Auction Power Guide

I have just started my own little business selling fashion and costume jewellery :
www.sophiesjewellerybox.co.uk

I would just like some advice on others experience with starting a new business, and any tips for getting more traffic that have worked for you.

So far I have paid for advertising on google adwords and facebook. Entered my URL on various trawlers and online web directories, got all of the social media sites such as twitter, stumbled upon, facebook and pinterest.
I also leaflet drop, attend fairs and shop events, have set up an online blog, promote on asos marketplace and have written to various newspapers and magazines with my press release.

I understand it takes alot of man hours, hard work and determination, but would just value some tips and tricks from people who have been through or are going through the same as me. I spend around 5 hours a day purely on online promotion and advertising.

I really want to make this work, it’s my passion and hobby, i am 22 years old, and I really would love to hear your stories.

All constructive criticism and feedback is welcomed, and thank you in advance
Sophie x

I noticed that most of your products centered around rhinestone jewellry, so you should concentrate your keywords based around those.

Adwords can be tricky to get right from the get go, these days there are so many different features in there that it can be confusing. I would suggest that you stick to product listing ads (and google shopping). AFAIK Google shopping is still free in the UK and you should utilise them. I work with American clients normally so I really don’t have a clue what the UK rules are. Even though I’m from the UK.

I’m not sure what your profit margins are using Adwords on low cost products – I suppose it really depends on your market, what the typical customer buys (5+ items or just one). I would expect that you will need to get at least 15 customers to your website to make one sale. If you’re paying 15p a click that would mean that your margin would need to be at least £2.25 to break even.

There are various techniques you can use on site to increase the amount of money people spend on your site by cross selling and Adwords techniques to hammer your click costs down.

The free delivery over £30 is a nice touch and will help to increase your average basket value up so customers buy more than one item and you have a better margin.

If you need some tips and specific Adwords related advice contact me through http://www.karimium.com

I used to run an eCommerce site before, I found that a lot of sole proprietors run an ebay store as well – even though it’s not the core part of their business, they use ebay as a lead generation funnel. They’ll sell pieces on ebay – because it’s a big market place and then use it to build a list of prospects and when mailing goods out enclose a phamphlet of their website or even a catalogue.

Enclosed a 20% off ebay purchase discount for the online store and funnel sales onto there.

The ebay method acts like a advertising medium that essentially pays for itself.

Also utilize email marketing to retain a list of customers and email them about latest store updates and send fashion tips etc.

Love sales but don’t know the first steps into real estate. I know theres alot of scams promising success within a week, but i don’t believe that’s true.

I am a real estate birddog, investor and mentor and I am not a fan of the no money down, make a million dollars in real estate your first month B.S. However you can make a lot of money in real estate if you set yourself up right from the beginning and treat it like a business. My partner and I work with people to first establish their skill level, interests (rehabbing, buying and flipping, landlording, etc) and we also discuss risk tolerance. If you are 36 years old with a mortgage, wife and three children, you have more at stake than a 22 year old who rents a cheap apartment and only has to worry about himself. And different people have different comfort levels when it comes to risking capital or even taking on the responsibility of property.

That being said, I believe the best way to start is to read as many real estate books that you can get your hands on. I usually go to the library and take out books and if I think the book has good info, I will buy it. Also, you can go to ebay and half.com and look for real estate courses at greatly reduced prices. A lot of these have never been opened.

While you are doing that, look for a real estate investor group near you (go to nationalreia.com and click on groups). You can meet other investors and they can give you tips on who has better courses.

To me, if you are working with little money and are not sure of yourself yet, I recommend birddogging houses for other investors. You can learn your local market and also learn what other investors look for (this is called a clue). While you are learning, you should also make sure your credit is good (yeah, I know the no money, no job, no credit line. You dont need them, but it sure makes your life easier if you have them!). Also, line up your money, whether it is a line of credit, bank, mortgage broker and/or hard money lender or private investors.

I have generated $10,000 in a weeks time (with about 6 hours worth of work) tho it took a couple of weeks for the first $3,000 to be paid and about two months until the house closed and the rest came in. So, yes. You can make big and fast money in real estate. But it is better to go in with knowledge because there are sharks in the waters and scammers are out there.

If you want more info, you can email me at barb@nobledeeds.com.

Barbara Grassey
www.therealestatebirddog.com
www.nobledeeds. com

I am very interested in learning to quilt (by hand or machine). I purchased a book on ebay about hand quilting and it was not made for a true beginner. I didn’t understand half of what they were talking about. Can anyone help?

Hi! 🙂 My favorite, inexpensive, and very easy to find book that helped me learn the basics of quilting is called "The Complete Guide to Needlework" put out by Readers Digest. I think there is a new version, and I’m sure it’s fantastic – but if you’re a yard sale typa gal like I am, or even like to stop at used book stores or thrift shops, this book is a pretty inexpensive and easy find. I haven’t tried, but maybe even Amazon.com is a thought. I picked up mine at a sale for $1 and I still refer to it every now and then. The instructions are very basic, and perfect for someone who hasn’t a clue where to begin (like I was!). Among other popular needlecrafts, it gives you the basic run down on hand and machine quilting. If you find you love to quilt and really want to keep at it, you’ll find tons of newer books out there that give great shortcuts and techniques to cut down the time it takes to make your quilt.

Another of my favorite books, is the "Quilters Complete Guide" put out by Fons and Porter. It also has basic instructions for hand and maching quilting…plus hand quilting patterns, and some popular quilting designs that range from very basic to more advanced…it even covers different applique techniques (which you’ll discover to some is an art of it’s own!).

There are also many internet resources like www.quilterscache.com, that give basic quilting instructions and also offer TONS of free patterns and block instructions. Just look up quilting on Yahoo!.

To make a long answer even longer – you could always look in your phone book or online for a local quilt shop…most small shops (and even places like Jo-Anns Plus) will offer classes on rotary cutting, hand quilting, applique, and basic quilting just to name a few.

I’ve one suggestion to you as you are learning – when it comes to quilting, there are few hard and fast rules…a lot of what others will teach you will most likely be personal preference…things like whether to use expensive fabric or inexpensive, to use cotton batting or polyester, what brands of threads and needles…quilters’ can be quite oppionionated, and many have no quams voicing them! But as you test different techniques and products, you might find that you’re a gadget collector and just have to have anything and everything having to do with quilting…or you might find that some fabric, scissors, thread, batting and needles are all you need to make an amazing quilt!

Oh – one last thing…when you begin to quilt, a pattern that’s really easy and beginner friendly is called "Yellow Brick Road"…you can find it at your local quilt shop or Jo-Ann’s…it’s about $7 depending on your area…and it’s made with all fat quarters! It’s really cute, easy, and fun!

I hope this helps and good luck! 🙂

I’ve been selling on ebay for a long time, and now i have a good amount of friends, etc., that want me to sell for them, but I want to do it right. How do I charge for like the ebay fees, and such. Do people charge a percentage of the final value when selling for others, etc.? I want to get a little in return for my efforts. : ) Any suggestions?

Actually being a Trading Assistant is the certified ebay reseller you describe.
http://ebaytradingassistant.com/signup/

There is also an eBay Trading Assistant Discussion Board where requirements, information and tips-of-the-trade are exchanged.
http://forums.ebay.com/db1/forum/Trading-Assistant/106

I’ll tell you a few of my personal tips.
1. Never, never list anything that you don’t have in your possession and control over. If your consignor finds a local buyer, changes their mind or refuses to release the item after a successful sale; you become a Non-Performing-Seller, get a strike against you and may get Negative Feedback.
2. Nobody who hasn’t sold on eBay has a clue about the effort involved in photography, writing Descriptions, staging a item and proper shipping. Friends and relatives are aware of how easy it’s become for you but don’t realize how steep the learning curve is. Me personally, I’d avoid selling for those I wanted to keep close to me. I’d offer to help them open an account, guide them, encourage them, but that’s me. If you do decide to sell for those special people be prepared for some changes in the relationships.
3. Depending on the value of the item (higher priced gets lower %), a fair commission for selling ranges from 15% to 40% of the price realized AFTER all eBay & PayPal fees (perhaps shipping too).
4. The bottom line can be broken on shipping. Be aware of all the options & costs available. Free shipping now gets higher placement in *Search* so be careful of hi-weight, hi-cost items to ship if you offer it.
5. Never ship anything without some form of on-line verifiable delivery confirmation.
6. Also, see my previous answer to a Y!A question from a neophyte eBayer.
http://au.answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=An6vEuMnsc7K8NvdD1G3W4Dh5gt.;_ylv=3?qid=20090906191246AA1CsJx&show=7#profile-info-zyYv4N7iaa

Where and how do I get my car auction license in Nevada? I don’t have a car lot. I’d like to buy and sell cars part time. I don’t know where and how to get my car auction license. I would love to go to the auctions to buy maybe two or three cars and sell for a profit. I would appreciate someone out there with some experience at this or someone looking to do the same thing to point me in the right direction. Please include tips and concerns as well in this profession. Thank you.

You need to go to work for a dealer and find out what the ca Business is all about. You don’t have a clue. Do you think that you can sell? How would know how to buy or what to buy if you were at an auction.