Online Auction Success

Google Base Store Connector issues

2009-07-23T17:12:00.001-05:00

If you are having problems trying to get your eBay store data into Google Base try this link.

How to maximize your eBay profits by scheduling your auctions

2009-02-13T12:41:00.004-06:00

After selling on eBay for over 10 years I have learned a few 'tricks' to improve the final selling price of your item.
It seems simple when you think about it, but the tip is to schedule the day and time when your auction will close. Now this really does not matter if you plan on listing your item in an eBay store or using the 'buy it now' option.
In case you are wondering who I am my username on eBay is hat3deals.

When you list your item think about when the auction will close. Will it close on a night when most people are watching a really popular show, or is going to close around midnight on the west coast when people are probably asleep?

What you can do is schedule when your auction will start, which of course will impact the end date/time of your auction.

Use the option to 'Schedule start time ($0.10)' and choose a good time and day for your auction to close. This will add 10 cents to the cost of the auction, but it is worth the extra cost.

I prefer to schedule my auctions on the weekends for 7 days, end times around 2-3pm CST. Remember eBay times are based on west coast time PST.

Starting out with online auctions

2009-01-15T22:09:00.004-06:00

So, you want to sell items on eBay

Almost 10 years ago I started selling items on eBay. Back then most of the people I talked to had never heard of it. Thankfully I was tech savy enough to figure out how to use it quickly and find items to sell.

For me selling on eBay has definitely been more of a hobby than a business. It is easy to find once in a while opportunities, but hard to find consistent sources of good product to sell with decent margins.

What are some of the things that I have sold on eBay?

A pallet load of Macintosh computer monitors purchased at an Auction in Nashville, TN. Cost of about $2 per monitor.
Over 100 Super Nintendo Video Games purchased from a local video rental store for $3 per game.
My entire used CD collection. Not much money to make when you buy CDs for $10-$15 and sell them for ~ $5
Old classic computers and accessories.
Macintosh computer parts. That one was fun. Just to prove a point I purchased the whole computers on eBay and then parted them out to make more money. And it acutally worked for a while.
One Christmas season I purchased a box full of Playstation/Gamecube to USB converters for the PC. It let you use your gamecube or playstation controllers on the computer. They sold well for a few months, and then sales finally dropped off.
Used DVDs
Used books
Broken computers
Computer parts. CD roms, motherboard, CPUs, memory, Hard Drives, etc.
Radio equipment used by the city and county.

So where do you find all this stuff to sell?

When you are shopping check clearance isles at the store. Sometimes you can get a steal on several items and keep some for yourself and buy the rest to sell on eBay.
You can go to local storage auctions. When folks don't pay their storage bill the storage company will open the lock and then you get to bid for the unit. Be ready to load up some stuff!
Local police auctions.
Auctions in larger cities close to where you live. In my area that would be Memphis or Nashville.
Get up early and hit the garage sales in your area.

How can you find out when this stuff is available?

Check your local classified paper.
Do an internet search for auction listings in your area.
Don't forget to check out the clearance isles.
Spend your weekend going to garage sales in search of a few bargins.
Drive around to your local storage companies and ask when they have sales.

Don't forget to have some fun too. Too much work and no play time is boring! Guitar Hero is lots of fun when you are not eBaying!

Using RSS feeds to promote your eBay listings on facebook

2008-09-05T16:07:00.002-05:00

This article has some thoughts around promoting your eBay auctions. One of my favorite methods is to use your RSS feed and incorporate it in as many tools as there are out there on the net. Feedburner is a great tool to use. If you do not have an eBay store setup you can promote your items for sale by doing an advanced search on eBay and then selecting items for sale by your userid. Then at the bottom of the search click on the RSS icon to get the link to your RSS feed of your current items for sale on eBay. Then go promote all over the internet!

Some great tips to remember when selling online - You really need to read this!

2008-09-05T15:56:00.002-05:00

All of the tips on this web page are great. Basically these are the same tips I use when selling online. Only it took me 10 years to figure them all out. If you follow these steps and offer items for sale that people want on eBay and other online sites you will be successful.

Find items for sale from police departments across the US

2008-08-31T19:19:00.002-05:00

This site offers items from police departments from all over the country. Not a huge selection of items, but might be worth checking out to see what is available.
Read more about www.propertyroom.com

Promote your auctions using Google Base Store Connector

2008-03-07T20:04:00.001-06:00

Did you know that you can promote your eBay store using the Google Base Store Connector? The Google base store connector works with eBay and Yahoo stores and allows you to post the data into Google Base automatically. This can really increate the amount of traffic to your store. I used the connector for a few months myself and found that almost half of the traffic to my eBay store was through Google Base searches. You can never promote your items on eBay enough, and this great tool is a must have for anyone selling on eBay. As with every Google product I can think of, this is a free tool. There is also no charge for posing your items to Google Base. So give it a try and start seeing improved traffic to your eBay store today!

Product sourcing blog

2008-01-26T12:29:00.000-06:00

While searching for liquidation sources I found this blog. They seem to have found lots of good sources for products to sell on the internet. They also group it by category (books, wholesale, liquidation, etc) . Check it out at the address below:
ProductSourcing.info

Business.gov - Official Business Link to the U.S. Government

2007-10-20T20:47:00.000-05:00

Business.gov - Official Business Link to the U.S. Government
This site provides lots of great information for businesses. One really neat feature is at the top right corner of the page called 'Permit Me' (Beta) that you can use to find out the resources available based on your state and business type.

Business.gov - Small Business Guide to Government Auctions and Sales

2007-10-20T20:42:00.000-05:00

Business.gov - Small Business Guide to Government Auctions and Sales
Links to all sorts of Government auction sites. Also includes guides for purchasing from the different sites

New Search engine for Government Auctions

2007-10-14T22:22:00.000-05:00

I have created a new Google custom search engine featuring some of the top internet sites that typically host government auctions. Now you can search them all in one place without running into all those sites that CLAIM to give you government auction information for a fee or whatever. I thought it was a really good use of the Google custom search engine! Try it out at the top of this Blog, or visit the page directly.

DropshipProfits.org - Dropship Wholesale Company Reviews

2007-09-01T17:25:00.000-05:00

DropshipProfits.org - Dropship Wholesale Company Reviews
Check out this site for a list of good resources and also some of the site you want to avoid.

Sell your items online – even if you don't have a website

2006-07-19T22:37:00.000-05:00

Use Google Base and Google Checkout to sell items on the internet. Sounds interesting. No PayPal or eBay needed!

Interview with the Panel - 10 Steps to Starting and Growing a Business on eBay

2006-07-19T22:26:00.000-05:00

Check out this link for some eBay Power Sellers discuss what works for them when selling items on eBay.

Steps for setting up your own eBay Business

2005-08-26T22:08:00.000-05:00

Lots of great tips can be found in this article. It really outlines the CORRECT steps you should take to setup your eBay business.

Watch out for 2nd Chance Emails

2005-08-26T21:39:00.000-05:00

Seems like this trick has been around for some time. I know this has been tried before. eBay should add the capability for a seller to flag the winner of an auction as NOT being the winner for whatever reason and then officially tagging the next highest bidder as the winner. This might prevent these types of problems. Read More Here.

USPS and eBay

2005-08-26T21:36:00.000-05:00

The U.S. Postal service is busy encouriging folks to sell on eBay. Obviously you would then want to ship the item through the USPS :) Here is a link with all the details.

Other ways to sell online

2005-07-18T18:53:00.000-05:00

This was an interesting read about how some of eBay's largest sellers are looking into other methods to list their auction items.

Life after eBay

2005-07-02T23:16:00.000-05:00

Some sellers are finding that it can be a good thing to try other auction sites. Maybe it is time to try something new?

eBay's plan to encourage small business transactions

2005-07-02T23:09:00.000-05:00

eBay expands its buyer protection for small businesses. Read more about it here.

Combine items in one autction to increase sales

2005-07-02T23:05:00.000-05:00

Here is an interesting article about combining items such as printer ink and paper and selling them on eBay.

Some great tips for buying using online auctions

2005-06-09T23:30:00.000-05:00

Check out this link for some helpful tips.

eBay extends it's reach to Classified listings.

2005-06-09T23:20:00.000-05:00

Expanding on its purchase of rent.com and a stake in craigslist.org, eBay has purchased Shopping.com. More details in this article

Yahoo Online Auctions Turn up the Heat on eBay

2005-06-09T23:16:00.000-05:00

Yahoo is eliminating the listing fee charge for their auctions. Read more about it here.

Check eBay Auctions From Your TV

2005-05-20T16:13:00.000-05:00

A new service is being tested in Austin allowing Time Warner Cable subscribers that have a DVR unit to check the status of their eBay auctions. There are more than 300,000 Time Warner cable subscribers in the Austin area, however the number of DVR users is not available. Read More Here.