Whether you are thinking about starting a home-based business on eBay, or you already have a business and would like to expand into online auctions, here are some tips and techniques that can help you along. In this week's column, I will provide some of my own tips, as well as some that I've collected from other eBay PowerSellers.

My first piece of advice to anyone considering online auctions is to participate as a bidder. Experiencing the process as a buyer will give you a different perspective AND will provide the opportunity to rack up some positive feedback points. Once you have gotten your feet wet with a few transactions, and have decided what you would like to sell, it is time to list your first auction item!

Do your homework before listing an item… search current and completed auctions to see how much competition there is, how much demand for the product there is and what the selling price of the item has been. 

Choose the right title for your item so that it will show up in a potential buyer's search results. If you have space for additional words in your title, use that space by including other related words that a potential buyer might search on. 

Make your title stand out by making it longer. If you have space for extra characters in your title and can not think of additional "searchable" words that you should include, fill the space using the underscore key ( _ ). An underscore is recommended instead of a space because it is longer and it will make your title appear longer… thereby making it stand out among the other listings. 

Provide a detailed, easy-to-read description of your product. Your goal should be to answer every possible question within your item description. If you receive several email messages with the same question about an item, update your item description to include this information. You can easily lose sales because you don't provide the information a buyer needs. Although it is easy to contact a seller and ask a question, some buyers won't take the time to do so… especially if there is another seller offering the same or similar item with a more-detailed item description. 

Provide pictures of your item whenever possible. Don't limit yourself to only one photo… if possible, show the item from many angles. If there is a label or tag, include a close-up of it. If the item has a flaw, include a close-up photo of the flaw. 

Take advantage of free hidden counters. Counters can be used to track interest in items and are especially useful if you're branching out into new areas. Counters will help you determine when you're getting the most lookers… or show you that you're not!

Follow-up with bidders as soon as possible after an auction ends. EBay requires that you follow-up within three days, but I suggest never going more than 24 hours… and to strive for following up within 1-2 hours. 

Utilize automated end-of-auction email services… but don't rely exclusively on those services. I use PayPal's "Winning Bidder Notification" service to automatically send my emails for me. Usually those notices are sent within an hour of the auction's close; however, occasionally there are glitches in the system and the emails are delayed for hours or days. To ensure that I'm providing the best service possible, I have a copy of the automated emails sent to me. At the end of each day, I verify that emails were sent for all of my completed auctions. Usually they are, but if not, I send an email directly myself. It takes me less than 5 minutes to do this, but ensures that all of my customers hear from me within 24 hours. 

Follow up with your customers... again and again. In addition to your end-of-auction email message, which thanks the buyer and provides them with the necessary payment information, you should follow-up to acknowledge when you've received their payment and again when you've shipped their merchandise. Many people are leery of buying online, especially from an online auction service when they know little about the person they are buying from. By keeping your customer informed of the status of their order, you will alleviate much of the concern they may have. 

Post positive feedback for your customers! If you want your customers to take the time to post positive feedback for you, you most certainly should do so for them.

Offer combined shipping discounts or other incentives to encourage customers to purchase multiple items. 

Offer reasonable shipping rates. Do not try to trick a buyer into purchasing your item at a low price, and then gouge them with high shipping costs. You may make the initial sale, but you will likely lose a potential repeat customer… and may end up with negative feedback. 

Make your product and its shipping package look as professional as possible. First impressions are important. Your customer will decide whether or not he is satisfied with your product in the first five minutes. Don't lose that opportunity. 

You can get free shipping supplies from the U.S. Post Office if you are shipping via Priority Mail or Express Mail. Visit www.usps.com to order supplies and have them shipped right to your door. 

Enclose a receipt or thank you note with your shipment that includes your username and email address so the buyer can contact you if there are any problems. You can use this note to remind the buyer to post feedback for you and to direct them to your web site. 

Consider using delivery confirmation service if you are shipping via the USPS. For the small price of $0.40 you can verify whether a customer received their package or not. This service is now available for First Class mail, as well as Media Mail and Priority Mail. Delivery Confirmation will give both you and your customer peace of mind.

Be organized. 

Provide exceptional customer service and a personal touch! Include a note of thanks when mailing your product. 

Accept credit card payments using online services such as PayPal. It is not necessary to go to the expense of obtaining a merchant account. There are many online services such as PayPal and CCNow that enable any business, large or small, to accept credit cards. You pay a small transaction fee per sale for the use of these services. 

Accept personal checks. Do not delay shipping your products until the check has cleared, unless the check is for a large amount of money, or the buyer has a negative feedback rating. 

Think about future sales and how to maximize value for your customers… don't concentrate only on the immediate sale. 

Automate as many aspects of the selling process as possible.

Utilize auction management tools (many of them are free) to enable you to process more transactions in less time. There are people making six-figure incomes on eBay, but those people list and sell a large quantity of items. You can not operate at that level if you are processing everything manually, one at a time. 

Pay attention to your feedback rating! Every eBay user has a feedback profile made up of comments from other eBay users - an official eBay "reputation." Your feedback rating indicates how you do business and how satisfied your previous customers were with their purchases and your level of service. Potential buyers will use this information when deciding whether they want to do business with you. 

Always reply to email inquiries no matter how small. If the customer feels like you are responding to him well, he is more likely to order and/or post positive feedback about you. 

Don't be afraid to sell to buyers in foreign countries. It is easy to fill out a customs form, and international shipping rates can be estimated online at www.usps.com. 

Create your own "About Me" page on eBay. It's fun and reminds your trading partners that you're a real live person… not just a faceless entity at the other end of their computer. 

Write down your policies on refunds, holding checks, leaving feedback, etc. Your policies will probably change over time, but you've got to start somewhere. Be flexible when there's good reason to be. 

Use eBay's "My eBay" page to keep track of your monthly activity. On the last day of every month, print out a history for the month. 

If you make a mistake, admit it and find out what you need to do to make the sale a good one for the buyer. Honesty is always the best policy. No one is perfect and reasonable people will appreciate your forthrightness.

I hope you find these tips useful, and as always I welcome your comments and questions. Those of you who frequent my eBay software auctions may notice that my listings will drop off during the holidays. While my children are home on vacation, I cut back on my auction sales to enjoy quality time with my family. This is just one of the many advantages of operating an online auction business. My eBay store will be available (as they say, "The store is always open!"), so those of you who didn't get everything you wanted for the holidays can still shop for software in my eBay store!

In closing, I wish all of you a joyous holiday season and I hope you can spend it with the people you love.