I am SCARED to death!

[ChocolateBubbleGumBoutique]

So, I am one by one going through my ebay store and moving things over here....I am so scared. This is like taking BIG risk, leaving ebay where I know I get the sales, to here...where I am unsure. I could use some encouragement please.


P.S. I just activated my store. I have about a dozen listings....only 600 items to go {sigh}

http://Chocolatebubblegumboutique.ecrater.com/

[TyreeTrading]

New adventures are often scary. That's normal.
This is an opportunity too.
An opportunity to truly become an on-line seller, not just an eBay seller.
There's a world of difference between the two.
How much effort do you plan on putting into this opportunity? Success is yours for the grabbing if you are willing to work and work hard. It will work because YOU made it work.

I suggest you read all the forums - especially the FAQ section and all the stickied ones (the ones at the top). They are chock full of information on how to promote your store. Take the time up front to read them so when you really start listing, you've got it right from the beginning.

Success can be had here.

If you are willing to listen, you will find a number of helpful people offering suggestions to the community as a whole and to you when you need that little extra assistance.

[bargainsforU]

You must remember, this is not ebay. . . much, much less traffic. But when you sell here you can make a profit. If you are looking or the same amount of traffic as ebay you will not be happy. But if you are looking for less traffic and make a profit you can do it here, but you have to work for it. You must PROMOTE your store. You can not just sit back and wait for all the buyers to flock in. Promote is one of the main Keys in making your store a success here. I would begin my letting my ebay customers know I am now selling on this site. Many of them will follow you here. I left ebay in 2002 and started selling on other sites. I brought many of my customers with me. So I speak from experience.

[normasbathandbody]

Hey chocolate,
welcome! I must say that I love your shop name. promote as much as possible. ecrater is a fantastic place to be:)
~Norma

[zickit]

You might want to continue to use ebay to pull in customers to your ecrater.com store.
It will take time - lots of work - to build up yur ecrater.com store to the point of having daily sales.

[knotartwa]

Don't be scared !
You've got expirience and If you made it on Ebay (GREAT and Happy for you (I didn't make it there ) YOU WILL be JUST PErfact here too!

I'm selling only 1 year - but I'm making jewelery - and belive me 50% of it you will not find anywere So it's it's not popular - but I'm not scared !

So Just tell yourself I'll be great here and you'll be !!!

Good luck and wayting to see more of your stuff:)!

[msannasknits]

Hi chocolate, your shop is adorable, I am comming over there too from ebay and etsy, I think the post are right you have to promote and promote, my store is still on hold while I load in. Best of luck!

[bellemariescloset2]

Cute store. I just made a purchase from you. My kids are going to be thrilled. Thanks,

Wendy

[knotartwa]

wooho and you made a sale Great Start !

[thenostalgicnugget]

Hey Choco,

love your Holly Hobby, I am a Hobby junky

It is very scary to leave, but at the same time, I just keep remembering what ebay had actually given...which was a lot of nettlesome situations. eBay took hard work to truly succeed without paying out the booty for it.

As Big said...if need be; throw a few strategic eggs in the eBay basket to bring people to you here. If you are going to list there..make sure it is something that WILL SELL first time out at a price you can live with...draw in traffic...make people interested in what else you have to offer...over the moon...

I am not sure how much you were profiting from ebay each month....but you list the right stuff, promote, let your customers know where to find you, etc...you will get there.

[TheseOldThings]

Hi to all and good luck to all! I think we all have to look at ebay as a training ground for learning the tricks of our trade, i.e., namely selling online and NOW we get to take that training and go out on our own and ply our trade. I think we'll be successful and hope that we all help each other to find our way.

Larry

[ChocolateBubbleGumBoutique]

Thank you so much for all of your encouragement! Yes, I did make my first sell! Thank you!!! I was sooo excited! Wooo Hoooo!!!!!

Someone asked me how much work was I wiling to put into this. My answer is as much as it takes. Here is why (LONG)!

We were in Orlando for a conference that my husband had to attend for work. We had decided to take the whole family (our six children ages 1-17) because it would be our first family vacation in 14 years. On our first night there we went out to eat. We decided to have seafood since we hadnt had fresh seafood in some time. We went to Landrys. My husband decided that he would splurge and have a fried seafood platter. We normally dont eat a lot of fried food as we are health concious. Later that evening, my husband told me that he wasnt feeling well. That he had bad gas in the top of his stomach. Since the children and I had flown in very early that morning, I got the kids into bed and settled the baby in to bed. I asked my husband if he was ok and he said he thought he would be ok and for me to go on to bed. In the middle of the night around 3 am or so, my husband woke me up and told me that he was sick and that he thought he had food poisoning. I drove my husband to the ER after we got some quick directions from the front desk of where we were staying. . When we came into the ER, they took him back into triage. We were there for about 15 minutes while they asked him what was going on and he told them that he was sure it was food poisoning, describing the pain as indigestion in his upper stomach. They took his information, and vitals. He at that point told them that he thought that if he could have something strong for gas it would help. They led him as he walked back into the ER. They took him to a bed, gave him a robe to change into and told him they would be back in a moment. He got undressed and sat on the bed. They came in and hooked him up to heart monitors and a blood pressure cuff. I took note of his heart rate on the monitor. After about a half an hour a nurse came in and gave him a nitro glycerin tablet under the tongue. She stood there and chatted with us and watching my husband. She asked my husband if he was feeling any better. He told her that he was not feeling any better and that if she would just give him something to break up the gas he would feel better. The nurse then administered two more, just after giving him the two nitros the nurse left the room. I was sitting there and my husband said I dont feel well, I feel sick. I got up to to look for something for him to throw up in because I thought that is what he meant. He then said you need to go and get someone, I really dont feel good. I turned for the door and as I was reaching the door, I heard a sound from my husband. I turned and he went limp, his arms flailing to the sides and a very long breathe came out of him. I looked down the hall and a bunch of staff came rushing down the hall towards me. I went with them back into the room and I looked at the heart monitor. It was a flat line. The nurse shoved me out of the way and jumped on top of my husband and started doing chest compressions. They then had a security guard take me out of the room to a waiting room. They left me there for several minutes. A doctor finally appeared and talked to me a few minutes. He at that point asked me if my husband had ever had any heart problems. I told him no. I did tell him that his father had died at the age of 39. They allowed me back in to see my husband. When I came in, I first noticed the crash cart. My husband was hooked up to oxygen, and was laying flat on the bed. The nurses started clearing out. My husband after a few minutes was able to sit up a little. Thankfully he didnt have any memory of what had happened. One of the nurses came in and asked my husband if he saw a bright light or had any after-death experiences. He told her no, that he only remembered hearing music. Music like he hadnt ever heard before. The Triage nurse that had checked my husband in came back also. He said to my husband Welcome Back

I did say something to the nurse who gave him the nitro and she just shrugged it off as if it were no big deal! It was a HUGE deal. Honestly, they downplayed

After some time they admitted him and did many tests on his heart, His heart was perfect. They also checked his gall bladder and in the end that was their diagnosis. My husband did notice numbness in his right hand, and his behavior was strange, although I didnt think much about it at the time. I think we were both in shock at everything that had happened.

They released him late that afternoon. We went back to the room and relaxed that evening. We talked about it and decided to stay in Orlando since our kids had been so excited about the trip. The next day we decided to do a little something but we would take it easy, so we drove to New Smyrna Beach. It was then that my husband and I really started noticing things. He was weaving badly when he was walking and driving, and he started telling me that he was having trouble remembering things, and that he felt a little panicky.

We managed to have a little fun with our kids, but I noticed that my husband was a lot like a little kid. He was unable to make any decisions and did not want me to leave him alone.

We returned home and immediately went in to see our primary care physician (Dr. Uusinarkaus). He ordered an MRI, and it came back abnormal showing edema in the front occipital lobe. Our Doctor immediately referred us to a neurologist. We tried to get in with the Neurologist, but they werent able to get us an appointment so we called our PCP back and he made the arrangements to ensure we were able to see him quickly. The Neurologist (Dr. Herrera) ordered an MRA and Neuro-psych test. The MRA was delayed because of the holidays and returned normal. For the Neuropsych test he referred Brian to a Neuropsychologist (The neuroconnections), where he went through a whole battery of tests.

We went this past Friday (Feb 1) and received the results from the Neuro psychologist. The results are more specific, but the main 3 diagnosis that was given.

Diagnosis #1 Ischemic Stroke (by history)
Diagnosis #2 Encephalopathy (i.e., Cognitive disorder) with deficits in A. Processing speed B. Verbal Fluency C. Attention D. Complex memory.
Diagnosis #3 Adjustment Disorder with mixed anxiety and depression.

We also got the diagnosis from the neurologist and they said to expect to be on disability for at least a year, if not two.

What I can tell you about my husband is that he is a strong type A personality. He is very sharp and articulate. Always very independent and self driven. He works for Microsoft and has many responsibilities there as a Senior Consultant. He had a triple major in College and is a high functioning person. He had a 144 IQ (no documentation but was tested just after High School).

Now, he struggles to do the simplest things. We are prepping our home to sell and he couldnt even install a simple light fixture, something that he has done dozens of times. He cant work because he cant communicate effectively and he cant concentrate at the scale that is required for his job. He cant find his thoughts and then he cant find the words to express them.

Emotionally, he is much like a little boy. He doesnt want to be alone. He has nightmares, cant sleep and is afraid to even leave the house. These things are the extreme opposite of who he normally is and how he normally functions.

His prognosis is not the brightest. The neuro-psychologist has recommended the following treatment.

Cognitive rehabilitation
Psychological counseling
Medication
They also want him to be reassessed again in no more than 6 months.

He feels an acute sense of loss and doesnt know who he is anymore.

[kensstore]

ChocolateBubbleGumBoutique,

you might need to set up your Featured Categories. I like ecrater bc it's simple, easy, and of course no fees.

[ChocolateBubbleGumBoutique]

Yes, I will do that...thank you! Yes it is easy to set up and SOOO easy to list stuff ya know?!

[TheseOldThings]

Hi Chocolatebubble -- what a horrible thing to have happen to you. I am so sorry. Know that you and your husband and family are my prayers,

Larry