I have not seen this scam before

I am posting this blog to you to warn of a new scam
that I came across today. When I checked my e-mails this
morning there was one supposedly from Paypal confirming
a subscription payment for $39.

I pay for several services, web hosting and site memberships
through Paypal but this was supposedly a payment to some kind
of spyware company in Germany. There was a button below
which you needed to click on if you felt this payment was an error.
When you click on the button another very genuine Paypal type
of page appears and asks you to sign in with your e-mail address
and password.

This was when the alarm bells began to ring and I went back
to my Paypal account and checked if such a payment had in
fact been made. There was no mention of any such payment so this
was obviously another attempt to collect my Paypal password.

I know there are a lot of various spoof e-mails about and I like
To think that I am pretty sharp in spotting them but this one was so
clever it almost got under my guard. Be on the look out for anything
similar in your e-mail and if you get one forward it straight away
to spoof@paypal.co.uk

Oltiby - A Reverrse Auction with a difference

I came across an interesting site recently, www.oltiby.com. This is a unique reverse auction site. In simple terms a buyer place details of an item they want to buy and the maximum price they are prepared to pay. Would be sellers can then send details of the lowest price they are prepared to accept for that item and the seller who offers the lowest price is the winner. All that is left then is for the seller and buyer to get together to complete the auction.

The guys at Oltiby tell me that they are a global company and as most sellers accept Paypal there should be few problems with payment where ever you are in the world. I have not tried the system yet but it looks as though it could be a bit of fun and you could find yourself with a bargain or two. I would be interested to hear of your experiences if you do give it a try.
http://www.oltiby.com

Auction Revolution Sale

Terry Gibbs sent me a note earlier saying he is running a sale on
his Auction Revolution package. I think Terry's package is one of
the better eBay packages, and the discount makes it even better.

The Auction Revolution is designed for the beginner, but contains
a wealth of details to help any eBay seller get better results.
There is even a free quiz on the site to help you determine if
the package will help you.

I've put one of Terry's articles below so you can learn more
about him. Once you've read the article, go take the free quiz
and see if you need the Auction Revolution.

Here's the article:

Nine Simple eBay Selling Hints

By Terry Gibbs

Some of these eBay hints will save you money, others will result
in higher prices. Either way, these will help you run more
profitable eBay auctions.

1. Write a simple description and do not clutter your auction
with unneeded items like animated Gifs, and colored
backgrounds. Remember, you are selling not entertaining.

2. Charge a flat rate for shipping, and mention the shipping
costs prominently within your auction description.

3. Write a title that accurately describes your item. Use
manufacturers name and model number within the title if
applicable.

4. Write a detailed description that allows prospective
bidders to make a decision about purchasing the item. A
basic tip is the description can never be too long as long
as it is describing the item.

5. Include large clear photographs. Invest in some lights and
a quality camera. Your investment will pay for itself in
higher eBay selling prices within only a few auctions.

6. Host your own pictures. By hosting your own pictures, you
will save money, and, more importantly, be able to use as
many pictures as you need to adequately show eBay bidders
your item. This is the simplest thing to do, and yet 70
percent of eBay sellers ignore this simple tip.

7. Optimise your images for the web. Many sellers use the
highest resolution settings on their cameras and generate
huge files that download very slowly. Computer monitors
only show 72DPI, any extra detail is just a waste of the
bidder's time.

8. List your item in the most appropriate category. Many
buyer's only search eBay by looking at listings within
categories. If you are not in the right eBay category you
will not be seen by lots of potential bidders and you item
may end up selling for less than it's worth.

9. Systemize your eBay selling. Using a system to sell on eBay
will lower the amount of time spent selling each item, and
insure you don't forget any important activities.

The Auction Revolution explains all of these hints in
greater detail.

Take the free quiz and see if the Auction Revolution will
help you at:

http://tinyurl.com/gn4km

Terry Gibbs is a collector/dealer of old toys and trains, and
teaches others how to buy and sell antiques and collectibles.
Gibbs is the author of two best selling eBay books "The Auction
Revolution," and "The Complete Guide To eBay Consignment Sales."
He has also written numerous other books about buying and selling
antiques and collectibles.

Dave Bromley

PS Terry has never discounted this package before so this is a
rare opportunity. The sale goes on until August 1st. So you
want to jump on this.

Here's the link again:

http://tinyurl.com/gn4km

The Product Control System- A Review

The Product Control System is the latest offering from Oliver Goehler No doubt many of you will have heard of Oliver who sprang to prominence with his Divergence method of marketing on eBay. As well as making spectacular profits for himself he produced a very successful course outlining his methods. This in fact generated considerable national and local media interest and made the young man something of a celebrity.

So it was going to be interesting to see what his follow up was going to be. In The Product Control System he has teamed up with another young entrepreneur, Ben Jones who actually uses a totally different method to Oliver to make a successful living on eBay.
If nothing else it goes to prove that there is definitely more than one way to make good money with online auctions.

Obviously it would not be fair to reveal the method that Ben uses, but it is fir to say that it is directly opposite to the methods advocated by most ebay “experts” . It is an approach that I had ever considered and as Ben has proved it can be made to work.

Many eBay sellers adopt a very insular approach and will not look beyond their own back garden i.e eBay.co.uk but in The Product Control System you are shown the opportunities that exist in the wider world of eBay. This is not a book that you ca just read and then spring into action. You will need to read it several times to grasp the full concept. You should then take time to draw up your own plan of action before you actually start applying what you have learnt. .

Unlike so many information products these days, he Product Control System is a real wire bound book that comes with printed bonuses. I did find the writing style at time a little confusing, sometimes it appeared that Oliver was doing the writing, and it seemed to be Ben and at one stage went into the third person. It just takes little getting used to. As a testimonial for Oliver’s previous book stated, “Oliver may not be Charles Dickens in the literary sense but what can I say, over £1,400 profit in one week”. I expect he will be getting similar comments back from satisfied customers of The Product Control System. For more details visit: http://tinyurl.com/m5bul

The Auction Profit Machine- A review

Selling information products on the Internet must be the easiest business in the world.
Hardly any product or delivery costs and practically 100% profit on any sale. In fact you would think it is the kind of business you could not fail in, but thousands of people do.

So why is that? Perhaps it appears so simple that people do not think there is any need to do any preparation or gain any knowledge. As someone who has been selling information online for quite a few years now let me tell you that if you take this attitude then you are wrong.

The more you know about the business before you start, the fewer mistakes you will make and the more likely you are to become a successful information seller. If you like the idea of selling information products on eBay then Jeff Johnson and Rob Pietras have produced an excellent guide to help you.

The Auction Profit Machine covers every aspect of selling information through online auctions. The 98-page e-book is divided into 2 parts. The first deals with finding or creating products and the second half concentrates on making the sale.

Jeff and Rob use very mush a step-by-step approach. This makes it easy for a complete novice to follow the various stages and build their own eBay information business following the plan. What I like about this book is that the authors make you aware of the various options available to you, such as digital versus physical delivery of a product, the advantages and disadvantages of the various information media. With this kind of information you can decide which is best suited for you and your business.

Another feature that newcomers to information publishing will find useful are 2 videos that are included in the package. The first shows how to create a listing specifically for a downloadable product. (As we know, with eBay’s rules on downloadable products get this wrong and your listing could be pulled, or worse.)

The second video shows you how to download and use Filezilla a no cost FTP
Software program. I had not come across this program before but it is exceptionally easy to use and ideal for loading downloadable products to your web site for digital delivery.

Compared to some of the e-books on the market at present on the same subject I think this is one of the best. If you have ever thought of going into what is after all the very low risk business of information publishing this is the book for you.
For more information go to http://zippedurl.com/3t5x2z

The Ebay Price Guide – a Review

One of the keys to success on eBay is to carry out thorough research on your market. There are numerous software programs and online tools to help you do this but recently the San Francisco Publishers No Starch press came out with a new print book that serious eBayers will find very useful.

The eBay Price Guide by Julia L Wilkinson covers every category on eBay.com and in its 570+ pages with examples of prices achieved for many thousands of articles. In each sun category around 15 items are listed showing the highest prices achieved and another 15 showing the average prices.

In addition to the prices there is a useful introduction to each category, which gives a useful overview of that category. And there is an interesting section at the end of the book containing lists of eBay facts. For instance the 6 most expensive things sold on eBay or the 50 sellers with the greatest number of feedbacks.

As someone whose main market is not ebay.com but eBay.co.uk I initially wondered how relevant the price information was going to be. But these days we live in a global market and these days it is not unusual for someone living in Germany or the UK to buy an item from eBay.au (Australia) and to resell it on eBay.com. The potential for this type of International trade is growing all the time. Also included with the book is a companion CD that contains a demo version of Hammer Taps Deep Analysis software program which is an essential tool for any serious eBay marketer.

Also on the CD is an e-booklet (and that is a new phrase on me) called The eBay Appetizer which describes how to get started on eBay as well as The Sellers Guide and The Auction Accelerator which contains lessons from some of the major Internet businesses coaches. These bonuses alone are worth the purchase price of the book

My one concern when I first saw this book was that the information would quickly become out of date. But the publishers have launched a web site at www.nostarch.com/ebaypg.htm in which they are going to add updates and other information. Currently if you go to this site you can view a sample chapter of the book and see a full list of the contents.

Compared to many of the eBay related items on offer at present the less than $30 price tag for The eBay Price Guide seems good value to me. If you are serious about your eBay business this is definitely an investment worth making.

Spotting Frauds and Fakes on eBay

Fake items abound on eBay, and it takes much effort not to be duped by scammers who peddle these wares. There have been many painful stories relating how a seemingly legitimate item turned out to be either fake or defective.

It is possible, however, to avoid these scams if one is careful and vigilant. Buyers should be wary of any purchase over eBay, and should take steps to ensure the authenticity of the item and to make sure the item is in reasonable condition.

Be Vigilant

Buyers should take the initiative by doing plenty of background research. They must learn as much as possible about the products before bidding on them. If the seller provides pictures of an item, they should not be taken at face value. Comparison of these pictures with the real item helps in this regard.

Many sellers will use pictures from manufacturers that do not represent the item they are actually selling; buyers should ask the seller for actual pictures of the item. If the seller balks, buyers should refrain from bidding. Collector’s items, autographed memorabilia, and historical artifacts are common items that are misrepresented on eBay.

Authenticate

Familiarize yourself with the various bodies that certify respective items. For example, reputable merchants of autographed sports memorabilia should include a COA (certificate of authenticity) from a trusted third party. Counterfeit or misrepresented items should be reported to eBay. When buying on eBay Motors, one may have an inspection service double-check if the seller is accurately representing his automobile.

Look at the Feedback

One should analyze the feedback rating of a seller. Analyzing feedback is another helpful exercise to prevent scams. Sellers who have an established history of credible sales are usually helpful and professional to deal with. Negative feedback should be a red flag as to whether one should pursue a trade with the person. The same thing applies for those who do not have feedback ratings at all.

Buyers must be careful however, since it is possible that a scammer has hijacked an account that has positive feedback.

Buyers should make sure they have read the entire product description on its eBay listing. Things to look out for are disclaimers, damages, current item condition, years of use, and others. If this information is not specified, it would do well for the buyer to contact the seller regarding such.

The Price Theory

If the price for an item is too good to be true, it probably is. Auctions that carry outrageously low prices should be taken skeptically.