eBay PowerSeller Secrets: Insider Tips From Ebay's Most Successful Sellers (2Nd Edition) (V. 2) (BUSINESS BOOKS) - Softcover

Schepp, Debra

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0071498168 ISBN 13: 9780071498166

Verlag: McGraw-Hill, 2007

Inhaltsangabe

Join the ranks of top eBay sellerswith even more insider tips!

Are you ready to take your eBay selling to the next level? This beyond-the-basics guide reveals the trade secrets that have propelled the savviest entrepreneurs into eBay PowerSellers. Now it's your turn to start earning up to $150,000 per month through your eBay business!

The Second Edition of eBay PowerSeller Secrets is packed with up-to-date guidance in effectively running a eBay store, selling and shipping internationally, finding little-known sources for products, advertising your wares, managing inventory, collecting payments, keeping records, and much more.

[Sidebar] NEW! Covers eBay Express, eBay's Marketplace Research reports, ProStores, Skype, eMail Marketing, and even selling through Amazon and your own website. Plus, checklists to help you stay on track!

Learn from hundreds of PowerSellers just what it takes to succeed on eBay:

• Determine what sells best on eBay, when it sells, and why
• Develop listings that create high traffic and product demand
• Handle end-of-sale payments and protect yourself from fraud and loss
• Manage listings, inventories, and communications
• Track incidentals, deductions, expenses, and other tax-related items
• Automate to ease processes such as creating and posting listings, managing feedback, e-mail, and shipping
• Use Blogs and eBay Guides and Reviews to drive traffic to your listings
• Make big money through eBay's Affiliates program

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eBay PowerSeller Secrets

Insider Tips from eBay's Most Successful Sellers

By DEBRA SCHEPP, BRAD SCHEPP

The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-0-07-149816-6

Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction
CHAPTER 1 Know Your Business/Grow Your Business
CHAPTER 2 Source Products for Success
CHAPTER 3 From Mom and Pop to PowerShop
CHAPTER 4 Automate Your Auctions for Smooth Selling
CHAPTER 5 Get Your Auctions Going!
CHAPTER 6 Power-Charge Your eBay Business
CHAPTER 7 Close the Auction and Collect the Cash
CHAPTER 8 You Sold It, Now Ship It
CHAPTER 9 Your Customer Is Always Right (Even When He's Wrong)
CHAPTER 10 Keeping Records—or Let's Have a Look at Those Books, Buddy
CHAPTER 11 From eBay Seller to e-Merchant
Index

Excerpt

CHAPTER 1

Know Your Business/Grow Your Business

So, you have decided to run your own eBay business. You are in excellentcompany, as more than 1.3 million people worldwide are already earning theirlivings this way. With the proper planning, dedication, and hard work, there isno reason you should not be able to join them. Here's the good news: You don'thave to invent this whole thing for yourself. You can learn from others who havegone before. Reality check: You don't have an open field either. Among those 1.3million eBay entrepreneurs are people who are selling exactly what you want tosell. You'll need to figure out your own place in the eBay world and claim yourown piece of it. Don't let that discourage you. Not only do you have all of thepower of your own imagination, you also have a community of people who arewilling to help you learn your way around. You are not just signing on to a Website when you log on to eBay, you are joining a community of businesspeople.

In that respect, owning your eBay business is not really different from owning abrick-and-mortar store. You will have all of the same concerns that any businessowner must endure. You'll need to plan for inventory. You'll have to developcustomer service policies. Cash flow, as with all businesses, will be a concern.You'll need to plan for the inevitable fraud. You will also have all of the samerewards that owning your own store can bring. You decide what to sell and howyou want your business to operate. And, of course, your boss is someone you canbe sure to get along with. PowerSellers will tell you that in many ways, you canconsider your eBay business as a little shop in an enormous mall. That's justhow much running an eBay business resembles operating a regular store.

On the other hand, eBay makes your business unlike any other humans have everknown. For one thing, this is a business you can start for as little as $200,according to one Platinum PowerSeller. Plus, your business never closes. Whetheryou are actively working or not, people from all over the world are conceivablyshopping with you at any moment of the day or night. Your customers come fromall over the globe, and it is not very likely that you will ever meet a singleone of them. Nearly all of your interactions will occur through your computer,creating new challenges in communication and customer service. That's not to sayyou won't know and care about your customers, because you surely will. Afterall, people are still the driving force behind every business. And, although youcan't easily stop in at the shop next door and talk business with your neighbor,you can certainly become a part of a vibrant business community and findsupport, advice, and friendship just on the other side of your computer screen.

Know Yourself

Before you can begin to know your business, take some time to be sure you knowyourself. Running an eBay business is not right for everyone, and even if youwant to give it a try, you may find out that your personality is not reallysuited to the realities of life as an eBay PowerSeller. Operating your ownbusiness requires enormous energy and commitment. You have to be willing toembrace change, since that's a big part of eBay life. There are certainly easierways to earn a paycheck, and you must be sure you are being realistic about thechallenges that lie ahead.

Make Sure Your Personality Is Well-Suited to Sitting in Front of YourComputer

You will spend countless hours day after day listing your products, answeringe-mail, tracking your auctions, preparing your shipping, keeping your records,and communicating with other sellers on discussion boards. Know in advance thatyour work life will be spent intimately connected to a computer. If you requiremore physicality in your job, you should recognize that before you go too muchfurther. TraderNick told us how his brother teases him every time he steps intohis work area, asking him how he can possibly "stand" sitting there all daylong. Because eBay is a computer-based universe, you cannot conduct your eBaybusiness without putting in endless hours at the computer. Many of us don'tmind, but you might, and it's important to know if you're more like TraderNickor his brother from the very beginning.

Be a good time manager

Be honest with yourself. If left alone, will you devote the time you need toyour eBay business, or will you find yourself tempted to get out into the gardenon a nice day, play catch with the kids, or take the dog for a walk? Once youbecome your own boss, it's up to you to determine your work schedule. Only self-motivated people work successfully from home, and answering this question foryourself is vital to your future success.

On the other hand, do you have a tendency to work way too hard? Will you knowwhen it's time to stop and go spend time with your family and friends? Your eBaybusiness never closes, but you have to be able to shut the door on your timethere. TraderNick decided he had to have a brick-and-mortar storefront inaddition to his eBay business for just this reason. He said it became obvious tohim that he wasn't being a good dad or husband, because he was so focused on hiseBay business. Now he has a distinct time each day that work ends and familytime begins. That's not to say you have to go to the extreme of taking on astorefront in addition to your eBay business, but you do have to be able toclose up shop for the day and get back to the rest of your life.

Selling on eBay Is As Much a Way to Live As It Is a Way to Earn a Living

PowerSellers live a life that is different in many ways from the lives of otherworkers. They work very long hours, but they choose which hours they work. Theywork hard to find and list the products they sell, but they get to immersethemselves every day in items they know and care about. There is no such thingas a PowerSeller who is lukewarm about his or her business. There are manypeople who sell on eBay as a hobby or to bring in a little money, but if yourgoal is to become a PowerSeller, accept that you will live, breathe, eat, andsleep eBay every day.

PowerSellers often report that they have no vacation days. They can't interruptthe flow of their operations long enough to have a stretch of time away fromhome and work. Sure, they have the flexibility to take the morning off to seetheir kids participate in the assembly at the elementary school, but you can besure they'll work later that night to make up the time they missed. E-mail mustbe answered every day. Products must be packaged and shipped. Listings must beposted. Any day that is missing these activities is a day that cuts into theprofits of a PowerSeller's business. You can be sure PowerSellers don't miss toomany days!

On the other hand, this is a business that can still operate when you don't feelwell enough to go into an office among other people. You can work in yourpajamas if you choose. You can catch up on work during a patch of insomnia. Yourfreedom is as real as your responsibility and commitment are. That's part of thejoy of owning your own business, especially on eBay.

Know eBay

The business you are planning now will exist in a virtual world. This virtualworld is inhabited by millions of other people, including tens of thousands ofothers who are earning their living exclusively on eBay. You can't expect toenter this virtual world and thrive without knowing your way around. No doubt,you already know a good deal about the world of eBay, which is why you arehoping to become a PowerSeller. But, there is still a lot to learn as you crossthe line between eBay hobbyist and eBay PowerSeller.

Know What You're Aiming For

What exactly is a PowerSeller? An eBay-designated PowerSeller is a seller whogenerates at least $1,000 per month in revenue (some generate over $1 million!)and has at least a 98 percent positive feedback rating. To make it easy forbuyers and others to recognize PowerSellers, eBay allows them to include thePowerSeller symbol as part of their eBay IDs. They are eligible to have apersonal eBay contact, and they have the opportunity to attend special eBayevents. For more information about the entire PowerSeller program, go tohttp://pages.ebay.com/services/buyandsell/welcome.html.

Specifically, here are eBay's criteria for becoming a PowerSeller:

* Be an active seller on the eBay site for a minimum of 90 days.

* Maintain a minimum of four average monthly listings for the past three months.

* Maintain a minimum feedback number of 100 with a 98 percent positive rating(or higher).

* Keep your eBay account current—no outstanding balances.

* Comply with eBay listing policies.

* Uphold the eBay community values, including honesty, timeliness, and mutualrespect.

* Maintain a minimum of $1,000 for three consecutive months of average grossmonthly sales.

There are five tiers of PowerSellers, distinguished by the level of monthlysales they must achieve:

1. Bronze: $1,000

2. Silver: $3,000

3. Gold: $10,000

4. Platinum: $25,000

5. Titanium: $150,000

If you're going to earn your living selling on eBay, you want to become aPowerSeller—not only because it means you're making a fair amount ofmoney, but also because many buyers are more comfortable doing business withPowerSellers. Their status means they are successful, and they've achieved thatsuccess in large measure by delivering good products and great customer service.

Moreover, eBay rewards its PowerSellers with modest perks, with the specificperks tied to the PowerSeller level achieved (though most PowerSellers feeltheir perks come from their own business success):

Know all of eBay's rules and follow them

You have ultimate freedom in defining the nature of your eBay business, butfreedom is not possible without a backdrop of rules, and eBay has plenty ofthose. Violate the rules, and eBay will terminate your business. You'll beinvesting too much in this endeavor to carelessly lose your place in the marketthrough ignorance of these rules. Just as in the material world, ignorance ofthe law is no excuse.

Fortunately, eBay makes it easy to find their rules. Go tohttp://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/seller-rules-overview.html for acomplete listing. For starters, here are some basics.

If you list an item for sale and someone bids on it, you have to sell it. Youhave entered into a binding contract at that point—a contract that'sbinding for both parties. If you refuse to sell an item you've listed, the buyerhas a legitimate complaint, and when your failure is reported to eBay, you willbe warned and/or disciplined. eBay will consider you a "Non-Selling Seller" forthat transaction. Now you may wonder, why on earth would I refuse to sellsomething after I've listed it? But, it's not inconceivable that you might feelyou haven't received enough money for the item, or you might just regret havinglisted it once you've done it. This may be especially true in the beginning whenyou may be listing things from your own personal collection of items. Or, if yougrow too fast, you might inadvertently list and sell something you've alreadyrun out of! So be sure you really want to sell anything you list!

You may not artificially inflate the bidding on your item by "shilling" it. Inother words, you cannot bid on your own item under another screen name, or havea family member or friend do this to drive up the cost of your auction andgenerate interest in your sale. That's not to say no seller on eBay has everdone it, but it is against the rules, and you will be disciplined if you arecaught. In fact, eBay considers this a most serious offense, and many sellershave been removed permanently from the site for violations, as it flies in theface of bidder trust. Just to be safe, don't even let anyone in your family bidon your items because it can appear to be shill bidding!

Remember that you are in this now for the long haul. You are not just trying tosell a few things here and there. You are creating a business. Use good businesspractices from the beginning to set yourself on a solid footing, and know therules of the community you are working in.

eBay operates on a basic set of values. Most of these are similar to the ones welearned as children, including "Treat other people as you wish to be treatedyourself." It's familiar, wouldn't you agree? To set the tone for your eBaybusiness, check out eBay's community values athttp://pages.ebay.com/community/people/values.html.

Use the site map

You can always spot the tourists in any large city by the oversize tour-guidemaps sticking out from their back pockets. The virtual city of eBay also hassuch a convenient tool, and luckily for you, it is a lot less conspicuous.You've probably been getting by on eBay without much need to navigate too deeplyinto the site. You know how to find items to bid on and how to do basic listingsto sell items too. You may also be using your My eBay page to get quick accessto everything you're doing on eBay and verify that any eBay-related e-mails youreceive are legitimate.

However, now's the time to learn all about eBay, and the way to start is byusing the Site Map. When you click the Site Map link at the top of any eBayscreen, you will see the screen shown in Figure 1-1. The people at eBaycouldn't have made it easier for you to find your way around and turn the manylittle corners of eBay designed to help you learn more and become a moreeffective eBay user. "My first step when I'm wondering how to do something newon eBay is to start with the Site Map," reports Baronart, a dealer in fine art.Keep it simple and use this great tool eBay provides for you.

Keep Educating Yourself, Because eBay Changes Every Day

You will have to work to keep current with eBay, because it is an ever-evolvingentity. "In four years selling on eBay, I literally had to fundamentally changemy business model and/or operations every six to twelve months," saysPowerSeller David Yaskulka. Once you are familiar with all of the basic rules,stay up to date on the changes that come about routinely. Fortunately, eBaymakes that easy for you. Go to http://www2.ebay.com/aw/marketing.shtml,shown in Figure 1-2, for the latest announcements and news features.

Subscribe to AuctionBytes

If you're like most online veterans, you subscribe to lots of free newsletters,most of which you just delete because you don't have the time to read them.Well, AuctionBytes newsletters at www.auctionbytes.com/ really deliverthe goods! They claim to be the number-one source of news on the online auctionworld, and there's no reason to doubt them (and we're not saying that justbecause we write for them). AuctionBytes'NewsFlash newsletters, electronicallypublished three or four times a week, are worth every second you spend readingthem. They feature insightful news about eBay with no hype. They also includeproduct reviews, a letters section, and a whole lot more. Through theAuctionBytes home page, you can also access "Cool Tools." These includephotography tips, a classified section, and reviews of auction-related books.They don't limit their news coverage to just eBay but include information aboutother online auctions and auction sites, too. You'll learn as you read on thatwe're proponents of branching out beyond eBay when the time is right. Of course,right now all of your energy is devoted to learning about eBay, but it doesn'thurt to keep an eye on the rest of the online auction world when news isdelivered with your e-mail automatically.

A Sample Article from AuctionBytes Newsletter

Subscriptions to the newsletter are free, so you have nothing to lose.Figure 1-3 shows you an example of an AuctionBytes issue.

Tune in to eBay radio

Broadcast by wsRadio, the "worldwide leader in Internet talk," eBay Radio is afun, easy-on-the-eyes way to get up to speed on eBay topics and stay currentwith important developments within the community. A new show is broadcast everyTuesday from 11 A.M. to 12 noon Pacific Standard Time. It's easy to find atwww.wsradio.com/ebayradio/. This link leads you to wsRadio's eBay Radiopage, shown in Figure 1-4. If you can't be available during thebroadcast time, don't worry. You can easily access recently archived shows orsearch the entire archives for shows dedicated to subjects that will interestyou.

Once you find a show you're interested in, just click the link for it. The radioshow then begins playing thanks to streaming media technology. You can alsodownload a podcast (an audio file that's delivered to you automatically) of theshow. You can listen to podcasts through your computer or any MP3 player. Thereyou have it, good solid information available for you to learn more about eBayany hour of any day, simply by listening to the expert guests and their call-inquestioners. You can even listen while you're running your eBay business!

Sign up for eBay's Seller Newsflash

eBay makes it easy for you to get the news sellers need to stay competitive. Goto Seller Central and click News & Updates. Once you're a PowerSeller, you'll beable to sign up for eBay's Power-Up seller newsletter to receive advancenotice of events and promotions. You'll learn when eBay is planning to have freelisting days and feature discounts, and you'll learn what top items buyers arecurrently searching for. It's easy to sign up for these e-mail updates, and eBayassures all users that the company will not rent or sell their personalinformation to third parties for marketing purposes. If you miss out on thePower-Up newsletter, your competitors might just scoop you.

Attend eBay University and stop by eBay's learning center

eBay University is a college that comes to you. Its instructors travel from cityto city to bring their wisdom to eBay buyers and sellers across the country.Courses are available for both buyers and sellers. There are two course levels,for beginning and advanced students. The advanced course for sellers ("Beyondthe Basics") is perfect for readers of this book. It's designed to help sellersbuild their businesses and move up the success ladder. The cost for attendingeBay University is usually $59 for a full one-day seminar. You can also attendonline courses or buy the Selling Basics course on DVD for $7.95, or the Beyondthe Basics course on CD for $19.95. eBay University's Welcome screen is shown inFigure 1-5.

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Excerpted from eBay PowerSeller Secrets by DEBRA SCHEPP. Copyright © 2008 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.. Excerpted by permission of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc..
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: McGraw-Hill
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2007
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0071498168
• ISBN 13: 9780071498166
• Einband: Tapa blanda
• Auflage: 2
• Anzahl der Seiten: 416
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: Nicht verfügbar