Ugly Christmas Sweater Contest 2011

It’s Ugly Christmas Sweater time again! These are hot sellers on eBay this time of year. Here’s why – hosts have a Christmas party and invite guests - but everyone must wear an ugly Christmas or holiday sweater. The winner gets a prize. Some of these parties are done as charity benefits, held at a public location, to raise money for needy families during the holidays. Some are just for fun. These sweaters are nauseatingly festive and disturbing.

You can find these gaudy sweaters in thrift stores for less than $5. In past years, ugly Christmas sweaters have sold for up to $100. America seems to have vast reserves of these in thrift stores. If you can’t find one in a thrift store, create one yourself. Here is a video to show how easy it is to make that perfect ugly sweater:



Head on over to my eBay Seller's Facebook group to participate in this year’s virtual ugly sweater contest. Here is how it will work:

To be eligible, sweaters must be listed before December 5.

The sweater selling for the highest price wins!

You can post links to your ugly sweaters on the Ugly Sweater Contest thread in the group if you like.
(We can all use a daily laugh during the stressful holiday selling season!) Just search the box in the top right corner to find the Ugly Christmas Sweater Contest.

Winner will be announced on December 20 and will receive a $25 Amazon gift card via email.

Feel free to repost this contest anywhere - your Facebook page, Twitter, or your own blog. Let's have some fun with ugly sweaters!


Related Articles:

Selling Toys on Amazon This Holiday Season

An Ugly Christmas Miracle!

Preparing for Holiday 2011 Selling – Podcast

Great News for Children’s Book Sellers!

I read an interesting article yesterday on the New York Times titled, “For Their Children, Many eBook Fans Insist on Paper.” I have agreed with the points in this article since the beginning of eBooks – that electronic readers are not a threat to all types of printed books. (Refer to my blog post from September 2010, “Amazon Kindle Will Not Make Printed Books Obsolete.”)

This article should provide comfort and encouragement for those of you who sell children’s books on both eBay and Amazon. The author states that although parents are technologically savvy and may have an e-reader, electronic reading devices are not such a good fit for little children. Any parent knows how messy little kids are and that accidents happen. Printed books won’t necessarily be ruined if a sippy cup turns over on them, or if they are dropped in the bath tub. (Been there, done that.)

Printed books are also more interactive than e-readers. Scientific research shows that there is a direct connection between learning and brain stimulation when holding a physical printed book while reading – whether a child is reading (or just looking at the book) alone or an adult is holding the child and reading the book to her. Not every learning experience is going to translate to an electronic device. (I had a math teacher tell me one time not to try to do problems in my head. There is a direct connection between the brain and the pencil in your hand that helps you work through the problems and arrive at the answer. Same concept with physical old fashioned books – the tactile experience.)

So keep those children’s books coming to eBay and Amazon. If you are not yet selling on Amazon, now is definitely the time to get started. Check out my free report about selling books on Amazon.


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eBay Seller Success Story - Tracy Reese New York Dress

Melanie sent in her success story. She paid $12 for this dress at a Neiman Marcus Rack store. It sold for $274.95! Here is her listing:

Visit Melanie's eBay store - I'm Your Personal Shopper, where she has all sorts of good finds from high-end department stores.

Don't forget stores like Nordstrom Rack and Neiman Marcus Rack for sourcing inventory. You may uncover some real deals!

If you are not already a member, come join us on Facebook where over 2,600 online sellers network and share their great finds!

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Tom's eBay Success Story

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I Can Do It Conference Recap

I'm finally back in the swing of things after my trip to Tampa last weekend for the I Can Do It conference by Hay House. Wow, what an experience! I was able to attend lectures and workshops by authors, spiritual leaders, life coaches, and medical intuitives. The best news is that the conference is coming to Atlanta in April 2012, so I can go again very soon.

Some of the best "take aways" from this experience:

Dr. Wayne Dyer's lecture was amazing. Dr. Dyer is an internationally known author and speaker in the field of self development. He is 71 years old and shared his recent journey winning the battle against leukemia with self-healing techniques. He has a cool (free) iPhone app called "Excuses Be Gone" - I love this. Whenever you feel like you are talking yourself out of something or coming up with an excuse not to reach your true potential, you can use this app to give you encouragement to move on. Also check out this powerfully moving music CD, "Cecelia the Healing Voice." Listen to samples here. Turn up your volume LOUD.

Louise Hay and Cheryl Richardson did a lovely presentation on Saturday morning with excerpts from their new book, "You Can Create an Exceptional Life." The book is filled with empowering conversations between two wise and inspiring women. What an honor to be in the room with these two women. And is Louise Hay really 85?

Gregg Braden, a former geologist and current best selling author, gave a fascinating talk about his area of expertise - bridging science and spirituality. Gregg has studied for decades all over the world with spiritual leaders of all faiths in remote villages and monasteries. If you are looking for some "meaty" thought-provoking topics, check out his site and his new book, "Deep Truths." (Waiting for mine to arrive from Amazon.)

Sunday morning, Caroline Myss entertained us with her no-nonsense personality and great wisdom. Caroline is a medical intuitive, best selling author, holds a BA in journalism and a Masters degree in theology. She is a regular on Hay House Radio. She created her own center for spiritual education which offers a diverse array of programs devoted to personal development.

The speaker I most anticipated at the conference was medium John Holland. (I've read all of his books and have some of his audio CDs.) John demonstrated his unique gifts in a room filled with 800 people. What an experience to see this man work. He brought messages of healing, peace, and closure to many audience members who had lost loved ones. John has a weekly show on Hay House Radio - check him out sometime. His work is absolutely fascinating and he is the real deal.

You can find out about all of these inspirational people, and many more by listening to Hay House Radio. It is free! You can listen while you work at your computer or on your iPhone using their free app. It really is "radio for your soul."

Now I am energized and ready to handle the holiday madness!

Preparing for Holiday 2011 Selling - Podcast

My colleague and co-author of The Amazon FBA Recipe for Success book, Kim Tarrant and I will discuss how to prepare for holiday selling. Some topics we will cover include:

* How to determine what and how much to buy - even without a scouting tool

* Getting the most for your money - how to determine whether to sell items on eBay, Amazon, or both!

* Holiday selling isn't just about toys - other popular categories to consider

* Getting the most out of your mobile device when shopping (some cool tricks!)

* For Amazon sellers, why you should be prepared to merchant fill as well as use FBA

* What you can do now to prepare for a successful holiday selling season - make your battle plan

* How to make money buying items at full retail, and resell them for a nice markup

*Q&A session for questions from listeners

During the podcast, we will also give away 2 copies of our book, Amazon Recipe for Success, and 2 1 year memberships to my membership site, Online Selling Coach.

The live podcast will air on Tuesday, November 8 at 10 AM Eastern time. The recorded version will be available for download shortly after the broadcast ends.

Click here to join us!

Hot Item to Sell on eBay - Women's Capes Winter 2011

A recent article by AllVoices.com, explains that capes are the new coats for Winter 2011. Capes can be considered an accessory worn with casual wear, every day wear, or evening wear.

Many fashion conscious women are wearing capes as a substitute for a jacket or sweater. Capes work with skirts, pants, jeans, dresses, or leggings. This winter accessory item is showing up in all the major department stores such as Nordstrom, Macys, and Saks. A member of my Facebook group (shout out to Melinda S.!) recently mentioned that she found a gorgeous wool Coloratura cape at a thrift store for $10, and completeds where showing over $300 for the same cape. Wow, what a find!

Here are some recently completed listings on eBay for used capes, that you may be able to find at thrift stores:








Keep your eyes open for capes, wraps, shawls, and cloaks as you are out thrifting!

Related articles:

Burberry Jacket - eBay Flip

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Camel Hair Coat - eBay Seller Success Story

Do you have a success story to share? If so, email it to me at ebaycoach @ yahoo for consideration. We can all learn more (and make more money) by sharing this information.