Here are the questions and answers from the eBay Radio interview:
- CrossPostIt is a new name in the game, how did Data Age get started in the multi-channel listing business?
After 30 years of servicing second hand dealers and pawn business with our leading “Point of Sales” software, it was a natural fit for us to offer our customers a way to sell online. When that took off, we knew it was time to expand beyond our POS customers and we launched CrossPostIt.
- What is the biggest challenge your customers selling on eBay tell you they face?
eBay is a household name in ecommerce, which is great because it attracts lots of buyers but that means there are also lots of sellers, and lots of items too. Our customers are challenged to cut through the noise to get noticed. The challenge is not finding buyers, but making it easy for buyers to find you!
- What advice do you have for cutting through the noise and selling more?
First and foremost, my advice is to put yourself in the shoes of a potential buyer. It’s easy to get caught up in the details of your product/item but eBay’s most recent search engine rewards sellers based on not just traffic, views and clicks, but on conversions to sales and engagement (time on page) so you must be proficient with how you list your items. Think about what’s important to your BUYER as they go through the 3 major phases of SEARCHING, REFINING and BUYING.
- Can you break it down for us? Tell us more about what the search phase is like for the buyer.
For Buyers the search phase is all about Accuracy and Relevance so the seller’s focus should be presenting the Facts to get matched. In the beginning a buyer may browse to see what’s out there, then later search for something specific. During this search phase they’re going to use keywords and categories to get Accurate and Relevant search results. And they want choices, but not too many choices.
Some tips we emphasize for attracting our BUYER during their Search Phase are:
- Do a quick search of your own for the item you want to sell. The benefit of this is two-fold. It will give you ideas as to which keywords to use and it’ll also show you your competition so you know what you’re up against. BUT don’t just copy and paste!!!
- Perfect your title. You only have 80 characters, so make good use of them! Include details and state exactly what your item is even if it repeats the category.
- Choose words that quantify like sizes/measurements. Don’t SHOUT with caps or use fluff words “cool” or “wow” or “l@@k” to get attention. Relevance over flash. Just TRUE facts!
- Don’t be lazy with the description. Fill in ALL Item Specifics, and utilize the Custom Item Specifics field if need be. The more details = the more relevance for buyer searches.
- What about the next phase when a buyer is refining their search results?
Refine –
So if the buyer did things right, they have many search results to choose from, and if you the Seller did things right, you’re on page 1! This is Your Time to Shine and you may only have a few seconds to engage a buyer while they refine results, so you must tap into how VISUAL we are these days.
- Take good quality photos – this will make or break your listing. As many at the highest quality you are allowed; highlighting details, showing close-ups and different angles and features.
- Differentiate your service/benefits - Be clear and upfront about payment options, shipping prices, return policies, approach to Communication/Feedback/Ratings, other service distinctions
- Studies show shipping charges are a leading cause of shopping cart abandonment
- The obvious goal is the purchase… Tell us what the seller should focus on to get that “buy”.
Buy – So once the buyer has confidently narrowed down their choices and are ready to buy, hopefully it’s from you! During the buy phase, the buyer is taking all of the things we just talked about into consideration, but the most important is TRUST and ANTICIPATED SATISFACTION. Yes, the Buyer is focused on price – but that TOTAL PRICE includes asking themselves questions like, “If I buy from this seller, when will my item arrive? Will my item arrive? When it arrives, will it be as advertised?”
Here are the two big TIPS we offer our Listers to get buyers to BUY:
- Consider how important urgency vs. price are for your item and potential buyers. Is this the kind of item people usually shop for once in a while and don’t mind or expect to wait for? Or is this the kind of buyer that has many choices so you want to win their business by offering BuyItNow or shipping fast.
- Stay on top of your messages, and do the work to Build and Maintain Your Rating and Feedback. If you do what you said you would do, communicate and ship quickly, your customers will be happy, your rating will rise, which in turn will bump up your listings on buyer’s searches and give you credibility when buyers are refining and deciding to trust and buy from you.
CLOSING
Remember that in this modern day world of eCommerce, customer loyalty is dwarfed by the universe of choice and price comparison shopping. Even when you do everything right, repeat customers are a rarity. That’s why sellers need to make sure each and every listing needs to be proficient in how they tap into how buyers SEARCH, REFINE and BUY.
At CrossPostIt, our software helps sellers manage their multi-channel listings, but we recognize there’s a lot more to the science of eCommerce. Thank you for the opportunity to share a bit of what we’ve learned from our customers with your listeners on eBay radio!