Happy Holidays from the eBay Certified Provider Team

Three Lessons to Learn When eBay Sellers Look Back on 2009

Blog post provided by Infopia

The economic slump of 2008-09 has taught internet retailers valuable lessons to take into 2010.
When resources became slim, business owners learned how to make much more out of much less.

This all reminds me of a story: A wise high school teacher once told her class about her days of a poor new college graduate starting out her new life on her own. She beamed as she told her students stories of painting cinder blocks to use as side tables, pleating sheets for drapes in her new apartment and creating over 20 recipes to make with ramen noodles. She told her students that the creativity and ingenuity she gained with the experience was invaluable. A student raised his hand to ask, “Would you want to go back and live that way again?” She replied, “No way! But, I’d never want to take that past experience back.”

Many internet retailers may one day feel the same way about 2009 and the economic slow down that preceded. Here are a few lessons to take with you into 2010.

1. Low Shipping Fees are Imperative to Staying Competitive
The recent economy has changed the way that online shoppers buy. Even as the economy recovers, online shopping will still trend this way. Online retailers have become leaders in the battle against traditional brick and mortar stores. One of the factors that contributes to the success is the ability for shoppers to compare rates. Shipping cost has become a large factor in this comparison. Many online retailers have implemented lower cost shipping methods to stay competitive.

2. Cost Control
What business expenses can be cut? What costs can be negotiated? Retail rent space, packaging materials, contractor fees, etc. can all be negotiated. Many internet retailers had to negotiate costs out of necessity. If you don’t ask, you don’t know if you are getting the best cost. Now that retailers have been forced to make these types of requests, they are able to be sure that they are getting the best price in the future.

3. Customer service is priceless
We have all heard the age old saying, ” the customer is key.” Many internet retailers have learned how to retain their customers with email marketing and loyalty programs. Converting new customers has been more difficult in the recession. Competition has driven many retailers to use excellent prices and promotions for hot items. Benefit descriptions and promotional banners also helped internet retailers in 2009 to beat their competitors.

Founded in 1999, Infopia provides (Software as a Service) eCommerce solutions—helping eBay sellers grow their business efficiently and effectively.

How to Contact and Build a Relationship with Wholesale Suppliers by Worldwide Brands

Article by Worldwide Brands - this is a series of 14 blog posts providing information on how to find inventory and products to sell on eBay from wholesalers with Worldwide Brands and their Product Sourcing Tool for eBay.

Article #9 - Make the Call to the Wholesale Supplier

How should your calls to a wholesale supplier be conducted?

Things to Consider Before Calling

• Check the time zone and select a good time
• Have NO distracting noises in the background
• Have a prepared message in case you reach voicemail
• You have 5 seconds to capture the sales representative’s interest
• Remember WIIFM: “What’s In It For Me?” (this is what the wholesale representative is thinking!)
• Get to the point quickly
• Lead with your sales goals and your business information
• Remember that you need them more than they need you
• Remember they are thinking: “WIIFM?”
• Ask what they require from a new retailer?
• Read the suppliers policies and procedures before calling

Remember What You are Looking For

• Agreement to open an account.
• Confidential Price List
• Easy method of uploading products, product information and quality images
• Clear understanding of the purchase process
• Clear understanding of the ship cycle and order processing time frame

How to Build a Relationship with the Wholesale Representative

• Maintain regular contact but don’t repeatedly email or call your wholesale representative with one or two questions. Try to save all your questions for one email or phone call in the week.
• Provide feedback on how your website is doing
• Build a good relationship and your wholesale rep will help you with:

Early announcement of specials

• Early announcement of new product
• Promotions for your current product range
• Ensure suppliers are aware of quick shipping turnaround requirements
• Check inventory levels daily
• Provide feedback to your wholesalers about what is working best for you

For more information on dealing successfully with wholesalers, read the Wholesale Tips provided in eBay’s Certified Provider Blog and consider using the Worldwide Brands Product Sourcing Tool in eBay’s Seller Manager section of “My eBay.”

eBay Educational Support

One of the applications now available in Selling Manager Applications (check out your “My eBay" and look for a new tab labeled "Applications") is the Worldwide Brands Product Sourcing Tool.

The Worldwide Brands Product Sourcing Tool contains a wholesaler database, education modules and education series called: “The Whole $ale.” This series has many chapters to coach eBay Sellers on best practices in working with wholesalers. Sign up for either eBay Selling Manager or eBay Selling Manager Pro and you can then access the Selling Manager Applications directory and the Worldwide Brands Product Sourcing Tool.

Check out Worldwide Brands Product Sourcing Tool for eBay today! A 7 Day Free Trial is available.

Worldwide Brands is an eBay Certified Solution Provider, providing product sourcing access and information for eBay sellers. They are the publishers of an extensive directory of legitimate, fully-verified ecommerce wholesalers and manufacturers.

Sales of Disney Items on eBay Increase During the Holidays

Article by Terapeak

A week ago, we blogged about the holiday toy racket, which year after year provides one of the more reliable markets on eBay. But what if you were to boil that phenomenon down into one single brand? (Perhaps in a wicked witch’s cauldron, or as part of a poisonous apple?)
That brand would be Disney.

For more than 85 years, The Walt Disney Company has been one of Hollywood’s biggest money-makers, and a source for some of the world’s most sought-after merchandise. And, naturally, that fervor tends to reach its peak around the holidays.

For starters, here are Terapeak’s current top 5 Hot DVDs on eBay:



Those numbers, of course, come on the heels of Disney remastering several of its classic animated films this year, and sales have continued to rise since October. Also in the Terapeak top 20 Hot DVDs on eBay are: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, and Alice in Wonderland.

How about a Terapeak product report? Well here is a 90-day All Sites search for “Disney” total sales:



Now that’s an extremely broad search, but you can see how the demand for just one keyword rises!

Finally, to show just how annual “Disney Demand” is, here are a pair of two-year category trends. First is a total sales trend for the Collectibles > Disneyana > Contemporary (1968-Now) category:



And second, a total sold listings trend for Toys & Hobbies > TV, Movie & Character Toys > Disney:



Those are some pretty serious peaks and valleys, and it’s easy to see how they match up with the holiday season. So with close to a year before next December rolls around… imagine all the Disney schwag you’ve got time to collect!

Terapeak is an eBay Certified Provider and a member of the eBay Market Data Program. Terapeak 5.0 is a full, web-based solution providing real-time market research and data analytics on eBay. Terapeak 5.0 provides eBay sellers and buyers with two years worth of trending data.

5 Best Practices for Handling Online Returns

5 Best Practices for Handling Online Returns

When it comes to allowing customers to return items, some online retailers and eBay sellers find it difficult to manage returns and accurately keep track of their inventory. Below are 5 Best Practices eBay sellers can use in order to increase customer satisfaction and reduce customer support inquiries around returning an item.

Best Practices:

1. Clearly display the returns policy for buyers
   It can make a big difference in the buyer’s mind when contemplating which seller to purchase from. If a buyer is unsure about how an item will look, fit, etc…, then an easy and clearly displayed returns policy, can clinch the sale.
   *note: All eBay sellers are now required to specify a return policy and handling time when they list items on eBay. If the seller's return policy is not to accept returns, it must be specified in the Return Policy drop down menu.*


2. Option of returning to a local store
   For multi-channel sellers with retail stores, customers may find it more convenient to return items at the store.


3. Include return and pre-paid shipping label in the package
   Enclosing instructions on how to return an item along with a pre-paid shipping label reduces customer contacts while increasing customer satisfaction.


4. Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA)
   Buyer contacts the seller and arranges to return items in order to have the item repaired, replaced or refunded. Seller will send a shipping label to the buyer with a specific number on the label for their shipping department. When the item is returned the seller’s shipping department can then accurately record the item’s receipt, evaluate and repair the item and potentially re-sell the item and account for the next sale.


5. Keep customers in the loop
   Save customers the hassle having to contact the seller. Sellers can save time spent dealing with questions about returns by providing confirmation when items have been received, when replacement items are sent out, and when refunds have been processed.

Benefits:

• Edit and update all listings to include current returns policy
• Track and record returned items for accurate inventory management and profit and loss accounting
• Easily create pre-paid shipping labels to include in package or email shipping label
• Create and manage RMAs for larger sellers and their shipping departments
• Automate buyer communication with confirmation of shipment emails

While some of the above best practices for handling returns require a change in the seller’s policy, most can be easily implemented with a solution from an eBay Certified Provider.

Certified Providers

ShipRush – shipping solution
ShipWorks – shipping solution
Infopia – listing solution with RMA feature
Kyozou – listing solution with RMA feature
Mercent - listing solution with RMA feature
Vendio - listing solution with buyer communication features to stay on top of returns

5 Tips to Prepare for a Successful 2010 - eBay Radio with WhatDoISell.com

Listen on eBay Radio as Lisa Suttora, CEO & Founder of WhatDoISell.com, shares her insights and tips on how eBay sellers can create a prosperous 2010!

“5 Tips to Prepare for a Successful 2010”

• Look back at 2009 and assess your business
• Review your financials and create goals
• Organize inventory and workspace
• Analyze inventory and reprice or remove slow selling items
• Find new or fresh products and expand in your current niche

Check out www.bizplan2010.com to receive these tips and more from Lisa Suttora. Lisa's Top 10 Tips for a Successful eCommerce Business.

Since 2004, Lisa Suttora of WhatDoISell.com has provided thousands of online sellers with the skills, knowledge and support they need to build a unique, thriving business on eBay.

Toys, Toys, Toys: Santas Worldwide are Buying on eBay by Terapeak

Article by Terapeak

This is not exactly the hardest time of year for us to find visually-dramatic sales trends — in fact, it’s almost certainly the easiest. A majority of all two-year Terapeak trends will show peaks and valleys in correlation with the holidays, and there’s no better category for that than eBay’s Toys & Games.

We have seen time and time again how certain toys will blow up for one season (Furby, Tickle-Me-Elmo, Cabbage Patch), while others will continue to sell year after year. Today, we’ll look at a few examples from 2009 — though of course there are hundreds more.

First is Leapster, an educational handheld game console that teaches kids the alphabet, phonics and basic math (among other things). First released in 2003, there’s been a recent spike in demand for Leapster 2, released last year. Here’s a 60-day total sales trend for “Leapster”:

Next is a classic: Lego. Dating back to the 1930s, the little building blocks are a big-time seller all year round… but rarely to the scale that the holidays provide. Here’s a 60-day sales trend for “Lego” (which, last Sunday, totalled more than $1.5 million in eBay.com sales!):

And finally, here’s this year’s phenomenon: Zhu Zhu Pets. You may have read about them already — robotic hamsters! — but if you have yet to believe the hype, check out this 60-day trend for “zhu zhu pet”:

It’s a prosperous venture, this toy racket. Here’s to guessing what next year’s craze will be!

Terapeak is an eBay Certified Provider and a member of the eBay Market Data Program. Terapeak 5.0 is a full, web-based solution providing real-time market research and data analytics on eBay. Terapeak 5.0 provides eBay sellers and buyers with two years worth of trending data.

eBay Certified Provider Spotlight - INFOPIA

Infopia is an eBay Certified Solution Provider providing a comprehensive tool/solution for ecommerce retailers and eBay sellers since 1999.

Many of eBay’s larger sellers (Gold, Platinum, Titanium and Diamond) use a solution such as Infopia. Infopia helps sellers prevent overselling through accurately managed inventory for multiple locations and channels. Infopia allows for multi-channel inventory management, and enables sellers to create set automated listing rules or strategies.

Unique features to Infopia's multi-channel solutions are:

1. Salesforce integration
   Create a 360 degree view of your buyer. Know who your buyer is, issues they may have had with your product, spending habits and create targeted marketing for increase in repeat purchases.
2. Configurator
   Infopia is the only company with the ability and is allowed by eBay to offer the Configurator. Basically the Configurator allows an eBay buyer to custom create an eBay listing to their specifications. Think creating a computer and picking the accessories and upgrades you want.
3. Trade-In Program
   Sellers can take advantage of Infopia’s trade-in program capabilities and accept previously owned items and put the value of that item toward a new purchase on eBay. Example, a seller can accept trade-in of an old golf club from a buyer and give the buyer cash or credit it toward their new golf club purchase on eBay.

Infopia centralizes and automates an eBay seller’s business through a single all-in-one solution:

• Manage listings and descriptions from a single inventory database
• Supports eBay checkout
• Immediate Payment for Fixed Price listings
• Manage order processing, including checkout, payment, authorization and more
• Manage shipping with integrations for UPS, FedEx, USPS and Endicia

Benefits of Infopia:

• Centralize your multi-channel business in one place
• Reduce UPIs
• Attract customers with custom, configurable listings
• Expand buyer base with the Infopia trade-in system
• Maximize your profit potential with detailed analytics
• Automate online business management

eCommerce sellers interested in using a solution such as Infopia to manage their business can contact the Certified Provider and decide if they offer the right tool for their business.

Founded in 1999, Infopia provides (Software as a Service) eCommerce solutions—helping eBay sellers grow their business efficiently and effectively.

New eBay Research App for the iPhone from Terapeak

New! eBay sellers can easily determine their products success rate on eBay (and more) with their iPhone! Terapeak just launched their new eBay market research app for the iPhone.

“The Terapeak iPhone app has been in the works for a long time, and it's a tool we feel will add a whole new dimension to conducting market research. Now you'll be able to take Terapeak with you wherever you go -- to garage sales, trade shows, thrift stores, and more!” - Terapeak







Terapeak helps answer the questions:

• What is the value of my item?
• Will my items sell?
• When should I list my item?
• Which features should I use to list my item?

• Similar to the web version of Terapeak, the new iPhone app will enable eBay sellers to see average prices, listing totals and sell-through rates for each search they perform.
• Results are viewable and sortable by end price, start price and number of bids. The results can also be filtered by category, minimum end price and maximum end price. All of this eBay data is easily accessible with your iPhone.
  
  Tereapeak’s iPhone app will be available free to anyone with a paid Terapeak subscription. Also, anyone who signs up for Terapeak before the end of December can take advantage of this offer.
  
  To access the application and get started, all you'll need to do is download it from the iPhone App Store and enter your Terapeak username and password.
  
  Terapeak is an eBay Certified Provider and a member of the eBay Market Data Program. Terapeak 5.0 is a full, web-based solution providing real-time market research and data analytics on eBay. Terapeak 5.0 provides eBay sellers and buyers with two years worth of trending data.

Are Your eBay Listings Holiday-Ready? by Auctiva

Article from Auctiva Education (Education for eBay Sellers)

As the holidays near, buyers will be bombarded with special offers, sales and a bevy of items to choose from. Yes, every seller will be vying for their attention—and that means you have a lot of competition. So now is the time to ensure your listings are in tip-top shape to attract buyers.

Not sure where to begin? Just glance through the following aspects of your listings to make sure your listings pop, entice and give you a very merry selling season.


Try on a new template for size
If you've been to your local mall, or even the mom-and-pop shop down the street, odds are you've seen wreaths, candy canes, twinkle lights or other holiday decorations hanging in the windows as you go by. There's a reason for this: The wintery decor is inviting and it attracts buyers.

The same holds true for eBay listing templates. Templates organize eBay listings into digestible segments, including descriptions, shipping details and payment information, so buyers don't have to read through one massive block of text to find the information they need. It's there at a glance.

Auctiva recently added a number of new themes to its gallery of more than 1,700 eBay listing templates. You could go with a holiday theme, or opt for a template that complements the color of your items.

Try Bing for cha-ching
The Bing Cashback program allows buyers to purchase qualifying items and get a percentage of the item's price as a cash rebate. eBay buyers and sellers have been taking advantage of this program since it began a year ago.

So why not give it a shot? Get full details about Bing Cashback. To qualify for the program, items must be listed with a Buy It Now price, whether you're using the fixed-price or auction format. Be sure to mention the rebate program in your subtitle and description to entice buyers. The cash-back incentive will be very appealing.

Get the Best Match
As we mentioned in an earlier EDU article, relevance is the name of the game with eBay's new Best Match search algorithm. Remember, Best Match tries to show buyers the listings that most closely match what they're looking for, so use focused and appropriate keywords in your titles and descriptions.

"Titles are more important than ever," eBay notes. "Relevant titles will be more important than ever in getting the best position for Fixed-Price listings."

Titles that are too general might get more impressions, or click throughs, but they won't get more sales—and they'll wind up with lower performance scores. Lower scores mean a lower standing in search results.

Also be sure to describe your items accurately; that includes mentioning any minor defects an item may have. The holiday season is no time to surprise your buyers. They should know exactly what they're getting.

Offer free shipping
Budget-conscious shoppers are looking for the best deals this season. Offering free shipping will not only save them money and make them happy, it will give your items a boost in search results.

If you just can't do free shipping, offer the lowest-possible shipping cost. According to eBay, auction-style and fixed-priced listings with excessive shipping will be "demoted" in search results.

Do your research
Yes, prices will definitely matter this holiday season, so take a look at other listings to find out what similar items are going for. Buyers will certainly be doing this, even as the economy starts to improve. In fact, comparison shopping is expected to be the norm in the coming weeks, as shoppers look to buy items for all the people on their holiday lists.

Make use of that camera
Good photos and lots of them can promote trust with buyers. Remember that Auctiva lets you add more than 24 images to your listings.

Make sure photos are clear and detailed. A white background is always a good idea, as is taking photos in direct light to get good images. A picture really is worth a thousand words when it comes to selling online.

Find the right format

Lastly, your selling format will matter, too. It may seem difficult to decide if you should list your items in the fixed-priced or auction style, but there are some guidelines.

Auctions typically work well for one-of-a-kind products such as collectibles and antiques. It's also a good option if you don't know the value of an item. This could prevent you from over-pricing a product, since buyers will determine its worth. And you don't want to over-price your items. Buyers will be looking for deals, and so will Best Match.

However, if you have several of the same or similar items, and you can compare your item to others to determine its value, opt for fixed-priced. While several factors go into determining your standing in Best Match search results, Best Match will follow these guidelines.

So take one more good look at your listings to make sure they'll grab buyers' attention, and let the selling begin. Hope you have your packing supplies ready. You'll need them soon enough. Enjoy the sales.

This article has been condensed. Read the full article here.

Understanding and Creating Relationships with Wholesalers for More Profitable Product Sourcing by Worldwide Brands

Article by Worldwide Brands - this is a series of 14 blog posts providing information on how to find inventory and products to sell on eBay from wholesalers with Worldwide Brands and their Product Sourcing Tool for eBay.

Article #8 - Understanding Wholesalers

eBay beginners and PowerSellers who make money from selling products regularly on eBay need to understand wholesalers. To grow your business, you need excellent relationships with wholesalers that support you as an online retailer and understand the requirements of customers, and eBay, in delivering an awesome buying experience.

Like you, wholesalers are in business to make money. They have to take big risks to ensure continuity of product supply. The wholesaler is, of course, not the manufacturer. Manufacturers may sell directly to some huge retail buyers like Wal*Mart, Target, etc...but a manufacturer does not sell directly to a retailer. Manufacturers like to manufacture in large quantities and ship in bulk container loads to a limited number of big volume buyers. Manufacturers select wholesalers in different locations who will buy in bulk from them, store the inventory, and manage the sale of goods to hundreds and thousands of retailers who buy in large, medium and small quantities.

Wholesalers take risks in holding inventory. So how does the wholesaler make money? Wholesalers who beat the following challenges remain in business:

• Fast inventory turn
  Wholesalers who receive inventory and turn it into orders rapidly can make money. The best cash flow option for the wholesaler is to sell the entire inventory of a product and receive payment from retailers before the wholesaler has to pay the manufacturer.
• High volume transactions to build profits
  Typically, wholesalers don’t make a large profit margin per item. So they need to sell a lot of items. With more items sold, cumulatively they make more profit.
• Keep operating costs to a minimum
  Wholesalers need to ship large volumes of product without getting involved in complex handling, packaging, shipping and billing issues. Wholesalers keep staff levels to a minimum so you typically cannot expect wholesaler personnel to spend hours supporting any retailer. Retailers must know what they want, know what they’re doing, must place orders, and get on with selling without making demands on the wholesaler.
• Manage the Manufacturer’s Brands
  Manufacturers require that wholesalers protect the integrity of their brands. If a manufacturer makes a high quality product, with higher prices and good margins, the manufacturer requires its wholesaler to be discriminating about who can sell that brand, and how the wholesaler prices the brand to its retailers. Sometimes a wholesaler is not allowed to sell a brand to an online retailer because of the threat of price wars on the Internet that can drag down the perception of the brand as a quality and expensive range of products.
• Manufacturers have their own Language
  If you want to communicate well with a wholesaler, you need to know their own language – the shorthand of wholesale transactions. Wholesalers use words like: MSRP, FOB, etc. If you are not familiar with these terms, eBay has been running a Blog sequence that explains each one. It’s worth your while to review this series of twenty common wholesale terms.

Why is all this important to eBay Selling?
You need an excellent relationship with your wholesale sales representative. The sales representative can make or break your success selling their brands. eBay Sellers with good relationships have sales representatives tip them off to new products to sell well in eBay Auctions or through eBay Stores. If your wholesale sales representative likes you, and your volume of business, they might tip you off early to special deals with great pricing. If the manufacturer, or wholesaler, decides to offer promotional specials, you need your wholesale sales representative to let you know quickly.

You can only build a relationship like this if you understand how your wholesaler operates. The online retailer must always act swiftly and always in a professional manner.

eBay Educational Support
One of the applications now available in Selling Manager Applications (check out your “My eBay" and look for a new tab labeled "Applications") is the Worldwide Brands Product Sourcing Tool.

The Worldwide Brands Product Sourcing Tool contains a wholesaler database, education modults and education series called: “The Whole $ale.” This series has many chapters to coach eBay Sellers on best practices in working with wholesalers. Sign up for either eBay Selling Manager or eBay Selling Manager Pro and you can then access the Selling Manager Applications directory and the Worldwide Brands Product Sourcing Tool.

Check out Worldwide Brands Product Sourcing Tool for eBay today! A 7 Day Free Trial is available.

Worldwide Brands is an eBay Certified Solution Provider, providing product sourcing access and information for eBay sellers. They are the publishers of an extensive directory of legitimate, fully-verified ecommerce wholesalers and manufacturers.

Should You Use eBay Cross-Merchandising? by Vendio

Article from the Vendable Blog

eBay recently announced Cross-Merchandising where watched items will appear at the bottom of sellers listings. This is an opt-out program, and you'll need to decide if you want your items displayed in other seller’s listings, at the cost of having their items displayed in your listings.

Example:

Typically, in a cross promotion program, some do better than others and you’ll need to determine if it benefits your business or detracts from your items. Here are a few questions you could ask yourself before you make a decision:

1. Are your prices in general lower or higher than your competition? If your prices are lower, then you could benefit from the Cross Merchandising.

2. Are your images compelling? Do you images really shine? If your images are clearly better than your competitors, then you could benefit from Cross Merchandising.

3. Are you a Top Seller? Top seller badges are displayed in the Cross Merchandising Panel, which could be a benefit to you.

4. Can your items be sold multiple categories? For example, if you sell sterling nurse charms, getting “shown” in medical categories could be helpful.

We (Vendio) would suggest considering your options before you make a decision.

An eBay Certified Solutions Provider since 2004, Vendio provides an ecommerce solution for eBay sellers of all sizes. Vendio offers a series of applications which can be installed on a standalone basis or used to extend the functionality of the Vendio's eBay listing and inventory management solution.