Why 95% of All eBay Sellers Fail

eBay is now the 8th most visited site on the internet and it has just one purpose - sales. With 40 million visitors per month most eBay sellers are missing a golden opportunity. They are missing the opportunity to cultivate long term clients.

It is a proven fact in marketing that you will continue to buy over and over again from people and companies that you know, like and trust. Yet 95% of all internet marketers fail when it comes to eBay. Most are looking for the fast buck. They have completely miss the opportunity to use eBay as a lead generation tool. They miss the opportunity to create a list of people that will be willing to consume your products over and over again.

Lead generation on eBay can be accomplished in several ways. The most popular way is by using the self liquidating ad. A self liquidating ad is one that pays for itself. In other words your customer directly pays your advertising costs. They purchase from you, some form of advertising.

Let me give you an example of a self liquidating advertisement. Recently I saw in a magazine an ad for a pair of sunglasses. The ad claimed that the sunglasses were free you just had to pay the shipping and handling costs. My guess is that the advertiser probably wasn't making much if any money on the sunglasses. But they also weren't losing any money. The shipping and handling most likely covered their actual costs. What they really wanted was something far more valuable ? your contact information and your "permission" to market to you. In other words they are looking for qualified prospects - prospects that are interested in the products and services they are selling.

Once a company has your contact information and "permission" to market to you, they will begin to establish a relationship. They will do this in a variety of ways including sending you ads for other product and services you may be interested in. Over time most customers will be worth many times more than their initial purchase.

Since eBay is purely commerce site it is a perfect place to do a self liquidating ad. Let's look at an extreme example. Let's pretend that you own a car dealership that only sells high end cars. We will assume that your average car sells for $65,000. One way you could use a lead generation self liquidating ad would be by "selling" a special report. For example you could sell a report on eBay entitled "18 Ways to Drive the Car of Your Dreams for Less Than the Cost of a Yugo".

Do you think a report like that would get some attention? You bet it would. The report is really nothing more than an advertisement for you. Of course you would have to write a report that had real content and offered up ways for the consumer to really do as the title suggests. A report like this however, would cost you literally nothing to produce ? except your time ? and there would be no overhead, no inventory, and no headaches.

Since this report would be nearly all profit you could set a low "Buy It Now" price ($4.97) to attract a huge number of prospects. The revenue generated would easily offset the eBay's seller fees.

In the report you could suggest several real ways for people to drive a luxury car for little money. You could also list in the report a resource for them to research. The resource you suggest would of course be your car dealership.

The report did not cost you anything to produce or sell and it fully paid for itself with each person that ordered. The person buying the report is more likely interested in what you have to offer and are therefore partially qualified. Anybody that contacts you after reading the report is a fully qualified prospect and should be marketed to aggressively.

Once you have their name and contact information you could send them a weekly "hot sheet" of cars that you are trying to sell. Once they purchase you could then sell them accessories and branded clothing. If they were close to your shop you could sell them on servicing. And the list goes on and on.

If you study eBay there very few people using it as a lead generation tool. Yet lead generation and specifically self-liquidating advertising is a proven winner. Almost every type of business can benefit from lead generation advertising. If done correctly lead generation advertising can actually become another source of revenue for your company. Special reports are one excellent low cost lead generation tool that you can use. Look at eBay as more than just a fast buck. Look to eBay as a way to create long term clients. eBay if worked properly can be your best source of fresh leads and can really explode your sales.

Todd Reese is an information marketer, eBay seller consultant, and author of http://www.AutoDigitalDelivery.com. His specialty is turning struggling eBayers into Power Sellers.

---

Start an Easy Home Business: Become an Ebay Trading Assistant

EBay's online auctions have created business opportunities for thousands of... Read More

Get More for Your Money Shopping for Designer Shoes on eBay

The worlds online market place.In just a few short years... Read More

An Emerging Market in eBay Consignments: The eBay Trading Post (Part II In A Series)

In 2002, the eBay consignments business was born, referred to... Read More

Why 95% of All eBay Sellers Fail

eBay is now the 8th most visited site on the... Read More

How To Find REAL Wholesale Dropshippers For Almost Any Product

With more and more people getting online, many of them... Read More

Doing It eBay: An eBay Business Means Fun and Profits in a Global Marketplace

In 1995, when Pierre Omidyar introduced an online business venue... Read More

How To Sell On Ebay: Pricing Strategy

Many new Ebay sellers make one of two mistakes: either... Read More

Importing Products to Sell on eBay

The interesting thing about online buyers is they are extremely... Read More

Game Theory, Nobel Prize, & Auctions - Auction Primer Series ? Part 1

William Vickrey, highly regarded as the founder of auction theory,... Read More

Online Auctions: How To Generate Fast Traffic From Online Auctions

Have you ever participated in any online auctions?Yes, people are... Read More

Shipping Supplies For Your eBay Auction Business

Auction supplies are clearly an expense and major consideration for... Read More

Selling Effectively on Ebay Motors

Remember back when selling online was a new experience? Dealers... Read More

The Top Ten Tips For Auction Success!

If you were to look through eBay, or any other... Read More

Make Money on eBay the EASY way!

Probably just like you, I had an overwhelming desire to... Read More

Just The Ticket - How To Make Hundreds Per Day As A Ticket Broker On eBay!

It should be simple - your favourite team/band/theatre play is... Read More

What Ebay Can Teach Us About Success

I flew back to New York from Atlanta a few... Read More

5 Secrets for Increasing Auction Profits

1. Include your ebay seller name, store, and website information... Read More

eBay Gold

Internet auctions are relatively new having been around since the... Read More

Is The eBay Fee Increase Actually Good For Business?

Fee Increase Leaves Some Sellers Angry, Others ThrilledMuch of my... Read More

How To Write a Traffic Pulling eBay Auction Title

Selling an item on eBay should be simple but it... Read More

Can You Really Make Money Selling New Release CDs & DVDs On eBay?

Being an active eBayer, I am often being asked about... Read More

Photos on my eBay Auctions: How Do I Add Them?

On another forum I'm involved with, someone's asked a great... Read More

Smart Ways Your Business Can Benefit From Online Auctions

It seems as if everyone is talking about online auctions.... Read More

How I Was Nearly Conned On Ebay

I am not sure how many people have had bad... Read More

6 Reasons Why an eBay Business is the Easiest and Safest Home Business to Start

Calling internet auctions an "Entrepreneur's Dream" isn't poetic license or... Read More

Auction Sales - Keeping Customers You Worked So Hard To Get!

If you've studied business concepts you know that finding a... Read More

5 Sure-Fire Ways to Make More Money on EBay

Have you ever dealt with a salesperson or a waiter... Read More

Rent A Coder & Other Service Auctions

You may be in the market for a new website.... Read More

How to Locate Drop Shippers for Your Success

Like the human heart, drop shippers can keep the blood... Read More

Selling on eBay? Heres a Success Tip for Your Online Auctions

Are you planning to sell on eBay? Or have you... Read More

How to Sell on eBay Internationally without Risk

eBay allows you the opportunity to sell all over the... Read More

10 Tips to Starting a Financially Successful Ebay Business Startting Right Now

Ebay is Perhaps the easiest and fastest way to start... Read More

Effective Online Car Sales on Ebay Motors

Remember back when selling online was a new experience? Dealers... Read More