Let’s Talk About Shipping…

I was just interviewed about selling children’s items and toys - and I was a bit surprised by how much interest there was in the topic of shipping. I really shouldn’t have been surprised though… because I think there is quite a bit of confusion - and perhaps it is even a ‘controversial’ topic in the eBay world. If we are to be successful sellers, however, we must address the topic.

First of all - let me give you a little background. I listed my first stroller that I bought at a yard sale for $15 on eBay in 2003. It sold for over $100 and… the rest is history ;-) I was hooked!

It didn’t take long for me to realize that research was key to my success as a seller… research to determine what the hot sellers are - but, more importantly, research to determine which selling strategies were making the most impact on final selling prices.

In 2004, I started my first newsletter, HuntedTreasure, which provides a weekly report of 25 hot items in the children’s item market. For over 4 years I have spent hours on a weekly basis burying my head inside eBay and learning what sells… and how to sell it.

Time and time again I have noticed that shipping can play a HUGE factor in the success of a seller.

I think the thing to remember is to look at the big picture. I cannot tell you how many times I have seen the same (or similar) item listed and the one with lower shipping ends leaps and bounds higher than the other.

Remember, unless your bidder is a seller – they probably don’t really have a clue how much it costs to ship the item they are considering. They usually assume that the seller is adding on to the shipping to make a bigger profit – whether this is true or not, is really not the point.

It is a psychological game really…

There can be two items – one with free shipping or a shipping special of $5… and the other with the actual shipping cost of around $10 or $12 for an item… and usually the auction with the lower shipping will get a higher bid – and I would say that more often than not, the difference in the ending price is more than the difference in shipping. So, look at the whole picture – you might lose something in shipping, but, you will likely make up for it in the ending price of the auction.

Along those same lines, I highly recommend running some sort of shipping special for your listings. List items of the same size or for the same age group at the same time and then have a shipping special like:

Win more than one auction and only pay $5 shipping for all of it!

Or

Win 3, shipping is FREE!

This accomplishes two things for you…

1. It gets your visitor looking at your other listings – and not just browsing… but, looking to buy so they can get better shipping rates.

2. It is great fuel for the bidding war fire! More people will be competing for your items as they all want to take advantage of the discount

Test is out – you might be surprised!

Motivating Your Direct Selling Team

Hi All!

I was on a great call today abut coaching and motivating your direct selling team.  The coach who was leading the call offered this Aesop as an illustration of the choices we make when we are trying to get others to take action.

The Wind and the Sun were disputing which was the stronger. Suddenly they saw a traveller coming down the road, and the Sun said: “I see a way to decide our dispute. Whichever of us can cause that traveller to take off his cloak shall be regarded as the stronger. You begin.” So the Sun retired behind a cloud, and the Wind began to blow as hard as it could upon the traveller. But the harder he blew the more closely did the traveller wrap his cloak round him, till at last the Wind had to give up in despair. Then the Sun came out and shone in all his glory upon the traveller, who soon found it too hot to walk with his cloak on.  He was so warmed by the sun that he voluntarily removed his coat.

After reading and pondering this story, ask youself these questions:

1. Are there times when I try the strategy of the wind to get others to do what I want them to do?

2. Can I learn something from the strategy of the sun?

3. How can I apply that starting right now with my team?

I aspire to be more like the sun, so I am going to figure out how to connect what I want others to do with something they want to do anyway.  That is the secret of this story:)

Enjoy!
Sarah

Quickly Create Beautiful Web 2.0 Badges

Do you envy those web site with slick badges like this one?

Can you believe I made that in just 5 minutes with no software required? And no, my designers can tell you I have little to no design sense. So don’t think because the badge looks nice that I am a Photoshop expert. Not even close.

This is all thanks to a free tool from the guys at QuickWebCreations (you must get that by way it too is ultra cool and I’ve mentioned it here before). I can create badges on my Mac or my PC, anywhere there’s an Internet connection. Best of all, it is free.

Great for creating spur of the moment images you don’t want to bug your graphic designer about. Head on over to Fresh Badge to start.

Launching your business with a conscience

Launching your business with a conscience really boils down to running your business with a humanitarian focus. Usually, when we think of going into a business we usually think of running a business in a way that we will be the most successful.

Have we ever thought, “can I run my business with a humanitarian thrust behind my concept?” I believe we can get our businesses launched and then we need to go back and take another look at what we have done and try and put a humanitarian aspect to what we are doing.

There are so many needs out there in the world that I believe that we can come up with some kind of service coupled with our business that will make a hugh difference to the people in our communities. It is then when we can say that we are launching a business with a concience.

I want to challenge you to think of ways that you could run your business that will make a diffence in the community or for that matter in the world in which you live. I would love to hear your thoughts on this issue and I would be more than happy to give you ideas on different ways that you can make this happen.

As an owner of one of the largest housecleaning service businesses in American, I have used my toilet cleaning business to reach out to women who are moms and single mothers who want to open their own housecleaning businesses and still be available to be home when their children return from school.

To me this is creating a business with a conscience. I am confident that you too can launch a business that makes a difference as well.

Do You Make This Careless Web 2.0 Mistake?

So, you are the social networks butterfly in your niche. Or maybe working to get there. Web 2.0, a lose term to cover social networks, social bookmarks, blogs, micro blogs and other such ’social’ tools can be so exciting.

It is easy to get caught up in building a large number of ‘friends’, followers or fans. The direct and speedy communication method with our audience and peers often leaves us with a nice warm feeling. I think it’s great!

But I also think it makes us careless. Careless because we get comfortable. And when we’re comfortable, we talk about things we shouldn’t be. Like our business’ plans, direction and other information that really shouldn’t be discussed in public.

From brainstorming domain names to developing new sites, researching niches to business ideas. If you’re not in a private group you can trust, be careful what you share.

I think a big reason why you see a lot of brainstorming going on in public is because working from home is an extremely lonely existence. Unlike working in an office, you don’t have co-workers you can call on to run things by. You don’t have a boss to give you criticism (constructive or not).

So, many at home business owners unload on forums, Twitter, Facebook, their own blogs and other social networks. Rarely stopping to consider who could be lurking. It is OK to ask for feedback and assistance. But if you are just hashing things out, wanting feedback on a new idea you don’t have the knowledge, experience or resources to launch immediately, that is not the time to ask publicly. There are many others who have more cash, more time and more specific knowledge than you to take your ideas and have it set up this week.

If you truly need help, join a mastermind group. Or create one of our own, pick those you trust and get on the phone. That’s social networking for ya. Help each other out in private.

Something else to chew on. When creating something new, a little mystery can be good to get and keep people’s interest. Talk about your mystery project, without giving too much away.

Photo credit: Karen Barefoot 

Secrets To Garage Sale Bargains… and Finding Inventory

I’ll be the first to admit that I am a garage sale addict! I’m not quite as bad as my mom (love you mom!)… but, I have a hard time passing up those colorful signs with ‘SALE’ written all over them.

I haven’t always been like this - it started after when my first born was a newborn. We had moved to Oregon from California to be closer to my parents… and then we were unemployed for 18 months… my mom was eager to ’show me the light’ - and we went out to garage sales every Friday and Saturday looking for treasures for this new little addition to our family.

By the time I was pregnant with my second child I was a garage sale PRO! I knew the best neighborhoods to scout out… I could tell just by driving by if there were going to be treasures for me… and I always found the most amazing deals!

(Like my sit and stand stroller - $15…
or entire Gymboree/Gap wardrobe for my daughter for $20…
or incredible Pottery Barn bedding for $10…
A Medella Pump-In-Style, Like New - for $40!
Or, one of those beautiful round cribs - with a mattress and complete bedding for $100…
I could go on and on…)

But, I really got the bug once I started selling on eBay. That Sit-And-Stand stroller I found for $15… I sold it on eBay for over $100! Or, the round crib I mentioned I picked up for $100… I sold it for over $500 on eBay.

Not only are garage sales a great place to pick up used baby gear and clothes for your own personal use when funds are tight… they are the perfect place to pick up eBay inventory.

Below I share 4 tips to keep in mind when you are out and stumble on something you think might be a nice seller for you…

But… before I get to them, I am very excited to share a special treat I was able to work out with Sherah over at www.Auction-Moms.com.

I just finished reading Sherah’s ebook, Secrets To Garage Sale Bargains - man, every year I read it and find a new tip to apply to my yard sale shopping. It is full of great ideas…

Learn things like:
- Which weekend is the best to catch hot moving sales
- Tips for getting a good deal even if your best offer is refused
- Why saying, “Will you take $1 for this toy?” is a no-no.
- Find out the magic words to seal the deal… almost every time!
- When the best time is to hit the sales for the best deals

The ebook sells for $17.99 - but, I was able to work out a special deal with her to offer it to for only $10. This special price is only good through Wednesday, May 7th… so you will need to act quickly.

You can read more about Secrets of Garage Sale Bargains here (don’t order it from that page though!).
But, DON’T ORDER IT FROM THAT PAGE or you will be paying too much!
Sherah has set up for my readers to get a very nice discount HERE:

Now… about those tips…

eBay is the best place to research in order to learn what sells and what doesn’t sell; however, applying these tips will help you find inventory without even opening a web browser.

1. Watch for retired or out of production/print items. I have found that VHS videos can resell very well… especially if it is out of print (OOP) and not yet available on DVD. Other items that are no longer available new are perfect for reselling on eBay.

2. Pay attention to movies that are coming out that are remakes of older tv shows or series’ and watch for items that are related. For example, Speed Racer is about to be released… but, it was a cartoon series long before the movie was in the works. Watch for toys, videos, anything related to the original series.

3. Look for things that have replacement parts. Games and toys that are popular but are likely to lose parts easily. These pieces can resell very well.

4. Talk with kids - or better yet - take a child shopping with you and pay attention to what excites them. Every Christmas I have found that some of the best predictors of the best selling toys are KIDS!

These are just a few tips to help you find inventory… but, I have to say - yard sales are great when money is tight… you can get some amazing deals on children’s items - and they are usually not very used because kids grow so quickly. The season is just starting and whether you are an avid garage saler… or just looking into the idea - the Secrets To Garage Sale Bargains is a must read for getting the best deal!

Mila is Right, But Don’t Use it As An Excuse

Mila posted a very interesting and important article on outsourcing in this month’s IBMoms Newsletter. If you haven’t read it yet, I encourage you to do so. It’s down the page a bit and entitled:

“The Truth about Outsourcing – STOP Throwing Money Down the Drain!”

Mila makes some very important points and addresses what I have been teaching my students who are ready to get into outsourcing. Outsource smartly by having a good understanding of your business needs and constantly evaluate where your spending your money.

Mila mentions the 4-Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss and I can see where people might go over the deep end to try to achieve the ideal nearly work-free lifestyle. Personally, I like working and have never thought of trying to reduce my workload to 4 hours per week (15-20 hours per week feels just right to me). Besides, if you’ve read Ferriss’s book, you’ll know that he sells huge volumes of his product and he has the resources to outsource everything. If you’re making a few sales per day or per week, that luxury may not be available to you. There’s nothing wrong with that.

Another important point Mila made was the mention of the 80/20 Rule or the Pareto Principle which can be applied to many aspects of life and business. When business management expert Joseph M. Juran took the principle and applied to business, he came up with “80% of your sales come from 20% of your customers”. Others have also extended the principle to show that 80% of your income probably comes from 20% of your work. In other words, we are likely WASTING a lot of time as individuals running our businesses and that also applies to the people working for us.

So if you’re working 8-10+ hour days and are even outsourcing, take a look at what you’re doing. Shave of ineffective activities for yourself and your staff. That alone will save you a ton of money.

Mila also says:

“So instead of outsourcing tasks that aren’t money producers, cut them out altogether or find a way to stream line your process (see previous article for more).”

But that’s where I want to clarify something that I feel is important and I’m guessing Mila will agree too. Not everything you outsource will directly translate into profits, so you cannot always look at the tasks someone is doing for you and decide if it is profitable.

One of the most important benefits of outsourcing is removing the time-draining, mundane necessary items off your plate, so you have more time to focus on profit-building activities. For example, your assistant may answer public emails, attend to administrative tasks, etc. None of those things DIRECTLY make you money, but the reduced stress and ability to focus is invaluable to your business. Still, don’t just blindly outsource the mundane - evaluate that too. Are all those tasks really necessary and how can you streamline the process, just as Mila says.

But here’s what I really want to say -

Mila’s advice is very sound…if you’re already outsourcing. If you’re not getting help with your business, what she said is not an excuse to decide that you can do everything for yourself.

Please:

• Set yourself up for a business that allows you some freedom and breathing room. Have a support system in place that allows you take time off when your family needs you and your mental health is screaming for it.

• Have a user-friendly, technologically automated and professional business that keeps up with the times. Use skilled graphic designers, programmers and other people with specialized skills that you don’t possess. Although you do need to understand the needs of your unique business, you certainly don’t need to learn how to program complicated code and move pixels around.

If you’re just getting started with outsourcing, you now have the awesome advice of Mila at your fingertips and you can do this smartly. Invest a little, grow your business and repeat. It’s as simple as that.

Related Resources:

• 4-Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss: Although you may not be ready to or have the desire to reduce yourself to working 4 hours per week, the book is definitely a good read with some good advice along the way.
• Outsourcing Sweetie: Want to do this outsourcing thing, right? Get the education and tools you need to make your outsourcing a whole lot easier.

How Can I Help You With Your Business

Frequently during my private or group coaching sessions, the topic at hand will wind down but we still have a few minutes left in the session.  One of my favorite things to do at that point is to simply say “How Can I Help You?”

Of course this question is usually followed by about 30 seconds of silence while the listenes ponder the question! But what follows are usually very meaty, real-time, relevant topics that everyone on the call is interested in.

I would like to throw out the same question to this group.

How Can I Help You?

If you will take a minute and post your response to that question in the comments section of this blog, I will answer either publicly or privately in the most helpful way I can.

Looking forward to it!
Sarah
www.directsellingleaders.com

 

« Previous Page