Introduction 1
About This Book 1
Foolish Assumptions 2
Icons Used in This Book 3
Beyond the Book 3
Where to Go from Here 4
Book 1: eBay Basics 5
Chapter 1: Connecting with Up-to-Date Technology 7
Starting with the Right Device 7
Connecting to eBay without a Computer or While at Home 11
Choosing an ISP 12
Browsing for a Browser 13
Chapter 2: Navigating through eBay 17
Homing In on the Home Page 17
Navigating eBay the Easy Way 21
Maneuvering the Categories 25
Exploring Home Page Search Options 26
Chapter 3: Signing Up and Getting Started 27
Registering on eBay 28
Picking a Pickproof Password 33
Selecting Your User ID 34
Signing In to Deal 35
eBay’s Trust & Safety Is Watching 36
Staying Notified about the Rules 37
Abuses You Might Report 37
Don’t Get Caught in a Trading Violation 40
Chapter 4: Understanding eBay Transactions 43
Checking Out the Listing Page 43
Bidding on Auctions 49
Buying an Item Outright 53
Supercategories and Specialties 56
Chapter 5: Checking Out a Seller and Leaving Feedback 63
Understanding and Giving Feedback 63
Giving Detailed Seller Ratings Properly 66
Becoming a Star 68
Leaving Feedback with Finesse 69
Ways to Leave Feedback 72
You Have the Last Word — Replying to Feedback 73
Checking Out a Seller’s Reputation 75
Reading Feedback Reviews 76
Getting Protection on eBay 78
Chapter 6: Bidding to Win 81
Understanding the Bidding Action 82
The Secret’s in the Timing 86
My Favorite Bidding Strategies 89
Quick Bidding Tips 91
Succeeding by Sniping 92
Retracting Your Bid in an Emergency 97
Chapter 7: Completing the Transaction 99
Monitoring the Auction Action 99
Checking Out 101
Using Your Credit Card Safely 102
Paying with PayPal 104
Sending Payment Promptly and Securely 108
Contacting the Seller 109
Leaving Responsible Feedback 110
Chapter 8: Participating in the Community 115
Your Social Profile on eBay 116
Reaching the World through Your Profile Page 117
Playing Nice with Other eBay Members 120
Going Deeper into the Community 123
Book 2: Essential Tools 125
Chapter 1: Researching on eBay 127
Looking for Items with eBay’s Search 127
Searching for Items by Seller 136
Refining a Search with Other Options 137
Finding eBay Members 138
Understanding eBay’s Category Hierarchy 138
Chapter 2: Researching Collectible Prices 141
Pricing New Products for eBay via Mobile 142
Finding Pricing Trends on eBay 144
Following Collectible-Buying Guidelines 148
Online Sources of Information 152
Chapter 3: Five-Star Customer Service via Personalized Communications 157
Communicating Takes a Little Effort 158
Anticipating Initial Buyer Inquiries 158
Communicating through eBay Messages 161
Personalizing Your Buyer’s Communication 163
Chapter 4: Letting PayPal Help You Manage the Money 165
Understanding How PayPal Works 166
Sorting Out PayPal’s Different Accounts 168
PayPal’s Protection Plans 169
Downloading Your Transaction History from PayPal 172
Chapter 5: Using eBay’s Management Tools 175
Signing In to Get Going 175
Taking Charge on Your My eBay Hub 177
Looking at the My eBay Summary Page 180
Tracking Your Buying Activity on My eBay 181
Organizing My eBay Lists, Searches, and Purchases 183
My eBay: Account Tab 188
Book 3: Selling Like a Pro 193
Chapter 1: Be Sure Your Listings Make Cents 195
Keeping an Eye on Where the Pennies Go 195
eBay’s Optional Listing Features 199
Adding the Final Value Fees 203
Know Your Options in Auctions 204
PayPal Gets Its Cut 206
Setting Sensible Shipping Costs 207
Chapter 2: Understanding the Finer Points of Selling 211
Auction Selling Strategies 212
Figuring out What Day to End an Auction 216
Knowing What Time to Start Your Auction 218
Selling Items through Fixed-Price Sales 220
Making Money in Other eBay Zones 220
Selling by the Rules 224
Knowing eBay’s Listing Policies 230
Chapter 3: Listing Items for Sale 235
Getting Ready to List Your Item 235
Deciding on a Sales Format 237
Getting Your Sales Specifics in Order 237
Selecting a Category: The How and Why 239
Creating the Perfect Item Title 242
Creating Your Item Description 246
Listing Multiples of an Item for Sale with Variations 248
Setting Bids, Prices, and Reserves 249
Timing Your Auction: Is It Everything? 252
I Want to Be Alone: The Private Auction 252
Adding Visuals to Highlight Your Item 252
Listing the Payment Methods You’ll Accept 253
Where You Are and Where You’ll Ship To 254
Checking Your Work and Starting the Sale 259
Making Midcourse Corrections 260
Chapter 4: Running Your Business on eBay 263
Managing Your My eBay: All Selling Area 264
Organizing with My eBay: Active Selling 266
Using the Tools on the My eBay: Sold Page 268
Connecting with Your Customers and Checking the Money 270
Stimulating Sales from the My eBay: Unsold Page 272
Relisting Items without Extra Work 273
eBay Bidding Management Tools 274
Book 4: Sourcing Merchandise 279
Chapter 1: Understanding eRetail Marketing 281
Marketing to Your Customers 282
Knowing the Current Market 283
Catching Trends in the Media 285
Finding eBay’s Soon-to-Be-Hot Sellers 286
Taking Aim with a Six-Month Merchandise Plan 287
Pulling Together Your Inventory Data 288
Using Formulas to Calculate Business Data 289
Chapter 2: Sourcing Merchandise Like a Pro 291
Tips for the Modest Investor 292
Buying for Retail: The Basic Course 293
Buying Wholesale 302
Buying Online for Resale 307
Chapter 3: Profiting by Selling for Others Online 311
Getting Organized to Sell for Others 311
Competing with the Drop-Off Stores 312
Understanding the "eBay Valet" Program 313
Promoting Your Consignment Business 315
Handling Your Business Professionally 315
Chapter 4: Sourcing, Liquidation, and Drop-Shipping 319
Know the Lingo of Merchandisers 320
Salvage: Liquidation Items, Unclaimed Freight, and Returns 323
Staying Safe When Buying Online 326
Dealing with Drop-Shippers 327
Book 5: Presenting Your Items 331
Chapter 1: Your eBay Photo Studio 333
Setting Up Your Studio 334
Your #1 Tool: A Digital Camera 336
Scanning Your Wares 339
Other Studio Equipment 340
Chapter 2: Mastering eBay Photography 347
Photo Guidelines 347
Photographing the Tough Stuff: Coins and Jewelry 349
Prepping and Photographing Clothing 353
eBay Gallery of Horrors 357
Chapter 3: Writing Listings that Sell, and Using HTML 361
Writing Descriptions that Sell 362
HTML the Easy eBay Way 363
Getting Friendly with HTML 365
Add Pictures to Your Description 370
Add Videos to Illustrate Your Item 371
Using HTML Table Codes to Make Templates 371
Creating Your Own HTML Designs and Templates 373
Getting a Quick, Basic Template 378
Chapter 4: Getting the Most from Your Photos 381
Size Matters 381
Adding the Artist’s Touch 383
Image-Editing Software 384
Finding a Home for Your Pictures 386
Using eBay’s Picture Hosting 387
Uploading your picture to eBay 388
Using Your Free Web Space 390
Book 6: Extending Your Reach 393
Chapter 1: Developing Your Own Web Presence 395
Know Why Your Web Presence Is Important 396
Free Web Space — A Good Place to Start 397
Paying for Your Web Space 398
Naming Your Baby 401
Registering Your Domain Name 403
Chapter 2: Marketing Tools for Your Web Presence and Social Media 405
Advertising with Google AdWords 406
Getting Your Site Visible on a Search Engine 408
Casting for Customers in Social Media 411
Building a Community on Twitter 412
Making Friends and Fans on Facebook 414
Chapter 3: Tapping PayPal to Expand Sales 417
Enabling PayPal Payments on Your Website 417
Incorporating the Payment Buttons 418
Repeating the PayPal Button Process 422
Going Mobile with PayPal Here 423
Book 7: Storing and Shipping 425
Chapter 1: Organizing Your Product and Shipping Area 427
The Warehouse: Organizing Your Space 428
Keeping Track of What You Have 430
The Shipping Department: Packin’ It Up 432
Buying Postage Online 441
Chapter 2: Shipping without Going Postal 449
Shipping: The Heart of Your Business 449
Shopping for a Shipping Carrier 452
Shipping with USPS 457
You, Too, Can Use FedEx 460
Getting on the UPS Bandwagon 465
Shipping Items through PayPal or eBay 467
Chapter 3: Insuring That Your Package Arrives 469
Insurance Options 470
Making a Claim When Shipping Goes Bad 475
Book 8: Power Selling on eBay 481
Chapter 1: Going Pro with Seller Hub 483
Getting Seller Hub 483
Seller Hub Features 484
Getting More from Seller Hub 488
Relisting and Selling Similar Items 490
Accessing Seller Hub Reports 490
Chapter 2: Managing Sales with eBay Apps and Third-Party Tools 495
Finding Function-Specific Apps 496
Choosing Your Management Tools 497
Looking for Essential Features 498
Exploring Advanced Features 498
Finding More to Automate 499
Opting for Third-Party Management 503
Chapter 3: Attaining PowerSeller and Top Rated Seller Status 507
Becoming an eBay Elite Seller 509
The Benefits of Membership 512
Chapter 4: Deciding When You Need an eBay Store 515
Locating Your Special Place Online 516
Checking Out Online Stores Galore 516
Choosing Between Store Types 518
Knowing the Fee Structure 519
Selecting Your eBay Store Name 520
Setting Up Shop 521
Running Your Store 524
Book 9: Office and Legal 527
Chapter 1: Getting Legal with the State and the Feds 529
Giving Your Business an Official Name 529
Taking Care of Regulatory Details 531
Chapter 2: The Necessity of Taxes and Value of Business Reports 545
Dealing with a Professional 546
Keeping the Books: Basics to Get You Started 547
Records Uncle Sam May Want to See 549
Getting the Most from Your Reports 553
Keeping Your Records and Data Safe 557
Backing Up Your Data 558
Saving Your Backup Paperwork 558
Chapter 3: Taking Care of Your Finances 561
What? Double-Entry Accounting? 562
QuickBooks: Professional Bookkeeping 563
Setting Up a Chart of Accounts 567
Having QuickBooks Report on Your eBay Business 572
Posting Sales from PayPal My Way 573
Chapter 4: Keeping You and Your Business Secure Online 577
Staying Away from Spam 577
Recognizing Scams and Phishing 579
Fighting Back! 582
Keeping Your Password (and Accounts) Secure 583
Chapter 5: Networking Your Home or Office 589
The What and Why of Networks 590
Variations of a Home Network 590
Internet Security and Your Home Network 597
Index 599
