New Page Mage an Interactive eBay Listing Tool!

Now, you have to remember, my experience with Page Mage; I heard the name Page Mage, I looked at the Web site. I then received a Welcome beta tester letter. I went to the web site and 20 mins later, through mistakes and not knowing what I was doing…I created my first listing:

Essential Top 5 Tips for Attending Antiques Roadshow

My husband and I have been trying for the last 5 years to attend one of these shows. We finally received our tickets and I thought my husband won the lottery! I heard yelling coming from our home office…and went rushing..he was holding up the Golden Tickets!! And the journey began…

Is eBay Becoming a Buyer’s Market?

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I’ve been selling on eBay since 1998. I recently (2006), made eBay my full time job and love. I started out by selling what I love most, books. I found a pallet of books I bought for $70.00 and quickly turned that investment into over $2000.00!

I knew I did something right! I am now into the collectible and glassware categories and enjoy what I do very much. I shop estate sales, garage sales, thrift stores, anywhere I can find these type items at the right price for resell.

Up until 2009, I found it almost impossible to find items on eBay for a good price to resell. Most items were priced right. At least in the collectibles and vintage glassware categories. I very rarely found any items worth my while after paying shipping, etc. I could make money to resell.

All of that has changed! Since the change in policies, fees, etc. on eBay and more eBay sellers leaving to other sites…eBay has become a Buyer’s Market! Items on eBay right now have become so low on items it is almost impossible to browse eBay without finding at least one or two items that are priced so low, you just can’t NOT buy them!

The reason is simple. The older more experienced sellers who have learned selling basics, how to price their items to the market price, how to use auction strategy to sell their items, have left eBay. There are newer more inexperienced sellers arriving everyday. It is a shame for them. There is help for them on every ’street’ corner of the Internet, if they are willing to listen. Lots of experienced sellers are offering tips and tricks to help them along. Not that many are willing to admit they don’t know, or don’t know what they’re missing.

Now, I’m not suggesting that there should be a run on unsuspecting new sellers. But the items are there to be bought. If I find an item that is grossly under marked, I do my best to give the seller the info needed. Sometimes they do get angry, but most do appreciate the help.

For those of you antique buyers, just an example. I watched a bronze tray, signed by the artist (French). The auction started at 500.00, this price was actually very low for a very highly collectible artist who also did sculptures in bronze. No sale, next listing, down to 450.00, no sale…375.00, no sale. I continued to watch as this seller lowered the price all the way down to a starting bid of 199.00.
I don’t believe this is a sign of the times, I just sold a cabinet plate for $500.00…It is the absence of buyers in a buyer’s market!

This same tray would’ve sold on Amazon for much more than 500.00 in the first listing. With that said, I will label Amazon a seller’s market.

So now we know, to sell an item…go to Amazon, try your hand…but to find really good prices to buy, right now…go to eBay!

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Antique, Collectible Sellers..Looking For A New Venue to Sell Your Items?

I’ve been a member of eBay since 1998, I admit it…I really haven’t tried too many other online selling sites until around September of 2008. Since then, I’ve built up my portfolio of online selling venues.

Lets face it, we don’t want to have to admit it, but you need to diversify to stay in the game. As crazy as it sounds, its true. In todays world, you have to put your eggs in several baskets. For a seller like myself, I don’t have a lot of capital to pay fees for setup, monthly fee, picture hosting, commission, etc. My category of sales I went looking for was Antiques. I have quite a few Antique items to list. They have been listed on eBay before and have not sold. For those of you who have not noticed…lately eBay has become a buyer’s playground! Sellers are practically giving their items away! I refuse to do this.

So I went on the big Search! First stop, you know where…GoAntiques.com. Fees…next, Tias, Ruby Lane, etc. Fees, fees and more fees! I really thought I was not going to find a site.

Then while reading a monthly newsletter put out by Kovell’s online, I ran across ‘www. SeeAuctions.com’  NO FEES!

Now before all you electronic dealers and others get excited…. This site is only for Antiques and Collectibles. They even define the words on the site! This site is absolutely brilliant! If you sign up now until March 2009, you will have 1 Year of free service! No fees, no commissions, no picture hosting, no fees, no how!

This site appears to be a very hands on site by the owners. In fact, before they activate your account, you will receive a call from one of the owners asking what you intend to list. They then will make up their mind if you are indeed the type person they want in their community. They do this to keep the community spirit. I believe it has kept a lot of riff raff out of the sellers on this site.

The site is well worth you checking it out. The URL is: www.seeauctions.com

Click HERE to go to one of my auction pages. They also allow you to  use Paypal, Google Checkout, Cash, Money Order, Cashiers Check, etc.

One of my favorite features; If two people are bidding on your item in the last few minutes of the bid, lets say someone bids in at 5min left to go, the countdown clock is reset back to 5min. It will reset back as long as people are bidding. An auction does not automatically close on two bidders who are fighting over your item! So you can get higher prices for your items!

If you really want to find that special place to list your Antiques and Collectibles, this is it! This site actually is exactly how eBay used to be like before it became the multi-billion dollar enity it is today. I believe the bigger a Company gets, the harder it is to see the bottom rung of the ladder. It’s unfortunate, because its the customers standing on the the bottom rung and we pay their salaries!

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eBay Not Protecting Sellers on Paper Payments Ban?

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I am a daily ready of a blog by Ina Steiner called ‘The Auctionbytes Blog’. If you don’t already subscribe to this blog, you need to start now! This blog has the most up-to-the-minute information for online sellers available anywhere!

To join, click here AuctionBytes Blog.

Well, as usual, she reports the scandals as well as the news. Yesterday, a post brought out all the pent up frustration eBay sellers have been feeling for some time now. The post addressed a problem a seller had with accepting a paper payment from a buyer. Read the post here:

eBay Not Standing with Sellers on Paper-Payments Ban

By: Ina Steiner

Wed Feb 4 2009 10:19:44

A long-time AuctionBytes reader forwarded us an email from eBay that shows that, at least in one situation, eBay is not supporting sellers who comply with its paper-payments ban. The seller asked eBay for help in a transaction in which the buyer said he needed to pay by check because he didn’t have a PayPal account. Since eBay bans sellers from accepting checks and money orders as part of its Accepted Payments policy, the seller reported the request to eBay, explaining he did not accept checks and had long ago set his account to block any buyer who did not have a PayPal account. The seller ended the communication to eBay with the following: So we are surprised that in 2009 we received the following message from a buyer: I need to pay by check. I dont have a paypal account. thanks (name of buyer withheld) The eBay customer service representative apparently skimmed the letter and thought it was the buyer who had sent eBay the email. He replied to the seller, thinking his letter was going to the buyer in the transaction. Nowhere in the response to the “buyer” did the representative explain that it was eBay’s policy to ban sellers from accepting checks. Rather, the rep apologized to the buyer for the difficulty he was having with the transaction, and encouraged him to contact the seller. But the real punch line is this part of eBay’s letter to the supposed buyer: “If you’re still unable to reach the seller by email or by phone after a reasonable amount of time, we encourage you to leave appropriate Feedback. This will alert other bidders about your experience. Here’s how to leave Feedback,…” Is this a case of one eBay customer service rep who doesn’t understand eBay’s Accepted Payments policy? Or has eBay failed to communicate to its reps that sellers are banned from accepting checks? Or does eBay condone its reps telling buyers it’s okay to neg a seller if they don’t accept checks, even though eBay bans sellers for advertising that they accept them? Well, the comments started flying. Most of them to do with sellers having the same situation. It was really an eye opener to me to see how many sellers were still not clear on the policy! The new policy states, No listing can have a reference to a paper payment ie. check, Money Order, etc. However, if a buyer does not have a Paypal account, he can contact the Seller to see if the Seller will accept a paper payment. No problem. So the answer of course is, yes…Sellers can accept paper payments – they just can’t tell anyone they accept them! I think this is due to the fact that eBay cannot force customers to open a Paypal account to buy items on its site. That would lead to…ummm, a monopoly?! I’ve had my own ups and my downs with eBay. Do I still sell on eBay? Yes. I have several sites I sell on, but the fact remains…eBay is my money maker!

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Winter Weather Delays

Severe winter weather in the U.S. is affecting all transportation carriers. UPS operations have been impacted, including UPS WorldPort, our main air hub in Louisville, KY. Poor highway conditions have also affected ground and freight transportation. UPS has deployed contingency plans and is making every effort to keep your shipments moving.