Our article about the GetItNext search engine in the last issue hit a nerve with sellers, who liked GetItNext because it treats core (auction and BIN) and Store listings equally. There are many new customized search engines for eBay as the company tries to get third-party developers focused on bringing buyers to the site.
Sellers need to stay aware of these tools in case buyers bypass eBay's search tool in favor of these third-party search engines. For example, here is a tool designed to find eBay items that donate a portion of the auction proceeds to charity through eBay's GivingWorks program (http://www.givingpro.com).
eBay itself has a search engine for buyers interested in searching with shipping in mind. The Shipping Deals search portal is found at http://pages.ebay.com/shippingdeals and is designed to help shoppers search for items with free, thrifty, or expedited shipping.
Consider these types of tools when creating your listings to make sure your items don't get left out of search results.
Long time sellers will remember the days when it was easy to list items and rack up sales on auction sites. These days, it requires more savvy and planning to get eyeballs to your listings, wherever you host them. One excellent way for even the smallest of Internet retailers to boost sales is through email marketing. In today's issue, we cover the best way to approach building a customer list and give examples of email services - with pricing - so you can see if it's time for you to take the plunge.
You can also find a new chart of email list-hosting services on the AuctionBytes website. We spent the summer improving the site so it continues to be a valuable resource for online sellers. In addition to redesigning the AuctionBytes Cool Tool charts like the one featuring list-hosting services, we've redesigned the AuctionBytes Classifieds where you can advertise a particular item, your eBay Store, or your own website.
We've expanded the AuctionBytes Classifieds to include two new categories: "Businesses for Sale" and "Help Wanted." You can look for employees and contractors through the Help Wanted category and can sell your business in the "Businesses for Sale" category. I get lots of inquiries from companies within this industry who are looking to fill positions. We hope they take advantage of the new Help Wanted section to reach qualified candidates.
Advertising in AuctionBytes Classifieds costs $25 for an entire 12 months, allowing you to update and change your ad any time during the year. You can include an image, and the ads rotate on the AuctionBytes home page in the right-hand column as well as being included in the AuctionBytes NewsFlash newsletter.
It's Thanksgiving holiday in the US on Thursday, and the following day is "Black Friday," a huge day for retailers across the nation. Holiday shopping is in full force, and from all reports, retailers here are already slashing prices to stimulate sales. Let's hope it's a merry ecommerce season this year.
Thanks for reading.
About the author:
Ina Steiner is Editor of AuctionBytes.com and author of "Turn eBay Data Into Dollars" (McGraw-Hill 2006). She has a background in marketing and research in the high-tech and publishing fields. If you have story ideas, comments or questions, send them to ina@auctionbytes.com.
