by Kathy Terrill | Sep 28, 2016 | eCommerce Tips
Online sellers are turning to me asking for my hot tips for 2016 Holiday sales success! Sellers want to know what are my insider tips to really sky rocket their sales on eBay, Etsy and Amazon! I give them my super duper insider tip. Want to know what it is?
Keep the customer first.
Some will respond to me, “Kathy that’s too simple.” “OK” I say, “Take a few minutes and think.”
When you pick inventory to sell, what are your major concerns? You consider cost and if the item will sell.
The bottom line for sellers is, you don’t make money if customers don’t buy what you’re offering.
Do Your Products Sell?
Discovering and then selling what shoppers want, that is keeping customers first.
When you list your product online on eBay, Etsy, Amazon and your own website, you take clear pictures to showcase your inventory. Your item’s title and description is crafted using carefully selected words ( keywords) that shoppers would use when searching for your product online.
You offer a generous and hassle free return policy to gain and maintain customer confidence in you and your products.
All of that is keeping your customer first. You are crafting a listing and business policies that keeps your shopper’s needs up front and center. The customer is first.
Once your item is sold, you carefully package the item with the intent of protecting your customer’s purchase so that it arrives safely.
The purchased item is then sent off quickly to satisfy the eager customer.
Doing all this, you are keeping the customer first. Should there be questions or concerns at anytime of the purchase or afterwards you quickly and politely respond.
It’s All About The Customer!
From start to finish it’s ALL ABOUT THE CUSTOMER.
With all the sourcing, listing and packing of product in addition to posting on social media, the primary focus of one’s business can get lost. The fundamental truth for any successful business is that it’s ALL about the customers.
Selling customers what they want, and wowing them with your care and speed of delivery gets you repeat business and profits.
So the number one key to Holiday selling success for 2016 ( and any year) is, all during the frenzy of the Holiday selling season, keep asking yourself one question.
“Am I taking care of my customers?”
by Kathy Terrill | Sep 4, 2016 | eCommerce News, eCommerce Selling Tips, Selling on eBay
eBay‘s Fall seller update was released August 30, 2016 with good news for sellers!
eBay‘s razor sharp focus is on facilitating an awesome shopping experience for customers. Satisfied customers makes for increased sales and happy sellers.
To facilitate this great customer experience, eBay is continuing to use structured data in new and innovative ways. To further develop a great browsing experience for shoppers, sellers will be required to use UPC’s and product identifiers for many categories when listing NEW and manufacturer refurbished items starting February 2017. In addition to UPCs and GTIN’s, sellers will be able to use ASIN ( Amazon standard identification numbers,), Google product identifier and private label self generated numbers.
eBay Radio Show hosted senior eBay staff to discuss these upcoming changes.
http://https://www.voicemarketingradio.com/ebay-radio-show-653-segment-4/
There will more information concerning this requirement coming later this Fall 2016.
Used items will not be required to use product identifiers.
Structured Data Is Key!
As of the Fall of 2016 sellers with catalogs of products will be able to import their catalog to eBay. When importing their items, seller’s will receive and ePID eBay Product identifier. ePID’s enable sellers items to qualify for eBay Product reviews and other benefits.
The returns process will have more options!
Returns process is better!
Starting in October 2016 sellers will be able to quickly and easily offer exchanges and or replacements to buyers.
Return preferences are being updated so that a seller can automate this process if so desired.
http://pages.ebay.com/sellerinformation/news/fallupdate16/shipping-returns.html
eBay continues to remind sellers that active content will not be supported as of June 2017.
June 17 Deadline For Active Content!
With June 17, 2017 many, many, months away eBay sellers have plenty of time to remove JavaScript and other active content from their listings. Removing the active content makes seller’s eBay listings more mobile friendly. eBay is a leader in the mobile shopping market with millions of uploads of it’s popular mobile app.
eBay has a tip sheet for sellers to optimize their listings for mobile.
http://pages.ebay.com/sell/itemdescription/mobilefriendlyguidelines.html
eBay’s Seller Hub will house all eBay’s seller tools.
It’s all in Seller Hub!
eBay will be retiring Selling Manager and Selling Manager Pro in the Spring of 2017.
The basic functions of these tools will migrate to Seller Hub. The same is true of Turbo Lister which is being retired in June of 2017.
In addition to changes with Product Identifiers, the continuing need to be mobile friendly, and upcoming changes in seller tools, eBay is tweaking it’s product categories.
http://pages.ebay.com/sellerinformation/news/fallupdate16/category-and-item.html
With this year’s Fall Seller update, eBay continues to push it’s entire platform to more and more changes that make for an even greater shopping experience for customers.
To that end there are upgrades and changes to what is best for eBay seller’s listings.
If you’re unsure of what impacts your eBay business I have a FREE tip sheet eBay Fall Seller Update Insider Tips that walks you step by step through the update.
With my FREE tip sheet in hand you’ll know what changes impact you and what you need to do.
4th quarter is almost here! I know that sellers time is even MORE precious this time of year!
I don’t want you having to spends hours wondering how the eBay Fall Seller Update impacts you and your listings. Grab your FREE copy of eBay Fall Seller Update Insider Tips and set your mind at rest.
Make sure YOUR listings get ALL the benefits of eBay and Google search for the Holiday selling season!
by Kathy Terrill | Aug 24, 2016 | eCommerce News, Selling on eBay, Social Media Tips
Christmas is a little over 100 days away sellers!
eBay and Etsy sellers with these 3 simple strategies you can start equipping yourself for the best 4th quarter of online sales ever!
Are you ready? Let’s Go!
1st simple strategy for 4th quarter success is to take notes!
Take Notes!
It’s wise to take notes on what inventory of yours sells when. Record what promotions you offered and when. Pay attention to which sales worked and which didn’t. Note what bundles worked to sell products. Bundling is an awesome way to get your products seen and sold during the Holidays! My hit online webinar Secret Spice For Online Sales walks you easily through the process of turning your inventory into bundles that sell! The notes you take this year, will be a deep reservoir of knowledge for you to use for 4th quarter 2017!
2nd simple strategy for 4th quarter success sellers is to check your inventory!
Check Your Inventory!
If you have not done a hands on inventory of all your stock in the past few months, now is the time to do it!
An accurate count of inventory now will save you from out of stock headaches in November and December. While indexing your inventory start thinking what promotions will work best. Using the 1st strategy of taking notes, record what items will group together well for eBay Collections, Etsy treasuries. Think about what products you want to feature on your Facebook business page, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram during the Holidays!
The next simple step for selling success is check ALL your shipping supplies!
Check Your Shipping Supplies
Look at what your sales volume was last year. Note your current sales. Calculate the difference.
Examine how fast you go through mailers, boxes and tape now.
Looking at the increase in sales you experience typically for the Holidays you’ll have a good idea of how much and what shipping supplies you need on hand now. Order your supplies now.
The free USPS Priority envelopes, boxes and labels often take 2 and 3 times longer to arrive in November and December. Now is the time to stock up. If you use polymailers, padded envelopes, packing peanuts and tape consider the family owned company Bubblefast. They offer a wide variety of shipping supplies and with the coupon esnbes you’ll save 10% on your entire order!
Sellers, take in depth notes all through the Holiday season, check and log all your inventory and stock up on all your Holiday shipping supplies. These are crucial steps for selling success.
Take the time to do these easy and simple steps NOW.
Laying a firm foundation with these basic steps for you business moves you forward towards your BEST 4th quarter of sales EVER!
by Kathy Terrill | Jul 13, 2016 | eCommerce News, Selling on eBay, Social Media Tips
Do you know what the #1 way to score Back To School sales on eBay is?
The answer is to PLAN!
Effective planning and then executing your sales plan is crucial for success!
Back To School is a multi billion dollar sales season!
Back To School Is A Multi Billion Dollar Sales Season!
Sellers the time to get ready is NOW.
Are you thinking that Back To School is just about paper and pens?
Don’t fall into that trap and lose the opportunity to merchandise your items to eager shoppers!
Perhaps you’re thinking that Back To School shopping doesn’t start until August. Back To School advertisements are on the airwaves now. The shopping has begun! Keep in mind that schools across the United States begin at many different times.
Don’t lose sales by starting your merchandising too late.
Don’t Lose Back To School Sales By Starting Too Late!
Back To School retail is products for students from Pre K- College. That covers a lot of ground. Sellers don’t forget teachers are shopping too. Savvy Back To School retailers are advertising clothing, electronics, dorm room supplies and more starting now.
You can compete with the big boys if you start organizing your inventory this month. I’ve spent weeks researching what customers want to buy during the Back To School shopping period.
I complied The Ultimate Guide To Back To School Products for you. It’s loaded with over 80 products that Back To School shoppers buy.
Click HERE to get your guide for FREE.
The Ultimate Guide To Back To School Products!
With The Ultimate Guide To Back To School Products in hand, take time to go through your eBay inventory. Select items to feature for Back To School.
With your curated items, create Back To School eBay Collections. Using tips from my blog post How eBay Collections Can Help Your Sales To Surge create tightly niched eBay Back To School Collections. Start sharing your niched eBay Collections on social media to generate traffic to your items. Your niched Collections can also be found by eBay search and featured on eBay to shoppers!
Next week I’ll give you more power tips to get you Back To School Items searched and SOLD!
Don’t YOU miss out on this multi billion dollar retail season!
by Kathy Terrill | Jul 7, 2016 | eCommerce Selling Tips, Selling on eBay
Sellers will come to me looking to increase their sales on eBay, Etsy and their own website. They will ask me for help.
I will ask the seller, “What are your goals?”
What Are Your Goals?
They will answer me “To sell more.” I will work with them to help them to be specific. Are they looking to increase their sales by 10, 20, 30% or more?
How do you achieve this goal of increased sales?
You can set aside 5 minutes a day to put your sales plan into place! That’s right just 5 minutes. To increase sales on eBay, Etsy or your own website, do you need to increase inventory, speed up the listing process, promote on social media and or hire help?
Once you have a goal, then work backwards to see what steps you need to put into place to achieve it.
You are sabotaging your success if you don’t have a clear plan.
Don’t Sabotage Yourself!
So back to a seller’s plan of increased sales. A rule of thumb to increase sales by 20%, one would have to increase one’s inventory by 20%.
So I then ask the seller, “Do you have the cash reserve to purchase more inventory?”
If the answer is yes, we proceed. If it’s no, then we come up with ideas to raise cash. I work with the seller to increase their sales and cash flow. For some sellers it may be wisdom to take a loan.
Once the inventory cash is set aside, then it’s time to decide whether to acquire inventory locally through retail arbitrage, thrift shops and yard sales. Sellers can also chose to locate and develop relationships with drop shippers and wholesalers.
Exploring inventory sources can be done in 5 minute time chunks while you run your business.
Once the inventory is located and paid for, the next step begins.
Where are you going to store the inventory?
Where Do You Store The Inventory?
Do you need to reorganize your inventory storage area?
To prep your inventory area do you need family and or outside help? Should a storage facility be used to store inventory? Think it through considering the time and money involved.
While obtaining inventory and deciding the best way to store it, it can be smart to start a social media campaign on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram letting your followers know the goodies you have arriving soon! You can feature pictures of you preparing the inventory area to interest your followers in what is coming!
Your new eBay and Etsy inventory arrives.
Your Inventory Arrives!
You sort and store it. Log your inventory noting where everything is placed, so that you can easily lay your hands on your items when it sells.
Now the photographing and listing begins, anticipating your eBay and Etsy sales!
Successful sales growth on eBay and Etsy starts with a plan. Chose the percentage you want your business to increase. Calculate the necessary funds to successfully execute your plan. Investigate and choose the necessary inventory sources. Start a social media plan including your followers in the soon to arrive new stock. Sort and store inventory as it arrives. List inventory and continue interacting with your followers, sharing your new inventory with them. You can plan and execute in small 5 minute chunks of time. Don’t sabotage your plan with non action.
Keep tabs on results with sales and promotions, adjusting tactics to successfully sell your inventory.
With a well laid plan, and then necessary adjustments, you’ll enjoy nurturing healthy and steady growth for your eBay and Etsy business.
Then, onward the next step of your plan!
5 Minutes To Increased Sales On eBay & Etsy!
