10 eBay Strategies That Maximize Your Sales and Profits

<p>Do you take advantage of eBay? If not, you might be missing a huge opportunity. At 2014&nbsp;Summer NAMM, Blues Angel Music co-owner Jim DeStafney and his eBay facilitator, Sierra Williams, presented specific eBay strategies that have worked for them&mdash;based on mistakes they&rsquo;ve made since venturing into eBay nearly five years ago.<br /> <br /> <span>Their lessons learned will help take the sting out of getting started on eBay. DeStafney cited getting involved with the online auction and e-commerce platform as one of the most important factors that spurred his store&rsquo;s recent growth.</span><br /> <br /> <span>&ldquo;With 116 million buyers who visit eBay on a regular basis with money to spend, it&rsquo;s the No. 1 channel and an inexpensive way to get your store and instruments online to supplement your income,&rdquo; he said.</span><br /> <br /> <span>Along with generating sales and profit, eBay can also be an effective way to develop a store&rsquo;s identity with online consumers, according to DeStafney. He shared that his ultimate objective is to turn an eBay customer into a Blues Angel customer.</span><br /> <br /> <span>The following checklist outlines Blues Angel&rsquo;s 10 key eBay strategies. Use it to get your business successfully up and running on eBay, and watch the session video for more session highlights and ideas.</span><br /> <br /> <strong>1. Pursue used gear.</strong><span> It can be a profit-generator, and buying smart often yields big profits.</span><br /> <br /> <strong>2. Provide world-class customer service.</strong><span> You can never thank your customers enough.</span><br /> <br /> <strong>3. Be a great communicator.</strong><span> This starts with the item&rsquo;s description, but remember: All eBay communications with customers are critical.</span><br /> <br /> <strong>4. Optimize your item listing.</strong><span> Accuracy, honesty and specs are key in item descriptions.</span><br /> <br /> <strong>5. Shoot good photos. </strong><span>Set up a simple photo studio in your store with proper lighting, and use neutral backgrounds, such as black or white. Posting more photos will likely result in more activity.</span><br /> <br /> <strong>6. Become a top-rated seller.</strong><span> It improves the bottom line, eBay fees will come down, it moves listings higher, and the top-rated seller logo creates credibility.</span><br /> <br /> <strong>7.</strong><span> </span><strong>Pack and ship with pride.</strong><span> Have a dedicated shipping station, and follow the item from sale to mail with a tracking sheet.</span><br /> <br /> <strong>8.</strong><span> </span><strong>Sell to the world. </strong><span>You can safely ship internationally, and eBay sales to international customers can really pay off.</span><br /> <br /> <strong>9. Keep a positive attitude.</strong><span> Encountering eBay returns, problems and negative feedback are all part of playing the game. eBay provides seller support and advice.</span><br /> <br /> <strong>​10. Keep adding item listings.</strong><span> Set daily, weekly and monthly listing goals.</span></p>