by Kathy Terrill | Nov 22, 2017 | eCommerce News, Facebook Business Page Tips, Selling on eBay, Social Media Tips
The Holidays are here. Social media campaigns are in full swing to attract shoppers. eBay sellers turn to me and ask,
“How can I stand out to shoppers on social media this Holiday season?”
The answer is keywords.
Ground your Holiday Planner for 2017 with awesome keywords.
Without good keywords, it’s as if you are taking your items and throwing them in a heap on the floor. You are daring shoppers and search engines to find your products. Keywords enable search engines and customers to discover your listing.
Sellers can forget to think like a buyer. When listing a plush teddy bear toy think, “What words would I be using to find this?” I would search, plush toy, plush teddy bear, teddy bear, small teddy bear, big teddy bear, boy teddy bear, pink teddy bear etc.
Keywords are words that detail and describe your item. They are brands, colors, styles, period and the size of the product. Terms like Nike, Under Armour, Mid Century Modern, lace, 100% cotton and more.
This blog post What Are Keywords from Moz, explains keywords.
Keywords are words that detail and describe your item.
Terapeak’s keyword research tool SEO Pro gives eBay sellers effective choices for their listings and social media.
With my affiliate link HERE, test the awesome results from this professional tool.
This Facebook live I did explains selecting Holiday keywords for your eBay listings and social media.
It pays to think like a buyer when listing and doing social media. Good keywords get you found in search. They get you sales.
Combine Holiday keywords with the tips in my Essential Social Media Cheat Sheet and you’re ready for your best Christmas sales season ever.
by Kathy Terrill | Nov 11, 2017 | eCommerce Selling Tips, Selling on eBay, Social Media Tips
eBay’s new shipping program Guaranteed Delivery launched to all eBay buyers as of November 2017.
eBay states that Guaranteed Delivery offers shoppers millions of items.
First of all, here is how to use Guaranteed Delivery to maximize your Holiday sales this year.
Here is how to use Guaranteed Delivery to maximize your eBay Holiday sales this year.
Furthermore, the Guaranteed Delivery program is not available to all sellers right now. I spoke with Greg Ross-Smith Sr. Product Marketing Manager – Delivery Experience, eBay. Greg says sellers not in Guaranteed Delivery are wait listed. Noteworthy is that wait listed sellers will get access to Guaranteed Delivery in 2018.
So, sellers ask,” Kathy how do we know if we’re in right now?” In your eBay account go to “Account Setting” and then locate”Site Preferences”. Next, find your “eBay Guaranteed Delivery Setting”. So, you are wait listed if the Guaranteed Delivery setting is not in your Site Preferences. Know if you are opted in by clicking HERE, and select the opt in for Guaranteed Delivery.
Most of all sellers, use Guaranteed Delivery to maximize your sales.
So, go through your items for sale. Offer same and or one business day handling time. Furthermore, provide a returns policy and click immediate payment required. Best Offer listings are eligible for Guaranteed Delivery, when a shopper clicks immediate payment at full price. Furthermore, Guaranteed Delivery has two versions. The Handling Time Option is a fit for most small – medium sellers
Requirement of eBay shipping labels waived for the Holidays.
First of all, this is great news for multi channel sellers using Stamps.com ( affiliate link I make a small commission) and other third party shipping services.
With the toggle option, only items in eBay’s Guaranteed Delivery Program are shown.
So, shoppers using the Guaranteed Delivery toggle option, only see items in the Guaranteed Delivery Program.
Product search benefits with Guaranteed Delivery.
Customers search by how fast they want their items to arrive with the Guaranteed Delivery filter. Shoppers view a one to four day arrival time for their packages. So due to shipping options Seller’s listings show in more customer searches. Include these shipping choices with the Bulk Edit tool. Business Policies is another way to add multiple delivery options. So, with adding shipping options sellers score more views, impressions, clicks and sales. Greg Ross-Smith states that Guaranteed Delivery does not effect Best Match search.
How many sales do I have with Guaranteed Delivery?
You have a Guaranteed Delivery Dashboard. Here is how it works.
Wait listed sellers, keep your Holiday sales strong. eBay is publicizing how fast buyers get items. You can do the same. Talk about how quickly you mail purchases in your social media. Share customer feedback about the speed of your shipping.
List using shipping upgrades. Offer customers a variety of shipping options for their purchases. Get busy on social media. Spread the word about how fast you ship.
eBay’s Guaranteed Delivery program brings hundreds of thousands of Christmas shoppers to eBay. More shoppers is good news for all sellers!
by Kathy Terrill | Nov 4, 2017 | eCommerce Tips, Selling on eBay, Social Media Tips
This will the most competitive sales season ever on eBay! There are more eBay sellers and more inventory online than ever before. How can small and medium sellers compete and win in this ferocious online environment?
Smaller sellers can score their share of sales now and all through the Holidays. Here are the top three ways to do it!
#1 – CHECK PRICES ON EBAY AND THE WEB!
First of all, prices change on the internet. Hot products prices change during the shopping season depending on availability. So, if you sell in demand Holiday products, monitor prices carefully. Take advantage of these fluctuations. Small – medium sellers can pivot, changing their prices. Also, small sellers can get often source popular items far faster than larger online retailers. Use the eBay saved search feature to monitor new listings and competition online.
There are numerous hot categories right now.
Trendy clothes, party clothes, electronics, home decor, sporting goods, sports memorabilia, and crafts are all hot categories. For in depth research use Terapeak’s (ad) Hot Product Research. If you’re analyzing seasonal trends nothing beats Terapeak’s (ad)three years of sold data!
#2- REACH YOUR EBAY SHOPPERS WHERE THEY ARE!
81% of Americans have social media profiles.
Statista reports that 81% of Americans have a social media profile! Facebook leads the way in social media with a reported 2 billion monthly users as of July 2017.
Social media is not just for big brands.
Smaller sellers can use social media to their advantage and win! What’s key with social media is to laser focus on your potential customer is. With that in mind, post social content mixed in with products. My Top Ten Social Media Holiday Success Tips shows you clearly how use social media to your advantage. So, you can reach your customers with social media and score sales.
By answering within minutes of getting the query, you the smaller seller will score the sale.
#3- ANSWER CUSTOMER QUESTIONS FAST!
Many large online sellers answer customer service questions with an auto responder. A customer will ask about color or fit and they get a message that the seller will get back to them within one business day. Monitor your customer service and shopper inquiries closely. By answering within minutes of getting the query, you the smaller seller will score the sale.
Shoppers don’t want to wait. They want answers. They want to buy.
YOU, the quick to respond seller scores sales. I’ve gotten numerous messages from happy customers saying ” Thank you for answering my questions. Wow that was fast. I bought from you because your replied so quickly etc” Answering questions promptly works to get you sales during the hectic Holiday period and all year long!
Being a smaller seller can has it advantages! By closely monitoring prices, posting great engaging content on social media and being super responsive to customer service question, you gain the sales edge online!
Here’s to sales coming your way sellers!
by Kathy Terrill | Oct 3, 2017 | Selling on eBay, Social Media Tips
Back to school shopping is over. Halloween shopping is in full swing on eBay. Sellers are messaging me, “Kathy my sales are slow. What should I do?”
So, I answer, “It’s time to sort through your eBay inventory and discover in demand items!”
Many eBay sellers think that Halloween is solely packaged costumes.
Many sellers think that Halloween is solely packaged costumes, traditional Halloween decor and candy. So, yes, all those products sell right now. But, shoppers are looking for that and more. Examine your merchandise carefully. Do you have clothing that could be used in a costume? Can your fashion items lend themselves to being a hippie, tacky tourist, zombie or princess? So, once you’re done sorting through your clothing, look at the accessories you have to sell. Consider your hats, belts, bags, and shoes. People often go straight from work to a Halloween costume event. The New York Times has ideas on dressing for work and then heading to your favorite Halloween party.
Your perfect scarf, or flamboyant piece of jewelry can transform the wearer into a costumed party attendee!
So, for your higher priced items, it is worthwhile to revise them. Add Halloween and costume themed keywords. Holiday keywords get you sales. Terapeak’s professional seller research tool SEO Pro gives you the best eBay search keywords and Google keywords for search and sales results. HERE is my affiliate link to test SEO Pro out for yourself!
eBay offers the perfect scarf, or flamboyant piece of jewelry that turns the wearer into a costumed party attendee!
If you have an eBay store, group items perfect for a costume in a Promotion using Promotions Manager. With a Promotion, you receive a shareable link and url address for social media. You gain additional exposure for your listings if you’re a Top Rated Seller and/or eBay Store Owner with eBay’s paid search option Promoted Listings.
Along with fun costume pieces, shoppers are looking to decorate their home and work spaces for Halloween. I’ve compiled pages of products that shoppers want to buy now. You may have them in your inventory, but are missing out on how to showcase them to shoppers.
Armed with my gift of your own Hot Halloween Product Tips you’ll know which items in your current inventory are popular now.
You’ll also know what to be on the lookout for as your shop thrift and retail stores for in demand inventory.
Not finding hot merchandise to sell locally?
Look at top quality wholesale cases and pallets with BULQ. BULQ sells wholesale inventory with a detailed manifest, so you know exactly what you are buying.
Showcase your Fall/Halloween on hand inventory, tweaking keywords, using Promotions Manager, social media and Promoted Listings. With my Hot Halloween Product Tips guide, you’ll be alert to great inventory locally and wholesalers so you can add items that will sell NOW.
Bring on the Halloween sales!
by Kathy Terrill | Sep 11, 2017 | eCommerce News, eCommerce Selling Tips, Selling on eBay
What is the short cut to killer sales on eBay? The answer, find what customers want. So, list products in a manner that eBay and internet search will find them. Next, enjoy watching the money pour in.
Running a profitable business on eBay starts with finding and selling the right items.
First of all, selling in demand items is not enough in the competitive world of eCommerce. Successful products must be listed in a manner that search engines find the items.
Research is key for sales success!
The short cut to killer sales on eBay has two parts. Find and source products consumers want. Next, list inventory so that search engine discover your items. In addition, list using research. Know what search engines like. Optimize your product listings. Optimization gets your listings found and sold.
How do you find in demand products?
For sales success, research four ways. First, listen to friends on the internet. What clothing styles, electronics, home decor items etc are mentioned? Furthermore, do your friends plan to buy an item soon? While you’re in a retail store, watch what people put in their shopping carts. The third way to research hot products is to search eBay by types of merchandise. Analyze sold data with the Advanced Search function .
The fourth way is to use Terapeak. Terapeak is a professional research tool with three years of sold data. Look at items you want to buy with Terapeak Product Research 2.0. Next, analyze Terapeak’s data. So, does your product sell year round? In addition, how fast does the item sell? With Terapeak, investigate hot selling products. Collectibles typically sell slower than other merchandise. Know how long you’ll hold an item before it sells. An unsold item is cash tied up. Buying fast selling merchandise keeps the money flowing.
So, now it’s time to source products.
Buy inventory at thrift and consignment stores. Also shop yard sales, retail stores, online sites and wholesalers.
Once bought, its time to list and sell.
Optimized listings get your products found by search and sold. Furthermore, your title is crucial to get your inventory sold.
Your title and your pictures are what shoppers see first. In addition they are important to mobile shoppers. Use eBay search to help you write a killer title. So, start typing in the words that describe your product.
Think like a buyer to get sales.
Look at your item. What terms describe it? eBay staff spoke at recent events on title length. Titles that use 75 characters or more of the 80 allotted characters get more sales.
My YouTube shows you how to write awesome titles.
Use four or more clear crisp pictures with a white background.
In addition, listings with four or more pictures are best. You can create a listing with up to twelve pictures. Image recognition is being used in search. Due to image recognition search, clear crisp pictures are a must. Click HERE for effective tips for pictures for your listing.
So, the short cut to more sales?
Take the time to research what shoppers want to buy. Spot trends by listening to friends. Be alert when shopping in retail stores. Gain a clear picture of how fast inventory sells with Terapeak . Time spent researching inventory saves you money and frustration. While listing, let eBay search help you create keyword rich titles. Write titles that are 75 or more characters. Use four or more clear pictures in your listing. Maximize every nook and cranny of your listing to stand out in search and get sold.
Maximize every nook and cranny of your eBay listing to stand out in search and get sold.
Now, you’re set for your sales to take off!
Sales will take off!
