eBay Seller's News, December 2005, Volume 5, Issue #12

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Have you ever lost a PDA, laptop or digital camera? If you have it's usually a total loss, because homeowners insurance has such a high deductible on these items. Here are some interesting facts about lost electronic items:

• 140,000 items are found annually on Southwest Airlines flights, 50,000 items at Enterprise Rent-A-Car, and 20 a day at some Avis Rent-A-Car locations. Despite best efforts, fewer than 1% are returned. - The Wall Street Journal, November 2003
  
• 1,200 cell phones, 1,500 sets of keys and over 300 PDAs and laptops are turned into the Las Vegas International lost and found department annually. - McCarran Int'l Airport Security, July 2003



Click Here to watch a free video and learn how Michael Chaney makes $19,000 a month with Google AdSense

Last week I signed up for a really neat loss-recovery program with a company called StuffBak. StuffBak sells these little labels and key ring tags that you attach to your laptop, camcorder, PDA, cell phone or car keys. When someone finds them, they go to the stuffBak web site that is on the tag, enter the number and StuffBak arranges a courier to pick up the item and deliver it to you.

The cost is really low and their recovery rate is astounding. A journalist from CNBC wrote a story about StuffBak. He intentionally lost 6 items and 5 of them were returned. StuffBak also sells gift paks. This would make a great gift for your absent-minded friends or family members.

In a related story, on the Sunday after Thanksgiving I was watching the CBS Sunday Morning show and they had a story about the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsborough, AL, located about 40 miles from Huntsville. This is where all of the airlines, rental car companies, the TSA and a number of hotels send unclaimed luggage, cargo and items left behind by passengers and renters. The store is huge --about the size of a WalMart and contains almost everything imaginable. The prices they were selling at were astounding. Anyone who lives within driving distance of this place could easily make a living buying goods there and selling them on eBay. I was doing a little research and found that they now have a web site, the Unclaimed Baggage Center. When you see the vast amount of new and lightly used merchandise for sale there, this might convince you to visit StuffBak and buy their return labels before your laptop or PDA ends up for sale at the Unclaimed Baggage Center.

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I have just listed a new product at my companion site, www.ezauctiontools.com, The Complete eBay Trading Assistant Digital Photography Kit. If you own a drop off store, or are serious about becoming an eBay trading assistant or consignment seller, this kit gives you absolutely everything you need to get started.

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Back in July I told you about a new auction management company, Mpire, that was the hit of eBay Live. I have recently made an arrangement where my readers can try out the Mpire Builder system for 30-days for free. But the best news is that Mpire has just released a totally free service called Mpire Launcher. It is a scaled down version of the Builder system, but it can automate a lot of the routine tasks associated with launching auctions and hosting photos and is totally free --forever !!!

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Back in October I told you about Mike Enos's eBay Training Cruise to the Caribbean. The cruise is filling up fast. Mike told me Jim Cochran, author of The Silent Sales Machine Hiding on eBay will be one of the featured speakers and he is lining up some other eBay gurus such as Tim Knox as well. It really sounds like a lot of fun and a good opportunity to learn from some of the masters of the business.

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Ever since it split back in August, eBay stock has been in the doldrums. It has taken a patient investor to hold on, but patience is usually rewarded. eBay stock has been on a tear lately, but it still looks like a good buy as it's not yet back to it's previous highs. I think when eBay reports their earnings in January it will shock the market which has consistently undervalued the stock.

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As most of our regular readers know we have been running a program for the past three years that donates phone cards to our troops serving overseas. We usually mail the cards to active units in Afghanistan and Iraq and ships serving in the area. To Date we have sent over $11,000 worth of cards --all of this donated by you, our readers, and other visitors to our web site. At the moment we only have about $400 in the account. If I can ask you to reach into your wallets and your hearts again, I would like to raise another $600. We are in contact with the Moral Officer at the Walter Reed Army Hospital where amputees and other seriously wounded personnel are being treated. Our plan is get at least 50, $20 phone cards mailed to Walter Reed by December 15th, so they can have them in time for calling home over the holidays. Please Click Here to read more about the program and to donate.

Well, lets get on with this month's issue:

In This Issue

1. Learning how to say "NO" can double your eBay Consignment Profits
2. Do I Need A Business License To Sell on ebay?
3. Low Cost Ways To Advertise Your eBay Auctions
4. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery --Or, do what others do to become successful.
5. New eBay Research Service Competes With Andale and Terapeak
6. Are You Spending Too Much Time Answering eBay Emails?
7. New Wholesale Sources for December 2005

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1. Learning How to Say "NO" Can Double Your eBay Consignment Profits

This is a lesson I learned the hard way. I have been an eBay Trading Assistant (TA) since the beginning of the program almost 4 years ago. On at least three occasions I have accepted merchandise that I was "100% Positive" would sell on eBay, only to be proven wrong.

When you accept goods that either will not sell, or will not sell at a decent price, this costs you money in eBay fees and, more importantly, in time wasted that could be used to make a profit doing something different.

Here is an example. A lady called me one day from the TA listing on eBay and said she had a large collection of Elvis collectibles. My wife, Karen, and I drove about 20 miles to meet with her. When we got there it turned out the "collectibles' were mostly Franklin Mint plates.

I knew Elvis collectibles are always hot on eBay and I was ready to have her sign a contract and take the collection of over 40 plates home to start launching them on eBay. But, I happened to glance over at my wife and she was giving me "the look." (As you may have guessed, I am the impulsive one in the family.) Upon receiving "the look," I told the lady that I would like to take a couple of the plates with me and do some research before deciding if we would take the whole collection. To make a long store short --when I got home and went onto eBay I discovered there are literally tons of these plates for sale in auctions and very-very few of them are worth even what the lady originally paid for them. Had we taken the collection, I would have had all the time and eBay fees to list 40 auctions, pack and ships the goods --and at best I would have made $3 or $4 on each auction as my fee.

The lesson is to follow Ronald Reagan's advice during the Cold War. "Trust --but verify." It's ok to trust your judgment and experience, but it pays to check first to verify there is a market for the goods and they can sell at a price where the commission you will earn is worth your time.

2. Do I Need A Business License To Sell on eBay?

The subject of business licenses can be very confusing and it's one I get constant emails from my readers about. The best way to understand this is to break it down into the types of licenses and the requirements of each:

• Local Business License. A local business license is issued by a city or town and is typically only needed if you open an office in a commercial location or if you have a business where customers are coming to your house. If, for example, you were to open an eBay drop off store, then you would need a local business license. If you are operating an eBay or web site business out of your home and do not invite customers to your home, then you most likely do not need a local business license.
  
• State Sales Tax License. There are several names for this license. You will often hear it called a "reseller license," Reseller or Resale Permit," or "Sales Tax ID." Don't let these different terms confuse you --they all mean the same thing. If you live in a state that charges sales tax, and you sell goods that will be delivered to a buyer who also lives in that same state, then you are usually required by law to charge that person sales tax and remit the collected tax to the state.
  
  There are some exceptions, but in general, unless you have a physical office in another state, you do not have to collect and pay sales tax on shipments to other states as long as your annual sales are less than $4 Million. 000,000.
  
  Most, but not all, wholesale companies require you to have a state sales tax ID before they will deal with you. This allows them to sell items to you without charging or paying sales tax. Please click here if you would like to read more about sales tax numbers and link to the various state web sites where you can apply online.
  
• Employee Identification Number (EIN). An EIN is something you get from the IRS. It is a tax ID number that businesses use instead of using your social security number. If you are a sole proprietorship with no employees, you are not required to have an EIN, however you can get one. One of the advantages of having an EIN is that you don't have to give out your social security number to companies that you do business with. Also, having an EIN gives you credibility with other companies such as wholesale suppliers or large business customers. If you incorporate, form a partnership or hire employees then you are required to have an EIN.
  
  It is very easy to get an EIN. You can download a form to apply for this from the IRS web site at www.irs.gov. It is faster, however, to apply by phone. Taxpayers can obtain an EIN immediately by calling the Business & Specialty Tax Line (800-829-4933). The hours of operation are 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. local time, Monday through Friday. An assistant takes the information, assigns the EIN, and provides the number to an authorized individual over the telephone. There is no charge to get an EIN.
  

3. Low Cost Ways to Advertise and Promote Your eBay Auctions

• An existing customer --one who has bought from you before is the easiest person to sell. Keep a record of all of your customers. Use eBay's opt-in email system and your own email list to promote your future sales. A great way to do this is to offer repeat customers an incentive such as free shipping.
  
• Set up an eBay store. It costs far less to list items in an eBay store than in an auction. Drive you repeat customers to your eBay store for immediate purchase rather than telling them about ongoing auctions.
  
• If you work in a specialized niche (and you should) always advertise your niche and where they can buy in your email signatures. Here is an example: "Visit my eBay Store for the latest in HO collectible trains." The words eBay Store should be a clickable hyperlink to your store.
  
• I always place a printed "thank you" note in the package when I ship something. In addition to thanking them it gives my eBay store link and web site address and has a line about all of the other things I sell. You can also create an electronic PayPal coupon that gives them a discount on their next purchase that you include in the box.
  
• eBay has dozens of specialized discussion groups. If there is a discussion group built around the product or collectible you sell, participate often. eBay does not allow you to advertise an auction directly, but you can "hint" about what you sell and readers can link to your auctions through your username. I don't have room here to explain all the ins and outs of doing this. So, read the discussion group rules very carefully first and you will see there are a lot of ways to get traffic to your listings without violating the rules.
  
• There are also lots of non-eBay discussion groups on various sites including Yahoo where the rules are more relaxed. Another alternative is to start your own discussion group.

4. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery --Or, do what others do to become successful.

Last year , I became a member of a private web site, SecretsToTheirSuccess.com, that shares the Internet marketing secrets of real people, just like you and me, who are earning $100,000+ per year with their own Internet businesses. I wrote about this over a year ago and hundreds of my readers took advantage of it.

Just to give you some background, every month, this site shares two new real-life stories of successful small web sites, providing in-depth interviews with the site owners and asking really tough questions about the exact steps, strategies, tools, and software that these people have used to build and grow their sites to their current success.

Reading these interviews is a very powerful way to guarantee the success of your own web site, because you're getting a personal insider's tour of real sites, run by real people, who are making real money! Every month when I get an email that a new site review is ready, I drop everything I am doing and go right to it.

Anyway, as I was reading through the latest success stories, I couldn't help but notice that, despite dramatic differences in the business models they use and the products and services they sell, these successful web site owners all share three common "success traits" that played a major role in growing their online sales to $100,000 to $600,000 a year...Once you master these three simple traits --or techniques, you can explode your business.

I realized that I told my readers about this site over a year ago, but I hadn't mentioned it in a long time and I thought it would be really helpful to any of you who have a web site or are considering building one. I even found information in the interviews that helped increase business from my eBay Store.

It doesn't matter what you sell --or want to sell on the web. You will find two new examples every month plus over 18 month's worth of archived stories that will help you increase sales and profits from your web site. Go to SecretsToTheirSuccess read about this really informative web site.

5. New eBay Research Service Competes With Andale and Terapeak

My regular readers know that I believe in the power of research. Using research tools such as Andale and Terapeak allows you to optimize your product selection for maximum profitability, prevent costly mistakes and help determine the optimum listing price points and best days to list and end your auction.

eBay has long realized the power of their search engine and I have always wondered when they would start charging for it. The basic search is still free to eBay members, but eBay is trying to copy the success of Andale and Terapeak by providing more depth and breath to the data they possess.

eBay recently announced eBay Marketplace Research. Here is what they have to say about the program:

Marketplace Research enables buyers and sellers to gather critical intelligence on buying and selling trends in the eBay marketplace. View and analyze top searches, average start prices, average sold prices and much more. This easy-to-use product makes getting to the data you need quick and efficient.

For Buyers - Track items you're interested in purchasing and view the average sold prices for those items.

For Sellers - Access up to 90 days of eBay historical completed items data. Understand the demand for items you're planning to sell with charts trending average bids per item, number of completed items and more. View top searches within a category or the entire site to see what buyers are searching for.

You can read about eBay Marketplace Research and sign up for a trial by clicking here.

6. Are You Spending Too Much Time Answering eBay Emails?

As my regular readers know, I am a major proponent of automation. Anything you can do to save time will eventually put more money in your pocket. This week I discovered a new product that is already saving me tons of time answering email from eBay bidders. It's called HostedSupport.

Do you get a bazillion customer emails? HostedSupport can help with its ezSupport Lite and ezSupport Lite for eBay products. Both are FREE versions of its easy-to-use automated online customer support solution. Similar to adding a customer support tab on your website, ezSupport Lite and ezSupport Lite for eBay benefits you and your customers by correctly answering 80% of inbound customer email – automatically. This gives you more time to increase revenue and not worry about repetitive customer support questions, such as shipping policies and your return/exchange process.

Since HostedSupport offers only web-based products, there is no software to install or special computer hardware to purchase. You only need a web browser and an internet connection and you’re ready to go. Set-up is handled via a wizard and it usually takes less than 20 minutes to complete.

For the next few weeks, HostedSupport is giving away ezSupport Pro (with Live Chat) for the first 30 days when you sign up for ezSupport Lite. This is normally a $79.95 product.

Both ezSupport Lite and ezSupport Lite for eBay have many features that benefit you and your customers, including:

• Reduce inbound customer email by as much as 80%.
• Easy-to-use – can be set up in less than 20 minutes.
• Focus on increasing revenue, not repetitive customer support issues.
• Quick response to eBay buyers means more frequent and higher bids, and a positive feedback score.
• ezSupport Lite for eBay is directly integrated with “Ask the Seller a Question”.
• ezSupport Lite for eBay is a Certified eBay Compatible Application.
• HostedSupport is an eBay Certified Solution Provider.
• Windows and Macintosh compatible.
• Advanced natural language search means accurate auto-responses within seconds.
• Hosted solution. No need for additional computers or software.
• Spam free. Spam does not work with web forms.

I just set up the eBay product and it is already reducing our workload. I am working on the web site solution and should have it up and running later this week. To take advantage of this opportunity, click on the product name to register for ezSupport Lite or ezSupport Lite for eBay.

7. New Wholesale Sources for December 2005

My wholesale search engine provider, GoWholesale recently merged with Wholesale 411. The makes the Auction Seller's Wholesale Search Engine far more powerful.

Paragon Leather is a manufacturer of leather goods. The web site is retail, but you can get a wholesale catalog by faxing them on your business letterhead at 269-323-9482. They offer a $25 sample package so you can try a few items on eBay before placing a regular order --$200 minimum purchase.

Another manufacturer of leather is a New Zealand company, Pan United, Inc. They sell beautiful leather jackets and New Zealand Lamb products. No web site but you can get a catalog by calling their US office in Virginia at 800-877-6862.

Silver jewelry is always a huge seller on eBay. I found a new supplier last month --Plum Island Silver has over 6,000 items in stock for immediate shipment.

Jacobs Paradise has a nice new line of flasks. It's a little late to order for Christmas but these are good year-round sellers.

I Pupi are jointed figurines made in Italy of porcelain, modeled and decorated by hand. A true witness of the traditions and craftsmanship of Italian ceramic artists. The line currently consists of over 200 figurines, each one is uniquely different and extremely collectible. The US distributor is the Paulazzo company.

Funkie Baby is a new line of baby accessories. You can download a pdf product sheet and contact them for pricing via the web site.

CrystalMania carries a large line of Swarovski crystal stretch bracelets, necklaces, rings, pins and earrings. If you live near L.A. they have a large showroom at 640 South Hill Street, Suite 553.

Clark Valley Soy carries a beautiful line of soy candles. Soy candles burn longer and cleaner than traditional wax candles.

That's it for this month. Don't forget to email me at ebaysellersnews@yahoo.com if you would like to learn about the new natural listing keyword program.

As we wrap up our fifth year of publication, let me take this chance to wish you a Merry Christmas, and a Happy Hanukah to our Jewish friends. I hope each and everyone of you enjoy the holiday season and the time spent with friends, family and loved ones and that the new year brings you peace, happiness and prosperity.

Skip & Karen McGrath