UK Auction Line News. Issue 22

The leading ezine of users of Ebay.co.uk...

29.04.2004

The Path to Power Selling

Archive

Editor's Note

Welcome to the 22nd issue of UK Auctionline Newsletter

If you have visited the eBay site in the past few days you will have already seen the new page design. What do you think of it? eBay have been busy introducing several new features such as a Spell Check into the Sell Your Item form which should become available this week.

The Spell Check feature will be located on the SYI Title & Description page above the description field. It will allow sellers to spell check their title, subtitle (if used) and description, helping listings look more professional and show up in search since the spelling will be correct. Spell Check will be an optional feature and is free to use.

eBay have also announced that over the next few weeks they will be making changes to the eBay.co.uk Search and Browse functions. These changes are expected to make it easier for us to find the items you are looking for.

The enhancements include: features to help you narrow down or expand your search - You will be able to make your search more specific, while still keeping your original search parameters or adding new ones. Similarly, you can also move back to a higher-level category if your search has become too narrow, or easily remove some of your search controls.

eBay are also adding a new "Customise" link on the pages that allows you to choose your own default display settings and the tools shown in your Search Options area. If your search returns a very small number of items, eBay will automatically look for the same or similar items in other areas such as eBay Shops and from sellers located overseas who are willing to post the item to the UK.

Also included in this update is a simpler Picture Gallery layout - "Gallery View" is being renamed as "Picture Gallery" and will display items and their Gallery pictures in a more logical fashion. An improved "look and feel" - The "outside" sections (in yellow to the left and above the listing results) will display the filters and controls you can use to determine what shows in the listing results (the "inside" of the page). Sort controls will be located right above the listing results, so you can easily choose the order in which you'd like to display the listings.

 

Dave Bromley

 

Contents:
1. Sellers should be Buyers
2. Post and Postage
3. Extra Reading
4. Final Thoughts

 


Content section 1

Sellers should also be buyers.

You can read all the ebooks, articles and reports, you can watch all the web casts and videos but I still believe that one of the best ways to learn about eBay is to become a buyer. I regularly make sales of both physical and digital products not only because I want the actual product but so that I can compare their service to mine.

I look to see if there is anything they are doing that I am not. Is there anything that I would have done differently? So the first question to ask yourself is:

What attracted me to that listing? Was the auction clearly laid out, what feature of the product attracted my initial interest. Was it the Title, Price or the photo? What was the key deciding factor in making me stop and read the listing?

Was the auction logically and well laid out. Were the postage details clear and was I sure how it was going to be delivered and when? Were the payment options plainly stated. Did the seller give the impression they wanted your business, i.e. wide choice of payment options, world wide delivery and no surcharges?

Were the images clear and appropriate for the product and the description clear and plain enough that you did not feel the need to send an e-mail to clarify anything? Talking of e-mails was the seller a good and prompt communicator?

Can you work out exactly what it was that pushed your “hot button” and made you bid on that item.

Having made your bid and won the auction how did it go after that? Were you absolutely certain that you knew what would arrive on your doorstep or computer?
How quickly did it arrive and how well packed was it?

You now have your new purchase, go back and re read the listing. Was it a fair and honest description of the item you now have. If you were now going to resell this item on eBay would you be happy to just reuse the same listing or would you want to make changes. If so what changes and why? In other words how would you improve the listing? List any other ways that you think you could have done it better.

Apart from being a good learning exercise if you can become skilled in spotting other peoples mistakes on eBay you could be well on the way to increasing your own eBay profits. As I am always pointing out the more you know about online auctions and how to list your items to get the maximum price the better you will do. But some people just rush in not really knowing what they are doing and this can offer you profitable pickings.

Look for items with poorly written descriptions, no photographs or possibly ones that are in an inappropriate category. Any of these faults mean that the item is likely to attract few bids and possibly go for a bargain price. I recently purchased an audio tape program that dealt with telephone selling techniques and purchased it for £2. By rewriting the listing and resubmitting it I managed to sell it for £10.

A good place to find these gems is to keep a regular check on the “Going, going, gone” section which you will find in the box below the category section on eBay’s home page. This covers all the items due to finish in the next hour. A good time to do this is when you don’t think there will be many others on line. I often go and switch the computer on when I get up during the week. I don’t believe there are that many people looking for bargains on eBay at between 6 and 7 a.m. on a Tuesday or Wednesday morning and you can often pick up a bargain to subsequently resell.

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Content section 2

Post and Postage

This week the Post office has been very much on my mind. A few months ago we got a letter in the office from Royal Mail. The basic message was that they would be discontinuing the second afternoon delivery but this would lead to an improved overall service. This surprised me slightly because to my knowledge we had never had a second delivery anyway, just the normal one between 8 and 9 in the morning.

As a result of the “improved overall service” we now get our mail anytime between 11 in the morning and 3 in the afternoon. In fact for a while they stopped delivering completely on a Saturday until we kicked up a fuss. From what I can see we are now getting a very much inferior service and as far as second-class post is concerned paying more for it.

I was also annoyed this week to receive an envelope back marked “not known at this address” this would be fair enough but this envelope contained a record that I had sold on eBay and dispatched in the middle of December last year. The recipients name was clearly typed on the envelope, as was the return address so why it took over four months to get back to me I do not know.

Now I read they want to change the pricing structure for parcels and large envelopes.
Now in simple terms this just means they want to introduce a major price hike on all their customers. With the variety of items that we sell on eBay this is going to greatly increase the costs for most eBay transactions. Perhaps it is time to start looking round for alternative methods of delivery?

I seem to waste an awful lot of time waiting to be served in the local post office. One of the problems is that they do so much more than just sell stamps now, issue car tax licences, pay benefits, exchange currency and supply phone cards just for starters. To speed things up I bought a large quantity of stamps and took them already stamped to the post office. To my surprise they still insisted on weighing each one just because I wanted my certificate of posting stamped and signed.

They have now bought out a new system called Smart Stamp. This is a computer program that will print out stamp labels either on to the envelope or onto an Avery label. You can even include a logo as well if you wish. The cost for this service is £4.99 a month or £49.99 a year plus of course the cost of the postage. I have checked with Royal Mail and they are happy to provide this service to individuals as well as companies so if you ship out a large number of packets a month this might prove useful although at a fiver a month you might be better off just buying a bulk lot of stamps from the Post Office. If you are interested in Smart Stamp you can get more details from Royal Mail: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm/onlinepostage

Incidently if you read this article today, Thursday 29th April there is a Dispatch programme on Channel Four this evening which promises to show how bad Royal Mail really is. According to the preview 1 milion pieces of mail are "lost" every week of which it is alleged that 20% are actually stolen rather than lost. It should be frightening but compulsive viewing for all eBayers, If you have any postage horror stories do tell us about them.

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This Months Extra Reading

This weeks Audio Tutorial : What am I Doing Wrong?

Bloke Dons Wedding Gown on eBay

eBay Profits Up

Would You Like To Be Rich?

Profit Calc

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Content section 4

Final Thoughts

It has been reported in the Scottish Daily Record that Birmingham University is to offer a 3 day course teaching people how to use internet auction site eBay and the basics of web trading. Course tutor Cherry Nixon said: 'Many people find eBay quite intimidating. This course is designed to alleviate those fears by offering a step-by-step guide.'

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