She Rambles On

25% Surcharge On Poslaju Effective 1st October 2008

Cyberpartygal — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 09:43:48 +0000

The long Hari Raya weekend is over and I went to the post office to ship out my packages today. To my surprise, I was told that effective 1st October, 2008, there has been an increase of 25% surcharge on domestic Poslaju rates.

I thought that since 1st October, 2008 was a public holiday, there would not be any changes. I was wrong. I wish that they have informed us before hand, either via a notice on the Pos Malaysia website or through local post offices.

25% is a hefty increase. While I used to pay MYR5.20 for packages under 500g within Peninsular Malaysia. I now have to pay MYR5.92 and that is an increase of 72sen per package.

Luckily, I was able to cover the extra shipping expenses even though I only charged RM5 for shipping, subsidizing the extra. It’s time to do some calculations to see how much it is for shipping to Sabah and Sarawak. Maybe I should start charging “handling” fees hence forward.

No Takers For Elvis Is Alive Museum

Cyberpartygal — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 04:15:17 +0000

Actually, there was a bid when the auction went live. However, it turned out that the bid was placed by a “child playing at the computer”. Well, as if there is anyone who buys this excuse. Anyone who has placed a bid on eBay before would know that a successful bid is a three step affair and a child playing on bidding would not be clicking on all the appropriate buttons to place a bid successfully. Me thinks it was someone who placed a bid and changed his mind.

Anyway, the owner of this Elvis is Alive Museum, Andy Key, listed a second auction with an opening bid of US$13,500, lower than the first auction by US$1,5000. Andy says that he would like to find a new owner for the Museum before he leaves for a five-month military duty on October 14th, 2008.

The problem with this Museum is that everyone who has done a little research would know that Andy won it on eBay last November for just US$83000. You know how discerning shoppers are. They loathe seeing people profiting that much.

Now, Andy says that anyone interested to purchase the Museum could email him at imjustandy [at] netzero.com for a private deal.

Home-Based Jewelry Business

Cyberpartygal — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 03:48:59 +0000

My friend, Doris, has plans to start a home-based jewelry business. She has a very successful home-based business right now but it’s not ecommerce so she is a little apprehensive about going into online retail but like I said, the first step is always the most difficult, isn’t it?

Doris is a very artistic person so she has no problems coming out with pieces of handcrafted jewelry pieces, I am sure. Her problems, she said, would be branding and marketing. She has no experience in that, she says.

But I told her that there is nothing to fear as she could always engage the services of a branding company that could help her in introducing a new brand name from scratch.

Of course, Doris could learn to brand and market her new product but it will take a little bit more time for someone who has no experience entirely and I believe that it is better to do something RIGHT from the start. This actually saves time and money in the long run.

If I were her, I would prefer to pay a company for their specialized services and instead concentrate on bringing out the best products for my customers and taking care of the business aspect of it.

*** This post was brought to you by Brand Identity Guru ***

PeSA Blasts eBay

Cyberpartygal — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 03:16:39 +0000

Professional eBay Sellers Alliance (PeSA) has issued a statement blasting eBay for the changes implemented in 2008, particularly in the way we are rated by Buyers in the Detailed Seller Rating that consists of accuracy of item description, communication, shipping time, and shipping/handling charges. DSR determines the level of rebate a seller will receive from eBay.

PESA members are mostly eBay sellers who hold the Platinum and Titanium Power Seller status with gross sales of almost US$150,000 or 15,000 items per month so they do know what they are talking about.

Another point raised was the search functionality that did not work and a few other points that are affecting eBay sellers of all levels; not only Power Sellers.

The problem with eBay is that policies are not implemented with “hands on” experience so management does not always know how certain changes affect different eBay sellers, whether they are using the main eBay.com website or one of the international eBay sites.

Since a few years back, many of my friends have started to explore other avenues to trade online because of the ever changing policies and rules on eBay that continue to curb sales and hurt profit margin.

But I think that no matter if eBay’s new and ever changing rules hurt or benefit Sellers, we should continue to explore and break new ground in online trading. After all, one should never place all eggs in one basket.

Read the full statement HERE.

Best Buy Plasma Screens & TVs

Cyberpartygal — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 02:17:41 +0000

My friend, Sam, recently bought a widescreen plasma TV and told me about his purchase because he knows that I am on the market for one as well. I visited his home to check out his new purchase but I felt that it’s still not within my budget even though it came with a hefty discount.

I decide to check out Discount Plasma screens online. My main concern is its brand name and am willing to pay a little more for a branded item. You know how electronics and electrical products are!

I discovered High Def Bay this morning, an online store that we could buy LCD screens, widescreens, HDTVs and plasma TVs at “Best Buy” prices. Best of all, they only deal in reputable brand names like Pioneer, Sony, Sharp and Panasonic. This makes it easy for shoppers who are interested in discount TVs without compromising on quality.

Can You Save With Shopping Coupons?

Cyberpartygal — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 15:49:34 +0000

I have a stack of shopping coupons with me right now that was sent to me by a leading shopping mall recently. I have been thinking that if we could really save money by using these shopping coupons.

I did some calculations and find that I am buying cheaper right now without these shopping coupons than if I were to use them. That’s because with coupons, we are forced to purchase a certain brand name and size only. The amount of discounts provided sure looks tempting but after doing the calculations, I don’t save at all.

Let’s say I have been buying Tissue Brand A at RM10. The coupon code will always been for Tissue Brand B. And even though there is a RM0.50 off Tissue Brand B, the retail price of Tissue Brand B will be higher, or the size smaller, making it still higher than what I am paying for Tissue Brand A.

I wonder if others feel the same as well or if they welcome the change in using another brand just because of the slight price discount.

Selling Antique Furniture Online

Cyberpartygal — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 14:45:34 +0000

My friend, whose parents have an antique store in town, told me that they are planning to expand their business and open a virtual store on the web. They are encouraged by their excellent sales but I have been to their store before and most of their buyers are foreigners who ship their purchases home. My friend wants to capitalize on this appreciation of antique furniture shown by foreigners by allowing them easy access to shop for antique furniture on the web.

According to my friend, they plan to only place smaller pieces of antique furniture on their online store to reduce the hassle of shipping items that are too large, like living room furniture set, dining room set, tv furniture and garden furniture.

I could not help much but I have seen how some online stores managed to sell and shop off large furniture pieces without a problem but then these stores willingly offer free shipping to their buyers within the country. I wonder if my friend would be willing to absorb domestic shipping.