ISSUE 42: Jan. 5, 2008
Yard Salers: Contest Entries, Make Money w/ eBooks, & More - Sat. Jan 5, 2008
Subscribe at:
www.yardsalers.net
Greetings, all!
The ideas and feedback have come flooding in for the "What Would You Like to See in Yard Salers" contest. Thanks so much to everyone who entered. And thanks to everyone who subscribes to the newsletter and reads it. And even if you subscribe and don't always have time to read it, I appreciate your subscription.
I really think of all issues I've run lately, you'll want to print this one out and hunker down with it. Take it to bed with you for a lil' nighttime reading.
As I mentioned previously, I'm running all the entries I can in this issue. If I miss any, please let me know and I'll try to get to them in a subsequent issue.
The winner receives both of my paperback books, and all of my ebooks of his or her choice. And...the really good news is...everyone who entered will get a free ebook as well. I'll be contacting the winners Monday to get people's physical mailing addresses, as needed, and to email the ebooks.
A quick question for all of you before we get to the entries. In some cases we talk about eBay or other items, and I could put out a version of this newsletter with imbedded images. I worry, however, that it will prevent some people from being able to see the newsletter. I wanted to ask everyone how you'd feel about more graphics in the newsletter..do you want them? Or not? Are you happy with text alone and images on the front of the site? Please send me your thoughts. We could at least experiment.
Well, we have a lot of entries to get to, and in some cases, my responses (sorry; it's not a short issue by any means, but I think you'll like it), so let's get to it!
In This Issue:
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1) Yard Salers Contest: Entries and Winners
2) Reader Mail
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1) Yard Salers Contest: Entries and Winners
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Here are as many entries as I can fit in this issue. I'll name the winners at the end. I've decided to give everyone who entered a free ebook.
1) Best time to list and tips on organizing
Hi Julia,
I would like to see more about the best time to sell things- season/day of week/time of day, etc. Any time saving tips on listing/organizing
auctions. Seems like it takes me too long to put the auction description together. I use Turbo lister, which has helped a bunch, but it still takes quite a bit of time. Thanks!
Susie Andelt
Hi Susie,
Thanks so much for the contest entry and for writing! You have been duly entered. :)
Time-saving tips is a big topic..thanks so much for suggesting it. I have a few in mind already for an upcoming newsletter, and will be writing about this throughout the year and taking reader suggestions as well.
The best time to sell things..that one is always debated. There is a good chart on AuctionBytes at http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/pages/calendar that shows good and bad times. But we'll discuss it more this year too.
My latest thinking is with so many people watching auctions and sniping at the end, I wonder if it really matters much in most cases. But having said that, currently I think Saturday and Sunday are good times..esp. Sunday, because I think people are shopping on that day, and if an auction ends, it gives you that afternoon or evening to pack/ship (which is a bonus if you have a Mon-Fri day job, not necessarily if eBay is your day job).
Thanks again for the entry!
Julia
2) More Hot Trends
Hi Julia:
I would like to see more of what you think are the hot trends in your newsletter. I find your newsletter both informative and fascinating.
I hope that you and yours have a wonderful festive season and a happy and healthy 2008.
Cheers,
John
3) More ideas for the yardsaler newsletters for 2008 - art tips, determining lithos and prices
Hi,
I would like to see more information about how to determine if a painting is a watercolor, acrylic, oil, mixed media, or ?.
I noticed that there are not many books that tell if paintings and/or prints are worth anything other than books with auction records that usually limit
their selections to works that sold over 1,000 dollars.
There are a few huge sets of books that contain short bios of painters, but they cost several hundred dollars or more.
The only other place is ASKART or ARTPRICE, or other sites that charge fees to see their values.
Are you aware of any other places where you can find the value of paintings and prints--other than Ebay--that don't charge anything.
Also, I learned (the hard way) that just because a painting is signed and dated, or a signed, limited edition, that doesn't mean that it's worth anything
How can you tell if posters are worth anything? I see all kinds of art posters and posters with repros of masters paintings.
Is there any book that tells what they are worth.?
And with regard to old prints, how can you identify original lithos, or are all thing printed before a certain date automatically original lithos?
thanks,
Bob B
Hi Bob,
Thanks so much for writing and your contest entry. You make some excellent points about art, and those are issues I am grappling with myself.
Whew..a lot of questions. Let's take them one at a time. Determining the medium of a painting. I think the best way to be able to do this, first, is to simply get familiar with the different styles of art. This, of course, can be tricky..for example, determining the different between oil and acrylic might be difficult for many people.
It's always a good idea to ask about the painting; get as much info as you can. If there is nothing on the painting or information about the piece listed at the estate sale or yard sale, ask one of the sale workers or the yard sale owner if they know.
It may turn out to be, for example, a piece the person's great-grandmother did in the 1800s or what have you. And as you say, just because it's old
doesn't necessarily mean it's worth anything, although I do think some of the "primitive" (non-professional, amateur)-looking paintings from early days
have become quite valuable.
As to references on paintings and painters: I have looked around a bit for these myself. So far the best thing I have found is a big honking book called
Davenport's Art Reference & Price Guide. It is quite expensive, though; the '07-08 edition is on eBay now with a BIN of $167. It is also on CD for
$49.95, but I prefer it in book format so I can easily look things up in the car at estate sales.
It passed the test for finding one artist I hadn't found any success finding on the Internet: Squire Knowles, a California artist who once painted my
grandfather's home while stationed in Haiti. It gave a range for his art of $200-$600.
There is also, as you say, web.artprice.com, where you have to pay to see art prices. I haven't fooled around with that too much, but a year
subscription there is $109. However, they do have a one day trial w/ images offering for $20. That sounds like the best bet to try it.
Of course, google and eBay's completed listings could be your first stop for free information.
Posters..my sense with posters is that they would have to be original to be worth a decent amount. I found this one web page that talks about some
good reference guides: http://www.artbusiness.com/revs400.html, including Art Price Indicator International, Gordon's Photography Price Annual
International, and Poster Prices V. I haven't vetted any of these, though, so check them out carefully. Do as much free research on eBay as you can.
Old prints..about recognizing a lithograph..there is a good entry in wikipedia that explains what they are: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithograph. (I know I mention wikipedia a lot, but I think it's a really good resource). Also via google:
- How can one tell if something is an original lithograph or a copy of a lithograph? Is there an easy way to tell the difference?
"The answer is more than a yes or no. I would like to approach the answer to your question assuming you don't have much information about the
difference between hand lithograph and offset lithography. This way I can give a more complete answer.
"When a hand lithograph is made the artist draws directly on the printing element. (stone, aluminum, Mylar, etc.) From this drawing the prints are
inked and pulled. One drawing for each different color. Each print records the unique mark of the artist and their hand.
"When prints are made using offset lithography, an original (painting, drawing, watercolor etc.) Are taken to a commercial printer. The printer
photographs the original and then converts all the colors into a combination of 4. (Red, Yellow, Blue, and Black) A negative is made for each of these
colors and a photographic plate is prepared for printing. They are run, usually all at once on large high speed presses. The mark of the artist is lost in the translation from original to photograph and then
color separation. Depending on the printer, colors can vary drastically from the original.
"A common way to tell if a print is a hand lithograph or an offset lithograph is to look at the print under magnification. Marks from a hand lithograph
will show a random dot pattern created by the tooth of the surface drawn on. Inks may lay directly on top of others and it will have a very rich look.
Prints from an offset press will show a mechanical dot pattern from the color separations. Each color generates a separate dot pattern that when
combined produce a very small circle or "rosette". The dot patterns look like the dot from the newspaper comics but smaller. You can easily see these
dots under small magnification or sometimes with the naked eye. All the dots line up in neat little rows. If you can see these dots it is a sure sign of
camera and commercial involvement. If the dots are random and you purchased the print from a reputable dealer it is most likely a hand drawn
lithograph."
(Source: http://www.stonescrayons.com/litho.html)
That info is new to me too, Bob, so, we are all learning together. I want to learn more about art this year and plan to buy and sell art more. I think it
has a higher profit potential than many other things.
One tv program I highly recommend is CBS This Morning, Sundays at 9: they usually feature a different artist every week, and it's a fun way to learn
more about art.
Keep me posted as to how it goes! Thanks again for writing,
Julia
4) Dennis
Julia,
Please enter me in your contest.Thank you for such an informative ezine I really enjoy and appreciate it.
Sincerely,
Dennis
5) Ray - 2 eBays?
Julia, thanks so much for the extra effort on the books you printed out. That is commitment to customer service. Too bad ebay lost that years ago.
I wonder if ebay could win back some sellers by offering an A vs. B decision button when you open the ebay site. A could contain all old, collectible,
antique, craft, used, mdse. and B would have auctions of new items...electronics, clothing, gifts, etc.
The simple binary choice allows prospective bidders to quickly go to the auctions that interest them. I believe that antique/collectible buyers are a
distinct group that has systematically had the door slammed in their face as Meg Whitman went after big numbers, and more retail sellers.
Conversely, a large group of buyers of electronics, gadgets, etc. could care less about sifting through auctions that have old stuff.
Perhaps this simple decision available to bidders could solve some of ebay's customer relations issues with the antique/craft crowd. I'd like to hear what some of your followers think. And if this is a feasible idea, how it could be delivered to the right people at ebay. (If in fact, there really is an ebay office somewhere where real live humans work, ha ha).
Again, thanks so much. Appreciate your newsletter and I don't see how you find the time to keep the "personalized feel" in your work and your Internet contribution.
Ray
Hi Ray!
Great to hear from you. Glad you enjoyed the printed books. I need to find a good solution to print my ebooks so people can get paper copies. Something to work on for 2008. :)
Your A vs. B eBay idea is intriguing. It sounds a bit like what they tried to do with eBay Express, except that eBay Express was fixed-price only, so I guess that analogy doesn't really hold up.
It's interesting you say that too because now eBay seems to have search results divided into Auctions and Buy It Now. Not the same as dividing out collectibles, etc., but they seem to be really playing around with the format.
But I think we both agree antiques and collectibles buyers (and sellers) are key to the heart and soul of eBay. I do throw your idea out to the newsletter...I'll put it in the next issue. [Here it is, folks! Tell me what you think.] Also I can put it on my blog if this is OK with you. I can just use your first name if that's OK.
Happy New Year and thanks for reading!
Julia
And now for the TWO BIG WINNERS...It's a TIE!
OK....keep in mind, everyone who entered, meaning all the entries above, and anyone else who entered I may have missed (I'll be emailing with you on Monday), will get a free ebook of mine. But the winning two entries (yes it was a tie) who win both of my paperback books plus all of my ebooks are below! Check 'em out:
6) Going to Offline Auctions: Rhonda -- gracie_13 on eBay -- Junk boxes at the auction that really pay off
I deal in marbles, old sunglasses and believe it or not $1 boxes at the auction. You know, the ones that are on the side table full of junk that no one wants? I stay until the end and spend $4 or $5 on dollar boxes and have made over $200 on each one and every time. How about stuff on auction
sales and the hidden treasures to be found?
Here's a link to 2 of my completed auctions. I got the book in a lot of 3 for $2.50 and the Bolo for $5.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160187506749&ssPageName=STRK:MESO:IT&ih=006
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160188972171&ssPageName=STRK:MESO:IT&ih=006
Thanks!
Rhonda
Hi Rhonda!
That is brilliant! Love your strategy. It's funny you write about going to the auctions and the $1 boxes, because going to offline auctions and bidding on that kind of stuff..esp. the "mystery" boxes..is on my list of things to do for this year and to write about.
(Note from Julia about those auction links - in case you don't get a chance to click thru to them, one is for a book, NATIONAL ELECTRICAL CODE 1937
FIRE PROTECTION ASSOC. NR, that sold for US $104.86! I read that electricians buy up such old books but it may be collectors and other folks as
well.
The other is a Vintage Bolo ZUNI Multi-Stone Inset Bolo MOP Turquois - US $156.00. Wow. Old or special bolo ties can indeed be very valuable. Rhonda, I don't know if you just knew that one was Zuni, or if you dug up research or what, but great find. Native American stuff is highly sought after.)
What a wonderful tactic. Where are you based? May I run your letter in my next newsletter? I use first names only, unless you tell me otherwise or
you want me to use a link to your eBay store.
Thanks again, and I'll let you know about the contest winners soon! :)
Julia
Rhonda then wrote back with more gems. Her eBay id, by the way, is gracie_13 (Rhonda, write me if I screw that up!) Pls. check out her auctions!:
Of course you can use it! If you are going to though I just thought of 2 more items:
These were in the same $1 box with some other stuff I haven't listed yet:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160185587893&ssPageName=STRK:MESO:IT&ih=006
[ This is a lovely set of collectible silver state spoons. $26.00 ]
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160182726759&ssPageName=STRK:MESO:IT&ih=006
[ Tiffany "Good News" silver pin in the distinctive blue box. $34. I must say that is one of the stranger Tiffany items I have seen; I am guessing it's a
love child of the 70s, but I don't know. You can't argue with the blue Tiffany box. ]
Then there is the Box of Saturday Evening Post Magazines. There were old craft magazines that were all torn up in there also. I paid $7 for the box
and a lady offered me $2.50 for the ripped up ones so $4.50 and I've already made
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160188792102&ssPageName=STRK:MESO:IT&ih=006
[ SATURDAY EVENING POST DEC. 21, 1935 - ROCKWELL SANTA - $52.51! ]
I have 3 more on right at the moment and about 20 more to list. I like this stuff!!!
I'm in NW Indiana and you may use my name and please link to my auctions! I don't have an eBay store yet but I have stuff on all the time as it's
becoming better than my 1st income. I work for the County so that tells you what we get paid lol.
Thanks and have a wonderful Christmas!
Rhonda
Rhonda I like your style...didn't the Beach Boys say that? I'm going to take a page from your collectible books and try your strategy. In fact, I suggest
we all do! Thanks again!
Julia
7) Large items, Craigslist, free classified ads, small-time sellers, podcasts, doing your own own ebooks, yard sale tips, fee savings
Hey Julia,
Thanks again for another great issue of your newsletter. Also, thanks for the opportunity to send in our ideas for your newsletter consideration. Here
are my ideas for the contest. Not sure if you have covered any of these in your past newsletters? Or if any warrant measure in your future
newsletters...
As far as shipping/postage labels printed off your own printer, if you use UPS they have a 2-label 8 ½ x 11 sheet (peel and stick) that works great for
printing shipping labels and they are free. In addition, they too have free boxes to be used for shipping. You need to create a userid with them. They
ship it all to your house same as the USPS does with it’s free boxes.
Larger items, some people pass up larger items because of size/shipping limitations. One option is the local Greyhound bus lines. I have shipped a few larger items this way that could not be shipped via USPS or UPS becase of size or cost. Shipping via Greyhound is relatively cheap with the downside
of having to haul it to the terminal and the buyer has to pick it up at their local Greyhound terminal (not in all cities/towns). But, it is an option to
consider for larger items (profits, profits, profits).
That brings up my next idea. Many LARGE items are passed on at garage sales or auctions. I have seen very low prices at sales and low bids at
auctions because of an items size. Keep in mind that you don’t haveto sell everything on ‘the bay’. Get out of that mindset and step outside the box.
Remember there is Craigslist (with local city links) that you can sell without having to ship items.
Brings me to my next mention. Check your local area/state for websites that might provide an outlet (like craigslist) for selling items. Here in Utah we
have a television station (in Salt Lake City/ KSL.com ) that has a classified ad tab on their main news web page. There you can create a userid and
post ads of your items for sale locally. Best thing about it is it is FREE!!
This way you can sell locally some of those larger items that you may have
passed up (and don’t have to package and ship)??????? I bought a small apt sized refrigerator for $15 at a yard sale and sold it for $65 in just a day.
Not big money mind you, but percentage-wise it was great and gave me some Friday night take-my-wife-out-to-dinner money!!! What other bigger
items might bring you some money if you sell them locally???? And don’t forget to offer as these bigger items are usually passed on!!!!
This brings up my next suggestion. Large items may equate to good money. At an auction this summer, there were some older wooden cabinets on
wheels that housed some stereo pieces. The cabinets were nice maple and well done. I bid on them and was the sole bidder, waiting for the starting
bid to come down to $10 and then raising my hand.I received 6 pieces for my $10 purchase/bid. Four cabinets and two end tables. Well, to make a
long story short I ended up taking out the stereo equipment and speakers (all from the 60’s) and sold them for over $900.
In addition I sold the cabinets and end tables at our local swap meet (another place to take those too large-to-ship-but-money-in-your-pocket items). That continues to my next idea for the newsletter. How about in every issue you have some offbeat non-mainstream item(s) to keep an eye out for at
your local garage or estate sale. As in the previous paragraph, I made the bid because I had sold some old tube stereo equipment before and knew
that they could do well. Check out the sold side of eBay for tube-related stereo items and what they have sold for!!!! Some of them are just amazing. I
also know of some not-so-old items that have done well. Nike tennis shoes and wind breakers for the 70’s for example. Not that old and surely in
someone's closet. Anyway, perhaps some more offbeat ideas like that I think would be great. You might be surprised at what your subscribers may
even come up with.
My next idea stems from the previous paragraph. I just took my daughter to Salt Lake to a large mall complex. The store she wanted to visit was for
what I considered the young eclectic kids. As I walked around and looked at the clothing and items it seemed like I had stepped back tothe 1960’s and
70’s. Funkadelic items all over. Even some "new" aluminum colored drinking glasses. Hmmmm, seems like I drank out of those when I was
younger???
LOL Anyway, I mention this as another non-mainstream idea for selling on the bay. Cocktail dresses, vintage 60’s and even 70’s clothing
can sell for BIG money. Heck, maybe that will be MY first ebook!!!!
I guess why I bring this up is that you mention eBay stores and such in your
newsletter. I/we have been on eBay since 1998 but don’t have a store and don’t sell batteries or cell phone and our feedback numbers are not in the
10’s of thousands. Just wanted to let you know that some of us are content with what we sell and do not do this full time. We have regular jobs and
this is somewhat of a hobby and just for fun, so keep us in mind when you are writing your newsletter. we don't have a store and not everyone is
Powerselling. I wonder how many of your subscribers are just that, small-time having fun sellers, that don’t get too serious. Just throwing those ideas
out there again.... Are you catching?? J
Next item is an idea for your ebooks. In your last letter a subscriber mentioned that she wondered if you might print your ebooks in paperback. Small niche and as you said probably not worth the investment. I agree but have another suggestion. What about an audio recording of your ebooks????!!!!
They could be bought and downloaded to a persons computer or sent to their Ipod/Zune MP3 player and listened to at work (on break of course), out
yardsaling in their car or whenever. Your ebooks in MP3 format or audiobooks. Saves paper & printer ink (are we green?) and gives people another
option for them. And you know how many Ipods Apple has sold!!!!!!! Just throwing these things out atcha...got yer mitt on yet??? J
Next idea. I suppose that most of us who sell on eBay have a bit of entreprenurial spirit in them. Can you give us some idea of how to do our own
ebook and how to get started? What all is involved? I know there must be tons of ideas for all of us. Please share your experience. Ideas could be
hobbies, experience, knowledge, profession etc. Is there a ‘bestseller’ ebook list that could give us ideas of what has been done and what we could do
one on?? Come on, what do you think????
Ok, I am a bit crazy and may have a bit more of the spirit running through my veins. Maybe you could have a contest for that???? Also, I would be interested in maybe setting up a blog some day. How involved is that??? Or webpages. How do you host your own, would I want to, costs, pitfalls, etc...
Another idea is to have subscribers send in their items they have sold that when they bought it they didn’t think it would do much of anything but
ended up surprising the heck out of them??? Maybe another contest idea in the making. It would be interesting to see what kind of money people made
on an item and at the same time give your subscribers items to look for as well (keep an eye out for those tube receivers).
Ok another one I was thinking would be nice for everyone is to have tips in each newsletter on different related items when yardsaling. Like when
looking for jewelry at sales always take a loupe for looking the pieces over. Then, do you only buy pieces that are signed or not. Some older pieces
weren’t signed. What else should you look for?
Or how about paintings & prints. A list of not so old painters names that you may want to look out for? Something like the book listing ebook that is on your web site, but for American painters (southwest, eastern, etc.) that painted in the 1900’s. I know I always pass up on paintings because I know nothing. Maybe there is a small fortune out there just waiting? But perhaps just a little information on a certain subject in each newsletter.
I guess I am trying to lean more towards things that would help us in garage saling rather than ebaying, as we all need stuff to sell and I would think most of us like selling the collectibles rather than the battery, cellphone etc. mindset? Mind you I’m not knocking them in the least and Lord knows there are some of them making tons of money, but for us "salers" I think we are looking for the oldies stuff? Especially us "small-time" sellers. And we are yardsalers and ebayers, right???
OK, what about fee savings that you get when you are listing. I mean what are the listing fees for an item starting at $9.99 as opposed to $10. Or
$19.99 as opposed to $20...and so on and so on. How fast does that add up? Especially for Powersellers selling so many things. What other ways can
you save money on eBay fees????
One last idea for the newsletter that I was thinking would be interesting might be some eBay facts of different sorts. Something akin to what has sold
on the bay, but include other facts and less of the sold prices. I guess just things that might be of interest to subscribers. Highest price item sold on
ebay was??? Best day to sell currently is?? Highest feedback rating is?? First member signed on was (userid). Gross yearly sales for ebay is? They
employ how many? What else are they involved in (PayPal &?)? What where their fees at the start of their business? What percentage have they gone
up? Will they ever have competition? Just whatever little known facts might be of interest to your subscribers??? A what’s what of the bay...
And what other ways can we use eBay to make money???????????? Can anybody come up with a new one??? Just ideas to toss around...
So, those are my crazy ‘out there ideas’ for now. Sorry to have rambled on for soooo long. I didn’t really mean to, but things were popping in my
head once I started. That’s it on my ideas/suggestions for now. I hope to hear from you as the winner of your contest? Or perhaps a gratuitous
runner-up with prize!!! LOL... J
Best Regards,
Jon
"Ski UTAH, Greatest Snow On Earth"
Hey Jon!
How goes? Thanks sooo much for your wonderful, wonderful letter. So many great thoughts and tips.
Let's see..I will be taking on your subjects as we go this year..def. I like the idea of giving yard saling tips in each issue. I think I need to do more about. It is, after all, called Yard Salers. I do also think small time sellers and hobbyists need to be represented. Personally, ebooks and writing take up part of my time, as I prefer it, so I don't consider myself a full-time eBay seller.
Selling more large items, via craigslist and other free classifieds venues, are great way to make easy bunches of money. And no shipping. We'll try to talk about that more.
Ebooks...I am def. going to take that one on. I want to start encouraging readers to make their own ebooks. It's a great, low-to-no overhead easy delivery business that benefits everyone, I think, if the products are good and priced right.
I'd like to encourage you to write an ebook on finding and selling old tube stereos, in fact..I want to know more about those and how to identify them. I'd be happy to help sell it for u if you do. :)
In 2008 I do want to get more into multi-media..podcasts and even video. It may be a way to get the word out to more people. We'll see. I have a friend who says he'll help me with the podcasts.
Love the idea of a "surprise item" that sold contest, and your last point about eBay facts is esp. interesting bec. I've been toying with that. If you look at the "Lists" part of my (large) paperback book eBay Price Guide, in the back, you'll see the beginnings of that.
Well I better leave it at that for now..we'll hopefully take on all these topics this year.
Thanks so, much, again!
Julia
Let's see..Sherry, Cyndi, and Linda sent entries that I already ran..you can read them in back issues..they were about various things including media mail with vintage VHS tapes; eBay Stores; the USPS advertising exception to media mail; and using DHL.
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2) Reader Mail
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First Class Can Be Cheaper and Store Web Hosting Sites
Great newsletter - AGAIN!!
I love all the information. I read it online then print it out to read it again. I thought of another point in re: to media mail, perhaps you've mentioned it and I just missed it - I live in a very small rural town and my postmaster loves my business! I bring good money to the little out-of-the-way PO - which by the way still applies postage with individual stamps...nothing is computerized.
Anyway, many of the books and things that I ship would be cheaper to go 1st class - but I realized one day that my post master wasn't looking out for my best interest or better known as profit. She was shipping everything I sat on the counter as media and I was losing as much as a dollar on some packages. Now she knows to check 1st class before stamping. It's kind of like they forget we are the customer - bringing revenue into their business - and we still have some say so...does that make sense?
Also, you mentioned Ebay store owners having a separate website - could you possibly give some ideas of good hosting sites - I've been researching but there are tons and I was wondering what other people are using to create online stores etc. outside of ebay.
Keep up the good work.
Jounda
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Hi Jounda!
Thanks so much for all your nice comments; that means a lot. I'm so glad you enjoy the newsletter and find it useful.
Great points.. the point about first-class mail I hadn't even thought of..I've noticed first class can be pretty inexpensive but I don't think it occurred to me it would be cheaper as 1st class. Plus it should take a lot less time. So great point, again..I'll mention it in the next issue. In fact, I'd like to use your whole letter if u don't mind. :)
I agree that the post office, carriers etc. need to remember we eBay sellers are bringing them revenue.
About web site hosts..that's a great question. Yes, that's a big topic. :) I'd like to research it more, ask all the readers to share their tips, and do a separate article about it. As to my own web site, I hired a design co. to do the design, and bought the domain name and hosting via godaddy. I have also used yahoo's small biz web hosting and found that fine. eBay has a solution called ProStores which makes it pretty easy, cut and paste..I haven't looked into it lately.
You may also, for now, want to nose around auctionbytes.com and search on "web host" or similar..I bet they've done articles about it. But I'll put it on my list to cover too.
I welcome thoughts and tips from readers about what web host providers they use and other things they can share about setting up an ecommerce web presence.
Thanks again for writing, and Happy New Year to you! :)
Julia
To which Jounda replied:
Thanks for the reply. I will check out auctionbytes - I've also been looking at godaddy as well. There's just so much out there - you know what I
mean?
Yes, 1st class takes less shipping time...I've found it's good to use for items under 12 oz. and feel free to use any or all of my email.
Happy New year and can't wait for the next newsletter.
Jounda
RE: DHL
Linda had written about DHL in the last newsletter, and I had asked how the boxing and pickup worked. Here is her reply. I will be writing more about at-home box pickup from the major carriers, as well as the stamping services such as Endicia, Stamps.com, etc., in future issues.
Hi Julia-
You can use any box and package the items the same as if you were sending it USPS, UPS, etc. Go online and a DHL account can be established. They will send out the paperwork, etc. I have a DHL nearby and at times I bring the package in there. Have your readers call DHL for more info. I love working with them - much better than UPS or Fed-Ex.
Linda
I then got another letter from Linda..thanks so much, Linda, for being on this for us! To wit:
I contacted DHL about shipping out of the US and they were extremely expensive. I have a package going to Canada and thought I could save the customer some money but it didn't work out so I am using USPS.
Keep up the newsletter. I love it!
Linda
Thanks, Linda! Thanks so much for the tip! - Julia
Happy New Year, again, to everyone, and thanks for reading!
Julia
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That's it for this issue. Until next time! - Julia
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Questions about My eBooks Ordering
You can certainly purchase from me directly, as can anyone. Most of my ebooks are now available via the website's bookstore at www.yardsalers.net/bookstore. Any others you have questions about, all you have to do is email me and let me know which ebook(s) you want, if you are a subscriber and thus eligible for the discount, and then PayPal me to my PayPal id at juliawilk@aol.com. I'll be tweaking and updating the ebooks page on my web site soon.
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YOUR FEEDBACK WANTED: What Else Do You Want to See in Yard Salers?
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I am always open to reader articles, so if you want to write about something relating to yard sale-ing and eBaying, just flag me down! I will of course give you credit, using your eBay ID, web site, or any other contact
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eBooks by Julia L. Wilkinson:
[All my ebooks are offered at 1/2 price from their regular prices to the subscribers of this newsletter. If interested in any of them, please email me at juliawilk@aol.com.]
- How to Spot Fakes: email me!
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Blogs, Blogs, and More Blogs
Check out My amazon.com Author Blog
Those of you who just can't get enough of my writing (are there any of you?) will be happy to know I now have a new blog on amazon.com. Amazon.com has created an "author blog" tool for authors to...well, blog. You'll see it if you bring up either of my books on the amazon site, but for good measure, it's at: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1593270550. (Scroll down to "amazonConnect").
My TypePad Blog, "Bidbits"
You can also check out my typepad blog, "bidbits": bidbits
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Do you have your copy of Julia's book, eBay Top 100 Simplified Tips & Tricks?
It's available on amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com. If you do want to order the book, I'd appreciate if you'd support Yard Salers and
eBayers by using my affiliate link below.
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100
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Copyright 2007 Julia L. Wilkinson
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Publisher, Julia Wilkinson, author of the award-winning "eBay Price Guide." and "What Sells on eBay for What"
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