Auction Autopilot Blog

Skip McGrath made a post on his blog recently, recommending a couple of free eBay and PayPal fee calculators.  I thought I would pass them along to you and make one more recommendation.

Sometimes figuring out how much your eBay and PayPal auction fees will cost can be a little confusing.  Knowing the fees in advance is important, since it can help you decide the best (i.e. most profitable) price and format to list an item on eBay.

There are a number of free online auction fee calculators available, but many are out of date and don’t give you all the information you need.  One of the best ones available is the New Life Auctions free eBay and PayPal fee calculator.  The New Life Auctions tool will not only calculate your fees, but it will also show you how much profit you can expect to make on an item.  This handy fee calculator Includes the following features.

• Listing Format
• Auction Type
• Listing Upgrades
• eBay Picture Services
• PayPal
• Power Seller Discount

Michael Repzynski’s free eBay / PayPal Fee Calculator is another good tool.    It is a little faster than the New Life Auctions tool, but not quite as robust in its features.  However, it is still an excellent choice, if you are looking for something simple.

Doug Boudreau’s free eBay Fee Calculator is another good option.  There is also a free PayPal Fee Calculator you can use to calculate your PayPal fees.  When you check out Doug’s site, you will see that he also offers similar tools for Half.com and Amazon.com.

All of these tools have been updated to include eBay’s 2008 fee schedule.  No matter which tool you decide is best for your own needs, they can all help you get more control over your eBay and PayPal fees, ensuring you maximize your profitability.

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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.

I ran across a post on Phil Dunn’s eBay Marketing Blog that got me thinking again about the importance of having reliable sources for products that will allow you to turn a nice profit on your eBay auctions.  It is not easy to find a steady supply of top notch products you can aquire at low cost, but sell for a decent profit.  Phil recommends a service called SaleHoo and I heartily endorse his recommendation.

SaleHoo allows you to get unlimited access to more than 5,000 wholesale product suppliers that are pre-screened, peer-reviewed and willing to work with home-based eBay sellers.  More than 50,000 people already use this amazing wholesale product supplier resource, so you know it has to be good.  And, I’m not just talking about eBay sellers.  Retail stores also use SaleHoo to find the best wholesale sources for products that sell like hot cakes.

Check out some of the amazing testimonials of regular people who are making consistent and sometimes very serous money, using SaleHoo.  These people come from all over the world, which goes to show again that it doesn’t matter where you live.  The internet is the great equalizer, when it comes to making money on eBay.  Check out the story of 17 year old Tom Ainge-Roy, from New Zealand, who consistently turns a profit of up to 400% on every item he sells.  And, there are many more, equally impressive.

When you check out the list of SaleHoo Suppliers, you will see that the database covers an amazing amount of products.  Wholesale suppliers include:

• Dropshippers
• Wholesalers
• Liquidators
• Manufacturers

SaleHoo also offers a number of excellent learning and training resources.  Their advice is easy to follow and jargon-free.  Some of the areas covered include:

• Finding & Sourcing
• Importing & Shipping
• Scam Prevention
• Business Setup
• eBay Selling
• Top Tools 

If you are unsure if SaleHoo is for you, I recommend you take the short video tour.  It will walk you through the main features and show you exactly how it can help you grow your eBay business.