Will the Summer Slowdown on eBay Ever End?

The Online Seller's News, August 9, 2010, Volume 10, No. 14

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

In This Issue:

Musings from eBay and beyond

1. Will the Summer Slowdown on eBay Ever End?
2. Take The Time To Succeed
3. buySAFE Introduces Their 3 in 1 Guarantee
4. Vendor Review – EZ Auction Tools
5. New Wholesale Sources for eBay, Amazon & Online Sellers

"There are no traffic jams along the extra mile." ~ Roger Staubach

Musings from eBay and beyond

Are you getting my blog?  This newsletter comes out twice monthly, but I tend to update my blog about three times a week.  Did you know you could subscribe to a blog feed so you never miss one?  If you look in the upper-left-hand corner of the blog you will see a subscribe link that looks like this:

Just click on that link and it will show you a box that looks like this:

You just click on whichever home page or service you use and you will get a blog feed right on your home page.

Lately a lot of eBay sellers have begun selling on Amazon as well as eBay and some sellers have moved over to Amazon altogether.  If you are going to do Amazon profitably then you really need to consider using Amazon’s fulfillment service – Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA).

Once you understand the benefits and the potential for greater profits then FBA makes sense.  Essentially Amazon becomes your drop shipper.  You can even buy merchandise from your suppliers and have them ship it to Amazon directly and let Amazon fulfill your products for you.  And Amazon will also fulfill your eBay sales, so you can use the service for both platforms.

If you sell on Amazon, I have just added a new article to the Free Articles page by Chris Green CEO of FBAPower.  The article explains how FBA works and Chris discusses some of the pros and cons you should be aware of. Here is the link to Save Time and Increase Profits with Fulfillment By Amazon. At the end of the article Chris gives you a great overview of FBAPower’s benefits and a look at their new Android phone application for scouting books.

In the last issue I warned those of you who sell in the Diabetic Test Strip market about problems that some sellers have been having.  eBay finally got back to me and I now have some good information.  First of all you cannot sell prescription items on eBay.  Some people buy their test strips over the counter while others get them by prescription.  If the strips you are selling have a prescription label on them then eBay will cancel your listing.

The other item to be careful of is the expiration date.  Let’s say you had 300 strips to sell –at three strips a day that is enough to last 100 days.  But if the expiration date on your strips (which you must state in the listing) is less than 100 days then you are in violation of eBay’s policy.

The next issue is selling stolen strips.  If you suddenly start selling large quantities of strips, eBay may take the precaution of shutting you down until you can prove (with receipts) that you bought the strips legally. If you are selling a few boxes at a time this should not be a problem. But if you legitimately acquire a large quantity of strips, you may want to call seller support and give them a heads up and offer to fax them a copy of the receipt before you launch your listings.  If you are a large seller and have been selling strips for a long time, this should not be a problem, but if you are a new, or small, seller then you want to be careful.

Lastly is VeRO. eBay created the Verified Rights Owner (VeRO) Program so that intellectual property owners can easily report listings that infringe their rights. One company I know that makes VeRO complaints to eBay is Johnson & Johnson –so don’t buy –or sell their strips.  There may be other companies but I don’t know.

Those of you who bought The Proven eBay Course One that I partnered with Jim Cockrum on have a forum where you can ask those questions and get advice from other sellers.   The course was closed for a long time but Jim has recently opened it up again.  So if you want to learn how to enter this highly profitable market, you may want to read about The Proven eBay Course One

With this issue I am starting a new feature called Vendor Review.  This will be an occasional article about various companies that provide products and services to eBay and Amazon sellers and small online sellers.  This would include auction management companies, software providers, products that would be purchased by online sellers and so on.  I am going to request the vendors to actually write a 300 to 500 word article about their product and service describing what it does in non-salesey language. Although I will be inviting vendors to write about their offerings, this does not mean I endorse the product. In some cases I will and those will be clearly marked.

So if you provide a product or service to eBay and/or Amazon sellers or those who operate small business websites, please reach out to me using the contact form located near the bottom of our home page.  I will evaluate your product to determine if our readers would be interested and then work with you on an article.

The first one I am reviewing is a product that I sell on EZauctionTools.com – The EZ Cube Digital Light Tent Photo System. This will be the only time I review one of my own products, but I wanted to give vendors a chance to see the type of article I am looking for.

This week I scheduled a call with eBay Seller Outreach.  If you are a PowerSeller of if you subscribe to an eBay Store (at any level) then you are entitled to a seller outreach consulting call.  I didn’t know quite what to expect but I was quite pleased.

The consultant I worked with was a nice fellow by the name of Paul.  Paul spent quiet a bit of time with me and showed me one way to lower my fees, and directed me to the search visibility tool and showed me a few little things I had missed that could increase my business.  If you are a PowerSeller or if you have an eBay Store, you can go to this link to schedule your free call:  http://www.scheduleonline.com/ebay_strategies.php

Last year I told my readers about a place called TradePub where you can get both free and paid Trade magazines for eBay and online sellers.  Most of these magazines are what are called controlled circulation that means you have to fill out a form stating that you work in a certain industry to get the magazine, but then it is free. Trade magazines are where you can find tons of free wholesale sourcing information.  These are the magazines that wholesale distributors and manufacturers advertise in to find people like you.  I recently had an email from TradePub that apparently hundreds of my readers are signing up for their various issues such as Internet Retailer, Cover and Niche Magazine –all of those are of interest to online sellers.  This link will take you to a special page for my readers where they often offer free specials. http://skipmcgrath.tradepub.com/

Lets get started with this month’s articles:

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1. Will the Summer Slowdown on eBay Ever End?

Boy I hope so!  Business always slows down on eBay starting around the July 4^th weekend and typically goes to about August 15^th when back-to-school spending usually gets things started.  But this year has been the worst summer slowdown in the ten years we have been selling on eBay.  Our sales are off 25% from the same period last year.

Part of this can be traced to the slowing economy.  Job growth has stalled again and consumer confidence readings are falling.  And Americans are not spending. American consumer debt dropped once again to its lowest level in over 20 years.

But another part of it can be traced to eBay’s business strategy.  eBay is in the final stages of the most major repositioning in the company’s history –but it hasn’t bothered to tell its customers.  Although eBay is sitting on literally billions of dollars in cash, it spends hardly anything on advertising.

When I ask consumers what they know about eBay, most people still think of it as the world’s largest online garage sale –and that auctions predominate.  Hardly anyone knows that fixed price sales now account for over 60% of eBay transactions and eBay CEO, John Donohoe, has said that number will soon exceed 70% --in fact that is a goal.

eBay needs a large national Radio & TV advertising campaign to let the marketplace know what eBay looks like today and to explain the changes they have made.  Although eBay is still growing profits, most of that growth is coming from PayPal –not from the eBay marketplace.  I would not be surprised if eBay spins PayPal off as a separate company much like they did with Skype.  A PayPal IPO would be a huge success even in this crummy investment environment.

I suspect the summer slowdown will end in a week or two, but I seriously doubt if sales will return to the levels of the spring.  The economy is growing more slowly than predicted.  Last week, Goldman Sacks cut their estimate for economic (GDP) growth from 2.4% to 1.9% and predicted unemployment would once again rise to 10%.  Since their track record of predictions is more accurate than the government’s that sends a worrisome signal that the recovery could stall and we could enter a double dip recession.

Before you get too depressed –remember that isn’t the end of the world.  A slowdown is just that –a slowdown – not a stop.  When ten percent of the people are unemployed, remember that 90% are still employed and those people, although they may tighten their belts, still have to shop.  If you want to stay profitable as sellers, you have to tighten your belts too. The best way to cut expenses is to cut your eBay fees. The best way to cut fees is to stop selling unprofitable products and optimize your listings to only run those that are working.

If you have any products in stock that are not selling well or not making a profit, it is better to just list them at $1.00 starting price and let them go for whatever you can get. Then you can take the money you get for them and invest it into products that are profitable.  Also watch those optional fees such as Bold and Subtitle.  Test them to make sure they are really paying their way.  I did this recently and ended up removing the Bold option from over 50 of my listings.

Use the tools that eBay provides to help you figure out your best strategy.  One of the tools the advisor told me about during my eBay Seller Outreach call was the Search Visibility tool. Here is a link to a blog post I did on how to use Search Visibility.

Lastly, use this slow period to review and update all of your listings.  Things will get better –the trick is to just hang on until they do.

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2. Take The Time To Succeed

This morning when I checked my email, there were two emails that came in just minutes apart --but that were poles apart in content.

The first email was from a person who wanted a refund on my book How to Make Money Selling Used Books on eBay, Amazon and The Internet. The reader said he was still in my 90-day refund window and learning how to sell books was just taking too much time. When I looked he had bought the book about 45 days previously.

The next email was from a reader who told me that he bought my book and started selling in April. Although he made some money in his first few weeks he said he worked through June before he started making some serious money, and now he is doing very well.  One product, two different people –two different experiences.

You can listen to the radio or go on the internet every day and find sales pitches for so-called money-making systems that claim you can make money overnight --and many of them further claim you can do it on autopilot --giving you the impression that you don't have to do any work.

I have been selling online for ten years now and I have bought many of those programs and I can tell you that I have yet to find anything that:

1. Works overnight
2. Works on autopilot without substantial work on your part

After two years of stimulus, our economy is still shedding jobs (another 131,000 last month) and there are millions of people who are so desperate to make money who will fall prey to the fast-buck artists who claim instant success.  That is so sad because there are lots of ways to make money working from home and selling online –but all of them require time and hard work.

There is a college kid in Texas who keeps pestering me with emails asking questions about how to do this and that on eBay.  He doesn’t even have the money to buy one of my books.  So I try and help him as best I can. It is obvious he is struggling, but I have no doubt he will be successful because he just wont give up.

There are lots of ways to make money selling online --and yes, every once in a while you hear about someone who got lucky and actually made a serious amount of money overnight --but that is the rare exception.

I did get an email once from someone who bought my book about selling used books.  The first day out at a garage sale she found a large box of science textbooks from the 1950's for $20 that she was able to sell for over $2000 total.  But the next time she went out she spent over $100 on a few dozen books and was only able to turn that into about $300 in sales over the next few weeks.  Her first week was the lucky exception but her second week was closer to the norm and what you would expect.

Luck Is Not a Strategy

No matter what online business you go into from eBay to Blogging or Amazon to Affiliate Marketing, it all takes work --and time. Yes, you could get lucky and make some quick easy money overnight --but luck is not a strategy.  The best formula for success is to be patient and set reasonable goals that build results over time.  Then write them down and check them off as you accomplish them.

When Things Go Wrong

Things always go wrong.  Just last week one of our coaching clients had her account suspended by eBay.  Now that is a disaster for most people, but she has decided to soldier on.  When you start a business –any business, not just an online business –things will go wrong.  They always do. You will make mistakes –everyone does.  But it’s how you react to adversity that determines whether you will win or lose.  Remember, you can’t fail until you quit!

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3. buySAFE Introduces Their 3 in 1 Guarantee

buySAFE is best known by eBay sellers for their bonded seller program whereby you can signup and buySAFE will guarantee your listings against fraud.  To many buyers when they see the buySAFE logo in an auction it gives them confidence to buy an expensive item.

Now buySAFE has launched a new service for those of you who have websites. It’s called the buySAFE 3 in 1 Guarantee.  If you look at the bottom of one of my sales pages such as the one for The Virtual Peddler you will see a buySAFE logo in the bottom right corner of the page.  If you hover your mouse over the logo, a little window pops up that explains the guarantee.

The 3-in-1 Guarantee consists of:

1. $500 purchase guarantee
2. Identity theft protection for 30 days
3. Lowest Price Guarantee – If the price drops within 30 days, buySAFE will pay your customer the difference.

As your customer goes through the purchase process, the logo and a reminder also appears on your shopping cart pages.  This helps prevent shopping cart abandonment.  buySAFE has tested this system extensively and can prove that it increases sales.

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4. Vendor Review – EZ Auction Tools

The EZ Cube is a system designed to help those with low or no photographic skills to take professional-looking pictures they can use in their eBay or Amazon listings or on their website or blog.

The EZ Cube is available as a tent-only where you would provide your own lighting, and it is also sold as a complete system with either two or three lights.

You simply place an object in the tent and turn on the lights.  The tent eliminates shadows and bathes your product in a nice soft all over light.  If you are shooting something that causes reflections, such as a silver teapot, there is a front closure you attach with a slit through it. You place your lens through the slit and it will eliminate about 90% of any reflections you may get.

The lights provided are daylight balanced fluorescent photo lamps that run cool and last for years.  If you are on a budget you can buy a pair of the simple student gooseneck lamps like this one on Amazon:

If you use these simple gooseneck lamps, you will have to adjust the white balance in your camera and they will get hot so you don’ t want to place them too close to the tent –but other than that they work fine.

The EZ Cube comes in several different sizes. There is a 12-inch micro cube for shooting small items such as beads or jewelry, a 20 and 30-inch model for most other products and 40 and 50-inch sizes for shooting large items.

You can learn more about the EZ Cube, or purchase one at www.ezauctiontools.com. In addition to information about the EZ Cube, the website also includes a ton of free information about how to take better digital photos for your auctions, websites or blogs.

Here are some actual photos taken with the EZ Cube:

With a few minutes practice anyone can get great results like these.

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5. New Wholesale Sources for eBay, Amazon & Online Sellers

Halloween will be here before you know it and the time to order merchandise to sell is now.  When I was at the ASD/AMD Wholesale Trade show last March, I found one of the largest suppliers of Halloween merchandise who works with eBay and Amazon sellers.  The Halloween Resource Center sells the most complete line of Halloween costumes and decorations you can imagine. Halloween is their only business.  No website. Email Steve Sellers at Hallrsctr@yahoo.com and he will send you a CD with the products and the pricing.

Deer Park Distributors sells a wide range of retro electronic equipment such as jukeboxes, record players with built-in CD recorders, retro radios and more.  They are looking for a few experienced eBay sellers for their drop ship program.

J&S Wholesale sells a large line of car care and car detailing products. They are a distributor of the Filtz brand of waxes.

Whimsical Watches sells a very nice line of themed fashion watches. You can get watches for specific professions, hobbies and sports.  The website is pure retail. Use the contact form on the website to request wholesale information.

KCP Wholesale Distributors distribute high end and drugstore cosmetics, skincare and eyewear – some names include Mac, Bare Escentuals, Bliss, Lancome, Loreal, Revlon, Victorias Secret, Clarins, Bath & Body Works, Burt's Bees, Anna Sui, Elizabeth Arden, Bobbi Brown and more.

NYS Collection Eyewear – Forget all of the designer knockoff sunglasses. The NYS collection is a collection of unique, high quality fashion sunglasses. You can’t access the website without registering, but it is easy.  Use the contact link or call them at 800-430-4211 to set up an account and get access to the pricing and online catalog.

Wholesale Dress.net is a company that sells wholesale fashion dresses, shoes and women’s fashion accessories. They have a drop ship program but I honestly don’ t know anything about it.  With any dropshipper like this you want to be careful until you determine if they are reliable. The best way to do that is to sign up and get an account then purchase a couple of inexpensive items using a friend or neighbor’ s name and address so you can see how they handle orders and if the quality and service are good.

Accessory Wholesale is an extensive source for Wholesale Fashion Jewelry, Costume Jewelry, Tiaras, Rhinestone and Bridal Jewelry, Bracelets, Pendants, Earrings, Hats and Mardi Gras Accessories.

One of the biggest teenage fads today is rubber band bracelets.  Cooljewels sells a complete line of rubber band bracelets as well as tons of other jewelry products. But be careful –remember fads end.  This time next year you don’t want a closet full of rubber band bracelets.

EZwholesaler offers over 4000 products at true wholesale prices. They are distributors of As Seen on TV, Security and Defense, Gift Baskets, General Merchandise and more.  They like small sellers and like to help them compete with the big guys.

Blue Spring Wellness is the distributor for the line of Bluespring pain relief products and they also carry Emu oil, which is popular with Arthritis sufferers.

Skip McGrath
The eBay Seller's News

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

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