eBay Selling Tips: How to Achieve Higher Detailed Seller Ratings

I've been selling on eBay for years, though mostly on-and-off in the last couple of years. eBay has mostly been my "sideline" allowing me to indulge in my twin passions of collecting (and selling) vintage postcards and pearl necklaces.

However, much as I love the extra income I get from eBay, it's extremely hard for me to find the time to prepare my listings and handle the sales process. Plus, I never really fully recovered from the closure of my favorite eBay auction management software Timbercreek's Sold!.

Last spring, eBay made a number of changes, including detailed seller ratings. Achieving higher ratings mean benefits such as greater visibility in search results, membership to the PowerSeller program, and eligibility for PowerSeller discounts on final value fees.

An eBay rep contacted me this weekend to discuss tips on how to improve my seller ratings, and here are the tips she gave me:

• Let your buyers know that you are accessible. Mention your preferred contact method in your item description and state how quickly buyers can expect a response. Let them know that you are reachable if, for any reason, they are not satisfied with the transaction. Be available to answer questions before and after the listing closes.
• If you sell internationally, you can use Skype to help facilitate communication with international buyers with free member-to-member calls.
• If you get certain questions about the items you sell often, such as questions about your return policy, you may want to create Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). You can create custom questions for your buyers to see when they click the "Ask seller a question" link.
• Also consider setting up a self-service knowledge base to automate the process of answering buyers' questions. When buyers make inquiries via the "Ask seller a question" form, they will be redirected to the self-service knowledge base, where they'll be able to find answers to their questions. Alternately, some knowledge base services automatically respond with an appropriate answer when buyers ask questions.
• It's important to keep the communication going even after listings end. We suggest that you notify buyers when items have shipped. Letting buyers know that items have shipped will avoid a situation where they leave you low ratings prematurely.
• You may also want to include a note with shipped items that restates your sales policies for added clarity. This also serves as a good reminder to buyers about your policies.
• Once payments have cleared, don't forget to leave Positive Feedback for your buyers. Leaving positive Feedback first will help you initiate good relationships. Remind your buyers to give you high ratings if they are satisfied with the transaction.
• Finally, treat your buyers with courtesy and consideration. At times you may have to deal with difficult buyers who seem impossible to please, but it's always a good policy to be patient and communicate in a professional manner.

Starting an Auction Web Site

eBay's huge success can inspire others to replicate its business model and start their own auction site.

Alas, it is hard to follow eBay's model where anything and everything can be traded on their site (within their guidelines, of course). Even Yahoo Auction, with all their marketing might and technology, can't even hold a candle to eBay. None of the big auction sites - from Ubid to Overstock Auctions -- can really claim to have anywhere near the customer base of eBay.

If you are thinking of starting an auction website, the key to success is FOCUS. Do not go head-on with the giant that is eBay -- if you want your auction site to survive. I've seen some small entrepreneurs start an auction site, attracting very few sellers and buyers their sites look almost pityful. You'll stand a better chance of succeeding if you focus on a particular niche.

Look at the wine arena for example. You have Winebid.com, CellarExchange.com, and other auction sites that are doing pretty well.

Think of a sector or a particular audience. For example, Playle.com is a small auction site for vintage postcard collectors.

Then find a good auction software that you can configure and customize to add features you'd like in your auction community. It is best if you yourself is a techie, or can have someone on board who knows how to troubleshoot and configure the software.

Unless you can make the software yourself, expect startup capital to be around $10,000 or more. You'll need robust and scalable hosting, one that can handle 100 to 100,000 users on the fly without crashing -- and those don't come cheap (dedicated servers start at $99 per month and up).

There are very successful niche auction sites out there. Study how they are done, and copy the aspects that worked well for them.

Using eBay to Test Your New Product

eBay is a great marketplace that attracts hordes of buyers and sellers. But is it the right marketplace for testing new products?

From my experience with eBay, it is not the best marketplace for new products.

First, the market that eBay attracts is looking for low prices, particularly for commonplace items such as children's clothing, women's handbags or outdoor power equipment. Buyers go to eBay because they think they can find deals and huge discounts. They want the lowest possible price for the quality they want.

Second, people come to eBay to look for unique items such as antiques and collectibles. They search for unique items that they collect and other hard-to-find items that they know they can't find in their local Wal-mart or Main street store.

Whether it is a unique or commonplace item, a common factor between these two types of items is the familiarity of the buyer. The buyer goes to eBay looking for these products; they know these products and are aware that the products exist. A buyer shops at eBay looking for Gucci shoes whether used or brand new; or looking for 1910 real photo postcard of Russian royalties. They know what they are looking for; what they want.

Price and uniqueness are two main factors ebay buyers are looking for. If you will introduce a new product or idea on eBay, it will be extremely hard to sell unless you advertise it extensively or use keywords that people are familiar with. For one, people are not familiar with it, after all your product is new. So NO ONE will be searching for it. No pageviews mean little chance of getting your items sold. Or if ever the someone stumbles upon it and the item gets sold, you will not get the buyer bidding frenzy that results in top price; rather, you may get only 1 bid at your starting price.

Some do it, but they have to list and relist, again and again, until their products become familiar to eBay users. Or you will introduce a new product ONLY after you have gained a coterie of loyal buyers who checks out the items you sell on a regular basis. Introducing a new product could work if you have got the history of selling for eBay users to trust you and your products. Plus, you've got hundreds or thousands of positive user feedback.

It is not easy to use eBay as a launching pad for new products -- unless you are willing to spend money advertising your new product and increasing awareness for it.

10 Tips for Starting an eBay Business

I have been selling on eBay for years on an off-again, on-again basis, selling vintage postcards, pearls and various other items. So I was glad to receive a copy of the new edition of the book "eBay Business The Smart Way: Maximize Your Profits on the Web's #1 Auction Site" by Joseph Sinclair.

The book offers 10 tips for beginning sellers to establish and operate a business on eBay:

1. Financial Needs. Determine your personal financial needs.
2. Profit Model. Create a product profit model.
3. Niche. Find a niche with products that satisfy your product profit model, and if applicable, your personal passion. Find wholesalers.
4. Name. Choose your business name and use it everywhere.
5. Business Form. Choose a business entity and get a sales tax license.
6. Accounting. Set up your accounting software and chart of accounts.
7. Trials. Run some trial auction.
8. Auction Management. Subscribe to an auction management service. Integrate your accounting with your auction management.
9. Help. Find people to help you (as your independent contractors) with your business tasks.
10. Customer Service. Plan general and specific customer service policies and programs.