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Can dropshipping work for your online auction efforts?
There is much discussion throughout usenet, chatrooms and forums about drop shippers, and I have sat through many heated threads about the subject. Many will tell you that drop shipping is a scam, it don't work, you'll never make any money...But I know ...

Ebay Auction Buyer's Tips And Tricks.
eBay isn't just an auction and a marketplace: often it can feel quite a lot like a game. Like any game, you can get ahead if you think strategically, using your head to outwit the other buyers and get the best price. Here are a few things you can try. ...

On line auctions rule
The internet has now turned in to a global marketplace in which anyone, anywhere, can buy or sell practically anything. The many Companies have developed a web-based marketplace in which a community of buyers and sellers are brought together to browse, ...


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A Picture Paints a Thousand Words and Creates Auction Euphoria on eBay
 
Ever since I sold my first item on ebay I have been addicted to the site and I have steadily developed it as a supplementary source of income over the last two years. As I gained experience from listing items, I rapidly became aware that the inclusion of pictures in the listings was a major selling point as buyers could literally see what they were buying and as such create a greater interest and desire within them which in turn led to greater selling prices.

To sum it up in one sentence:

Pictures attract attention, help explain details and more importantly stimulates desire which leads to Auction Euphoria.

Auction Euphoria is that process whereby the desire to own an item is that great that all logic goes out the window and the buyer rebids to ensure that they win it, thus increasing the selling price.

This simple bit of knowledge has allowed me to push my final selling prices up on average between 10-30% and as such it amazes me that so many listings do not include one picture and just type out the details in one long line of text (usually all in capitals!). I am not complaining however because this fact alone has allowed my auctions to stand out and make the money.

I started off using eBays add additional photo service to include extra images in my listings which people could use as a reference point and I found out the following :

1. Always make sure that the image is clear and of the actual item for sale, otherwise what is the point of including it? You will find that poorly presented pictures suggest that the seller doesn't care and hence will devalue the potential selling price of the item which is of no use to anyone.

2. Never use a stock photograph of the item for sale, with the increase in fraudulant transactions (especially on the higher value items) this will serve to put the buyer off, again serving to devalue your final selling price. Taking a little extra time to get an actual photograpah shows yours buyers that you care and will endear them to you.

3. Where possible use a digital camera, these are very easily accessable nowadays and relatively cheap and they produce excellent images. A webcam can also be used but does give a grainier picture. Remember the cost of the digital camera can be offset by the gain in final selling prices.

4. Have good lighting on your


images, a poorly lit image may as well not be there. Where possible I take mine outside into the garden, put it onto a chair with white paper behind it and take advantage of the natural light. Its a few minutes work that pays dividends in the end in cold hard cash!

5. Never just use one image, always use at least two. I tend to use one image for every one of the details (or faults) that I mention in the listing. This illustrates what you are actually trying to describe and helps to prevent the dreaded negative feedback of 'the item wasn't as described'.

Using the above meant my auctions stood out and I was considered to be true to my word by my buyers so much so that I have multiple return buyers and the Auction Euphoria effect is evident on my auctions as there regularly go for higher prices than similar items listed on eBay.

As I developed my auctions I realised that using eBays additional picture service was COSTING ME a large proportion of my profit so I looked into other ways of getting my pictures on my listings. I also realised that the format of the listings was another major factor. I wanted to use the additional pictures to illustrate a detail or fault but it was no use having the picture at the bottom of the listing away from the description as per eBays standard approach.

So I did some research and learned that the answer to my problems was HTML to generate a template for my listings and allow me to pull my images into them without having to use eBays image service, sure it was still gonna cost me to host my own images but no where near what eBay was charging me. Using this has meant that my eBay Listing Fees have dropped by nearly 90%.

My buyers then started to ask me if they could use my templates and how they could include images on thier listings, advice which I always gave to them. I then decided to put this advice together on a few webpages so that they could use it as a reference and to upload some of the templates that I have used in the past so that anyone can use them for FREE.

I hope that these simple bits of advice help you to take advantage of Auction Euphoria, and really develop your profits from the amazing, and addictive, animal that is eBay auctions.
Visit ebay templates for FREE templates to use to develop your online business.

News



Sci-Tech Today

Disputed dinosaur fossil auctioned for $1M in NYC
BusinessWeek
By JENNIFER PELTZ A dinosaur dispute is brewing between the Mongolian government and an American auction house, which sold a fossil of a fearsome T. Rex relative despite a court order not to. The 8-foot-tall, 24-foot-long skeleton of a Tyannosaurus ...
Dinosaur Auction: Tyrannosaur Skeleton Fetches $1 Million Despite ObjectionsHuffington Post
Dinosaur Dustup: Auctioneer, Mongolia Battle Over $1M BonesABC News
Disputed Dinosaur Fossil AuctionedSci-Tech Today

all 279 news articles »

BBC News

Foundation objects to auction of purported vial of Reagan's blood
Reuters
By Alex Dobuzinskis | LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Ronald Reagan's foundation expressed outrage on Monday at a British company's auction of what it says is a vial of the late US president's blood taken at the hospital where he was treated after a 1981 ...
Outrage at plan to auction Ronald Reagan's bloodTVNZ
Ronald Reagan's Blood For Sale — Bid Now!ABC News (blog)
Row over 'Ronald Reagan blood' auctionBBC News

all 43 news articles »

New York Daily News

Babe Ruth jersey fetches a 'Ruthian' $4.4 million at auction
Chicago Sun-Times
By MIKE FITZPATRICK AP Sports Writer May 21, 2012 9:58AM This undated photo provided by SCP Auctions shows a circa 1920 New York Yankees baseball jersey worn by Babe Ruth that sold for more than $4.4 million at auction, Sunday, May 20, 2012.
Babe Ruth jersey sells for record $4.4 millionBusinessWeek
Outsize Figure, Even by Ruth's StandardsNew York Times
Babe Ruth jersey sells for record $4.4 million at auctionCNN (blog)
New York Daily News
all 418 news articles »

KGMI

Exclusive: US lets China bypass Wall Street for Treasury orders
Reuters
Those dealers then bid on their behalf at Treasury auctions. China, which holds $1.17 trillion in US Treasuries, still buys some Treasuries through primary dealers, but since June 2011, that route hasn't been necessary. The documents viewed by Reuters ...
Records Show China's Private Link to Treasury MarketsNew York Times
China gets VVIP treatment from USFinancial Times (blog)
Direct access to US Treasuries: A good deal for China?Morning Whistle
Democratic Underground
all 41 news articles »

VINTAGE: Auction-Star Ferrari 625 TRC
SPEEDtv.com
(Photo: Wouter Melissen) The star of the various auctions during last week's Monaco Historic Grand Prix was this Ferrari 625 TRC sold for just over 5 million euro ($6.5 million) by RM Auctions. It is one of just two 500 TRCs built in period with the ...