I like catchy titles -- they're fun and yes, they catch your attention. But with eBay auctions, I believe what really matters is the facts -- with ample (appropriate) keywords.
Here are a few suggestions for book listings on eBay.
What is the title?
What is the publication date? (see copyright page -- you are looking for the latest date mentioned)
Who was the author?
Is the illustrator memorable (i.e. N.C. Wyeth, Eloise Wilkin)?
Is it a hardcover (HC) or paperback (PB)?
Is it vintage (VTG)?
Will buyers be searching by book type -- i.e. Community Cookbook, Little Golden Book, etc.?
Is it signed? Or a First Edition (1st)?
A couple of examples of titles from my own listings:
Farm Pets 1954 Junior Elf Book VTG Anna Ratzesberger
Question and Answer Book 1963 Mary Elting WONDER BOOK
I am not a fan of descriptive versus specific auction titles -- i.e. DARLING BEAGLE BOOK 1944. That is not going to catch your buyer's attention if he or she is looking for a specific book (or author, or illustrator).
I am also not a fan of wasted words -- i.e. BEAUTIFUL, LOOK, MUST SEE.
In eBay titles, I believe it's best to follow the advice of Sgt. Joe Friday from Dragnet: "Just the facts, ma'm."
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Bonanzle - A Little Bit of Mayberry in the E-Commerce World
If Mayberry was an online shopping venue, Aunt Bee would be browsing pie cookbooks and pickle jars at Bonanzle, while Sheriff Andy Taylor looked for fishing tackle, and little Opie oohed and aahed over comic books and slingshots.
Bonanzle is such a homey and cheerful site that both buyers and sellers will find much to like.
It's beautifully designed -- see the handpicked lists that appear when you first visit the main page at Bonanzle. This attention to detail follows throughout the site.
Not to be missed are the individual booths with a place to leave messages for the seller near the top of the page. If you'd like to peek at my booth at Bonanzle, you'll see what I mean: Birdhouse Books at Bonanzle.
Be sure to take a few minutes to stop by People at Bonanzle. The forums are lively and friendly and overall a very positive place, and check out the "Say Hello To" feature in the bottom left side of the screen. You can leave a friendly welcome to new members. Nice!
I've been a Bonanzle member for a while, but after retooling many of my titles and prices at eBay, decided to delete my Bonanzle listings and re-import items from eBay to freshen my Bonanzle booth.
It took the better part of a day for my 2700+ eBay items to import to Bonanzle. Then I spent the next afternoon updating shipping preferences. This was very easy with the batch editor found at My Bonanzle (top of screen). The site is intuitive and easy to navigate. Unfortunately, my HTML did not translate over, so I lost my pretty templates, and only my first photo from eBay imported.
I have had several sales at Bonanzle in the past year, and the buyers have been uniformly nice. Customer service is upbeat and responsive. It's been a positive experience, and this is an ecommerce site that I would highly recommend.
Bonanzle is such a homey and cheerful site that both buyers and sellers will find much to like.
It's beautifully designed -- see the handpicked lists that appear when you first visit the main page at Bonanzle. This attention to detail follows throughout the site.
Not to be missed are the individual booths with a place to leave messages for the seller near the top of the page. If you'd like to peek at my booth at Bonanzle, you'll see what I mean: Birdhouse Books at Bonanzle.
Be sure to take a few minutes to stop by People at Bonanzle. The forums are lively and friendly and overall a very positive place, and check out the "Say Hello To" feature in the bottom left side of the screen. You can leave a friendly welcome to new members. Nice!
I've been a Bonanzle member for a while, but after retooling many of my titles and prices at eBay, decided to delete my Bonanzle listings and re-import items from eBay to freshen my Bonanzle booth.
It took the better part of a day for my 2700+ eBay items to import to Bonanzle. Then I spent the next afternoon updating shipping preferences. This was very easy with the batch editor found at My Bonanzle (top of screen). The site is intuitive and easy to navigate. Unfortunately, my HTML did not translate over, so I lost my pretty templates, and only my first photo from eBay imported.
I have had several sales at Bonanzle in the past year, and the buyers have been uniformly nice. Customer service is upbeat and responsive. It's been a positive experience, and this is an ecommerce site that I would highly recommend.
Monday, June 7, 2010
MEP Vintage Postcards - Margaret Evans Price
I love vintage children's book illustrations and postcards designed by Margaret Evans Price. She was a noted illustrator in the 1910's - 1930's and was one of the co-founders of the Fisher Price toy company.
This Margaret Evans Price postcard is denoted by the small initials MEP near the bottom right corner of picture. It reads "Merry Christmas" and is a Stecher card. In the foreground, we see a white teddy bear with a big bow around his neck. A little girl sits under a Christmas tree with a candy cane and ball, and she reaches for a jack-in-the-box toy. An especially lovely vintage Christmas card!
You will find this card, with many other similar vintage and style cards, in my store at:
Beagle Dog and Crying Baby - Vintage Postcard
Another charming vintage postcard! A little Beagle puppy howls as baby cries. Text reads:
"A Valentine Greeting -
Your heart is true as true can be,
Good gracious, who could doubt it?
But if you ever jilted me
Here's how I'd feel about it!"
I would date this lovely card as 1910's to 1920's vintage. Very sweet and very unusual!
Love makes my feet light. - 1920s Vintage Postcard
One of those cards that is just too cute not to share. A little boy dances happily on this 1920's vintage postcard. It is from the Valentine Comic Kids Series (No. 2316). The caption reads: "Love makes my feet light."
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