4/12/09 eBay Powersellers Secrets Newsletter

“In this week’s newsletter, Amanda takes on the apparent persona of Michael Fish.”  

Hello!

This week, on a complete whim, I decided to buy a sledge each for my children.

My first mistake was opening my mouth and actually mentioning this in the presence of the girls. My second mistake was following up the mention of the sledges with the word ‘snow’. My third mistake was to have this entire unfortunate conversation when I only had a fifteen minute window between acting as a taxi service for both daughters who needed to be in two different places at exactly the same time.

Anyway, as I have said, I was pushed for time, juggling several tasks at once and now had the added double audio of two small children who were hovering around with expectant faces and very loud voices:

“When is it going to snow Mummy?” asked daughter number two. “Is it going to snow tomorrow?” “When is it going to snow if it doesn’t snow tomorrow?” “If it snows will we have to go to school?” “I don’t want a red sledge, I want a blue one…” “What’s a sledge….?”

Daughter number one was slightly bemused by this and rolling her eyes said: “Dur! Mummy doesn’t know when it’s going to snow. She’s not a weatherman. Dur!”

A fight then broke out about between the two of them over whether or not it was going to snow tomorrow.

I am sure you can imagine the scene. So, harassed mother /taxi service / weatherman(?) – that’s me, took the opportunity whilst the small fight was taking place to quickly log on to eBay and survey the sledges. Yes I am an eBay buyer as well as a seller!

I typed in the keyword: ‘Sledge’. That’s it, just one single keyword, and eBay’s ‘Best Match’ system threw up the results. About half way down the first page a picture of a blue sledge caught my eye and the listing title next to that gallery picture read: Deluxe Huge 1m Plastic Snow Sledge Sledges Toboggan Blue. There was also a subtitle used which stated: Order 2 sledges at the same time & pay only 1 postage. 

I thought this looked ideal, so being short of time, I clicked through to the listing description, intending to get a general idea of the kind of sledges available and was met with a description telling me exactly what size and colour this sledge was, whether it was suitable for adults or children, how it would be delivered, when it would be dispatched and other information besides. And importantly this was a Buy It Now Listing. I could purchase right now.

So I did. I bought two. Just like that. Without even looking at any other listings and comparing prices, postage and all that jazz.

And do you know I actually even shocked myself in doing this. I had completed an entire transaction in the space of about 5 minutes whilst my children were having a scrap about snow.

Now, getting to the point, there are a few parts to my tale that I would like you to take notice of.

• I was pushed for time.

• I looked at a listing that caught my eye on page one of the search results.
• I purchased from that very listing.
• Unusually for me, I did not bother to look further and compare products
• I looked, made a decision to buy and purchased within about 5 minutes of viewing the search results.

Why are these points important? Well I’ll tell you now.

I was pushed for time with the added problem of two children expecting a sledge (and some snow) to materialise within the next 10 minutes and if I couldn’t do that then they would settle for tomorrow. And this meant that I pretty much needed to order a pair of sledges right now.

So, with this in mind, when the eBay search results put in front of me exactly what I was looking for in the form of a seller who had used a good gallery photograph, the correct keywords for me to find his items and what’s more had enticed me to click through to his listing title with a subtitle offering me a postage discount, the odds were that I would buy.

The odds gathered pace further once I reached his listing description. Everything I needed to know was there in front of me and remember there was that added incentive of the postage discount if I bought two. Plus it was on a Buy It Now. No bidding, no waiting. And I did want two (imagine the scrap that would take place if I only ordered one and they had to share, heaven forbid) and I did want them now.

This listing description was telling me – this is what you want and we can give it to you. What reason have you got not to buy.

And that’s why I didn’t even bother to compare the product with similar ones. As far as I was concerned, at that moment, the price was reasonable (it may not have been the cheapest, but I don’t know because I didn’t compare) but in my own mind, I didn’t mind paying the Buy It Now price. And that’s why I purchased. And that’s why it only took about 5 minutes!

The real point of me telling you all this is that you need to know that many, many eBay buyers will buy something on a whim – just like I did. They decide they want something, can’t wait and that’s it, they have to get it right now.

So, if you put exactly what that buyer wants in front of them at the exact time that they want it and you give them all the information they could possibly require at the exact time that they require it, then throw in a little extra like discounted or free postage then your chances of a sale go sky high.

You need to tell viewers of your listings this: You want this. I can give it to you. No hassle. What’s stopping you.

It doesn’t even matter if you are not the cheapest stockist of that product in your category or niche because if a buyer thinks in their own mind that what you are offering is at a reasonable price then they will buy. And often buyers will pay more if they know that you are offering fast dispatch and good customer service.

So this is a lesson in paying close attention to your listing title – to ensure your keywords are relevant and your listings appear in the search results, Your gallery picture – this should stand out and catch the eye as viewers scroll through the results (you can just add a coloured border to your image to make it look different – that’s all it takes) and your listing description – include every detail about your product. It doesn’t matter if this makes your listing long, you need to leave your viewer with no option but to buy.

Christmas present buying panic is just beginning to set in around now as I mentioned in last week’s newsletter (I hope you have listed in time for Monday 7^th December!) and so there are even more buyers out there who will certainly purchase on a whim at this time of year.

So make it your task to check and tweak your keywords, gallery pictures and listing descriptions if necessary to catch those harassed buyers!

In case you are wondering, my sledges arrived two days later, exactly as described. The snow meanwhile has not arrived exactly as described. Daughter number two has taken to keeping a ‘sledge vigil’ which involves looking at them longingly, alternated with a scowl in my direction and accompanied with “YOU said it was going to SNOW.” Guilt trip fully accomplished I’d say!

As always I wish you the best of success,

Amanda

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I produce this newsletter on the understanding that these are my own personal opinions and experiences, which are as accurate as possible at the time of publication. I cannot be held responsible for any error in details, accuracy or judgment whatsoever. 

© Amanda O’Brien 2009 

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