Friday, April 20, 2007

Ebay Auction Sellers Guide To Finding Hot Money Making Products

    

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You might be one of the thousands of individuals who open a trading account with eBay and dream about making auction selling a full-time home-based business.
However, before that dream can become a reality, you need to do many important things while running an auction business.
One of these important things to do is to pick the right products to sell. The right products to sell are the ones that people on eBay want or will buy.
eBay tells you what people actually want and what people actually will buy in four areas of its website.
"In Demand"
One of these four areas on eBay's site is the "In Demand" section. There is an "In Demand" link for each of the main categories on eBay. Listed in these areas are the previous month's top ten products that people wanted and the top ten searches for each subcategory. To see the data in these areas follow the link below and when you reach the page, scroll down and click on the link "In Demand" under any of the categories shown.
http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral/sellbycategory.html
"Hot Categories Report"
The next area containing information on finding what to sell on eBay is the "Hot Categories Report." This report lists the "fastest growing" categories on eBay for the previous month. The explanation for what eBay considers "hot" can be hard to understand on your first reading. Nevertheless, the important thing to know is that the categories listed are the ones were buyer demand for the items under those categories are growing faster than the seller supply. This report is a PDF file so you will need Adobe® Reader® to open it. Here is the link:
http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral/hotitems.pdf
"eBay Pulse"
"eBay Pulse" is another area where you can figure out what people are looking for on "The World's Online Marketplace®." It contains a category's daily snapshot of the ten most popular searches and the stores with the most active listings. A subsection on "eBay Pulse," known as "Most Watched Items," reveals the ten auctions that are getting the most attention. Visit this page and select a category to study from the drop-down menu.
http://pulse.ebay.com
"Merchandising Calendar"
The last area with information on what to sell on eBay is the "Merchandising Calendar." Here, eBay shows you the categories they will promote on their homepage each month. This is where eBay "tells" you what to sell. You can ignore their calendar and sell anything you choose, but wouldn't it be easier to make sales if you took advantage of eBay's promotional influence? Look at this page and use the calendar as a guide in planning your inventory and listings.
http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral/calendar.html
Last Thoughts
Now that you have the links to data that tells you what people will buy on eBay, you can look forward to listing these items and making sales. The next step is finding the wholesale or drop-ship sources that carry those items that are "In Demand." That is when you will be one-step closer to achieving your goal of making a living from eBay.
(c) Leroy Chan - All Rights reserved
Discover the "Insider Tricks" to making money on eBay. Visit Leroy Chan's site, eBay Auction Seller Money Making Reports to receive a free 12-part auction selling course.

    
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Thursday, April 19, 2007

Ebay Auction Bidding Strategies--overcoming The Most Frustrating Situation On Ebay

    

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The Problem...
It's happened to the best of us.
You've been watching the auction all week, and finally you're about to claim your prize--a rare bronze statue from the Qing Dynasty. Or something just as tantalizing.
You log on a few minutes before the auction closes, and confirm that you're still the top bidder -- no one has challenged you in several days. You're already picturing "your" statue prominently displayed on the living room mantelpiece, your friends green with envy as you tell them about the great deal you got on eBay. You refresh the page a few times, to make sure you're still number 1. You even up your bid a little just to make sure no body tries to outbid you at the last minute.
50 seconds to go...30...10...the auction has ended and the statue is yours!! You refresh the page for the last time so you can see your eBay ID announced as the winning bidder. And that's when your heart drops to your toes. It's not your eBay ID at all, but some joker who calls themselves "SpeedyFingers123".
How could this have happened?
You were the winning bidder with only 10 seconds to go!! Speedy or not, it just doesn't seem humanly possible.
Well, you're right. No one is that fast. SpeedyFingers123 (I made that one up, so if it's your actual eBay ID, please don't sue me!) won the auction in the final 4 seconds. It isn't humanly possible because "speedy" didn't actually place the bid. The bid was place on his or her behalf, from a remote server, using something called Bidding Software.
You've Been Sniped!
The act of placing a bid during the final seconds of an online auction is called "Sniping" and it's perfectly legal on eBay. Bidding wars and sniping are an eBay sellers dream and a buyer's nightmare. Why, you're asking yourself, don't these people just use eBay's trusty proxy bidding process? Why not just discreetly enter the maximum they're willing to pay at the beginning of the auction, then let the cards fall where they may? Well, for a couple of reasons. First, it's not human nature. If all you have to do is outbid the next guy by fifty cents or even five dollars to win, wouldn't you?
Second, it doesn't make economic or strategic sense to place a bid anytime before the last five minutes of an auction.
Think about it. eBay encourages bidders to use the proxy system and place bids early. What this means is that an inexperienced bidder who wants an item will want to be the highest bidder right away, and will keep upping their bid to hold that winning position. They'll only stop when the bidding exceeds their budget. Then the next guy comes along and continues the process. If this starts at the beginning of a seven or ten day auction, and ends with a bidding war in the last 10 minutes, the final price for the item can spiral out of control. Many items sell for far more than fair market value because people get caught up in "bidding fever" -- all they want is to WIN, they're not even thinking about whether the price is realistic.
What to Do?
A better strategy would be for everyone to "watch" the auction until the very end. Again, there's two good reasons. One, the price doesn't spiral up as just illustrated. Two, the auction has zero bids, so it attracts fewer bidders-- less competition. It's a fact that once an auction has at least 1 bid, it becomes a magnet for additional bidders. Shoppers scanning an auction page tend to jump to the ones with bids, figuring there must be something that attracted other bidders. The more bids, the more interesting the item looks.
Wouldn't it be great if a seller started a two carat diamond ring at $0.99 and no one bid until the last five minutes, and they all bid in fifty cent increments? Someone might win the ring for just a few bucks!! Of course, that never happens, but it would be the ideal situation for a buyer-- and it would put eBay out of business in a hurry. eBay encourages early bidding and smiles upon the snipers of the world. eBay makes their profits on listing fees and "final value" fees. The more the item sells for the higher the "final value". This makes eBay very happy. That's why you'll never find any tutorials anywhere on eBay telling you to wait until the end of an auction to bid.
The Solution...
OK, so now that we understand the benefits of sniping, lets get back to our friend "SpeedyFingers123". Speedy probably started out in life just like I did. She learned everything she knew about eBay from eBay and never realized there was such a thing as bidding software. Never knew a computer could do your sniping automatically, bid on your behalf in the last 2 to 8 seconds of an auction, and do it while you're asleep. With sniping software, you tell the software program which auctions you're interested in and how much you're willing to pay. eBay never knows you've seen the auction until your friendly sniping service swoops in and places your bid with only seconds to spare. Neither does your competition. They never see you coming. The only way you can lose is if someone else uses the same program sets their maximum bid higher than yours.
(Yes, my friend, you can still lose. There's no guarantee of winning an auction no matter what system you use, if someone else is willing to pay more. If you set your maximum bid at a million dollars for a hunk of Elvis' belly button lint and some nut is willing to pay a million ten, you're still going to lose!)
"Bidding Fever" Cured
Let's face it, there IS a positive side to losing an auction. It's the satisfaction of knowing that you didn't lose your head and spend more than you could afford!! Trust me, I've been there, done that, and come to regret it. With sniping programs, you can "set it and forget it" and walk away knowing that if you don't win, you couldn't have afforded it anyway.
What's that I hear you saying? "But I could have had it if I'd just upped my bid by another fifty cents!" Hey, did you listen to anything I just said? Do you want to drive yourself nuts? It's only stuff, after all. You can't take it with you, and there will always be more. The beauty of eBay is that there will probably be another just like it, or at least something just as fabulous.
You're in Control
There's another big advantage to using bidding software. Two things, actually. First, sniping programs allow you to do something called "contingency bidding". Suppose you're interested in several very similar items and you want to win at least one of them but not all. Provided they're not all ending at the same time, you can create a contingency plan telling the bidding software to cancel your bids on the other items as soon as you win one of them.
Second, you can change your mind about an item you're bidding on at any time (except in approximately the last 15 minutes). On eBay, it's a huge "no-no" to retract a bid. You can only do this under the most dire of circumstances. Do it too many times you'll be politely asked to leave. Permanently. But, because eBay doesn't register your bid until the Sniping program enters it for you, (at the very end of the auction) you can cancel your "snipe" with no penalty. You're canceling what you've programmed into the sniping software, not an actual bid on eBay.Isn't that nice? No more "watching" an auction you're unsure about, and then forgetting to bid on it. No more babysitting your computer so you can be there for the final moments of the auction. No more finding out you've read the description wrong and you're bidding on an item you don't want. Or finding something you like better after you've already committed yourself to another item, and having to pass on it. (Or worse, spending way too much on both!) And, finally, you have the satisfaction of knowing that winning doesn't depend on the speed of your fingers or your internet connection.
Believe me, the first time you snatch an item away from SpeedyFingers123-- or anyone else for that matter-- you'll be hooked.
© 2004 NetBrainer LLC. An eBay Power Seller and rabid eBay shopper, Carolyn Schweitzer is the owner and editor of "NetBrainer", a site dedicated to improving the performance of buyers and sellers on eBay. (You can learn more about sniping programs at NetBrainer.com ). Carolyn also provides weekly recorded tips on eBay for "Third Mind USA Small-Biz radio".



    
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Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Ebay And Dropshipping - A Perfect Fit!

    

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eBay and Dropshipping go together like a hand in a glove. As you read this article, right now, thousands of eBayers are running there own auction business. Some of them make little money, and some of them make real huge profits. Why? It is mostly due to the products they choose to sell, the Dropshippers they use and how they promote their eBay Business.
If you are new to Internet Marketing, promotion of your new eBay Business is key. Also, staying up to date with all the new and better ways to advertise and promote your business is cruical. Things on the Internet can change almost over night and to keep your eBay Business making money you must keep up with those changes. But don't be discouraged, the ease of using Dropshipperswill allow you more time to concentrate on improving your sales skills and learning how to bring more customers to your eBay auctions.
The great thing about Dropshipping as outlined in my book "eBay Marketing Wholesale SourcePak" is that it will allow you to operate a Home Based Business as an Internet Marketer with out ever worrying about storage of inventory, packaging of inventory, or even shipping of that inventory. How? The Dropship supplier will look after all of that for you. And even greaterstill is the fact that your auction business will cost you very little to get started. The fact is, most Dropshippers charge you nothing to become a member to sell their products. While others may charge just a nominal administration fee. So, with such a low financial risk the only thing you have to lose is a bit of your time.
How does one put together eBay and Dropshipping? It's really very simple. First, browse eBay to see what kind of product(s) you would like to sell. Then sign up as a member with eBay. Once you have decided on a product(s), locate a Dropshipper for that product(s). Sign up with that Dropshipper and then place an auction on eBay for the item. Once your auction is over and you have a buyer for the product email your Dropshipper the required information. The Dropshipper will ship the product directly to your customer, and charge your account the wholesale price for that product. The difference between the wholesaleprice and your retail price is pure profit!.
To run a successful eBay Business you will need to sell what the public wants to buy. Always research any product before you decide to sell it. Make sure it is popular and you can get it at a great price.
Happy Selling!
Joe Clare
Joe Clare is an active Netpreneur and eBayer! He is the author of numerous articles on how to succeed on eBay! Check out his latest Best Selling eBook "eBay Marketing Wholesale SourcePak" Your Passport to Success! at http://www.ebooksnsoftware.com


    
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Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Ebay And Dropshipping, A Marriage Made In Heaven?

    

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Ebay is the 'BEST' opportunity you can use right now to make money online in the dropshipping business from the comfort of your own home.
Thousands of people just like you use eBay auctions on a daily basis to sell and buy products on the Internet; now it's your time to START your own dropshipping home-based business and succeed in the eBay auctions 'game'!
There are no special skills required for this dropshipping business, all you need is a computer, Internet access and some basic computer / Internet knowledge.
Dropshipping is when you sell products on the Web, forward the orders to the dropship supplier and, in return, the dropshipper ships the product to your customer (buyer).
You act as the middleman between the dropshipping supplier and your buyer. You can take orders by credit card, PayPal fax or any other method you can think of. You can sell via your own Web Site, Yahoo store, or even through e-mails.
Your profit is generated on the difference between your selling price and the price the dropshipping supplier charges you.
Thanks to dropshipping you can start making money 'instantly' without any investment in inventory, warehousing, shipping, equipment, employees or office space.
Having products drop shipped by suppliers, allows you to concentrate on truly important aspects like advertising, sales and promotion.
Pay attention! There are lots of companies claiming to be 'Drop Shippers'. However, a legitimate drop shipper is a factory-authorized wholesale distributor, or sometimes the actual manufacturer of the product. A legitimate drop shipper should not charge you an 'account setup fee' or ask you to place a 'minimum quantity order'.
Make sure you find legitimate drop shippers who have the product(s) you want to sell, talk with them on the phone or by e-mail and let them know that you are truly serious about doing business with them.
Customer support counts in the dropshipping business, so don't hesitate to contact dropshipping suppliers before you proceed to work with them.
This will help you decide if you really want to do business with a particular drop shipper or not.
To succeed in the dropshipping business you'll have to LOOK for hard-to-find products that people desperately need and want to purchase.
The key is to sell products with little or no competition.
Do some research for product's you want to sell that you think will have little or no competition on eBay.
I suggest you RESEARCH for quality products & legitimate dropship suppliers, MONITOR the eBay auction listings to see if there's any competition and TEST the market (e.g. find out if people really want to spend CASH on the product you want to sell)
Remember! Dropshipping makes it EASY for you to start and run your own home-based businesses on a shoestring budget; and eBay is the 'perfect' MEDIUM to expose your product to potential buyers all over the globe!
About the Author: Ron Keegan runs Megastar Distributors a red-hot Web Site jam-packed with lots of FREE Resources, Tips & Reports on DropShipping & eBay. Pick-up your *FREE* ebook at http://www.Megdis.com to learn more about making-money dropshipping!

    
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Monday, April 16, 2007

Ebay After Sales - As Important As The Listing Itself

    

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Your eBay listing has finished and you have made a sale, now the next important stage starts - the after sales. Again we are aiming to develop the professional image or ourselves in the customers eyes to encourage them to come back to us again and again because it is easier to sell to a current customer than it is to a new customer.
eBay after sales is almost 100% email based, apart from very rare occasions, and you need to set up a process whereby you can accurately monitor the stage of after sales that each customer is at. This is very easy in the early stage with not many auctions but when you start to develop as an eBay seller it needs to become very organised.
eBay start this process off for you, they email you (and the seller) to confirm the sale and provide you with the contact details so you can start your after sales process. Always send a reminder email as sometimes, due to the number of fraudulent eBay emails that are around, the buyer never actually opens the original email.
Again eBay provides this functionality by means of allowing you to send an invoice using the eBay system, always include a copy to yourself (a simple tick box) if you plan to use this method so that you have a record of the email and can use it for your records. I would recommend however that you actually send an email using your own email provider as it forms the basis for developing a customer relationship.
The email you send should include the following:
A short thank you for using your auctions and a congratulations on them winning.
Then the item specifics:
Item Purchased, Final Price, Shipping Price, Total Price Due (final plus shipping), Payment Methods Accepted (also indicated in the listing), Payment Time Frame, Mailing Address for Payment and a link to your feedback page so that you can encourage the buyer to leave feedback.
It is also advisable to provide another email address so that they can contact you if they experience any difficulties using the original and of course always include a link to your own web site (if you have one, if not get one!). It works along the same lines as the eBay about me page method.
I have a draft copy of the contact email saved so I do not need to keep retyping it out, all I do is change the customer specific information and send it.
The customer then sends you your payment and the final stage of the after sales process begins.... Post and Packing.
Visit ebay information central to use the FREE resources to develop your online business.


    
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