11
« on: August 21, 2010, 06:28:32 pm »
I started my own online mall and most of the stores in it are mine or family members. I feed all the products to Google and Oodle and do pretty well. Over time I made changes and have gotten more traffic - I do well with individual keyword searches for some reason, rather than the front page of the mall coming up.
It's tough to get used to selling at a fixed price, so I incorporated Make an Offer Buttons. I find that people often just buy the item, even higher priced items; and that people tend to make offers on lower priced items - go figure!
I sold on ebay for a long time and it sure has changed enough, which prompted me to do this. I've been running the mall now for a little over 2 years and the hardest thing is getting all the items in there. On the selling side, it's far easier than ebay. I don't have to worry about feedback. I give refunds only at my discretion (if something is our fault), and I really haven't had any complaints.
We still do sell some items on ebay- like many people who went off on their own around the same time I did - ebay does generate fast profit if you know what you're doing, and also generates customers - by adding a thank you note and come see us at the mall after every purchase.
Not to be longwinded, but ebay is not for everybody. Newbies on ebay will have a very tough time selling their mid-level items at a decent price because of the way ebay has set up their best search. Here's an example. We have over 3000 fb on ebay - we sold a Hires RB plastic cased clock the same week my nephew with only about 20 FB sold another aone -both on ebay. The clocks were almost identical except that ours had a big chunk missing from one corner. We got more money for ours, and I'm sure the reason is the power seller status.
I think auctions still work if the bidders initially perceive they can get a good item at a "deal" price. Even when the item is driven up by bids they feel it's worth it because of the thrill of winning against other people who want the item. On the other hand, I believe people would rather not wait to bid on items that are not going to be bid up anyway.
Show Posts