Simple Steps To Increase Your Sales on Bonanza
April 12, 2012 by The Selling Sisters
Filed under How To..., Motivation, Pinching Pennies, Social Media (Twitter, Facebook, etc), Success!, Working At Home
About a year ago, I set up a booth on Bonanza.com.
I import my eBay items to it almost every week so the new items that I listed will be added and the items that have sold on eBay will be deleted.
Using Pinterest For Your Business
February 1, 2012 by The Selling Sisters
Filed under Ebay, Etsy, Marketing, Social Media (Twitter, Facebook, etc)
Have you considered using Pinterest for your business?
Pinterest specifically asks that you not use Pinterest only for promoting your business and to follow etiquette, you probably shouldn’t post a majority of pins from your own things. But I believe it’s acceptable to post a few things from your shop–perhaps on a board devoted to your business. That way people aren’t stuck following your business pins if they are not interested in them.
I have an account on Pinterest that I use so I can find all my bookmarks and remember why I actually bookmarked them in the 1st place. I also “pin” things that I think are pretty or funny just because I feel like it. I doubt that I’ll ever do a majority of the things I pin, but I like looking for ideas now and then.
I created a board for my Etsy shop which you can see here. A great tip is to type the price in the description. If you do so, a banner appears across the photo advertising the price.
So, have you considered using Pinterest as a way to share your business?
Do you have Pinterest boards? Share a link in the comments.
Should You Blog?~Repost
January 24, 2012 by The Selling Sisters
Filed under Social Media (Twitter, Facebook, etc)
The short answer is yes of course you should.
The more lengthy answer is it depends.
Blogs are another tool in promoting your business and can be a great way to share your story.
The best blogs I’ve read from online sellers are a nice mix of personal life and business. I don’t care to read a blog that only posts items for sale.
I also don’t care for blogs that only post photos of their children. I know we all think our babies are the best and the cutest and the smartest (and they are!) but everyone else doesn’t want to see every thing your child does every day. Please don’t post photos of dirty food faces and tantrum throwing children all the time!
A well placed personal story or photo is appropriate although you may want to establish boundaries for what you will share online with your business contacts.
Feel free to share a tutorial, a recipe, a link to something you enjoyed, or your thoughts for the day. Mix in the items you are selling and information about your business and you’ve got an easy way to put a more personal spin on your business.
To Start a Blog:
1. Think of a name that represents you or your business well.
2. Sign up for a free account at Wordpress or Blogger. Both of my blogs happen to be domains that I paid for. I didn’t start out paying for a blog and it’s not necessary to buy a domain unless you have a specific need to do so.
3. Start posting and sharing your link.
4. Realize that building a blog takes time and promotion. Share your links, leave comments on other blogs, put a link in your email signature…
5. Choose how many times a week you will post and establish a routine.
6. Remember copyright rules. Don’t copy a post from someone else–instead post a link and send people to the author’s blog or article.
Stealing photos is a big no no too.
7. Find blogging help online. Blogging Basics 101 is one of my favorites.
If you already blog, please share your blog in a comment. If you decide to start one someday, please come back and leave a comment then.
Business Blogs I Read
January 17, 2012 by The Selling Sisters
Filed under Ebay, Etsy, Marketing, Motivation, Selling Sisters, Social Media (Twitter, Facebook, etc)
Of course The Selling Sisters (goes without mentioning…)
What about you? What blogs do you read about/for business?
Update on Other Online Selling Venues
July 11, 2011 by The Selling Sisters
Filed under Marketing, Social Media (Twitter, Facebook, etc), Working At Home
In addition to posting my listings on eBay, and putting my handmade items on Etsy, I’ve also imported my eBay listings to Addoway, Bonanza and eCrater.
While all of them are good sites, personally, I think I’ve done the best on Bonanza.
My eBay sales are by far the highest of any of the venues, but every little bit helps. I’ve noticed that 95% of my sales have been plush animals……I’m not exactly sure why, but I’m thankful for every sale that comes my way.
Keep in mind that when you sell an item on one of these venues, you want to end the item on eBay ASAP (or change your inventory quantity, whichever applies to your situation) so that you don’t end up selling an item on eBay that you’ve already shipped out to another buyer.
I’m thinking of closing my eCrater account.
The problem that I’m having is when I import to eCrater from my eBay store, it doesn’t always cancel the eCrater listings that are no longer listed on eBay (for instance, the item has already sold, or I deleted it from eBay) so, I end up selling items on eCrater that have already sold on eBay and have to refund their transaction and email them to explain.
Someone also told me about yardsellr.com.
I signed up for an account, but I haven’t listed anything on the site yet because they don’t have an eBay importer (at least not yet) so, I would have to copy and paste the listings that I want to post on their site. With over 1,000 items listed, this would be a MAJOR project for me, and I’m not sure if it’s something I’m willing to invest time and effort into.
Let me know how your sales on other venues are going, or if you have another site you highly recommend selling on.
