Archive for July, 2007
Streamlining your eBay Work & What is SKYPE?
July 27th, 2007 | 
Author:
Dear eBay Queen;
I recently retired, and my grandson got me started buying items on eBay. I have started selling and have consistently had items up for sale for the past six months. eBay makes me feel young. I think it’s because I am using all these high tech gadgets, and for once in my old life I am hip! I even had the woman next door ask me to sell an item for her!
I would like some help in streamlining my work. If you had ten items to list in one week, what process would you use to do that? I think it takes me too long to photograph, research, and write the ad. Do you have any advice to help me make that process run smoother? What is the most important tool you use to help you in your eBaying?
JP
Dear JP;
Congratulations on finding your fountain of youth! eBay has certainly changed the direction my life was going too. eBay really fueled my desire to learn more about cameras, computers and the Internet. Not to mention my love for antiques.
I do my eBay work in sections. It doesn’t matter if I have ten things to write ads for or one hundred. I work in the following order:
- Photograph all the items I want to list.
- Fix and upload photos to my photo hosting service.
- Write ads and do research.
- List items on eBay.
I found that working in sections was faster for me, than doing each item from star t to finish one by one. Besides a good camera, I think my most important tool would be my listing program. There are lots of different ones out there. I use Blackthorne Pro, which is an eBay product. It allows me to keep track of my inventory, sends emails, feedback and schedules my items to list even when I am not home. http://pages.ebay.com/blackthorne/basic.html
To get you started you might want to try Turbolister http://pages.ebay.com/turbo_lister/ . It is free, and is also supported by eBay. For more information on eBay Seller tools check out: http://pages.ebay.com/sell/tools.html . If you are selling more than 10 items a week I would strongly suggest you look into a listing program. It will definitely increase your work speed, and give you more time to look for new inventory.
Dear eBay Queen;
I was surfing eBay the other day and noticed someone had a “Call Me Now with SKYPE!” button. What is Skype? I’ve never heard of it. Is it a new eBay service? Do you use it? Is it actually a phone service? Sometimes I think technology needs to slow down so I can catch up!
Skype
Dear Skype;
Skype is an eBay Company that has been around for a few years and uses VOIP or Voice over Internet Protocol. You can download Skype and start using it immediately http://www.ebay.com/skype. With Skype you can call anyone in the world. They even offer video calls, file sharing and instant messaging. Skype is a free service when your call is Skype to Skype.
I don’t use Skype, but it’s not because I don’t want to! I live out in the middle of nowhere and I am not able to receive broadband or cable Internet services. So currently my satellite Internet isn’t fast enough for Skype. Skype isn’t being widely used within the auctions or stores areas of eBay yet. I think once it really takes off, it will really be a great service to help improve communications between buyers and sellers. I’ve read that 44% of an eBay seller’s time online is spent communicating; this could really make communicating a faster process. If you start using it, let me know how it works!
Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 190128936615(enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page). With only 150 more shopping days until Christmas, maybe it’s not too early to start think about it listing holiday items. Old Christmas Pictures, cards and Scrapbook album SOLD $799.00 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190128936615
Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com .
Posted in Auction, General eBay Help, Product Help | 
Tags: blackthrone, call me, eBay, help with eBay, inventory, skype, turbolister | 
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Kewpie Doll Trademark Violation? What’s the deal with Private Auctions?
Dear eBay Queen;
I listed an auction for a ceramic Kewpie Doll that I poured from a mold myself. The item sold and the bidder had paid for it. Then I received an email from eBay saying it was removed for Trademark Violation-Unauthorized Listing Content.
They say what I have done was the misuse of a Trademark and is against eBay policies. How can I have violated the trademark policy when there are so many other Kewpie doll listings? They also have a listing section for these dolls.
I notified the person that bought the dolls about what happened. eBay never took the money out of my PayPal account so I refunded her money and told her I would try to find out what happened. I emailed eBay and have not heard from them yet. There were also over 600 listings under Kewpie Dolls. I don’t understand this and I am wondering if I can list the doll under another name and not cause a problem. I have not had any problems with my other dolls or ceramics. I hope you can help me. Thank you.
Eleanor; Rantoul
butterflyel333
Dear Eleanor;
This really confused me. I didn’t get to look at your auction because eBay had taken it down. Based on what you said, I think it was removed because your item was poured from a mold, and not an original Kewpie made by Rose O’Neill.
If this were my item, I would wait for eBay’s response. You may have just one word in there that needs to be removed for your listing to be considered acceptable. For more information check out this eBay message board http://answercenter.ebay.com/search.jspa?range=10&q=trademark+infringement&objID=f2 or this page for some trademark rules http://pages.ebay.com/help/tp/trademark.html .
Did you already send the item to the buyer and then refund their money? If so, I would ask for the buyer to send the item or the money back. If eBay closes the auction after money and the item changes hands, then it is completely ok to consider the transaction complete.
Dear eBay Queen:
My husband and I would like to purchase a gas powered golf cart. I was browsing eBay for one, and came across a one-day auction for a very nice gold golf cart. This auction was a bit different than any of the other auctions I had looked at on eBay. This one had photos and a description, but when you scrolled down, it had a “click here to buy it now” button. Some of the wording in the description was odd. They said they were running a private auction, and if you bid your bid would be canceled.
I emailed the seller and asked them these questions.
1. I thought if you put it on e-bay that anyone could bid?
2. Is it only a buy it now price?
3. If I bid and it doesn’t meet your reserve, do you not sell it?
4. Shipping is free?
Her response was: “The buy it now price is $1000 USD including shipping and insurance charges.If you are interested let me know and I will provide you all details regarding shipping and payment.”
When I looked at the listing, there was not a reserve on the item or buy it now price. Is this legit or are they trying to scam people?
Judy
Dear Judy;
They are definitely trying to scam someone. Anytime you are taken off eBay to purchase an item, it is a scam. Some of the key tricks scammers use were in this auction. They were trying to make the sale off eBay. It was a private auction, yet you couldn’t bid, and shipping on a heavy item was free.
When you come across auctions like this, you should report them. You can report an auction by sending an email to spoof@ebay.com or at the bottom of the listing is a “report this now” button.
Don’t let this discourage you from buying on eBay. You did the right thing by asking questions to the seller. A reputable seller would have answered your questions completely, and left no question in your mind on the validity of the product or auction.
Strange eBay item of the week:eBay item 190130657788 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page)Do you remember Beanie Babies? Well, there is a new stuffed animal craze to hit the market. It’s WEBKINZ. Check out this auction for a retired “Cheeky Dog” sold for $810.00. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190130657788
Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com.
Posted in Auction, General eBay Help, PayPal, Product Help |
Tags: Golf cart, kewpie doll mold, seller questions, webkinz |
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eBay Restricted my Account for Seller Non Performance
Dear eBay Queen;
eBay restricted my account for "seller non performance." I received an email from eBay that says I had a "high percentage of complaints" and I had fallen to the "bottom 1% of eBay sellers." I have a 99.2% positive rating, 2513 positive feedback, and my stars are above 4. How can I possibly fit into that category? I have responded to the e-mails eBay sent me. I have asked for clarification. I have not received any yet. I am hoping you can shed some light on this.
Why has eBay come after me? There are other sellers, that have a feedback score of 90%, and have had over 1000 negatives in the last 30 days! I am not exactly sure why they suspended me. I am so upset I can hardly see straight. I am ready to throw in the towel. I don’t understand what I did wrong. Please help me out.
Jenn
Dear Jenn;
I am so sorry. I know this is a nightmare for you. I don’t have any great advice that will make this any easier. eBay’s Seller Non-Performance (SNP) has been in effect for a long time, they just recently started stringently enforcing it.
http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/seller-non-performance.html.
http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/seller-non-performance.html.
This SNP is strictly a numbers game. It’s not just about your total feedback score or even your feedback percentage. It’s how many item not received disputes, negative and neutral feedback in the most recent 90-day period compared to the positive feedback you received over that same 90 days. So, if during the last 90 days, you received 100 positive feedback, you could receive a combination of 4 any of the following: item not received, negative or neutral feedback. Once you received your 5th buyer complaint, negative or neutral feedback you would then be at a 5% buyer dissatisfaction rate, and subject to the Seller Non-Performance.
If this had happened to me I would take this 14-day “time out” as an opportunity to look over my current selling policies and email the eBay users who have not given me feedback yet. The new feedback you receive from the people that have not left feedback yet will boost you above that 5%. I would also try to write up as much stuff as I could to have ready to put back on eBay, when the suspension time is up.
The enforcement of this policy has come to the forefront of eBay because eBay users are complaining that sellers who don’t follow through with the transactions are ruining eBay. I don’t think you are one of those people. I know that any one of us could fall in that bottom 5% if we had a run of bad luck. I am hoping this policy truly weeds out the sellers that are making eBay a precarious place to shop. I know this seems unfair. I wish there was something I could do for you. This is just another factor to keep in mind while building your eBay business and setting your seller policies.
Dear eBay Queen:
I have 1 day, 21 hours left on my 3-day listing. Is there a way to edit the duration to make it a 7-day listing? When I click on "revise listing" it does not give me the opportunity to edit the duration. I remember doing this a few months ago.
Confused
Dear Confused;
eBay recently changed the policy on extending auctions, and no longer offer extensions on any type of listing. http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/duration.html This new policy took effect sometime in May 2007. eBay found there were too many sellers taking advantage of this policy by extending their auctions to get them “back on top” of the searches.
Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 200124779501 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page)Sometimes I am really surprised at what an item sells for on eBay. Other times I am surprised at the item that is selling. I’ll let you decide which is most surprising to you, the price for this Orchid, or the fact they are selling a potted plant.Cattleya warscewiczii ‘Helena de Ospina’ orchid species
Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com.
Posted in General eBay Help |
Tags: eBay, edit listing duration, end time, help with eBay, seller non performance |
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