eBay creates MySpace widgets
eBay has developed a neat new way to promote your items for free on MySpace. Users can take any item listed on the auction service and widgetize it using a simple step-by-step editor. There are three options to choose from: single item, multiple item, and search. The multiple items widget has a scrolling display of item images in a gallery format, and is good for Powersellers, or anyone who is selling a few things at a time. What's great is that you don't even need to sign in to eBay to make one, just an item number.
When you're done creating a widget, you can embed it in a number of blogging services and social networks like MySpace, Blogger, and Wordpress. Though these widgets may be added to MySpace, after YouTube started pulling traffic from MySpace, they disabled all outgoing links from flash files. That doesn't limit it's exposure; just makes it harder to find the auction. These are great for added content, and can even be added to your other ebay auctions.
I've embeded the single item widget below, which features a real-time countdown until the end of the auction. There's also a thumbnail viewer for any pictures, and status information like the bid and view counts.
Smart technology fights online fakes
This is already shaping up to be a banner year for one Internet industry. Unfortunately, it's the fraud business.
Though official numbers are scarce, online protection company MarkMonitor says a record $119 billion in knockoff goods will be sold on the Web in 2007, up from $84 billion last year - everything from counterfeit watches to fraudulent pharmaceuticals. eBay has ballooned into a city-size megastore that only an army of security guards could monitor for shady merchants. New online services make it simple and cheap for any site to accept credit card or bank payments, and ads on Google can lure bargain-hunting shoppers within hours.
But just as fake goods are enjoying a heyday online, so are virtual sleuths. New tech firms are arming brand holders with a smart solution: Web-crawling software that detects fraud and sends warnings to apparent violators, often with minimal human action.
"There's no other way to do it," says Nils Montan, president of the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition, which in November created a special committee to combat online piracy. "The Internet is simply too big just to have somebody doing Google searches for counterfeit products. You'd go insane."
Continue reading "Smart technology fights online fakes"
A little tip for sellers . . . . shhhhhhh
You sell an Ipod for a hundred bucks on eBay and what's your bottom line? About 93 dollars after Ebay take it's cut, and then Paypal takes another little bite, OoOoooo . . . and if the buyer used a credit card, that's another 1.9% or so, right? We all daydream about the day you could just use eBay and not have to pay any listing fees, selling fees, and all the other costs that go into it? Well there's a land not so far away that has been out there that most sellers don't even take advantage of that could fetch an even higher final price without the costs of selling. It's called . . . .
Continue reading "A little tip for sellers . . . . shhhhhhh"
There is a new growing trend sellers are using that misleads people into thinking they can get something for nothing. This article is not a "how to rip people off column," it is meant to be informative and bring light to an issue that eBay doesn't seem to (or be able to) enforce.
One rendition of the scam has been known to the unlucky few as the "White Van Scam." These sellers have entered a new market, eBay, and are using the same street tactics on-line. The typical white van scam starts with a "I was going to build this sound studio and brought to many speakers with me. They are very high quality (this is where they show you a brochure that they printed at their local Kinko’s that shows the same speakers with a price tag of like $2,ooo). I need to sell them, before I go back, so I'll cut you a deal at $4oo."
Continue reading "Buyer Beware . . . ."
The World's population isn't getting any smaller and people sure aren’t having any less babies . . . so if you haven't guessed where this is going, baby stuff is the hot new sale.
If you sit back and think about what makes a good sell on ebay, it's anything that is small (great for shipping), has a steady/growing demand, and is easy to acquire from wholesalers.
Standard baby strollers that carry multiple kids are the most under supplied category with strollers made for jogging coming in at a close second. Other hot items include bottles, car safety seats, formula coupons, and the list goes on. This category is ready for ambitious sellers that want to turn a quick profit with minimal competition.
See what the demand is for jogging strollers on ebay right now by clicking here
