26 Apr 2009
Author: casper021 | Filed under: Website promotion
Classified ads can be very effective in online marketing. Free classified ads fit into every budget. It all comes down to how much time you are willing to spend creating, posting, updating and deleting ads. Depending on your particular product or service, it can be time-consuming to respond to interested parties, deliver goods or services and maintain a high level of customer service.
Selling through free classified ads can help you promote your business. Include your company’s name, product information and a website link in your ads to gain more attention. Include pictures whenever possible to give customers a better idea of what they can expect if they make a purchase from you.
The Benefits of Promoting on Classified Ad Sites
Aside from saving you money in advertising costs, placing ads on free classified sites has many other benefits. These include:
— Targeted traffic directed to your website.
— Instant posting.
— Few rules regarding what can be posted.
— The opportunity to test your ad copy at no cost before placing ads on websites that draw more traffic but charge a fee.
— The ability to track your visitors and gauge how successful each ad is.
— The ability to build your opt-in list and follow up with potential customers.
Tips for Promoting Your Business Using Free Classified Ads
Promoting your business with free classified ads is relatively easy. Still, there are some steps that can make your campaign more successful. Keep these tips in mind:
— Familiarize yourself with the terms of the classified ad site before posting. This will help you avoid having your ads deleted.
— Place ads frequently for better results. Update weekly to keep your posts at the top so you get more views.
— Remain professional, both in your classified ads and in dealings with potential customers.
— Make sure your ad shines and stands out from the crowd without being too loud or obnoxious.
— Include keywords to help targeted customers find your ads.
Classified Ads and Niche Marketing
One particularly effective way to get more targeted traffic from your free classified ads is to choose sites that are very specific in nature. For example, if you own a company that sells creative and unique baskets, then you can place your ad on a site for gifts. If you own a used car dealership, however, the gift site is not going to work for you. You can advertise in the automobile section of a general site, but you can also search for classified ad sites that are specifically geared toward car enthusiasts. The key is that visitors to these sites will already be interested in what you have to offer.
Writing Great Classified Adverts
Writing a great classified ad is completely different to writing great sales copy for your website. The primary objective of a classified ad is completely different! Generally the primary objective of your website copy is to persuade your visitor to buy or enquire about your product. The objective of your classified ad is to get the reader to click-through to your website or pick up the phone and call you.
The type of customer that you are going to come across using a classified ad will also be different. When a customer comes to your website they are already interested in what you are offering– they are pre-qualified. A customer that you will find in an ezine or on a website that has classified ads is unqualified.
The Structure of a Classified Advert
The structure for a classified ad is as follows:
— Headline
— Opening Hook
— Call to Action
The headline is the most important part of the whole ad. It needs to immediately attract the reader’s attention. It needs to YELL above the ‘din’ and cut through all the noise. Think about your target customer. What is your target customer’s need, problem or goal? Write a headline around that. Yell out their problem!
Whenever possible use your reader’s name– some ezines give you the ability to personalise your advertisement by automatically inserting the person’s name into each separate copy of the ezine.
Review ‘headline’ writing in the ‘load’ module from the E-business Bible for a detailed look at writing good headlines.
The opening hook should expand on your headline. Elaborate further on your strongest benefits and look to set the reader up for the call to action.
Remember, your primary objective with a classified ad is to get the reader to click through to your website, or pick up the phone and call you. Outline exactly what you want your reader to do. Make it as easy as possible.
Example:
“Is Your Business Website Delivering Results?”
Your business website should make sales, or generate enquiries for your products or services. Is Yours? If not, it will be due to one of three simple reasons.
Because a website that delivers results is no fluke!
Click here www.wizit.co.nz or call 0800 HELP ME to find out why.
Formatting a Classified Advert
Once again, review the ‘content’ module from the E-business Bible for a detailed look at formatting your ads. Consider putting your headline inside quotes. Make sure you bold your headline and capitalise the first letter of every word. Sometimes putting your advertisement inside a table and using some alternative colours can really help it stand out from the rest of the copy on the page.
Measuring & Monitoring the Results of a Classified Advert
As always– make sure you measure and monitor everything. Set each of your classified ads up as separate campaigns in the Zeald.com Website Management Software, so that you can track and measure the results. Experiment with different headlines and different opening hooks.
Make sure you vary your classified ads and keep them fresh– especially the advertisements that are in ezines. You will see your response rates drop-off significantly, after a number of repeated listings.
Resources
ClassifiedsCentral.com Free Classified Ads. — Free Advertising! High Traffic Site! 365 Day Full Year Ads!
Automated Classified Ad Submission Software. — Free Classified Submission Software
Visit http://www.wizit.co.nz for more helpfull tips
http://www.wizit.co.nz — we help ordinary people to ear extraordinary money…….
Tags: earn online, free addvertising, free web traffic, home business, how to promote your website, make money from home, promoting using classified adds, promoting website, website traffic
19 Apr 2009
Author: casper021 | Filed under: Earning Online
1. Sell advertising. This is likely the most common means of leveraging a blog to generate income. If yours happens to become a well-known blog, or one that is well-received in a particular niche, it’s always possible to sell ad space on your own. For lesser-known blogs, services such as Google’s AdSense or BlogAds enable bloggers to establish ad programs.AdSense’s — which lets you select several ads that are consistent with the content of your blog — pays you based on how many readers click on the ads for further information. Even better, it’s free. BlogAds, on the other hand, hooks bloggers up with would-be advertisers and levies a commission in return for any ad placements that result. “The nice thing, too, is that the ads are relatively unobtrusive,” says Scott Allen, co-author of “The Virtual Handshake: Opening Doors and Closing Deals Online.”
2. Help sell others’ products. Here is another click-through opportunity. Affiliate programs enable your blog to serve as a conduit between readers and online sites offering various goods and services. One popular choice is Amazon.com. If, for instance, you offer book reviews or even just mention a book in passing in your blog, an affiliate program provides a means for your readers to click directly from your blog to Amazon to obtain further information about the book. If they break out the checkbook or charge card, you get paid as well.
3. Solicit contributions. Not every blog-related income opportunity involves hawking goods or services. As Blanche DuBois did in “A Streetcar Named Desire,” consider relying on the kindness of strangers. Ask for contributions. If, for instance, your small-business blog supports a cause or issue in some fashion — say you repeatedly mention tax reform, health care or some other topic — you can always ask for reader support.Even if you’ve attracted a group of regular followers who simply enjoy reading what you have to say, they may be willing to underwrite their loyalty with a little financial help. Programs such as PayPal make it easy to establish a simple on-site contribution collection button. “There are lots of worthy ’cause’ blogs that would qualify for donations from grateful members of the blog community,” says Las Vegas communications consultant Ned Barnett.
4. Market your services in your blog. Many people associate blogs exclusively with a cyberspace-based soapbox — a place to shout your opinions and little more than that. Granted, blogs are an ideal venue to share your thoughts with others, but don’t overlook their capacity to generate new business as well. When appropriate, work in references to what you do and, in turn, what you may be able to offer any would-be client or customer who may be reading your blog. That can spread your opinion and your business moxie at the same time.”Instead of short commentaries that begin a dialogue with readers, as many blogs do, I write the equivalent of journal articles that demonstrate my abilities, strategies and perspectives on specific issues,” Barnett says. “When it resonates, it means money. Since starting this approach, I have generated three new paying clients and brought in about $10,000 on revenue — directly attributable to specific blogs.”
5. Use a blog to deepen your existing customer relationships. Nor does any marketing material inserted in blog content have to be limited to bringing in completely new business. By using a blog to regularly communicate with existing clients as well as other readers, you can take advantage of the opportunity to fully inform them about everything your business does. That may expand your readers’ understanding of the full scope of your products or services.”My blog has helped existing clients determine the range of my skills and services,” says Ted Demopoulos of Demopoulos Associates, a Durham, N.H. consulting and training concern. “One client who had only used me for training in the past was surprised at my range of expertise and is now using me for a consulting project. Another who only used me on technical projects is now considering me for a more business-oriented project.”
6. Use a blog to promote or review affiliate programs. Most of the programs will have a pre-written text that you can just copy and paste to your blog.
Visit http://www.wizit.co.nz for more helpfull tips
http://www.wizit.co.nz — we help ordinary people to ear extraordinary money…….
Resources
Make Money Blogging — A Certified, Legitimate, and Guaranteed Way to Earn an Income Working from Home, Using Nothing But a Computer or Laptop. Earning $200 or More a Day Will Never Be Easier!
— The Million Dollar Blogging Blueprint works better than any other blogging method on the internet. Even if you know nothing about blogging but just want to learn a fool proof way to generate thousands of dollars per month then you need to listen up as this will be the most important webpage you visit all year.
— Discover The Magic Formula To Create Auto-Pilot Niche Websites Using WordPress & Make Your First Adsense Dollar in The Next 7 Days – Guaranteed!
Blog Comment Blueprint — Learn How to earn up to $500 a week just for commenting on someone elses blog.
Tags: earn from blog, earn online, free money, home business, how to earn online, how to succeed online, make money from home
16 Apr 2009
Author: casper021 | Filed under: Earning Online
Here are 5 reasons why you should use blogging as an Internet marketing tool to help your business grow.
1. Blogging is easy. The simplest way to get your voice on the net is via blogging. Minimal computer skills are necessary. It’s like having a virtual piece of paper and you just write your ideas, experiences, new products, and hope that the truth behind your articles comes out and entices your readers to also try your product. If you have a PC and an Internet connection then you can blog and advertise your business.
2. Blogging is authentic. In this day and age where advertising saturates our lives, we question the credibility of promoters’ claims. However, in blogs, real people share their real-life experiences, unscathed by paid advertising for the most part. Reading blogs about first-hand product use is like talking to people about their first-hand experience. People want to buy a tried and tested product.
3. Blogging costs you nothing. The only cost involved with blogging is your webhosting, which may run $10 a month. You can do most or all of the work yourself with your blog, so your costs are minimal.
4. Blogging builds credibility. As you get more and more into writing your experiences on a particular product or industry, your readers come to realize that they can depend on your posts for their own information needs. As such, you become an expert on it; as a consequence, more readers visit your site and more bloggers link to your blogs. As companies and professional organizations notice the growth of your blogs readership base, they may soon get in touch with you for advertising on your blog page, or make you an affiliate, which pays for every referral generated from your blog site.
5. Blogging builds your market. The more you blog about topics your readers are interested in, the larger your market can get! No matter what type of business you have, a blog can help you branch out and put internet marketing to work for you!
Visit http://www.wizit.co.nz for more helpfull tips
http://www.wizit.co.nz — we help ordinary people to ear extraordinary money…….
Tags: earn online, extra income, fast money, free addvertising, free traffic, home business, make money from home, money, promote your website
15 Apr 2009
Author: casper021 | Filed under: Earning Online, Website promotion
Twitter Explained
Twitter is a social networking and microblogging service that allows you answer the question, “What are you doing?” by sending short text messages 140 characters in length, called “tweets”, to your friends, or “followers.”
The short format of the tweet is a defining characteristic of the service, allowing informal collaboration and quick information sharing that provides relief from rising email and IM fatigue. Twittering is also a less gated method of communication: you can share information with people that you wouldn’t normally exchange email or IM messages with, opening up your circle of contacts to an ever-growing community of like-minded people.
You can send your messages using the Twitter website directly, as a single SMS alert, or via a third-party application such as Twirl, Snitter, or the Twitterfox add-on for Firefox. (See below for links to Twitter tools and applications.)
Your tweets are displayed on your profile page, on the home page of each of your followers, and in the Twitter public timeline (unless you disable this in your account settings.)
Now some more interesting facts about twitter and how you can use them to your advantage
Twitter is really hot right now, and it is gaining members like crazy
Twitter has reached 80 million people now and growing, that is 80 million people all in one spot on the internet
Dell sold a million dollars worth of products in 2008
Twitter is a fantastic opportunity to build your list of contacts, and increase your sphere of influence. You could even get to be viewed as an authority figure in your area of expertise.
This presents an opportunity of a life time to build a list of subscribers or to promote your website and increase traffic or just simply sell products like crazy. But to do it and do it right you will need to do some work. To start with I would recommend watching this video. This video explains how you can automate twitter grows and make good money from it. There are also some other cool things you can do to make money from twitter. But you really need to know which websites and applications to use so you can take advantage of chat to text! The Twitter Trick eBook is full of all the pertinent information that you need, to take advantage of this hot marketing trend…right now in order to get the maximum result from your twitter! Another powerful tool you can use is very smart software which helps you earn from a single tweet, you can watch a video about this software and claim your free copy of it here.
Well that’s about it for now good luck tweeting and happy earnings.
Tags: advertising, affiliate, business, earn from home, earn online, easy cash, fast money, internet business, make money from home, marketing, promotion, sales, traffic, twitter, twittertrick, website sales
14 Apr 2009
Author: casper021 | Filed under: Online Auctions
The prospect of importing goods from China is both exciting and terrifying for many sellers. On one hand there is huge potential for making money from reselling wholesale goods purchased very cheaply. But on the other hand, language and cultural barriers present a number of difficulties to sellers. The main issue that everyone is worried about is payment: How do I pay? Will my money disappear?, and so on.
The difficulty lies in the fact that most Chinese wholesalers will only accept Western Union and wire transfer payments. These are not secure payment options so they must be treated with caution. However, the main reason why these are the only payments accepted is that they are in fact the only payment methods available to the Chinese. Getting a credit card in China is an extremely difficult task with a lot of government regulations and strict criteria for getting a card.
So then, despite the risks involved with using Western Union and wire transfer, these are the methods you have to use if you want to import from China with most suppliers. To minimize this risk, our advice is to start with a fairly small shipment of goods so you are not standing to lose too much money if everything falls apart. Then, as trust is established, gradually build up your order over time. On the whole, most Chinese suppliers are genuine, hard working people who want to establish a long-term relationship with you. They need your business, so it’s unlikely they’ll try to deliberately screw you over! Another big issue for sellers importing from China is communication. It can be extremely daunting trying to negotiate complex business issues when communication is so difficult.
To get around this problem, we always ask a new contact for their MSN or ICQ email address and chat to them online. They tend to be very friendly and enjoy talking to people who speak English as a first language (this helps them improve their communication too), plus it gives you a direct point of contact instantly.
With communication now established, you can proceed to ask questions and get them to send you pictures of stock and so on. Once we’ve built up a relationship, we then ask them to send me a sample order. For any genuine company, this isn’t a problem and it allows us to see the quality of the product first hand. We can then be fairly certain that the company is trustworthy, and that this is the product we wish to import.
One thing we haven’t talked about so far is quality. This can be another major concern for sellers who often have difficulty telling whether a brand name product is genuine or not.
In our experience, the vast majority of brand-name goods that come from China are either replicas or fakes. We strongly recommend that you assume that this is the case in the first instance. eBay is currently cracking down heavily on people selling fakes and it is not an area of business we suggest you get into!
Generally, we find that Chinese suppliers are best suited for cheap generic goods (they are manufactured there so you won’t find cheaper anywhere else!) that can be sold at higher rates in Western countries. For example, some of the latest trends are pocket bikes, scooters and generic electronic goods. These goods do not have to have a brand name in order to sell well and they can be purchased wholesale at very good prices if you are serious about importing from China.
This should give you a heads up if looking at dealing with wholesale suppliers in China! Remember, always keep an open mind, ask questions and do your research!
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SaleHoo is one of the fastest growing product sourcing portals on the internet. It contains a database of drop ship, wholesale, closeout and manufacturing suppliers offering thousands of product suppliers to consumers! Located at http://www.salehoo.com, visitors are allowed to sign up for unlimited and lifetime access to the completely searchable database of products and suppliers. The database is regularly updated, ensuring that the latest retail products are always available for purchase and SaleHoo carries the BBB Reliability Seal!
Visit http://www.wizit.co.nz for more helpfull tips
http://www.wizit.co.nz — we help ordinary people to ear extraordinary money…….
Tags: buy wholesale, cheap products, earn from online auctions, earn onlime, ericsson, make mone online, make money, mobile phone, nokia, Online Auctions, ps3, watches, wholesale goods, wholesale products, wii, work from home
8 Apr 2009
Author: casper021 | Filed under: Online Auctions
Drop shipping is when the product distributor takes care of all the shipping for you. Rather than ordering stock in bulk, the stock remains with the distributor. Then, when you make a sale, you send an email to the distributor and they pack up the item and send it straight to the customer with your company label on the box.
Drop shipping is a very popular option with sellers because it takes a lot of the grunt work out of selling on eBay. However, there are some major downsides to drop shipping – especially for new sellers.
Here’s a list of the pros and cons of drop shipping so that you can make the right decision for your business.
Drop shipping Pros
- No storage room required
You don’t have to fill up your living room with stock and packing materials! This is particularly useful if you are selling large items such as kit-sets, furniture, sporting goods, and so on.
- No shipping costs getting stock delivered from the distributor
Drop shipping means you don’t have to pay a carrier to bring stock from the distributor to your own storage area, which can mean big savings in the long term.
- Spend more time on other areas of your business
You don’t have to organize the packing and postage system, nor do you have to drive to the post shop each day to post your packages. This gives you a significant increase in time to spend on other tasks such as marketing and communicating with customers.
- No packaging required
You save money by not having to order and store packaging materials.
Drop shipping Cons
- Can be Costly
You have to pay for the cost of the labor and materials involved in drop shipping. Generally this is between $2 and $5 per item. Many new sellers find that the additional costs of drop shipping greatly reduce their profit margins and sometimes nullify the whole operation. This is the main reason why drop shipping is not a viable option for some sellers.
- You are still responsible for any shipping problems
So the item arrived damaged? Was there a shipping delay? You’ll get the flak for anything that goes wrong with the shipping even though it is technically out of your control.
- Hard to find a distributor who will do it and do it well
Many distributors will not drop ship because of the extra paperwork involved. Then there is the matter of checking up on quality standards to make sure your items are being packed correctly.
- Low stock levels may cause unhappy customers
Your drop shipper won’t necessarily tell you when they are running low on stock. If they run out and have to do a back order, you may end up spending a great deal of time placating a bunch of unhappy and impatient customers.
Drop shipping is a very appealing prospect for many sellers; however it is not always a realistic one. Despite the hassle, ‘doing it yourself’ can often be a more sensible option financially, especially for new businesses.
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SaleHoo is one of the fastest growing product sourcing portals on the internet. It contains a database of drop ship, wholesale, closeout and manufacturing suppliers offering thousands of product suppliers to consumers! Located at http://www.salehoo.com, visitors are allowed to sign up for unlimited and lifetime access to the completely searchable database of products and suppliers. The database is regularly updated, ensuring that the latest retail products are always available for purchase and SaleHoo carries the BBB Reliability Seal!
Visit http://www.wizit.co.nz for more helpfull tips
http://www.wizit.co.nz — we help ordinary people to ear extraordinary money…….
Tags: buy wholesale, dropshipping, earn online, home business, internet auctions, make mone from internet auctions, make money, make money from home, make money online, Online Auctions, wholesale products, wholesale suppliers, Wholesale Tips
6 Apr 2009
Author: casper021 | Filed under: Earning Online
What are the real benefits of having a web site? The following list is intended to help you consider the ways in which you’ll profit from establishing your own web site:1) The primary reason for having a web site is that people expect you to have one (everyone is on the web now).
2) The web is increasingly the first option in a person’s search for information, services and products.
3) If you’re not on the web, people won’t find you – but they will find somebody else. Your potential customers are going elsewhere!
4) Your web site is a relatively inexpensive way to showcase your interests or work in an informative, interesting and attractive way to an ever-increasing local and worldwide audience.
5) Expand your hours of operation. A web site can allow you to be “open” and operational 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, providing information right from your web site.
6) Reduce information delivery and staff costs. Reduce printing, faxing, postage and handling, telephone bills, and advertising costs. Visitors can access information about you and your inventory right from your web site at their convenience. This reduces incoming customer service calls and, thus, frees up more time for yourself.
7) Keep information up-to-date and always within reach. Unlike a printed brochure, business card or catalog, no one can misplace or lose your web site! Web site content can be changed within minutes, allowing you to keep information accurate and timely at far less cost than reprinting brochures, catalogs and business cards every time updates are needed. And when you’re on the web, people always know where to find you.
8.) Expand your customer base with unlimited advertising. Whether your focus is local, regional or worldwide, you can reach a larger audience on the web – in full-color at a remarkably reasonable “advertising” cost. And unlike other marketing mediums such as television, print, and radio, there are no time, space, or size restrictions to your digital “ad.” Have contact with potential customers before they even come to visit your area.
9) Including your web address on your other publicity material (leaflets, newspaper adverts, letterhead paper etc.) gives existing and potential customers easy access to the information on your site.
10) Sell products and services. Your web site can actually sell your products and services for you. Maintain your listings online and allow customers to view your listings and print them.
11) Your domain name (www.yoursitename.com) can be used as part of your e-mail address. This reminds your customers of your business name every time you contact them or they contact you.
12) A web site provides your vital contact information: e-mail, telephone numbers, and business address and directions on how to find you.
More…
Using the web has a huge number of advantages over traditional media. The main advantages are: low cost per view, flexibility, global audience, and potential savings in other areas. Unlike television or radio ads, a web site is available to your audience all day, every day. Business cards, brochures, catalogs… people lose them, throw them out, put them in the recycling—but a web site is always in the same place. Even the simplest web site can save you time and money—and at the same time reach new people with your message. You know how much time is spent answering the same questions and repeating the same information! By putting those answers and messages on your web site, you can provide the answers, freeing you up to attend to other things.
Understanding what benefits having a web site can offer your business is key. The key to any business decision is cost. The cost to design your web site depends on what you want to accomplish with your web site. A typical web site (template) with no dynamic content will cost less than custom design, but custom design will offer more opportunities for your information to be presented. The low cost of a website does count on a number of things being done in the right way. The initial design and planning of a website has to be done in the same way as any other product: establish the requirements, get the basics right, design the framework for the site, ensure that the styling of the site matches the look and feel that your company has.
The reasons why the web offers such a low comparative running costs compared to other media are best illustrated on a per page basis, with one page view of a website being equated to one of any other media. For example, you print off ten thousand brochures and then need to change one small detail, such as a telephone number. The whole run is wasted and has to be written off. This doesn’t happen with the web. The change can be made as soon as it is discovered and any subsequent views of this material will reflect this change.
The web is global: there are millions of users already, and you’re not just limited to markets where you have established a base. From Michigan, throughout the United State, and across the world, a web site can spread your name across the world. Your market presence will be stronger, and sales from outside the county lines will happen more and more. People interested in your site will seek you out and refer their friends. An informational, well-functioning web site can boost your credibility without demanding an enormous budget. As you grow, you can expand and improve your web site.
Just remember, you can generally provide tremendous amounts of information on your web site without running out of room. Unlike radio, TV, magazines or newspapers, you aren’t limited to expensive 30-second commercials, or eighths and quarters of printed pages!
If you do not have a business and just looking to earn some extra cash on the internet, website can be a great way of achieving it with low start up cost. Here we will talk about a number of different ideas which you can you to set up and quickly generate some sales and extra income for yourself.
1. Forum websites – An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site.It is the modern equivalent of a traditional bulletin board, and a technological evolution of the dialup bulletin board system. From a technological standpoint, forums or boards are web applications managing user-generated content. People participating in an Internet forum can build bonds with each other and interest groups will easily form around a topic’s discussion, subjects dealt within or around sections in the forum.
Forums are also a great way to promote products and services and also generate revenue from sponsored advertising like google addwords. Forums are easy to set up and administer and also easy to attract people to join.
2. Information websites – people always looking for information so having and informative website on a particular topic is a great way to promote products and services related to the topic. One main point with this websites is you have to keep the information constantly up to date. This websites are also quite easy to set up and administer and if done correctly can be quite profitable.
3. Classifieds websites – running a classified website is another good way of earning living online. This websites are quite popular because they offer an easy way of buying and selling online. People generally will use them as they offer a free and alternative method of buying and selling to auction websites.
4. Dating websites – this once are can be really profitable if correctly done. Dating is one of the largest industries on the internet right now. With the dating website you can build up a database of people very quickly by initially providing a free service and then once you have about 5000 members on your website you can start charging them for the service and sit back and watch cash flowing into your account.
Visit http://www.wizit.co.nz for more helpfull tips
http://www.wizit.co.nz — we help ordinary people to ear extraordinary money…….
Tags: earn online, easy cash, free advertising, home business, how to earn online, internet profit, make money online, money from website, online business, wealth online, website, website marketing, Website promotion
29 Mar 2009
Author: casper021 | Filed under: Online Auctions
Many people wanting to start an eBay business spend a lot of time fretting over what they will sell. Perhaps these questions are familiar: Where do I find ideas? Should I sell the most popular items? How do I know a good idea? These are important questions everyone faces.
eBay already contains so many items for sale that some sellers feel overwhelmed from the start wondering how they can possibly find a product idea when the market appears to be full anyway.
So where should you start then?
1. Your hobbies
This can be a great way of establishing a niche. Perhaps you love embroidery or making model airplanes? Chances are a lot of other people share this passion and are looking for related supplies. Crafts and hobbies is big market – however, before you jump in headfirst, make sure you do some research to back up the feasibility of your idea. eBay is a numbers game and no matter how great your idea is, it won’t work if not enough people are interested. So be sure to use the completed listings search and test the market with some of your own supplies first.
2. Listen to what your friends and family are talking about
Sometimes the best ideas can arise from your friends and family. One seller says she overheard some women at the table next to her talking about the trouble they were having finding a particular brand of baby slings. This got her thinking, and, after a bit of research, she realized they were a foreign brand and hard to find in the USA. A wee bit of research later and she had found a supplier and was successfully selling online. So keep your eyes and ears open! If people you know are looking for a particular item, chances are others will too.
3. Research newspapers and magazines
Newspapers and magazines can provide a ton of information on trends and styles. Just browsing the headlines can often be enough to spark a new idea. Try sitting down with a pen and notebook and skimming the pages of popular magazines and daily newspapers. You should have a list of at least 10 ideas by the end.
4. eBay Seller Central
eBay itself has a fantastic resource in the Seller Central area ‘What’s Hot’. Every month, a list of super hot, very hot and hot items are published. This is a great way to find ideas but remember that everyone on eBay also has access to this information! The merchandising calendar is also a useful resource.
All successful sellers sell several products, rather than putting all of their eggs into one basket. Not only can trends change with the wind, but some products are only popular during a particular season. For example, dehumidifiers are more popular during winter than summer, while lawnmowers are super hot in spring and have a practically non-existent market in the winter.
5. Find out what your buyers are buying
A good way of expanding your product range is by ‘spying’ on your buyers. After making a sale, check your buyer’s feedback and find out what other items they have been purchasing recently. This will help you get to know what your target market are interested in and expand your range accordingly.
Finding something to sell can seem daunting at first, but I guarantee that once you think of one idea, plenty of others will quickly follow!
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SaleHoo is one of the fastest growing product sourcing portals on the internet. It contains a database of drop ship, wholesale, closeout and manufacturing suppliers offering thousands of product suppliers to consumers! Located at http://www.salehoo.com, visitors are allowed to sign up for unlimited and lifetime access to the completely searchable database of products and suppliers. The database is regularly updated, ensuring that the latest retail products are always available for purchase and SaleHoo carries the BBB Reliability Seal!
Tags: buy online, earn from home, earn online, earn with auctions, eBay, internet auctions, make money from home, nokia, Online Auctions, ps2, ps3, psp, sell online, trademe, wholesale products, xbox
23 Mar 2009
Author: casper021 | Filed under: Online Auctions
1. Start Small
If you’re anything like me, once you have a good idea you want to put it into action immediately! Although you probably know in theory that any business takes 12-18 months to become established, somehow you still hope that you can get there in 2!
But, one mistake entrepreneurs consistently make is to throw their life’s savings into buying case loads of stock – before they even know how eBay works. It’s easy to be lulled into a false sense of security on eBay after buying just one or two items. For buyers, eBay is meant to be user friendly. For sellers, things are a little more complicated. All powersellers agree that there are new things to be learned all the time and you’ll be surprised at how much more you know after several months selling small, inexpensive items.
Be prepared to spend the first couple of months buying and selling a variety of inexpensive items you can purchase with your loose change. Keep track of what sells best and work on narrowing down the possibilities to a few strong products. By this stage you will also have experienced the best and worst situations eBay has to offer, so you will be much better prepared to crank things up a notch.
2. Respond to questions as quickly as possible
Most people use the Internet because it provides what they need instantaneously: information, contacts, gifts, advice, and so on. Therefore I can’t emphasize enough the importance of checking your emails as often as you can and replying to queries as quickly as possible.
3. Organize your time and keep to a schedule
If you are holding down a full-time job and working after hours to get your ebay business in motion, then it’s vital to have a list of what you need to get done and stick to it so you make the most of the precious time available. Once you are working on eBay fulltime, this becomes even more important! It’s all too easy to reach the end of another day and find that you have got hardly anything done. So keep a planner or diary and make a timetable of what needs to be done and when.
4. Do take professional photographs from the beginning
The old saying remains as true as ever: A picture speaks a thousand words. A bad picture can look unappealing and unprofessional. Plus, if the buyer can’t really see the item properly, they may be put off bidding because they can’t tell if it is what they really want. So right from the beginning, work on creating the most professional pictures you can, even if it means spending money on a photo tent and better lighting.
5. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket – use other ways of selling apart from eBay
eBay is not the be all and end all of selling online – although it is one of the best ways to start. As soon as you can though, try thinking of other ways you can increase your web presence. Perhaps you could place a classified ad in Yahoo or write about your auctions in a MySpace blog. There are plenty of cheap and easy ways to build up your profile.
6. Do keep a constant look out for other products to sell, while also monitoring carefully what you are already selling.
Don’t become complacent! Even if your items appear to be stock standard – such as chairs for instance – make sure you keep looking at what other sellers are doing, emerging trends, magazine articles, home decor programs, and more. There may be another related product opportunity just waiting to happen that you completely overlook if you keep your blinkers on.
7. Do keep in contact with your wholesale supplier regularly to ensure you are aware of any stock issues.
A backorder can create a lot of extra work for you soothing customer’s ruffled feathers. And if they want their order refunded, it costs you money too. So make life easier for yourself by regularly touching base with your suppliers and ensuring communication lines stay open.
8. Do carry out regular keyword and market research
Keyword research is the way to ensure your potential customers find you successfully. Set aside some time each day for marketing and research to ensure that you’re keeping at the top of your game.
9. Do use software to help organize your sales
It’s hard to part with the initial investment when the business is still finding its feet, but the right software will make life so much easier. My eBay quickly becomes unwieldy when you are selling more than 15 items, and software ensures that you avoid making costly mistakes, such as under-ordering stock, forgetting to ship to a customer, and so on.
10. Don’t offer free shipping as a gimmick unless you can afford it
Free shipping is a very effective way of attracting more people to your listings. However, before you consider offering free shipping, think carefully about your profit margins, how much your item weighs, and the fact that shipping will vary depending on how far away you are sending it. Offering free shipping is a good move if you can absorb the cost in your profit margin, but it could easily become crippling if you apply it to a variety of items of different shapes and sizes.
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SaleHoo is one of the fastest growing product sourcing portals on the internet. It contains a database of drop ship, wholesale, closeout and manufacturing suppliers offering thousands of product suppliers to consumers! Located at http://www.salehoo.com, visitors are allowed to sign up for unlimited and lifetime access to the completely searchable database of products and suppliers. The database is regularly updated, ensuring that the latest retail products are always available for purchase and SaleHoo carries the BBB Reliability Seal!
Visit http://www.wizit.co.nz for more helpfull tips
http://www.wizit.co.nz — we help ordinary people to ear extraordinary money…….
Tags: buy online, earn from home, earn online, earn with auctions, eBay, internet auctions, make money from home, nokia, Online Auctions, ps2, ps3, psp, sell online, trademe, wholesale products, xbox
17 Mar 2009
Author: casper021 | Filed under: Online Auctions
1. Thorough market research is the foundation for success
Meticulous market research doubles your chances of making a tidy profit from the wholesale goods you buy. Start off with a list of 5-10 different ideas. Then check completed listings searches on eBay to see what the item generally sells for and the sell-through rate for each one. Use Yahoo’s free keyword tool http://inventory.overture.com to find out how many people are searching Yahoo for your product per month. You can double this figure for Google. Add the numbers together. If there are ten thousand or more searches per month for an item, this indicates a healthy market.
2. Calculate the REAL cost of your item
One big reason why people fail at the wholesale game is that they don’t do the numbers. In other words, they don’t treat wholesale like a real business. To accurately discover your true profit potential on an item, you need to add the shipping cost and insurance, eBay fees (or equivalent for other advertising), Paypal and/or credit card fees (these can be a real profit killer), packaging costs and labor involved packaging, and any storage costs to the cost of your item.
3. Verify ALL suppliers found on the Internet
Getting caught out by scammers is a common stumbling block for people new to wholesale. If you are searching for suppliers off your own bat (rather than using a wholesale directory like SaleHoo), it is CRITICAL to check authenticity before making a purchase.
Always take the time to:
- Check that the website gives a full business name and a registration number.
- Check for a legitimate contact telephone number – this will involve ringing the number. Do not accept a mobile phone number alone. All real companies should have a land line number.
- Go to http://www.whois.sc/ and search for the name of the website. A legitimate company will have a domain expiration date in several years time. Most legitimate companies reserve their domain names for 3-5 years or more at a time.
- AVOID suppliers who won’t agree to use secure payment methods such as Escrow.com, Credit Card and Paypal Verified.
- Still uncertain? Ask other sellers what their experiences have been with the company you are interested in on eBay forums.
4. Chinese suppliers give the competitive edge
Chinese suppliers are an essential source for anyone wishing to make money selling online. Manufacturing costs are currently extremely low in China, thus it is the secret to gaining a competitive edge. Dealing with China does have risks, but these can be alleviated if you place a small order first, use secure payment methods, get shipping insurance for 110% of the cost of the items, and use suppliers with a good reputation.
5. A common stumbling block for liquidation and closeout
Always obtain the reasons for liquidation and closeout sales before you buy. Liquidation and Closeout sales can be a fantastic source for cheap products, but you usually have to buy by the pallet load and these can sometimes include broken or returned goods that aren’t in saleable condition. To be safe, ask specifically whether broken items and returns are included before you buy.
6. Negotiate on shipping and save
Shipping economically is critical to importing success. Profits can easily get swamped in shipping costs, so take time to get a good deal on shipping. If possible, negotiate CIF (Cost, Insurance & Freight) or DDP (Delivery, duty paid) shipping terms with your supplier as this takes much of the risk – not to mention organization – off your shoulders. FOB (Freight on Board) is the most common shipping term, but don’t be afraid to negotiate for better.
7. Drop shipping – can you really afford it?
Drop shipping sounds great in theory – someone taking care of packaging, wrapping and postage – but it can be difficult to profit from this method. Think about it, drop shipping can add another $2-10 to your costs – sometimes even 10% of the cost of the item. By the time you add in eBay fees and any other costs, you may find it is not worth it.
8. Warehouse storage checklist
Asset management is the most important consideration when locating warehousing to store your items. Believe it or not, items can go missing while in storage, causing massive disruption for you. When comparing warehouses, ask questions specifically on how you will authorize the release of stock (by phone or fax?), what will happen if you need to cancel an order, frequency of damage claims, dust management, and whether there is an area you can use to photograph items.
9. Powerseller wealth
It’s a fact – eBay powersellers are able to command higher prices for their items than ordinary eBay sellers. To get the best profits on your wholesale items, you need to aim to get and maintain powerseller status.
10. Growth with a website and eBay store
The way to increase profits from wholesale is to build your own website and/or open an eBay store. This allows you to cross sell items plus it also makes it easier for people to find what they are looking for. For example, if you sell shoes, then customers can easily navigate to browse all black shoes in size 9 and so on. Always include a sentence at the bottom of your descriptions encouraging visitors to check out your other listings – most people will.
If you are looking for genuine and trusted wholesale suppliers then look no further than SaleHoo! SaleHoo’s directory contains over 4000 drop ship, wholesale and closeout suppliers that are independently reviewed and rated by eBay Powersellers and Industry experts. SaleHoo also purchases off them and reviews each supplier in depth afterwards.
———————————————————————————————————————————————————————–
SaleHoo is one of the fastest growing product sourcing portals on the internet. It contains a database of drop ship, wholesale, closeout and manufacturing suppliers offering thousands of product suppliers to consumers! Located at http://www.salehoo.com, visitors are allowed to sign up for unlimited and lifetime access to the completely searchable database of products and suppliers. The database is regularly updated, ensuring that the latest retail products are always available for purchase and SaleHoo carries the BBB Reliability Seal!
Visit http://www.wizit.co.nz for more helpfull tips
http://www.wizit.co.nz — we help ordinary people to ear extraordinary money…….
Tags: drop shipping, earn online sell online, internet auctions, market research, Online Auctions, salehoo, wholesale products, wholesale suppliers, Wholesale Tips