Does the prospect of operating an online store seem overwhelming? There are items to photograph, listings to make and packages to mail. Sometimes, operating one store can seem like working two, full-time jobs. By pacing yourself and recruiting help when necessary, eBay sellers can run their stores with less stress. Here are some easy tips to help pace sellers with an online store’s operation.
On online listings, designate mailing days. Sellers who try to ship items daily without any help take away from doing other store-related priorities. Mondays and Saturdays tend to be some of the busiest mailing days, so try to list shipping days that are off-peak. Take advantage of Sundays (since that is a non-shipping day) and use it to concentrate on other aspects of your business.
Additionally, reducing the number of shipping carriers may be more efficient for a seller’s shipping schedule. Consider having one or two shipping carriers. Take into consideration your buying audience when making the decision. If shipping to international locations, since customs information must be completed, consider keeping the Post Office as a carrier since it will be visited anyway, and adding UPS or Fed Ex as a shipping option. If not shipping internationally, cut-down on shipping trips by consolidating all outgoing packages with one carrier; preferably one that includes insurance and tracking in its overall costs.
To get organized, create a schedule and designate a task or two each day. For example, allocate time for photographing, listing creation, inventory, banking, shipping, marketing and other relevant tasks on a calendar. This will help build a routine and will eliminate any feelings of becoming overwhelmed. Perform the required tasks each day and make adjustments when necessary. It may be helpful to leave one day each week blank and use the day as a catch-up day.
Photograph items during the daytime and view them at night. This will allow for maximum light exposure during the day and provide the opportunity to see how the photo would appear to the buyer at night. If necessary, re-photograph items the next day. Since most buyers purchase eBay items during the evening and on weekends, having photos bright and clear are required for top-dollar product sales.
If after making a schedule there is still an overwhelming feeling, recruit help. Allow older children to serve as marketing assistants to help printout sales flyers and distribute newsletters. Inside of the newsletter, state store policies to prospective buyers regarding shipping dates and when new items are added. For other areas of help, spouses and adult family members can assist with photographing, item packaging and inventory.
When kept on a schedule, eBay sellers can take comfort knowing what is required of them each day and buyers can have a sense of ease knowing when their package will be shipped. The key to operating a long-term, successful eBay store is to enjoy your job, not get “job burn-out”. Take pride in everything you do, pace yourself and your business will be successful for years to come.
Tracking inventory sales and performance is pivotal to eBay sellers. From knowing which items are popular, in-demand items that sell quickly to learning which items sell best listed at auction-style or as immediate purchases; inventories are just as important as payments. Sellers need to account not only for the financial side of the eBay business but also for the physical aspect too. One of the easiest and most reliable methods to keep track of eBay inventory performance is to keep monthly records; analyzing them at the end of the month and then again at the end of the quarter.
While eBay’s Premium and Anchor Stores offer inventory and site tracking, sellers can create their own spreadsheet by inputting the following information on each listed item: item listed, category, date listed, type of listing (auction and/or Buy It Now), date sold, sales price, payment method, shipping carrier used, total number of days from listed to sold. Complete this process with each item until the close of the month. When the month comes to an end, analyze the data.
When analyzed, eBay sellers can see which areas outperform others and can make adjustments to run a more efficient online store. For example, was one shipping carrier more popular than another? If so, consider eliminating the under-performing shipping carrier and consolidate. This will save extra trips to shipping outlets and, with the increased business at one carrier, may qualify your business for a bulk rate or reduced price.
Another piece of data to examine is the fast-moving items. These “hot” items are ones that sell quickly and either meet or exceed their asking price. If able to, consider adding more of these items to your seller inventory, as they have been proven to generate income in your online store. If listed in multiple categories, verify which categories out-perform others and list items accordingly. Be sure to note which items were purchased using the “Buy It Now” feature, and if able to procure multiples of the same items, offer them in the same listing.
Under-performing items may need some adjustments. Before lowering prices, investigate other eBay listings for similar items; focusing on their prices. Perhaps your listing was not as long time-wise as the other listings or was minimum acceptable price on your listing too much from what others were asking? Once under-performing items have been accessed, adjustments can be made and the items can be tracked using the same spreadsheet method next month. Keep trying this adjustment on all slow-moving or non-selling items until you, as a seller, find out what works and what doesn’t. Be sure to follow the same process used to analyze the monthly data again at the end of the quarter (every three months).
While keeping track of inventory using spreadsheets can be seen as a tedious process, the value to sellers can largely outweigh the time needed to input selling data. By analyzing results month after month, eBay businesses can become more streamlined and have the ability to generate even more income than in previous months.
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