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March 25, 2007
Heirloom Plants Sell Briskly Even In Colder Weather
I adore heirloom plants and wondered if there is a market on eBay, even when it''s not really time to plant yet - at least in most of North America. I was surprised to discover that there are many sales of heirloom plants - and some of them are VERY expensive:
My greatest interest in tomatoes and there is a seller on eBay who apparently specializes in just tomatoes since her eBay ID is "tomatogirl"
Amazing the niches folks find!
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 12:48 PM | TrackBack
March 23, 2007
Above Ground Swimming Pools Sell On eBay
Above ground swimming pools are an expensive item, obviously. In a way, I can see that someone would turn to eBay to buy one - but I can't imagine that they're an easy item to install, so I would prefer a local outfit where I could get some help. However, obviously the sales of above ground swimming pools are successful on eBay:
What's interesting isn't that these pools have sold - what's interesting is the timing! After all, this was the first half of March when a big percentage of the country was buried under snow. I read an article which stated that above ground pools are favored for:
* Ease of installation and maintenance
* Safety
* Cost efficiency
Personally, I wouldn't want to install one, but when it comes to that kind of work I am definitely a wussie!
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 12:33 PM | TrackBack
March 20, 2007
Swimming Pool Accessories Beginning To Stir On eBay
Swimming pool accessories are beginning to become interesting to eBay buyers, proving once again the importance of focusing on seasonal items. This morning there were 2222 items related to "swimming pool" on eBay and in a month or two, that number will have exploded. Some of the swimming pool goodies sold on eBay include:
* Pumps
* pH testers
* Swimming pool party invitations
* Solar heaters
And a ton of other accessories and even entire swimming pools:
Note that this seller is taking advantage of eBay's new geo-targeting feature. That makes complete sense when selling an item like this. Shipping it would be possible, but dreadful.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 12:10 PM | TrackBack
March 17, 2007
Faberge Eggs Auction Proves Product Is Everything
Faberge eggs are certainly rare and expensive. Even art ignoramuses like me know that. But an interesting auction, in which a Faberge egg sold for $7500, show the power of the merchandise. The auction itself is pretty awful - it's one giant paragraph:
The pictures are excellent but the language is filled with errors. I'm presuming that the seller is not a native English speaker, and no fault to him for that. But the grammar is awkward and there are many spelling errors:
"THE EGG HAS A SPECIAL LOCKING MECHANISM-YOU HAVE TO ROTATE IT COUNTERCLOCKWISE TILL IT STOP,AND THEN TO PULL IT OUT... THIS IS A REAL MUSEUM EXPONENT! HAW OFFEN YOU CAN SEE A 100% GENUINE FABERGE EGG ONLINE?"
Obviously, creating good listings vastly increases our chances for profitable sales. However, if the item(s) for sale are in high demand, none of that matters.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 2:55 PM | TrackBack
March 13, 2007
Antique Postcards Bring Substantial eBay Prices
Antique postcards have some strong sales on eBay. The biggest prices come from "lots", meaning large numbers of postcards at one time: $2,450.00 for $24,000 cards or $1,983.00 for 14,000 postcards. But individual ones have some huge price tags, like this creepy thing of Hitler which went for $918.88.
Or this one titled "FRANZ LISZT 1885 WEIMAR" which sold for $1,250.
There are postcards that sold for high prices that aren't in English like "BRAZIL 1911 Rio Grande do Sul Port Postcard" for which someone paid $750.
Clearly, this is not a niche for the uninformed (like me). I have no idea where anyone would find 24,000 postcards in a group and I have no idea why anyone would pay so much for a single postcard. Be wary of collectibles markets that you don't understand. Of course, educating yourself might be very worthwhile financially.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 2:34 PM | TrackBack
March 10, 2007
Vintage Poster Art Big Seller On eBay
Vintage poster art has a substantial presence on eBay. This morning, for example, there were 32,462 posters for sale. Vintage ones are especially popular and some of the prices are amazing to a person like me who knows nothing at all about posters. Some of the subject matter I never even heard of like this "Fernando Botero, Theater Festival Poster 1977" which had 13 bids and sold for $6,000.
Other material, though, was more familiar.
* A 1959 Picasso entitled "Les Menines" which sold for $560.00.
* A 1961 of "Breakfast at Tiffany's went for $3,000+. {I ADORED that movie. It was Audrey Hepburn at her very best.}
* A 1939 New York World’s Fair sold for $1563.20
* A 1933 Chicago World’s Fair sold for $1499.42. {Who knew the World's fair was so popular?}
* In the Asian art poster auction market, there seems to be some really odd things. I found a poster that depicted McDonald’s hamburgers invading Japan. The poster got fourteen bids from six different people and it closed at four hundred fifty five dollars.
* Impressionist art poster auctions sell well on eBay. One about the 2006 Jazz Festival in New Orleans sold for $400+. The artist was a cajun named James Michalopulos who obviously loves brilliant, jazzy colors because his Fats Domino portrait was breathtaking.
* Modern art posters seem to be the most popular. The owner of a "Love Me Tender", the famous Elvis movie, attracts a ton of interest but the owner insists on $1,000. Since the poster hasn't yet reached that level, he continues to refuse to sell.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 1:32 PM | TrackBack
March 7, 2007
New Auction Genius Course Begins March 24
On Saturday, March 24, we will begin a new Auction Genius Course. Hard to believe that this will be the 23rd time I've taught this class. My current session is quite exciting since it's the second time I will teach my new Auction Genius Wealth Plan, so by the next class it will be even better.
However, I'm not sure that we're going to continue teaching the Wealth Plan within the regular classes. So sign up now, just in case. And if you'd like a copy of our FREE Wealth Report, grab it now.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 12:12 PM | TrackBack
March 4, 2007
eBay Map It: Will "Map It" Be Permanent On eBay
The new eBay Map It service is apparently a test by eBay to see if it will boost sales. It's truly focused on items that are geographically desirable, like furniture, boats, cars and other large items. Let's say I'm looking for a piece of antique furniture. I want to check out eBay first in the hopes that I can grab up a bargain ...
Voila! According to Map It there are 15 armoires in my area. Not only can I see pictures, prices, etc., but I also get a map that shows me their location. All I need to do is talk with the seller and go take a look at my possible new acquisition.
This is experimental and there is a suggestion box that allows us to give eBay our opinion. Personally, I like it and if you do, too, let them know so they'll keep it around.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 11:10 AM | TrackBack
March 1, 2007
The eBay Police Blotter
Are you familiar with the eBay Police Blotter? According to eBay:
"The purpose of the Police Blotter is to share information with the Community about our efforts with law enforcement around the world. As you know, eBay Inc. is committed to creating a safe, well lit marketplace. When people break our policies, violate consumer trust and the law of the land, eBay and PayPal work with law enforcement agencies around the world to apprehend and prosecute fraudsters. For that reason, eBay created the Global Law Enforcement Operations team."
http://pages.ebay.com/securitycenter/law_case_study.html
Frankly, though, it's not very impressive at this time. But Mike Rou, an eBay spokesman says there's much more going on behind the scenes:
# We contributed to 549 arrests since January 2006, resulting in 351 prison years for the convicted criminals involved
# We disrupted a major Tanzanian theft ring responsible for stealing $6MM in Hewlett Packard servers
# We facilitated the first case between the Chinese Immigration and Customs Enforcement and China police which involved $840,000 in counterfeit DVDs
# We trained around 200 Romanian police, judges and prosecutors on how to investigate and prosecute cyber criminals
Let's hope their efforts pay off because Net fraud is a truly threatening problem and one we all need to be concerned about, both as buyers and sellers.
