Are eBay Auctions Going Away?

The Online Seller's News, May, 201, Volume 10, No. 8

Tips, Tools, News and Resources for eBay, Amazon and independent Online Sellers
by: Skip McGrath

In This Issue:

Musings from eBay and beyond

1. Are eBay Auctions Going Away?
2. Customer Communications is The Key To Profits
3. eBay Niche of The Month – Owner and Repair Manuals
4. New Wholesale Sources for May 2010

"Inflation is when you pay fifteen dollars for the ten-dollar haircut you used to get for five dollars when you had hair." ~ Sam Ewing

Musings from eBay and beyond

We announced our new affiliate program in the last issue and had about 70 readers sign up for it. But I also had a lot of questions from people before they signed up which told me that I needed to provide more information. So we created a page under our resources tab that explains how the program works and the commission schedule. Here is the link to the Skip McGrath Affiliate Program.

You do not need a website to promote our program. You can put links in Facebook, Twitter, Blogs or emails to your customers.

Last issue’s Niche of The Month about selling baby car seats and strollers generated a lot of mail from people who pointed out all of the problems related to that market.  This was my fault as a paragraph I had written about the recalls was inadvertently left out. It was added the next day, but many of you who read the newsletter as soon as you received it missed that.

That paragraph pointed out that there are a lot of recalled seats and that you should check with the Consumer Product Safety Commission web site: http://www.cpsc.gov to see which car seats have been recalled before you buy them.

Another concern is whether or not a seat has been in a crash. If the crash was minor there could be internal damage you cannot see. About all you can do here is really look the seller in the eye and ask “Has this seat been in any kind of crash –even minor?” Then watch their face as they answer. It’s true that some people can look you right in the eye and lie, but most people will tell the truth or stammer or look away if they are trying to lie. Before you buy a seat look it over really carefully. Most plastics will crinkle if they were exposed to twisting forces –but they will rarely crack unless the crash was really bad. So look closely for any type of crinkling or wavy lines that would indicate the seat was subjected to stresses.

The other issue I should have pointed out is one that I have mentioned before.   If you sell any product related to babies or toddlers, you should incorporate or form an LLC and do all of your business through that entity. Since product liability insurance is very expensive and hard to get, working through a limited liability structure is the only way to protect your personal assets from a lawsuit.  You can incorporate or form an LLC at My Corporation.com They are fast, inexpensive and give great service. I used to recommend Legal Zoom, but the last couple deals I did with them didn’t impress me.

A lot of the comments I got were from folks who thought that particular niche was just impossible to do, but if you look at all of the used car seats selling on eBay it is obvious that this is a good market.

When it comes to removing feedback, eBay is now enforcing a new policy that you as the seller are totally and completely responsible for delivering the items you sell. This included items claimed as not received even though you have a delivery confirmation from the shipper. So if someone just says they never received the package, or if the package was delivered and stolen from their doorstep, then eBay says you are still responsible and will side with the customer if they complain. In one case a reader had delivery confirmation and still replaced the item at his own expense and eBay still declined to remove the negative feedback the buyer left.

The only way to avoid this is if you require a signature, but this could also earn you negative feedback. If you require a signature UPS will not leave the item but leave a card instead that the person finds when they get home from work. Now they are irritated because they have to arrange delivery with UPS when they are there to sign. This may cause a buyer to leave a negative feedback or a one-star rating on shipping.

My latest book, The Virtual Peddler that I released last month has been a big hit. It is selling faster than our previous books and we are getting really good testimonials and feedback from readers. So thank you to all who have purchased it and for your great feedback.  One of the bonus items in The Virtual Peddler is a $10 electronic coupon good for purchase of any of our other books.

If you are just starting out with an eBay business and want to learn about keeping good record, my bookkeeper, Denise Cote’ has just written a great little book called Just the Basics: Simple Help for Starting a Business and Creating a Good Bookkeeping System (Volume 1)

Just The Basics is just what it says. You get everything you need to get your business organized and started without overwhelming you with a lot of technical bookkeeping and accounting stuff.

Lets get started with this month’s articles:

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1. Are eBay Auctions Going Away?

At eBay’s annual meeting, CEO John Donohoe said that auctions now make up less than half of all listings on the site. And he predicted it could drop to as low as 30% by 2011.   Just a few years ago, auctions made up around 70 percent of the listings on the site but in the last quarter they were only 45 percent.

This is not by accident. Since Donohoe took over, eBay has made a concerted effort to look more like Amazon, attract large merchants and focus their growth on fixed price selling.

The very nature of the auction business is that it only works when there is a sense of community and a shared passion between buyers and sellers. Those are the traits that made eBay successful. And, these are the same traits that eBay has assiduously tried to kill over the last few years since Donohoe arrived. Actually it started somewhat before Donohoe took over, but has accelerated under his leadership (or should I say lack of leadership).

I did a blog post on this last week where I suggested that eBay might want to just sell off its auction business to a company that would care about it. I don’t know if eBay would ever do this but it is not outside the realm of possibility. Personally I wish they would. One of the comments on my post said “…sellers would love an auction platform that “loved” them back.”  I couldn’t agree more.

In any event, lest you think I am down on selling on eBay as a business --I am not. With all of eBay’s problems and their inconsistent management and lack of a winning business strategy, eBay is still the easiest place to start an online business. Over the past 15 years eBay has created hundreds of thousands of online entrepreneurs. Not all of them were successful –but many were. And not all of them stayed with eBay, although many did.

Once you learn how to sell on eBay successfully you have learned valuable skills that you can transfer to selling on other venues such as Amazon, Craigslist, Upillar and Bonanzle (both Upillar and Bonanzle are really growing fast) and your own website.

The skill set you learn on eBay is easily transferrable and I have always been a proponent of multi-channel selling anyway. Why put all of your eggs in one basket, or should I say why put all your hooks in one bay?

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2. Customer Communications is The Key To Profits

I am always amazed when I get email from customers explaining a problem they had with a customer that resulted in a negative feedback or poor star rating. Invariably, when you look into the issue you find either a lack of communication   or just perfunctory communication.

eBay has already announced they will soon go to an anonymous email system where all communication must be done through the eBay platform. This move is upsetting a lot of sellers, but in reality Amazon has had this system in place for years and we have never had a problem with it.

As much as we all dislike the way eBay treats sellers –it is their platform and if you are going to sell on it, you have to follow their rules.

But rules and policies aside, the way you communicate with customers can dramatically affect your profits. Better communications will result in higher DSRs which in turn can earn you fee discounts and Top Rated Seller status which will improve your position in search.

So here are some tips for writing effective emails that will engender customer trust and prevent problems.

1. Be personal – Write just as you speak. Address the person by name or user ID if you don’t know their name.  Hello or Hi James is much better than just Hi or no salutation at all.  And sign your name and user ID. Example, Skip McGrath, eBay username: mcgrrrrr.
2. Be concise –but be complete.  Get to the point of the email quickly, but be sure and cover all the information.
3. Write a relevant subject – “Your order for flow blue plate” is a lot better than “your order” or “Item number 333445533773” as a subject line.
4. Check your spelling and grammar. If you are not skilled in grammar, you can pre-write your email into Microsoft Word and their grammar checker will help you out. It’s not perfect but it will catch most serious errors.
5. Answer customer email quickly – We check our eBay email hourly during the day and once or twice in the evening. (If you like to watch your favorite TV shows invest in a Tivo or DVR so you can pause your shows while you check your email).
6. Answer the entire customer’s question and concerns quickly. You can also take the opportunity to pre-empt further questions if you tend to get the same questions repeatedly.
7. Always thank the customer for their business and always send them an email when you ship and item with any shipping details.
8. Send a follow up email a few days after you ship the item – We always send an email a few days later asking if the item was received, was everything OK and we give them the link to leave feedback.

Follow these tips, you will see your feedback and DSR scores improve.

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3. eBay Niche of The Month – Owner and Repair Manuals

In my book, How To Make Money Selling Used Books on eBay, Amazon and The Internet, one type of book I recommend selling is used repair and owner’s manuals.  These are perpetual sellers. And the more unique the product, the higher the price you can get.

People buy repair and owners manuals for almost anything from guns to cameras, to old electronic equipment, to cars and motorcycles.  Here are some screenshots of manuals that have sold on eBay.

The best categories are owners and repair manuals for cars, older cameras and appliances, computers (especially MacIntosh) and hi-fi and stereo systems.

Admittedly they can be a little hard to find but they are out there if you look for them. They turn up in thrift shops, garage sales, street sales and flea markets. You can often buy them for a buck or two and get as much as $100 although most fall in the $25 to $75 range.

A great way to find them is to advertise. Just take out a small classified ad that says you buy old owners and repair manuals. You will be surprised how many turn up.

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4. New Wholesale Sources for May 2010

Summer is on its way and outdoor products are already hot on eBay and Amazon, so here are a few suppliers of outdoor products.

Grey Eagle Trading sells knives, camping gear, outdoor clothing and other related stuff.  They also have a drop ship program, but I haven’ t looked at it enough to know if it’s profitable.

Van Raalte sells a line of outdoor tents and canopies under the EZ Up Brand.

J & W Sports features licensed sportswear and novelty products for professional baseball, basketball, football, hockey, and college teams.

Emco Supply is mostly a seller of knives and military style gear, but they also have a great line of knapsacks, tents and other outdoor camping equipment. They are redoing their website, but there is an email link at this location, where you can email and they will send you a catalog and wholesale price lists.

Outdoor Active Gear wholesales a nice line of outdoor chairs, blankets, coolers and other outdoor products.

Tool Logic sells compact, high quality, multi-function tool kits, including wholesale survival knives with unique and unusual gifts for birthdays and men.

Complete Drop Ship is a wholesaler and distributor for Texsport & Wenzel camping equipment and gear including Stack-on safes, Kershaw Knives, Kowa Optics, Polaris, Victory & Kawasaki Bikes, as well as a wide variety of Watches, Jewelry, Cutlery, Toys, and more.  I don’t have any personal experience with this company so you want to check them out carefully and do a small test order to see how good their shipping and customer service is.

Let’s look at some other categories beside outdoors and sports.

D&L Stained Glass Supply, Inc., is a wholesale distributor of supplies for the art glass industry. They supply glass and tools to the professional glass artists, to retail, craft and hobby stores, to manufacturers, to studios and to commission artists.

If you would like to create beautiful lampwork bead jewelry to sell on eBay and Etsy.com, Grace Lampwork Beads specializes in handmade lampwork glass beads, made of high quality Italian and German glass. The website lists retail prices. You can click on the link on the right side of the page to open a wholesale account.

Duke Imports sells bed sheets (1200 count), mink blankets, comforter sets, quilt sets and more. They are a Direct Importer and Wholesaler.

Kerusso is a wholesale distributor of Christian products such as t-shirts, books, jewelry and accessories.

Bennington Candle has been hand pouring aromatherapy candles since 1997. Their candles are made with essential oils, 100% cotton wicks, and top quality waxes. Email them through the website for wholesale information.

Irwin Sales Embroidery patches and Collectible pins, Military, Motorcycles, Sports, Flags, Cities, Countries, Religious, Comics, Spanish, Black and Many More

Lastly, if you sell jewelry, the big Las Vegas Gem and Jewelry Show is running from May 31 to June 3^rd at the Mirage Convention Center. Meet hundreds of jewelers and manufacturers from around the world carrying every imaginable gemstone, one of a kind jewelry creations, estate jewelry, pre-owned luxury watches, gold, diamonds, silver, pearls and more.

That's It for now. See you in about 2 weeks.

Skip McGrath
The eBay Seller's News

P.S. If you missed the last issue, click here to read it.

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