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Here are some simple tips to increase the chances of your items being sold:
1. Care about your reputation. Believe it or not, bidders look at your feedback score. Your reputation is the most important thing. If a bidder can't trust you, there is nothing you can possibly do to get them to bid.
2. Sunday night is prime time! If possible, the best time to end an auction is Sunday night, when most bidding happens all week! Keep in mind that most bidding goes on in the last minuets of an auction, so the ending time of an auction will determine the amount of bids you get.
3. Make bidders feel confident. On eBay, the biggest worry people have is, can I trust this person? Do whatever it takes to prove to bidders that you are devoted to their satisfaction, and then they will hesitate a lot less when clicking the "confirm bid" button.
4. Keep shipping prices as low as possible. High shipping prices are a big turn off to bidders because they have to worry about the auction price already, and high shipping prices will overwhelm bidders and make them more hesitant to increase their maximum bid. And if possible, use the free shipping option.
5. Add in free additions to the item. Adding in additional free items will give you a boost over the competition.
6. Separate yourself from everyone else. There are A LOT of people on eBay, its hard enough to sell as it is, the only way to get bidders, is to add something to your listing that will make it unique and attractive.
7. Be creative with the photos. Arranging items in creative ways and adding in vibrant colors will attract the eyes of bidders.
8. Fill your My World page. The more information you give the bidder, the more boost you have over the competition. The My World page is a perfect opportunity to show bidders what your about.
9. Respond! Bidders feel more comfortable knowing that they can freely communicate with the seller. And the more time you leave without responding just leaves more time for the bidder to look elsewhere for the same item!
10. Make a clear detailed description. With so many different choices on eBay, bidders will not hesitate to look elsewhere if they do not get the most detailed description possible.
These techniques may seem very small and not important, but added up together they are the most affective way to sell on eBay. These are the 10 most important things on an eBay listing, and are a great tool to refer to when listing your items on eBay.
_________________________________________________________________________
eBay is all about competition. If you were the only person selling your item, it would sell in a second. But there are hundreds of each item being sold, so the only way to sell is to separate yourself from everyone else.
It is very important to take advantage of the things eBay gives to you. To me the two best opportunities on eBay are the My World page and the free shipping option. The My World page allows you to sell yourself to bidders and make them feel comfortable about shopping with you. Which as I said is one of the most important things. Free shipping is another great thing that is given to you by eBay. It is VERY attractive to bidders because they don't have to worry about a shipping price, which usually overwhelms bidders. It also says free in bold text next to your listing which is basically a free advertisement. It also puts a "free shipping" picture in the top right corner of your listing picture. Here it is:
That right there is completely free. You don't need to pay for that. It is a FREE ADVERTISEMENT! Way to many people pass this opportunity up, but it is one of the best ways to attract bidders. It not only attracts their eyes, but it eliminates the shipping price from their minds. That, like I said, gives you a boost over the competition. Any chance you get, use free shipping. It helps.
Another great opportunity on eBay is the "About Me" page. Although it is true that nobody ever reads them, by making one, you get a
symbol next to your name. Once again, it sticks out to bidders eyes and separates you from everyone else. You don't need to write anything in the page, but you should definitely consider just putting just a few words in it just to get that symbol next to your name. Its easy to make, just visit the Create About Me Page.
One more thing to think about is the feedback score system. eBay will put stars next to your name when you reach a certain feedback score. First, once you get 10 positive feedbacks, you will get a
next to your name. These starts continue to change color as your feedback score increases. You should always strive to get that first 10, so that you can get your gold star! An account without a star is very uninviting and will put you below the competition.
Another thing to keep in mind is the reviews and guides. On eBay you can write guides to share experiences and expertise, and reviews to evaluate certain items. People who read your reviews and guides have the option to vote, helpful or not helpful. Once you receive 100 helpfulness votes you get a
symbol next to your name. Once you rank among the 10,000 best reviewers you will get a 
next to your name. The number changes as you rank among the top 10,000, 5,000, 1,000, 100, 25 and #1 reviewers. Writing a guide (just like this one) is fun, easy and helpful to other people, and once you get one of those symbols next to your name, it will catch peoples eyes and make you seem more credible. This symbol is the most important one because not everyone can get one. So get started at the Reviews and Guides Page.
All of those symbols I showed you are very important, because as I have said so many times, IT SEPARATES YOU FROM EVERYONE ELSE! On eBay that is one of the most important things, and all of those symbols will help you get more bidding traffic.
__________________________________________________________________________
The most important thing as I said, is your reputation. Once you have a bad reputation, there is nothing you can ever do to get people to bid on your items. It is not hard to maintain a good reputation. All you have to do is pay attention to the detailed seller ratings categories and you should always refer back to them when selling. The four evaluated points are: Item as described, Communication, Shipping time and Shipping and Handling Charges. Below I have given you a simple way to keep your seller ratings high.
Item as Described:
When writing a description it is very important to be honest. You can't be afraid of saying bad things about your item. Lack of honesty will result in a low rating which can be one of the worst things for your reputation. Make sure to talk about any broken buttons, scratches or any other problems with the item. It may sell better if you lie, but there is nothing worth risking a bad reputation for.
Communication:
Communication is very important. If someone contacts you, then that simply means they are interested in your item. But like I said, there are many options for bidders. Time without responding, is time for the bidder to continue shopping elsewhere.
Shipping Time:
One of the most frustrating things for a bidder is when they have to wait, and wait, and wait until they receive their item. You should always be on top of your shipping, and should have your packages ready to ship the next day.
Shipping and Handling Charges:
Like I said in tip #4, it is important to keep shipping prices as low as possible. Not only does it increase the chances of your item being sold, but it can help you seller ratings. It might even be a better idea to add the shipping charges into the price and then choose the free shipping option. The use of free shipping is an automatic 5 star rating.
One VERY important thing to remember, is that as of November 2008, eBay has made a new rule. You MUST maintain a Detailed Seller Rating score of 4.3 stars for each category. This will apply to the last 30 days unless you have less than 10 ratings in which case it will apply to the last 12 months. If you fail to maintain that score, you will not be able to sell. For this reason, you should work hard to maintain a good reputation. And a good way to do that is to follow the tips I just gave you.
eBay also allows buyers and sellers to leave feedback for each transaction. You can leave positive, neutral or negative feedback. Although many people rather receive negative feedback than a 1 star rating (because feedback doesn't affect your selling abilities) it is still important to strive for positive feedback. The best way to do that is just to be honest. Even if you send a broken or scratched item, if it said that in the description, you will still get positive feedback. It is also a good idea to ensure the bidder that you will leave them positive feedback. You should also notify bidders that before leaving negative or neutral feedback, they should contact you and resolve the issue. You should take you reputation seriously and try to prevent any negative feedback or low seller ratings. One negative feedback will bring down your feedback percentage, which is a turn-off to bidders. Shoot for that 100% positive feedback.
_________________________________________________________________________
One other thing you might want to consider that will surely help you sell, is eBay's Want It Now feature. This feature allows bidders to write a post about items they want, and then sellers reply with their listings. This is a very good idea because it is another free advertisement and expands your listings. It is very easy to make one, all you have to do is visit the Want It Now Page. This is a great feature for both sellers and bidders.
eBay also has a feature called Neighborhoods. There are hundreds of Neighborhoods for many different interests, hobbies, sports teams, etc. Once you join a neighborhood, you can make posts and sell items within the neighborhood. This also expands the horizon of your listing. To join a neighborhood, just visit the Neighborhoods Page.
___________________________________________________________________________
We haven't talked much about money yet but I would like to make one point that can save you a couple dollars. We are all familiar with the selling fees. eBay charges you a certain amount of money based on your starting bid price. But if you pay attention, changing your starting bid as little as $0.01 can save you up to $1 which over time will add up and save you a lot. Lets just say you want to sell and item for $500.00. Your listing fee will be $4.00. But, if you lower that price just $0.01 the listing fee is now $3.00. This is a very slick method that can save a lot of money over an extended period of time. This is also a good idea, because $499.99 looks a lot more inviting then $500.00. This is a very good thing to consider when posting an item. To check eBay's listing fees just go to eBay Fees Page. This page also shows the Final Value Fee's and Buy it Now prices.
___________________________________________________________________________
When creating a listing, you might want to consider adding in a Buy it Now or Best Offer option. These are good ideas because some bidders do not want to put the time or stress into an auction, and much rather just buy it on the spot. The Best Offer option is very inviting to bidders because it allows you to negotiate. When bidders see the Best Offer option it makes them feel confident and gives them an addictive shopping feeling that we all get. Sometimes people will give an offer even if they don't want the item, that is how addicting the Best Offer option is. These two options are great boosts and affect the thinking process of bidders in a positive way. It also gives you a symbol next to your listing that looks like this:
or 
. These don't necessarily stick out as much as the symbols i mentioned before, but they give bidders a different feeling then just looking at a starting bid price. Keep in mind that you cannot have an auction along with the Best Offer option, although you can with the Buy it Now option. You must have a feedback score of over 5 in order to use Best Offer. To learn more about the Best Offer option go to the Selling with Best Offer Page.
________________________________________________________________________
If you are interested in giving back, eBay offers a fabulous program called eBay Giving Works. It allows you to donate 10%-100% of your final sale price to various nonprofit organizations. Also, it will give you a fee credit. In return for your generous actions, eBay puts a
symbol in your listing. This is a great thing to do to give back, even donating 10% is a big difference. Although it may not be good for your revenue, its a great opportunity that is offered to us so graciously by eBay.
__________________________________________________________________________
If you are looking to form a business or sell in masses, you might want to consider an eBay store. eBay stores offer great discounts and selling opportunities for a monthly price. You will get your own store page with a link to all your items in a customizable format. If you are looking to sell a lot, eBay stores are a great way to ensure sales. In addition to all this, you get a
symbol next to your name, which is helpful because bidders know that symbol means that they are dealing with a reliable responsible company. To learn more about eBay stores just visit the eBay Store Page. Additionally, eBay members can qualify for something called a Power Seller. Power Sellers are the most successful sellers in terms of income and reliability. Power Sellers get a 
icon next to there name. This symbol is among the most powerful symbols as it assures bidders they are dealing with a very reliable seller. To learn more about Power Sellers and how to qualify, just visit the Power Seller Page. Just to clarify, if you are not a big company, these are not for you. These two options do help a lot, but there are many things you can do to be successful without having an eBay Store or being a Power Seller.
___________________________________________________________________________
This is a lot of information to take in, but these are just a few of eBay techniques. eBay offers many many more great things, but those are for you to find. The 10 tips I gave you is the easiest way to look at your listings. Every listing you make should incorporate those 10 tips. Additionally, I have shown you the numerous features that eBay offers and the best ways to take advantage of them, along with the importance of maintaining your reputation and tips for doing so. The more of these techniques you use, the more sales you will get. Thanks for reading and I wish you the best of luck in your sales!
If you have any questions regarding these tips, I will be happy to help you. Contact me at jcole1994@gmail.com.
1. Care about your reputation. Believe it or not, bidders look at your feedback score. Your reputation is the most important thing. If a bidder can't trust you, there is nothing you can possibly do to get them to bid.
2. Sunday night is prime time! If possible, the best time to end an auction is Sunday night, when most bidding happens all week! Keep in mind that most bidding goes on in the last minuets of an auction, so the ending time of an auction will determine the amount of bids you get.
3. Make bidders feel confident. On eBay, the biggest worry people have is, can I trust this person? Do whatever it takes to prove to bidders that you are devoted to their satisfaction, and then they will hesitate a lot less when clicking the "confirm bid" button.
4. Keep shipping prices as low as possible. High shipping prices are a big turn off to bidders because they have to worry about the auction price already, and high shipping prices will overwhelm bidders and make them more hesitant to increase their maximum bid. And if possible, use the free shipping option.
5. Add in free additions to the item. Adding in additional free items will give you a boost over the competition.
6. Separate yourself from everyone else. There are A LOT of people on eBay, its hard enough to sell as it is, the only way to get bidders, is to add something to your listing that will make it unique and attractive.
7. Be creative with the photos. Arranging items in creative ways and adding in vibrant colors will attract the eyes of bidders.
8. Fill your My World page. The more information you give the bidder, the more boost you have over the competition. The My World page is a perfect opportunity to show bidders what your about.
9. Respond! Bidders feel more comfortable knowing that they can freely communicate with the seller. And the more time you leave without responding just leaves more time for the bidder to look elsewhere for the same item!
10. Make a clear detailed description. With so many different choices on eBay, bidders will not hesitate to look elsewhere if they do not get the most detailed description possible.
These techniques may seem very small and not important, but added up together they are the most affective way to sell on eBay. These are the 10 most important things on an eBay listing, and are a great tool to refer to when listing your items on eBay.
_________________________________________________________________________
eBay is all about competition. If you were the only person selling your item, it would sell in a second. But there are hundreds of each item being sold, so the only way to sell is to separate yourself from everyone else.
It is very important to take advantage of the things eBay gives to you. To me the two best opportunities on eBay are the My World page and the free shipping option. The My World page allows you to sell yourself to bidders and make them feel comfortable about shopping with you. Which as I said is one of the most important things. Free shipping is another great thing that is given to you by eBay. It is VERY attractive to bidders because they don't have to worry about a shipping price, which usually overwhelms bidders. It also says free in bold text next to your listing which is basically a free advertisement. It also puts a "free shipping" picture in the top right corner of your listing picture. Here it is:
That right there is completely free. You don't need to pay for that. It is a FREE ADVERTISEMENT! Way to many people pass this opportunity up, but it is one of the best ways to attract bidders. It not only attracts their eyes, but it eliminates the shipping price from their minds. That, like I said, gives you a boost over the competition. Any chance you get, use free shipping. It helps. Another great opportunity on eBay is the "About Me" page. Although it is true that nobody ever reads them, by making one, you get a
symbol next to your name. Once again, it sticks out to bidders eyes and separates you from everyone else. You don't need to write anything in the page, but you should definitely consider just putting just a few words in it just to get that symbol next to your name. Its easy to make, just visit the Create About Me Page. One more thing to think about is the feedback score system. eBay will put stars next to your name when you reach a certain feedback score. First, once you get 10 positive feedbacks, you will get a
next to your name. These starts continue to change color as your feedback score increases. You should always strive to get that first 10, so that you can get your gold star! An account without a star is very uninviting and will put you below the competition.Another thing to keep in mind is the reviews and guides. On eBay you can write guides to share experiences and expertise, and reviews to evaluate certain items. People who read your reviews and guides have the option to vote, helpful or not helpful. Once you receive 100 helpfulness votes you get a
symbol next to your name. Once you rank among the 10,000 best reviewers you will get a next to your name. The number changes as you rank among the top 10,000, 5,000, 1,000, 100, 25 and #1 reviewers. Writing a guide (just like this one) is fun, easy and helpful to other people, and once you get one of those symbols next to your name, it will catch peoples eyes and make you seem more credible. This symbol is the most important one because not everyone can get one. So get started at the Reviews and Guides Page.All of those symbols I showed you are very important, because as I have said so many times, IT SEPARATES YOU FROM EVERYONE ELSE! On eBay that is one of the most important things, and all of those symbols will help you get more bidding traffic.
__________________________________________________________________________
The most important thing as I said, is your reputation. Once you have a bad reputation, there is nothing you can ever do to get people to bid on your items. It is not hard to maintain a good reputation. All you have to do is pay attention to the detailed seller ratings categories and you should always refer back to them when selling. The four evaluated points are: Item as described, Communication, Shipping time and Shipping and Handling Charges. Below I have given you a simple way to keep your seller ratings high.
Item as Described:
When writing a description it is very important to be honest. You can't be afraid of saying bad things about your item. Lack of honesty will result in a low rating which can be one of the worst things for your reputation. Make sure to talk about any broken buttons, scratches or any other problems with the item. It may sell better if you lie, but there is nothing worth risking a bad reputation for.
Communication:
Communication is very important. If someone contacts you, then that simply means they are interested in your item. But like I said, there are many options for bidders. Time without responding, is time for the bidder to continue shopping elsewhere.
Shipping Time:
One of the most frustrating things for a bidder is when they have to wait, and wait, and wait until they receive their item. You should always be on top of your shipping, and should have your packages ready to ship the next day.
Shipping and Handling Charges:
Like I said in tip #4, it is important to keep shipping prices as low as possible. Not only does it increase the chances of your item being sold, but it can help you seller ratings. It might even be a better idea to add the shipping charges into the price and then choose the free shipping option. The use of free shipping is an automatic 5 star rating.
One VERY important thing to remember, is that as of November 2008, eBay has made a new rule. You MUST maintain a Detailed Seller Rating score of 4.3 stars for each category. This will apply to the last 30 days unless you have less than 10 ratings in which case it will apply to the last 12 months. If you fail to maintain that score, you will not be able to sell. For this reason, you should work hard to maintain a good reputation. And a good way to do that is to follow the tips I just gave you.
eBay also allows buyers and sellers to leave feedback for each transaction. You can leave positive, neutral or negative feedback. Although many people rather receive negative feedback than a 1 star rating (because feedback doesn't affect your selling abilities) it is still important to strive for positive feedback. The best way to do that is just to be honest. Even if you send a broken or scratched item, if it said that in the description, you will still get positive feedback. It is also a good idea to ensure the bidder that you will leave them positive feedback. You should also notify bidders that before leaving negative or neutral feedback, they should contact you and resolve the issue. You should take you reputation seriously and try to prevent any negative feedback or low seller ratings. One negative feedback will bring down your feedback percentage, which is a turn-off to bidders. Shoot for that 100% positive feedback.
_________________________________________________________________________
One other thing you might want to consider that will surely help you sell, is eBay's Want It Now feature. This feature allows bidders to write a post about items they want, and then sellers reply with their listings. This is a very good idea because it is another free advertisement and expands your listings. It is very easy to make one, all you have to do is visit the Want It Now Page. This is a great feature for both sellers and bidders.
eBay also has a feature called Neighborhoods. There are hundreds of Neighborhoods for many different interests, hobbies, sports teams, etc. Once you join a neighborhood, you can make posts and sell items within the neighborhood. This also expands the horizon of your listing. To join a neighborhood, just visit the Neighborhoods Page.
___________________________________________________________________________
We haven't talked much about money yet but I would like to make one point that can save you a couple dollars. We are all familiar with the selling fees. eBay charges you a certain amount of money based on your starting bid price. But if you pay attention, changing your starting bid as little as $0.01 can save you up to $1 which over time will add up and save you a lot. Lets just say you want to sell and item for $500.00. Your listing fee will be $4.00. But, if you lower that price just $0.01 the listing fee is now $3.00. This is a very slick method that can save a lot of money over an extended period of time. This is also a good idea, because $499.99 looks a lot more inviting then $500.00. This is a very good thing to consider when posting an item. To check eBay's listing fees just go to eBay Fees Page. This page also shows the Final Value Fee's and Buy it Now prices.
___________________________________________________________________________
When creating a listing, you might want to consider adding in a Buy it Now or Best Offer option. These are good ideas because some bidders do not want to put the time or stress into an auction, and much rather just buy it on the spot. The Best Offer option is very inviting to bidders because it allows you to negotiate. When bidders see the Best Offer option it makes them feel confident and gives them an addictive shopping feeling that we all get. Sometimes people will give an offer even if they don't want the item, that is how addicting the Best Offer option is. These two options are great boosts and affect the thinking process of bidders in a positive way. It also gives you a symbol next to your listing that looks like this:
or . These don't necessarily stick out as much as the symbols i mentioned before, but they give bidders a different feeling then just looking at a starting bid price. Keep in mind that you cannot have an auction along with the Best Offer option, although you can with the Buy it Now option. You must have a feedback score of over 5 in order to use Best Offer. To learn more about the Best Offer option go to the Selling with Best Offer Page.________________________________________________________________________
If you are interested in giving back, eBay offers a fabulous program called eBay Giving Works. It allows you to donate 10%-100% of your final sale price to various nonprofit organizations. Also, it will give you a fee credit. In return for your generous actions, eBay puts a
symbol in your listing. This is a great thing to do to give back, even donating 10% is a big difference. Although it may not be good for your revenue, its a great opportunity that is offered to us so graciously by eBay.__________________________________________________________________________
If you are looking to form a business or sell in masses, you might want to consider an eBay store. eBay stores offer great discounts and selling opportunities for a monthly price. You will get your own store page with a link to all your items in a customizable format. If you are looking to sell a lot, eBay stores are a great way to ensure sales. In addition to all this, you get a
symbol next to your name, which is helpful because bidders know that symbol means that they are dealing with a reliable responsible company. To learn more about eBay stores just visit the eBay Store Page. Additionally, eBay members can qualify for something called a Power Seller. Power Sellers are the most successful sellers in terms of income and reliability. Power Sellers get a icon next to there name. This symbol is among the most powerful symbols as it assures bidders they are dealing with a very reliable seller. To learn more about Power Sellers and how to qualify, just visit the Power Seller Page. Just to clarify, if you are not a big company, these are not for you. These two options do help a lot, but there are many things you can do to be successful without having an eBay Store or being a Power Seller. ___________________________________________________________________________
This is a lot of information to take in, but these are just a few of eBay techniques. eBay offers many many more great things, but those are for you to find. The 10 tips I gave you is the easiest way to look at your listings. Every listing you make should incorporate those 10 tips. Additionally, I have shown you the numerous features that eBay offers and the best ways to take advantage of them, along with the importance of maintaining your reputation and tips for doing so. The more of these techniques you use, the more sales you will get. Thanks for reading and I wish you the best of luck in your sales!
If you have any questions regarding these tips, I will be happy to help you. Contact me at jcole1994@gmail.com.
Guide created: 11/08/08 (updated 12/14/08)
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