Too often new sellers on eBay make the mistake of believing that a drab, boring auction listing won't really hurt the sales potential of their item. News flash: it will.
The funny thing is that most new eBay sellers began as eBay buyers, but quickly forgot the buying lessons they implicitly learned when they began to sell. New sellers, think back to all of your buying experiences on eBay and ask yourself a few pointed rhetorical questions:
- How often have you bid on listings that didn't feature a photo?
- How often have you bid on listings whose description was a single paragraph? Even more to the point, how often if that single paragraph was a short one?
- Have you ever passed a listing up because you didn't feel that it gave you enough information to make an informed decision?
- Have you ever opted to purchase the item in one listing rather than another simply because the listing was better—more visually appealing, more informative, more colorful—even if the prices and sellers were otherwise similar?
The truth is that the appearance and content of your listings matter. It isn't enough simply to post an item to eBay by name and expect buyers to know what it is and whether or not they want it. On eBay, you're competing with several or perhaps even dozens of other sellers peddling the same wares as you. So don't post drab, boring listings.
What To Do Instead
You don't have to run a design firm or hire an in-house photographer or graphic artist just to bring your item listings up to snuff. Think about these points next time you list an item for sale and you'll be fine.- Use HTML. Even if it's only the little bit of HTML you'll find in the survival guide, your auctions will perform much better if you're able to separate paragraphs, insert blank lines, bold titles, and perform other basic text formatting tasks that you take for granted in any other document.
- Always include a photo. Even a horrible, underexposed, off-center, out-of-focus photo is better than no photo. Most buyers shop visually. At the subconscious level, for most shoppers, if there's no photo there's no item.
- Use the listing designer. If you feel as though your HTML skills are lacking and you want that little bit of extra pop to put your own listing ahead of everyone else's, consider using the listing designer when you list your item. It's inexpensive, the layouts are professionally made, and it really does make a difference.
- Include all of the relevant information. When you list an item, post as much helpful and informative information about your item as you're able. Don't stop at what the item is called and what color it is. Include the basic specifications, the condition it's in, how much use it's seen, why you're selling, how you'd rate it as a product—anything you'd want to know if you were buying.
All of these things add up to one thing: respect for your buyer. By formatting your auction well, including an illustrative photo, and providing as much information as you're able, you'll draw buyers to your listing as opposed to others that might be on eBay—and you'll be rewarded for it with more and higher bids.
