Creating an eBay Listing Title: 55 Very Important Characters

When listing an item for sale on eBay, there are several important things to consider, but probably the MOST important aspect of your listing is what you put in the listing title.


You get 55 characters to use to help your buyer find your item. If you use these characters inefficiently, there is a good chance your listing will be seen less frequently (or not at all) and therefore will sell for less than you want.

80% of buyers search using eBay's "best match." This is the default search method when a buyer doesn't select another search method.

"Best match" is a somewhat secret and difficult to decipher logarithm created by eBay to assist buyers in finding what they are looking for. "Best match" criteria seems to change frequently, but it always matches items first and foremost on keyword matches.

If your title doesn't contain the EXACT word that a buyer is searching with, good chance the buyer will never see it.

So, when listing your item for sale, think like a buyer. Buyers do not search for a "cute" plate or a "must see" blender, so do not waste your words with these adjectives. Buyers might search on New or NIB, so make sure to include the word new if it describes your item.

Before creating your title, search for your item like a buyer. What words did you use? That is a good start for your description.

Now, can you think of other words someone might use? Make sure to state the obvious, Nike SHOES or Kitchen Aid BLENDER. If your item has the possibility of being looked for in both singular and plural forms, write it out both ways. For example "Hummel figurine figurines" when listing a group of figurines.

Include a common misspelling if you have room. Also include synonyms. Carhartt Carhart jacket coat.

Do not worry about how your title reads. The title needs to get your listing to show up; it doesn't have to be pretty. Kitchen Aid Toaster Stainless Steel 4 four slice toast will get a lot more eyeballs than Kitchen Aid Toaster *MUST SEE* works well Sharp!

Serious sellers spend time testing and tracking listings to see which keywords work best. Terapeak offers keyword suggestions and shows what other sellers are using and how successful various keywords are.

Ebay Pricing Strategies

The final selling price of your products has everything to do with how you price your item to get that first bid.

There are many ways to list products and many strategies on getting the highest possible final price. After reviewing dozens of successful selling strategies and selling thousands of items on eBay, the process of pricing can still be a matter of "gut" feeling, especially when I'm listing a product for the first time.

There are several things to look at as you develop your own pricing strategy.

Is the item a commodity or a unique, one of kind item? A commodity, for this purpose, is something that sells over and over on eBay for the about the same price. Look at final selling prices on eBay by checking the "completed listings" box under "advanced" search or use a research tool like Hammertap or Terapeak. My favorite tool, Terapeak, will help you Price your eBay Items for Success.


If your product is easy to find and sells often on eBay for around the same price, consider listing it in a fixed price format or putting it in your eBay store. Most easy to find products are not going to end higher in an auction than what they typically sell for. If it is not a commonly purchased product (i.e. there is a good chance a week or 10 days could pass without the right buyer searching for it), a fixed price or store listing is also a good idea.

If your product is unique or collectible (but not so unique that 7 or 10 days could pass without someone searching on it) or "hot", an auction format will work quite well. There are many strategies when it comes to the starting price in auction formats, but generally the lower the starting price, the higher the ending value. Many auctions start at just .99 even when the expected closing fee is in the hundreds of dollars.

Use Terapeak or your own research to see how many items like yours have sold in the last week. If there are at least three or four closed sales in the previous week, you are probably pretty safe with starting your auction low.

It can be hard to follow this advice, but study after study has shown that low starting prices drive the most interest and end at the highest price. Use Terapeak and notice the opening bid and the ending price.

If there are only one or two closed sales in the previous week, you might want to consider listing it a the lowest possible price you will take. That way, if only one or two buyers are watching and bidding on your item, you don't lose your shirt.

Remember to pay close attention to the day of the week and the time of the day auctions end in your research. Your auction will close exactly 3,7 or 10 days after you list it depending on how long your auction runs. Evenings are generally the best time to have an auction end (consider the time across the country--you don't want potential bidders to be asleep when it ends) and Sunday evenings generally get the highest prices. The Sunday evening suggestion is general, however, you will find that different products do best on different days.

Even after you develop your strategy you will need to keep doing your research and testing your own methods. EBay is changing constantly and the best strategy for today may not be the best strategy in the future.

Scratching your way out of the price battle; how to sell commodities online at a decent profit

Selling online is tough stuff--don't let anyone pretend it isn't. Selling commodities, or anything that is plentiful and sold by a lot of people, is especially tough. The price wars can be vicious with sellers undercutting each other until the only winners are the customers.

I have been selling a lot of a particular product during the last few weeks at a fair profit. I found the product quite easily (at my local box store) and was surprised when I listed it that no one else was selling it. My assistant was ecstatic, we were selling several a day. I knew it wouldn't last long; it was only a matter of time until my competition caught on and listed it too. It happened a couple of days ago--I knew we had been "found out" before even doing the research because sales came to a screeching halt. I found him (or her) rather quickly, they had under priced me by one penny!

Now, no one accuses ebay shoppers of being loyal. They are usually on ebay for a bargain and the lowest priced product usually wins. I get that. But it is still frustrating.

What are the options when this pricing war starts? How can you stand out from your competition without slicing your margins?

1.) Stand out from your customers with great photos. If everyone is using the same stock photo, do something different to yours to make it a little different. Add text advertising your money back guarantee or add a border or use a different picture. Buyers are more likely to click on a listing that appears unique.

2.) Bundle your product in a different way. Sell two instead of one or include an accessory or two. Add value to YOUR listing.

3.) Give away free information relating to your product. Even if the information is easy to find, your taking the time to print it off and include it can add value and make your product worth more.

4.) Provide excellent customer service. Make your listing crystal clear and answer all questions right away. Brag about your customer service in your listing. Maintain the best feedback you can.

5.) Stay a step ahead of your competition by staying on top of the product lines. Introduce new items and get some sales in before you have a lot of competition. Offer the accessories and add-ons that other sellers don't carry. Be creative with your product mix.

Above all, DON"T GET DISCOURAGED! Ebay is a dynamic, fluid marketplace and creative and persistent sellers will always find a way to persevere.

Ebay's "About Me" Page

Ebay's "about me" pages are a GREAT place to tell your buyers about you and your business. Buying online can be impersonal and faceless and this is one way to connect with the people you are selling to. Take a few minutes to let them know who you are and what your business is about.

Your "about me" page is your chance to highlight your experience in your niche, your dedication to customer service and your selling policies. Make it personal and professional at the same time.

Buyers are probably not curious about your favorite TV shows or where you shop(unless it relates to your niche,) but they DO want to know when and why you are selling on ebay. Be honest--buyers don't mind if this is a part time job you perform between diaper changes and carpool runs. Tell them about yourself and keep it positive.

You are allowed to tell buyers about your own website or encourage them to sign up for your newsletter, but make sure never to bash ebay or ebay policies.

Post a picture of your family or your pet. You will never meet your customers in person and most buyers like to know something about who they are buying from.

Jim Cochrum at My Silent Team has extremely creative ideas about how to use ebay's "about me" pages to grow your sales and your customer base.

The Ultimate Ebay Book...

I have read every single book in my library and dozens more about ebay and how to sell on ebay. Many books offer insight and ideas, but one book shines as the best all-around guide for beginning, intermediate and advanced ebay sellers. It is Skip McGrath's Titanium Ebay.



This book offers some basics on getting started, but then it moves quickly into a hands on list of how, when, why are what to sell on Ebay. He has an entire chapter dedicated to researching markets, with specifics on how to tell if there is enough opportunity in a niche for a new seller to move in. He also has an entire chapter dedicated to finding inventory at auctions and another to working with wholesalers. The entire book is sprinkled with his success stories and ideas that have worked for him over time.

This book sits on my nightstand and has been my guide throughout the last year of learning to sell on ebay.

This is the ONE book you don't want to miss as a new (or intermediate) ebay seller.

Two EASY Ways to Get Your Listings Found in Google

Feel like your listings might be invisible in the tangled and complex World Wide Web? Wondering how to get buyers to find YOUR product amongst the millions of listings on the Internet?

Figuring out how the Google spiders operate is no easy task. Without overwhelming yourself or your budget there are two very simple things you can add to your ecommerce listings that will help them get "noticed" by the search engines.

First, label your pictures with keywords. The search engines pay extra attention to pictures and having your labeled with a keyword or a keyword phrase gives you extra "points." Naming your picture is an easy way to add value to your listing.

Second, put a keyword or two at the end of your listing. Search Engine spiders pay extra attention to what is printed LAST on your page. A quick sentence stating the name of your product or the benefits of your product using keywords can also increase your score.

Creating an Ebay Listing That Sells

Putting together an ebay listing that sells--sounds simple enough, right? Well, yes and no. Click mentality studies show that you have 3-5 seconds to grab someones attention before they click off your listing. Use these simple tips to grab their attention and make the sale.

Anyone can take a picture and put together an ebay listing, but in order to get the most conversions and the best money in your ebay listing, you need to learn a few tricks that have been tested and proven to work.

EBAY LISTING PICTURES

Your ebay listing should have a clear picture and at least one picture in the copy (the description page.) Even if you use the same picture for both places on your ebay listing, a buyer likes to see the picture as he/she reads the listing description.

Make sure your picture is clear and on a plain background. Use good lighting for your ebay listing picture. There are phototents available right on ebay to help you with this process.

You can use a number of different photo hosting places and get that second picture for free by copying and pasting the "a ref" tag into your ebay listing while it is HTML mode. I like Photobucket, it is free and very easy to use. Check it out for yourself:

Photobucket

EBAY LISTING TEXT

The listing text should be very quick and easy to read. Use bullet points and a lot of white space in you ebay listing text, especially in the top part of the ebay listing. If you have extra information that doesn't call for bullet points, put it in the middle and keep in in brief paragraphs. Remember our attention span is short and our hand is on the mouse button.

Do not center the text in your ebay listing. It makes it harder to read and is awkward.

Do not use all capitals or too many explanation points in you ebay listing. All capitals on the Internet = shouting. Don't shout at us.

Tell the customer what you can do for him, not what you cannot do for him. Policies should be spelled out in your ebay listing, but in a positive manner.

EBAY LISTING TEMPLATES

The fancy scrolls and pretty borders are not required to sell on ebay. Don't spend a lot of time or money worrying about your ebay listing template, especially when you are a begining ebay seller. Buyers are not looking for pretty templates, they are shopping for what you are selling.


EBAY LISTING TESTIMONIALS

If you can find testimonials about your product, use them. People love to hear what others are saying about products. If you do not have access to reviews, use reviews or feedback on you as a seller. People love testimonials.

Remember, you have just 3-5 seconds to catch your buyer's attention. Catch their attention and then keep them on your ebay listing page with clear pictures and great copy.

Running A Successful Ebay Auction

Ebay's outrageous and unique idea of auction format selling has been fascinating marketing professors across the globe for 20 years. Millions of auctions have been tested and retested. Determining a "perfect" ebay auction strategy is probably impossible.

Out of all this research, though, we have learned a few basics that usually lead to successful ebay auctions.

A few tricks of getting the most money from your ebay auctions:

1.)Pay attention to when the item will end. It will end at exactly the same time as you list it in one, three, seven or ten days. Most bidding happens in the last 24 hours of a listing. If your item ends when most of your bidders are sleeping, you lose out on the ending excitement and bidding.

Consider your audience when you decide your ebay auction ending time. Video games will do better ending in the mid to late evening and office supplies might do better ending in the afternoon.

Sunday afternoon and evenings are known to bring in the highest money and Tuesdays and Saturdays are known as slower ebay days.

If you do your best work at odd hours, pay the extra dime to have your auction end at a good time.

2.)Have a Good Title. This seems obvious, but to get traffic to your ebay auction, use only keywords in your title. The title is what people search on. You have just 55 characters in your title, every one matters. Don't waste characters with words like "cute" or "must see." No one searches ebay auctions on cute. If you have a word that might be spelled two ways, spell it both ways. If you have a number use the digit and spell out the number. Think like a buyer searching through ebay auctions. If your item is new, please state that. I have seen many ebay sellers skip this money making word. For every buyer willing to click through to see if you item is new there are ten who will pass it by.

If there is something you must say and it isn't a keyword and doesn't fit into the 55
characters, buy the subtitle for $1.50. Subtitles are good investments and make your ebay auction stand out.

3.)Take good pictures and write good copy. You want to answer all possible questions up front in your ebay auction. Use a photo editor (I like photobucket and the price is right--free) and insert extra pictures into your ebay listing for free. Your pictures should describe the item as if there is no text and your text should describe the item as if there is no picture. Take the time to write a great description. Measure the item and give the measurements.

Don't worry too much about templates or graphics. Your ebay buyers are interested in what you are selling, not in how pretty you can make an ebay listing page.

4.)Proofread Please! Dozens of expensive items are given away every week on ebay because of typos. Double and triple check your spelling. There are ebay sellers who make a living buying and reselling things from ebay auctions that are listed with mistakes. Don't let your item be one of their finds.

5.)Price your item right. If it is "hot" and a great seller on ebay, you probably want to start it low. Thousands of sellers who have launched millions of ebay auctions will tell you that a low starting price leads to a higher ending price. You are building excitement. Once you get a bid on your ebay auction, your auction gets a lot more attention than an auction with no bids. People who place bids are invested and want to win. Your goal is to have as many bidders as possible fighting over your ebay auction.

Many sellers, especially new sellers, get nervous with this ebay auction strategy. You can get burned. If you cannot take that chance, list it at the lowest possible amount you will take.

The exception to the low start price strategy comes if you have a slow moving or highly unusual item. In those cases, you might want to try it out on auction at a price close to what you expect and then move it into your ebay store or put it up in a fixed price format if it doesn't sell.

6.)If you are putting several similar items up for auction, list them on different days. You do not want to compete with yourself. Since most bidding happens in the first and last day of ebay auctions, maybe stagger them with each starting on a consecutive day. That way if a bidder "loses" the first item, he can go on to win another. It also gives bidders a chance to bid on all of your auctions. If they end only minutes apart, they may not have the time or inclination to bid on both.

Ebay auctions are exciting. They add anticipation and uncertainty to the selling and buying process. Using simple ebay auction strategies can make your ebay auctions successful.