AuctionBytes-Update Number 45 - September 2, 2001 - ISSN 1528-6703
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IN THIS ISSUE:
1) From the Editor
2) How To Make Money Selling Books Online, Part VI - Pricing
3) uBid: A Different Kind of Auction Site
4) Marketing Tool: Using Inserts in Auction Packages
5) This & That
6) Newsflash
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1) FROM THE EDITOR
Last week, a reader told me about a PayPal-related scam. She won an eBay auction and received an email
requesting payment from someone she assumed was the seller. She sent them money via PayPal, only to discover the seller denied ever having contacted her. She was tricked into sending money to a third-party.
I can only hope that eBay and PayPal will track down the scoundrel who perpetrated this crime. And I wish I could say that the buyer will be refunded fully, but no one is making any promises at this point.
It's a reminder to all of us not to let our guard down. Even experienced users can get fooled. If you have problems or advice about scams, post a notice in the forums <http://www.auctionbytes.com/forum/phpBB/index.php>. Some of the smartest online auction folks are there posting about issues of the day: alternative auction sites, how their storefront sales are doing, tips
and tricks, and more. For example, several people said they hire their children to help them write descriptions and scan photos. What a great idea!
So keep your eyes open, update your virus software,
and backup your important files. And have a Happy Labor Day!
Ina Steiner, Editor
email:
ina@auctionbytes.com
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2) How To Make Money Selling Books Online, Part VI - Pricing
by Craig Stark
When I first started selling books on eBay, I not only sought to sell everything I listed,
but I took genuine pride when my sell-through percentage climbed to over 90%. It was simple. I chose good books, started them at a low opening bid, and let the market forces determine a final price. After
several months of maintaining a percentage at this level, I convinced myself that I'd arrived as an online bookseller. The only problem was, I wasn't making much money, especially when I calculated my hourly
income and discovered that I had created what amounted to a minimum wage job.
At the time, my answer to this problem was to search for higher quality books, and to the extent I was successful at
this, I gradually increased my income. Almost subconsciously, however, over a period of about a year, I also began to raise my opening bids, experiment with reserves (and later BIN's), and relist unsold
items shamelessly, sometimes four or five times, until they sold. It was discouraging to see my (first-list) sell-though percentage drop, eventually to less than half of what it had been, but a funny thing
happened as well. My ultimate sell-though percentage (after multiple relistings) remained over 90%, and I saw my income go up and up, eventually to a level several times what it had been.
If you
think you're already overpricing your books, you might be horrified with the advice I have to offer in this area. The most typical practice on eBay, even today, is to list a book at a low starting bid and
let it fly-in other words, to treat eBay as a sort of wholesale market. I strongly disagree with this approach (assuming that you have some somewhat special books to sell). It's much better for my bottom
line to treat eBay as a retail marketplace, to seek the price you would pay in a living, breathing bookstore.
The fees I pay to list and relist and relist until I get my price are what I consider
"rent"-the cost of waiting until the right buyer, so to speak, walks through the door. As huge a market as eBay is, it's important to remember that your buyer isn't always online.
There are
all kinds of buyers on eBay, just as there are all kinds of sellers. Smart ones, downright dumb ones, dealers, bargain hunters, collectors, etc. The buyer I look for is the one who has an emotional need for
the book I'm offering, the one who will give me the highest possible price. Not because they are looking at things objectively, but because they need to have the book to satisfy an appetite for nostalgia,
passion for a hobby, etc. I seek the emotionally driven purchase. Conversely, I have little or no interest in attracting book dealers or bargain hunters.
I start almost everything I list at $9.99,
more than half the time I use a reserve, and I nearly always offer a BIN (Buy It Now). This approach serves the three-fold purpose of attracting bids early in the auction, protecting the book from being sold
at a low price, and offering a carrot-on-a-stick for the impulse buyer. Time and time again I've sold books for my BIN price on the third, fourth and fifth relist, even books that hadn't attracted a single
bid in previous auctions. So much depends on who's there at the time, and I've taught myself to be patient, to gut it out. With week-to-week variations, my first-list sell-through rate now averages around
40%--pathetic, no doubt, in the eyes of many veteran eBay sellers. But when you do the math, you'll see it's much better to sell a book for $50 and pay out $5 or $10 or more in fees than it is to give it
away for $10, even if it means paying less than a buck in fees. Believe me, I've tried it both ways, and there's no compariso!
n. It simply makes more sense to lift the buyer to your price than it does to
let him drag you down to his.
When I finally convinced myself that this approach was the key to higher profits and began to use it exclusively, my weekly net jumped from several hundred dollars to
well over a thousand. And it keeps rising. It makes THAT much difference.
One important word of warning: this advice applies only if your books have some special quality, and if your books aren't in
great supply. Also, this assumes that you've put together a nice auction with clear, multiple pictures, used a hook in your title, listed it in the right category, etc.-in other words, done all the other
things that go into the mix of a good presentation.
---
Craig Stark is a full-time online bookseller working at home, and currently makes in excess of $1,000 weekly selling exclusively on eBay. He
lists anything that will realize a worthwhile profit, including both antiquarian and contemporary titles. In several months he will launch a Web site at <
http://www.braintreebooks.com> and offer a large selection of
hard-to-find, quality books. At that time he will begin listing some of his auctions using the ID braintreebooks. Email Craig at braintreebooks@yahoo.com. Craig also hosts the Book Forum on the AuctionBytes Website. If
you have questions or comments about selling books online, go to <
http://www.auctionbytes.com/forum/phpBB/index.php>
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3) uBid: A Different Kind of Auction Site
by Ina Steiner
With online sellers checking out alternative venues in earnest, AuctionBytes will be reviewing some the new - and more established - online auction sites. UBid has been around
since 1997 and takes a different approach to online auctions <http://www.ubid.com>. It takes on the role of "seller" as well as auction house. uBid offers three models for selling goods:
1) uBid DIRECT: uBid acts like a
liquidator and purchases merchandise directly from manufacturers.
2) uBid PREFERRED PARTNERS: uBid sells merchandise FOR manufacturers, which retain ownership of the goods and must warehouse and ship the
items to the buyers.
3) uBid CONSUMER EXCHANGE: uBid allows individuals to sell on the uBid auction site in a manner similar to the eBay model.
When buyers do a search for an item on uBid, results
are sorted into these three categories. This way, the consumer knows if they are buying directly from uBid, from a manufacturer or from another individual.
uBid offers 16 different product categories
slanted toward computers, consumer electronics and fashion:
Computers; Computer Peripherals; Computer Components; Off Lease Computers; Home Office; Consumer Electronics; Digital Cameras and Video; Home
Improvement; Housewares; Apparel & Linens; Sports & Hobbies; Travel & Events; Jewelry and Gifts; Collectibles; and Everything Else.
uBid Consumer Exchange is similar to the eBay auction
model. However, there are no listing fees, and there is a flat-rate final value fee of 5% no matter how high the selling price reaches.
uBid has the look and feel of the Internet version of a
mail-order catalog more than an auction site. uBid and Preferred Partners use professional pictures and descriptions from the manufacturer. It appears that Consumer Exchange results always show up last.
Small sellers may be concerned about competing with uBid items. At quick glance, uBid shows nearly 1.1 million items for sale - many with multiple bids. However, a more careful look at the listings shows
most of the items with bids are being sold by uBid themselves. Consumer Exchange sellers are listing AFTER all the uBid and Preferred Partner items, and sell-through rate drops dramatically. All sellers
would also be concerned about the fees, since once an item gets above a selling price of $25, the final value fees are higher than on other auction sites like eBay. Finally, uBid seems pretty mainstream, so
if you are selling collectibles or off-beat items, you may not see much action.
For example, entering the search term "stamps" came up with 12 results, none of which were postage stamps.
Searching for "stamp" netted 14 results, only three of which were postage stamps.
Compare this with a search on eBay for the word "stamps," which netted 12,352 results, the
majority of them being postage stamps.
Please let me know what you think - leave a posting in the forum <http://www.auctionbytes.com/forum/phpBB/index.php>, especially if you have any uBid
buying or selling experience.
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4) Marketing Tool: Using Inserts in Auction Packages
by David Steiner
As a seller, I'm a big believer in giving my customer a little more than they expect. Soon after I began selling online, I got into the habit of putting something "value
added" inside customers' packages when I shipped their items. I not only wanted to make a good first impression, but I felt I had an opportunity to give them something to remember me as a seller, just
in case they wanted to bookmark my auctions for other items that were of interest to them. In essence, putting an insert along with an auction item allowed me to do a little marketing for myself.
When Ina and I first thought up the concept for AuctionBytes, it was as a print newsletter that would be published 10 times annually. Thankfully, we changed to an electronic format before ever going live,
but not before we had printed 5,000 sample copies of our first issue. So, with 10 boxes of newsletters stacked up in our laundry room, I decided to begin slipping them inside the auctions packages I was
shipping. It didn't add significant weight to the box; it focused on tips for online auction users, so it was of interest to my customers; it got our name in the public eye; and it gave buyers another reason
to purchase from me again or to visit our Web Site. The response was very good, and I received feedback and emails thanking me for the newsletter as well as the product that the customer purchased.
Eventually, that print newsletter became a little dated, so I created a sheet that compared shipping rates between USPS and UPS. There is a little box at the bottom of the sheet that includes the URL of the
AuctionBytes Yellow Pages for buyers to look up products and services if they decide to become sellers themselves. It is a nice reference sheet for my customers that they can use to estimate shipping
charges, and it also effectively markets our Site.
As sellers, we're in the business of keeping ourselves in business. Gaining repeat customers is essential to becoming a successful seller. I checked
with eBay, and they have no policy in place that prohibits adding promotional material inside shipping boxes.
If you decide to add an insert to your packages, it should be something useful that your
customer won't throw away immediately. It should also be lightweight, so that they're not paying to ship the extra material. (A brick with the URL of your Web site would probably not be appreciated.)
With that in mind, I've developed a page on our Site that allows you to customize an insert of your own and print it out. Included on the insert is a UPS/USPS comparison chart and a link to the AuctionBytes
Yellow Pages. At the top of the sheet, there is space for you to add three lines of information about yourself. You might want to include your Seller ID, your Web Site URL and a special offer - whatever
information you'd like to impart to your customers - and best of all, you can do it all online.
To customize your own insert, go to <http://www.auctionbytes.com/insertform/insertform.html>, fill out the boxes with your information, and click the "Submit" button. You'll be taken to a page that will show you what your customized insert
will look like. There are instructions on the form page that explains the process in more detail.
This form prints out full-size on an 8-1/2"x11" sheet using Internet Explorer and slightly
smaller when using Netscape. (A 600 DPI Printer or higher gives the best results.) If you need to make any changes to your form before printing, simply click the "Back" button on your browser, make
your edits, and you're ready to print.
If you don't sell in volume, print out a few at a time. If you sell a lot, print out one and make photocopies - you can even use colored paper to make them
stand out.
I'll be adding different customizable forms in the future. In fact, feel free to email me at dsteiner@auctionbytes.com
if you have suggestions for other inserts. Being an online auction seller means that you're a businessperson. And successful businesspeople never miss an opportunity to spread their name. (That's why I left the AuctionBytes URL on the insert.)
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5) THIS & THAT
Yahoo Introduces New Pricing for Stores, Offers Direct Email Service
Yahoo Stores will implement new pricing for its store offerings, lowering its monthly fee and adding insertion and final value fees.
The new pricing, which will go into effect in October, is $49.95/month plus a 10-cent insertion fee with a half-percent transaction fee. The insertion fee is based on the daily average number of published
products in a store and is based on the previous calendar month's product count.
The new pricing replaces the $100/month charge for up to 50 items and $300/month charge for between 51 and 1,000 items.
While the new pricing lowers the monthly fee, storeowners with brisk business will probably pay more due to the .5% final value fee.
There is also a 3.5% revenue share for sales driven through the
Yahoo Network, including the Yahoo Directory and Yahoo Network search and the optional Yahoo Shopping.
Yahoo Stores <http://store.yahoo.com> is a robust offering for fixed-price selling only. Yahoo also
offers a free "Auction Booth" feature for auction listings only <http://help.yahoo.com/help/us/auct/asell/asell-33.html>. It is not a Storefront
offering, but it displays your Yahoo auction listings in one place and you can give it a custom look and feel.
Yahoo also said it entered into an agreement with GotMarketing allowing Yahoo Store
merchants to design direct-marketing emails in order to increase exposure and attract new customers.
*****
Advertise your eBay Auctions in Minnesota & Florida Newspapers
eBay sellers
can place ads for their auctions in the classified sections of two U.S. print newspapers. The St. Petersburg Times in St. Petersburg, Florida, and the Star Tribune in Minneapolis, Minnesota, are accepting
eBay classified advertisements. Users can place Item ads or User ID ads. Items prohibited include "mature audience" items, real estate and cars. Ads cost from $3 to $6 for a three-line ad that runs
for two to three days.
<
http://pages.ebay.com/help/basics/classifieds_faq.html>
*****
Industry Association Holds Elections
The Online
Auction Users Association (OAUA) is an association providing education, research, lobbying efforts and a collective voice in matters concerning the interests of all members. It is holding elections to name
four members to its board. <
http://www.auctionusers.org/announce/2001-BOD-nominees.shtml> It's worth joining to receive newsletter and membership discounts!
*****
Kovels TV Show Debuts Monday on HGTV
Collecting experts Ralph and Terry Kovel are hosting a new program on Home and Garden Television called "Flea Market Finds with the
Kovels." The show will premier this week at 1pm, and will air regularly on Wednesday evenings at 8:00 pm EST beginning October 10th.
<http://www.hgtv.com>
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>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>AUCTION FORECAST:
David's auction forecast calls for a mixed day for Sunday, September 2, 2001:
5-day auction: Fair
7-day auction: Good
10-day auction: Bad
Click here for an extended auction forecast:
<http://www.auctionbytes.com/Email_Newsletter/calendar/calendar.htm l
>
Bookmark it!
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them, or go to
http://www.auctionbytes.com/Email_Newsletter/Recommend/recomme nd.html
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6) NEWSFLASH HIGHLIGHTS
These are just some of the headlines from our daily Newsflash feature - if you aren't reading Newsflash, you are only getting part of the story!
Gator.com Accused of Page Jacking, Fights Back with Lawsuit
Yahoo Introduces New Pricing for Stores
Couch Potato Alert: eBay TV Coming Next Fall
Keno Brothers Auction Books for a Good Cause
eBay Under DOJ Microscope?
eBay Offers Voice-Guided Tours & Interactive Tutorials
JustBeads.com Growth Rate Explodes in 2001
"All About Appraising" Live Chat, Tomorrow Night
OAUA Holds Elections
Auctionweiser Releases New Bulk Uploader
Square Trade Dispute Resolution Workshop Hosted on eBay
Bidville Features Sports Items in "Sportmania" Promotion
Mattel Launches Web Site for "Hot Wheels" Collectors
EBay Enhances Item Revision Features
"The Street" Scrutinizes eBay's Model
ePier Launches Ad Campaign
"Chubb's
Antiques Roadshow" Wraps Up TV Season with a Unique Find
More on uBid's TV Ad Campaign
<http://www.auctionbytes.com/Email_Newsletter/newsflash/newsflash. html>
RECEIVE NEWSFLASH VIA EMAIL!
Send a blank email to: auctionflash-subscribe@topica.com
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Please use the AuctionBytes Yellow Pages when you are shopping for supplies
and services for online auctions and collectibles!
<
http://www.online-auction-directory.com>
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AuctionBytes-Update ISSN 1528-6703
AUCTIONBYTES.COM CONTACT INFORMATION
Editorial:
ina@auctionbytes.com
Advertising: advert@auctionbytes.com or 508-655-5697
Letters, Comments, Suggestions: feedback@auctionbytes.com
Want to Write for AuctionBytes-Update? Go to http://www.auctionbytes.com and click on "write for us" to view author guidelines. If you are interested, send email to ina@auctionbytes.com.
Ina Steiner, Editor, Publisher and Founder: ina@auctionbytes.com
David Steiner, Webmaster, Technical Editor, President and Founder:
dsteiner@auctionbytes.com
Michele Alice, Contributing Editor
AuctionBytes.com
c/o Steiner Associates
PO Box 668
Natick, MA 01760
508-655-5697
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result from negligence, accident or any other cause.
Scratch scratch.
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