Best 'Big' Foot Forward

Forwarding a Domain to an Ebay Store Custom Page

It seems that more Ebay sellers have had a chance to either upgrade their Ebay store, or have a store for the first time. One of the underutilized features of a store is the CUSTOM PAGE. Ebay provides 15 pages that you can set up as a way to give more information to buyers, promoting products and some people are even using it to put video showing their products as well as pictures.

As a result, these leave you with many opportunities to attract customers. The key is you can benefit by attracting people who are currently at your Ebay store or better yet, there is a way to improve your opportunities of showing up in search engines.  

By putting great content and keywords in your Ebay custom pages, you are in essence creating a website. And all good websites need a domain name that will be easy to remember and find. For example, if you sell supples to bake specialty cakes of zoo animals, perhaps your custom page might be a video of you using the products to make a cake of a monkey.

By choosing an appropriate domain name like MonkeyCakeVideo.com, you will have a descriptive, memorable domain name that can be set up to FORWARD to your Ebay custom page where you have the video and other information with links to your listings with the supplies.

Forwarding a domain is very easy to do. I recommend GODADDY as they have great customer service and they can be very helpful with hard and simple questions.  

If you want to get started with your first domain (or if you already have domains) I found a code today that may expire very soon, but it just worked for me and I was able to buy a .com for only 99 cents +.18 fee.  The promotional code that works for this is 99INDY.  

Hopeful Seller list Apple Ipad on Ebay

SOME SELLERS ARE OVERLY OPTIMISTIC 

Granted the the Apple Ipad has been the most talked about item recently. Especially as we get closer to the release date.  But this Ebay Top Rated Seller is a little unrealistic. Just a little. 

Check it out: Apple iPad 16GB Wi-Fi NIB!!!

I just might make an offer!  12 others have so far. Good luck to this gutsy Ebay seller!

Sticky Subject: Labels

LABEL TIP OF THE DAY

The labels that I use are 8.5" x 11" and have one cut halfway down. To save money, I set the controls in Paypal to NOT do a receipt and when printing, it is only using half the sheet. IThis enables me to 're-use' the sheet. By the way, I also save the backer sheets, and use those often as packing material. 

Printing Postage Labels 

One of the really great features about selling on Ebay has been the ability to print postage from PayPal directly from your printer. When that became available to do many years ago, It was amazing! No more need to stand in line waiting at the post office. It really streamlined a major portion of the shipping process. In fact, I'm often surprised by how many sellers still are reluctant to print postage. I've many times received packages from sellers of all sizes that continue to go to the post office.

One thing I realized that to get the best advantage of printing postage myself, that a label would work best and not just a plain sheet of paper. So, I went to the place I check most often Ebay and found someone with a great price and ordered what I thought was a couple of small boxes. Boy, was I ever surprised when UPS showed up with about six CASES of labels. They lasted me a long time. I even purchased from this supplier again a couple of times but they were no longer selling on Ebay. Then they failed to responded twice, to my request to purchase more.

Checking locally, just caused me to be totally unimpressed with the selection and prices at the local office supply stores.

Then remembered about a year ago I had requested a sample from OnlineLabels.com. Opened it up, and was very happy when I used the samples. However, the ones that they sent had a 'frame' around the area that prints. That is great for some labels I print, but not for others. So I called them on the phone and was amazed that someone on the other end actually understood my request and even told me immediately which product number to order instead. No pressure, just good easy information. I also asked about a promotion code included with my samples. When I asked if it could still be honored despite an expiration date that was passed, instantly I was informed yes! No checking - no on hold- just prompt good customer service.

The labels arrived promptly and I have been using for a couple of weeks and very happy with my new supplier of labels. Check them out at OnlineLabels.com.

Upgrade your Automobile- Buy a Bugatti on EBAY

ALL TYPES OF CARS ARE FOR SALE ON EBAY

Want to upgrade from your Toyota that may go too fast when it shouldn't?

Try the  2008 Bugatti Veyron EXOTIC. This car will go FAST when YOU want it to.  Pretty sure you can arrange a favorable rate with your bank for this beauty. 

One of the great abilities that Ebay has with cars is a buyer can easily search nationwide for the desired vehicle. That aspect can increase the selling price for a seller or make the time shorter to sell.  When you list on just a local classified site, you may get more 'tire kickers' wanting to test ride and waste a sellers time. If someone across the country is interested in your vehicle, they usually have a stronger desire, and thus are more likely to be a serious candidate to purchase the car if it meets the requirements.

I have actually sold two personal vehicles on Ebay and had a GREAT experience both times. One the buyer picked it up in Boston and took it back to New Jersey and the other I brought locally to a shipper that the buyer designated and off to New Mexico it went.

If you are in the market for a car, you should check out the vast inventory available on http://www.motors.ebay.com/

There may be some deals on Toyota right now!

How NOT to use Multi-Variation Listings on EBAY

IS THIS LISTING A MIS-USE OF THE MULTI-VARIATIONS LISTING FEATURE?

Just ran across a listing I wanted to share and comment. 

Nestle/ Hershey/ Reese/ Ghirardelli & more Baking Chips

I'm a huge fan of the recent addition of Multi-Variation and very much looking forward to it being rolled out into more categories at the end of this month. But, as much as I would encourage using some ingenuity when utilizing this feature, I do fear some sellers may mis-use the feature, in my opinion as it is used in the above example. 

I do not object to listing these items all in one listing. However, I am concerned with the title and the pictures. My feeling is that the listing is misleading as the title would seem to indicate that you are getting ALL of the items listed and the picture alongside would reinforce that misconception. Perhaps, the title should read: "One Package of Baking Chips - choice of brand" Or something along those lines.

The picture should be of ONE package, as not to confuse a potential buyer into thinking that they are getting all pictured for one price. This only irritates a buyer, and if they begrudgingly purchase anyway, it is only because they want or can't find item elsewhere. And if they unwittingly proceed without realizing that what they are purchasing is only one of this item-it sets up a very disappointing experience upon opening a package and finding out they were 'out-witted'. No one wants to feel that they were taken advantage of in a transaction.  

I am still exploring the use of this feature. I am very much encouraged by a number of ways this can be used, but the two top reasons I like it is that it SAVES MONEY on listing items separately and it SAVES TIME in not having to make individual listings, just because you offer something in a different size or color.  Below are a couple of my listings that incorporate the Multi-Variation feature.  

Follow Up Nintendo Game: Another Lucky Ebay Seller Finds One

RARE NINTENDO GAME BRINGS $$$$$$$$

As shown in this blog last week, an auction on Ebay went for $13K+ as a woman was able to sell a rare game as part of a lot listed. Well another seller has come across a  FACTORY SEALED NEW NES NINTENDO STADIUM EVENTS NTSC and is already getting LOTS OF BIDS for this very rare item.

If you're like me, you are counting the days for yard sales to return in the better weather!

Apple Computer Collectors Perhaps You Could Make a Desk

COLLECTORS OF APPLE COMPUTER MEMORABILIA WILL WANT THIS

The NYC Apple Store Glass StairCase is now up for auction on Ebay.  Well it is NOT the whole staircase. Just one broken stair. I guess it might have some value to a collector of Apple, but not sure what the value would be. Certainly would be nice to have the entire staircase that you could climb up to a computer room.

It will be interesting to see how this turns out. One might claim this is an insignificant item as far as historical merit for Apple. Maybe someone will be enterprising and buy it to break up into smaller pieces to resell!

Woman Has High Score on Nintendo by Listing in eBay Auction

$9.99 Starting Price on eBay Yields Big Payoff

EBAY LISTING FOR THIS ITEM

Just goes to show you that the RIGHT items still do extremely well on Ebay.  It pays to do research and also keep your eyes open for items that can generate 36 bids like this one did.

EBAY store owners: How to avoid a specific 7400% increase on a certain fee

STRATEGIES FOR THE NEW FEE STRUCTURE

First-let me point out that the new fee structure that Ebay announced a couple of weeks ago should be a winner for most sellers on Ebay. Every seller faces a different situation, and I know that many have been seriously contemplating these changes. Some are worried about determining which factors should be taken into consideration regarding methods of listing.

I just wanted to take a moment and point out a very important change that needs to be considered very carefully by every Ebay store owner of any tier. 

If you currently have SUBTITLES on any of your GTC (good till cancelled) store listings, these will rollover and be renewed as early as the end of March at the standard FIXED PRICE sub-title fee. That means if you have a store item and currently paying .02 every 30 days for that subtitle. When it rolls over to the new fees it will be billed every 30 days at $1.50, a 7400% increase!

DISCUSSION: New Sub-Title Fee For Ebay Store Owners

REMOVING ANY STORE SUBTITLES 

If you do not want to be hit with any surprises, it would be a good idea to go through your store listings over the next few months and delete any sub-titles, that you don't really need. Ebay had many sales which included free sub-titles over the past couple of years, and it may have been free or inexpensive to add it to an auction, which may have been subsequently 'parked' in your Ebay store. This will no longer be an inexpensive option. Just 70 store listings with subtitles that roll over to the new fee, could end up costing you over $1200 per year!

You should be able to bulk erase these sub-titles using Selling Manager Pro, if it is incorporated with your store. Fine-tuning your store this month could save you lots of money in the upcoming months.

FOR FUN

This Ebay advertisement as it is posted tonight, has ONE store item with a sub-title. A Mr.Bigfoot white baseball cap will be awarded at random to one person who correctly identifies the item by Sunday 9PM Valentines Day 2/14/2010 in an email to auctionlister@yahoo.com. 

Clocky REPLICA from Pee Wee Herman Playhouse

Just had to take a moment and comment on this listing. At first glance it looks like it may be an actual prop from the show, or maybe an authentic toy. But lo and behold this is "a one-of-a-kind, handmade paper-maché replica of Clocky from Pee-wee's Playhouse"

 

Since Pee Wee Herman is out performing again, this may be the right time to list some of his items that you have been hoarding. A raw search on Ebay shows that currently there are 273 Results for PEE WEE HERMAN.