Auction Power Guide

During my time as an eBay ® consultant , people have asked me many questions. Often, people ask questions that are contrary to the success of their business, and it’s my job to redirect their thoughts in a more appropriate direction.

Consider the following question: “I have all of my items listed and I’m not getting as many bids as I’d expected, should I lower my pricing?”

I cringe when I hear this question, yet I understand why people ask it. It’s logical that, if something isn’t selling, it must be too expensive, right? Wrong!

There are several answers to this question, none of which are to lower the price. Today, I’m going to address a key factor that anyone can implement to increase their sales––a call to action in their item description.

What is a call to action?

A call to action is a very simple word or phrase that tells your “browser” what they should do next. This may seem obvious, but one of the biggest mistakes you can make as an eBay seller is to sit back and “hope” that your browser will become a buyer.

It is important to put aside your need to be subtle in your ads. Instead, come right out and tell your potential customer what they should do next. You can use words or phrases such as the following:

*Bid Now and Save Money

*Bid Now, Don’t Miss Out on This Incredible Deal

*Buy Now, Before the Price Gets Too High

*Bid Now, Quantities Are Limited and Moving Fast

*This Is a Hard-to-Find Item, Bid While It’s Still Here

You get the idea. Your product may have a special element, which will make this part easy. But, even if your product isn’t unique, you can still come up with an effective call to action.

Increase your sales immediately.

Using a call to action is not something new and it is more than just an idea. This method of selling has been repeatedly tested over time. Experts report that you will increase your sales by 80% simply by telling your browsers what to do next.

Bonus Tip.

Remember, you also have the option of giving potential customers more than one call to action. For example, assume that you have an eBay ® business selling collectible trains and you get a visitor who is looking for one particular item. This browser comes to one of your listings and sees that it isn’t the one they’re seeking. Because your “buy now” call to action might not work here, you’ve lost this person as a customer, right? Wrong again.

You have two things you can do at this point. The first is pretty well known and practiced, which is to direct the potential customer to a complete list of related items. Provide a call to action, such as, “If this item isn’t what you’re looking for, please click here (link to your entire list of auctions on eBay ® ) to see all of my train-related listings.”

The second, and my favorite, is to invite potential customers to sign up for free information. Provide a call to action, such as, Click Here

to visit my About Me page and discover how to receive free, weekly tips about buying collectible trains on eBay without getting scammed.” Collecting names of those who are in the market for your type of product is absolutely priceless.

sebastian foss
http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/how-to-turn-ebay-browsers-into-buyers-a-call-to-action-97682.html

Company’s like Flipkart, Infibeam, Inkfruit, Myntra, Fashion retail etc and Small start ups
Do they really stock all the products which they display on their website? or do they use drop shipping technique where products are delivered directly from manufacturer to the end consumer.

Dropshipping is an excellent way to start and get your business of the ground, thats what i am doing on ebay.

When my business gets out of hand (eg, a thousand sales a day) then I will get a warehouse and employees etc also I will get higher discounts from wholesaler since I will be buying larger quantities.

You can not know weather a website has their own warehouse or are dropshipping unless it says it on their website or they tell you.

What is the cheapest way but yet the most profitable way to go on ebay? doing auctions or just running a store. I have bought some things off ebay and have my paypal account but have never checked out the costs to get setup or how much time it takes. I’d love to hear from sellers on ebay to tell me what they think.

The basic eBay store subscription costs $15.99 a month. One advantage of an eBay store is the insertion fees for store inventory range from $0.05 to $0.10 for a one month listing. You can list multiple quantities of the same item for a single insertion fee. When you compare that with $0.20 to $4.80 for a single standard auction listing, it is a bargain.

The insertion fees may be cheaper, but the final value fee (FVF) charged when an item is sold from an eBay store is significantly higher. The fee is almost double the final value fee of a standard auction. For example, the FVF for a $100 item selling in an eBay store is $7.75. For an auction, the FVF is $3.75. This difference in FVF needs to be factored in when deciding whether to list an item as a store listing or as an auction listing.

The main disadvantage of using an eBay store is the store inventory only appears in the main search results when there are 30 or fewer auctions and fixed-price listings found. This means if you are trying to sell a very popular item in an eBay store, it will not will not be included in the standard search results. This makes it very difficult for buyers to find store items.

An eBay store works best if you have multiple quantities of the same item. The best strategy is to list one unit as an auction and list the rest in the store. When buyers see the auction listing, they may check the other items that are listed for sale by the seller. This list will include items from the seller’s eBay store. Buyers may chose to buy the unit out of your store instead of waiting for the auction to end.

Good Luck,
Bill
Visit http://www.newlifeauctions.com for more eBay tips.

They don’t ever accept a best offer. I have submitted many offers recently(last couple days) to about 4 to 5 different people all having the same product. I offer 6 to 8 dollars less than the buy it now price and they all decline my offer and offer me a counter offer of like 40 to 50 cent less than their Buy It Now price.
Anyone else think thats just rediculous? Whats your opinion?

All depends on what exactly the item is and how much they are asking $6.00 to $8.00 off can be alot. Also, if the seller has previously sold similar items for around the same price, they simply won’t take below $1.00 or $2.00 off as they know that when the right buyer comes along they can get closer to the price they are asking. Best offer feature is better used when purchasing multiple quantities or lots, as the seller is then more willing to lower the asking price if they are getting a large sale from a buyer. Pretty much all depends on the seller and item/items involved.

Do you know the phrase “A Call To Action”? Well, using “A Call To Action” on your eBay Auction could help increase your sales almost immediately. As outlined in my book “eBay Marketing Wholesale SourcePak” having the right product, at the right price is crucial. But, what else can you do to entice those eBay surfers to become a bidder? Here is one key factor anyone can implement on their auctions to help increase their sales – it’s called ” A Call To Action!”

Some of you may be asking “What is “A Call To Action?” Well it’s a simple phrase that you would add to your auction description. This phrase should tell your potential bidder what they should do next. I know what your thinking, “Don’t they know what to do next?” But really, you do need to tell people what it is you expect them to do. You can not depend on or assume that an auction surfer is automatically going to become a bidder without telling him/her what you want them to do. You need to come right out and tell them to buy. And why they should buy. Here are some examples of phrases you could use to entice that potential bidder to take action now and make a bid.

– Bid Now! Save Money!

– Buy Now and Save on Shipping!

– Bid Now! Don’t Miss This Incredible Deal!

– Buy Now! Quantities are Limited!

– Bid Now! One Of A Kind!

– Bid Now! Collectors Item!

You get the idea. If you have what that surfer is looking for any of the above phrases will entice him/her to make a bid now. And this method is not something new. Retail stores have been using this for years. You know any of the big sales where the advertisement says something like “And don’t wait, Quantities are Limited!” This method is time tested. Some experts report you can increase your sales by 50% simply by telling those who are just surfing your auction page what you want them to do.

You can also use more then one call to action. And use them for different reasons in your auction. Say you use one of the above. Bid Now! One of a Kind! But what if this surfer is not interested in this item for auction. Well, don’t let him/her leave without inviting him/her to view your other auctions. Say something like “If you don’t see what you are looking for here – please visit my other auctions” and create a link to your other auctions, possibly your “me page” which lists all the auctions you have running.

Try this method on your next auction.

Happy Selling!

by: Joe Clare

For more Tips on How To Make Money on eBay visit

AuctionBucket.com

Samuel Miller
http://www.articlesbase.com/business-opportunities-articles/how-to-convert-ebay-surfers-into-bidders-111532.html

There are a number of places to find things to sell on eBay. The most obvious is, of course, buying items wholesale through the manufacturer, or through a middleman or distributor. Of course, it’s a little bit harder to make a good profit doing things this way, because so many other people will probably be selling the same things. All that competition is going to drive prices down so low on most items that the profits are little to nothing, and only the people who can get their products in large quantities and receive discounts, or who do a massive volume, will be making enough for the ordeal to be worth the effort.

eBay itself is a popular choice. You may find this a bit odd, considering that if an item is available on eBay, others have a chance to get it at the same price you do. You might wonder why they would pay a higher price to you. Well, it’s simple. You want to buy “lots” of items, or you want to buy misspelled items. If you find a pair of shoes that normally sell on eBay for $100, and the title has the brand name misspelled, you might get lucky and be the only person who finds the auction. If the starting bid is $9.99 and there is no reserve, you might get this $100 pair of shoes for $20 or less including shipping. That leaves you the opportunity to make a nice profit!

To see a video from Kim and Charles on their Virtual Real Estate Investing systems click below: http://www.audioacrobat.com/playv/Wjk1ZC6f

You might also buy lots of items and break them up. A lot is a group of similar items that are sold together, in a group. You might find a store owner who is closing their store and selling out the inventory on eBay just to get rid of it. You could run across 500 pairs of sunglasses or 20 pairs of shoes in one lot. The average eBay user is not going to purchase a large lot of items this way, so you have a good chance to get the lot at a decent price. You can then break this lot up and sell the items one at a time for a good profit.

One of the most popular ways of finding items to sell on eBay is through places like garage sales, flea markets, and thrift stores. You can find great items at these places, but you need to be prepared to do this very regularly. Some people visit their favorite thrift stores every week, or even every single day! You never know when they are going to put out a rare piece of pottery, or an antique chair, or a suit that might sell for over $100! And garage sales and flea markets are treasure troves, but you need to be prepared to spend a lot of time sifting through useless junk to find some items that will sell well on eBay.

Another resource that is often overlooked is Craig’s List. This website has free classified listings for nearly every major city in the US, and many others around the world. You can find good items very cheap, and sometimes even free! If you want to spend a little time and effort going to pick up the items, you can very often find great items to sell on eBay in the free section of your city’s listings there.

There are many other ways of finding items to sell on eBay. Consider your local newspapers and thrifty ad magazines, swap meets, live auctions, estate sales, and stores that are going out of business or have surplus inventory. With a little research and a bit of leg work, you’ll find plenty of items to sell that can make you good money!

Charles and Kim Petty