Sellers who run their own stores on eBay may find that there are months where profits are great and other months where their expectations just don't match seller's interest. By getting a little creative in your marketing strategies you can enjoy better
Market during the Christmas season: Typically, higher profits at your eBay store occur during the holiday months. Everyone spends more money during the holidays and sellers on eBay are no exception. Most sellers look forward to holiday promotions on eBay but they don't do much outside of Christmas in order to increase sales to their store.
The Christmas season starts well before December arrives, once November arrives sellers and buyers are in a more festive mood and are looking to start doing some serious shopping. A slight increase in the prices listed for "Buy now" options can help you make more profit during the season, as the holiday gets closer buyers are looking to complete their shopping in hurry and ensure that items will arrive on time. Offering gift wrapping services and creating a festive storefront will help your business gain ground over competitors.
Market during other holidays: Even though the major holidays can get your eBay store seen by a larger audience as buyers shop for bargains, their is also going to be a lot more competition. Get your business the attention it deserves no matter what day it is, by learning to promote during other holidays besides Christmas. For example, Valentines Day is a great holiday to reach out to customers if your eBay store sells homemade scented candles, handmade jewelry or sexy lingerie.
Make your own products: Though a number of eBay sellers search for products at yard sales, discount stores and antique stores, a growing number of eBay businesses are designed around sellers, creating and selling their own custom products through the store. By creating a custom product these businesses ensure that they can fulfill a specific niche and that they have a product that is truly original from the items located at any other store.
Buy from other stores: Individuals that are using eBay more as a hobby instead of a business will often have products in great conditions listed in good condition. By buying items offered at lower than market value prices, you can then resell these products on your own store, with a markup.
Get items for free: Yard sales are not the only places where items that are actually treasures end up getting thrown out with the trash. Clean out your attic or basement, as many families hoard on to items that turn out to be antiques or collectibles once cleaned up. Friends and family may also choose to donate items too you instead of throwing them away.
Promote your retail store: eBay is becoming an increasingly popular way for small retail businesses to attract a larger audience then their local market allows. By selling items from their store, businesses can grow their businesses without having too put in much effort as eBay is simple to navigate.
When selling on eBay, creating a quality listing is important, but just as equally important is seeking out the right customer base and driving them to your listing. With many sellers offering some of the same goods at varying prices, a great seller can employ the following techniques to drive traffic to their store and develop a one-on-one relationship with potential customers.
The first step in marketing an eBay store is to know your customer base. Create an inventory of the products offered in your online store. Look at these products and see what specific category or niche they are. For example, a piece of Art Deco jewelry could be classified as both jewelry and antique. The potential customer base needed to be reached would be both jewelry and antique collectors.
Once the determination has been made for niche categories, now it is time to make your store known to collectors. A great way to do this is to participate in item-specific forums. Using the ring example again, find forums for both antique and jewelry collectors. This will give you a chance to meet potential customers and learn more about desired items. Always link your eBay store in your signature line and target your signature to the specified forums. “Art Deco Jewelry for Sale”, or “Antique Jewelry Collectors Click Here”, are some words designed to entice customers to visit your store. Out of curiosity, most people will see what is being offered and, by utilizing free advertising, a seller is able to draw potential customers to your online store.
Niche-specific forums are also good for determining pricing and in-demand items. If new to a market, some sellers may be unsure how to price items or be afraid their item is listed for too much/too little. Learn about going rates for various items and see what merchandise is highly desired. If the desired or discussed item(s) are available in your store, use that in your signature line and link the items to your eBay store. Be sure to post in the specific thread, as the mention of the item desired, along with the appearance of it available in your signature link will definitely attract attention.
Finally, be sure to take advantage of article directories. If your store’s niche is children’s clothing, attract customers by creating some informative articles and submit them to article directories. Some great article topics to write about children’s clothing would include: care of children’s clothes, how to hold a clothing swap meeting with other parents, stain removal and clothing repair, etc. By creating useful, informative articles potential customers gain your trust by seeing your store is not out to make a quick dollar and really cares about its customers.
While writing these articles will not pay (unless submitted to a content site), they allow authors to advertise their businesses for free. Create a name for your eBay store and use it when referring to your online store. Market yourself as both founder/proprietor and if allowed on the article, submit a picture of yourself. Customers can see a “real” person working the store as opposed to just a screen name. By following these above steps, eBay sellers will attract prospective buyers to their online stores.
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