My daughter Melanie seemed to think the background I had on this blog was boring, so she has changed it to this darker one. I like the way you can see what the posts say so clearly, but I find it hard to read any of the areas on the side because of the black background.
Please tell me what you think. Do you have trouble reading this blog the way it’s designed right now?
Update: I think I am sticking with this computer theme. Easy on the eyes and easy to find things.
For those of you who attended my last eBay workshop this past Saturday, we had some problems uploading our little Blue Mountain Duck to put it up for sale. I realized after that it was because I listed it on the new buyer identity that I created that day, but I hadn’t confirmed the account by email.
Bottom Line: None of that hard work we did on the title and description was saved, although I thought I kept it as a draft. I still have the photos and plan to list the item this Sunday night, since it will get more traffic then. Unless someone from the group still has the information you wrote for that cute little duck and wants to email it to me, I will have to create a new one. Sorry about that, but it was still a useful practice exercise. So keep your eye on this site and I will give you the auction link.
And speaking of past auctions, if anyone from the summer workshops wondered how our Simpsons’ toys fared on eBay - you naysayers were right. They didn’t sell. But at least we tried.
Bid: telling eBay’s system the maximum price you are prepared to pay for an item.
Dutch: an auction where more than one of an item is available.
Feedback: positive or negative comments left about other users on eBay.
Mint: in perfect condition.
Non-paying bidder: a bidder who wins an auction but does not then go on to buy the item.
PayPal: an electronic payment method accepted by most sellers.
Rare: once meant hard to find, but used so often on eBay, it’s now meaningless.
Reserve: the minimum price the seller will accept for the item.
Shill bid: a fake bid placed by a seller trying to drive up their auction’s price (not allowed).
Snail Mail: the post, which is obviously very slow compared to email.
Sniping: bidding at the last second to win the item before anyone else can outbid you.
When buying on eBay, you will come across a number of abbreviations, some of which are listed here. As a seller, using these abbreviations will sometimes be necessary, especially when you want to describe something in the title of your item, which has very limited space for text.
BIN: Buy it Now. A fixed price auction.
BNWT: Brand New With Tags. An item that has never been used and still has its original tags.
BW: Black and White. Used for films, photos etc.
EUR: Euro Currency.
FC: First Class. Type of postage.
GBP: Great British Pounds Currency.
HTF: Hard To Find. Not quite as misused as ‘rare’, but getting there.
NIB: New in Box. Never opened, still in its original box.
NR: No Reserve. An item where the seller has not set a reserve price.
OB: Original Box. An item that has its original box (but might have been opened).
PM: Priority Mail.
PP: Parcel Post.
SH: Shipping and Handling. The fees the buyer will pay for postage.
USD: United States Dollars Currency.
VGC: Very Good Condition. Not mint, but close.
For some great ideas of products that are in demand on eBay, check overlookedtreasure. There are a number of very unusual items people are looking for, many that you probably have never thought about.
A drop shipper allows you to list their items on your auction, using their description and photos. They charge you a wholesale price and you charge a higher price. When you sell the item, you email the buyer information to the drop shipper and they ship the item to the buyer with your name on the package. Use caution when choosing a drop shipper. Many of them are middlemen and not true wholesalers.
