Auction Autopilot Blog

eBay Desktop is a free software application from eBay that you can install on your own computer. It allows you to do virtually everything you can do on the eBay website and a lot more. eBay Desktop is a great alternative to the eBay website. The application uses Adobe AIR, so it will run on both Windows (XP and Vista) and Mac OS X.

Some of the best features of this snazzy desktop application include, title and description search, browsing, watching and bidding. The software even includes search feeds, item reminders and persistent filters. It automatically syncs with the eBay website in real time, so there is no need to refresh to get updated information. Your recent item cache (listings) and outbid alerts, along with other critical data, are all updated automatically.

eBay Desktop was launched in beta about a year ago. Since that time, the application has been downloaded more than 1,000,000 times and has attracted a host of raving fans.  In the following video, Alan Lewis, eBay Desktop’s project manager, explains some of the benefits of the software.

eBay Desktop does a lot more than simply recreate eBay on your computer. It makes the whole eBay experience much more interactive, efficient and engaging. The following video will give a better idea of the power of eBay Desktop.  The latest version of the software (1.0.6, as of this writing), includes a new interface, so there isn’t a direct correlation between the video and the software you install.  However, the video will give you a good idea of the power of the application and spark some ideas about how it can help you make more money on eBay.

For help with the software, you can go to the eBay Desktop Discussion Board, which is essentially a forum that allows you to learn about the application from other eBay community members. You can search the forum for answers to your questions, which may already have been posted.  Or, you can post a question.  The forum is very active, so you should be able to get quick feedback from other eBay buyers and sellers.

eBay used Adobe’s AIR technology to allow eBay Desktop to do all the cool things it does, in real time. You will need to have AIR installed on your computer, before you can run eBay Desktop. However, the eBay Desktop installer will download both the AIR environment and the application itself, making the setup a piece of cake. Check out eBay Desktop and see what it can do for you.

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Today, I would like to tell you about one of the best sources I have found for finding top quality, low priced products you can sell on your eBay auctions for tremendous profits.  Finding eBay hot items at low prices is one of the keys to creating a lucrative business on eBay.  You have several choices, when it comes to acquiring eBay products at rock bottom prices.

• Drop Shippers
• Wholesalers
• Liquidators

In order to acquire your eBay products with the least expense, you must cut out all the middlemen and work directly with the manufacturer or the manufacture’s distributor.  You will need to contact several wholesale sources, in order to identify the company that can supply you with your eBay hot items at the lowest prices.

Contacting product wholesalers will take some legwork.  However, finding the right source for a hot selling product is well worth the effort.  Once you’ve discovered a reliable source, it’s like owning a gold mine.  You can take as much gold out of the mine as you want, whenever you want.

I have scoured the Internet to identify the most reputable sources for wholesale products.  This is important because most so-called wholesale product sources are really middlemen disguised as wholesalers.  They buy from the real wholesalers, mark the products up and resell them to unsuspecting buyers.  Don’t cheat yourself out of more profit by dealing with these “wolves in sheep’s clothing.”

It goes without saying that the cheaper you can buy your products, the more profit you can make.  The ideal situation is to acquire your products for 25¢ on the dollar and then mark them up 100%.  This is called keystoning.  If you follow this formula, you can still sell your products at a 50% discount below regular retail prices.  What kind of income do you think you could generate if you made a 100% profit every time you gave one of your customers a 50% discount?  Obviously, the sky is the limit!

If this seems like an unlikely possibility, think again.  Savvy Ebay Power Sellers do this all the time, and you can too… if you know where to find the best deals.  One of the best sources of wholesalers, liquidators and drop shippers on the Internet is a service called Worldwide Brands.  The wholesalers in this directory represent more than 500,000 products and 1,000 brand names, so you will have plenty of great product choices, for your eBay auctions.  I highly recommend them!

New eBay sellers often neglect to put enough effort into creating exciting and informative eBay listings.  They think all they need to do is throw up any old auction and visitors will not only come, but bid.  This is just not the case.  The look and feel of your eBay auctions has nearly as much to do with the amount of bids you get, as the item itself.

Even though most eBay sellers begin as eBay buyers, many forget what it is that attracts them to one auction more than another.  Just think about the last item you bought something on eBay.  Were you able to choose between several of the same item?  If so, think about what it was that persuaded you to bid on a particular auction.  Here are some of the most important elements that influence most eBay bidders.

• Title - This should be a mini description of the item up for auction.  It should include as much pertinent information as possible.
• Description - Make sure you provide as much detail as you can.  The more information you can provide, the better your auction will perform… brand name, model, size, color, condition, year, etc.  Make sure your visitors have all the information they need to make an immediate decision.
• Photos - The more photos you can provide the better your auction will perform.  eBay bidders want details and nothing a story better than pictures.  Even a darker, off center, somewhat out of focus photo is better than no photo at all.
• Guarantee - Can you provide some sort of guarantee to the winning bidder?  If so, do it.  You will definitely get more people bidding, which will likely result in a significantly higher price.  And, as long as you have been completely truthful in your description, the likelihood that someone will return the item is very low.
• HTML - This will allow you to perform basic text formatting, like bolding titles, separating paragraphs and inserting blank lines.  Even if you only use a little bit of HTML, it can make a big difference in the look and feel of your auctions.  There are a number of basic HTML tutorials online, which you can find by doing a search.

The bottom line is that the appearance of your eBay auctions and the text you include can have a big impact on the amount of money you will make.  Remember, your eBay auctions will often be competing against several other online auctions, selling nearly the exact same item.  Spending a little extra time to make sure you include all of the elements above, will pay big dividends.

Eventually you will find yourself with a problem that will need an answer or some expert guidance about buying and selling on eBay.  Before you contact eBay directly, you may want to consider checking out the eBay Answer Center first.

The eBay Answer Center is a member-to-member forum, where eBay members can ask questions, give answers, and share information about eBay.  The Center is arranged by topic and designed for fast questions and answers, rather than discussions.  Some of the topics include Bidding, Checkout, eBay Stores, Feedback, My eBay, PayPal, Technical issues, Turbo Lister and many more.

Any registered eBay user can use the eBay Answer Center, so this is a great place to tap into the experience of some of the top eBay Power Sellers.  Each question can be answered several times, by multiple users, so you can get a lot of different perspectives.  eBay staff members also monitor and answer questions, so you know you are getting the correct information.

One of the great features of the eBay Answer Center is that you can add questions to a “watch list.”  This will allow you to see the answers to your questions on a continuous basis.  The eBay Answer Center is also searchable, so you may be able to find the answer to your question, even before asking it.

So, next time you have a question about how to sell on eBay, or any other question that requires an immediate answer, check out the eBay Answer Center.   It is a great source of free eBay secrets you won’t find on eBay’s help section or by contacting eBay directly.