eBay Explained : How To Buy And Sell On eBay: September 2005 Archives

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September 29, 2005

An Introduction to Bidding and Buying on eBay.

Have you noticed that whenever you open a newspaper, watch the TV or have a conversation, people seem to be talking about eBay? If you’ve never used it and you’ve no idea what it’s all about, then the chances are that you’re starting to feel a little left out. But don’t worry! This email contains everything you need to know about the basics of bidding and buying on eBay.

So What is eBay?

eBay is an online auction website – and not just any auction site, but the biggest one in the world. If you know how an auction works, then you already know how roughly eBay works. Someone adds something they want to sell to the site, and then buyers come along and place bids on it. The highest bid wins the item! It’s that simple.

eBay being an online auction makes a big difference, though. Buying and selling are not reserved for any elite. eBay accept almost any item, no matter how small, and will then advertise it on their sites all over the world. It’s a powerful combination of an auction and a slightly chaotic marketplace.

What is Bidding?

Bidding is when you say how much you will pay for an item in an auction. Bidding on eBay, however, doesn’t work in exactly the same way as a normal auction, at least in theory. On eBay, you tell the site what the maximum you are willing to pay for each item is, and then eBay places the bids on your behalf. That means you could say you were willing to pay up to $100 for something and only have to pay $50, if that was the highest maximum bid anyone else placed.

It’s not as complicated as it sounds – the best way to get used to it is to give it a try. First, the best thing to do is to go to the eBay website designed for your country. If you don’t know the address for it, just go to www.ebay.com and it will tell you there. Now, on the front page you should see a big box marked ‘search’: just type in anything that you’d like to buy there.

Wasn’t that easy? Now you should have a list of items for sale in front of you, along with how much people are currently bidding for them and the time when bidding ends for each item. If you click one of these, you can read the description, and then – if you’re happy with the item and happy to pay more than the current highest bidder is – you can bid!

How Do I Bid?

Go ahead and scroll down to the bottom of an item’s description page, and type the maximum you are willing to pay (your maximum bid) into the box. Then simply press the ‘place bid’ button – you will need to sign in once you press the button, or go through a quick registration process if you don’t have an eBay username).

If someone else’s maximum bid on that item is higher than yours, then eBay will tell you and give you the opportunity to bid again. Otherwise, you’re now the new highest bidder! All you need to do now is wait until the end of the auction – if someone else outbids you, then eBay will email you and you can bid again.

All sounds great, doesn’t it? But by now you might be wondering whether a site as chaotic as eBay can really be all that safe to buy from. That’s why the next email in this series will be about your rights when you buy from eBay.

Posted by auction at 11:12 PM | Comments (0)

September 25, 2005

Posting Your First eBay Auction

5 Simple Steps to Posting Your First eBay Auction.

It’s surprisingly simple to get started posting your very first auction on eBay. Here’s what you need to do.

Step 1: Open an eBay seller’s account.

If you’ve bought things on eBay, then you already have an account – just log in with it and click ‘Sell’ in the toolbar at the top of the page, then click ‘Create a seller’s account’. If you’ve never used eBay before, then you’ll need to open an account first using the ‘register’ link underneath the toolbar, and then click ‘Sell’ and ‘Create a seller’s account’. The eBay site will then guide you through the process. For security, this may involve giving card details and bank information.

Step 2: Decide what to sell.

For your first little experiment with eBay, it doesn’t really matter what you sell. Take a look around the room you’re in – I’m sure there’s something in there that you’re not all that attached to and could put in the post. Small books and CDs are ideal first items.

Step 3: Submit your item.

Click ‘Sell’, and you’re on your way to listing your item.

The first thing you need to do is choose a category – it’s best to just type in what the item is and let eBay choose for you. Next, write a title and description. Include key words you think people will search for in the title box, and all the information you have about the item in the description box.

Now set a starting price. $0.01 is the best starting price, as it draws people in to bid who otherwise wouldn’t, and items will almost never finish at such a low price. The next thing to set is the duration of the auction: 3, 5, 7 or 10 days. This is up to you: longer sales will usually get more bids, but will also seem to drag on forever. If you’ve taken a picture, add it now – items with pictures always sell for more. Finally, tick the payment methods you will accept (just PayPal is best for now), and where you will post to (limit yourself to your own country to begin with). Submit and you’re done!

Step 4: Wait for it to sell.

This is just a matter of sitting back and letting eBay do its thing – buyers will find your item and leave bids on it. Some bidders might email you with questions about the item, and you should do your best to answer these questions as quickly as you can.

Remember that if your item doesn’t sell then you can list it again for free.

Step 5: Collect payment and post it.

eBay will sent your buyer emails guiding them through the process of sending you payment for the item. Make sure you have the money before you send anything.

Once you’ve got the payment, all you need to do is pack the item for posting (make sure to use some bubble wrap), take the buyer’s address from the confirmation email eBay sent you, and write it on the parcel. Put some stamps on, post it, and you’re done!

I hope you enjoyed selling your first item. Now that you’re starting to get into it, the next email will give you a checklist of things you need to do to be a successful seller.

Learn the secrets of earning BIG money on eBay, become an eBay Mastermind

Posted by auction at 10:34 PM | Comments (0)

September 22, 2005

10 Ways to Avoid Being Ripped Off on eBay

It is important to remember that eBay is a lot like a marketplace. There will always be a dodgy guy in the corner, selling things that most people wouldn’t touch. The trouble is that, on the Internet, these people can be a little harder to spot. Here are ten tips to help you keep an eye out for the rip-off merchants.

1. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is: This holds for everything in life, but especially for eBay. Things that seem too cheap are usually too cheap for a reason – it might be a complete scam, or the items might just be of extremely poor quality. Investigate before you go further.

2. Know the value of what you want to buy: There are people on eBay who regularly bid such high prices for used cameras that they might as well have gone out and bought them brand new. Check around for prices first.

3. Only bid on real things: eBay has plenty of people who are trying to sell all sorts of schemes and scams. It is never worth bidding for these, no matter how cheap they might be.

4. Don’t do anything outside eBay: Occasionally people will ask you to send them money outside eBay, to avoid the fees eBay charges sellers. Any money you send this way is entirely insecure – don’t do it.

5. Be careful where you send payment: People may hack into others’ accounts, and ask you to send payment to addresses that eBay has not confirmed as belonging to that account – you might send your money and receive nothing in return.

6. Look out for sellers who suddenly change what they sell: Sellers can look like they’ve made lots of transactions, when really they’ve never sold anything of worth. If they suddenly start selling $1,000 televisions, steer clear – the chances are they’re planning to run off with the money.

7. Beware the shill bidder: If someone who doesn’t seem to have bought anything before is constantly outbidding you on a certain item, be suspicious. It might be a seller ‘shill bidding’ to force up his item’s price.

8. Don’t use the seller’s escrow service: If an escrow service is recommended to you by a seller, it could well be owned and run by them – and they’re quite likely to keep your money and send you nothing.

9. Pay electronically: You are more likely to be able to recover any losses if you pay using a credit card instead of sending out cheques and money orders – these low-tech payment methods can’t be tracked as easily.

10. Buy from reputable sellers: Each seller has a number next to their name, which is their feedback rating. The higher this rating, the more you can trust them.

On that last point, feedback ratings are the most important way that buyers and sellers can protect themselves on eBay – and you, as a buyer, have a rating too! Now that you won’t get ripped off, the next email will be all about your rating, and what you can do to make sure people know that you’re not going to rip them off either.

Bill Enross
OneWebCo.com

Posted by auction at 08:52 AM | Comments (0)

September 19, 2005

Want It Now

As eBay sellers, we are always looking for new and unique ways to use eBay to create a positive cash flow. Recently, eBay announced a new service that may be able to help us on this quest––it is called "Want It Now."

What is "Want It Now"?

"Want It Now" is reminiscent of the newspaper classified ad "wanted" section. Potential buyers post items they are seeking so that you, the potential seller, can let them know that you have what they want. The potential buyer that posts the wanted item or items is truly a "potential" buyer with no contract or agreement.

Even so, eBay buyers who post a "Want It Now" ad are showing their willingness to buy a specific item if it meets their requirements. Buyers must maintain a Feedback rating of at least five, or have a credit card on file. What does this mean to you? If you have an item that they want, you are definitely dealing with someone that is more than just a casual "window" shopper.

When I checked "Want It Now" on January 20, there were 148,686 items listed in 32 different categories. It is logical to assume that the numbers will grow as more people learn about this service. The top 10 categories were as follows:

- eBay Motors
- Clothing, Shoes, & Accessories
- Everything Else
- Collectibles
- Home & Garden
- Books
- Toys & Hobbies
- Music
- Sporting Goods
- Sports Mem, Cards, & Fan Shop

The other 22 categories include the following:

- DVDs & Movies
- Computers & Networking
- Consumer Electronics
- Health & Beauty
- Pottery & Glass
- Crafts
- Jewelry & Watches
- Business & Industrial
- Dolls & Bears
- Musical Instruments
- Video Games
- Antiques
- Cameras & Photo
- Entertainment Memorabilia
- Art
- Tickets
- Cell Phones
- Coins
- Real Estate
- Stamps
- Travel
- Gift Certificates
==============

==============

Using "Want It Now"

Before we get into some specific ideas on how to use "Want It Now" to make money, let's take a quick look at this new section and see how it works.

First, go to http://pages.ebay.com/wantitnow/ . Upon arriving, you will see a page that looks like this:

Then you can choose a category that is of interest to you. For example, if you have an eBay store that sells cameras and photo equipment, then you might want to browse that category. Simply look in the blue Sellers box and click on Cameras and Photo; then click Browse Want It Now.

Doing so will bring you to a page that looks like this:

Now let's assume that you have the Arc Soft Camera Suite, Version 2.0. Simply click on the link:

From here, you would click on the "respond" button:

If your items is already listed on eBay, then you would type in your item number. If you have the item but have not yet have it listed on eBay, then you would do so now and then type in your item number. As soon as you enter the item number, an email is sent to the potential buyer that you have the item they are seeking. It is that simple!

Increasing Sales with "Want It Now" Listings

So, how can you use this new section of eBay to increase your profits? There are many ways! You simply have to use a little imagination and some entrepreneurial skills! Let me give you a few ideas to help get the ball rolling!

1. Connect with Potential Buyers: The first way to increase profits is the most obvious and the way that eBay originally envisioned its use. You have items to sell and eBay buyers have needs that are not being met by the eBay listings. If your items match those needs, then you have a sale! You can browse the Want It Now listings to find potential buyers for items that you have on hand. Want It Now serves as a tool to help buyers and sellers connect!

Check the "Want It Now" listing in your category on a daily basis
Post your items to any "Want It Now" potential buyer of your product
Increase sales by finding your potential buyers instead of them having to find you!

2. Find New Market Niches: You may also do some research on related products and find that there is a market for an item that you previously thought was not really sellable. For instance, if you currently sell musical instruments, you may want to consider selling sheet music as well. When I checked this category today, there were 127 "Want It Now" entries for Sheet Music and Songbooks. As a seller, you can browse through the requests to get new ideas for items that are in demand!

Look for high mark up items––because this research takes a bit longer, you want to be sure to get enough money to pay for the extra time.

Look for repeat sale items––once the buyer finds that you have what they need, you may be able to keep the customer for future sales.
Look for items that you already have access to but have not been listing––finding a new market is always useful!

3. Be the Go-Between: Do a bit of research to connect potential buyers and sellers together. For instance, there is someone currently on "Want It Now" that is requesting Riverdance tickets at NY Radio City Music Hall.

As you can see, one person has responded with tickets. However, the "Want It Now" buyer has not responded to this post. If you research on eBay, you will find that there are many other people with Riverdance tickets for sale. Try emailing them to let them know that you know of someone looking for Riverdance tickets. Then ask them for a commission if you point them to the person and it results in a direct sale. If they say yes, it should only take an email or two to work out the details. Then you just have to send the seller the link to the person wanting the tickets so they can post what they have for sale.

For example this person has river dance tickets:

The seller, Minionofnothing, has not posted that he has tickets available to the "Want It Now" post for Riverdance tickets at NY Radio City Music hall. Also, In this case, the person that posted it on "Want It Now" might not know about these tickets. You could email Minionofnothing and try to work out a deal.

Another thing would be do to a quick Google search for Riverdance tickets. Then write an email to the vendor of those tickets to see if you can get a finder's fee. Once again, work out the details, and send the vendor the link to post the tickets. For instance, a quick search of Google found http://www.tickco.com/Concerts/Radio_city_hall_tickets.htm has available Riverdance tickets.

For either of these "Be the Go Between" methods, you should be able to make a deal in about 15 minutes, thus creating four potential sales per hour.

4. Create an eBay Store with an Affiliate: I came up with this idea when I was looking at the travel section of "Want It Now." There are plenty of people looking for lodging, airline tickets, tours, etc. You can capture these leads by creating an eBay store dealing with travel. On your eBay store site, you can have an affiliate partner that takes care of the sales. For instance, EconomyTravel.com has an affiliate program that pays 2% of all sales for an average commission of $29.16. ABSTravel.com is another possible affiliate that pays $5.00 for every round trip airline ticket, 5% on every car rental, 5% on every international hotel, and 4% on every domestic hotel. By hooking up the "Want It Now" posts to your website, you have the potential to earn a commission!

For example, someone on "Want It Now" wants cheap European tickets:

Respond with something from your eBay travel store, and then you will be able to communicate with them via email and send them to your store. If they purchase any tickets through your affiliate, you have earned a commission!

These are just a few ways to make money using the "Want It Now' section of eBay. Start using this wonderful new tool to increase your sales and your profits today!

To Your eBay Success,
Janiece Smith

From $0 to $11, 212.00 a month in just 67 days!
Creator of the Auction Market Watch software package
Author of the best-selling How an Overworked, Traveling,
Soggy-Sandwich-Eating, Dental Hygienist Made $11,212.00 a Month––100% Online

ExpressProfitsOnline

Janiece Smith is the author of Internet’s top-selling eBook teaching everyday people how to make their own small fortune selling on eBay®.

Discover The Secrets Janiece Smith Used To Earn Up To $11,212 Per Month Selling On eBay. Her New eBook "How An Overworked, Traveling, Soggy Sandwich Eating Dental Hygienist Made up to $11,212.00 a Month––100% Online" allows you to easily and quickly apply the author’s secrets of finding and selling products on eBay® to create huge amounts of instant profits!

Posted by auction at 06:01 PM | Comments (0)

September 14, 2005

Find products Below Wholesale

Most people think a wholesaler is “the” place to get all of the good deals and the cheapest products. This is not always true. Many times, products are not even sold through a wholesaler.

Some manufacturers sell their overstock, closeout, and liquidation items through wholesalers. Some wholesalers sell their items through outlets; others sell them on their own. Some wholesalers have exclusive divisions that deal only with a handful of people who prove themselves as reliable sources who can move inventory fast.

You should always try to first get your products from the top source. Don’t waste your time dealing with others who have marked up the product many times before it ever gets to you. Many companies have a set way to move their unsold inventory, so, sometimes, going to the top might not work as smoothly as you want.

Don’t get discouraged if these companies already have clients they sell it to. You can still get the product; it will just be a littler further down the line.

Here are five ways to help you find products for which you are looking:

1. Ask the manufacturers who you should speak with to purchase unsold inventory. They will normally guide you in the right direction. Be aware that sometimes finding the right contact can take a little arm twisting.

2. Find out what manufacturers currently do with their unsold inventory. Who do they sell it to if they don’t sell it themselves? If they won’t disclose this information or act like they don’t want to deal with you, find a different approach.

3. Find out whether they sell to the general public and what is required of you and your company to be able to buy their products. Some companies will sell only to established businesses with a credit rating. If that’s the case, don’t worry. It’s not terribly difficult to obtain a rating. If, however, you’re not currently set up as a business, you should complete the legal process and get credit by securing a charge card from a store, such as Office Depot. You can also get a business card from a number of credit card companies. American Express is fairly easy to deal with.

4. Next, find out which products they sell to the public. Most companies have some products they will not release as unsold inventory. They would rather try to resale it on their own.

5. Make sure you have all of your ducks in a row. Most, if not all, of the manufacturers I deal with don’t want to play games. They want to move their products and they want to move them fast. If you expect that they will drop ship to your customers and allow you to buy as you sell, don’t even bother calling. Everybody wants that, so why would they need you? They could move it that way through 4,000 drop shippers online. Just make sure you know what you want, be confident when you make that call, and have a goal that you want to accomplish. If you call and sound like you don’t know what you are doing, they will quickly shut you out.

To Your eBay Success,
Janiece Smith

ExpressProfitsOnline

Janiece Smith is the author of Internet’s top-selling eBook teaching everyday people how to make their own small fortune selling on eBay®.

Posted by auction at 08:44 AM | Comments (0)

September 08, 2005

Are Your eBay Sales Down?

You may be getting lower prices than you deserve in your eBay auctions.

Maybe you know your numbers are down and are blaming it on the summer season? That makes a little sense, but may not be the real reason.

This is just a short note about the most commonly made mistake on eBay.

Actually, it's not a mistake. It's a choice.

Let me tell you the story from the beginning. . .

A few weeks ago, I got a telephone call from a friend who sells on eBay. He said his eBay images aren't working correctly. He wanted help, and I'm a helpful guy so I took a few minutes to listen to his problem.

He told me some of his auctions just show broken images, while others show one image but only show small versions of the others.

I asked him how he put the images into his auctions, and he replied a little bit hesitantly that he uses eBay photo hosting.

He said he knows I told him to host his own pictures, but the eBay system is not really that expensive and it's simple. He doesn't have to learn how to do anything - he just clicks buttons and eBay takes care of everything.

I told him to contact eBay and ask them for help because I have no control over their programs. If the eBay system isn't working correctly, I cannot fix it.

I don't think he was pleased with my answer, but I can't help those who aren't willing to help themselves.

Then last week I got two similar emails from people telling me they were having problems with their eBay images. Both were also using eBay photo hosting.

They got the same helpful reply from me. (In case you missed it, I am being sarcastic.)

Tonight, I spent a few minutes surfing the train and toy auctions on eBay. About 30% of the auctions I looked at had image problems. I got so frustrated, I decided to rent a movie instead. Blockbuster was closed so I decided to share this tale with you.

You see, I will not bid on an auction unless I can see exactly what I am bidding on. I am not buying socks, underwear, and batteries on eBay - I am buying items for my collection. The last piece I bought was a buy-it-now item I paid $650 for. Without pictures I would have left without bidding.

I am not going to spend my money unless I feel safe. Having a big clear picture gives me confidence that the seller actually has what he claims to have and allows me to see the condition.

I am not alone. In fact, unless you are selling socks, underwear, batteries, or other new items on eBay, I am sure your pictures are the second most important part of your auction.

If any of these people started hosting their own pictures, they would not only save m0ney, but they would surely get higher bids.

This is INSANITY.

A desire to take the easy route and not spend a few minutes learning how to use a few simple programs is resulting in lower prices.

Now, I don't want to call these three people lazy. In fact, I know the one who called me on the phone well enough to say he certainly is not lazy.

Maybe it's fear of complexity. It seems like a challenge, so they take the easy route.

I know eBay makes it seem harder than it is - in fact the whole system defaults to eBay photohosting, but they want to sell photohosting.

Actually, hosting your own images is not a challenge. It's a simple procedure anyone can learn in less than 30 minutes. In fact there are even free programs you can use to host your own images, and most Internet service providers give you space as a part of your service.

These three individuals have made a choice. Instead of spending 30 minutes learning how to host their own images, they are willing to put up with bad pictures.

They know they can host their own images easier than using eBay's system, and don't mind getting lower bids.

Then again, maybe they are just lazy. I know two of the them have my Auction Revolution package. The Auction Revolution contains complete step-by-step instructions for using free programs to edit and then transfer images to the web. It shouldn't seem difficult or confusing to them. They have a blueprint.

Now lets talk about you. . .

If you already have the Auction Revolution and are already hosting your own images, you can sleep well tonight knowing the eBay image server outages are not costing you money. In fact maybe you are getting higher bids because people are buying from you instead of the sellers without images?

Go ahead, pat yourself on the back for taking charge of your success and spending a small amount of time to retain control of your results.

If you don't have a copy of the Auction Revolution, this is just one of the 253 reasons you should get a copy.

Consider this a wake up call.

Terry Gibbs is a collector/dealer of old toys and trains, and teaches others how to buy and sell antiques and collectibles. Gibbs is the author of two best selling eBay books "The Auction Revolution," and "The Complete Guide To eBay Consignment Sales." He has also written numerous other books about buying and selling antiques and collectibles. Learn more at his website: IWantCollectibles

Posted by auction at 12:53 PM | Comments (0)

September 01, 2005

Why Most eBay Sellers Fail

There is a basic pattern most eBay sellers go through. New sellers usually start by selling unwanted items from around their homes. This is a great way to convert unwanted items into cash while learning some eBay skills.

By the time the house is cleaned out, the new seller has some basic eBay skills, and knows eBay is an easy fun way to run a profitable home based business.

The next step is products. Specifically finding items to resell at a prof1t. At this point there are two ways to go. Find new items through a drop shipping service or liquidation center, or focus on used items.

Sadly, the majority of people who choose either path soon fail.

The drop shippers tend to fail because they focus on hypercompetitive hot items and get washed away by the competition. Another reason many new eBay sellers fail to successfully run sales for new items is a lack of passion.

Lack of passion is also a factor with people who sell used items - antiques, collectibles and even used but newer things like my sister's used children's clothing sales, but the big reason for failure is insufficient supply.

Passion is the reason why collectors tend to do better on eBay. I love having the trains around me. I am like a toy train missionary teaching others how much fun toy trains can be and helping them find enjoyment.

I just said one of the main reasons people fail to successfully navigate the transition from selling unwanted items to building a successful eBay business is lack of products. I am going to focus on used stuff here because that is my specialty and probably why you are reading this anyway.

After selling all the unwanted household items, the next step is garage sales and thrift stores. Some people who live in really good garage sale areas never get past this step.

They are happy with the catch-as-catch-can nature of their businesses and really enjoy the randomness of the hunt. The good finds keep them hunting during the dry spells. Shutting down for a few months during the poor weather is a break taken in stride.

Others are quickly disillusioned by the garage sale circuit. Maybe they are late sleepers and miss the profitable deals? Maybe they live in a poor area for yard sales? Maybe they never found the truly fantastic deal of their dreams and grew tired of the hunt?

For whatever reason this group of disappointed want-to-be-free eBay sellers soon joins the list of "I tried it and it didn't work."

Unfortunately both of these groups miss out on the true freedom a home based eBay business provides.

Now lets think about the people who make it through the garage sale circuit.

Consider me. I started going to garage sales in the 1970s looking for trains and toys for my collection. I was too young to drive so I had to rely on my dad, and he had other priorities.

Even worse neither of us are morning people. My frustrations with constantly hearing "We sold the train a few hours ago," caused me to look for other ways to find toy trains.

At twelve years old I made the step others usually fail to make, and I started learning how to make people offer me their trains.

This is the step everyone who wants to be a really successful seller of used items must make. I am not saying you need to stop going to garage sales, but you need to learn additional ways to find items.

You need to move past luck and chance. You need to take control.

Here's how you do it. . .

Keep going to garage sales. They are fun, and great place to practice your negotiating skills. Plus you never know what you'll find.

Start specializing if you aren't already. I don't mean you should walk past a gold bar with a five dollar tag on it, but rather concentrate on a specific type of item. It can be an antique or collectible or something newer. One of my students buys and sells used car stereos. My sister sells kid's clothes. The item doesn't matter. It's the specialized knowledge that gives you the edge.

Specializing also opens doors for you. When I go to a yard sale I always ask for trains and toys. Lots of people who never thought to put out these items will sell them if asked. Think about it. Asking, "What do you have I can sell on eBay and make a quick hundred on?" isn't going to work.
Get some books on salesmanship and hone your negotiating skills.
Start broadening your methods of finding items to sell. You don't want to start out by buying a full page ad in the newspaper, but there are hundreds of other inexpensive ways to find items for resale.
Learn how to network. This is all about relationships. Get to know the owners of the local pawn shops, thrift stores, antiques stores or whatever is relevant to your specialty.
I have a special offer so you can get start moving past garage sales and adding new methods of finding used items you can sell on eBay.

And it will cost you less than a tank of gas.

I've been teaching people a systematic approach to finding antiques and collectibles for years.

In order to help you move past garage sales, I have compiled twelve of the most powerful yet cheap to implement collectible buying strategies from my larger more comprehensive package onto a special report just for you.

Posted by auction at 12:49 PM | Comments (0)

eBay Explained : How To Buy And Sell On eBay