eBay Buying should be fun!

Greg Holden is the author of several books about eBay, including ‘How to Do Everything with Your eBay Business’, and ‘The Collector’s Guide to eBay’.
He also recently met several eBay millionaires, hoping to find common threads in their stories which would be of help to us mortal eBay sellers.
The eBay millionaires Greg interviewed were all aged 30 or less. And each of them grossed a million dollars or more on eBay in 2005.
Two women who run Express Drop, the drop-off store, just sqeezed in with gross sales of $1.02 million. Since their eBay revenue is shared with their consignment clients, and they have premises overheads, it’s fair to say that their profits were a little less than $1 million.
However, David Wirtenberg of Outrageous Diamonds grossed $4 million eBay sales in 2004, and he projects 2006 sales as being $8 to $10 million. And Chris Rush of HiFi Sound Connection grossed $5 million eBay sales in 2005. The chances are pretty good that each of these gentlemen made more than $1 million in profits.
Although PowerSellers who are at the Gold or Titanium level have achieved a high level of success, that doesn’t mean they are out of the ordinary. Greg found them to be just regular folks who are not really so different from you or me. Most of them started out with little or nothing and made the best of the same opportunities we all have on eBay.
So, what is that sets these young millionaires apart from the rest of us eBayers? Here are some of the things Greg I learned:
Choose your relatives wisely
Yes, Greg knows you can’t really do this, but he suggests you look to see if money really is growing on your family tree. Many of the eBay millionaires he met had relatives who were themselves entrepreneurs or had some experience in business. They called on those relatives for a helping hand when they were starting out. David Wirtenberg got some pointers from his father-in-law, who was in sales and marketing. Chris Rush started with a $10,000 loan from his grandfather to purchase his initial inventory.
Mentoring isn’t just for college internships
Even if your family can’t help in your eBay business, perhaps someone else can. Dan Glasure of Dan’s Train Depot started out in the cleaning business. His father helped get him started selling trains and other collectibles on eBay. After his father passed away, Dan called on two of his best customers for help - one a billionaire, the other a business professor - who helped him draw up some formal business plans.
Don’t imitate the Lone Ranger
Greg found that one of the biggest differences between the eBay millionaires and the rest of us, is volume. They deal in hundreds of sales a week, thousands per month. Marat Denenberg of Narro Corp. sells as many as 80 pieces of computer equipment each day. Some hire employees; and they rent or purchase warehouses. Many of them also do something that’s within the reach of most of us: they sign up with one of the auction service providers that helps them sell. Mordy Eisenberg of GSM Cellular works with ChannelAdvisor. Eran Dekel deals in such high volume that he was able to set up a discounted shipping arrangement with UPS. Other sellers Greg interviewed work with providers like Zoovy, Infopia, and Marketworks to help them build volume.
Be open to selling on consignment
Greg found that several of the eBay millionaires specialize in selling items on eBay for others. Adam Hersh, 27, is one of eBay’s most successful Trading Assistants. Tiffany Tanaka, Ellen Navarro, and Amy Mayer run eBay drop-off stores. If you’re just starting out and don’t have a lot of your own inventory to sell or can’t find a wholesale distributor, selling for other people can help you build up positive feedback and become a PowerSeller quickly.
Many of the millionaire sellers Greg met agreed that eBay is a great place to start your first business, no matter what your age and level of experience. So, although those selected for Greg’s interviews were relatively young, don’t think you’ve somehow “missed the boat” if you’re on the upside of 30 - I’m double that, and still like to think that I have a kick! So my advice is to think positive, learn from the success of these young entrepreneurs and you can become a more effective seller.

Over the last few years the number of people using eBay has grown rapidly. While many eBay users are just buying and selling for some extra cash or as a hobby, there are many people out there taking it to a new level and running their own full-time business.

These people are making their eBay home business a main source of income and have figured out all eBay’s marketing strategies in order to be productive.

There are many reasons to start an eBay home business, but whatever the reason, it is sure to be successful.

Why start an eBay home business? Out of all worldwide businesses, 64% said that the Internet has had a good impact on their sales. Also, having an online business can greatly increase geographical sales by reaching customers all over the world, which otherwise, would never have been possible. 73% of business owners have also managed to cut their administrative costs by putting their business online.

An eBay home business can give you the flexibility to start work when you want and finish when you want. Working from home, you can be your own boss and decision making is entirely down to you and no-one else.

Starting an eBay home business is relatively easy and a little market research will go a long way in determining your success.

Selling junk that people don’t want will get you nowhere and you’ll most probably be doomed for failure… even before you begin, but researching into what products are’ Hot’ and what your buyers are actually looking for, will most definitely have the opposite effect and your eBay shop visitor’s will be screaming out to buy your products.

‘eBay Seller Central’ http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral offer an excellent resource in getting you up to speed with every aspect of the eBay marketplace. This also includes ratios on what products are selling well and products that are not.

You should also consider using third party eBay market research tools such as Terapeak or HammerTap in your marketplace research.

The bottom line is supply and demand; you must find the products that are in demand and then supply that specific market.

A recent ‘AC Nelson’ poll showed that nearly 53% of online shoppers plan to buy even more in the next year. A large part of this shopping is done on eBay. After all, it is the Internet’s No.1 shopping and auction website. If that’s not a good reason to start an eBay home business, then I don’t know what is.

With over 160 million registered eBay shoppers and over 100,000 of them on eBay each day, an eBay home business definitely has the potential to be successful and make the user a lucrative income.

eBay also offer excellent e-commerce advice and helpful tips to get you started at: http://pages.ebay.com/merchantsolutions/ecommerceresources/ and can put you in good stead throughout the duration of your new business venture.

Thinking of what to sell on eBay with your new home business needn’t be difficult.

Do you have a specific hobby that would interest others or do you know enough about a subject that would perhaps class you as an expert in that field? If so, create and information product that would pertain to that specific hobby for example:

Cycling - “A guide to Bicycle trips in Europe.” Bicycle spare parts are also becoming harder to find. Creating a market for this specific niche could be potentially profitable.

Cookery - “101 Delicious recipes for Diabetics.” You may have been a chef or cook and you’re looking to create an additional revenue stream using the knowledge you possess.

Recently, eBay has disallowed the sales of digital products on auctions. You can still sell information products with classified ads or you can sell a CD with your product(s) on it as a regular auction listing.

Google is a fabulous resource for market research and by simply typing into their search query box whatever interests you, would return thousands, if not millions of topics to give you ideas and inspiration to get your eBay home business started.

Providing your customers with a service or a product that cures a problem, can provide your new eBay business with profitable sales for many years to come.

The Ebay explosion has hit astronomical proportions. Over 11 million people did a search for Ebay last month alone on the internet. From all walks of life, everyone is drawn to Ebay.

Some people use Ebay as a hobby to make extra cash. Some people have quit their jobs and are making their living off Ebay. On a monthly basis, the phenomenon of Ebay continues to expand and grow.

Naturally, the best advice is to start selling part time on Ebay so that you can learn the tricks and secrets. It will take some time to learn the inside secrets that the top sellers know. It can be a great way to make extra cash. Ebay will take some work and is not a get rich quick scheme. However, if you take your time and do research, you could make extra income for yourself and your family. After you start to make money on a consistent basis, you might consider doing Ebay as your full time job.

For your Ebay business, all you need is internet access and a product to sell. Don’t worry! If you don’t have a product, there are plenty of companies where you can purchase items to sell.

Many people start off selling old or odd items from their homes. Others are going to garage sales and picking up great deals and then selling these products on Ebay. You can find almost anything on Ebay. You are only restricted by your own imagination.

Here is a little tip: Other’s people junk can be your gold mine! That old Barbie doll up in the attic or in the basement could be a gold mine and bring in a huge profit. For example, it is reported that the Collectibles Category is the top selling category on Ebay. An old barbie doll, old red wagon, and old clock are only a few examples of items in the Collectibles Category.

TOP 10 SECRETS FOR SELLING ON EBAY

1. Do your research!

Make sure there is a need for the item that you are selling. Do a search for your item and see how many items are found for your keyword search. Examine each auction and see the bid amount and number of bids. Follow a number of auctions for several days and see what the final bid is. This will give you an excellent idea if there is a need for your item. It will also help you estimate the amount of profit you can make from the auction. If you don’t find your item, it might not be worth your time listing that item. Try to find an item that people truly want. After you start making money with Ebay, you can always go back and list that original product.

2. Find the right Category for your item!

If you are selling a collectible, please make sure that you list it in the collectible category. If you are listing a toy or hobby, please make sure that you list it in the Toy and Hobbies Category. This could make it easier for people to find your item. Do your homework? Search for your item and see what categories other sellers listed the same item in.

3. Keywords and descriptions are critical!

Use the appropriate keywords to describe your product. If you are selling a Barbie Doll, specify the type of doll it is: 1980 Holiday Barbie Doll. If you are selling a model train, specify the type: HO Santa Fe Caboose. Your descriptions are critical to avoid any future problems or potential returns. Honesty is the best policy. If there is a chip, crack or dent, specify this in the description. This could save you a lot of aggravation later on. If a buyer truly wants your item, a crack or chip won’t stop them from bidding on your item.

4. Always post a photo with your auction!

Auctions with photos sell much better than ones that don’t have pictures. Try to take a picture of the actual item that you are selling. Many Ebay sellers will use stock photos or photos from the internet. This is a turn off and raises a question in the buyers mind. People can tell it is not the original item and this could hurt your bids. Show the buyer that you are honest and have nothing to hide. If you put a picture of the actual item, it builds more trust between you and the buyer. In my case, I have bypassed auctions with stock photos. If you don’t have a digital camera, you can always purchase a disposable camera. When you take the camera in to be processed, tell them that you would like to have the photos placed on a CD.

5. Make the Buying process Easy! Sign up for PayPal!

You want to make your auction easy for the buyer. PayPal is becoming very popular and many buyers prefer to pay with their PayPal accounts. The easier you make your auction, the better it is. In addition, you don’t have to worry about bad checks or money orders. It is a safer payment method for both the buyer and seller.

6. List your items during “Hot Time” buying Periods!

Time your auction so that it ends during peak buying times. If you live in the Eastern Time Zone, list your auction between 9pm-11pm, Central Time Zone list between 8-10pm, Mountain Time Zone between 7-9pm, and for the Pacific Time Zone list between 6-8pm. Thus, this will give you the biggest exposure at the end of your auction. If your auction ends at 2 in the morning, there won’t be to many people placing a bid. The debate is out as to what day your auction should end on. Some sellers report that Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday are best. Other sellers report that Saturday and Sunday are best. Try experimenting with this to see what works best for your auctions.

7. Create an “About Me” Page on Ebay or another Free Website Page!

An “About Me” page can be critical to your success. It gives you chance to let the potential buyer know about you and your products. You can also get a free webpage from many companies in which you can promote yourself and your ebay auctions.

8. Feedback is Critical!

An ebay buyer looks at the feedback ratings. A negative feedback rating can ruin your chances of being successful. After your auction is over, please follow up with your buyer. Send them an email or call them if you have their phone number. Make sure that they are happy with their purchase. This is also important with your description. If you weren’t honest with your description, the buyer might be very disappointed and give you a negative rating. Ensure that your buyers are happy!!!

9. Excessive Postage costs can prevent bids!

Be reasonable with your shipping costs. Calculate the costs ahead of time and only charge the buyer a reasonable amount. It is not worth trying to make a couple extra dollars off the buyer because it will scare many people off. Charge the buyer the actual cost of shipping and state this in your auction so that there are no secrets. Be honest and the buyer will appreciate this.

10. Reserve Prices and Buy-it-Now can scare away potential buyers!

Buyers can be scared off by Reserve Prices and Buy-it-Now. In addition, Reserve Prices can limit your final auction price. Buy-it-Now shows that you have a certain limit to sell the product at. This is an auction! Let the buyers keep bidding at your products. If they feel they are getting a deal, they will place a bid.

You can be very successful on Ebay but you need patience and you need to do your homework.

Have fun with Ebay!

eBay is the #1 auction site on the internet. eBay is the fifth most visited site on the Internet. Now, eBay jumped on the blog bandwagon. They have opened a brand new section of their site called eBay blogs. This area allows a registered eBay user to sign up for, and maintain an eBay blog.

Blogs are here to stay. So, if you’re serious about growing your eBay business then you should definitely consider signing up for, and creating your very own eBay blog. eBay has done a great job of making the process simple and easy so that almost anyone can navigate through the steps and easily set up their own blog. You do not have to have any programming experience or special html knowledge. Just visit the following url: http://blogs.ebay.com/ and click on the large button that says “Start Blogging”.

What Are Blogs?

In the simplest of terms, a blog is basically an online journal. Blogs provide a place where you can easily write news and information about yourself and your auction sales on a daily basis. The word blog is a combination of web and log combined together to make the word blog. Blogs are a hot internet craze because they allow anyone to easily publish their own thoughts and content online – instantly.

Blogs are also wonderful for creating a ton of extra traffic and visitors to your auction listings. If you frequently post great content to your blog it will quickly be picked up by the search engines which will create more visitors to your blog and your auction listings for free.

What Should You Blog About?

In this day and age, it’s hard to imagine being an eBay seller and not immediately see the benefit of having a blog. It provides an easy way to interact with your customers. You can provide updated information about your auctions, the products you sell and general info about your business. Once you get used to blogging, you should consider making posts to your blog on a daily basis.

To get the most from your blog you want to think about writing content that is useful to your customers. eBay sellers should use their blog to provide more information about what they sell. For example, a seller who specializes in model cars might take some time to write a few articles or create posts about “tips for building model cars”. Another seller who sells wedding related goods might write blog posts about “effective wedding planning on a shoestring budget”. The point is this: you want to make the content useful to your customers so they will come back often. The more you write good quality content and inform your customers, the more they will want to purchase products from you. Another benefit is that you can quickly establish yourself as an authority on the subject.

If you’re not sure what content to post in your blogs, simply do a google search for your subject and see what comes up. Use this information to create your product content. Caution: stay away from having a blog with very little useful content and a lot of sales ads for your auctions. It’s good to occasionally write a blog post to promote a new item you have up for auction, but if that is all you do then you’ll get very few repeat visitors to your blog. eBay is a very community oriented platform and the more community friendly information you provide, the more potential you have for repeat customers to come back to your blog… and hopefully visit your eBay auction listings.

How do you Promote Your Blog?

Like any other site on the internet, your blog will have its own unique url or website address. You will want to make sure that you keep this hand and start promoting your blog. There are a variety of ways that you can promote a blog. Some of these would include submitting your website to major search engines, and blog/website directories. You can easily further promote your blog by taking the content or articles that you write on the blog and submitting them to some of the major article directories. You can also create your own domain name and then forward it to your blog, so that you have a link that is easy for people to remember. In the past, I have used http://www.highfivedomains to secure my url’s for blog promotion.

What about Blog Comments?

Another great way to promote your blog and build traffic to it is to comment on other people’s blog. As a general rule, you should only post to other related blogs and post meaningful comments. If you start leaving a bunch of random comments that have nothing to do with the blog, or the blog post in general, then people will see this as “blog spam” also known as “splog content”.

Does eBay have Blog Tags?

Another useful feature that eBay has included is blog tags. When you first set up your blog, there are some important fields to fill out including the selection of the tags that people will use to find your blog. These tags are basically keywords that people might use to search for your blog. If we continue with “wedding” example above, a seller of wedding related items would want to use common wedding keywords in their tags section. This could include tags like wedding, invitations, cake toppers, and wedding planning. Now, when another eBay user searches for wedding related blogs this blog will show up in the listing and again bring some free traffic to the blog.

In the not too distance future, eBay blogs will be commonplace. It is now that you have the opportunity to set yourself apart from your competition by setting up your blog - and using your blog to get free traffic to your eBay listings!

The online auction giant - eBay - has exploded on the Internet scene. Currently boasting over 29 Million members, eBay is one of the most visible and far-reaching Internet companies in existence, with a large segment of the population either using the service, or at the very least, aware of it. Among the eBay sellers, there is a designation given to approximately 4% of the people. These are eBay’s “Powersellers”, a group of sellers that is distinguished by the amount of volume they produce. The entry-level Powerseller, the Bronze level, does at least $2,000 a month in eBay sales, maintains a 99% positive feedback level and maintains their eBay account current. Higher award levels are granted at the $10,000 level, (Silver level) and at the $25,000 level. (Gold level)

What are some of the strategies and techniques that these Powersellers use?

As someone who achieved Powerseller status a little over a year ago and continues to study other Powersellers, I’ve compiled a listing of the 21 Success Strategies of eBay Powersellers.

Powersellers are serious - Powersellers treat their eBay business just like they would any other business. They are dead-serious about it. Look at any Powerseller operation and you’ll find organized systems and “assembly-line” techniques being used. While a Powerseller may not have invested thousands of dollars into her operation, she treats it as if she has.

Powersellers are focused - A Powerseller is focused on listing, packing and shipping, often on different days of the week. Their focus is as intense as that of a Corporate Executive or an Olympic athlete, because they are juggling various activities at the same time.

Powersellers are organized - The Powerseller is organized, otherwise they wouldn’t make it to the level of Powerseller. Since Powersellers do a huge volume of listing, packing and shipping each month, they must develop processes to ensure that the items sold are delivered within a reasonable period of time and that customer satisfaction is always at the forefront.

Powersellers delegate - Powersellers delegate because they have to! Their volume dictates that they hire an assistant to do some of the more repetitive tasks that don’t require the Powerseller’s attention. This way the Powerseller can focus on the important money-making tasks of product acquisition and marketing.

Powersellers use assembly line techniques - The Powerseller has developed smooth running systems to make sure that product fulfillment is accomplished as quickly and efficiently as possible. This may involve setting up a large 4′ by 8′ table with bubblewrap and packing materials at one end, products in the middle, and boxes, labels and packing tape at the far end.

Powersellers use Dutch auctions - Many Powersellers have graduated from selling one-of-a-kind knick-knacks found at yard sales and are now selling a volume of the same item through Dutch auctions. In a Dutch auction, a seller can place a large number of the same item up for sale. The bidders can bid on one or more of the item, but the highest bidders will be first in line to actually get or “win” the products they bid on. So there is a possibility that if someone bid too low, they might not get a product. A Powerseller uses Dutch auctions often because it is a huge time-saver. This is a true “assembly line” auction from start to finish. The packing and shipping goes a lot faster when the same item is being packed and shipped over and over again.

Powersellers do efficient work - Another trait of the Powerseller is that they are extremely efficient, knowing that time is money. A Dutch auction is a great example of this efficiency. In the same period of time that it takes to list one item, you are listing dozens, or even hundreds of items! This time-efficiency is a powerful way to leverage your time and profits.

Powersellers “Bulk List” their auctions - Bulk listing your auctions using a bulk listing software or auction management service will dramatically organize your time and allow your eBay operation to run a lot more smoothly. There are various options in this area, from eBay’s own “Mister Lister” to Blackthorne software to Andale, and Auction Watch auction management services, there are a lot of options for you to look into. These services allow you to list your auctions at your leisure and then schedule them to go live on a certain day and time. This saves you the hassle of having to list your auctions on the particular day that you want them to go up.

Powersellers use clearly focused photos - Powersellers have acquired their status by using clear photos or scans of the items they are selling and making sure that the photos show all flaws. In effect, along with all of the other skills they have acquired, they have also become semi-pro photographers! Many have built a “mini-studio” with optimum lighting and background, that is available at their beck and call for those quick shots when they need to e-mail an additional photo to a bidder. The Powerseller usually has both a Digital Camera for photographing 3-dimensional items and large items and also has a scanner for the paper items and flat items.

Powersellers use headlines with key words and no fluff - A Powerseller resists the temptation to use “fluff” words like “L@@K”, “WOW” and “MUST SEE”. Instead, the Powerseller uses descriptive words in the headline, realizing that the headline is the “ad for the ad”. A Powerseller is also “search engine savvy”, realizing that keywords in the headline are picked up by the eBay search engine. They are sure to load the headline with descriptive, key words that help the bidder determine if the item is what they are looking for and keeps out the “fluff”.

Powersellers write thorough and detailed item descriptions - A Powerseller has achieved their level by maintaining a high ratio of positive feedback. This is primarily accomplished by having clear and accurate descriptions of the items so that the bidder can clearly “imagine” the item as if it were sitting in front of her. The art of writing a great item description involves an interesting mix of using “selling words” (such as “beautiful”, “fantastic”, “intricately designed”, “gorgeous”, “spectacular”, “powerful”, “colorful”, etc.) along with describing the flaws in the item. A great description should entice the bidder to bid while at the same time providing full and complete disclosure of the item’s condition. Your test of whether you have a great description or not is if it answers the following two questions well:

A. If I were to compare the description to the item, while holding the item in my hand, would it be an extremely accurate description? or would I have good reason to return the item?

B. Does this description entice me to place a bid on the item?

Powersellers give “Benefit of the doubt” customer service - Customer service is such a cliched catchphrase in American Business today. In the eBay auction world, it is mandatory that you implement a very meticulous level of customer service. Powersellers have a clear reflection of their level of customer service in their feedback profile. One glance at any eBay seller’s feedback profile and you have an instant snapshot of that individual’s customer service rating. (Imagine if regular “brick and mortar” stores had a feedback rating posted at the front door!) This public feedback rating is both your best advertisement (if you provide great customer service) and can also be your downfall. (if you don’t) A Powerseller is constantly aware of this “sign at the front door” and places a high priority on giving stellar customer service. I call it “Benefit of the doubt” customer service because even in those instances where the customer is clearly wrong, the Powerseller doesn’t argue or get into an emotional “war of words”, she simply refunds the money or reduces the shipping cost or sends an unexpected gift with the package. The Powerseller realizes that business and ego don’t mix, they leave their ego on the table - they go on to build lifetime customer relationships.

Powersellers have their own websites - A Powerseller realizes that business conditions change. On the Internet, business conditions can change literally from quarter to quarter! Because of the transient and high-speed nature of change in the Internet business, the Powerseller realizes the value of having their own storefront on the Web. They have either built a website themselves or have had someone build a site for them. They have developed a following and a customer base through their eBay auctions that can help sustain them even if dramatic changes come about on their main selling venue. As eBay continues to evolve and change - applying restrictive and invasive policies - this will become more of a priority for all eBay sellers, not just Powersellers.

Powersellers make it easy for bidders to pay - By offering a variety of payment options, Powersellers make it easy for winning bidders to pay for their items. They offer to accept Checks, Money Orders, all types of credit and debit cards through PayPal, Billpoint, or their own Merchant Accounts. By offering a wide variety of payment options, they open up their market of available bidders and end up with higher ending bids as a result.

Powersellers offer discounts on multiple items - Whether it is a discount on shipping multiple items or a discount on the actual price of multiple items, Powersellers realize the value of a good customer and treat that customer special. Unexpected discounts tell the customer “You’re special” and build a reciprocity that keeps customers coming back or searching the Powersellers’ auctions.

Powersellers are always on the lookout for great deals - The Powerseller is the consummate “deal-maker”. Whether it’s at an antique store or at a swap meet, the Powerseller is always thinking about things they can re-sell. They find that pop-culture collectible and buy it. List it the same day and see the bid amount grow and grow. Part of the thrill of selling on eBay is “taking a shot” and listing items that you are not familiar with. Seeing the items shoot up in price is a fun and enjoyable hobby!

Powersellers do not mind making money! - A Powerseller has no “issues” with making money. Many Americans have been brought up with the notion that the only “respectable way” of making money is by working at a job for thirty years. Sales and selling is looked down upon. The Powerseller is way beyond that. They have a healthy attitude towards making money and it becomes like a “hobby” to them! As new and strange as it may appear to the more traditional types, selling on eBay is one of the easiest and most lucrative ways to make a part-time income. The alternatives to selling on eBay are either too time consuming or too unrealistic. This “new” way of earning an income is powerful and realistic.

Powersellers enjoy their work-at-home lifestyle - Powersellers love the fact that they get to work from home while the rest of America sits on the freeway, waiting for their fellow “worker-bees” to move. The freedom of having a Home Based Business is something the Powerseller relishes and appreciates. This enjoyment of the lifestyle has many tangible benefits - better health, freedom of time, being able to spend more quality time with kids, attending their school functions and field trips, better scheduling of time (around the rush hours) and an overall feeling of well-being. There is no doubt, working from home is the wave of the future.

Powersellers are willing to invest in their business - Whether it means investing in a high-speed cable modem or DSL connection, high-quality computer components, including digital cameras, monitors, keyboards, etc. or whether it means buying a “Featured Auction” listing which will drive further traffic to their other auctions, the Powerseller knows how to use their money wisely. There is a difference between wasting money and investing money in your business. An eBay Powerseller knows when to “invest” money into their business. Basically, anything that saves you time or saves you money is an investment in your business. As an example: A digital camera is a huge time-saver over taking traditional 35 mm photos and then scanning them.

If you go the scanner route, here are the steps you must take:

Buy film. (this takes driving time and money)

Shoot the photos.

Get the film developed. (this takes driving time, waiting time and money)

Inspect the photos for clarity and re-shoot, if necessary. (this takes additional time and additional money)

Scan the photos (additional time)

Crop and edit the images

Upload the images to your webhost

The same actions using a digital camera are much more efficient:

Shoot the photos. (film purchase not necessary)

Inspect the photos for clarity and immediately re-shoot. (no additional cost)

Crop and edit the images.

Upload the images to webhost.

The investment in a digital camera is one of the best ways to become a more efficient eBay seller! I paid a little over $700 for my digital camera about two years ago, it was the best time and money-savings investment I’ve made!

Powersellers stay up-to-date on auction trends and changes - Because Powersellers take their business seriously, they constantly keep themselves up to date on the latest industry trends and changes. They do this by buying books about online auctions, participating in eBay Message Boards / Forums, and staying tuned to the eBay Announcements Board. They don’t want to be caught off guard with a new change or new policy that might affect their business.

Powersellers are always looking for better ways to do things - Whether it’s listing auctions, packing and shipping, getting organized, or expanding their business, Powersellers are always looking to improve their online business. This is the nature of all successful business people, they want to improve their business constantly.

As the 4% of eBay sellers known as Powersellers continue to improve their processes, here’s hoping that the above strategies will be helpful reminders in improving yours!

You have probably read plenty about niche marketing on the internet - but what does it really mean? This article takes a look at niche marketing in its context as an eBay shop based business.

eBay: who would have thought ten years ago that this little project of Pierre Omidyar’s, started in his living room, would now be the global phenomenon it has grown into? Many things have changed in the last ten years and opportunities for business online have mushroomed to the extent that there’s now almost ‘too much information’. One thing that seems to baffle people who want to get on the eBay bandwagon - and it’s nothing to do with the mechanics of having an eBay account which, let’s face it, are pretty simple. No - the real stumper for many people is this: what do I sell? What do I trade in? And what’s the best way to get exposure for my goods?

These questions are not asked by the casual eBay member; the one who wants to sell off some unwanted household goods or hold the online version of a garage sale. That type of trading, although still massively widespread amongst the eBay community, is not what niche marketing is about. In fact, it’s not what an eBay business in 2007 is about at all.

I personally don’t know any eBay millionaires but they doubtless exist and let’s get one thing straight: eBay did NOT make these people rich - they made THEMSELVES rich. They had the savvy to see that eBay is what it is - a superb turnkey operation simply begging to be taken advantage of. They learned how to take advantage of the plethora of tools and reports that eBay waved in front of them, tools that elsewhere could well have cost a fortune. And do you know what? You can do exactly the same! It’s just a question of learning how to use the eBay system.

One of the must-knows for anyone setting up or operating any trading business is this: know your market. What do your customers want? Where are they? What do they want to pay for your goods? These are questions that all business owners must know but, before that, before anything, you must know what you are going to sell. What is your stock-in-trade? Where will you buy it from? What investment do you need and (and this is a really important one) - how are you going to get those products in front of these potential customers that your research tells you are champing at the bit to buy from you?

In a redbrick business there are several avenues to market - direct mail, yellow pages, mailshots, catalogues - all tried and tested and all ranging from quite expensive to ruinously so. Just try pricing a minute of prime TV airtime - but have the smelling salts ready! On eBay things are a little different - simply get an eBay shop.

For those who don’t know what an eBay shop is, in some ways it’s a return to the old virtual shopping mall idea of the late ‘nineties, with all the pros and none of the cons. The virtual malls were a good idea let down by clunky servers and snail-speed connections. By contrast, an eBay shop is quick, easy to maintain and, importantly, easy for your prospective customers to use. It’s also inexpensive and will put your goods in front of more prospective customers than you could ever realistically hope to contact by other means.

Where an eBay shop can really come into its own is when you have your own website. Why? Simple. Your eBay shop can easily be embedded into a page on your site - where of course you can offer other goods or services and have targeted ads such as Google AdSense on the page, giving you more opportunities to earn income. An eBay shop can be as simple or as complex as you like and can grow as your business and experience does. Many people start off by selling products that they are interested in - a niche interest! But there are many, many niches within the eBay marketplace and ways of discovering them do exist - unfortunately these are beyond the scope of this article.

eBay shops are ideal for those niche businesses I mentioned above. If you want to sell pottery figures from Wade - great! Bakelite inkwells - no problem! I’m not saying you’ll ever make your fortune doing this but the important thing is that you will ‘cut your teeth’ in a real business environment - and there are enough niches for all. Maybe you’ll spread to a broader product base and make your million after all - maybe you’ll just have a very nice niche business that you understand and are good at. It’s all up to you!