Technology Toolkit

Once an eBay auction listing ends, you can then analyze your ad’s performance. Let’s assume that you have multiple copies of the same item and you can re-list it over and over again. If you’re happy with your results, you’ll probably want to run the exact same ad. If on the other hand results were disappointing, making wholesale changes might be the first thought that comes to mind. My advice is to take a step back and give it some thought before rushing in and getting rid of components that could in fact be sales assets to you.

Strive for constant improvement. But look at the bigger picture before making radical changes. I’ve had some items go unsold some weeks and then sell like crazy the next. It’s the unpredictable nature of the eBay marketplace.

Sometimes it’s got absolutely nothing to do with your ad and everything to do with who shows up in shopping mode. That’s not to say that you can safely assume that your first effort at advertising is your best. It rarely is.

So part of selling and growing your eBay business is to pay attention to each listing, test it, make small adjustments, and then test it again. Invariably one edition or variation will outperform all others. If you’ve got two versions that produce virtually identical results, run both. But have these auctions spaced a few days apart so they don’t end at the same time.

The secret to testing your ads is to only make one change each time, however minor that change may be. If you opt for multiple changes, you’ll never know with certainty the impact of each alteration. You won’t discover the magic.

Change your title first that’s where you can make the most impact. Titles are the default search option on eBay. For most keyword searches, only titles are referenced. And in any shopping expedition on eBay, buyers are repeatedly presented with a series of titles, often accompanied by a short thumbnail image (Gallery) of the item featured.

Titles are huge. In fact, changing your title can dramatically alter your results positively or negatively. So pay attention to your tests and always measure response in terms of page views, number of bids, selling price, and profit. Testing is the key to maximum performance.

Take any seemingly small idea and work it to the fullest. It’s dirt cheap to list items on eBay… and simple testing can lead to a major breakthrough in profits, particularly where titles are concerned.

Guarantees are powerful marketing tools in any arena and they’re particularly helpful in the sometimes uncertain online waters.

Suppose you were shopping on eBay for a particular DVD. You found two auctions ending within the hour and both items were similarly priced. Both sellers had stellar Feedback Ratings. But one offered a hassle-free, 30 day guarantee. The other made no mention of a guarantee, or whether refunds were even accepted under any conditions.

Now, which listing would you be more inclined to bid on? Obvious, isn’t it? You’d probably take the one with the guarantee — just it case. It’s an extra measure of security, should you receive a faulty DVD, or experience a similar problem.

Any kind of guarantee of satisfaction will likely enhance your sales. And the longer and stronger the promise of your guarantee, the more appealing your offer becomes. Guarantees take the onus off the customer. They ensure that you deliver exactly what was promised in the listing.

Guarantee something. If you can’t guarantee the item for any reason, guarantee something else. For example, you could guarantee professional packaging or shipping and/or delivery times or prompt replies to any inquires or friendly, expedient customer service.

The flexibility to return an item for a refund or credit helps alleviate any misgivings about buying or bidding on eBay. It’s a safety valve that reduces anxiety while increasing active bidding.

By offering your buyers a guarantee, you remove any risk they might have had that kept them from jumping in with both feet. When you knock down enough of the reasons for saying no to bidding, you’re in effect making it easy for prospects to say yes. The less resistance, the more action you’ll get. So find a way to guarantee something. It can only help in the long run.

Will some people take advantage of your guarantee unethically? Yes, undoubtedly that will happen. Some people will return merchandise and demand reimbursement for no reason at all. Yes, it’s completely unfair. But so is life sometimes. That’s just the way it is.

It’s a cost of doing business and the longer you are in business and the more volume you do, the more cases you’ll have where you have to deal with a guarantee. So why bother offering a guarantee when you’re going to inevitably be ripped off anyway? A guarantee policy is an asset to you simply because in the grand scheme of your eBay business, you’ll make more money with one than you ever will without.

Remember that many eBay buyers are looking for unique items. It’s my contention that every eBay auction item has unique features or benefits this is your one great opportunity to clearly discern what makes your particular item different and valuable. And you have unlimited space to do it. Describe to the eBay universe what you’re offering and put some teeth into it. Sell the sizzle… so your buyer will love the steak you send.

Remember that although it may be difficult to immediately see specific unique features, take the time to think about this carefully.

What does your item do for buyers? In other words, what’s the ultimate benefit they hope to get for themselves, should they win your auction? That’s exactly what needs to take center stage in your listing. It’s the perceived value that is transferred to their way when they win and it’s a huge motivator in moving people to one-up another to come out on top at the closing bell.

Look for an edge. Find something unique about your item or your offer. What you really want is something that’s a little different and more desirable than what the next guy is offering.

Make your listing a more alluring proposition, a more advantageous choice for the buyer. There’s no shortage of ways to spend money on eBay. Your task is to make spending money on your item a better option than any other available at the moment.

With a hot, in-demand item, you’ll have no problem attracting traffic particularly with a low starting bid. Ideally, you want to create a little tension, where your prospect knows she’ll have to compete to win your item. At the same time, you want to fuel their desire so they’ll want it even more and you can do that by stacking one benefit or advantage on top of another.

Offering a Buy-It-Now option creates additional tension and a sense of urgency as your item could quickly be snapped up by anyone else who’s willing to pay the Buy-It-Now price.

When you’ve got an item that’s truly unique or rare, you’ll find that your description practically writes itself. All you’ve got to do is unveil all those specific things that make this such an exceptional piece and simply go a little deeper on each point.

Differentiate your item from others listed that appear to be the same and you can come out way ahead of the competetion when selling on eBay.

If you’ve just received a full pallet load of Olympus digital cameras, then it’s probably well worth your while to create a full-fledged sales letter that covers every conceivable benefit and feature and addresses any potential questions and concerns.

With such a large quantity of the same item, it makes sense to do this because once you’ve created a winning listing you can simply go ahead and repeat it a number of times until you unload your entire shipment.

But for many eBay sellers, taking the time to write a sales letter doesn’t make a lot of sense. If you’re like most, you sell odds and ends from the basement or attic, garage sales, thrift shops, or even live auctions and estate sales. One item is often very different from the next. It might be a child’s toy today and a 19th Century collectable sword tomorrow. One product means much more in potential profit than the other. Therefore, the time justifiably spent on each is not the same. Nor should it be.

Your major consideration in deciding which type of ad you’ll use should be based primarily on the value of the item. If you’re selling an insulated pizza delivery bag, there’s a limit to its value. Let’s suppose value on the high end is $50. You got it for $1 when a local pizza shop was forced to change its menu when the landlord signed over exclusive pizza rights to a giant chain. In this case, if your pizza bag was a hit, you could stand to make $49 in gross profit (less eBay and Paypal fees, etc).

From the outset, if you can make a quick $49 or so, it looks pretty good. After all, you reason, how many items sold at retail make 49 times their cost?

It may be a quick windfall, if all goes well. But even if you reach the high value, (and that’s a best case scenario) how much time should you spend creating your ad? That’s something you should consider with each item and then use the format that best reflects its value. You don’t want to waste your time spending hours on an ad that might only fetch a few dollars. You want to maximize the value of your time and if you spend too much time selling dime store merchandise, you can’t possibly make the kind of money the big dogs do.

Before you write a single word, decide how much time you’ll assign to the item. It’s a judgment call and only you can make it. Now it’s time to bring out the one tool that will help keep you on track your pocket timer. This simple device is an ad writer’s best aid. It keeps you focused and ensures you don’t spend more time than you should writing a description that stands little chance of paying you for your time.

Knowing your product and market enough makes crafting an effective title that much easier. All you have to do is ramble off its greatest attribute or characteristic, in addition to briefly describing what it is. Think in terms of what would make your product more appealing or desirable to those who’d be interested.

If it’s new, say so right up front, since most people would prefer new over used when both are affordable options. New or used, make it clear to your audience. Is it an antique or collectible? Perhaps it’s a vintage item, or one that’s truly rare. Again, these single words speak volumes about your item when used appropriately, so it makes sense to make room for them in your titles.

Has the car you plan to list been strictly lady-driven, creating the perception among some that it’s been used sparingly and without being pushed to the limit? If so, state it. Perhaps that Body Shop gift set sitting on the closet shelf was never actually opened and is therefore in like-new condition.

Knowing your market makes it easier to provide the information that will get your listing noticed. If you’re selling in a genre you’ve been involved with for some time, you already know what the market wants.

For example, if you’ve worked in construction and now you’re selling safety equipment to the same market, you have an inside understanding of the things that can happen on a job site, and the equipment those workers would like to get their hands on. Maybe it’s steel-toed boots that stay warm inside in the bitter winter months. Or perhaps it’s a hard hat that won’t fall off. Whatever the case may be, if you’ve got what they want, flaunt it. And the best way to make it known on eBay that you’ve got something the market wants is to reveal it in the title. That’s the key to maximum exposure.

Discover what it is your market needs or wants to know before they’d even take a closer look at your item. Maybe it’s the fact that the Victoria’s Secret swimsuit you’re offering is official VS — and not some cheap knock-off. Or it could be that your item is brand new and direct from the factory — rather than ‘recycled’.

Be sure to identify in one word if possible, exactly what your item is. Don’t assume that because you’re listed in a specific sub-section of a category that it’s obvious. Sometimes the best category is an easy choice. But at other times, it’s frustrating as hell trying to figure out where to run your ad. And many sellers get it wrong. So it’s never a bad idea to add to your title a single word like ‘vase’, ‘book’, ‘VHS’ or ‘desk lamp’ to instantly identify exactly what the item is.