eBay Live attendees were anxious for 1 pm to arrive.

Those arriving early on the opening day of eBay's 2nd annual user convention in Orlando milled around and chatted, waiting for sessions to begin and 1 pm meant classes would kick off.

eBay University classes are designed to teach members how to buy and sell on the online auction site. Classes ranged from beginners to advanced, and attendees were eager to start.

"Merchandising to Build Your Business" was one of the classes being offered, and hundreds of attendees packed the classroom.

eBay's Merchandising Manager tools was explained. Presenters also gave tips on using eBay special features, with statistics on how they affected final selling prices. For example, "Featured Plus!" gives listings high exposure and increases final prices by 47 percent, according to eBay presenters. The feature costs $19.95.

Other advice on eBay merchandising was to open an eBay Store where sellers can build a brand and have more control. Catering to shoppers looking for gifts at major holidays, like Mother's Day and Christmas, was also recommended.

Many attendees jotted down notes, and lines formed at microphones when the Question & Answer session began.

One eBay seller explained that she spends a lot of time creating effective titles for her listings, and wondered how important category placement was. An instructor explained that in eBay's early days, browsing was more common. But as the number of listings have dramatically increased over time, buyers tend to use keyword searching more. But, he said, titles and categories are both extremely important.

He also explained that most buyers use "Titles Only" searching, but in a passionate area of collecting, or where items are rare or hard to explain, buyers use "Titles and Description" searches.

Attendees soaked up the information being taught like sponges, looking to increase the effectiveness of their sales efforts.

Two more days of classes follow today's afternoon sessions.