our log furniture manufacturer. In the five years I have been associated with them, they have never let me down. They fill orders with a high degree of quality and accuracy, which makes our job easy.

Choosing a Drop-Ship Partner

Unfortunately, not all drop-shipping companies are as reliable as the one I have found. This is why it pays to do your homework before choosing a drop-shipping company. If you align yourself with fly-by-night operations, your business will most likely suffer as a result. If you are wildly successful, which you no doubt hope to be, a small start-up may not be able to manufacturer or ship product fast enough to meet your needs. A drop-shipper that is unstable as a business may be happy to take your cash but fail to fill orders on a timely basis.

Any business who drop-ships your orders will affect your reputation as a company one way or another. As a result, it's important to make sure any drop-shipping companies you partner with meet the high level of customer service and quality control standards you set for your business.

Cari Haus is webmaster for http://www.logcabinrustics.com, an online retailer of quality log furniture.

Find Bargain Items On Ebay Easily And Conveniently

2009-01-14T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Susan Dean

To find bargain items on ebay is certainly easy and convenient. You will find many different types of things being sold this way including computers, household accessories, autos, pictures, clothes, in fact just about everything and anything that your heart desires can be found this way, often at great discount prices.

All you need to do is take your time and have a look at what is on offer and if there is anything that takes your fancy then you just need to bid. That's right just bid. Most things advertised on ebay are up for auction. That is why it is easy to find bargain items on ebay.

Of course you do have to know your prices before you start to bid so you will know if you are getting an item for cheap or not. Bargains are only such if you get them at a reduced price. You will find that there are individuals who want to sell their used goods this way and then there are those who run businesses and sell their goods at below cost. Whatever you are after you will no doubt find it and at a great price to boot.

Then again you may not necessarily be looking for a bargain but looking for something that you may want as a collectors item and are willing to pay top dollar. If this is you then ebay is still a great option.

Of course not only can you find bargain items on ebay but you too can also make some money selling this way as well. You may have one item or many that you could sell. Think of how much easier and less time consuming this way of selling is. Why keep your home cluttered with things that you do not use anymore when you can sell them and use the money on something that is more worthwhile.

Susan Dean is the webmaster and publisher of http://www.hot-deal-finder.net Visit her site for insider information on buying and selling on ebay.

Rediscovering Ebay Amp Amazon

2009-01-13T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Richard Grady

It is some time (a couple of years at least) since I did any selling on eBay (although I have used it quite a bit as a buyer) but this week I decided to list a few items that have been lying around the house for months. Makes sense as I am never going to use them again so I might as well let someone else benefit and make a little money on the side ;-)

The one thing that I used to really hate about eBay was packing stuff up and taking it to the Post Office but I had forgotten the bit that I LOVED - watching people bid on the auctions and seeing your money going up! Now I should say that I only listed a few hundred pounds worth of stuff - certainly nothing that is going to make me rich but even seeing relatively small bids on your items for sale is exciting.

In fact, I was having such a ball that I started listing some of my old books and DVDs on Amazon's Marketplace. Now, if you have never heard of the Amazon Marketplace, let me tell you, this really is a very neat selling venue and a superb business concept on both sides. Quite simply, Amazon allow you to list books, CDs, computer games, DVDs, electronic goods etc for sale on their website (you don't even need to write out a listing - it is auto-generated via the ISBN/barcode number!). When someone is about to purchase a book (or whatever) via the main Amazon site, they are also given the option to buy a copy of the same item from 'Marketplace Sellers'. This means that they could get a second-hand (or new) copy of the same product cheaper from a different seller. If they opt to buy from you, Amazon takes the payment from the seller and sends you an email advising you of the sale and giving you the name/address to send the book/whatever to. Then every couple of weeks Amazon pays your money into your bank account.

Of course, Amazon takes a small commission for providing the above service but they also charge the buyer a standard amount to cover postage costs. It is a win-win situation and I think it is a very shrewd move on Amazon's part (in fact, they probably prefer it when someone buys from a Marketplace Seller since they get paid for doing absolutely nothing).

So I ended up listing 20 or so items on Amazon as well and in less than 2 days, I have already sold half of them and earned over £100! Remember this is in respect of a few books and DVDs that would have just sat on my shelves for the next 6 months/year/who knows? How often do you read the same book twice or watch the same DVD more than once?

eBay and Amazon offer two different ways of selling your second-hand possessions and both ways are quick and easy as well as being enjoyable. Having 're-discovered' both sites as a seller after several years, I am enjoying selling on both - eBay because of not knowing what the final sales price will be and Amazon because it is just SO easy (you don't even have to communicate with the buyers!).

I still can't stand the packing and shipping though! :-)

Richard Grady has been helping ordinary people earn online since 1998. He writes a free newsletter which is published every two weeks. To subscribe (and claim your free gifts), visit http://www.thetraderonline.com/newsletter.html

How To Create An Ebay Sales Page

2009-01-12T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Ian Major

Writing a sales page is one of the most important things you will do for your eBay auctions especially if there are many different sellers selling similar items. You have to write a sales page that makes the buyers want to bid on your item, instead of your competitor's items!

There are many different elements to a winning sales page.

A winning sales page starts with an outstanding headline.

The headline must stand out so that it will be noticed when bidders search for particular items. The headline must mention the item that you are selling, but there needs to be more information than that. For eBay, this will be the title of your auction, and when a person looks for a specific item in your category, that title will appear in the search results. Make sure it catches their attention!

The rest of your sales page is written by filling out the form that sets up the auction for eBay.

Again, you want to encourage the bidder to place bids or to buy now. You should outline the features of the item that you are selling, using words that capture the attention of the bidder, and even words that pull them emotionally. For instance, if you are selling an heirloom item, you may want to give some history of the item information that makes the item even more valuable to potential bidders.

It is important to tell the bidders how they will benefit from the item should they win the bid. Again, this serves to make the item more valuable and desirable to the bidder. What will the buyer get out of it?

The end of your sales page should ensure the bidder that if there is a problem with the item you will offer a money back guarantee.

If you do this, it is vitally important that you do indeed honor your guarantee. Guarantees are generally reserved for new items. Old items are usually sold 'as is' with no refunds offered. However, eBay requires you to accurately describe your item, and they require that the item arrive at the buyers address in the condition that you described. If it does not, you are obligated to refund the money that the buyer paid for the item.

Without putting down other sellers or their products specifically, you need to tell the potential bidders and buyers why they should bid on your item, as opposed to bidding on other auctions for similar items.

There is a fine line here that you cannot cross putting down other sellers in a public way simply is not to be done! But at the same time, you must let the buyer know why they should choose your auction. Again, this is done by listing benefits and features, and by letting the buyer know that you will honor any money back guarantees you may have.

Adding a good picture of the item to the sales page is recommended.

People want to see what they are buying, and many bidders will by-pass auctions that do not include photographs of the items. Make sure your picture is clear and shows your item in its best light, and add a link to view other pictures of the item as well.

Remember, you are trying to sell something with your eBay sales page.

Use words that will draw the attention of the buyer and make them want your item more than anything else in life! Dress up your words in a way that makes your items more attractive. For instance, instead of saying that you have 'an old beat up record player' for sale, you might say that you have a 'well loved record player.

Successful eBay selling is all about choosing items that people want, and using the right words in the sales page to make the buyer want the item even more!

Ian D. Major makes it easy to understand and use eBay, quickly and easily. Learn all you need to know by visiting eBay Articles an entirely FREE source of information about eBay.

http://www.ebay-articles.com

An Introduction To Becoming A Bulk Reseller Part 1amp2

2009-01-11T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Jim Staley

The basic business model states that for an owner to make money, they must provide a product or service at a higher fee than their costs. Looking at it from a different perspective, if you are selling products, you are buying items at a reduced cost and reselling them at a higher price.

Many business owners buy small amounts or one-of-a-kind items to resell to their customers. But there is a whole other kind of product buying and selling going on - one that can net a significantly larger profit: buying bulk from closeouts, inventory sales or liquidators.

This type of buy-sell relationship is usually termed bulk reselling, and it's what we'll focus on for the next couple of entries. From finding wholesalers to storing the "stuff", to selling it and recouping your expenses, we'll get into the nitty gritty that is bulk reselling using the Internet as a vehicle.

COSTING OUT WHOLESALE BULK SUPPLIERS

Arguably the most important part of being a bulk reseller is locating (a) reliable wholesale supplier(s) that offers excellent customer service, support and prices. This usually means you'll spend weeks surfing the Internet, bookmarking interesting companies and doing a tremendous amount of research to determine if the bulk reseller(s) in question have the wholesale supplies you are looking for.

Since bulk reselling means dropping a tidy chunk of change in one fell swoop, examine your cost-saving options carefully. Some things to investigate are:

Payment Options
Can you pay in 30, 60 or 90 days? With a credit card? Although not common with bulk resellers, some do offer dropshipping direct to each of your end users/customers. This feature can save you a tremendous amount of time, energy and money if you plan on selling any more than 10 of the same item.

Shipping Charges
These can differ widely depending on what you are purchasing and who you are purchasing from. Some liquidators even offer free shipping if you take a large enough sum of items off their hands.

Receiving
When and where will you receive these items? If the bulk reseller shipment shows up while you are at work, how will you retrieve the items later? Also, where will you put it all when they are delivered? (This can also help you to decide what exactly you want to resell, but we'll get into that aspect in another entry, later). Cost out some local self storage companies just in case.

Profit Considerations
Research each item you are looking at purchasing from a bulk reseller. Check online and see what other companies are selling the same (or similar) items for, and compare those prices to what you'll be paying PER ITEM (including shipping charges and storage fees). If your per item cost is less than half of what everyone else is selling something similar for, you've got a winner.

After you've compared and constrasted bulk suppliers, you are ready to start creating a system to get the items you chose out the door and making you money.

Jim Staley is the is the CEO for WholesaleGopher (http://www.wholesalegopher.com/), one of the most trusted dealer and distributor directories on the Internet, offering visitors wholesale items, import and export goods, surplus and closeouts from true wholesale sources.

Ebay Secrets For A Successful Wholesale Empire

2009-01-10T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Joaquin Reveron

Have you seen those big star certified power seller identifications given to certain amount of eBay sellers on numerous auctions? They are everywhere on eBay. There are certain requirements you need in order to become a money making power seller giant on eBay, and ultimately own a wholesale empire through successful selling.

I'm going to discuss the most important start-up knowledge and tools you need for a successful power seller monthly experience and clarify many of the myths that have been around on the net for years.

Power seller Secret Number 1: In order to start in the right track for a successful eBay power selling experience you need to know learn how to do online research. It is truly vital that once you decide to start a business, you start with the vital step named "research".

How to do online eBay research? For the sake of the article I am going to discuss the manual free way of doing it immediately. There are many paid tools you can use to cut your research time, however, getting to know how to do research on your own is highly recommended.

First, you need to go to eBay's home page and on the left side of the main page you will see multiple categories. You will then search and locate a category, once you have located the appropriate category for your niche, you will do a search on eBay for main keywords relating to that niche category you have selected and see how much popularity and competition there is for that certain category.

If you did a search and found over 20,000 or more listings for that certain keyword and niche, you know that you find a profitable niche, however, the only draw to such niche is that competition is very high. If you are a seasoned starter on eBay, I will not recommend starting up a business in such high competitive category since you are most likely to stumble hard at the beginning and most likely will end up later on saying, that making an online business on eBay does not work and that the ultimate way to profit from it, is if you started from the beginning, big time myth. I have mad e$1,000's by selling in high competitive niches, you just need to do the right research and get some background experience to support possible flaws you will possibly encounter.

So my recommendation for your first step. Do a wide research relating your item that you feel passionate and try it only if you already have some selling experience on such auction portal. An experience seller is someone that has at least 200 feedback or more. If you are starting on such auction giant, start making your own garage sell and learn how selling process works by trying different selling angles, presentations and items. You will plenty of experience by then.

Power seller Secret Number 2: Selecting a real wholesaler or distributor. It is imperative to choose a correct wholesaler or distributor for your item(s). Today, there are hundreds if not thousands of middleman scams in the wholesale industry. It is vital that you know your potential wholesaler and distributor background. How do you search for such hidden gems?

Again, you can do it manually or you can pay for a list of potential distributors in your field. However, be warned that 98% of those wholesale list around the same eBay search are completely outdated and incorrect, just to confirm it in fancy words.

You need to know that a real wholesaler does not advertise on the search engines of the Internet. They don't need to. A real distributor as well a genuine wholesaler gets plenty of business already from offline corporations. It is imperative that you understand this fact.

So how do you find one for your eBay experiment? You search for a top dollar wholesale list that can support their claims or reach a top successful seller to advice you in exchange of compensation.

I have done both, and thanks to it I have been very much profitable for it. The simplest way to get a good list of a true distributor and wholesaler is to pay an authority wholesale company or guy for this. Many successful business entrepreneurs will be willing to give a list of phone numbers and website address to get more information and top sources for different kind of items. Make sure to offer top dollar for this and they will most likely give you such sources as most of the business starters that ask for such list, never take the business serious or make it because they don't follow the top step mentioned above.

The other way around is to send the eBay seller an email asking him for a distributor list. As long as your business does not conflict with him or is potential competition to him, you won't have a problem. Make sure to prepare a nice one hundred word letter with a simple inquiry.

Most people don't follow these primary steps and fail. The steps probably look simple or ridiculous, but they work and I as many others had made $1,000's on eBay thanks to following the right steps and correct diligence.

Joaquin Reveron is successful wholesale business consultant. Trainer and wholesale marketing agent for online and offline businesses. Wholesale Video Games is one of the topics discussed at http://www.videogamesmystery.com

Used Car Online Auction

2009-01-09T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Adrian Barrett

I am going to show you the ropes of just how easy it is, to purchase a car from a used car online auction. Just a few quick notes and you are done!

1. You need to know what kind of used car you are looking for. A lot of people spend too much time just searching around without any real concrete idea of what they want. If you have an idea of what you are looking for, you are off to a great start!

2. You need to find a suitable used car online auction service that provides tech support, an updated database of vehicles for you to choose from, and a service that is fast. The last thing you want is to sit around at a slow car auction site.

3. Upon entering the used car online auction site you will do the following. Simply choose your model, and make of the car you wish to find, and click go! It really is that easy.

4. The used car online auction service will go out to their updated database and find entries which match your query. The results will be displayed on screen and you can choose the used car of your dreams.

It really is that easy.

Adrian Barrett is an online writer who reviews used car online auction websites. To visit his review site, go to: Used Car Online Auction

Ebay Powerseller Profit Tips To Help You Make More Money On Ebay1 Of A Four Part Feature

2009-01-08T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Avril Harper

Sometimes just a few small tasks make all the difference between making a few dollars profit on eBay and generating a small fortune each month. These ideas will help you make more from your listings.

* Don't think if an item goes unsold first time round that nobody wants it. Many times I've had items that failed to attract even one visitor but achieved multiple bids and high profits on second or third appearance. eBay is a fast changing marketplace with new members appearing daily and many more categories to list previously unsold goods. See the next tip.

* A more appropriate listing category might increase sales. For example, I had some World War One stereoviews which eBay's suggestion tool considered most appropriate for listing under 'Antiques and Art > Art > Photographs > Pre-1940', where I sold some, but not many of my 200 photographs. I relisted unsold items under 'Collectables > Militaria > World War 1' and lowered the price from £4 to £3. Almost all sold, many at £3, others up to £40 each. Magic!

* Market your most likely best sellers outside of eBay. For example, I had a brass statue recently depicting a Greyhound, but not just any Greyhound. This one had won the revered Waterloo Cup in 1906. I listed it under Collectables > Animals > Dogs > Greyhound but visitors were few and the statue went unsold. I relisted it in the same category, but this time I wrote to editors of specialist Greyhound and Dog Racing magazines which I'm certain helped lift a simple 'Dog' statue into a much prized Racing collectible that sold for fifty pounds. (It cost me 10p at flea market).

* Look for anniversaries or other events which might inflate the price of your goods significantly, and list them close to the appropriate date. For example, an early autograph I had of Fay Wray, heroine of the film King Kong, had gone unsold over two listings, until she died recently, whereupon my third listing suddenly attracted dozens of bids and a cool £20 profit.

* Be aware that it's just as easy (some say easier) to sell to people who have money as to others on tiny budgets. So rather than offer cheap items with tiny profit margins, go for big ticket items. You'll probably achieve fewer sales, but you won't work so hard and there'll be fewer communications to handle. Consider: computers, fine jewellery, designer clothing, original art, cars, motorbikes. But be careful and check listing fees before pressing the submit button. Some items, like cars and motorbikes cost more to list and could eat extensively from your profits. Check carefully or do as I did and promote a pair of cufflinks shaped like motorbikes under Motorbikes > Accessories, and realise later you paid £6 in that category compared to the 35p you'd have paid under 'Jewellery'.

* Consider setting a reserve price on a low starting bid item. The low starting price can generate early interest, but be warned, some bidders feel cheated on encountering a high reserve price on that '99p' starting price item. Nevertheless, the low starting price / reserve price combination can result in furious bidding and high realisations and guarantees you get a good price or the item goes unsold. The reserve price is never disclosed but is always fifty pounds plus.

* Specialise! Become an expert in one area and make fewer costly buying and selling mistakes. Experience also saves you time researching and listing items for sale. You'll also generate repeat business from regular customers who'll come to trust you and your business.

* LIST, LIST, LIST!!! And when you think you've listed enough LIST SOME MORE! Warning: This applies to items you've already tried and tested, and not to expensive new products about which you know little or nothing.

* Aim to have a web site outside of eBay from which to sell additional items to customers derived from eBay. This can be done by including a leaflet or other mention with the original fulfillment package, thanking the buyer and inviting him (or her) to visit your web site for other items of interest. Consider including a voucher for a small discount on anything ordered outside of eBay. See the next tip.

* When you have that web site, get it listed faster in Google's search engine by including the site url in your 'About Me' page on eBay. Someone told me that Google and other search engines index eBay related pages faster than most other sites. I wasn't convinced, so I tried, and found it worked. Start by creating an 'About Me', you'll see how in your eBay account, and say something like. 'Thank you for visiting. We are suppliers of XYZ and you can learn more about us at www.oursite.com'. Bear in mind it doesn't matter if no-one ever visits your 'About Me' page, Google and other search engine spiders will visit and index your site. I follow this technique for all new web sites and find them indexed in days or weeks, never months. Warning: eBay takes a dim view of anyone giving web site addresses in their listings, or as part of an eBay ID and active links are likely to get you barred. The rule does not apply to 'About Me' pages.

* Use counters in your eBay listings. These are provided by eBay, free of charge, during the listing process. Counters let you see how many visits each listing gets, from which you can plan and make changes (lots of visits but no bids is a sign something is wrong in your listing; few visits and several bids normally indicates a hot product). Few visits and plentiful bids could indicate a niche market, one with fewer members but one hundred per cent responsive buyers. But your competition can also check popularity of your listings, allowing them to capitalise on your expertise and possibly poach your ideas and products. The choice to use counters or not is up to you and you can always remove them once testing is complete and you know your product's a winner.

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

Ebay Selling How To Avoid Online Fraud

2009-01-07T14:00:00.000-08:00

Writen by Tim Gilberg

Spoofing

Spoofing is a new online fraud scam. Viewers receive emails that look very official, seemingly from ebay, paypal, etc. with requests to update your password or credit card information. Never... Ever...Ever send personal information via email!

If you are in doubt, log onto the email sender's website to see if there are any notes or messages regarding the email you received. I have been dealing with the internet for years, and this one almost got past me!

Credit Card Scams

Criminals will often steal credit cards and use them to purchase products at ebay or other estores. They will then have the merchandise mailed to a post office box. After the products are picked up, the post office box is closed and another box will be rented in a different location. It is important that you only send products to the confirmed address listed with paypal.com. A confirmed address is the address that the credit card is issued to, and it is easy to verify this with either the credit card company or paypal.

Important - Ebay Fraud Protection

Many people don't know ebay will reimburse buyers up to $200.00 (less $25.00 to cover processing costs) in cases of non-shipment or significant misrepresentation of items purchased on ebay.

Payment Options

Paypal is a fantastic payment service. Ebay purchased this company in 2002. There is zero fraud risk if you follow their basic procedures. You can send and receive payments in seconds.

www.bidpay.com also provides a great service. This is a division of Western Union. I accept bidpay only for international purchases. You receive an email confirmation and a check in 3-5 days; only then do you ship your product.

Before submitting credit card numbers over the internet, ensure that you are using a secure server. The beginning of the web address in your browser window should be "https://" and not "http://" For secure server pages, you should also see a "lock" icon at the bottom of the browser.

COD stands for Cash on Delivery. I do not recommend this type of payment; however, there are occasions when a buyer will request a COD payment. This is how it works: Items can be sent via UPS, Fed Ex, or similar carriers. The sender fills out a form stating it is COD and the carrier collects the payment when the shipment is delivered. It usually takes several days for you to receive the payment.

The main reason I don't use this type of payment is simple. It is more expensive! Another reason is that as many as 50%-60% of the deliveries are refused when the shipment is delivered. Some buyers have even paid for shipments with fraudulent cashier's checks. As you can see, it is not a payment method that makes sense. When you run a business, you need to look at the big picture; and that is to eliminate any unnecessary expense or fraud.

I do not accept personal checks.....ever.

Money orders, United States Postal Service and others. I have never received a fraudulent money order.

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

Power Words Generate Sales

2009-01-06T14:41:00.001-08:00

Writen by Joe Clare

Whether you have a website or an eBay Auction business the goal is to entice your visitors to become buyers. As explained in my book, experts both online and offline agree that the way to do this is by using Power Words in your ads. So, what are Power Words?

Power Words are the words experts use to create emotions in their readers. These words give the reader a visual picture and creates an urgency to buy. Below you will find some of the most important Power Words used by experts. These words have been tried and proven over and over again to attract and motivate visitors to become buyers. Use these Power Words in your headlines, on your website sales pages, and in your eBay Auction pages to generate more sales.

FREE
Web surfers are often looking for a freebie. So if you can include a "FREE trial" or give your visitors something for free, this will entice them take a closer look. Try saying "FREE Online Traffic!".

YOU
The word "You" makes your headline or sales copy more personal. Your visitor will relate to what he/she is reading, thus creating an image in their mind. The word "you" will help your visitor decide to become a buyer. Use sentences like, "Do you want to make a serious income online?" or " You can leave the rat race behind!".

NEW
Anything that is "NEW" always attracts attention. Use sentences like "New information never before shared with the public!" or "New product never before seen in America!".

PROVEN
People want to be told that a product or information they are considering buying is "PROVEN" to work. Use sentences like, "5 Proven Steps To..." or "A Proven Technique for...".

GUARANTEE
Your visitor is going to want to know that your product is guaranteed to do what you say it does. And that you have some sort of guarantee in place, so be sure to tell them you do. Try saying things like, "100% Satisfaction Guarantee!"

ACT NOW
You always need to tell people what you want them to do next. One way of doing this is to use the words "Act Now!". This tells them they should not delay. "ACT NOW! Don't miss this incredible offer!".

LIMITED TIME OFFER
If your product has a price that is only for a "LIMITED TIME" let your visitors know. Using the words "LIMITED TIME OFFER" will entice your visitors to "BUY NOW!" so they don't miss out on the great offer you are providing them. By the way "BUY NOW" is another set of Power Words you can use.

LATEST
We all search for the "LATEST" info or the "LATEST" gadgets we can find. The word "LATEST' will grab your visitors attention. Try sentences like, "Get the Latest Techniques on...!" or "The Latest Information on...!".

HOW TO
Today people are really into doing it themselves. We all want to learn "How To" do better in our business, our jobs and our lives. To entice your visitors to have a closer look use "How To" to describe what your product can teach them.

INSIDER
If you are an expert on any topic then you have the "Inside Scoop" on that topic. So tell your visitors that you are an "INSIDER". Try, "An Insider's Guide to..." or "Insider's Secrets that will...".

These are just a few of the Power Words that could make a huge difference in your sales when marketing your product or service. Use them on all your sales content to attract attention and convert more visitors into buyers thus increasing your bottom line.

Copyright - Joe Clare

Joe Clare is a successful eMarketer and Author. He has written numerous articles on eBay and how to make money online. Check out his eBook "eBay Marketing Wholesale SourcePak" plus FREE Articles, Hot Tips and Advice on how you can make a Serious Income with Online Auctions. http://www.ebooksnsoftware.com

The Ins And Outs Of Dropshipping On Ebay

2009-01-05T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Steve Dawson

Dropshipping is an attractive marketing technique, but when you take it to eBay it becomes a real phenomenon. There are tens of thousands of people running dropshipping business as you are reading this article. Some are making very little profit, some are bringing in decent cash and a few of them are generating huge profits. There are a few ins and outs about dropshipping on eBay that you should be aware of before starting your own dropshipping business.

Let's start with the bad news. First of all, competition is harsh. If you are new at Internet marketing you might have a hard time adapting to the marketing requirements of promoting your new dropshipping venture. Nothing is set in stone here and rules change over night. The dynamics of an online business will keep you on the tips of your toes most of the time as you cannot afford to let your guard down. Another problem that you might run into is scams. If business is thriving you can also expect fraud to be present. Even if you are scammed on eBay, while dropshipping, it is usually for little cash. This is unpleasant but it won't ruin your business however it might discourage you from further participating on eBay with your dropshipping goods but don't let this put you off.

Now time for the good news, and there is a lot to talk about. Dropshipping allows you to turn into a real marketer without ever worrying about product storage, packaging or shipping. They are all taken care of by the supplier. The ease of using dropshipping gives you more time to concentrate on improving your sales techniques and bringing in more customers. If your business runs well, you may consider, like many have before, to dedicate more time to dropshipping and make this your main income source.

Now even more good news: running your dropshipping business requires a minimal financial investment, usually just an admin fee to cover the administration of setting up your account. With the money you would pay for a night out you can start a successful dropshipping business you don't need to invest in anything, except for the fees you owe the dropshipper. Of course, you only pay the dropshipper when you make a sale, and you usually get to keep about 50% of the retail price or what ever you set as your percentage mark-up.

Dropshipping is an excellent method to test your entrepreneurial skills and see if you can start a successful business online. With such low financial risks, the only thing that you may loose, if the business doesn't work, is a few hours of research and a lot of hope. However, some careful documentation on the process and a good sense for what the customers want will most likely set you on the right track and turn your online business into the money making machine you always dreamt of.

With dropshipping and any other business, you can only sell what the public will buy. Don't go overboard with obscure products for your first venture, select high volume, everyday products and you too could have your very own dropshipping business. Good Luck.

Steve Dawson is the editor of the online Freelance Network magazine which focuses on eBay, Dropshipping and Homeworking. Forums and a comprehensive wholesale and dropshipping directory are many of the features available. Find out more at http://www.freelance-network.net

Ebay Explained Want It Now

2009-01-04T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Mark Kenny

We're all familiar with eBays auctions and Buy-It-Now options but eBay have recently introduced a new feature which takes them a step further away from being purely an auction site.

Called Want It Now, this feature allows you to create a listing for an item your searching for. Whether it's a hard to find record or a limited edition vehicle, want it now is currently free to use & will offer you exposure to the whole of the eBay audience.

In common with a normal eBay listing, your required to pick an eBay category, choose a title for your post and enter a description.

For sellers, this gives you an opportunity to offer exactly what buyers are searching for. Sellers are encouraged only to respond to posts, when they already have an active ebay listing or shop inventory matching the exact item posted. When, as a seller you respond to a want it now post you'll quickly and easily be targeting the precise audience for your item.

Once a seller responds, eBay sends an email to the poster with a link to the active listing on eBay. From this point on, it's up to the buyer to either bid on the item or use the buy it now option if this is available.

Overall, Want It Now seems like an ideal feature for buyers to locate items while eBay sellers can increase their performance by using Want It Now to find more custom. As increased usage of this feature occurs, this could become a very powerful feature of eBay.

Mark Kenny is an eBay expert who specialises in launching eBay related online businesses. You can see his selection of Turnkey websites at: http://www.Trading-Web-Solutions.com or visit Marks eBay & auction forum at AuctionCUT.com

10 Tips To Starting A Financially Successful Ebay Business Startting Right Now

2009-01-03T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Mike Makler

Ebay is Perhaps the easiest and fastest way to start a home based online business. Here are 10 Tips to starting a Successful Ebay Business

1 - Become an Ebay Shopper

Buy a Few things on Ebay. Learn your way around. Pay for your winning Bids Promptly and get positive Feedback

2 - Register as a Reseller

Go to the EBay Web Page and Register as a Reseller

3 - Take a Class

Ebay Offers online Classes starting at $19.95 and up http://pages.ebay.com/education/ebayuniversityonline/

Ebay also Offers Classes in a Live Seminar Format http://pages.ebay.com/university/

4 - Practice

Find something around the house you no longer want. Some Old Jewelery, a Game your child outgrew, that Gown you bought on sale and never wore, the Special addition Rubik's Cube. One man's junk is another man's Treasure.

5 - What to Sell

Sell something you enjoy. If you enjoy what you are doing you more then likely will be more successful. Sell what you know. If you couldn't spot a Rolex from a Timex you don't want to be selling watches.

6 - Create Your Ad

Use Keyword rich text in your ads so they will be picked up by search engines. Make sure your text is people Friendly and People Readable

7 - Picture

You need a Picture with your ad. If you are serious about selling on Ebay you will need a good Digital Camera, Don't skimp. A 4 Mega Pixal camera is Good a 5 Mega Pixal Camera is Better. All things being Equal between 2 Ads the one with the best pictures will get the Best Bids.

8 - Payment Options

It is always best to have lot's of Payment Options, Paypal, Credit Cards, Money Orders. If 2 Auctions are the same the one with the most flexible payment options will get the best bids

9 - Shipping

Make sure you pack your items well. Research shipping options and pricing and list them in your Auction, Offer insurance as an Option and charge the actual cost.

10 - Feedback

Always give your Buyers Feedback especially if it is positive. After you give positive feedback request positive feedback in return.

Good Luck and Happy Ebaying

About The Author:
Mike Makler has been Marketing Online Since 2001 When he Built an Organization of over 100,000 Members

Get Mike's Newsletter:
http://ewguru.com/newsletter

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Copyright © 2005-2006 Mike Makler the Coolest Guy in the Universe

Ebay So You Want To Make A Mint Selling Online

2009-01-02T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Charles Hammer

As with most phenomena of the Internet heyday it's no longer possible to make a fortune just by selling any old thing on eBay. However, there are still opportunities aplenty for the hard working, savvy eBay seller. In order to have a happy ending though you need to have a good beginning and that's what we're here to do: Start at the very beginning. Explore eBay and decide if being an e-commerce tycoon is really the ticket for you.

Never even visited eBay? There then is your first step. Go to eBay.com and have a look around. eBay realizes that buyers and sellers are its lifeblood so the eBay website is very user friendly. You don't have to register to browse and at this point you probably shouldn't. Registering requires choosing a user I.D. which will follow you forever. You will want to choose it and use it carefully.

For now just get the feel of the site. eBay is enormous and it's entirely true almost anything a person could want can be found there. It may be that you already have a store and want to use eBay to increase your sales or even to become your sole outlet. Or, you may be new to the whole process and have only the vaguest idea of what you want to sell. Either way, now is the time to scope out the competition.

eBay sellers are a very sophisticated lot. Many of them make use of cutting edge software to list literally hundreds of products a day. They may also have separate eBay stores and even traditional brick-and-mortar locations. Anyone who becomes part of eBay today will need to have skills in lots of areas not just have something to sell. A successful eBay merchant needs to be computer literate, able to write copy that sells and give excellent customer service. All of this must be done while also taking care of the primary business: Selling product.

After spending time perusing the website and doing a quick study of its diverse content, stop by the eBay Learning Center. Be sure and pay strict attention to the feedback system which rates all eBay sellers and buyers. Maintaining a sterling reputation is imperative for being a winner on eBay.

Now you have probably spend an afternoon on eBay and you haven't even registered yet; that's exactly as it should be, too. eBay is not a sign up and get rich quick scheme. Before making a commitment of your time or an investment of your money you have some hard thinking to do.

· Do you have a product for which there appears to be a market?

· If so, is that market saturated?

· Are you comfortable with the technological skills which significant sales on eBay will require?

· Are you willing to spend the hours and capital needed to get your eBay venture off the ground?

If the answers to all these questions are yes, then congratulations: You are now ready to register on eBay and make a purchase.

If you want to learn more about buying and selling on eBay you need to come over to http://www.AuctionBullet.com. We provide many tips, tactics, articles and more to help with eBay. Learn how to make money using eBay.

Selling Information On Ebay What The Experts Dont Want You To Know

2009-01-01T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Douglas Hanna

Hardly a day goes by that I don't get an email promising me a fast track to riches if I only buy someone's handy-dandy ebook about selling information on eBay.

Can you really make money this way?

Sure you can. All you have to do is have information that's of such value that people are willing to pay you $10, $20 or even $25 for it.

How do you get such information?

If you're an expert in something, you can write what's known as an ebook (electronic book that can be downloaded). The experts will tell you this is easy, especially if it's an "how to" book. Oh, wait. You have to be sure that there's a market for that subject. For example, you might be the world's number one authority on training rabbits to race, but how many people care enough to shell out $15 or $18 to learn how to race rabbits?

You don't have to be a great writer to do one of these ebooks if you truly are an expert on the subject. But you do have to be a pretty good copywriter. This is because no matter how valuable your book is, you must first write ad copy so powerful, buyers will be frothing at the mouth to buy it.

After you write your book, you will probably need a software program that can create a good-looking book cover. You will also need Adobe Acrobat to "distill" your pride and joy into a ebook that buyers can easily download. And, oh yes, you will need to create a Pay Pal account so that all those anxious buyers can give you their money.

What if you're not an expert in something?

If you are not an expert on some subject, you can buy information for resale. That's right, there is a whole bunch of folks out there who would be just tickled pink to sell you resale rights to their ebooks. The trick is knowing if the information can be sold a a profit to a specific market niche.

For example, you might find you can purchase resale rights to a book on family finances at a reasonable price. This sounds good because, gosh, there are a lot of families out there and they all have finances. But ... how many books are already available on this subject and what do they sell for? With a little research, you might find there are dozens and dozens of books on this subject. However, with a little more research, you might find a better niche, say, finances for single Moms. Of course, you then have to find an ebook on the subject you can buy and resell.

You also have to determine whether or not the market has already been saturated. In other words, has the author already sold so many copies of that book on finances for single Moms that there just aren't a lot of people left who would buy it. The best way to check this out is to do a search on eBay to see how many such books are being offered for sale and what they're selling for.

You can make money selling information on eBay but I submit that it's not as easy as some of those experts would have you believe.

Here's something that's both easy and free. 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 learn 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.

Drop Shipping Secrets And Sources Revealed

2008-12-31T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Jennifer Gibbs

Unfortunately for those just breaking into the wholesaling business, drop-shipping source information is jealously guarded. With a firm understanding of the service they offer, it isn't hard to see why. As opposed to the typical wholesale resource, drop-shippers offer a myriad of benefits to their buyers:

You have no excess merchandise to house between orders.

You're saved the hassle of calculating shipping, packaging orders, and standing in line at whichever postal service you may use.

Drop-shipping is a great resource for people who own and run web-sites out of their spare time.

Drop-shipping doesn't require you to make any out of pocket expenses.

As you can see, drop-shipping is pretty attractive. One of the biggest arenas for wholesalers who use drop-shipping sources is eBay, but it can work with any type of online presence. In an ideal situation, a drop-shipping transaction works as follows (assuming that you already have a customer relationship with a drop-ship source):

First, you'll select which product(s) you'll offer for sale on your website, email ad, auction listing, etc. For each item, you'll need a good quality color photo in .gif or .jpeg format. You'll also need a product description, retail price (giving yourself a margin of at least 25% profit), and check out/shopping cart features.

Then, once the information has been uploaded and is ready for public viewing, a buyer will place an order and make full payment for the item.

After this, you'll place an order with your drop-shipping company and they will locate, package and ship the item to your customer, while (usually) at the same time keeping your cash saving secret safe using unlabeled boxes and invoices, or shipping it using your business contact information. You'll send whatever the wholesale price payment is to them, keeping the extra as profit for your company!!

With the smoothness and ease of this, it's no wonder that people out there are charging outlandish prices for directories, lists and memberships to drop-ship sources "clubs". These packages can run from the low $10's well into the hundreds of dollars.

But not anymore.

Today, I'll reveal to you ten great drop-shipping companies free of charge! While these companies may charge fees for their service, the information is completely free! So don't miss out, get your wholesale business up and running the smart way!!!

1. http://www.qualitybooks.com/dropshippers.htm All of the information that you'll need to open your own online bookstore!! They also offer a Webpage CD that provides you with products, sales page templates and more. They have a one time, lifetime membership fee of only $49.95, which is covered by a 30 day money back guarantee.

2. http://vistawholesale.zoovy.com/ The source for wholesale products such as novelties, general merchandise, novelty lighters and more. They supply eBay sellers, flea market dealers, retail outlets and the general public with the hottest products on the market today, at below wholesale pricing. In addition, there is no minimum order, volume discounts, world wide shipping, no fee drop-shipping, and no membership fees!!

3. http://www.usdropshippers.com/ Now you do! With USDropshippers.com, just find the manufacturers you would like to work with on their categorized pages. The manufacturers will look at your store and decide whether or not they would like you representing their products. After the manufacturer accepts your store, you will receive a password to download the manufacturer's product database and digital artwork. And best of all, you set your own prices, It's your store. As orders come in to your web based store, you fax the orders to the manufacturers and they drop-ship to your customers using a generic invoice with your store's information. With USDropshippers.com, your customers are always your customers!

4. http://www.crystalquest.com/dropshippingprogram.htm Make money drop-shipping water filters and related products. Quoted from the website, "It is very easy to resell our products. We work on a "Per Order" basis. Basically, you make a sale, collect payment from your customer then place the order with us. We will ship the order directly to your customers."

5.http://www.optimumdiscounts.com/catalog/wholesaledropshippingcatalog.php This website offers a lot of great categories and prices for products that they'll drop-ship. However, they don't guarantee that all products will be in stock. Their shipping costs are based as a percentage of your order price. Categories include: As Seen on TV, Cameras, Electronics, Radar Detectors and more!

6. http://www.information-entertainment.com/Business/dropship.html This website is AWESOME!! They offer an extensive list of companies and their contact information of sources where you can find great drop-shipped products. It'll take a little effort, most of the listings don't include website or email addresses, but the list is amazing and well worth the time and postage.

7. http://stealthwholesale.com/ Stealth Wholesale Inc. is a wholesale/drop-shipping company that specializes in products such as tools, electronics, furniture, models, lighting and more. You'll need to open an account, and as best as I could tell from their website, there isn't any charge to open one!!

8. http://www.securitywholesaler.com/ A great site that offers security based products (home security, personal security, safety weapons, pepper spray, child safety) for sale and offers drop-shipping at a cost per address of $2.00 or $2.50 if you'd like to include a catalog. Definitely worth checking out!!

9. http://www.ewis.ca/onlinestore/scripts/dropship.asp This link takes you to an electronic product wholesaler and drop-shipping company. Benefits include no minimum order and no drop-shipping fees. Check out their wide selection of electronic products in the toolbar to the left.

10. http://smartvitamins.com/ Cash in on the growing trend in the health and wellness industry! This website offers you the chance to open your own online or auction vitamin/supplement business. Click the link provided to view the many benefits they offer.

Armed with this information, you should have more than enough resources to help you get your online presence up and running. Without the risks of high inventory and overhead, you're giving yourself an even better chance of success. No longer will you have to suffer sitting in the dark while others are reaping the profits of drop-shipping!!

Jennifer Gibbs is a successful freelance writer who lives in South Georgia with her husband and her son. If you're looking for high-quality writing at very reasonable rates, check out her website at http://www.jennifergibbs.com, or send an inquiry to info@jennifergibbs.com.

Ebay Explained Keyword Spamming

2008-12-30T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Mark Kenny

eBay sees Keyword spamming as a minor violation. However repeated warnings over this policy will eventually have your account suspended or even terminated.

So, what exactly is Keyword spamming?

Firstly you need to release how eBay users works. The majority of users on eBay search for keywords - they do not browse though the relevant categories.

For example if I was looking for a new car, I would type "HONDA" into the search box rather than browse to the Honda category of the vehicle section.

Secondly you need to be aware that eBay's system only searches for these keywords in the title - It will not scan the description for the keywords I specify.

eBay would then present me with a list of items with the keyword "honda" in the title. Any item such as Honda CRX or Honda keyring will be shown to me as the search results.

So, some sellers will fill their item title with keywords that they expect will be searched for more. If the keywords are relevant to the item they're listing then it's within eBay policy.

If the keywords they use are not relevant to what they're listing, it is known as Keyword spamming.

One example of Keyword spamming would be "Honda CRX for sale - not nissan or toyota" Anyone searching for the keyword "nissan" will be shown this item and it's fairly obvious the words are not relevant.

Apart from being against eBay policy, using techniques like this is likely to irritate most users as they're presented with unexpected results.

Mark Kenny runs an eBay forum where you get rewarded for contributing your point of view.

Mine Gold From Ebay

2008-12-29T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Niall Mehaffey

In this day and age, many people are turning to the internet to try and make their living or to just make some extra money and eBay is a great resource for those people to get started. Selling on eBay can be very lucrative if done the right way.

In this article, I am going to give you a few points about selling on eBay to hopefully make it easier for you to make money.

Open an eBay shop. An eBay shop can boost your sales by quite a bit. With a shop, customers can bookmark it so they come back again and buy again, customers can sign up for your eBay newsletter so you can notify them of certain products, the shops are included in search engines so there is even more chance of getting seen and you can promote your shop with every auction you make.

Study your competitors. If you can learn how the successful eBay sellers are running their business, you can copy them and be just as successful as they are. Watch how they write their listings, use the ebay features and what type of products are the top sellers.

Cross promote with other sellers that sell the same type of items as you. Contact certain sellers and ask them if they would like to cross promote with you. If they agree then you simply show a few of their items on your listings and they do the same for you.

Automate everything. You should automate the feedback process, the relisting of unsold items and if you sell digital products you should automate delivery of the product. This will show customers that you are a proffessional eBay seller and therefore they will be likely to deal with you again. There are many programs out there that will automate delivery of your digital items, just search google for one.

Writing guides and reports. You now have the opportunity to write guides and reports and have them shown on eBay. This can be a good way to generate traffic to your auctions as people will read your guide/report and hopefully visit your shop. If you write a good article that makes people interested then they will more than likely want to see what items you are selling.

Never stop learning. As you grow your business you should always be looking for ways to learn new things about the eBay marketplace. Look for different ways to improve your business. You should always be studying your competitors and keeping up with the top selling items. There are functions on eBay that will also help you find out what's selling well.

Niall Mehaffey is an internet marketer and webmaster. If you would like to learn the real potential of eBay then click here ==>make money on ebay

The Method For Finding Deals On Ebay

2008-12-28T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Lionel Estridge

There are steps you can take to make sure that you are getting a great deal on the items you obtain through eBay. These same steps will also help to shield you against fraud.

Start with the auction in question. Make sure that you read every word of the description and the auction details.

Pay special attention to what the description and auction details do not say. For example, is a guarantee mentioned? Is the item new? Is it authentic? Is there evidence of authenticity? Look for auctions that provide the right information, and just keep away from those that do not.

Who will pay the shipping and handling costs? Often, the buyer pays these costs, but sometimes, the seller tries to charge more than the actual shipping and handling costs are. Be careful of high shipping costs, especially for items that will be auctioned off at a very low price. Note when the item is supposed to ship after the bidding has ended.

Don't make the mistake of bidding on an item merely because it is a 'good deal.' It is only a good deal for you if the item is something that you really want or need. A lot of people simply bid for the sake of bidding - or winning - without having any real need for the item in question. Before bidding on items that you do want or need, it's best to check prices around the Internet and the prices available from offline sources as well.

Learn more about the seller. What is their rating? Read their feedback page. Not learning more about the seller can be very costly. Sometimes scammers make their auctions sound like really great deals. Be cautious of prices that seem to be extremely low.

Get hundreds of tips and tricks using ebay; just send a blank email to: ebay1@aweber.com

More at: http://www.lionel1.com/ebay1

Five Things To Do Before Leaving Negative Feedback On Ebay

2008-12-27T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Mark Kenny

Transactions on eBay don't always go perfectly. Sometimes winning bidders simply become ghost bidders and are never seen again. It all takes a lot of effort & time, having to relist items due to time wasters & reclaim back final sales fees.

You may get frustrated and want to leave negative feedback as soon as you realize your not going to be paid. However, it's best not to let your emotions rule your business.

So, what can you do before you leave negative feedback.

1) E-mail them

Firstly email them. They may simply have been away, be offline for a few days, be involved in a family emergency or may just have their eBay account preferences set so they do not get an email when they win an item. So take the initative yourself & email the other party. Also if you can try to request a receipt so can see if they open the email.

2) Call them

If you are involved in a transaction on eBay, you can easily access the other parties contact details including any phone number they have registered with eBay. Log into eBay, select the "Advance search" option & choose "Find Member Details" from the list of options.

As soon as you confirm you are involved with this member, eBay will email all the details. Just give them a quick, friendly call. If no-one answers they may be away on holiday so give it a few weeks before trying.

3) Check email addresses

Almost all of my winning bidders pay via paypal. And when you look closely at any emails you will have received you'll notice they have different email accounts registered with both paypal & ebay. Be certain to email one account & cc a copy to the other. Very often, it is simply a case of the winning bidder simply checking the wrong email account.

4) See if there bidding/selling on other items

eBays search options easily allow you to see if your winning bidder is selling goods themselves or even see if they've bid on other items in the last thirty days. This should give a good indication of if they are ignoring you or if it's just a simple case of miscommunication.

5) Finally follow eBay procedure

Finally, if all your other methods have shown no successful results all you can do is follow eBays procedure. This will eventually have the final sales fee credited back to your account. Once this happens just relist the goods & try again.

Mark Kenny runs an independent eBay forum where you can discuss any eBay related problem.

Create Winning Auction Descriptions

2008-12-26T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Chris Vendilli

You've managed to get people to click onto your auction, now you must convince them to buy your product. eBay is a highly competitive environment. People that don't do the 'right' things will fail. It's harsh, but true.

This brief article shows you how to create listings that produce sales. I won't pretend that this is a 'secret' winning formula, but I do say that to be successful you should be doing as many of the things below as possible.

Be descriptive.

eBay buyers absolutely hate vague descriptions. It creates a lack of trust between you and the buyer. If you think about it, it's easy to see why. ebay doesn't involve any face-to-face selling. Buyers don't have the item right in front of them like they do in a shop. They must rely on the seller to provide them with an accurate description of the goods. Would you spend $100 on an item you knew very little about? I know I wouldn't.

So be descriptive. How?

Include every point people might want to know.

If I were selling a pair of trousers for example, I'd at least include the waist size, leg length, material type, and condition of the trousers.

Point out any blemishes.

It's easy to leave out from the description a minor mark on the item, or a slight blemish in the quality, but you absolutely MUST point out any defects. Buyers would much prefer that you were honest with them.

Include photographs of the item.

People feel much more comfortable buying something that they can actually see. It helps to decrease the 'barrier' between you and the buyer. You'll find it increases sales, and it's extremely easy to do nowadays. If you don't presently have a digital camera, you MUST get one now. You really don't have to buy a professional one a cheap camera from eBay will probably do the job just fine.

Use the HTML editor when listing.

When listing an item, eBay includes a little editor that allows you to create enhanced descriptions. For example, you can change the text colour, font size, or change the layout of your advert. Make sure you use it! It looks so much more appealing and professional to buyers than a mass of plain text.

Include postage and packing charges

It sounds quite obvious, but many people forget to inform people how much it'll cost them on top of the auction price to get the item shipped. As a buyer, if I can't find this information then it sets the old alarm bells ringing. For all I know, you could be about to rip me off on postage. I wouldn't be the first!

Be persuasive.

You're trying to sell something to people here so make sure you do so! Why should I buy your item? Why shouldn't I instead go to a rival eBay seller? What makes your item so special that I must place a bid right now?

Chris Vendilli is the owner, founder, and CEO of The 3 Rivers Auctions Company. Be sure to visit his website at http://www.3riversauctions.com to get eBay tools, tips, strategies, info, and secrets! While you're there sign up for the information packed weekly newsletter and the discussion forums. You can network with other members, advertise your own auctions or website, ask questions, and get answers!

Question How Do I Know If The Seller Name For My Ebay Store Is Legal

2008-12-25T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Steve Weber

QUESTION: What legal considerations are there in chosing the seller name for my online store? I don't want to use someone else's name or a prohibited name.

ANSWER: Technically, there are some legal requirements for naming your business, but many of these rules are obsolete (and unobserved and unenforced) for online sellers.

In most counties in the United States, you're required to obtain a "fictitious name" permit if you're operating a business using a name other than your full legal name. (In some counties they call it a "doing business as" permit.)

In my county, for instance, the permit costs $20. After you submit the application, a clerk simply searches the county's files to ensure no other business is using the same name. Right off the bat, you can see this practice has limited value today -- as an online seller, you may be transacting worldwide, not just in your home county.

The original rationale for these regulations was to protect consumers from fly-by-night businesses. If someone purchased a product or service that turned out defective, the buyer might need to obtain the real name of the business owner to get a refund or sue.

With today's marketplaces like Amazon and eBay, resolving problems is usually much simpler. If a buyer is unhappy with a purchase, they e-mail the seller. If the seller doesn't respond appropriately, Amazon or Paypal makes the buyer whole. If a seller (or buyer) gets into disputes often enough, their trading privileges are revoked.

Another reason for "fictitious name" permits is to prevent new businesses from accidentally (or purposefully) using the name of an existing company, creating confusion. For example, in the Amazon context, if someone tried opening a seller account with the name "Barnes And Noble," that would be inappropriate -- they'd be taking advantage of an existing business name. On the other hand, somebody could probably open an account using the name "Joe's Place" even though there are probably 5,000 restaurants using that name -- but there's no chance anyone would confuse the online bookseller with the restaurants. And if someone on Amazon is already using the name "Joe's Place," Amazon's system would simply prevent new sellers from using the same name.

If you're a part-timer, I wouldn't lose too much sleep over the choice of a seller name. A Google search on the name within quotation marks will probably show whether it's being used. If you accidentally began using an existing business name, you might receive a "cease and desist" letter from the company's lawyers, threatening to take you to court unless you stopped using the name.

One more consideration: If you think you might want to operate a store on your own Web site someday, you should check now to see if the domain name is available. You can search for available domain names at the Web sites of many host providers, including Register.com. Even if you don't decide to launch a Web site now, you can register the domain and pay a nominal fee to keep the name until you launch your site.

See a real-time list of the most highly sought after used and collectible books.

Read more free articles on selling used books profitably online: http://www.weberbooks.com/selling/selling.htm

Steve Weber is author of "The Home-Based Bookstore: Start Your Own Business Selling Used Books on Amazon, eBay or Your Own Web Site" (ISBN 0977240606). Got a question for Steve? Send to: steve_weber@yahoo.com

How To Get Bids On Your Auctions

2008-12-24T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Michael Russell

Getting bids on auctions on Ebay or Yahoo can be challenging . To get bids on your auction first you must research the item you are about to list. This is quite simple - just do a search on closed auctions. Ebay and Yahoo auctions let you do this on their site. Look at all the prices the item closed at as you will want to start your bidding at the lowest price at which an item closed. If you want to add a "buy it now" option, choose any price between the highest price closed and the lowest price.

Next, take a look at the items that did not get a bid, notice what they did wrong and then look at the auctions that got bids and notice that they did right. Use this to your advantage. Make your headline similar to a winning headline and use the same area the winning item was listed.

Next, and this is a most important tip, when writing your description ,write it as if you're trying to sell an item to your friend. Give the condition and tell the benefits of them having your item. Now for shipping, keep the price reasonable and say that you ship out within 2 days and offer tracking. To really get bids, list yours as a featured item, but this will cost extra. Also take some good pictures so that who ever sees your auction can view the item, as if they were looking at it in person. Take your picture in a good lighting and turn the flash off because it can cause glare. You can take you picture outside or, if your item is small get a desk lamp and adjust it so that it shines on your item. A good background like a poster would help too. The more pictures you take the more confident the bidder will be in bidding on your auction.

Offer more than one payment method. The more options you offer the more bids you will get. Try to start your auction on such a day that it will end on the weekend because shoppers will have a chance to see and bid on it. If you have past customers, tell them about your new auctions. They already know you and have done business with you. You can also offer something free to the winning bidder of your item.

A money guarantee can help you get lots of bids too. Make sure to let everyone know they are ordering through a secure server for credit card payments. And if you have past ebay customers write in your item listing that potential bidders should view your feedback from all the other Ebay members. If you have great comments from your past customers then this will help.

Don't use reserve auctions - people get discouraged trying to figure out the reserve cost.

If you follow all these tips you should be getting bids to all of your online auctions.

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Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to Online Auctions
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Avoid The Ebay Snipers

2008-12-23T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Lionel Estridge

Sniping always occurs when a bid is about to end. Sniping is against the rules at eBay, but in most cases, even if you report it, the sniper will get away with it. In order to avoid losing the items you want to snipers at eBay, you have to take on the sniper way of thinking. You also need to snipe in a way that will not violate eBay's rules.

Snipping can be done in one of two ways. The first way is the safest, but not necessarily the easiest. Simply keep up with the item you are bidding on. And make certain that you are in front of your computer and logged into the auction well before that exact time. The idea is to either bid higher than the highest bid during the last few seconds - which is what snipers do - or to just make sure that you are not outbid by a sniper.

Keep in mind that sniping is against the rules, so you should log in about thirty or forty five minutes before the bidding ends, and get your bid up until it is the highest bid. If you've been logged in for a while, this cannot be considered sniping.

Unfortunately it is very hard to bid against people who use bidding software. So here is the second method.

Snipping services are easy to find online, and they are fairly cheap. You can also buy your own snipping software. If you want to become a sniper, purchasing your own software is usually the best way to go if you bid on a lot of items.

But remember that it is against the rules, and while eBay hardly ever enforces this rule, you will be running the risk of getting banned from eBay.

Outbidding somebody is one thing, sniping is something altogether different.

Get eBay tips, and tricks directly into your mailbox: ebay1@aweber.com or more at: http://www.lionel1.com/ebay1.htm

Possibilities Abound Ebay Online Auctions

2008-12-22T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Carmen Anderton

One of the hottest online trends, and one that does not look like it is going to abate any time soon, are Ebay online auctions. Ebay online auctions are becoming increasingly popular for both buyers, sellers, and even just for browsers. While there are other online auction sites trying to jump on the bandwagon, or get a piece of the initial action in new markets, there is no argument on who is king. In rock n' roll it is Elvis, in country it is Hank Williams, and for online auctions, the undisputed king is Ebay. Ebay online auctions contain literally tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of various items at any given time. Searching Ebay's listings is almost akin to an online version of an explorer shifting through the jungle, looking for his or her personal treasures.

Ebay online auctions range in a variety of categories. Professional antique book collectors can find occasional one thousand dollar treasures going for less than a hundred dollars, glassware is a hot market, and there are always thousands of autographs at any given time. Computers, clothes, dolls, toyswhatever you want, you will be able to find it on Ebay. One reason why Ebay online auctions are so popular is that the web site goes out of their way to make listing and searching as easy as possible. Even someone who has never logged onto the Ebay web site before can have a log-in name will be able to easily figure out how to put an item online. There is a big side banner that says "Sellers," and another banner on top that says "Sell an item." Once the person clicks on one or the other, then the web site's format takes the seller through step by step to put their item in an Ebay online auction. The listing can have a ton of information, or just the absolute basics. Either way the site walks the seller through, each section numbered, clearly marked, clearly explained, and (where applicable) with an example of the graphics change.

Ebay online auctions guarantee a wide market of tens of millions of buyers across the entire world. These are also many good reasons why to go to Ebay online auctions as a buyer. There are always thousands of items put online in every conceivable category: including categories for just plain bizarre and miscellaneous. In fact, one category is even marked, "And Everything Else" If you are looking for a cheap book, some decently priced Christmas presents, or a video game system with games that is a much better buy than anything you can find on the store, Ebay online auctions are your answer. These auctions are like the world's largest garage sales, and you never know what you will find.

Ebay online auctions have revolutionized online businesses. There are many individuals who make their entire living buying and selling on Ebay and doing nothing else. What is even more interesting, is how many different types of sellers can do this. Antique dealers in a small town in Iowa can now sell to anywhere in the United States, while a box of books in a Maine attic can fetch hundreds from Stephen King fans in California. An entire world of buyers can meet an entire world of sellers, and Ebay online auctions allow the wealth to be evenly distributed from college students selling their college books to old men and women learning to sell the extra odds and ends to a willing market. Ebay online auctions are capitalism in full force moving hand in hand with technology, but the beautiful part about this is that the little man is not shut out; but is the reason why the whole system works to begin with.

Carmen Anderton is a successful webmaster and publisher of Auction-Registrations.com.

She provides more auction tips and information on her website at Ebay Online Auctions

How To Use A Wysiwyg Html Editor To Make Stunning Ebay Auction Listings

2008-12-21T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Thomas Haselhorst

What kind of browser are you using for online surfing? Explorer, Netscape, Firefox, Opera?? Sure, all are good programs but I want to talk about an excellent program called Netscape. If you use Netscape, do you know that you also get an amazing WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) web design program called Netscape Composer for free? Basically you don't need expensive HTML editors anymore. The list of commercially available HTML editors software is endless and the price tags are enormous. Most people don't want to spend a lot of money to get started with their eBay business. Fair enough, since the goal is to make money and not to spend money. So it makes perfect sense to use a program to design auction listings which is available for free. And such a program is Netscape Composer.

It has the same professional features like FrontPage or any other similar program. To design stunning and professional looking eBay auction sites with Netscape Composer you need to download Netscape first. If you start up the program, select File->New Composer Page and basically you can start immediately to design your auction listings. You can make you letters in any colour, bold, italics, use background colours (or even images) etc. The options are endless. You can save this file on your local hard drive as html file. I used to have one file for every listing I generate. The best thing is that once you have got a nice and professional looking eBay auction listing, you can use it for ever. Just open your last listing in Netscape Composer and edit according to your new item. Amazingly, this takes only a couple of minutes.

But how do you transfer your listing saved as a html file on your local hard drive to eBay? The answer is simple. Once you have logged in into your eBay account and selected your category and starting price you have to type in your "item description". Did you see that eBay allows HTML format? Have a look when you launch your next listing. That's the time where you go back to your new listing you just have created with Netscape Composer. Down the bottom of your Netscape Composer page you'll see a button called: SOURCE - the source code of your listing. Click on that and highlight and copy the entire text. Select then the eBay site and paste this text into the "Item description box". Make sure that all links are working and that all photos are uploaded to the internet.

When you have finalised your listing you will be surprised. A stunning and professional looking "DIY-listing". You can always use "ready-to-go" auction templates and edit these according to your item. You'll see that with an professional auction design you can easily attract more buyers and get higher bids. It's worth the effort. Keep in mind that professional web design software is highly expensive and does the same job. Alternatively, you can choose from a huge variety of third party auction services doing the job for you. But hey, there are incredibly expensive too. Don't you think that the eBay fees are high enough and you can easily do it yourself without spending any additional dollars.It's really simple!

Thomas Haselhorst is webmaster of http://www.auction-design-for-free.com From ebay sellers - for ebay sellers!

Ebay Sniper Get Items Cheaper And Easier

2008-12-20T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Anthony Kristovich III

If you're reading this, you must already know of eBay.com. Very few people don't. However, you may not be aware of auction snipers, or what they can do for you, so let me define it. An eBay auction sniper places a bid in the final seconds of an auction on your behalf. You may be saying to yourself that it's no big deal, you can bid yourself no problem. Well, read on, and you'll see all the great benefits to using a bid sniper.

The first benefit is convenience. The convenience of setting a snipe ahead of time and not having to be on the computer at auction close to put in a bid. So the natural question in most people's minds is they can just put in a bid far ahead of closing, no need to do it last-second. If you don't care about overpaying, this is the easiest thing to do.

This brings about the second benefit. Bidding far before the end of the auction close does nothing but drive up the price of the item for sale, and is a huge waste of money. When a person puts in a bid in advance, people have the time to bid that little bit higher than they really wanted to because, afterall, another dollar isn't too much. When you have 2-3 people doing this, the price of the item skyrockets and a lot of those little-bit-higher bids adds up fast. The only people that benefit from this are sellers and eBay(they get a percentage of the final sale price). Getting an item for a cheaper price is the main reason most eBayers use an auction sniper on a regular basis.

Still, there is a third benefit that many eBayers love -- your bid is not placed until near auction close, giving you as a buyer time to think over the bid and perhaps cancel the bid if you find one cheaper, or no longer have a need for the item.

Most eBayers have an eBay sniper to give them an advantage over those that do not. You either snipe or get sniped, it's as simple as that. Most people find out after losing out on an item how handy a tool it has become. It can make your eBay experience that much better.

Anthony Kristovich III runs the CodingCentre website. Software such as the eBay sniper Super Sniper PRO helps users snipe items from eBay very easily. You can get more information about this software at http://www.codingcentre.com.

Garage Sales Flea Markets And Special Events Oh My

2008-12-19T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by A. Loya

The activity chart is an ingenious way to find, in order, events happening in your community throughout the day. Plug in 'www.noonernight.com' on your computer or cell phone and retrieve lunch specials, happy hours, music and nightlife events.

Unlike newspapers with static ads, noonernight.com utilizes dynamic time updates.

To see upcoming events, simply enter a zip code and distance. The day and current time are highlighted in a bar graph form. Each event submitted spans the designated time. So planning a day or week can be done at a glance.

Not everyone can afford to advertise his or her events in the newspaper on a daily basis, which is why noonernight.com was developed. To let the public know what's going on and when and where. A fantastic service for everyone to use.

Adding events is simple, fast, and free.

Noonernight.com is a great advertising and promotion tool that can be used to:

-Submit where your band is playing tonight.
-Advertise breakfast, lunch or dinner specials.
-Know about community events.
-Locate county fairs and festivals.
-List open houses.
and much more.

Log on to http://www.noonernight.com to see events in your area and add your event for free!

Leave the zip code entry field blank to view all submitted events.

Start Selling On Ebay Getting Started On The Right Foot

2008-12-18T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Gary Hendrickson

You've started your own eBay business and, even though it's part time right now, you know it's going to become a huge success. You are able to see the day when you can set your own hours, set your own dress code and call your own shots. The world is your oyster and you are raring to go. Just be careful you don't fall into the one of the major work-at-home traps.

Congratulations! But before you go any further, it's a good idea to insure that your new ebay business is built on a solid foundation.

One of the most often seen problems behind the failure of a home business is the lack of productivity. Many people, particularly when starting a part time eBay business, find that they just don't get things done.

When you have no one who you are responsible to, you may find that procrastination and poor time management begin to rear their ugly heads. It's important that you take some of the productive elements of a regular 9-5 job and incorporate them into your budding eBay business. Here are some pointers:

First: Setting a schedule can be crucial to your success. Simply saying "I'll get some auctions listed this evening" just doesn't cut it. It leaves too much room for something else to come up.

Set a schedule and stick to it. Maybe this is 9 to 3 when your kids are at school, or maybe late at night when the kids are in bed. Maybe you decide to get up an hour and a half earlier to work before going to your regular job. Regardless of the time you choose, make sure you honor it.

Second: Police your productivity. When working on your eBay business you're your own boss. There isn't anyone looking over your shoulder. This can be a great feeling, but it can also drastically reduce your productivity.

When you sit down at your work desk, make sure you're being as productive as possible. No computer games, no web surfing, no personal phone calls. It's not necessary your chain yourself to your desk - just be as productive as possible.

Third: Dress the part. This may seem silly to many of you, but it's extremely important. If you're dressed in sweats or your pajamas, your mind is much more likely to wander. It's fine to be comfortable, but dress reasonably.

Fourth: Create an effective work space. The basics of working at home can be more disruptive than you realize. If you're not careful your work can be interrupted every few minutes to deal with other things. If there's a television in the room or you're right next to the family phone, you're not going to get a lot done.

Set aside a quiet, out of the way space in your home and make it off limits during your work hours. This may be a spare bedroom, or just the corner of your bedroom. Whichever you choose, just make sure there's a door between you and the world.

Once you've established your workspace, go ahead and decorate it and keep it neat. Set up your space like a real office. Put up a couple of pictures, get a plant if you'd like, whatever you think will motivate you. Then keep your papers organized and your trash bin emptied. A nice looking, organized space will really contribute to your productivity.

Take your eBay business seriously right from the start. If you follow these tips, you'll find yourself getting a lot more work done, and that can mean more profit and more time to spend with your family.

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

Ebay Income Possibilities

2008-12-17T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Cassandra Stinchcombe

If you've ever read an article about eBay, you will have seen the kinds of incomes people make it isn't unusual to hear of people making thousands of dollars per month on eBay.

Next time you're on eBay, take a look at how many PowerSellers there are: you'll find quite a few. Now consider that every single one of one of them must be making at least $1,000 per month, as that's eBay's requirement for becoming a PowerSeller. Silver PowerSellers make at least $3,000 each month, while Gold PowerSellers make more than $10,000, and the Platinum level is $25,000. The top ranking is Titanium PowerSeller, and to qualify you must make at least $150,000 in sales every month!

The fact that these people exist gives you come idea of the income possibilities here. Most of them never set out to even set up a business on eBay they simply started selling a few things, and then kept going. There are plenty of people whose full-time job is selling things on eBay, and some of them have been doing it for years now. Can you imagine that? Once they've bought the stock, everything else is pretty much pure profit for these people they don't need to pay for any business premises, staff, or anything else. There are multi-million pound businesses making less in actual profit than eBay PowerSellers do.

Even if you don't want to quit your job and really go for it, you can still use eBay to make a significant second income. You can pack up orders during the week and take them down to the post office for delivery each Saturday. There are few other things you could be doing with your spare time that have anywhere near that kind of earning potential.

What's more, eBay doesn't care who you are, where you live, or what you look like: some PowerSellers are very old, or very young. Some live out in the middle of nowhere where selling on eBay is one of the few alternatives to farming or being very poor. eBay tears down the barriers to earning that the real world constantly puts up. There's no job interview and no commuting involved if you can post things, you can do it.

Put it this way: if you know where to get something reasonably cheaply that you could sell, then you can sell it on eBay and since you can always get discounts for bulk at wholesale, that's not exactly difficult. Buy a job lot of something in-demand cheaply, sell it on eBay, and you're making money already, with no set-up costs.

If you want to dip your toe in the water before you commit to actually buying anything, then you can just sell things that you've got lying around in the house. Search through that cupboard of stuff you never use, and you'll probably find you've got a few hundred dollars' worth of stuff lying around in there! This is the power of eBay: there is always someone who wants what you're selling, whatever it might be, and since they've come looking for you, you don't even need to do anything to get them to buy it.

So you want to get started on eBay? Well, that's great! There are only a few little things you need to learn to get started. Our next article will give you the low-down.

Cassandra Stinchcombe - Why waste another penny on eBay eBooks, when you can get everything you need to know for FREE. Check out our 75+ articles today. eBay Selling | eBay Buying

Losing Sales By Overcharging For Shipping And Handling

2008-12-16T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Steven Woodward

As a serious seller on eBay you're familiar with their fee circumventing rules. If not, visit: http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/listing-circumventing.html.

In a nutshell their rule is that you are not allowed to put an item up for bid for a penny and charge $100 for shipping and handling (S&H) in an attempt to avoid the transaction fee. Since we are not trying to avoid fees we all follow the rules right? To a certain extent yes, but many sellers are still stretching the bubble by over charging for S&H in an attempt to maximize their profits and losing bidders in the process - the end result is the opposite of what they hoped for. Ultimately they reduce their sales and although these efforts fit within eBay's policies, when extreme, they are considered an unfair practice by many buyers.

I'll give you an example. I play in a Texas-No-Hold-Em poker game once a month - just a bunch of friends who get together, play a little poker, talk about their lives and have some fun. I thought it would be nice if we had some 'professional-style' poker chips so went to eBay to buy some. I like to think of myself as an intelligent eBay shopper so I watched the auctions for a few days and noticed that the final price averaged $60 for the chips I wanted (retail is about twice that at a local store). The market was determining the price, or was it?

As I watched these auctions I noticed an interesting problem, the shipping charges varied greatly. For the sake of this example let's say one seller was offering S&H at $20, another at $30 and one $50. We'll call them Seller A, Seller B and Seller C. As a buyer, if I was willing to accept the price determined by the market in this case $60, then the final cost of the item from each of these sellers would be:

Seller A: $60 + $20 = $80
Seller B: $60 + $30 = $90
Seller C: $60 + $50 = $110

I did some additional homework and discovered the package would weigh 17 pounds, the size would not increase shipping costs and the sellers were all in my state. I went to the UPS and Fed-X web sites and plugged in the needed information for shipping cost estimates. The results were $11 and $17. All things being equal the total cost of the chips should be around $71-$78. So which seller's auction did I bid on? Only one Seller A and I got the chips for $52, plus S&H ($72). If I hadn't won that auction I may have bid on Seller B's but probably would have lowered my total bid amount by $10. Seller C's auction closed without a singe bid.

Seller A got my business, Seller B may have, and as far as I was concerned, and apparently other bidders, Seller C can go pound sand. The outcome of this example should be pretty clear and it should be obvious by now that you don't want to be Seller C. Although you may get an occasional windfall with less savvy bidders, in the long term your sales will be much less than that of other sellers of similar items.

That's not to say you shouldn't recoup your shipping and handling costs in the process. We're not in business to lose money, but make sure you are not trying to pad your 'profit' at the expense of loosing bidders and ultimately sales. Take the time to do similar research on your own items and market niche and find out where you stand with your shipping and handling charges. If you're fair to your customers they will think better of you for it and in the long run your sales will be better.

About the Author:
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.

What Should I Sell On Ebay

2008-12-15T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Brian McGregor

If you are a new seller, my initial advice would be to gain experience of eBay selling by cleaning out your garage or attic.

Start by selling used goods, small appliances, wedding gifts you never use, old books (non-fiction ones are best), used sporting goods and clothing items. Like that leather jacket that doesn't fit you any more!

The experience you gain will be invaluable, there's no cost involved other than eBay fees which aren't too heavy.

The next step is to sell items about which you know something. It might be related to your hobby or interests.

If you are knowledgeable about a collectable or an art object, then you have the ability to do the research to find the products at prices you can resell.

On eBay, anything will sell. It doesn't matter how obscure your item might be, eBay buyers will find your auction.

Once you gain experience try to focus on larger value items. If you only make £2 ($4) profit per sale, you have to close and ship 1000 items per month to make £2,000 ($4,100).

Too many sellers think the way to make a fortune on eBay is to buy hundreds of the latest hot selling items and put up dozens of auctions. The problem here is that hundreds of other sellers are doing the same thing. (If you don't believe me do a search for diet pills, or DVDs) There are plenty of companies with enough money to import these items directly by the thousands and undersell anyone who buys through a distributor or wholesaler.

Another technique is to sell items in bulk. If you bought a large box of videotapes at a car boot or garage sale, separate them into categories and sell them as a lot. You will often make more money than selling them individually. This can also work for clothing. There are sellers that buy children's clothing from car boot or garage sales, sort it by size and gender and sell it in lots.

One eBay seller I know purchases large lots of the fast selling items on eBay (lighters, pocket knives, etc.) and turns around and sells them in lots of 10 or 25 to other eBayers who want to buy for resale. I know an eBayer who recently imported 50,000 disposable cigarette lighters from Korea that he bought for about 6p (10 cents) each. He sold them on eBay in lots of 500 for 19p (38 cents) each. He made £65 ($140) on each lot less his eBay fees.

It seems everyone wants to sell computers, software, movies, DVD's, digital cameras and all sorts of consumer electronics. The sad fact is that SONY, Panasonic, Canon, and others don't sell their latest hottest products to small dealers who work out of their home. (In fact they don't sell anything except through their distributors) Even the big stores have trouble getting a large allocation of really hot electronics products.

It is possible to get into this business if you have a lot of market and product knowledge. You might work in a computer store, and have the contacts to buy the merchandise. The problem is that you are competing with major retailers. One way you can succeed selling consumer electronics is with overstock and returns products. The trick is to really know what you are buying and to be able to work on small margins and turn your inventory over often. It takes quite a bit of capital investment to compete in this sector.

There is also a huge market on eBay for "vintage" hi-fi equipment, cameras, old computers and computer hardware and so on. I heard of a guy who found an Akai reel-to-reel tape deck at a car boot sale for £15 ($32). He also got 10 reels of tape for nothing. He sold the deck on eBay for just under £100 ($220) and sold the 10 reels of tape separately in another auction for £15 ($32).

One of eBay's own product managers sells vintage Apple computers, parts and software. She buys almost all of it at car boot or garage sales, second hand shops and auctions.

When I am asked about what should they sell, I am usually also asked what are the best selling items on eBay.

Here is a list of the currently hot selling items on eBay. Note that this is not a recommendation of what to sell, as each of these product areas requires the seller to have relevant knowledge and expertise.

- Diet Pills

- Nutritional Sex Enhancers

- Pheromone scents

- Glass chess sets

- Low cost jewelry

- Expensive watches and jewelry

- Heirloom jewelry

- Used toys in good condition

- New and used clothing for children and plus-sized clothing for women

- Software (including closed-out or last year's software programs and games)

- Strobe pens

- Tools (power and hand tools)

- Perfume (including perfume samples and opened expensive perfumes that are at least over one-half full)

- Perfume bottles (some with or without perfume)

- Religious books and Bibles (Bibles are always a perennial seller)

- Non-fiction books on hobbies, sports, nautical subjects, history, military science, popular textbooks, and art & photography. Also books containing maps and art prints that can be broken and sold individually

- Maps and old prints of ships, flowers, animals (horses and dogs are good)

- Used parts for speciality cars (Porsche, BMW, MG, etc.)

- Car models and car collectables

- Signed sports collectables

If you want to know what to sell on eBay, probably the single best piece of advice I can give is to be unique and to specialize.

Find a niche market, learn about it, become an expert in it, and work hard at building your reputation in that market. eBay buyers are intelligent, and they like to deal with a knowledgeable and responsive professional seller.

If you can become that seller, you have a good chance of making significant money on eBay.

Brian McGregor is an eBay and internet entrepreneur. He recently created the 'eBay Master Class' for eBay sellers. For your free copy, please go to http://www.workwinners.com/ebm-request.htm

Clever Sellers Scoop Up Bargains On Ebay And Resell At A Profit

2008-12-14T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Teresa Ballinger

Did you know that everyday there are hundreds (maybe thousands) of eBay auctions that have misspelled words in the titles and descriptions? Auctions with misspelled information do not come up on the regular eBay search, so frequently these listings have no bids and can be scooped up at a bargain price. This means you can profit by locating these misspelled auctions before anyone else does!

If a seller is trying to sell "jewerly" instead of "jewelry" they are extremely likely to lose out on a ton of potential customers. If someone is an avid collector of "vintage costume jewelry" you can bet that the search term they use will be "jewelry" not "jewerly".

Remember - "If you can't spell it......you can't sell it!"

The one and only way to seriously earn money on eBay is to take it into your own hands! Find deals whether it be locally or online. You should know a great deal when you see one. If you have trouble recognizing a good deal from a bad deal you may not want to get into eBay selling at all. That's not a slam on you, that's the reality. You have to be a "natural" when it comes to finding deals.

I want to share with you a really foolproof and definite way to make profits on eBay. Clever sellers purchase bargains on eBay all day long then turn around and re-sell those same items making a huge profit! This is a unique opportunity for those selling on eBay.

Benefits Of Selling This Way:

No more shipping supplies to buy. You buy misspelled items, they are shipped to your house in boxes with packaging - do you understand where I'm going with this? You never have to pay for shipping supplies again. As soon as you receive the package, open it, inspect it, close it and re-label it!

Job security. With literally thousands of items per day being misspelled and listed.....even if 1,000 people were doing this, you would still never run out of opportunities and eBay has no spell check and never will!

Low investment. Try this method once and discover for yourself how easy it is. Buy something for $10 and re-sell it in days for $20. This happens ALL the time.

You should be able to pick up some true bargains with no one else bidding against you. Just bear in mind thousands of items on eBay are listed with misspelled descriptions and item names, from a single word to multiple words. These items often close with no bids on them as no-one can find them. Uncover those hidden gems.

Teresa has been quietly making money online for 3 years. Discover her secrets and use the misspelling tool by visiting http://www.power-buys.com/spelling.php

5 Secrets For Increasing Auction Profits

2008-12-13T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Jennifer Parks

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 earning 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.

Wholesaling To Ebay Sellers

2008-12-12T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Donny Lowy

Wholesaling to eBay sellers is a tremendous business. The potential of a wholesale business with eBay sellers as customers is very large.

Think of how the hundreds of thousands of eBay sellers who need products to sell on eBay. Then add the number of current eBay sellers to all the potential and future eBay sellers that are out there.

You will quickly come to realize that there are millions of potential customers for a wholesaler to eBay sellers.

If you see the potential of wholesaling to eBay sellers you will enjoy the following steps. These steps will show you how to find eBay sellers who need wholesale and closeout merchandise.

Wholesale To eBay Sellers Step #1

Set up a simple one page web site that advertises your wholesaling services to eBay sellers. Have a form that visitors can fill out to receive more information. You would then use their contact information to present them with the wholesale and closeout products which you have available.

Wholesale To eBay Sellers Step #2

Set up an online, or print catalog, with your wholesale and closeout products. Since eBay sellers are experienced with using a computer, you can forgo the print catalog and focus exclusively on the online catalog.

Wholesale To eBay Sellers Step #3

Advertise your site using pay per click search engines. The Google Adsense program enables you to place classified ads on Google and on their partner sites. Your ads will be shown every time a user conducts a search that matches the key words your ads are programmed to run for.

Since you are wholesaling to eBay sellers you want your ads to show when ever people are looking for information related to selling on eBay.

Follow these three steps and you will soon have compiled a strong list of prospects that are looking for products to sell on eBay.

Donny Lowy runs http://www.wholesaleproductstosellonebay.com an online wholesale and closeout business that supplies eBay sellers, retailers, and flea market vendors.
He also manages http://www.wholesaleproductsforebay.com and http://www.wholesaleproductscanada.com

Donny can be reached at 718-389-5502

Selling On Ebay Have You Found The Magic Formula Yet

2008-12-11T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Mark Kenny

Selling on eBay can be very profitable and a great way to make some cash while clearing your house of unwanted items at the same time. It's quite simple, just describe and photograph your items and seven to ten days later you'll get a payment though paypal or by cheque posted to you.

With so many items available, how do you ensure that your item sells above similar items. Despite many ebooks, self acclaimed experts and guides on the subject, there simply is no magic formula to absolutely guarantee you sell successfully. Even professional power sellers sometimes have a maximum of just 60% of auctions finish successfully. However you can increase the odds of your auction finishing successfully by using your knowledge of how buyers search.

The title of your item is the most important part of your item description. The reasoning behind this is because a standard eBay search will only search item titles. A massive 70% of buyers use eBays search box to find the items. Keywords entered into the search box are not compared with the item description or sub-title.

So ideally you need to research into your item before listing it, or at least before deciding on the title of your item. To assist you with there are two services I recommend. The first of these is called Keyword-Pro which is a comprehensive list of top 50 keywords in every eBay category. Updated weekly, the service can give you a wide range of keywords to insert into your title to give it a higher chance of being found in searches.

Details can be found at: http://trading-web-solutions.com/keywords/

eBay themselves have a smaller less powerful version that lists the top 10 keywords in each category. With just 10 words you are less likely to find words relevant to your item. It's still worth a look though - You can find eBay pulse at: http://pulse.ebay.co.uk

However a word of warning about your title. NEVER KEYWORD SPAM - This is listing irrelevant keywords in the hope of your item being found. It's used most often with vehicles, if you've used eBay to search for vehicles before surely you must have saw an item titled such as the following

"SEAT LEON CUPRA - NOT CRX, MR2, AUDI, TURBO OR LOTUS"

See in this example how the seller would be using popular keywords to draw visitors to their auction. It's a clever tactic but if someone reports you to eBay your auction will be removed and you may be issued with a warning, or even have your account closed.

Finally, if 70% of buyers use the search function, what about the remaining 30%. We can assume that the majority of them browse though the categories on eBay. Did you know for a small fee of £9.95 (eBay.co.uk) you can feature your item so it's at the top of the section. If your items of high value, them featuring it is strongly recommended. This way you should gain high coverage however your bidders search.

Mark Kenny is an eBay seller & online entrepreneur who highly recommends the Keyword-Pro. Full details are at: http://trading-web-solutions.com/keywords/

Ebay And How To Buy Part 2 Once The Listings Appear

2008-12-10T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Amy Lieberfarb

Once the listings appear from your keyword search terms box on the eBay Home Page, it is time to shop. Most important is to give yourself time to look at the different options before deciding which item to click on and check out. There are millions of item available on eBay at any hour of the day, make sure to do your price shopping before deciding what to purchase. It is apparent that narrowing down your search terms is as important as educated price comparison.

Price comparison is made simple online. When in the average retail chain store, one has to find tags, turn over items to locate pricing and sometimes just ask. Online shopping definitely takes the guesswork out of pricing. With eBay, the different product choices appear with the picture (if included), the current price and shipping costs. This also includes the end of auction or fixed price time and with a simple click you can find detailed product specifics and information about the seller.

When scrolling through the listings for your product, scroll down through the listings before deciding which one to click on. A picture can do as good as a thousand words for most shoppers and it is simple to see what quality of seller and listing you are going to see just from the gallery photo. When choosing a product, look for set shipping rates on the listings.

The more advanced seller knows that set shipping rates or free shipping is the way to go for online sales. It is best to try and buy from someone who knows what they are doing on eBay, has sold many items, has a high positive feedback rating from eBay One who has a detailed product description is best so that you know exactly what you are purchasing when you send your money.

When comparing prices, keep in mind that with the auction listings, many can be deceiving due to the time of start of the auction. If a listing has just started and has many days left, the price could inflate drastically as bidding nears close. With Buy It Now listings, the price is set with a button in order to purchase now, pay now and have it shipped quickly. This is more like shopping in your average online store, can save time and money with some great deals available. Most eBay Stores feature all Buy It Now listings and shopping in these stores can make buying easier with the knowledge that you are also buying from a reputable seller.

Price comparison is important on eBay, because it is a competitive market. While one price might look extremely low at first glance, you may find something 10-20 percent less just by putting in the time to really search through eBay for the perfect product. Price varies no matter which product you are searching for. Take your time to search and the monetary rewards will really justify it.

Amy Lieberfarb has been in the office furniture and interior sales industry for 11 years and currently runs two online websites dedicated to Office Chairs and Furniture. 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 Furniture and Ergonomic Chairs.

http://www.liebswholesale.com

Please see her websites and her many other articles for more information on ergonomics and proper positioning.

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.

Successful Ebay Sellers Sell Yourself 100 Ignorance Wont Sell Products

2008-12-09T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Maisy Day

Ebay the biggest online auction offering everyone a piece of the action whether a seller or buyer you would like to be. Skill and techniques are needed in any business venture to be successful so why not learn how Ebay is giving people the opportunity to do just that.

A good way to start with trading in this manner is to sell items that you love being around or part of (this could be something to do with a hobby of yours) you will find it is much more rewarding while you make money. Once you have built up confidence in yourself then it is time to gain trust from your customers. Do not be afraid to share a little intimate detail about yourself. People you will find are apprehensive in sending money to a complete stranger so the more they know of you and what you are selling then they warm to you.

Expect to find that the people who share the same interest as you in what you are selling on Ebay are more willing to part with their money - all because they feel you will be the master of knowledge on any issues relating to the product. Do your homework - this is very crucial to get your business off to a good start to become successful in your Ebay business. Scour the internet to find out what is the most favoured selling product that is hot property at the time. You can learn a lot from forums to gather information.

Locating the right product should not be an issue if your research was forensically done. Remember when choosing items to sell always check to see if it entails large quantities or special delivery. Matters on shipping - bulk buying and much more can be found at the ebay support centre. This is how others learned to become successful ebay sellers

Remember to be consistent and keep building up that reputation. Customers without doubt are likely to purchase from you when they know more of you personally and your wares. Ebay is a powerful force giving recognition to all loyal self made entrepreneurs. Bad business from others means bad business for ebay which is not tolerated. Therefore rules and regulations are enforced to help you uphold a regular ongoing business selling your services or product.

Promotion is the key factor behind a good volume of sales so be sure to advertise your self 100%. Tools are provided by ebay which unfortunately not many sellers are aware of or choose to ignore. Ignorance means no sales. Build your own website to promote and by doing this your customers can get a bigger picture of your whole entity defined in more detail.

If this is the route in life you intend taking like trading over the internet then learn to become a Successful Ebay Seller. There is not the slightest doubt that the best way is this way. Check out the nuts and bolts behind any auction site. Never buy your products up front until you are fully geared up with knowledge. If and when you are ready then get bargain buys wholesale from other successful online sellers on ebay.

For success in business you have to be in the know - don`t take my word for it and check it out for yourself http://www.ebay.webinputbiz.com Find a niche market - Rally Car Parts is worth looking in too. http://www.rccars.webinputbiz.com

Easiest Way To Write Hypnotic Listings

2008-12-08T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Gary R. Ferguson

You may think that creating hypnotic listings are too difficult, too time consuming, or require special skills that you don't have. This is definitely not the case. If you can talk, you can write. Remember you are not trying to create a literary masterpiece in your auction listing. You are just trying to tell a bidder about your item and compel them to place a bid. So what's the easiest way to do this?

First, and probably the biggest surprise, is to just write like you talk. Now this may be completely contrary to everything you learned in English class. For the most part, people will read and understand something that is written following the same form as how someone talks.

Now this does not mean you want to use a bunch of slang terms, or insert a bunch of ums and ahs, but merely write like you talk. In fact, you want to focus on using small words and short sentences. Anything written using smaller words and simple sentences is easier for the reader to follow and understand. It also sounds more conversational and friendly. This style of writing will again provide an additional hint of familiarity, which will lead to greater trust.

If you find it difficult to "talk" in your head and type at the same time, them by all means grab a tape recorder (or MP3 recorder these days) and record what you want to say and then transcribe it. This is more work, but it will definitely force you to "write like you talk."

Discover how you can create auctions that receive more bids and higher final prices than your competiton with the free Hypnotic Auctions Newsletter available at http://www.hypnoticauctions.com. Gary R. Ferguson is an author, publisher, and on-line marketer and can be reached at me@garyrferguson.com.

A Picture Paints A Thousand Words And Creates Auction Euphoria On Ebay

2008-12-07T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Mike Ralph

Ever since I sold my first item on ebay I have been addicted to the site and I have steadily developed it as a supplementary source of income over the last two years. As I gained experience from listing items, I rapidly became aware that the inclusion of pictures in the listings was a major selling point as buyers could literally see what they were buying and as such create a greater interest and desire within them which in turn led to greater selling prices.

To sum it up in one sentence:

Pictures attract attention, help explain details and more importantly stimulates desire which leads to Auction Euphoria.

Auction Euphoria is that process whereby the desire to own an item is that great that all logic goes out the window and the buyer rebids to ensure that they win it, thus increasing the selling price.

This simple bit of knowledge has allowed me to push my final selling prices up on average between 10-30% and as such it amazes me that so many listings do not include one picture and just type out the details in one long line of text (usually all in capitals!). I am not complaining however because this fact alone has allowed my auctions to stand out and make the money.

I started off using eBays add additional photo service to include extra images in my listings which people could use as a reference point and I found out the following :

1. Always make sure that the image is clear and of the actual item for sale, otherwise what is the point of including it? You will find that poorly presented pictures suggest that the seller doesn't care and hence will devalue the potential selling price of the item which is of no use to anyone.

2. Never use a stock photograph of the item for sale, with the increase in fraudulant transactions (especially on the higher value items) this will serve to put the buyer off, again serving to devalue your final selling price. Taking a little extra time to get an actual photograpah shows yours buyers that you care and will endear them to you.

3. Where possible use a digital camera, these are very easily accessable nowadays and relatively cheap and they produce excellent images. A webcam can also be used but does give a grainier picture. Remember the cost of the digital camera can be offset by the gain in final selling prices.

4. Have good lighting on your images, a poorly lit image may as well not be there. Where possible I take mine outside into the garden, put it onto a chair with white paper behind it and take advantage of the natural light. Its a few minutes work that pays dividends in the end in cold hard cash!

5. Never just use one image, always use at least two. I tend to use one image for every one of the details (or faults) that I mention in the listing. This illustrates what you are actually trying to describe and helps to prevent the dreaded negative feedback of 'the item wasn't as described'.

Using the above meant my auctions stood out and I was considered to be true to my word by my buyers so much so that I have multiple return buyers and the Auction Euphoria effect is evident on my auctions as there regularly go for higher prices than similar items listed on eBay.

As I developed my auctions I realised that using eBays additional picture service was COSTING ME a large proportion of my profit so I looked into other ways of getting my pictures on my listings. I also realised that the format of the listings was another major factor. I wanted to use the additional pictures to illustrate a detail or fault but it was no use having the picture at the bottom of the listing away from the description as per eBays standard approach.

So I did some research and learned that the answer to my problems was HTML to generate a template for my listings and allow me to pull my images into them without having to use eBays image service, sure it was still gonna cost me to host my own images but no where near what eBay was charging me. Using this has meant that my eBay Listing Fees have dropped by nearly 90%.

My buyers then started to ask me if they could use my templates and how they could include images on thier listings, advice which I always gave to them. I then decided to put this advice together on a few webpages so that they could use it as a reference and to upload some of the templates that I have used in the past so that anyone can use them for FREE.

I hope that these simple bits of advice help you to take advantage of Auction Euphoria, and really develop your profits from the amazing, and addictive, animal that is eBay auctions.

Mike - Webmaster and eBay Power Seller.

Online Auction Trader

FREE eBay Selling Templates, can be used by anyone you dont need to ask my permission to use them anywhere you want.

So What Are You Going To Do About Ebays Fee Increases

2008-12-06T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by DeAnna Spencer

Unless you have been hiding under a rock, I am sure that by now you have heard that eBay is raising its fees. So what's a small merchant to do? Here are some suggestions.

Get your own hosting. You can have your own online store and only have to pay for your hosting fees. Delspin Hosting offers a reasonable hosting plan for small merchants. You can also have somewhere to host your pictures if you decide to stay with Ebay.

You can still use your Paypal account with your hosted store. It also a good idea to find another alternative to process your credit card transactions because some people just don't like paypal.

Also, there are lots of other online auctions sites on the Internet. Just type in online auctions in your search engine and start experimenting with some of the online auction sites that rank in the top ten sites.

Bottom line: Ebay's fees are increasing. There's nothing you can do about that.

So instead of whining and complaining about something you can not control, you need to decide whether or not you are going to jump ship or adjust to the changes.

My personal opinion is to stick with it, because Ebay still comes up number one in the search engines when you type in online auctions. Are you really going to let all of that traffic pass you by?

This article may be redistributed on the Internet as long as the byline remains intact.

DeAnna Spencer is a virtual assistant that helps entrepreneurs run a successful business by providing affordable administrative help. She also publishes a blog for small business owners. Visit this small business resource today.

Ebay Selling Increase Bids On Your Ebay Motors Listings

2008-12-05T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Jane B. Clark

There is a simple way to increase bids and hold gross when selling cars and trucks at ebay Motors. Add audio sales presentations to your listings. Use your own seller's voice. You are selling a vehicle, are you not? Then tell your ebay shoppers about the vehicle and tell them how easy it is to buy a vehicle from you.

If you went onto a car lot to buy a vehicle and you were greeted by a sales person with tape over his/her mouth, wouldn't you at least be taken aback? Let's say you couldn't overcome the urge to ask the sales person a question. "How many miles does this car have?" The sales person opens the door of the car and points to the odometer and you have to get in and read it yourself. After all, the sales person has tape on his/her mouth and can only point for you to read. I have just described an ebay motors auction that is devoid of a person doing a walk around on a vehicle. Without audio, you are listing your vehicle in ebay Motors with a SILENT auction.

Yes, you can certainly sell vehicles at ebay motors without using your seller's voice. However, if you have 2000 unique visitors look at your ebay auction listing that is the same as 2000 people walking onto a car lot and looking at the vehicle. If you are not getting the price you want, then you have to ask yourself why. My personal opinion is that not one of those 2000 visitors to your ebay auction listing got excited.

Yes, you probably have great pictures. And you probably have listed every detail about the vehicle that a person would want and need to know. And I am sure you included everything about delivery, payment, warranty, etc. that you want to convey to any potential buyer. The problem probably is that they didn't stay looking at your auction long enough to read it all.

According to Sellathon CEO Wayne Yeager, "About half of all auction visitors - 48% to be exact - spend 10 seconds or less looking at your auction."

Don't do a good enough job to get 2000 people to look at your auctions and then let them only spend 10 seconds there. Use your seller's voice and talk to your ebay shoppers and tell them to take action and bid on your vehicle.

Jane B. Clark trains people in buying and selling on ebay. She also advises car dealers on ebay Motors listing and marketing techniques. You can visit Jane at http://www.addauctionaudio.com or email Jane at jane@addauctionaudio.com.

Take Advantage Of Mistake That Auction Seller Made

2008-12-04T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Eng Chin Wah

Now one of the most fun and most profitable auctions you can find is misspelled items. You might be able to get a tidy profit of $50 or $70 dollars easily by searching for items that auction seller make mistake in placing their ad. One man lost is another man gain and that's the name of the game. I have done a research on ebay for a while, and you can find it happen almost everyday. I have seen a branded camcorder being sold X amount , less 30% the average selling price of similar items. Imagine you re-list it immediately and sold it for a 30% profit margin without paying for shipping!!

Let's try it now and type camcoder or camcodar or anything you can think of and search through Ebay. I am sure you can get some results. You can also try Ebay UK or other auction house you might get something out of it.

So how can we profit from that? First of all misspell item get less page views, less views means less bid, less bids means low selling price. If there is a bid on one misspell item, do not jump in and throw a bid, that is true even if the item is spelled correctly. Just watch the item patiently for few days and post a bid when it comes to an end. However if the starting bid is $1 and nobody has bid, you can put in the next bidding price to" lock "the auction. You are not allowed to edit or cancel your auction once there is a bid. Next click on the Watch this item on ebay which is on the top right corner, check back occasionally to see how many people have bid the item and some auctions have a page counter to see how many buyer have check the item so you have rough gauge on how many bidders to expect.

Do a research on the item you have watched, scan through the listings in ebay. One nice option you can find is the Add Note features it can be found in My Ebay and those items that you have just added is listed according to Time Ending or depend on how you categorize it. Remember that you get more accurate results if you key in the item in the searched box and check the Completed Listings Only, reasons being that on going auctions prices might increase as time goes by so data you have collected is not up to date.

Look hard at the completed listings, make a note on how much buyers is willing to spend on this item. For example a branded sunglass was sold for between $140 to $160 so on averages the closing price is $150. Make a note to the misspelled item like" Sold for $150 "or "Highest bidder was $160 ", this is so important as it let you check back before the item ends and see if the auction has reached the price limit you have set on it or there are still rooms for profits.

Honestly speaking, there will be some people beside you who have the same thinking as you, looking for bargains in Ebay. So preferably wait till the auction is coming to an end and bid at the last hour, remember activity breeds activities you do not want this to happen as the trick is to get less bid if possible.

There are tools on the net which can help to do the jobs for you. Email me if you are interested, I will share with you what I have found or you can get access to www.monaky.com for wide range of auctions tools and information. Free download of auctions resource in the form of e-books for easy reading.

Contact admin@monaky.com http://www.monaky.com

For more auction information feel free to visit http://www.monaky.com

Find Wholesale Sources Before Your Ebay Competition Does

2008-12-03T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Donny Lowy

Wholesale sources are an especially valuable commodity for eBay sellers.

If you have been selling on eBay for some time you might have noticed the following.

More and more eBay sellers seem to be obtaining their merchandise from the same places.

Not only does this make the resale value of their merchandise worth less, but it also crowds the market with the same items, which drives away buyers out of boredom.

To keep eBay shoppers interested in your auctions, and to sell your merchandise at decent prices, you need to have products which few, if any, eBay sellers carry.

How do you accomplish this?

You can locate hard to find wholesale sources through the following methods:

Method #1

Search for locally based wholesalers who do not have a large presence on the Internet. The harder these wholesalers are to find, the less will eBay sellers know about them.

You can gain a competitive edge by using locally based wholesalers. You will be saving on shipping costs since you can pick up the merchandise yourself.

Method #2

Use wholesalers which offer a changing line of closeout products. As a wholesaler, I always make sure that my site closeoutexplosion.com has new closeout items. I realize that new closeouts items will enable eBay sellers to stay competitive by differentiating themselves from other eBay sellers.

What should you do when you cannot find any new wholesale sources?

Use every educational resource available to you. There are great eBay related books which can help you maximize your auction potential. This way even if another eBay seller has the same items, your auctions can still be more successful. Take a look at ebaybusinessbook.com for a great eBay related book.

Donny Lowy operates the following wholesale sites:

http://www.closeoutexplosion.com
http://www.wholesalequest.com
http://www.wholesalecloseoutforum.com

Used Cars For Sale On Ebay

2008-12-02T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Sydney Johnston

There are thousands of used cars for sale on eBay every single day. In fact, eBay Motors is the most profitable sales division on eBay and naturally there are many entrepreneurs who are interested in jumping into this market. For instance, eBay claims it sells an SUV every nine seconds and is the biggest online car dealer in America, exceeding the traditional car companies. In fact, there are 15 million cars sold over the Internet each year - and growing.

The recent rapid growth of the consignment business model has made the used car market even more enticing. Many sellers are able to sell cars they have never even seen and with no more risk than the cost of the auction listing. Some negotiators even persuade the car owner to pay for the ad, thereby risking no more than their time.

The biggest single issue for this business model is the trust of prospective buyers. After all, paying thousands or tens of thousands of dollars for a car sight unseen is an awesome leap of faith. Even buying for a plane ticket to go see a car before paying causes buyers to be uncomfortable.

The best way sellers can overcome this fear is to use an escrow service. eBay has a preferred service, and it's easiest to use that one.

An escrow service acts as a neutral third party. In an exchange of merchandise, the buyer sends his money to the escrow service and the seller ships the product to the buyer. The buyer usually has two days to inspect his purchase, and if he is happy, he notifies the escrow company who releases the money to the seller, minus its fee. If the buyer is dissatisfied, he returns the undamaged merchandise to the seller, and after the seller receives his merchandise back (in satisfactory condition), the escrow service returns the buyer's money. Thus both sides in the transaction are protected. The buyer almost always pays the fees for this, although sometimes buyer and seller split the cost.

eBay's offers a "Vehicle Services Division" specifically for dealing with the used cars, trucks, SUVs and almost anything else with wheels and a motor. The buyer can request a 160 point inspection performed before agreeing to the purchase. This is an inexpensive service and certainly will save the purchaser many headaches.

* The buyer pays a $125 fee that is non-refundable
* The seller is contacted and the inspection is carried outv * The buyer receives a reportv * The buyer chooses to go ahead with the purchase - or not

Another choice for the buyer is to deposit his payment with the escrow service and then take delivery of the vehicle. The seller ships the car after he knows the money his secure. The seller must provide tracking information, which is then verified.

The buyer has between one and 30 days to thoroughly inspect his new purchase (the period is negotiated between the two parties ahead of time). If this time expires and the escrow company has not heard from the buyer, it assumes he is happy and gives the purchase price to the seller.

The buyer may return his vehicle if he isn't happy and sometimes buyers and sellers work out partial payment agreements, the buyer being satisfied with some parts of the transaction, but not with others. If a dispute arises, it is settled by the American Arbitration Association.

The fee for this service is:

* $0 - $7,500 = value of vehicle: $125
* $7,500.01 to $15,000: $170
* $15,000.01 to $30,000: $200
* $30,000.01 to $50,000: $275
* $50,000+ = 6% of the value

Once both parties have agreed, the title transfer process begins and the escrow service will guarantee this too, for a fee of $95. The fee, naturally, doesn't include any transfer costs - it is only insurance that the title will be expedited to the satisfaction of both parties.

eBay's escrow service also offers a service that will ship cars almost anywhere in the world and will gather an auto history report to inform sellers if their new chariot has been salvaged or stolen, suffered flood or hail damage, been in a fire or accident, has had an odometer rollback or has been used as a police car, a rental or a taxi.

Anyone considering offering used cars for sale on eBay would be well advised to thoroughly learn the escrow services available and offer those to prospective buyers. The trust factor will skyrocket and your chances of completing sales will dramatically increase.

Learn how to sell on eBay with 16 hours of online instruction taught by a 10 year eBay veteran. Own an eBay business instead of an eBay hobby.

Make Your Ebook Auctions Stand Out

2008-12-01T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by John Thornhill

Selling ebooks on eBay is an inviting idea. By carefully shopping for in-demand content and wisely purchasing it with resale rights, you can secure a product you can sell over and over again with only a one-time expense. A very small initial investment can give you the opportunity to create a long series of successful auctions.

The hassles associated with shipping and handling also disappear, as delivering an ebook can be as simple as sending an email to the buyer. There are even great software packages and services available that make automated instant delivery of purchased ebooks possible. You can truly create a system that runs on autopilot, generating profits with little or no effort on your part.

That's the good news. The bad news is that a lot of other people have also noticed the opportunities presented by selling ebooks on eBay. As such, there is bustling market on eBay for electronically delivered information products and it is easy for your auctions to get lost in the crowd. No matter how inexpensive setting up your ebook auction business might be, the effort and expense will be wasted if no one is purchasing your products.

As such, it is important to make sure your auctions stand out from your competitors. There are a few great general techniques that when coupled with your own skills and originality can set you apart from the crowd and make your ebook business a success.

Look Different

Have you ever searched through the ebook offerings on eBay? Often, you will see the very same ebooks sold again and again. The auction titles look the same, as do the graphics used to promote them. If you follow the herd, you are simply hoping that of the many similar auctions offered, an interested buyer will happen to pick yours from the crowd merely by luck. This is not a particularly sound strategy!

Instead, you should make the effort to differentiate your auction from the others. Secure and utilize a different graphic than the standard ebook cover shot being used by everyone else. You should also spend some time writing a title for the auctionif your title reads like all of the others; your chances for success are reduced considerably.

Read Differently

Look through the auctions carefully and read the product descriptions and sales pages of the other eBay sellers in your market. You'll probably notice that many of them seem like carbon copies of one another. You need to make your eBay auction unique.

Spend some time and effort developing a sales pitch for your product that stands out from the rest. It will require some creativity and effort, but by writing the perfect sales pitch and creating a truly unique auction, your product will be perceived as a unique offering in a sea of sameness.

Offer Something More

If everyone is selling the same ebook, or several similar ebooks on the same theme, you need to make your auction different. There has to be some unique reason why buyers will flock to your auctions instead of others.

One used to be able to create a distinction by simply offering a better price or having higher feedback ratings. As the ebook marketplace has grown, these characteristics are tougher to use to your advantage. Prices are often set at low margins across the board already, and there are a variety of sellers with impressive feedback in the field.

Bundle something extra into your ebook auction. Perhaps a special report you have personally written, insuring the uniqueness of your auction is in order. Maybe you can bundle up an additional ebook for which you have resale rights into the deal. The possibilities are limited only by your own imagination.

In a more crowded marketplace it is possible to succeed. However, the days of merely listing a series of ebooks and waiting for the money are over. If you want to increase your chances for ebook success on eBay, it's time to do something that separates you from the pack.

John Thornhill trades on eBay under the username planetsms For more advice on how to succeed on eBay with information products visit http://www.planetsms.co.uk

Online Auctions Discover 6 Myths Surrounding Them

2008-11-30T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Pradeep Agarwal

Online Auctions are unmistakably among the hottest e-Sourcing technologies on the Internet business today. But what exactly is an online auction anyway and what are its benefits? According to The Pocket Oxford Dictionary, fourth edition (1942), an auction is a "public sale in which articles are sold to the highest bidder." And if done on Internet it is online auction.

Online auctions create a competitive advantage because they make it relatively simple for Procurement managers to negotiate on all corporate purchases and create better deals.

Let us see some common myths surrounding online auctions:

MYTH #1: Only very familiar, particular or consistent items can be auctioned:

The myth came into being because no one understood how to measure criteria other than price. Total cost auctions take price and no-price factors, such as delivery time or customer service, into account, and they allow a customer to weight each factor accordingly. This is only a myth because when someone with sourcing expertise takes a creative approach to defining or breaking down the item in question, that item or its components can generally be auctioned.

MYTH # 2: Auctions are only effective when there is a level playing field:

This is false since a level playing field simply doesn't exist. And, not all suppliers are alike. Face-to-face negotiations have long proven this fact. Procurement managers can now normalize for differences (e.g., customer service, warranty terms, delivery cost, etc.) using Web-based technology. In effect, these technologies measure total cost allow customers to compare apples-to-oranges.

MYTH #3: Only Internet-savvy suppliers can participate in an Online auction:

Today, the majority of legitimate suppliers have access to computers. The myth that only internet-savvy suppliers can participate in an online auction is wrong. In order to participate in an Internet based online auction, the suppliers merely need to be able to log on to the Internet, log in to a web site, and log their bids. It's just very simple. Suppliers don't have to know how to navigate the World Wide Web or use any sophisticated search engines to participate.

MYTH #4: Maximum benefits could be derived only if large number of suppliers participate:

For any online auction, competition is a must and you must create a competitive environment, no matter if the suppliers is 4 or 400. Internet auctions put the business "up for bid." Incumbents are wise to take notice. Once existing suppliers believe that the buyer really will change where he takes his business, a competitive environment is created. Thus concrete results for online auctions occur irrelevant to number of suppliers.

MYTH #5: Only products are auctioned?

Not true - in fact, services are also auctioned. Services such as Telemarketing services, Cellular phone services, Security services, and temporary labor services are all good examples. For example, a particular auction site held an auction for telemarketing services that resulted in an 18% cost reduction. The auction involved over 60 suppliers and more than 700 bids. The study shows that apart from products, services can also be auctioned.

MYTH # 6:Auctions are carried out only once in a year:

Event online auctions are generally used for categories of goods and services that require a long-term contract (say one year). These will achieve better results if auctioned year (or less). For example, a buyer may auction off the purchase of 10,000 PCs over a two-year period.

It is important for all to expand their concept of what can be auctioned, as long as the value of each item is 'elastic' enough to preclude fixed pricing. Once they have done that, the possibilities are almost endless.

Pradeep Aggarwal is the creator of Auction Spectrum the online auction hub. This site is dedicated to helping people to build Profit Pulling Websites and start and run a successful online auction business.

Tips For Knowing Your Ebay Buyer Before You Ship

2008-11-29T14:00:00.001-08:00

Writen by Jeanne Sheridan

You're soaring high... The auction went well and you've sold an item on eBay! Feels great doesn't it? But now what?

Before you send anything to that buyer, you must get to know them first. This is especially crucial when you're selling a high-ticket item that you can't afford to lose. Even if the buyer has paid, the PayPal transaction could still end up being reversed, leaving you completely out of pocket.

So how do you get to know buyers to see if they can be trusted?

1. Look at their feedback for sellers.

Go to their feedback page and click Left for Others. If they post a lot of negatives about other sellers, then run away from them as fast as you can! If you still choose to deal with them, make sure not to post your feedback about them first. You should consider a negative someone has left to be just as bad as a negative left for them.

2. Look at feedback from sellers.

You might find that they have more complaints from sellers than from buyers. Or it might be the other way around. Some people really are just better at selling than buying.

3. Pay attention to bid retractions.

If your buyer has a high number of bid retractions, this as a red flag.

4. See what else they've bought.

When someone goes from buying items worth $1 to suddenly buying something worth $1,000 you might want to be a little suspicious of them.

5. See what they're bidding on now.

If they've never shown any interest in your kind of item before, and now suddenly they're bidding on lots of them, then that's cause for concern. You should also be suspicious of someone who seems to be spending a lot of money all at once. Few buyers have thousands at a time to blow on eBay.

6. Check their ID history.

People who've changed their ID are often trying to get away from someone who's trying to find them. This is another warning sign! Be especially wary of someone who has changed their ID recently.

7. Be nice to new buyers.

Genuinely new buyers will probably have a name ending in a number and a feedback score of 0. These people usually aren't fraudsters. Somewhat counter-intuitively, people trying to commit fraud will almost never do it when they have a feedback score of 0. They'll think it's too obvious. New buyers often have problems with being inexperienced on eBay, however, and you might have to guide them through things like opening a PayPal account.

8. Email them!

If you want to get to know your eBay buyer, why not have a little chat with them about the item and what they plan to do with it? Tell them how you know they're going to love it and ask if there's anything else you can do for them. Few buyers who seem chatty and nice will turn out not to be in the end.

If you keep getting buyers you don't want, you might consider using eBay's pre-approved buyer function.

For more free information on ebay selling, drop shipping strategies, handling bid snipers, and to find out what's the hottest selling items on eBay, visit http://www.Ebay-Selling-Tip.com