Once you’ve found a reliable source of cheap products to sell on eBay, you need to get these products in front of as many eBayers as you can. That’s easier said than done – but there’s plenty you can do, starting with the following…
1. Target your niche well
Choosing the most popular product to sell doesn’t necessarily equate to lots of traffic for your eBay listing. Yes, there may be a lot of people searching for iPhones, but there’ll be lots of competition among sellers too. And buyers tend to gravitate to the more established listers – those with the most positive feedback. By the same token, choosing something really obscure won’t help. Yes, you may be the only seller on eBay listing Moroccan cushion covers – but if no one’s searching for them, you won’t make any sales!
2. Choose the right category to list in
Many inexperienced eBayers don’t realise how important it is to choose the proper category to list their product. eBay offers you a wide choice of main and sub-categories. Choosing the right one is vital as many buyers search by category first, and product second. Spend a few minutes browsing the eBay categories to see what kinds of products are being listed in each. Choose the category and sub category which contains most of your product.
3. Make sure your photos are clear and professional looking
Just as you wouldn’t buy something you hadn’t seen, eBayers won’t buy from you if your item photos are blurred, poorly lit or don’t show the whole product. This is your one chance to showcase your item for sale. So pick a brightly lit room (or go outside if it’s a sunny day) and set your item against a plain, lightly coloured background. Make sure any detail you pick out is in focus. Take lots of good photos from different angles and put up at least five. Yes it costs you a few cents extra, but it means more people will view your item, giving you a greater chance of selling it for the price you want. Clear any clutter from the background of your shot – remember, buyers are judging you as a seller as much as they are judging the product itself. And don’t cut and paste a product image from the Internet – buyers are suspicious of this, it suggests you have something to hide – or that your product isn’t real.
4. Describe your product clearly
Give the product a clear, descriptive title that lists the product name and brand. In your description, include the material the product is made of, when it was made, the company/artist/designer/ author who made it, the condition the item is in, whether it’s new or used and still under warranty, it’s dimensions, country of origin, where the item is now, any notable features and details of any special background or history the item might have. It’s also definitely worth mentioning if your item comes from a smoke-free / pet-free home.
5. List the benefits for the potential buyer
Not just the features. Anyone can list the physical attributes of a product like a coffee machine… but writing “on/off switch with timer”… “frother”… and “drip tray” won’t sell your product as effectively as talking about the benefits: “With a clever timer switch, you’ll never miss that first glorious cup of the day…” “Once you’ve tasted your first creamy latté, you’ll wonder how you ever managed without a frother”… “1.5ltr drip tray means no mess – ever!”
6. Be honest about any damage
If you’re upfront and honest about a few scratches on a CD case, or a slight tear in a footy guernsey, buyers will appreciate it. If you neglect to mention blemishes, you’re misleading the buyer… and you’ll probably find yourself on the end of some nasty feedback – which won’t do your all-important reputation any good.
7. Check your spelling
This is really important. Thousands of buyers will search for “Twilight DVD”, but very few will search for “Twylite DVD”. Get the spelling of your product wrong and you won’t sell it!
8. Keep your listing page clean and unfussy
The easier it is to read your product listing, the more sales you’ll make. So avoid lots of flashy graphics or animations, use colour sparingly, don’t list items in UPPER CASE, use clear “sans serif” fonts like Arial and Verdana. Don’t use large fonts in your listing text, only in headings and subheads, don’t centre text, keep it left aligned, and break up long blocks of text with paragraphs. Try using basic HTML to create a more professional appearance to your listing template – but don’t overdo it! Less is more. Good clear photographs and simple, benefit-driven text will sell your product – not having a flashing pink neon headline!
9. Make sure your postage charges are unambiguous
Unclear shipping costs will always put a potential buyer off. Reason being, they don’t know how much their going to be stung for postage until they actually commit to buying the item. Unless they want what you are selling REALLY badly, they won’t take the risk of being hit with a whopping postage charge – and therefore won’t bid. Buyers aren’t stupid – so it’s best to be absolutely honest and upfront about shipping costs. For big and valuable items, offer a range of options and let the bidder decide if they want to include insurance. And NEVER “overcook” the postage to try and make a few cents extra profit on the transaction. It just isn’t worth it. The bad feedback you’ll get if a buyer catches you out could ruin your reputation as a seller – which is not something you want if you plan to use eBay as your main source of income.
