iPhone Terapeak App for eBay Research on the Go

Thanks to John S. for sending in this tip:

"I don't know if you have an iphone or not but if you do or know someone with one, Terapeak has an app for it. They just released it and of course I had to get it. It is free but you do have to have an active Terapeak account. The app is awesome! Very fast even using the edge network. Has all the info you need to make snap decisions out on the hunt. It will search 7,30 or 45 days and give avg price, listings and sell thru % along with listings in descending sold price."

And according to ResearchAdanced.com, on their December 8th post, "Terapeak Marketplace Research, Powered by AERS, today announced the launch of an iPhone application that allows users to conduct eBay market research on the go. Available free as part of all North American Terapeak subscriptions, the application will see users simply key their search term(s) into one screen, and with one click access item-specific data based on 45 days of closed eBay listings."

How cool is this? I remember the days of yesteryear (like 4 years ago), when you had to guess, go with your gut, or just take a risk buying something to resell. Now you can determine on the spot in the store or at the estate sale if the item is going to be a profitable item on eBay. If you have an iPhone, you should definitely take advantage of this! What a huge time saver. Click here to sign up for Terapeak.

Follow Up - Kellogg's All Bran Fiber Drink Mix

Back in October, I posted about this discontinued item, All Bran Fiber Drink Mix. I actually found quite a few of them at grocery stores and have had them for sale in my eBay store inventory since that time. The last one sold over the weekend. Here is the listing:

Here is the math:

Clearance price at grocery store: $4.89
Coupon stuck on each box: -$2.oo
My price: $2.89
Sale price for 2 boxes: $21.95
My profit before fees: $19.06

I found about 16 of these so my total profit on this obscure little grocery store item was $152.00. Granted it took about 3 months for all of them to sell, but I am ok with that. Not bad for something that I picked up while grocery shopping, and took me about 10 minutes to list!

Keep sending in your great finds to eBaycoach@yahoo.com

Niche Product to Sell on eBay - Cigar Boxes

Have you ever noticed a cigar shop in your town or neighborhood? They are all over the place. It is time to start paying attention to cigar shops. Cigar box crafts are becoming a hot item and many crafters are looking to eBay for the boxes. Both the wood and cardboard cigar boxes are good sellers, but the wooden boxes will sell for more.

Look for cigar boxes at flea markets and garage sales. Cigar boxes sell best on eBay in lots. If you are crafty, you may want to take this one step further and create something with the cigar box and sell it on Etsy. Cigar box purses are all the rage and selling for over $100 on Etsy. For example, this gorgeous cigar box purse sells for $125:



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Learn to flip eBay Auctions in 5 minutes - Free Tutorial

You may have seen my posts about flipping listings using a misspelling tool. Here are the exact steps for how I do this.




Key Tips for Flipping Listings:

1. Know what you are looking for! What brands of clothing, electronics, fragrances, or other goods do you purchase? Think about what is expensive and plug in those keywords. I look for brands like Burberry and Ralph Lauren that have products in lots of different categories - clothes, shoes, fragrances, household, accessories, etc. Browse websites that carry expensive products such as Nordstrom, Saks 5th Avenue, Bloomingdales, Macys. Keep a list of brand names to search for. Zone in on international sounding words (French, Italian, Spanish) as these are frequently misspelled. Good categories are apparel, shoes, fragrances, cosmetics, electronics, musical instruments, and cameras. Stay away from handbags as they are usually not authentic. Also be careful with jewelry if you are not an expert.

2. Do your research. Know what the item sells for on eBay. If you aren't paying for a research tool, now is the time to start. It will pay for itself in one flip. Try Terapeak or Hammertap.

3. Sort search results by ENDING SOONEST. Focus on items you can win in the next few hours. Watch items a few days out and check on them later.

4. Set your limits. The objective is to win the item at a low enough price to resell for a profit. Do the math and stick to your high bid. If you don't win, move on. My limit is at least $30. If I can't make a $30 profit (after fees are deducted) it is not worth my time.

5. Watch shipping fees. You will need to add shipping fees into your total cost of the item. Remember that you will have to re-ship the item. Avoid fragile items as they will have to be shipped to you, and then shipped out again to your customer and this opens up opportunities for damage. Focus on items that are easy to package and ship and aren’t fragile.

6. Always snipe. The more attention an auction receives, the more costly a bidding war is which is not what you want as a buyer. Stay under the radar, watch the item, and use a sniping tool.

7. Prepare to lose. You aren’t going to win every auction. That is ok. You only want to win the auctions for items you can resell for a nice profit. There is no sense winning an item just for the sake of winning it - we are in this to make a fast profit. I lose about 60% of the auctions I try to snipe.

8. Stay positive. Millions of new listings are added every day so there will be plenty of opportunities to win other auctions.

My eBay Flip - True Religion Jeans

This is how you have fun with eBay! I love flipping listings. Here is another one I did, and it just sold on Best Offer a few minutes ago. (Click here for a 5 minute video tutorial on how to flip listings.)

Original listing:

Trrue Religion Mens Jeans Size 34 Blue

Fatal errors:

NEW NWT keywords not in title
(anyone searching for NEW True Religion jeans won't find this listing)

True is spelled "Trrue" - misspelled words don't come up in searches
(when the word is spelled correctly)

Poor photo - item is sideways

No return policy

Listing does not give fabric content, measurements

Shipping is too high

No international shipping

I paid $51.00 + $9.99 for shipping. Total investment = $60.99

Here is my listing:

New NWT True Religion Jeans Big Billy T 34 x 32 $345

Improvements:

Added several more photos

Used keyword NEW NWT in title, spelled brand name correctly

Gave fabric content and measurements in description

Added 30 day return policy

Added international shipping

Charged $5.50 for domestic shipping
(these will fit in a Flat Rate Envelope - click here for more info on using Flat Rate envelopes)

I ran these on auction first and they didn't sell. Then I put them in my store inventory with Best Offer. I had several crummy offers. Accepted an offer for $150. I could have held out for more, but my profit on this item is $81, so I am happy with that. Waiting is part of the game, but don't get greedy.

Summary:

My cost = $60.99
Sale price = $150
My profit = $81.32
Time invested = 30 minutes

You can see that in this case, I realized an income of $162.64 an hour doing this. You can learn to do this, too!


Find sloppy listings and resell the items for way more than you paid for them!