 |
 |
|
|
 |
12 Tips To Make Your eBay Business More Profitable
Sometimes it's the simple things that can make your eBay business more profitable and run smoother. Here are twelve things you can do that will lead to more sales and increased profits on eBay. 1. Use auction management tools or services Using an auction management tool or service allows you to automate most of your day-to-day auction business and frees up time for other activities. There are numerous ones available and the majority of them offer a free 30-day trial period. Find one that fits your needs and budget, learn how to use all of it's features, and then stick with it. Make certain the one you choose supports eBay's Item Specifics and Pre-Filled features. 2. Target all your items toward the same market There's nothing wrong with offering several different items on eBay, but try to sell things that target the same general market or 2-3 markets. You will find this makes it much easier for satisfied customers to buy from you again. The majority of my customers have returned to buy five or more items from me in the past year. You should strive for this also. 3. End all your auctions on the same day and during the same general time frame Whatever you are selling, test different days and times of the day to determine what works best for you. Once you determine what day and time works best for you, stick to that time. Your customers will come to know your auctions always end on a certain day at a certain time and know that they can go on the computer on Sunday night at 10 PM, for example, and be able to bid. 4. Fast shipping equates to repeat sales We live in an instant gratification world. Once an item is paid for, get it in the mail as quickly as possible. This will lead to higher customer feedback and repeat sales. If you aren't seeing comments about how fast a customer received their item in 60 to 70 percent of your feedback, it's taking you too long to get things in the mail and it's hurting your business. 5. Give your product a vacation once in a while It pays to stop listing an item, or type of item, every once in a while so that potential customers don't begin to take it for granted that it will always be available. You will find that if you don't list an item for two or three weeks, when you do it again, it will almost always result in increased bidding and higher bids. 6. Make use of eBay's "Second Chance" offers If you have multiples of the same item and more than one person has bid on it, make a "Second Chance" offer to the next one or two unsuccessful bidders. You will find the response rate to these offers is quite high. If you simply choose to re list, there's a good chance that many of the under-bidders will never see your item when it is re-listed. 7. Use a template to create a recognizable identity Every auction you run should have a similar layout, graphics, and style that your customers can quickly associate with you. When one of your customers clicks on an item link and first arrives at your auction, they should instantly be able to say, "This is one of Bill's auctions." They will instantly feel at home and be more ready to bid. 8. Make use of eBay's Keyword program Most people associate eBay's Keyword program with eBay stores, but it can be used very successfully in conjunction with your auctions too. The Keyword program is usually running some kind of free trial. Take advantage of it and see how it can increase both the number of bids and the ending price for your auctions. 9. Use Google's Adwords program to attract buyers Used correctly, Google's Adwords program is an excellent way to attract potential bidders who would otherwise never see your auctions. As long as you use search words or phrases that are tightly targeted to the item you are selling, this can be a cheap and effective promotional tool. 10. Sell only one item per auction There are exceptions, but bundling similar products into one auction almost always leads to fewer bids and decreased sales. While there may be times you do this to get rid of inventory that hasn't sold, it's normally not a good way to do business. 11. Sell internationally The simple truth is that if you don't allow international buyers to bid on your auctions you are throwing money out the door. This is a lucrative market with lots of money to spend. Since many sellers exclude these buyers, it only makes sense that you give them the opportunity to spend their money with you. 12. Accept PayPal If you're not accepting payment by PayPal, you may be loosing a lot of bidders and money. Buyers love the convenience of using this service and many won't bid on an item if the seller doesn't offer it as a payment option. If you're not doing it, you are throwing money away. Gary Hendrickson has been making his living selling on eBay for more than six years. He's the author of two eBay related ebooks, has a blog for eBay sellers, and is the owner of ColdItems.Com. ColdItems.Com The Auction Rebel Blog
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Where To Find Items To Sell On eBay 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 HomeWhen you first get started, it can be a little unnerving. A Picture Paints a Thousand Words and Creates Auction Euphoria on eBay 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. The Top Sellers On eBay & What We Can Learn From Them A fascinating eBay case study is the number one seller on eBay, a little outfit called Marie's CDs, but is better known under its old name "1 Cent CD." Jay and Marie, current ID "jayandmarie", are an institution on eBay and are a big part of what makes eBay such an amazingly popular phenomenon. The Effects of eBay on American Merchandising With one brilliantly simple idea, eBay was born just a few short years ago.From its humble beginnings in the Collectibles business, it went on to achieve the lofty heights it enjoys today. Instructions on How to Put Picture on Ebay Like many folks, you have heard of online auctions. Heck, even non-computer users have heard of Ebay. Taxing eBay Part Deux When my column on paying income tax on eBay profits ran it brought a wave of emails on whether you were required to report income earned from eBay sales to the IRS sparked a number of additional questions and comments from eBay sellers who were hoping that I could somehow validate that their eBay activities were mere hobbies instead of actual businesses and therefore not susceptible to IRS taxation.Several folks argued that just because their little eBay hobby generated a little cash, that didn't make it a full blown business. Auctions Make Money! An untapped online business resource--outside of your basic Yahoo and Ebay, among others--is setting up your own auction sales venue.Since most families have items in their home that have outlived their usefulness, they can get started at online auctions for mere pennies. Why 95% of All eBay Sellers Fail eBay is now the 8th most visited site on the internet and it has just one purpose - sales. With 40 million visitors per month most eBay sellers are missing a golden opportunity. Maria's New Lifestyle: Short Story About The Benefits Shopping On The Net Has Given I've got this strange friend; her name is Maria. Maria's always been a little weird but now things have gotten unworldly altogether. When You Need Extra Cash Ebay Fits the Bill We all have items in our closets and stuffed in drawers that we no longer have a use for. Some of us use our free time to manufacture craft items that we give to our friends and families for gifts, and still others of us buy candles and other items in bulk to sell to family and co workers for a little extra cash. How To Compete With Amazon.com If you are selling online,here is the down side of our business.. eBay - Getting More Bids Using An Auction Preview If you sell in small niches as I recommend and are organized enough that you know what you will be listing on eBay 1 to 2 weeks ahead of time, you should give serious thought to previewing your upcoming auctions for your customers. The result can be increased sales and higher final bids. eBay - The Basics I began selling on eBay in 1999 and have found it to be an enjoyable and profitable experience. I had owned a retail computer store for a few years and decided to close it. Selling on eBay? Heres a Success Tip for Your Online Auctions Are you planning to sell on eBay? Or have you tried in the past but not had much success with your online auctions? If so, here's a strategy that has worked very well for me.In my experience, the auction lots where I created a useful collection of related items got more bids and closed at higher prices than auction lots that were all one thing. 6 Reasons Why an eBay Business is the Easiest and Safest Home Business to Start Calling internet auctions an "Entrepreneur's Dream" isn't poetic license or part of the get-rich-quick rhetoric. Net auctions are the simplest, easiest way on this planet for the little guy to make money. How Professional Ebay Auction Templates Can Boost Your Ebay Sales Do you like to sell on eBay ? It's easy and fun, isn't it ? In fact, it's one of the easiest online business you can start almost overnight, without any major investments. That's the best thing about it. Is it Antique and is it Worth Anything? Is it an antique and is it worth anything? Would you know?At some point in our lives most of us are going to put in a position where we have to ask ourselves the question- Which of my treasured possesions should I keep because they might be worth something and which can I throw away?Would you know??We start our own homes full of enthusiasm and with all the lovely clutter that makes up our lives and that of the family, but as time goes on, the children leave home, we decide to move to a smaller house or maybe we decide to live abroad. At that stage we have to decide what to keep and what to part with. Mail Order: The Original Internet Still Going Strong While the world continues to go catatonic over the Internet and its endless possibilities, there's another industry quietly going about its business, piling up profitable year after profitable year after profitable year. What industry is that? It's the mail order industry--or as I prefer to call it, "the original Internet!"Yes, long before the birth and explosion of the Internet, mail order shopping was a hugely popular and preferred method of doing business--and still is. Rent A Coder & Other Service Auctions You may be in the market for a new website. Perhaps you may be looking for a new logo or a database constructed for yourself or a small business. So What Are YOU Going To Do About eBays Fee Increases? 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.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |