I know, it's not a very exciting one. And I can't believe my pedicure has lasted this long!
Friday, April 30, 2010
My First Picture with the New Working Capital
Holy Hell, I Started a Business!
This week as I was obsessively watching over my watched pot (and you know what they say about those), it really dawned on me: holy cow, I've started a business!
Granted, it's a small business. A tiny business, really. But it's a business. I have a brand (Not Your Mama's eBay), I have inventory, I have working capital (I'll have more working capital after I buy that new camera!), I have processes and I have customers. I also have a part-time employee (your truly) who's in charge of Finance, Operations, Marketing, Logistics and Strategy.
Sometimes when I'm not compulsively checking my eBay, twitter, Facebook or blog stats, I think: why am I doing this? This is stupid. Why am I investing so much time, energy and emotional commitment into this pseudo-business that really only makes me peanuts (which reminds me, I have to update my sales stats!). Then I remember the answer - the thrill I get from having created something that I own and control. The adrenaline rush from having one of my items sell, and from connecting to people all over the world who chose ME - out of all the other, vastly superior options on eBay - to spend their money on. It's strangely flattering, unbelievable humbling and incredibly exciting all at once. I highly recommend it.
Now I'm off to invest in my business. Watch this space for the first pictures with my brand new camera!
Granted, it's a small business. A tiny business, really. But it's a business. I have a brand (Not Your Mama's eBay), I have inventory, I have working capital (I'll have more working capital after I buy that new camera!), I have processes and I have customers. I also have a part-time employee (your truly) who's in charge of Finance, Operations, Marketing, Logistics and Strategy.
Sometimes when I'm not compulsively checking my eBay, twitter, Facebook or blog stats, I think: why am I doing this? This is stupid. Why am I investing so much time, energy and emotional commitment into this pseudo-business that really only makes me peanuts (which reminds me, I have to update my sales stats!). Then I remember the answer - the thrill I get from having created something that I own and control. The adrenaline rush from having one of my items sell, and from connecting to people all over the world who chose ME - out of all the other, vastly superior options on eBay - to spend their money on. It's strangely flattering, unbelievable humbling and incredibly exciting all at once. I highly recommend it.
Now I'm off to invest in my business. Watch this space for the first pictures with my brand new camera!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Unpaid Item
Remember that cute Banana Republic sundress that did so well in an auction recently? Well, I've yet to hear from the buyer or receive my payment, even though I've emailed them three times (nicely) and have said it's ok if they want to mutually cancel the transaction (which won't leave a mark on their record).
At this point, I think I will have to file an Unpaid Item Dispute, but don't want to because I have heard of buyers who after losing such a dispute leave the seller negative feedback. And we all know how I react to negative feedback! On the other hand, I can't relist or sell the dress because I'm legally obligated to sell it to the person that won it, and if they do reappear down the road they'd have a legitimate claim to it.
Oy. Wish me luck. I'm sure you'll be hearing more about this in the near future.
At this point, I think I will have to file an Unpaid Item Dispute, but don't want to because I have heard of buyers who after losing such a dispute leave the seller negative feedback. And we all know how I react to negative feedback! On the other hand, I can't relist or sell the dress because I'm legally obligated to sell it to the person that won it, and if they do reappear down the road they'd have a legitimate claim to it.
Oy. Wish me luck. I'm sure you'll be hearing more about this in the near future.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
3 Things eBay Sellers Do that Make Me NOT Want to Buy Their Items
Granted, I am still a novice at this eBay selling thing, but as I've gotten more and more involved in the world of eBay - navigating through the seller boards, networking with other sellers, researching other people's listings, etc... - I've picked up on a few habits I plan to stay CLEAR of in my own trade.
If you're a buyer on eBay, be on the lookout for some of these to make sure you get the highest quality experience.
3 eBay Seller Don'ts in "Not Your Mama's" Book
1) Don't overcharge for shipping. I'm not an idiot. It does NOT cost $15 to ship a 2 lb item from New York to Chicago Parcel Post. Just so you guys know, when an item is under 13 oz, sellers have an option of sending the item First Class mail. This can cost as little as $2.50. Now, Priority Mail items under 1 lb usually cost around $6 or thereabouts, depending on how far the item is going, and items under 2 lbs usually go for about $8 or $9. Now, some sellers will tell you they also paid for shipping materials, but in my mind that is an overhead cost just like eBay seller fees or Paypal fees and there is no reason to pass that cost on to the customer. Just my 2 cents.
2) Don't make the buyer work. I listed an item on my Facebook page that is a perfect example of this. The seller had posted the picture of the item sideways. SIDEways. Could that seller not have taken 2 more seconds to put the picture right side up so the buyer wouldn't have to work to figure out what the flipping item looked like? That listing ended for $11, with only 3 bids. I mean really, would you click on this if it showed up in search results?: http://cgi.ebay.com/Banana-Republic-Dress-Jade-Color-Size-10-/250617840938?cmd=ViewItem&pt=US_CSA_WC_Dresses&hash=item3a59fcc52a#ht_500wt_975
There is a corollary to this mistake, and that is: 2a) Answer the Buyer's Flipping Question! It's happened more than once that I contact a seller to ask a question about an item and get absolutely NO response. Whenever a buyer contacts me about one of my items, I am ECSTATIC someone is showing interest. I use this interaction as an opportunity to impress the buyer, in the hope it will pursuade them to BUY BUY BUY. So please, don't treat me like you're doing me a favor by selling me your stuff.
3) Don't be so defensive! Trading on eBay is not without its risks. eBay protects buyers by establishing some rules that can put sellers in a vulneable position. Sellers try to protect themselves from this by putting all sorts of exclusions, restrictions and rules in their listings. Seriously, I've seen some listings that would give the Soup Nazi a run for his money.
Here's a good one I found while browsing:
Thanks for listening to my rant - I needed that.
If you're a buyer on eBay, be on the lookout for some of these to make sure you get the highest quality experience.
3 eBay Seller Don'ts in "Not Your Mama's" Book
1) Don't overcharge for shipping. I'm not an idiot. It does NOT cost $15 to ship a 2 lb item from New York to Chicago Parcel Post. Just so you guys know, when an item is under 13 oz, sellers have an option of sending the item First Class mail. This can cost as little as $2.50. Now, Priority Mail items under 1 lb usually cost around $6 or thereabouts, depending on how far the item is going, and items under 2 lbs usually go for about $8 or $9. Now, some sellers will tell you they also paid for shipping materials, but in my mind that is an overhead cost just like eBay seller fees or Paypal fees and there is no reason to pass that cost on to the customer. Just my 2 cents.
2) Don't make the buyer work. I listed an item on my Facebook page that is a perfect example of this. The seller had posted the picture of the item sideways. SIDEways. Could that seller not have taken 2 more seconds to put the picture right side up so the buyer wouldn't have to work to figure out what the flipping item looked like? That listing ended for $11, with only 3 bids. I mean really, would you click on this if it showed up in search results?: http://cgi.ebay.com/Banana-Republic-Dress-Jade-Color-Size-10-/250617840938?cmd=ViewItem&pt=US_CSA_WC_Dresses&hash=item3a59fcc52a#ht_500wt_975
There is a corollary to this mistake, and that is: 2a) Answer the Buyer's Flipping Question! It's happened more than once that I contact a seller to ask a question about an item and get absolutely NO response. Whenever a buyer contacts me about one of my items, I am ECSTATIC someone is showing interest. I use this interaction as an opportunity to impress the buyer, in the hope it will pursuade them to BUY BUY BUY. So please, don't treat me like you're doing me a favor by selling me your stuff.
3) Don't be so defensive! Trading on eBay is not without its risks. eBay protects buyers by establishing some rules that can put sellers in a vulneable position. Sellers try to protect themselves from this by putting all sorts of exclusions, restrictions and rules in their listings. Seriously, I've seen some listings that would give the Soup Nazi a run for his money.
Here's a good one I found while browsing:
- You MUST send payment within 3 days.
- NO International shipping.
- Your bid is a BINDING contract. MUST send payment within 3 days. (Twice, in case you failed to notice the first time)
- NO RETURNS. Your bid constitutes your acknowledgement to having read the listing and agreeing with the conditions.
- You MUST ask all questions before bidding.
- NO returns.
Thanks for listening to my rant - I needed that.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
To My Friend Who Wants the Scarf...
... you know who you are. :) It's been listed now. I replaced the link below the picture to the right.Monday, April 26, 2010
The Secret Lives of Buyers
So, I was telling a couple of my colleagues at work today that there is SO MUCH stuff that happens behind the scenes at the eBay store that I would LOVE to share in the blog, but can't for fear of offending my customers. Kooky things. Really and truly kooky things. But also cool things.
Part of the reason I started this blog was after having traded on eBay a couple of times, I often ended a transaction wondering who the buyer was and why they wanted my item. What they saw in it, whether they planned to wear it to a particular event, whether they were going to resell it, that sort of thing. Transactions on eBay can be so ... ROBOTIC. Silent, almost. I don't do that. I don't like that. I break the silence, all the time. Sometimes buyers like it, and sometimes they don't.
For example, whenever a buyer pays I let them know I received their payment and give them an estimate for when their item will ship. Then I track their item to make sure it arrived, and once it shows up as having arrived I contact them again to make sure it was what they were expecting. I don't do it to get them to leave feedback, it's just a way of handling anxiety but mostly a way to get a peek into my item's new home.
I'll give you an example. I hope the buyer doesn't mind my sharing this with you. I recently sold a very pretty article of clothing from a pseudo-designer mall brand that tends to be very expensive. The garment was unique, partly because of the item itself but mostly because it was a couple of years old and no longer available. When I contacted the buyer to check whether the item had arrived intact and whether they were pleased with their purchase, they told me they had actually wanted to buy that item when it first came out a few years ago but couldn't afford it then, so they couldn't believe their eyes when there it was listed on eBay!
That's the sort of stuff that makes my day!
Here's what I'm secretly hoping. I'm secretly hoping one of my buyers will read my blog and leave me a comment! I've always wanted to create a closer connection between the store-world and the blog world, but I haven't quite figured out how yet. So, if you're one of my buyers and you're reading this, would you mind dropping me a "hi"?
Part of the reason I started this blog was after having traded on eBay a couple of times, I often ended a transaction wondering who the buyer was and why they wanted my item. What they saw in it, whether they planned to wear it to a particular event, whether they were going to resell it, that sort of thing. Transactions on eBay can be so ... ROBOTIC. Silent, almost. I don't do that. I don't like that. I break the silence, all the time. Sometimes buyers like it, and sometimes they don't.
For example, whenever a buyer pays I let them know I received their payment and give them an estimate for when their item will ship. Then I track their item to make sure it arrived, and once it shows up as having arrived I contact them again to make sure it was what they were expecting. I don't do it to get them to leave feedback, it's just a way of handling anxiety but mostly a way to get a peek into my item's new home.
I'll give you an example. I hope the buyer doesn't mind my sharing this with you. I recently sold a very pretty article of clothing from a pseudo-designer mall brand that tends to be very expensive. The garment was unique, partly because of the item itself but mostly because it was a couple of years old and no longer available. When I contacted the buyer to check whether the item had arrived intact and whether they were pleased with their purchase, they told me they had actually wanted to buy that item when it first came out a few years ago but couldn't afford it then, so they couldn't believe their eyes when there it was listed on eBay!
That's the sort of stuff that makes my day!
Here's what I'm secretly hoping. I'm secretly hoping one of my buyers will read my blog and leave me a comment! I've always wanted to create a closer connection between the store-world and the blog world, but I haven't quite figured out how yet. So, if you're one of my buyers and you're reading this, would you mind dropping me a "hi"?
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