So, if you’re having a slow Summer sellers, now is the time to re-group. Let’s turn slow sales into awesome sales.
You need to take action to increase your Summer sales now.
Here we go!
If your online sales are terrific, good! Keep doing what you are doing.
But, if you are like many sellers, experiencing a slowdown in Summer sales, let’s get to work and turn your sales around.
#1 Mistake Sellers Make That Slows Summer Sales!
Check prices!
Check prices if your sales are slow!
Have you checked the price on your product? Have you looked at it with a Google search on the web and not just the site you sell on?
Yes folks may pay a bit more on Amazon if they are Amazon Prime, but if it’s $5 cheaper on eBay, shoppers may head over to eBay to buy the item. The reverse is also true. Shoppers look at eBay, Amazon, Walmart, Jet, Etsy and Poshmark and a whole host of websites with a few taps of their finger or click of their mouse. They are sites that find the cheapest price for products for shoppers. In hard to find collectibles where your item is unique you are less subject to this. As a collectible seller, for you it’s a matter of doing your price research using tools like Terapeak, #ad so you value your item correctly.
For more common items especially items with barcodes and MPN numbers, if your item is sitting and not selling, look at the price all over the web.
Often a price change of $1 can open the flood gates to more Summer sales! The internet is like the stock market. prices go up and down. When you listed your item the going price may have been XX and 2 weeks later it has dropped as other sellers have come onto the market. Big Commerce did a study on what shoppers look for. Over 80% of shoppers say price is very influential in their purchase selection.
#2 Mistake Sellers Make That Slows Summer Sales!
Check your keywords in your title!
Is the brand, color, size and important aspects of the item in your title?
Titles are more and more crucial to getting sales online. That is because so many shoppers are on mobile.
On a mobile device your customer is looking at your picture and title on eBay, Etsy, Amazon or Poshmark. Online shoppers make the majority of not all of their shopping decision solely from your title and picture(s). This YouTube will show you how to use eBay search to write titles for your listings that will help in both eBay and Google search.
I was working with a private client this past week. I reminded them to start to set up their social media for back to school. They remarked, “Really?” My response was, “Yes!” Back to school may not start where you are til late August or September, while other parts of the USA start in late July. Look to your products now and decide what you put front and center for people that are shopping for back to school now! With my free Ultimate Guide To Back To School Inventory list you’ll be ready to increase your Summer sales everywhere you sell! Click HERE for yours!
Check prices, check your keyword selection and get busy anticipating the next selling season and you’re on your way to more Summer sales everywhere you sell!
Let me know how these tips help you below.
As of June 1 eBay is turning off Active Content.What does that mean to sellers? First of all, let’s start at the beginning.
So, what is Active Content?
What is Active Content?
Techopedia explains it here. Therefore, it is is Java Script or Flash. In older style listings it was used for popular scrolling galleries, cross selling widgets and apps.
Years ago colorful listings with moving parts were considered desirable. That has changed with the modern emphasis on mobile shoppers.
So, to be “Mobile Optimized” or “Mobile Friendly” sellers need lean pared down listing to get sales.
Java script and Flash lead to listings loading slowly. This leads to frustrated shoppers, abandoned searches and shopping carts.
Active content hurts the mobile shopping experience.
Since eBay announced it’s intention to deactivate all Active Content, third party applications are working quickly. They are free of Java Script and Flash. HTML and CSS are fine to use but Java Script and Flash are not. Contact your third party service providers and ask about their products.
Let’s break it down. What should a successful eBay seller do?
eBay emailed sellers information on this topic several times in the past year.
Using the Isdntek testing tool, test a few of your products.
If you discover Active Content, as you have time remove it. It will be deactivated by eBay June 1. Deactivating the content does not remove it from your listing. It makes it inactive. The “dead” content should have no effect. It’s in your listing but it’s not doing anything. The dead content will not effect the loading time of listings.
Jim “The Griff” Griffith discusses this during this April 2017 Facebook Live for eBay For Business
Sellers come to almost daily and say, “Kathy my eBay item isn’t showing up well in search, what can I do?”
My answer is simple, “Let’s get to work”
#1 way to get better search results on eBay is write a great title.
Whether your shopper is on mobile or desktop, your eBay item’s title is one of the first thing your potential buyer sees. Your title is important to your buyer and important for good eBay and Google search results. Have you chosen the best keywords for your product? The best keywords clearly identify what you’re selling. The words that matter here are your brand. color, size, distinctive patterns and the like. Take a minute and look at your item. If you wanted to buy this item, what words would you be using in searching the internet to find it? Use those words. This video will show you how to use eBay search to quickly write eBay titles.
#2 way to improve your search results on eBay is fill in the item specifics.
Fill the item specifics in to the best of your ability. Fill in the MPNs, UPCs, brand, color, size , country of manufacture, leading role etc depending on the item you are selling and the category you are selling in. If you have the UPC for your item and you leave it blank or use the drop down menu does not apply, the seller that does fill in the UPC has given eBay search more structured data information than you. Is there a place to chose the color of your item? If yes, chose the best color, blue, pink etc. Again the seller that takes the time to fully fill in item specifics is giving more search data to eBay. Filling in the item specifics gives eBay and Google search vital information to help your item in search.
#3 way to improve your search results on eBay is take clear, crisp pictures.
Your customer cannot hold and touch the item you’re selling. Your pictures literally put your item in your customer’s hand. Show them every angle of your product. Include pictures of any flaws on the item. You do not need to buy expensive photography equipment to take clear pictures that are in focus. Most smartphones have great cameras. Pictures are important now for the shopping experience on eBay and will grow as an essential part of eBay search. eBay‘s CEO Devin Wenig spoke to this in a recent article for CNET. “We’re doing a lot of work on image recognition. Computers are getting really good at recognizing things. We’re not that far away from a future where you’ll just do this. [Wenig picks up his phone and acts out taking photos of a pen in front of him.] You’ll just take a picture of that and we’ll match it through AI to our catalogue, we’ll know exactly what that pen is. And we’ll say, do you wanna sell it? We can get you five bucks right now for that pen.” In short, pictures matter.
#4 way to improve in search is to use eBay’s paid search service Promoted Listings.
eBay offers it’s eBay store owners an effective way to promote qualifying listings through it’s paid Promoted Listings program. Through Promoted Listings sellers create Promoted Listing campaigns and chose the advertising rate they will pay eBay IF the product sells directly through Promoted Listings. A seller ONLY pays eBay the Promotion fee is the item sells from a click through Promoted Listings campaigns. Sellers do not pay for clicks with no sales. Nor do sellers pay for listing impressions. Many sellers note an increase in sales to the overall category in their eBay store that has Promoted Listings, and increased sales store wide. Promoted Listings can have the effect of increasing overall traffic to an eBay‘s sellers store. Currently Promoted Listings are only available to eBay store owners with multi quantity items. There is a Beta test going on for unique one of a kind items. To be considered for this Beta test go to Promoted Listings under the Marketing Tab in your eBay Seller Hub dashboard. You must apply to be considered. To apply go to Promoted Listings in Seller Hub. It’s under your Marketing tab
CLICK it . Find “Give us feedback”.
Give Us Feedback in Promoted Listings Dashboard
It’s all the way to right of the page in Promoted Listings. Click it. Say something like ” Hi I’d like to be in your beta test for one of a kind items.”
According to my eBay contact, ” from the time the seller sends us the request to be considered for the beta group, it may take up to a week to get added to beta. We will confirm via email once they are accepted. They can share this info with their friends/colleague. However, we cannot guarantee that everyone will be accepted.”
#5 way to improve in search is to research.
eBay is a competitive market place. When you first listed your item a month ago or a year ago the prevailing price may have been XXX but now its Z. You can wait and see if prices change, or you can change your listing for the current market and get the sale. eBay’s advanced search can give you short term sales data. For more in depth and detailed information professional sellers look to Terapeak.
Cleaning up your title and/or pictures can get your better search results on eBay. If an item qualifies using eBay‘s Promoted Listings is a great way to get a boost for your listings and your eBay store. Make sure to stay abreast of marketplace changes in prices with Terapeak.
Holiday shoppers are rushing into retail stores and jumping online to get the gifts they need right now!
Use my 3 hot Holiday sales tips to attract eager customers your way and score sales NOW!
Are you ready?
#1 Hot Holiday Sales Tip – Offer Free Or Paid Expedited Shipping!
Whether you’re selling on Amazon, Etsy, eBay and/or your own website, don’t miss out on crucial Holiday revenue by neglecting to offer expedited shipping.
Why not offer the upgrade in shipping service free for your higher price items and wow your customers?
For lower price items with a few simple clicks of the mouse you can include a paid shipping service upgrade for shoppers that want their items fast. Many sellers neglect to offer shipping upgrades and lose sales to other vendors. Snag extra Holiday sales by offering your shoppers a choice of shipping services. My video shows you how to quickly add shipping choices on eBay. The process is very similar on Etsy.
How To SCORE Sales NOW eBay sellers at NO extra cost to you.Learn how in under 5 minutes!Make sure to get my FREE VIP Insider Newsletter!—->http://bit.ly/21Z8CWM
Focus on the items you have chosen as your top Holiday gift items. Regularly check the price(s) of your item(s).
Check Prices On The Web!
Be sure and also monitor relevant prices on the worldwide web.
There are times when pricing a product $1 less can get you the shoppers you’re looking for. Don’t lose crucial Holiday shoppers because you’re not checking prices across multiple platforms on the web. Shoppers know how to use Google search to locate and buy from the seller offering the best value.
#3 Hot Holiday Sales Tip – Keep Sourcing And Listing Holiday Products!
Keep an eye on brick and mortar retail stores when you’re out and about.
Many Big Box retailers are slashing prices deeper and deeper as Christmas and Hanukkah approach.
Be alert to grab great inventory you can list quickly and score sales now and into 2017!
#4 BONUS Holiday Sales Tip – Maximize Your Facebook Business Page To Gain Shoppers!
Facebook continues to be a top resource for sellers who want to quickly and effectively promote their inventory. Don’t miss sales by not fully optimizing your Facebook Business page.
The Ultimate Guide To A Facebook Business Page For Sellers!
Offering shipping upgrades, monitoring prices all across the web and continuing to source hot inventory will get you the Holiday sales you want NOW sellers!
Online sellers are scrambling to have all their inventory listed and promoted on social media.
Shipping supplies are stacked and ready to be used. Inventory is stocked, stored and double checked.
With Christmas fast approaching, what is a seller’s most precious commodity right now? Is it money for inventory, learning a new listing software, or is it training Holiday help?
When I speak with sellers, hands down their most precious resource this time of year is TIME!
eBay, Etsy, Amazon and other online sellers come to me and ask, “Kathy how do you get so much done?” “Kathy I want to list more but I can’t find the time!” “Kathy I want to do more social media, but I don’t know how to fit it in my schedule!”
I will tell you what works for me. I plan yearly, monthly, weekly and daily. Success starts with planning!
Each year I set myself goals. I tweak and adjust my overall goals throughout the year.
Starting each month, I look at what needs to be accomplished that month towards my yearly goals.
Is my monthly goal making sure all my Holiday inventory is listed? Is it deciding what sales I’ll run during 4th quarter? Is it setting up a date night ( or several) with my husband? Once my monthly goals are set, I then look to each week.
Each Sunday, I check my coming week. I focus on any deadlines I have. I do create deadlines and challenges for myself. For instance, I make a weekly challenge for myself to list XX new items that week. I then plan backwards from my goal to strategize how to accomplish my goal.
Success Starts With Planning!
With an overview of my week I then take 5 minutes the night before, or 5 minutes first thing in the morning to plan my day.
I think through what must be done in that 24 hours. I include personal activities such as a doctor’s appointment, my favorite Pilates class, or a play date with my grandson. I set my top 2-3 priorities each day.
Prioritizing each day is crucial for success. Without priorities important tasks can get overlooked.
What is that day’s most essential tasks? Is it listing products? Is it taking pictures of my products ( or training someone to do it)? Is it shopping for inventory at the 1/2 off sale? I chose my priorities. I can also re-order my priorities as needed. Normally, I list and ship sales every morning before I do anything else. If I need to leave home by 10 am for a client meeting, I look at the time needed to list and ship. I get up early enough to do my morning tasks before I need to leave home. I may only get 1 new listing up. I will then will schedule myself to get more listings done later.
Plan Breaks
I plan breaks and rewards for myself.
My break can be a walk around the block. I also enjoy coffee with friends at a nearby coffee shop. I set a time allowed for my work break and do my best to stick to it.
The task(s) I least like to do, I schedule as early in my day as possible to get them over with. If I think X should take XX time and I’m consistently running overtime, I look at the task to see if I can streamline it. If that’s not doable, I allow more time to accomplish it.
There are never enough hours in the day.
To help my seller friends set and keep priorities that lead to sales, I have developed my Holiday Sales Success Tool Kit!
In addition to my insider video that walks you through winning 4th quarter strategies, I give you tools to set and stick to priorities that ignite your sales! Click HERE for instant access!
Setting and keeping priorities equips me for success!
I set priorities on a yearly, weekly, monthly and daily basis. I monitor my progress monthly, weekly, daily and adjust. Without planning you’ll lose your day and your success.
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