Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Interview with Kat of Katskloset





I enjoyed visiting with Kat and learning more about her successful eBay business!

Your eBay name: katskloset

Link to your store: http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Kats-Kloset__W0QQ_armrsZ1

Link to your blog: http://therivertheranchandthebay.com/ and http://ebayinginthesprings.blogspot.com/

What first sparked your interest in eBay? TY Beanie Babies - buying and then Selling

What do you sell? I'm a trading Assistant, so my inventory is always changing. A Few constants are The Bearington Collection, WebKinz by Ganz and Camille Beckman

Where do you find the items you sell? From Consignors, I do some drop shipping and have a few Wholesale Suppliers

What advice would you have for a new seller? Just Do It!

How did you come up with the name of your eBay store? I just Love Alliteration! But I wish I'd thought about how hard it would be to teach people to spell Closet with a Kay, LOL

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Dog-Gone Cute: Tips for Listing Vintage Dog Ephemera








One of my favorite collecting - and selling - areas is vintage ephemera. I particularly love vintage dog ephemera.

I collect vintage Dachshund ephemera (especially Valentines and Christmas cards) but that is another blog entry - or perhaps a whole separate blog!

I love the cute, often whimsical vintage dog illustrations, of course. But it is also fun to peek into another time and see people with their pets.

My axiom as an eBay seller has always been: if it has a dog, mention the dog. Prominently. In the title and in the description.

I also recommend being as specific as possible -- not just Cute Dog Card, but Cute Poodle Card, or better yet, Cute BLACK STANDARD POODLE Card.

Although I started on line selling vintage children's books (and that will always be my first love), over time I've also come to really enjoy vintage ephemera. I have a big box of it here waiting to be listed (perhaps 400 - 500 pieces). It's a little like a treasure hunt; you never know what goodies you will find!

I certainly hope there are more vintage dogs waiting for me in my ephemera box.

A few of the dog postcards, Valentines and greeting cards I have listed online:




Friday, March 27, 2009

A Visit with Dar, the Glass Guru

I enjoyed visiting with Dar, the Glass Guru. She has great knowledge of vintage glass, and has helped me identify items I wanted to list. (Thanks, Dar!)

Dar's eBay link: http://stores.ebay.com/Dars-Glass-and-More?refid=store

Dar's Blog link:
http://darsayre-theglassguru.blogspot.com/

What sparked your interest in selling on eBay?
I inherited a lot of glass and antiques. Selling locally didn't give me a good price for my glass, because the places around here wanted to pay pennies for it. Plus, selling on eBay opened up an entire world to sell to. So I sold all the glass I didn't like or want and bought glass and items I did want for my collections.It was the best of both worlds!


What do you sell?
I sell glass, but learned early on that I needed to branch out with items that a lot of different buyers would like, so I started selling just about anything I think will make money and also items I personally look for when I am buying.


Where do you find the items you sell?
I find items on eBay cheaper from buyers who don't know what they have. This lets me get it much cheaper and allows me to resell higher. I also look at yard sales , thrift stores, antique shops.


What advice do you have for a new seller?
My best advice for a new seller is first, sell what you know about. Write a good description and take fantastic pictures...I know when I am buying the pictures sell the item. Good pictures are a must!


How did you name your store?
My eBay store name was mainly my nickname and what I sell, but had to add the "more" because I don't sell JUST glass anymore.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Meet Marshell, Successful Bonanzle Seller

Today I'd like to introduce my friend Marshell, who is successfully selling at new sales venue Bonanzle.

Link to your store: http://www.bonanzle.com/booths/JimmyandMarshell

Link to your blog: http://jimmyandmarshell.blogspot.com/

What first sparked your interest in eBay? As far as Bonanzle goes, it was the newness, the ease in which one can list. I love the whole site.

What do you sell? Collectibles

Where do you find the items you sell? Everywhere! Yard sales, flee markets, "junk" stores...sometimes folks just give me stuff...friends, relatives; you name it!

What advice would you have for a new seller? Take your time...READ! Read EVERYTHING, with no exceptions. This is your JOB...and your LIFE...make it right the first time. As long as you keep reading, you will keep understanding, and there will be no surprises...but, if you skim through, thinking I'll join now, and read later? NO! Read it now!Trust me, it'll do your business good!

How did you come up with the name of your eBay store? Jimmy and I started selling online, and it just became our "brand" name. I figured folks would be more confident in buying from 2 real people, rather than from one woman or a pic of nothing...I know I would be.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Introducing Cindy from CloverCity




Today I'm happy to introduce Cindy Shebley -- eBay seller, eBay marketing whiz, and co-author of The eBay Marketing Bible.

Your eBay name: clovercity

Link to your store: http://www.clovercityphoto.com/

Link to your blog: http://clovercitysells.blogspot.com/

What first sparked your interest in eBay? A friend told me about it - said he found this great little site on the web - must have been around 1997. I checked it out and was hooked. At the time I had a garden shop. We had inventory in the back store room that wasn't selling and I thought I'd give this eBay thing a try.... after the stock room was cleared out I started thinking of other things I could sell. One thing lead to another and now I'm a full time online seller.

What do you sell? When I went online I wanted to sell something that was less seasonal than gardening and over time I rediscovered my love of photography. Now, I sell mostly photo lighting equipment, books and tools to help eBay and Online sellers.

Where do you find the items you sell? I sell new products, which means I find new suppliers at Trade Shows and through existing sales representatives. Once in awhile I'm contacted by a distributor who found me online.

What advice would you have for a new seller? Take a class on eBay or find a tutor or mentor to help you. Setting up a listing is simple, but there is so much more than that, listing strategies, research and even navigating the post office can be difficult. Having someone to show you the ropes will save you time, energy and in many cases money.

How did you come up with the name of your eBay store? I have lots of dogs and cats - one cat, a tabby named Clover - she ruled the household. We used to joke about her being the “mayor of TabbyTown” - don't ask me how, but that morphed into CloverCity

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

A Visit With Cat from Sushiboofays

Cat is a wonderful eBayer, and the coordinator of the first annual eBay Blog Tour. I enjoyed visiting with her about her eBay business.

Your eBay name: Sushiboofay's

Link to your store: http://stores.ebay.com/Sushiboofays

Link to your blog: http://sushiboofays.blogspot.com/

What first sparked your interest in eBay? I first got interested in EBay because I was looking for Carnival Glass to buy. Then we had two storage units from when we had some convenience stores and I thought that instead of having a yard sale I would try selling some of it on EBay. After that....I was hooked!

What do you sell? I sell a little of everything. Antiques, clothing, coins and recently I've started selling some books and records.

Where do you find the items you sell? A lot of it is stuff we have accumulated, but no longer have room for. I also visit thrift stores and yards sales when I'm able to.

What advice would you have for a new seller? Decide on what you want to sell and research it as much as you can. If you try to sell too many different types of items when you first get started - you'll get overwhelmed with it.

How did you come up with the name of your eBay store? LOL....several years ago I ate lunch with some women at a Chinese restaurant. One of the women said something like, "look they have a sushi buffet" and a friend of mine who has the most southern accent in the world said..."Sushi Boo Fay...sounds like the name of a....lady of the evening....(not quite her words, but you get my point). We all had a good laugh and years later I remembered how everyone liked the name Sushi Boofay....so that's what I decided to call my store! :-)

Monday, March 23, 2009

Meet Beth from DepressionGlassWarehouse

Hi all!

As promised, I am going to start a series of interviews with successful eCommerce sellers this week. Many sell at eBay, but others sell at Amazon, Bonanzle, etc. I think you will find their interviews interesting!

Today I would like to introduce Beth. Beth specializes in depression glass, and she has a wonderful broad knowledge of antiques and collectibles.

Your eBay name: I have two – main one is WOADIELAND and 2nd one is superjunk

Link to your store: http://www.depressionglasswarehouse.com

What first sparked your interest in eBay? Years ago customers at my brick and mortar store said “you should be on eBay” so I am.

What do you sell? A lot of books, lot of Depression Glass, a lot of china and then what ever else I find.

Where do you find the items you sell? – Auctions primarily

What advice would you have for a new seller? Start slow, be VERY customer oriented.

How did you come up with the name of your eBay store? We had a LOT more Depression Glass and I was going to sell that exclusively. But depression glass is slow right now.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Coming Soon ... Some Special Interviews!

I have a fun surprise coming up that will interest anyone who is interested in selling on eBay ... stay tuned!

Vintage Sewing Patterns




I think as a result of the economy, there has been a renewed interest in vintage sewing patterns. I do especially well with 1940's - 1960's patterns. I just got in three large boxes of patterns (120 - 150 patterns total) and am having lots of fun looking at the old designs and listing them.