Believe it or not, we’re heading into another holiday season. I can’t believe how quickly this year has gone by! Despite all the economic gloom and doom, 2009 has been a very busy year for me. Between the release of The eBay Marketing Bible, a wonderful trip to the Las Vegas Radio party, and the launch of The Web Sellers Circle – no wonder the time flew by….

In case you are caught up short and forgot this week is Thanksgiving – LOL – here’s a quick recap of the holiday selling season.
Important Dates:

Black Friday: November 27, the Friday after Thanksgiving, is traditionally the largest shopping day of the year.
Cyber Monday: November 30, the Monday after Thanksgiving, is the kick-off of the holiday online shopping season.
Shipping Deadlines: Here are the last days you can offer various shipping options and have domestic packages arrive by December 25.

• Wednesday, December 16 – USPS Parcel Post
• Thursday, December 17 – FedEx Ground and FedEx Home Delivery
• Monday, December 21 – FedEx Express Saver, USPS First Class Mail, and USPS Priority Mail
• Tuesday, December 22 – FedEx 2Day
• Wednesday, December 23 – FedEx Overnight, UPS Next Day Air, and USPS Express Mail

Good luck – I hope you are ready to rocket!

eBay Cross Promotions in Your Listings

eBay Recently started adding links to other sellers inside our listings. Hey eBay, I love you guys – but I feel like the listing page is mine, I paid for it! Its bad enough eBay drives traffic away from my completed listings – now on the active listings as well.  As you can tell, I’m falling on the no thanks side here. Fortunately for me, this is an optional service and you can turn the cross promotions off.  If you are like me you may wonder how to turn them off here’s a quick video.

A quick update on what is happening at the Web Sellers Circle

Congratulations to Karen Locker, Octobers blog winner. We helped Karen set up a new photo blog at:
http://www.mommysphotos.com/
check it out, her photographs are wonderful! 

More from the WSC…..
We’re just starting a new training course called: The Presenters Series. This series covers how to teach others, podcast and give webinars online. We’re looking at the whole package, from how to give effective PowerPoint presentations to what software and hardware you’ll need.

There’s a new guide online that takes you through opening an eBay Store in five minutes a day. We’re just about through the basic setup. Once we have the basics I’ll cover how to design your store with HTML and some of the basic techniques that you can use to maximize your brand. And, we are giving away a Free Blog set-up to one WSC member in December. Blogs are a great way to create an exta revenue stream from affiliate income.

We’d love to have you join us. Because we know that times are tough and everyone is feeling the pinch, we’ve decided as a holiday appreciation gift we’d offer a one year membership for only $125.00 (our normal yearly rate is $300.00) – of course you can still try our monthly rate of $27.95 – but at $125 for a year you can save yourself a bundle – and afford a cup of coffee every day – LOL.

Congratulations To Rob Payer, from the Garden Sprite Store on his upgrade!

We updated his header and added a holiday promo box – check out his new look at: thegardensprite.com – and be sure to sign up for his Ribbiting News.

If you need a an upgrade for your business, I’m accepting a few new clients in December. Please feel free to contact me.

QuickBooks Help is here!

$64.99 plus $3.00 shipping

Exactly what you need to know about setting up your
books. Done in easy to understand English.

Moderator Sheryl Schuff CPA explains what you need to know about business bookkeeping.

This set includes video demonstrations with high quality audio so you can easily follow along. Starting with CD 1 you will learn accounting basics. How to track income and expenses. What double entry bookkeeping is and how it works.

Learn what accounting system works for yourbusiness. Included is a glossary of important accounting and bookkeeping terms.

Listen to this presentation on the go! We have included MP3 versions for quick, easy transfer to a portable player. Once you have mastered the basics, watch the demonstration as Sheryl guides an online seller through QuickBooks for the first time.

1. The interview, what is important

2. Customize your chart of accounts

3. Set up inventory, vendors & customers

4. Set up taxable and non-taxable customers & items

5. Pay vendors, write checks

6. Correct mistakes easily

7. Journal entries

8. Write receipts, prepare invoices & receive payments

9. Make deposits & transfer money from one account to another

10. Run reports

With easy to use menus and clickable links you will easily find and review the information you need.

ADDED BONUS! 30 Days FREE Access to the Rapid Up & Running Support Forum.

You have private access to an exclusive support forum where you will receive quick, easy to understand answers to your small business record keeping concerns.

Plus, as part of this package you will receive these free goodies:

A) Start-up checklist

B) QuickBooks tips & techniques discussed during the demo

C) QuickBooks shortcuts cheat sheet

This powerful CD set will be one of the most useful tools you can purchase for your business.

We’re calling it the QuickBooks Rapid Up & Running Premium CD Set and you can find out more information here.

As we get closer to the end of the year those piles of papers need to get entered into a place where you can easily access them. You’ll need to pull out important information – not just for Uncle Sam – but for yourself.

I’m sure you want to know if all this hard work is resulting in a profit!

When we put the finishing touches on the lessons, Sheryl suggested a fantastic bonus for everyone who purchases – thirty days of follow up support. That means you’ll have a place to ask questions and receive answers quickly from a Certified Public Accountant with over 30 years experience helping small businesses like yours! By itself, this bonus could save you hundreds of dollars.

Order your copy today by clicking QuickBooks Rapid Up & Running Premium CD

Cost: $64.99 plus $3.00 shipping

Product Source Of The Month

Getting ready for 2010 means finding new products to sell and Tradeshows are the place to find suppliers. My last word this month is: find a tradeshow in your field and make sure you attend!
Here’s a link to a list of TradeShows:
http://directory.tradeshowweek.com/directory/index.asp

One Last Word

That’s it for now,

Cindy Shebley

eBay Certified Business Consultant
Author of The eBay Marketing Bible
www.websellerscircle.com

Hope you have a spook-tacular Halloween.

In this issue: Adding products to your  FaceBook page with a simple cut and paste from Netcarnation; 5 Must Have Google Tools; What’s New at the Web Sellers’ Circle – and more!

Last week was the earnings report time for many companies, Amazon and eBay included. The news was pretty good in light of our current economic climate. For me, a couple of items really stood out. They both highlight my feelings that selling fixed price, commodity type items is really starting to take hold, even on eBay. By that I mean more shoppers are forgoing their visits to the local store to purchase items online instead.

The first was eBay’s growth in fixed priced listings. The official statement reads:

“The Marketplaces business unit benefited from strong growth in its fixed-price format, the continuing success of its highest rated sellers, and acceleration in sold items. Excluding the impact of the stronger U.S. dollar, revenue growth in the Marketplaces business was 4% year over year.”

The other was Amazon’s growth in general – but of special interest was the third party seller’s growth and FBA  (Fulfillment by Amazon) continued growth.

Amazon’s net sales increased 28% to $5.45 billion in the third quarter.

About 31% of Amazon’s sales now come from third-party merchants who sell goods on the site

Items shipped on behalf of sellers who utilized Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) more than tripled from the prior year.

As if this news wasn’t good enough I read a survey this week about the online holiday sales forecast.  A survey done by Maketing Live found that More than 55% of US consumers plan to do their holiday shopping online in 2009.

I hope you have your holiday stock in hand – this Holiday could blow the lid off of previous years!

That said, let’s get down to business…….

Adding Your eBay Listings To Your FaceBookProfile Is Easy With Netcarnation

Here’s a simple cut and paste way to add a your product(s) to your FaceBook profile using Netcarnation.

And best of all it’s FREE! No fees, no hidden service charges. You can list up to ten items for free. If you decide you want more than ten, there’s a $10.00 a month service charge, which is very reasonable for this technology.

You may recall, in the last issue I talked about a similar service from Artfire. If you are confused about which service is best to use – ArtFire or Netcarnation – I did a post comparing them on my blog at http://www.websellerscircleblog.com

Five Must Have Google Tools for Online Sellers

Download the file to listen

We did a special presentation on the must have Google tools for online sellers.

They included:

1. Google Gmail
2. Ad Words/Ad Sense
3. Google Alerts
4. Webmaster Tools and Analytics
5. Google Local

If you are counting that really adds up to seven, but we clumped a couple together. If you’d like an overview of what these tools are and how they fit into your business we invite you to listen in on the Free Podcast – to download it click here.

Congratulations To Christine Skaley, Etsy Seller on her new blog!

Congrats go to: Christine owner of Pillow Throw Decor on her newly updated blog. She takes special orders and has a beautiful selection of pillows on Etsy. Just in time for holiday giving! Stop by and say hello, or comment on her latest blog posts.

If you need a blog for your business, please feel free to contact me for a quote.

QuickBooks Help is here!

$64.99 plus $3.00 shipping

Exactly what you need to know about setting up your
books. Done in easy to understand English.

Moderator Sheryl Schuff CPA explains what you need to know about business bookkeeping.

This set includes video demonstrations with high quality audio so you can easily follow along. Starting with CD 1 you will learn accounting basics. How to track income and expenses. What double entry bookkeeping is and how it works.

Learn what accounting system works for yourbusiness. Included is a glossary of important accounting and bookkeeping terms.

Listen to this presentation on the go! We have included MP3 versions for quick, easy transfer to a portable player. Once you have mastered the basics, watch the demonstration as Sheryl guides an online seller through QuickBooks for the first time.

1. The interview, what is important

2. Customize your chart of accounts

3. Set up inventory, vendors & customers

4. Set up taxable and non-taxable customers & items

5. Pay vendors, write checks

6. Correct mistakes easily

7. Journal entries

8. Write receipts, prepare invoices & receive payments

9. Make deposits & transfer money from one account to another

10. Run reports

With easy to use menus and clickable links you will easily find and review the information you need.

ADDED BONUS! 30 Days FREE Access to the Rapid Up & Running Support Forum.

You have private access to an exclusive support forum where you will receive quick, easy to understand answers to your small business record keeping concerns.

Plus, as part of this package you will receive these free goodies:

A) Start-up checklist

B) QuickBooks tips & techniques discussed during the demo

C) QuickBooks shortcuts cheat sheet

This powerful CD set will be one of the most useful tools you can purchase for your business.

We’re calling it the QuickBooks Rapid Up & Running Premium CD Set and you can find out more information here.

As we get closer to the end of the year those piles of papers need to get entered into a place where you can easily access them. You’ll need to pull out important information – not just for Uncle Sam – but for yourself.

I’m sure you want to know if all this hard work is resulting in a profit!

When we put the finishing touches on the lessons, Sheryl suggested a fantastic bonus for everyone who purchases – thirty days of follow up support. That means you’ll have a place to ask questions and receive answers quickly from a Certified Public Accountant with over 30 years experience helping small businesses like yours! By itself, this bonus could save you hundreds of dollars.

Order your copy today by clicking QuickBooks Rapid Up & Running Premium CD

Cost: $64.99 plus $3.00 shipping

A New Course For Education Specialists and Internet Trainers

The Web Sellers’ Circle is proud to host the new “Presenter Series.” Online education is a growing field. It is a new way to reach students, clients and promote your business. New technology makes it easy and inexpensive to reach more people. Webinars and Podcasts are becoming a common way to communicate and build a community.

However, most educators don’t know where to start, what tools work the best, and many other details.

This new course will cover a host of topics to help get online presenters off to a good start.

We’re going to cover:

• How to choose topics and guests
• How to define your audience – your purpose and theirs for hosting/attending the class
• How to determine your budget
• How to find the technology works best for your presentations
• How to podcast, including distribution and syndication
• How to do a teleconference, what software works for your needs
• How to present a webinar, what service to use and how to record it
• How to record the broadcast
• How to turn your presentation into a product

To kick the series off we have an exciting Master Mind Round Table conference call with industry experts: Janelle Elms, Marlene Gavens, Phaedra Stockstill, Sheryl Schuff, Dany Byrne, and myself Cindy Shebley. This is a FREE call and we invite you to join us on the line.

When: November 3, 2009

Time: 5:00 PM Pacific /8:00 PM Eastern

How To Register: go to this page

This series is part of membership to the Web Sellers’ Circle; if you’d like to take part in the whole course we invite you to join today.

What’s Happening At The Web Sellers’ Circle

• We’re giving away another Blog setup – join the WSC and be our newest winner!
• Vendio’s Crystal Wells took us on a tour of their newest researcher tool, I’m impressed – watch it here
• We just finished the 13 part series on getting started on eBay, now we’re showing sellers how to open an eBay Store – in five minutes a day
• Phaedrea Stockstill and Judy aka BluePennyLady are presenting a fantastic two part series on the Google Base/Product feeds that you don’t want to miss!
• Dany just announced she’s teaching a Book Publishing Class on Friday Nov. 6th – if you’ve wanted to publish a book she’ll point you in the right direction.

All this is happening at the Web Sellers’ Circle, plus an active forum too.

We would love to have you join us, we are offering a $1.00 for 21 days trial so you can see if we are a fit.

Product Source Of The Month

There are a couple of sites I suggest you check out. First a great article on makeuseof suggests several good sources for liquidation and auction inventory. You can find the article here:

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/4-sites-to-find-stores-going-out-of-business-and-buy-up-surplus-for-cheap-nb/

The next is a new Home & Garden portal called onecoast. If you have a business license you’ll find vendors here. And to make it even easier you can order directly through the OneCoast site.  One Coast has vendor catalogs, sales representative information, podcasts and more to help you build your retail business. I found an interesting niche idea when I thumbed through the site the other day. I’m seriously considering starting a new eBay business; and once it is up and running, selling it off to the highest bidder – LOL

One Last Word

Good Until Nov. 3rd so go now!

That’s it for now,

Cindy Shebley

eBay Certified Business Consultant
Author of The eBay Marketing Bible
www.websellerscircle.com

In this issue:

In this issue: Adding  products to your blog, website or FaceBook page with a simple cut and paste, eBay Blogs going away, product source of the month, five must have Google tools and more!

Adding A Simple Cut & Paste Shopping Cart To Your Blog Using ArtFire

Here’s a simple cut and paste way to add a shopping cart for your product(s) to your blog, website or FaceBook profile using ArtFire.
And best of all it’s FREE! No fees, not secret service charges. You can list up to ten items for free. If you decide you want more there’s a $12.00 a month service charge, which is very reasonable for shopping cart technology.
There are limits however, it’s a site specifically for handmade, craft, antique & vintage items and crafts.
However, handcrafted doesn’t mean just artsy stuff. According to ArtFire Policy my CD/DVDs are allowed.

 Check out their policy page and if you qualify let me show you how to use their service.
https://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Terms_Of_Use

 

eBay Announces Their Discontinuing Blogs

As of October 31, 2009 no more eBay Blogs

I know a lot of community members were heartbroken to hear their blogs are going away. In an announcement from eBay’s Russ Peterson the eBay blogs never gained enough traction to continue supporting the service.

As far as I know the only way you’ll be able to carry the information from eBay to a new blog is to cut and paste it into a notepad and then copy it into a new blog.

I don’t have any time saving techniques to offer – but if you’d like a professional looking eBay seller blog, branded to match your eBay store please contact me for a quote.

Bling My Bra EBay Breast Cancer Charity Auctions Are About To Start!

Beginning Sept. 24, 2009 the Online Sellers Group will be running an eBay auction per day of “Fantasy Bras”. Creative confections with themes that are funny, beautiful and inventive created by artists and crafts people celebrating the military, their favorite hobbies (offroading) and car racing, flowers and dozens of other themes. (pictures available upon request) Some notable eBay and internet celebrities are joining the action by donating Fantasy Bras including the original motivator, John “ColderIce” Lawson of 3rdPowerOutlet and the ColderIce Blog, and Marsha Collier, author of the eBay for Dummies series of books, Santa Shops at Ebay. Marsha is an eBay PowerSeller as well as the Co-host of Computer Technology on wsradio.com at http://www.marcandmarsha.com

All proceeds – 100% of the sale price of these auctions will go to Susan G. Komen For the Cure – Headquarters – Certified for eBay Giving Works since 2003. MissionFish nonprofit ID 939 through Giving Works. Special thanks goes to eBay seller VMKinnovation – who is donating a special DoLife hat that will be included in each auction. The DoLife symbol celebrates Life and offers hope.

Please join us starting on the evening of September 24th when the first auction will launch at the Depression Glass Warehouse

Congratulations To Edith Russo who The eBay Marketing Bible for entering her photo in the eBay Photo Contest

Congrats go to: Edith Russo who wins the eBay Marketing Bible. Thanks for everyone who posted a photo. The contest is over but that shouldn’t stop you from posting on the CloverCity page – I’d love to see your eBay event photos!

Here is Edith’s story: “I had attended eBay University 2006 in Seattle with Janelle teaching. I decided afterwards that I’d like to sell on eBay seriously, so I convinced my husband to go with me to Vegas to eBay Live. We rented a house and when we arrived, there was this long-haired cat laying outside, in 100+ degree weather. I knew right then and there, we were going to bring her back (she was obviously abandoned). It took about 2 days for my husband to come to that conclusion. EBay brought Binky into our lives!”

Please keep visiting the page for more contests, polls, discussions and more. And feel free to continue adding your photo and blurb on the CloverCity Fan page

QuickBooks Help is here!

$64.99 plus $3.00 shipping

Exactly what you need to know about setting up your
books. Done in easy to understand English. Moderator Sheryl Schuff CPA explains what you need to know about business bookkeeping.
This set includes video demonstrations with high quality audio so you can easily follow along. Starting with CD 1 you will learn accounting basics. How
to track income and expenses. What double entry bookkeeping is and how it works.

 Learn what accounting system works for yourbusiness. Included is a glossary of important accounting and bookkeeping terms.
Listen to this presentation on the go! We have included MP3 versions for quick, easy transfer to a portable player. Once you have mastered the basics,
watch the demonstration as Sheryl guides an online seller through QuickBooks for the first time.

1. The interview, what is important

2. Customize your chart of accounts

3. Set up inventory, vendors & customers

4. Set up taxable and non-taxable customers & items

5. Pay vendors, write checks

6. Correct mistakes easily

7. Journal entries

8. Write receipts, prepare invoices & receive payments

9. Make deposits & transfer money from one account to another

10. Run reports
With easy to use menus and clickable links you will easily find and review the
information you need.

ADDED BONUS! 30 Days FREE Access to the Rapid Up & Running Support Forum. You
have private access to an exclusive support forum where you will receive quick,
easy to understand answers to your small business record keeping concerns.

Plus, as part of this package you will receive these free goodies:

A) Start-up checklist

B) QuickBooks tips & techniques discussed during the demo

C) QuickBooks shortcuts cheat sheet

This powerful CD set will be one of the most useful tools you can purchase for
your business.

We’re calling it the QuickBooks Rapid Up & Running Premium CD Set and you can find out more information here.

As we get closer to the end of the year those piles of papers need to get entered into a place where you can easily access them. You’ll need to pull out important information – not just for Uncle Sam – but for yourself.

I’m sure you want to know if all this hard work is resulting in a profit!

When we put the finishing touches on the lessons, Sheryl suggested a fantastic bonus for everyone who purchases – thirty days of follow up support. That means you’ll have a place to ask questions and receive answers quickly from a Certified Public Accountant with over 30 years experience helping small businesses like yours!

Order your copy today by clicking QuickBooks Rapid Up & Running Premium CD

Cost: $64.99 plus $3.00 shipping

A Shout Out To Jan at Gosinta – who’s been working hard to get her store ready for the holiday season!

Jan has been working very hard at filling her store up with inventory, updating her newsletter offer and upgrading her landing page – you can check it out at:  http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Gosinta__W0QQ_armrsZ1. Give Jan a big round of applause!

What’s Happening At The Web Sellers’ Circle

• We’re starting a new ‘Selling On eBay” series this week – If you’ve been wondering about selling on eBay here’s your chance to see how.
• Our Affiliate Website winner this month was Deb B – we’ll show you the finished results next time!
• We’re starting a new series called “The Presenters Series” which will cover the who, what, how and why of using today’s technology to teach others, sell or produce products and build a tribe of followers. If you are an Education Specialist or Product developer you are going to want to learn this information! I hope you’ll join us at the Web Sellers’s Circle.

We would love to have you join us, we are offering a $1.00 for 21 days trial so you can see if we are a fit.

Product Source Of The Month

People are spending more time at home these days and spending less on eating out and travel. That’s terrible news for restaurants and travel agents – but  can mean great news for retailers.

As we cook and entertain at home consumers will be looking for the tools and foods to help them lead an healthy lifestyle, entertain with confidence, and enjoy life around the hearth.

The Gourmet Retailer now has a FREE product sourcing tool at: www.trgshowcase.com

If you are looking for cooking and kitchen products this is the place to check out.

I took a quick peak, and found the Zojirushi Rice Cooker with contact infomation for wholesale orders.  Rice cookers are hot and this brand is rockin! A check on my research tool shows that the Average Selling Price is $145.22 with a Sell-through rate of 84%.

One Last Word

Join us for a live call using FaceBook! My friend Janelle Elms told me about this new service on FaceBook called “Califlower’ for free conference calls. Dany & I are going to test it out. Not sure how it’ll work – this is a test call – but if all goes smoothly we’d like to invite you to a FREE 1/2 class on the Five MUST HAVE Google Tools for Online Sellers.

We’ll take questions at the end of the call – so stay tuned.

When: Friday, 1:00 pm (Pacific) 4:00 Eastern

To register for the call  go to: http://bit.ly/5gyCB

That’s it for now,

Cindy Shebley

eBay Certified Business Consultant

eBay Marketing Bible

www.websellerscircle.com

In this issue:

In this issue: Get your eBay items to show up on your blog automatically, in less that five minutes! Considering new inventory for the holidays? Put it to the test with these five points. Charity Bra auctions and more!

As the rain falls today I’m reminded summer is over and fall is on the way…. where did the summer go? I hope you had a chance to spend a little leisure time with a loved one this past season. Now it’s time to turn our thoughts to the holiday selling season. This one has to be better than last years!

Getting Your eBay Items Into Your Blog In A Few Easy Steps

Building your online reputation is important. Using a blog to build relationships and find customers is an excellent idea.

The problem is how do you let your blog readers know about the great products in your eBay store? Or, how do you get them to click over?

One easy way to do that is by using an RSS feed. Don’t worry, just like the name suggests, it is really simple.

In this video I’ll show you how to find your eBay store RSS feed and use Feed2JS to create a simple cut and paste code for your blog. You’ll have it done in less than five minutes.

Here is the link to Feed2JS to get started: http://feed2js.org/index.php?s=build

BonanzleBatch Editor – The Best Tool With Possibly the Worst Name!

If you haven’t tried Bonanzle yet – here’s how simple it is to move your eBay inventory onto Bonanzle -it takes about 5 mouse clicks.

We had Phaedra Perkins Stockstill teach us how to use the Batch Editor – and I’m amazed how many things you can do with it and HOW EASY IT IS TO USE!

When I saw Phaedra’s demonstration, I couldn’t believe my eyes. This isn’t the kind of batch editing I expected. It’s visual, easy to use and includes a very simple, convenient ‘find and replace.’

Whether you are moving listings from eBay, cleaning up your Google Connector Information, or just managing your Bonanzle Booth – this tutorial will save you time, save wasted effort, and even increase your profits.

The Bonanzle Staff understands what sellers need. They made every effort to make this tool shine.

Once you start using it, you won’t be able to manage your booth without it.

Don’t miss the class. Buy the CD!

Thinking of trying a new product line this season?

Put it through these five points and see how it fairs before adding it to your inventory.

1) Supplier Power: How easy will it be for your supplier to drive prices up once you’ve agreed to sell their items? One key factor to this is how unique the product is and how many other suppliers carry the same item. If it is available through others – you have more power to choose – if they are the only supplier, they have more control over the wholesale price and who they discount to. (If you are a small retailer, chances are you won’t get the best deal).

2) Buyer Power: How easy will it be for the end buyer to drive the prices down? If the item is a strong brand name – with brand loyalty – chances are the price will remain high. But, if it is a product that can be easily imported without the designer tag, customers may quickly choose the less expensive no name brand. If you find the product falling into this trap – be careful not to over order.

3) Competitive Rivalry: Can you get an exclusive deal to be the only supplier of the product on eBay or Amazon? If not, you may find you have many competitors. If the competition offers the same product at a slightly lower price the buyer may choose to purchase from them. If you can’t control the turf you’ll have very little power!

4) Threat of Substitution: If substitution is easy and viable for the customer then your power is weakened. Let’s say you find a state of the art leaf blower that cleans leaves better than they ever have before. People may feel pinched by the recession and decide they can keep their old leaf blower or even use a rake and get a little exercise instead. Understanding how people may substitute your product can keep you grounded when pre-ordering the item for resale.

5) Threat of New Entry: Power is also affected by the ability of other people or suppliers entering the market. If it costs little money or time to enter the market and compete effectively new competitors will quickly join in. Especially if they see you are successful. Let’s say you discover you have a talent for creating luggage tags and and sales are skyrocking because they’re perfect for stocking stuffers. The cost of entry was a little talent, a few scraps of paper and a laminating machine. It won’t be long before you’ll have a competitive market and pricing will spiral down.

By thinking through how each point affects the item you are about to purchase for resale you can quickly assess the strength of the items retail position and your ability to make a sustained profit.

This post was modified by me from Porters Five Point Analyses. If you’d like to dig deeper and understand more about how they affect your business – here’s a great post:

http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_08.htm

Bling My Bra EBay Breast Cancer Charity Auctions Are About To Start!

Beginning Sept. 24, 2009 the Online Sellers Group will be running an eBay auction per day of “Fantasy Bras”. Creative confections with themes that are funny, beautiful and inventive created by artists and crafts people celebrating the military, their favorite hobbies (offroading) and car racing, flowers and dozens of other themes. (pictures available upon request) Some notable eBay and internet celebrities are joining the action by donating Fantasy Bras including the original motivator, John “ColderIce” Lawson of 3rdPowerOutlet and the ColderIce Blog, and Marsha Collier, author of the eBay for Dummies series of books, Santa Shops at Ebay. Marsha is an eBay PowerSeller as well as the Co-host of Computer Technology on wsradio.com at http://www.marcandmarsha.com

All proceeds – 100% of the sale price of these auctions will go to Susan G. Komen For the Cure – Headquarters – Certified for eBay Giving Works since 2003. MissionFish nonprofit ID 939 through Giving Works. Special thanks goes to eBay seller VMKinnovation  – who is donating a special DoLife hat that will be included in each auction. The DoLife symbol celebrates Life and offers hope.

Please join us starting on the evening of September 24th when the first auction will launch at the Depression Glass Warehouse

Share Your eBay Stories For Your Chance To Win A Copy Of The eBay Marketing Bible

One thing that was mentioned at the eBay dinner was the demise of eBay Live. It made us all kind of sad… and got me to thinking.

It would be fun to reminisce a little about past eBay events, both official and unofficial.

So, let’s share our favorite photos and stories.

Here’s the deal:Post your favorite photo on the CloverCity FaceBook page, along with a quick blurb about why it was your favorite photo or event.

Was eBay Live your first chance to learn about the education program? Or was it your first chance to meet eBetsy, Griff, Meg, John, Janelle Elms, your true love or_____ face to face? Was the ‘eBay University’ coming to town the turning point in your career? Or was the eBay Radio Party the best party in Las Vegas? Was eBay Live the first shin-dig you ever attended with an ice sculpture or flowing chocolate fountain – or was it the music from ‘Mr. Lister’ never leaving your head – let us know your favorite story and share your photo.

Add your photo and blurb on the CloverCity Fan page – the photo/story with voted with the most ‘thumbs up’ votes by September 30th -wins the book, the eBay Marketing Bible.. (*photos must be taken by you – you may submit as many photos/stories as you wish)

Go NOW and look for those favorite eBay photos! Post them ASAP.

QuickBooks Help is here!

Are you like me – received the free copy of QuickBooks this year, and left it on the shelf unopened?

I couldn’t bring myself to open it up and struggle through the process of setting up the books – and the thought of learning one more thing seemed like too much.

Bookkeeping has always been one of those spots in my business where I just feel overwhelmed before I start.

And judging from the questions and comments I receive from my students and colleagues, I know I’m not alone.

So, I set out to find help – and I was fortunate to meet Sheryl Schuff, CPA.

We talked, we planned, we plotted and worked all summer to produce a product that I know will help eBay & Online sellers who struggle with the complex issues relating to keeping the books for their taxes.

We’re calling it the QuickBooks Rapid Up & Running Premium CD Set and you can find out more information here.

As we get closer to the end of the year those piles of papers need to get entered into a place where you can easily access them. You’ll need to pull out important information – not just for Uncle Sam – but for yourself.

I’m sure you want to know if all this hard work is resulting in a profit!

I’m amazed at Sheryl’s generosity – when we put the finishing touches on the lessons, Sheryl suggested a fantastic bonus for everyone who purchases – thirty days of follow up support. That means you’ll have a place to ask questions and receive answers quickly from a Certified Public Accountant with over 30 years experience helping small businesses like yours!

Order your copy today by clicking  QuickBooks Rapid Up & Running Premium CD

Grab your copy now (it’s tax deductible).

Congratulations To Darlene at lovetorv.com!

Darlene has been working very hard at filling her new blog @ http://www.lovetorv.com with solid information about the RV life and with daily posts about her travels as an eBay seller.  She just received word that she has been accepted into the eBay Partner Network!

The EPN has been especially picky about who they let into the network.

So, if you are wondering what it takes I recommend you check out her blog.

What’s Happening At The Web Sellers’ Circle

• Sheryl Shuff CPA continues to guide us through QuickBooks
• We’re starting a new ‘Selling On eBay” series next week – If you’ve been wondering,  here’s your chance to see how.
• We’re preparing for our second affiliate web site give away – join now, deadline for entry is Sept. 22nd
• The forums are lively – we’ve had a suggestion to start a series on webinars and go-to-meeting for education specialists – we think that’s a great idea and will start rolling out the videos and classes soon.

We just received this wonderful testimonial:

“Excellent Information and Very Timely

Any time I have a question, I can always find the answers here at WSC. As I am building my new adventure, the information I need is always here. I browsed all the affiliate programs you have listed here, and it saved me a large chunk of time versus google. I expect to make a decision soon and move forward. Thank you for consistently providing the information, tips, and tools needed to build our businesses. Phaedra Stockstill ”

We would love to have you join us, we are offering a $1.00 for 21 days trial so you can see if we are a fit.

One Last Word

Don’t forget to join me on FaceBook and show us your favorite eBay photos and share your stories for a chance to win a free copy of the eBay Marketing Bible.

That’s it for now,

Cindy Shebley

eBay Certified Business Consultant

author eBay Marketing Bible

www.websellerscircle.com

Happy Chocolate Day to everyone! Sunday, Sept 13th is National Chocolate Day. I have to say this could easily turn out to be one of my favorite holidays!
In this issue:

In this issue: How eBay & Amazon spend their advertising budget, FaceBook Fan pages and advertising, getting your products noticed by using Amazon Listmania, what are buyers going to spend money on this holiday season, QucikBooks help is here and more.

The Two Big Ecommerce Companies – How They Spend Their Advertising Dollars
Amazon & eBay

This summer I had the chance to attend conferences and dinners and hear two takes on advertising from the two online retail giants. I found their focus on customer acquisition and advertising budget a real take away lesson.
One interesting question that was posed to John Donahoe of eBay was “why isn’t eBay buying more advertising in the mainstream media?” I thought Mr. Donahoe’s answer was very interesting. If you’d like to read the more about it, I wrote an article on it. You can find it in the public area on the Web Sellers Circle.

Have You Setup Your Company (Fan) Page On FaceBook?

If so, you may be wondering when the most effective times to reach your fans are.

A new study indicates that Tuesdays seem to be the best day to post specials, discounts and promotions about your product.
Content posted on Facebook-based brand pages has an average click-through rate (CTR) of 9.89% on Tuesday, the highest for any day of the week, according to data from social media services vendor Vitrue.

An interesting fact is that taking all days of the week into consideration the average click-through rate for Fan pages is 6.76%.  That’s much higher than average CTRs for display ads across social networks in general according to Vitrue.

If you haven’t set up a fan page for your business yet – that’s a compelling reason in itself.

With new applications being released to spruce up your page and promote your products now is the time to get to it.

Getting Your Products Noticed On Amazon With Listmania

On Amazon.com it can be difficult to get your unique product noticed by customers. The Amazon catalog is so massive that if your product isn’t highly ranked your item many never come up in search.

One way to get people to see you merchandise is the Amazon Listmania.

Here’s where users can create product lists around a subject or category. They can be subjects like “my favorite mysteries” or “ten things to take camping.” You can include any item in the Amazon catalog, including your own products. These lists are featured on related products on Amazon, in the user communities and are available for aStore and Amazon affiliates to use as links.

So by adding your product to a Listmania you can add additional promotions without spending any money.

That’s pretty sweet! In this video I show you how to set up an Amazon Listmania.

Bonanzle Batch Editor – The Best Tool With Possibly the Worst Name!

If you haven’t tried Bonanzle yet – here’s how simple it is to move your eBay inventory onto Bonanzle -it takes about 5 mouse clicks.
We had Phaedra Perkins Stockstill teach us how to use the Batch Editor – and I’m amazed how many things you can do with it and HOW EASY IT IS TO USE!
When I saw Phaedra’s demonstration, I couldn’t believe my eyes. This isn’t the kind of batch editing I expected. It’s visual, easy to use and includes a very simple, convenient ‘find and replace.’

Whether you are moving listings from eBay, cleaning up your Google Connector Information, or just managing your Bonanzle Booth – this tutorial will save you time, save wasted effort, and even increase your profits.

The Bonanzle Staff understands what sellers need. They made every effort to make this tool shine.

Once you start using it, you won’t be able to manage your booth without it.

Don’t miss the class. Buy the CD!

What are consumers going to spend money on this holiday season?

A recent TV interview with Pam Danziger of Unity Marketing spotlighted some sweet spots we can all look for as we go into the holidays.
The recession, which is considered to have bottomed out this time last year, has really changed what buyers are looking for.
According to Pam – consumers have changed their spending habits, and are now focusing on three key factors when considering a purchase.

• Quality
• Value
• Price

Consumers are looking more for “life enhancing products” and less at outwardly luxury items.
The first half of this year has seen buyers focusing on home purchases, with an eye on quality and value. Buyers are spending less on travel or fashion than they have in the past.
Here’s what consumers are looking for according to the Unity Marketing Study:

• Electronics and Photography Equipment
• Art and Antiques
• Furniture, Lamps and Floor Coverings
• Kitchen Appliances, Bathroom Equipment and Building Products
• Kitchenware, Cookware, Housewares
• Linens and Beddings
• Tabletop, Dinnerware, Stemware, Flatware

I did a quick search on the on eBay Pulse under home and garden found that it pretty much mirrors the findings:

1. furniture 
2.  anthropologie
3. john deere
4. pottery barn
5. light
6. bedding
7. wheel horse
8. rugs
9. ralph lauren
10. ikea

There are plenty of niche markets, that can be profitable. Check out eBay Pulse, do your Terapeak research, and then start looking for products.
A quick tip: If you have a business license, register for FREE access to this catalog of houseware suppliers.
HousewaresDirect provides links to the most up to date and comprehensive product information database in the industry. The dynamic search engine will help you find relevant products. Approved retailers will have access to wholesale pricing and have the ability to generate orders on-line directly with any of the suppliers.

http://www.housewaresdirect.com/

Share Your eBay Stories For Your Chance To Win A Copy Of The eBay Marketing Bible

One thing that was mentioned at the eBay dinner was the demise of eBay Live. It made us all kind of sad… and got me to thinking.
It would be fun to reminisce a little about past eBay events, both official and unofficial.
So, let’s share our favorite photos and stories.
Here’s the deal: Post your favorite photo on the CloverCity FaceBook page, along with a quick blurb about why it was your favorite photo or event.
Was eBay Live your first chance to learn about the education program? Or was it your first chance to meet eBetsy, Griff, Meg, John, Janelle Elms, your true love or_____ face to face? Was the ‘eBay University’ coming to town the turning point in your career? Or was the eBay Radio Party the best party in Las Vegas? Was eBay Live the first shin-dig you ever attended with an ice sculpture or flowing chocolate fountain – or was it the music from ‘Mr. Lister’ never leaving your head – let us know your favorite story and share your photo.

Add your photo and blurb on the CloverCity Fan page – the photo/story with voted  with the most ‘thumbs up’ votes by September 30th -wins the book, the eBay Marketing Bible.. (*photos must be taken by you – you may submit as many photos/stories as you wish)
Go NOW and look for those favorite eBay photos! Post them ASAP.

QuickBooks Help is here!

Are you like me – received the free copy of QuickBooks this year, and left it on the shelf unopened?
I couldn’t bring myself to open it up and struggle through the process of setting up the books – and the thought of learning one more thing seemed like too much.
Bookkeeping has always been one of those spots in my business where I just feel overwhelmed before I start.
And judging from the questions and comments I receive from my students and colleagues, I know I’m not alone.
So, I set out to find help – and I was fortunate to meet Sheryl Schuff, CPA.
We talked, we planned, we plotted and worked all summer to produce a product that I know will help eBay & Online sellers who struggle with the complex issues relating to keeping the books for their taxes.
We’re calling it the QuickBooks Rapid Up & Running Premium CD Set and you can find out more information here.
As we get closer to the end of the year those piles of papers need to get entered into a place where you can easily access them. You’ll need to pull out important information – not just for Uncle Sam – but for yourself.
I’m sure you want to know if all this hard work is resulting in a profit!
I’m amazed at Sheryl’s generosity – when we put the finishing touches on the lessons, Sheryl suggested a fantastic bonus for everyone who purchases – thirty days of follow up support. That means you’ll have a place to ask questions and receive answers quickly from a Certified Public Accountant with over 30 years experience helping small businesses like yours!
The CD’s are on the way to the presses and to celebrate we’re offering you a chance to be the first to own a copy – and get the QuickBooks help you need- plus receive $10.00 off!
If you order now we’re offering the QuickBooks Rapid Up & Running Premium CD for $10.00 off the regular price.
Grab your copy now (it’s tax deductible).

What’s Happening At The Web Sellers’ Circle

• Sheryl Shuff CPA continues to guide us through QuickBooks
• Phaedra Stockstill’s class about the Bonanzle Batch Editor is available
• We’re preparing for our second affiliate web site give away – join now, deadline for entry is Sept. 22nd
• The forums are lively – we’ve had a suggestion to start a series on webinars and go-to-meeting for education specialists – we think that’s a great idea and will start rolling out the videos and classes soon.

We just received this wonderful testimonial:

 
“Excellent Information and Very Timely

Any time I have a question, I can always find the answers here at WSC. As I am building my new adventure, the information I need is always here. I browsed all the affiliate programs you have listed here, and it saved me a large chunk of time versus google. I expect to make a decision soon and move forward. Thank you for consistently providing the information, tips, and tools needed to build our businesses. Phaedra Stockstill ”

We would love to have you join us, we are offering a $1.00 for 21 days trial so you can see if we are a fit.

One Last Word

Facebook

CloverCity

Promote Your Page Too

Don’t forget to join me on FaceBook and show us your favorite eBay photos and share your stories for a chance to win a free copy of the eBay Marketing Bible.
That’s it for now,
Cindy Shebley
eBay Certified Business Consultant
author eBay Marketing Bible
www.websellerscircle.com

In this issue: A dinner with eBay Brass? Bonanzle Batch Editor class on sale, news about the eBay Partner Network and a chance to win the eBay Marketing Bible.

John Donahoe & Jim Griff Griffith Come To Seattle

and buy us dinner!

This week I had the pleasure to join 10 other Seattle sellers for dinner with eBay CEO John Donahoe & eBay’s Griff for dinner.

We had a great time, the food was fantastic, we heard company stories – and best of all – had a chance to ‘bend John’s ear’ about our concerns and ask who, what and why.

John was very open about eBay’s direction, their new policies and even took notes back to San Jose.

We had a chance to hear about what’s coming down the road in 2010 too. And, I have to say – for the first time all year – I feel extremely positive about my future selling on the eBay platform.

One interesting question that was posed to John was “why isn’t eBay buying more advertising in the mainstream media?” I thought Mr. Donahoe’s answer was very interesting. If you’d like to read the more about it, I wrote an article on it. You can find it in the public area on the Web Sellers Circle.

They may come to your town in the near future – I urge you to attend. Griff posts upcoming dinners through FaceBook, it’s on a first come bases. If you’d like to attend I suggest you become a friend of Griffs on FaceBook.
——————————————————————————–

The New eBay Partner Network Quality Click Pricing
 

What’s Quality Click Pricing?

Until now, eBay Partner Network has paid for sales and leads. That meant if someone clicked on your link, but didn’t buy, you were not compensated. With Quality Click Pricing, eBay will now pay affiliates for every click sent to an eBay site instead of only clicks that make a sale.

This is eBay, so of course the new pricing structure is very, very confusing, it has to do with secret algorithms, quality of leads – determined by eBay – and the amount of traffic you bring to eBay as an advertiser. But, in the long run I believe that this change will be beneficial to smaller affiliate marketers. When I say ‘smaller’ – to give you an idea – those who make under a $1000.00 a month in eBay affiliate income. If you want to learn more, the EPN is hosting a Free Webinar on Sept and the recording for last weeks webinar is posted here.

The change will happen the first of October, 2009, for anyone who’s currently an affiliate. The eBay Partner Network just made their comparison tool available inside our seller dashboard. I checked my clicks verses income this weekend and am really pleased with the results. I looks like I’ll make about three times as much as I normally do. Can’t beat that!

For more information about joining the eBay Partner Network or about creating affiliate websites check out my informational CD: How To Make Money Using eBay Widgets
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Congratulations To New Jerusalem Gifts On Their Recent eBay Store Makeover!

I want to take a second and congratulate Web Sellers’ Circle Member Maureen Hager from New Jerusalem Gifts on her new store makeover.

Her store design and colors match her web store for cross platform branding. The navigation in her eBay store to her products is simple and quick. Customers want to find what their looking for fast – and Maureen has accomplished by putting her products front and center on her new store landing page.
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Bonanzle Batch Editor – The Best Tool With Possibly the Worst Name!

If you haven’t tried Bonanzle yet – here’s how simple it is to move your eBay inventory onto Bonanzle -it takes about 5 mouse clicks.

Want to see the move in action? Click here to watch the Bonanzle import tool video

Once you have the items imported to Bonanzle you probably want to take out a few words, change the formatting – put the items on ‘reserve status’ if you are temporarily sold out or add Google attributes for SEO. They can all be done -just a easily – by using the Bonanzle Batch editor.

We had Phaedra Perkins Stockstill teach us how to use the Batch Editor – and I’m amazed how many things you can do with it and HOW EASY IT IS TO USE!

Only $19.99

This is a Pre-Order Special! Good Only Until Sept 3rd, after which the price will return to the full price of 24.99, so get your copy now.

I know what you’re thinking when you hear batch editor: it’s going to be mess: hard to use, boring to learn and why would I want to go through all this trouble anyway?

Let me tell you a story. When I moved my inventory onto Bonanzle from eBay it took about three mouse clicks to bring over – it was soooo simple! Once my booth was populated with the same listings as eBay, I started getting emails from my fellow Bonazlers. They gently pointed out how often I mentioned eBay, or used eBay specific terms like ‘PowerSeller’ or ‘Auction.’ Fixing all my listings seemed like so much work that I took them down instead. Any of you who are used to eBay understand how much work it would have been to go item by item to change the same word over and over again.

If I had known about the Bonanzle Batch Editor, I could have changed those listings in a snap and would have been making money months sooner.

When I saw Phaedra’s demonstration, I couldn’t believe my eyes. This isn’t the kind of batch editing I expected. It’s visual, easy to use and includes a very simple, convenient ‘find and replace.’

Whether you are moving listings from eBay, cleaning up your Google Connector Information, or just managing your Bonanzle Booth – this tutorial will save you time, save wasted effort, and even increase your profits.

The Bonanzle Staff understands what sellers need. They made every effort to make this tool shine.

Once you start using it, you won’t be able to manage your booth without it.

Don’t miss the class. Buy the CD!
 
——————————————————————————–

Share Your eBay Stories For Your Chance To Win A Copy Of The eBay Marketing Bible
 

One thing that was mentioned at the eBay dinner was the demise of eBay Live. It made us all kind of sad… and got me to thinking.

It would be fun to reminisce a little about past eBay events, both official and unofficial.

So, let’s share our favorite photos and stories.

Here’s the deal: Post your favorite photo on the CloverCity FaceBook page, along with a quick blurb about why it was your favorite photo or event.

Was eBay Live your first chance to learn about the education program? Or was it your first chance to meet eBetsy, Griff, Meg, John, Janelle Elms, your true love or_____ face to face? Was the ‘eBay University’ coming to town the turning point in your career? Or was the eBay Radio Party the best party in Las Vegas? Was eBay Live the first shin-dig you ever attended with an ice sculpture or flowing chocolate fountain – or was it the music from ‘Mr. Lister’ never leaving your head – let us know your favorite story and share your photo.

Add your photo and blurb on the CloverCity Fan page – the photo/story with voted  with the most ‘thumbs up’ votes by September 30th -wins the book. (*photos must be taken by you – you may submit as many photos/stories as you wish)

Go NOW and look for those favorite eBay photos! Post them ASAP.

 ——————————————————————————–

Looking to fill in your inventory gaps this fall?

Here’s a directory of vendors – just waiting for sellers. Country business magazine has a list of all their advertising sponsors all in one searchable database.

http://www.country-business.com/giftindustry/directory/default.aspx
——————————————————————————–

What’s Happening At The Web Sellers’ Circle

Sheryl Shuff CPA continues to guide us through QuickBooks

Phaedra Stockstill’s class about the Bonanzle Batch Editor is available

Our first Affiliate website winner has built her web site – and step by step video instructions are being posted.

The forums are lively – subjects include Affiliate marketing, Bonanzle, Bookkeeping, Camtasia and more!

We just received this wonderful testimonial:

Just wanted to say that I think Web Sellers Circle is awesome. I think its well organized USEFUL information that is all in one place, for small to medium online retailers. Some of the info on your site can be quite costly if purchased otherwise. I know that you guys have just started and I look forward to its growth and keeping us informed, continuously educated and connected. Many thanks to you & Dany.”

Karen Wasserman
http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Fairy-Princess-Costume-Wings-Tutus__W0QQ_armrsZ1

We’d love to have you join us. Remember we’re offering a $1.00 – twenty one day trial. Please check it out.
——————————————————————————–

One Last Word

Facebook

CloverCity

Promote Your Page Too
 

Don’t forget to join me on FaceBook and show us your favorite eBay photos and share your stories for a chance to win a free copy of the eBay Marketing Bible.
——————————————————————————–

That’s it for now,

Cindy Shebley
eBay Certified Business Consultant
author eBay Marketing Bible
www.websellerscircle.com
——————————————————————————–