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So you have been considering
venturing into the online auction world. Many people think
about doing just that, only to never take the steps needed
to actually fulfill their dream. They start to look at the
steps that must be taken and often become overwhelmed.
Hopefully, we can eliminate that fear.
There is no doubt about it! Auctions are hot and thousands
of people are generating enough profit operating a
home-based auction business that they don't have the time
for a real 9 - 5 job. eBay alone claims that there are
almost 750,000 people making a full-time living selling on
their site.
It doesn't take a lot of expertise to be an auction
seller, but you need to do your homework so you don't end
up with a lot of unsold merchandise.
And for the 90+% of our readers that have only heard about
eBay, you're in for a big surprise. There are hundreds of
online auction sites available to you, many of which are
as good as, if not better, than eBay.
eBay might be the King of Online Auctions but they
have been facing a lot of stiff competition at the same
time they have been alienating a lot of existing sellers.
Some speculate that eBay has just gotten too big.
Increased fees, complaints (a recent search of eBay
complaints on Google returned over 5,000,000
listings), not to mention that when you place an item up
for sale it can get lost among the massive number of items
at eBay.com. The fact is that buyers will find it harder
to find your product unless you are well versed on using
keywords and keyphrases so that your offers show up in a
users search.
We are not suggesting that you avoid using eBay. But we
are suggesting that you not place all your eggs in one
basket, so to speak. Offer your items on at least 5-6
auction sites and you are more likely to reap better
results.
What You Need To Begin Selling On Online Auctions
Product To Sell
Ideally you want items that can be purchased in small
quantities at a low price that will turn over a good
profit. There are a lot of wholesalers that can supply
product in bulk. But before you buy have a good idea of
what these items sell for at online auctions. You can't
use product that forces you to set your pricing higher
than your competitors. Here is a short list of some good
wholesalers:
123DropShip at http://www.123dropship.com/index.htm
Andale Suppliers at http://www.andale.com/index.html
AuctionSection at http://www.auctionsection.com/
Bargain West at http://www.bargainwest.com/
Catskill Gifts Wholesale at http://www.catskillgifts.com/indexa/index.html
CZF Wholesale at http://czfwholesale.com/
Doba at http://www.doba.com/
DollarDays International at http://www.dollardays.com/
Drop Ship Source Directory at http://drop-shippers.us/
ezGoo! Business Resources at http://www.ezgoo.com/
FTH Wholesale at http://www.fthwholesale.com/
Global Sources at http://www.globalsources.com/
GoldenMine at http://www.goldenmine.com/
goWholesale at http://www.gowholesale.com/
High Margin Products at http://www.highmarginproducts.com/
Idropshipper at http://www.idropshipper.com/index.shtml
Liquidity Services at http://www.liquidation.com/index.html
MBK Wholesale at http://www.mbkwholesale.com/newmbk/home.aspx
PehnecGems at http://www.pehnec.com/
Reseller's Wholesale Outlet at http://www.resellerswholesale.com/
Roden Surplus Imports at http://www.rodenimports.com/
SaleHoo Limited at http://www.salehoo.com/
The Wholesale Suppliers Registry at http://www.wholesale-suppliers.net/
Vendio Services at http://www.vendio.com/my/wholesale/index.html
Vista Wholesale at http://vistawholesale.zoovy.com/
WholesaleDiscs at http://www.wholesalediscs.com/index.asp
Wholesalers Catalog at http://www.wholesalerscatalog.com/index.php
Worldwide Brands at http://www.worldwidebrands.com/
Auction Templates
You will need a professional looking auction template
so customers will find your offers appealing. Most are
very easy to add photos and text to so you should not be
intimidated trying to use them. Some auction templates can
be found free or for a low price. Some good sources for
templates are:
Auction Lizard at http://auction-lizard.com/
Auction Resources at http://www.auction-resources.com/templates.html
Auctiva at http://www.auctiva.com/
Alou Web Design at http://www.alouwebdesign.ca/software/650-ebay-templates/
AuctionWraps at http://www.auctionwraps.com/
FreeForm at http://www.robshelp.com/
MyEasyWebTools at http://myeasywebtools.com/index.html
Photos and Descriptions of Products
Quality photos and keyword intensive descriptions are
important to attract and keep potential buyers on your
auction pages. Poor quality photos are a quick turnoff to
buyers so make sure you display photos that present a
quality image of your product and company. Descriptions
should not be overly excessive as most buyers will not
take the time to read manuscripts. But they should be long
enough to provide a good impression and description of
your product. They should also contain as many quality and
relevant keywords as possible. After all, it is through
keywords that most buyers will find your auction pages.
Don't rush through this process. Do it right and you will
reap the rewards. There are a lot of offers on every
auction site and most of it is either poorly presented or
duplicates of other offers. Take the time to be unique and
use the right keywords and people will find your offer
before your competitors. Some web sites that can be
helpful resources in this area are:
AAANDS Image Hosting at http://www.aaands.com/imagehosting.htm
Auction Essentials at http://www.auctionessentials4u.com/
AuctionImage at http://www.auctionimage.com/
Auction Pix Image Hosting at http://www.auctionpix.com/
FotoHost at http://www.fotohost.com/index.html
FreePictureHosting at http://www.freepicturehosting.com/
frogmagix at http://www.inkfrog.com/
ImageHostPlus at http://imagehostplus.com/
myPhotoDrive at http://myphotodrive.com/
ProPicHosting at http://www.freepichosting.com/
Prosperpoint at http://www.imagehost.com/
ranchoweb at http://www.ranchoweb.com/
SSI Image Hosting at http://www.ssiimage.com/automated.htm
Trak Auctions at http://www.jwcinc.net/
Vendio Image Hosting at http://www.vendio.com/my/ihost/promo_ih.html
Village Photos at http://www.villagephotos.com/
Virtual Auction Ad Pro at http://www.auctionriches.com/vadpro.htm
YourImageHost at http://www.yourimagehost.com/
Customer Service Policy
Do your homework and research how established sellers
work with customers. If you start to get too many
complaints you're in real trouble. Potential buyers will
know about it in no time and it will not matter how unique
or well priced your product is...they simply won't buy.
You can find a list with links of eBay's Top 100 Sellers
at http://www.auction-resources.com/pc.html.
Check some of their sites to see their customer service
policies. You may also want to take a look at how they
promote money-back guarantees to their buyers.
Auction Feedback Tools
This is a must-have tool for an auction seller.
Feedback is extremely important to your success. Too much
negative feedback can put an end to your auction selling
business faster than anything else. Use one of the free
feedback tools available at:
FeedBackSite at http://www.feedbacksite.com/
Vrane at http://www.vrane.com/feedback.html
Auction Fraud Protection and Escrow Services
Make sure that you are protected. There are several
services available which offer fraud protection and escrow
services. These services are designed to protect both the
buyer and seller and should be considered a must for
high-value items or when either of the parties has doubts
as to the legitimacy of the other. Some of the better
services can be found at:
Bidfraud at http://www.bidfraud.com/
Ebayers That Suck at http://www.ebayersthatsuck.com/main/index.php
Internet Escrow Services at https://www.escrow.com/index.asp
National Consumers League at http://www.nclnet.org/shoppingonline/escrowtips.htm
National Fraud Information Center at http://www.fraud.org/
Auction Counters
A key tool for selling online is an auction counter.
It can quickly tell you how many people have visited your
pages and how many bids have been submitted.
Andale Counters at http://www.andale.com/
inkFrog at http://ww1.inkfrog.com/
Shoporium at http://www.shoporium.com/counters/
Auction Software
Auction software is also an important ingredient to
online success. There are several products available that
have a lot of different uses. Some will help you build
your complete auction pages with templates, photos and
descriptions without having any HTML knowledge (perfect
for beginners) while others are designed to monitor your
auctions and there are even others designed to snipe
various auction sites to keep you informed, and a few that
will automatically submit your auction listings to various
auction sites. Here is a list of sites that encompasses
all categories of auction software.
Aucmento at http://www.aucmento.com/
AuctionPro 2000 ezAd Creation Software at http://www.auctionrow.com/auction.html
Auctionspice at http://www.auctionspice.com/
AuctionStealer at http://www.auctionstealer.com/home.cfm
Auction Submit at http://www.auctionsubmit.com/index.html
AuctionTamer at http://www.auctiontamer.com/atindex.htm
Auctiva at http://www.auctiva.com/
Bidnapper at http://www.bidnapper.com/
Ernie's Enhanced Everyauction Software at http://www.everyauction.info/
eSnipe at http://www.esnipe.com/
GeoAuctions Premier at http://www.geodesicsolutions.com/products/auctions/auctions_premier.htm
HammerTap Software at http://www.hammertap.com/
iSale at http://www.equinux.com/us/products/isale/index.html
MAS at http://www.make-a-store.com/
PixMatrix at http://www.pixmatrix.com/
PowerSnipe Auction Sniper at http://www.powersnipe.com/
Shooting Star at http://www.foodogsoftware.com/
The Auction Software Review at http://www.auctionsoftwarereview.com/
The Poster Toaster at http://www.thepostertoaster.com/
ViewTracker at http://www.sellathon.com/
Merchant Account
You'll need a merchant account to process orders.
While many use PayPal we have found that the complaints
relating to PayPal have been drastically increasing over
the past few months. For that reason we cannot recommend
PayPal. There are well over 100 alternatives to PayPal so
you won't find it difficult to find a payment processor.
We still recommend that you have at least two options
available to process online orders. Some good choices are:
AlertPay at http://www.alertpay.com/
Auction Checkout at http://www.auctioncheckout.com/
Auctionpay at http://www.auctionpay.com/default.aspx
Authorize.Net at http://www.authorize.net/
CCNow at http://www.ccnow.com/
Paystone at http://www.paystone.com/
StormPay at http://www.stormpay.com/
Note: A complete list of over 100 payment processors can
be found at http://www.thebusinessjunction.com/Newsletter_Article_Marketing_Related_43.htm
Shipping Providers and Materials
You'll need packing materials and boxes for your
shipping needs. Try to avoid recycling old materials
unless they are in excellent condition. Remember, how you
present your product reflects on you. Use old shipping
materials and it does little for your image. It also might
not fair well while being shipped. You also have to ship
your product unless you are using the services of a
dropshipper so use a reputable carrier. For most needs
you'll find the United States Postal Service will suffice.
Here is a short list of companies that can fulfill your
shipping and handling needs.
Bubblefast at http://www.bubblefast.com/
Fast-Pack at http://www.fast-pack.com/
FedEx at http://www.fedex.com/us/
MrBoxOnline at http://www.mrboxonline.com/
United Parcel Service at http://www.ups.com/
United States Postal Service at http://www.usps.com/
Online Auction Sites
Get Ready To Sell Online. Once you have prepared your
products for presentation it is time to begin posting at
online auctions. You won't have a problem finding good
auction sites and our recommendation is that you post
offers on at least 5-6 sites, more if you have enough
product and time. Here is a detailed list of auction sites
and we recommend that you still check each out before
making a final decision.
Auction.com at http://www.auction.com/
Auction1 at http://www.auction1.co.uk/cgi-bin/auction/auction.pl
AuctionAddict at http://www.auctionaddict.net/
Auction Fire at http://auctionfire.com/
Auction Lotwatch at http://www.auctionlotwatch.co.uk/
AuctionGuide at http://www.auctionguide.com/
AuctionScape at http://www.auctionscape.com/
Auction-Warehouse at http://www.auction-warehouse.com/
Bid4Assets at http://www.bid4assets.com/
Bid-Alot at http://www.bid-alot.com/
BidChaser Marketplace at http://www.bidchaser.com/
Bidclever at http://www.bidclever.com/
Bidz at http://www.bidz.com/
blujay at http://www.blujay.com/
Buyit Auctions at http://www.buyit.co.uk/Auction/XcAuctionPro.asp
BuySellTrades at http://www.buyselltrades.com/auction/index.asp
CQout at http://www.cqout.com/
eBay at http://www.ebay.com/
eBid at http://www.ebid.net/
Ebidup at http://www.ebidup.com/
eHotBid at http://www.ehotbid.com/index.asp
ePier at http://www.epier.com/
FreeTrades at http://www.freetrades.com/
General Auction at http://www.generalauction.co.uk/
ItsGottaGo at http://www.itsgottago.com/
LowBidWin at https://www.lowbidwin.com/index.jsp
Mighty Bids at http://www.mightybids.com/index.cfm
OnlineAuction at http://www.onlineauction.com/
ORBAY at http://www.orbay.co.uk/
Quick Bargin at http://www.quickbargin.com/
QXL at http://www.qxl.com/
Shoporium at http://www.shoporium.com/
SkyAuction at http://www.skyauction.com/
StormPay Auctions at http://www.stormpay.com/
The Auction Man at http://www.theauctionman.net/cgi-bin/Auction
TotalBids Online Auctions at http://www.totalbids.co.uk/
TRADE IT OFF at http://www.tradeitoff.com/index.php
uBid at http://www.ubid.com/
Voovy Auctions at http://www.voovy.com/
WeBidz Auction Site at http://www.webidz.com/
Yahoo! Auctions at http://auctions.yahoo.com/
Your Auction Sale at http://www.yourauctionsale.com/
Auction Search Engines and Directories
These are a few of the better auction related search
engines and directories.
All Auction Tools at http://allauctiontools.com/
AuctionBytes at http://auctionbytes.com/
Auction Lynx at http://www.auction-lynx.com/
AuctionZip at http://www.auctionzip.com/
BidFind at http://www.bidfind.com/
BidHopper at http://bidhopper.com/
ReallyFirst at http://www.reallyfirst.com/Auction/a.php
The Internet Auction List at http://www.internetauctionlist.com/
Auction Forums
Auction forums are a great place to learn and share
ideas with other sellers. 'Tips and Tricks' of the trade
are the main topics and an occasional visit will certainly
do you no harm. Rule of thumb...don't spam! The following
is a list of the better auction forums available to
auction sellers.
AuctionBytes Forum at http://www.auctionbytes.com/forum/phpBB/index.php
AuctionHintsForum at http://www.auctionhints.com/message/webbbs_config.pl
BHD'S Auction Newsletter at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bhdsauctionnewsletter/
e-Powersellers at http://e-powersellers.com/forum/
GoodTopics at http://www.goodtopics.com/forums/auctions-marketplaces/
The Auction Board Online Auction Discussion Forum at http://theauctionboard.com/v-web/bulletin/bb/index.php
Miscellaneous Resources
You might find the following resources handy from time
to time to find more product to sell, more auction sites,
online help, etc.
Auction Help at http://www.ukauctionhelp.co.uk/index.php
DeadZoom at http://www.deadzoom.com/
Getestore at http://www.getestore.com/
Knubi at http://www.knubi.com/
Online Traders Web Alliance at http://www.otwa.com/index.html
PowerSellersUnite at http://www.powersellersunite.com/
The Auction Board at http://theauctionboard.com/
This article was originally published by The Business
Junction on April 24, 2006.
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