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Auction Strategists Newsletter
Brought to you by Jenni Hunt
www.jennihunt.com
In this newsletter:
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1. But What Do I Mail My List?
2. Heads Up:
– USED Costumes are HOT right now
– Listing Tips from Seller Sourcebook
3. How to subscribe or Change your subscription status
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Monday Madness is coming again in a few days…
and I’ll just say right now that you’ll want to
check it out EARLY!
You absolutely don’t want to miss this one.
Valued at over $100 and you can get it for $5
I’ll send you a quick note first thing Monday morning
letting the cat out of the bag – but, if you are
looking to improve your listings… you won’t want
to sleep in this Monday 😉 There will be a very
limited supply.
MONDAY MADNESS is Every Monday at
http://www.jennihunt.com/blog
Learn more here:
http://jennihunt.com/blog/?p=20
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1. But What Do I Mail My List?
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Okay, you get that you need to be building a list… but, what in the world should you be mailing them?
This is such a great question that I got last week – and, I think it is something that every mailing list owner struggles with at somepoint. I know I did when I started my first newsletter back in 2003… but, not so much anymore. Now, I have ideas running around my head that won’t stop long enough for me to catch up! And, hopefully you will too at the end of this article.
First of all, I’m going to assume that you understand the VALUE of building a mailing list from your eBay business. If not, please take a look at the archives at www.jennihunt.com/blog – and comment with any questions.
Secondly, I have to mention that before you look at what to email about, you really need to know your audience. You want to build mailing lists based on the niche market you are selling to or it just won’t be as effective – in fact, you’ll probably upset some people. See, if you are selling something like children’s items… then, it is easy to brainstorm about topics or things that those who are interested in buying children’s items would be interested in. But, if you’re selling a little bit of everything – you don’t have a common thread to build your mailing list around (other than coupons – and that will get old real quick). Again, if you are new to the idea of selling to a niche… take a peek at the archives, we’ve covered that topic in more detail that I can right now.
Alright, let’s get those wheels turning…
You’re selling to a specific market… you are building a list… but, what in the world are you going to be mailing them about?
1. Seasons
Each month of the year brings in new ideas for topics to discuss with your audience. For example…
In January, many are considering change and setting goals for the new year. Encourage your readers to set short term and long term goals. If your audience is book readers – encourage them to read a number of books a month and then talk about the value of setting goals.
In February, it’s all about Valentines day – but, if your audience is dog owners, how does that apply? Easy… talk about ways to ‘love’ your pet! You could write 5 Tips For Giving Your Dog Extra Love – split it up into 5 emails and you have a great little series.
March could be all about getting ready for spring… and April about how to be frugal with your market.
Think about what happens each month of the year and get creative about how to apply that to your audience.
2. Coupons
You can always fall back on offering coupons or discounts – but, don’t do this too often or you’ll devalue your product and the whole thing will backfire. If you use this tactic sparingly, however, you’ll likely bring in more traffic to your auctions and be able to control your revenue stream a bit more. This is also a great incentive to get people to join your list… “Get a 10% coupon for my listings by joining my mailing list”
3. Magazines/books
Heading down to the bookstore and browsing through the shelves or magazines is a great way to start thinking creatively about what to mail your niche about. You can find a magazine on virtually any topic these days… If your niche is photography equipment – check out the magazines on photography and note the headings on the cover. You can bet that the magazines did their research about what topics are hot in that market! Use that info to come up with your own ideas to email your niche about.
4. Blogs
Get online and start poking around for blogs and websites that relate to your audience… and note what they are talking about. Please don’t copy their topics – but, you can use it to kick-start your own ideas.
5. Polls
If you already have a list – why not ask them what they want to hear about? You could do a give-away to motivate people to respond and participate.
More Resources:
Still need help getting those wheels turning? I have two amazing resources to share with you… These two resources are must, in my opinion, if you really want this to take off. These are resources that I personally have used… and CONTINUE to use in building my own business. In my opinion, they are the best of the best.
1. Jim Cockrum wrote the book about using eBay to build your online business… and he has a great understanding on the value of having a mailing list. His newsletter has over 100,000 members – he knows what he is doing… AND he understands eBay. I read his book, The Silent Sales Machine, back in 2003 and could not go to bed because I was so excited about all the ideas his book generated for me! You can learn more here: www.jennihunt.com/recommends/silentsalesmachine.htm
2. List And Traffic membership site with Jimmy D. Brown will blow you away. If you completely ‘get’ the idea of building your list… and are looking for creative ways to do that – then, I cannot speak highly enough of List and Traffic. I’m a member over there… and have actually been personally coached by Jimmy. The only draw back is that he does not focus on eBay at all – so, you have to think creatively about how to apply what he is teaching to you eBay business. You can learn more here: www.jennihunt.com/recommends/listandtraffic.htm
Does that help? Still something holding you back? Let me know by leaving a comment…
Enjoy!
Jenni Hunt
http://www.jennihunt.com
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2. Heads Up
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***HEADS**UP***
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Are you looking for something to sell between now and the Christmas selling season? I have the perfect item to sell leading up to the big holiday toy season. In fact, I would seriously consider this item to be just as hot as toys – just with a shorter selling season…
COSTUMES!
Costumes are one of eBay’s greatest secrets – you wouldn’t believe how well they do… and how incredibly easy they are to pick up.
I’m not talking about the new costumes from Disney that sell for over $50 retail… I’m talking about selling USED costumes that you can EASILY pick up for $1-5. I see them all the time at garage sales… and thrift shops will soon have rows and rows of them at great prices too. It is easy inventory… you just need to know a few tricks of the trade so you get your hands on the costumes that sell best on eBay.
Sherah Taylor has been selling on eBay for years… she was a mentor of mine when I first started out in 2003 – believe me when I say she knows her stuff! She is known for her USED Disney Boo Costume that sold last year for over $120… something you could pick up at a yard sale for only $5.
Anyhow, she has put together an awesome step-by-step guide for selling used costumes on eBay… but, what is really cool about this guide – Not only does it tell you how to sell costumes on eBay – she tells you WHAT costumes sell the best for 2008!
Secrets To Hot Selling Halloween Costumes provides you with a ‘cheat sheet’ list of 240+ costumes and accessories that are often found at yard sales and thrift shops. These consistently sell for $20-100+ on eBay!
You will learn WHERE to find these costumes RIGHT NOW and literally pay pennies compared to what they’ll sell for on eBay.
Sherah shares her secrets for WHEN to sell for the highest possible price this season while detailing HOW-TO instructions on your Halloween costume listing.
You will learn how to research the costumes you have purchased and learn the right key words to make your auction prices soar!
But, the best part…
With the ebook you get a weekly list of the top 20 costumes that are CURRENTLY selling so you can track the trends this season.
Anyhow… I’ve known Sherah for a long time and she has offered a special for my readers… knocking almost $10 off the price of this hot report.
Regularly selling for $29 – you can get it for only $20 with my special link:
http://www.jennihunt.com/recommends/hotcostumes.htm
Oh – and no worries… Sherah stands behind her stuff! She has a 100% No Questions asked guarantee. There is no risk… seriously – one costume sold could pay for the book!
You can learn more here:
http://www.auction-moms.com/hotsellingcostumes.html
but DONT order from the link on that page or you will be paying too much!
To get immediate access to Secrets of How To Find and Sell Hot Halloween Costumes for only 20 bucks- click here:
http://www.jennihunt.com/recommends/hotcostumes.htm
If you aren’t convinced costumes sell? Here is a list of costumes that I included in my HuntedTreasure newsletter a few nights ago – and we are still early in the costume selling season.
Enjoy!
1) Item: AMAZING Babystyle Flamingo Halloween Costume 2 3 2T 3T
Link: http://tinyurl.com/58kms3
Item #: 290253545612
Ending Price: $31.00 with almost 1 day left
Starting Bid: $7.99
#Bids: 12
Don’t Pay More than: $2-5 used
2) Item: Halloween GYMBOREE Cowboy Costume, 2T-3T
Link: http://tinyurl.com/6dzyjt
Item #: 260277037028
Ending Price: $31.00 with almost 5 days left
Starting Bid: $9.99
#Bids: 8
Don’t Pay More than: $5-10 used
5) Item: Tom Arma Halloween Monkey Costume 18mo-2T EUC
Link: http://tinyurl.com/5nlch8
Item #: 180278484501
Ending Price: $36.00 with almost 3 days left
Starting Bid: $1.00
#Bids: 8
Don’t Pay More than: $5-10 used
5) Item: Babystyle Peacock Costume 18-24 mth ADORABLE!
Link: http://tinyurl.com/67p88w
Item #: 150284528813
Ending Price: $51.00 with almost 1 day left
Starting Bid: $.99
#Bids: 12
Don’t Pay More than: $5-10 used
5) Item: Beast Costume from Beauty & the Beast Size 5-6
Link: http://tinyurl.com/5smpv7
Item #: 320288001612
Ending Price: $45.00 with almost 1 day left
Starting Bid: $9.99
#Bids: 22
Don’t Pay More than: $5-10 used
5) Item: Girl’s Dorothy Wizard of Oz costume 2T 3T Halloween
Link: http://tinyurl.com/5f6ryx
Item #: 300251184684
Ending Price: $51.00 with almost 6 days left
Starting Bid: $30.00
#Bids: 7
Don’t Pay More than: $5-10 set used
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***HEADS**UP***
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Seller Sourcebook has provided me with some quick tips for listing auctions successfully… I’ll be running a series of them over the summer. Check out previous tips in the archives at www.jennihunt.com/blog
TIP #3: Let’s Talk Terms
It is important to list your Terms of Sale (TOS) in every auction. Types of TOS’ are the payment methods you accept, when & how you ship your items, if you require insurance to be purchased and what is your return policy (if you have one). Also, if you restrict bidding you should detail that information as well.
The most important thing you should do when writing your terms is to be succinct, don’t ramble! Also try not to sound harsh or unreasonable, all you will do is scare off buyers. This is your auction, your business and your rules – but there is no reason to be rude about it. As the old saying goes; you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.
Payment Terms
Let your buyers know how soon payment is expected, what types of payments you accept as well as what types of payment you DO NOT accept. For instance I accept PayPal payments but not ones funded by echecks. This is clearly stated in each of my auctions.
For Payment my terms read: Payment is due within 10 days of auction’s end. PayPal or Money Orders only – no personal checks or echecks accepted.
Shipping & Insurance Terms
You have to let people know the how, when, where & how much for shipping. If I go to an auction listing and the person does not list their shipping terms and especially the shipping price I do not bid; end of story. I think a lot of buyers operate this way. So get all that information out there for your potential buyers.
1) The How
Tell the buyer what shipping method you will use. Some sellers ship via USPS, some use UPS, FedEx or other carriers. Let your potential buyers know how their item will arrive so they can be on the look out for it. Think of it this way; you have a buyer anxiously checking their mailbox each day for their purchase and are starting to get irritated because it hasn’t arrived. But you shipped the item via FedEx and this person may not realize there is an attempted delivery notice stuck on their front door from FedEx because they were not there to receive the package. (Hey, this has been known to happen!)
2) The When
Do you only ship on certain days of the week or do you ship everyday? If you ship only certain days of the week you really should include that in your terms. People automatically will assume you ship immediately after payment and if they do not get the item as quickly as expected will start emailing you to death…or even worse leave you negative feedback without ever even contacting you! I have seen this happen to others way too often. Usually it is new buyers who do this.
3) The Where
If you do not ship International you would be well served to say so in your Shipping Terms. If you don’t tell potential buyers then they may assume that you do. If you will combine shipping for multiple purchases let the buyer know – it is also advised that you state that they must contact you prior to bidding to get the combined shipping rate.
4) The How Much
EBay has a shipping calculator feature that can be added to your auctions. I charge a flat shipping rate for my items so I do not include the shipping calculator. However the shipping cost is always detailed at the bottom of my auctions in the Shipping & Details section.
5) Insurance
State up front if you require a buyer to pay for insurance. For my auctions I state that this is optional. The only exception is when I ship an item that is fragile and then I alter my terms and state that insurance is required.
For Shipping my terms read: All items are shipped via USPS with Delivery Confirmation. The US shipping price is detailed below. Canadian & International buyers, your shipping price will be higher due to distance. Please contact me prior to bidding so I may calculate your shipping rate.
Combined shipping is available only when all items are paid for in one PayPal transaction or with a single money order. If you are interested in purchasing more than one item please contact me so I may give you the combined shipping rate.
For Insurance my terms read: Insurance is optional and at the buyer’s expense. Seller will not be responsible for uninsured items.
Other Terms
Some sellers have additional terms in their auctions. Some choose not to sell to people with any negative feedback. Others request that buyers with zero feedback email prior to bidding. Having these types of terms is your personal choice; again this is your auction, your business and your rules. I do suggest that your write these types of terms in the most friendliest of words you can muster.
I have seen additional terms that are written so harshly and with such negative verbiage that I have decided not to bid. Not because I did not meet their requirements but because their choice of language and tone totally turned me off. If you are unsure if your additional terms may come off harshly ask a friend who buys but does not sell on eBay to read them over for you. Ask them to honestly tell you what they thought when they read your terms and if they could use any improvement.
To learn more about Seller Sourcebook AND get 10% off any service, visit: http://www.jennihunt.com/recommends/ssb.htm
use coupon code to save 10%: 5CCBC
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Copyright 2008 Jenni Hunt, www.jennihunt.com
You MAY reprint any of the articles in this newsletter for any purpose as long as no portion of the article is modified without permission.