eCRATER.com Forum Index

SearchSearch
ProfileProfile
  Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages   
Log inLog in

Newbie with a store imagine that

 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    eCRATER.com Forum Index -> Introduce Yourself
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
bwsbooks



Posts: 4

PostPosted: Thu Jun 01, 2017 8:21 am    Post subject: Newbie with a store imagine that Reply with quote

I am Brett and I have a book/magazine shop here. bwsbooks. Thanks and if you visit please leave comment good or bad. Thanks.
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
SheilaDeesPostcards
moderator


Posts: 4614

PostPosted: Thu Jun 01, 2017 9:28 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Welcome to eCRATER! You have a nice start to your store. You asked for comments so I did notice several things that should be corrected or could be improved.

On eCRATER the search is by title only and you can use up to 100 characters for the title. You should always list information about the magazine issue that would identify which issue you are selling. This is both to help the buyer find your item and so the search engine doesn't think you are listing the same product 20 times. For example, your title "The Dragon", my suggested title "The Dragon Magazine Vol. III No. 10 April 1979" would be the bare minimum. I would also include the name of any authors buyers would look for or something of interest about that issue. You say nothing in the description about what's in the issue, or the condition of this issue. Remember, people online can't hold the item so they must go by your words and photos. If you were a buyer of the magazine, what would you want to know? Any stains, is the cover tight, any folds, creases, torn pages, writing inside or outside? These are just some ideas to get you started. If the cover art is by a known artist, you should list the artist's name. Maybe someone is collecting art by that artist. Sometimes it's helpful to show a scan or photo of the table of contents and/or mention some of the articles in the issue.

Your Terms don't seem to match the rest of your store. Your terms make it sound like your only payment option is a money order, but you don't even offer money order as a payment option. Also, if the customer pays with a USPS money order, you can take it to the Post Office and cash it. If you deposit a money order into your bank account you need to know how your bank is going to process that money order. It can take days before the bank knows if the money order is valid. If it was cancelled or reported lost or stolen, the bank will deduct the money from your account and possibility charge you a fee. This is why many seller's will ONLY accept USPS Postal Money Orders in US Dollars. You can take it to the Post Office and get your money before you send the item.

Normally your FAQ is to answer questions a serious buyer may have about how you handle sales. Like, how quick do you ship (daily, weekly, within 3 business days, etc.), how do you protect the magazine during shipment, what is your return policy, etc. I doubt a real buyer would think you are a fantasy and if they did you might not want them as a buyer.

I wish you well. We all have a vested interest in all eCrater stores doing well so buyers speak well of eCRATER, tell their friends and come back!
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
bwsbooks



Posts: 4

PostPosted: Thu Jun 01, 2017 11:18 am    Post subject: Thanks Reply with quote

I am very new to internet sales and stores and such. I appreciate you giving me your view. I have noticed a few things and am making those changes this evening. As for seriousness I am all in on this ecrater store thing.
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
thelivesandlovesofmaggiethecat



Posts: 10158

PostPosted: Thu Jun 01, 2017 6:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Welcome. You have great photos but need additional pics of the insides of your magazines. Avid collectors might already know that but you might also be selling to people buying gifts for avid collectors who don't know.

I agree with the suggestions already made. Your titles make you a waste of time and that is a shame.

I am also concerned by what you have said about how you handle money orders and cashiers checks. With today's reproduction technology there is no way to verify the genuineness of mailed payments except to wait for it to pass through the banking system that can take weeks by which time the package and buyer will be long gone if it is fake. The other alternative if you really want to accept mailed payments is to accept only USPS money orders, take them to the post office where the clerk can verify the MO. You can then mail the package and cash the MO at the PO.

I no longer accept any mailed payments because you never know when it is mailed, if it is mailed, etc. so you are left holding an order that may never be paid. Accepting mailed payments offers buyers an indefinite amount of time to change their minds and most will and will not bother to inform you of the fact.

Good luck.
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
bwsbooks



Posts: 4

PostPosted: Thu Jun 01, 2017 6:24 pm    Post subject: My titles Reply with quote

Thanks. What do you mean by Your titles make you a waste of time and that is a shame
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
MoonwishesStore
moderator


Posts: 17389

PostPosted: Thu Jun 01, 2017 9:18 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Welcome. Your titles are a waste of real estate. You are allowed 100 characters and using the name "The Dragon" which is 10 characters is like owning an office building with only one office out of ten rented. You won't be making much money. All or as much as possible of your title should go to saying what an items is and differentiating it from other similar items in the title.

You also need to repeat that info in your description as well as speaking about each individual items condition, the author's, the artists, any important back story. You also at a minimum need a photo of the back of the magazines.

Your FAQ needs to be erased. Your terms all about the USPS and money orders needs scratched too as it makes no sense, especially in light that you don't have MO as a payment form. When it comes to payments when selling on line, the last thing you want when selling on line is to tell a buyer that you won't even cash their money until they are happy with the product. You will be a sitting duck for refunds. The last thing you want is sending your items back and forth through the mail multiple times or someone wanting a refund but don't want to return the item they bought, etc. Most sellers that take MO, checks of any kind, anything other than an electronic payment (PayPal or Stripe) will not even send the item until the payment clears so they have the money in hand even if it takes a week to 10 days. They certainly don't ship before cashing the MO.

Also when it comes to shipping cost etc. like you mentioned that is settled from the point they buy something. You can not charge more after a purchase has been completed. On eCRATER you are not making 'deals' with people. You are selling them something more or less like a catalog purchase. You aren't making personal deals for the most part. Sometimes a buyer might offer via the messaging system about something, but that would be rare, or at least is in my experience.

Wishing you success as well all root for everybody so that all eCRATER's have success and it will rub off onto all of us!
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
MaggietheCatsMeows



Posts: 2853

PostPosted: Fri Jun 02, 2017 3:51 pm    Post subject: Re: My titles Reply with quote

bwsbooks wrote:
Thanks. What do you mean by Your titles make you a waste of time and that is a shame


I mean if I click on a title that says only DRAGON I haven't a clue if I will find a T shirt, a book, a toy, or what.
Buyers don't have time to click on titles with no information and they will pass you by.
Google will pass on all but one DRAGON title because it looks like duplication and Google doesn't like duplication.
Likewise if a person is shopping on eCRATER marketplace. eCRATER only searches titles so if a person searches for DRAGON Magazine, you won't show up.

A good magazine title will include the name, the word magazine, date of publication, and special aspects such as premiere edition, or special feature, etc. More work but if you want to sell on line, you have to put in the effort.
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
MoonwishesStore
moderator


Posts: 17389

PostPosted: Fri Jun 02, 2017 5:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I just looked at your one Dragon magazines that you have listed for $100. I noticed that even with the photo I could see wear on the spine especially at the staples area. I can only figure that it has been read. However, you have it listed as ‘new, see description’. If it has been read, it is used. The ‘new see description’ is more for something that also might be 40 years old and have never been used but the outer wrapping has perhaps some wear and damage.

I think that there is a certain way that comic books are graded and your magazines should fit into that as well since "Excellent shape. Almost 40 years old and very nicely kept. " doesn't really mean much when you can see the wear on the magazine itself. Like we have mentioned, the more you can say about something, the better. That way your buyer isn't surprised but will perhaps feel that they got something better than they thought. Sadly to say, many buyers these days get disappointed by inaccurate grading and descriptions. I noticed big jumps in prices from one magazine to the next without any reasonable reason given. Most magazine the first issue goes for a premium, and the following not nearly so much unless there is something particularly important about it. Since I know nothing about dragons, I wouldn't know anything about what is in these magazines. Are they just pictures? Articles? What? If articles, list them and the authors, if pictures, list the artist.

It is very hard to get into the mindset that we must SELL our products, not just list them with minimal info. I have changed my listing technique multiple times throughout the years with my newest changes in just the last two months so this is not something I would just say to a newbie. None of us should ever quit tweaking and trying to make our listings more attractive to buyers in the very crowded market we are in.
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic    eCRATER.com Forum Index -> Introduce Yourself
Page 1 of 1

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum