eBay Scams Via Craigslist, A Cunning Combination

Posted on March 21, 2010 by Scott Pooler

Wow,

I just wrote that I would not write about eBay anymore and here I am, compelled to do so...

Fortunately, this is really not a story that will be seen as bashing eBay because it is just not something that the giant of over regulation and useless rules has any control over.

It seems con artists, inspired by eBay's (Good?) name have adopted a new tactic to scam people of hard earned money.

and here is the kicker....

Scammers are advertising on Craigslist and claiming to be connected with eBay!

Amazing as it sounds, it is true, the story goes something like this...

You (i.e. the aforementioned earner of difficult to gain money) see an auto for sale on Craigslist, posted in an advertisement in your local area. The car is the model you want, the price is unbelievable and you contact the seller to be first on the deal. - Normal life of a Craigslist buyer (I can attest to this as I am an active Craigslist buyer and seller).

Continue reading “eBay Scams Via Craigslist, A Cunning Combination” »

Ut’ Oh eBay… Google enters eCommerce – Best Match or Best Darn Search – You decide

Posted on November 5, 2009 by Scott Pooler

It had to happen sooner or later... Google brings the power of Search to eCommerce!

Why oh Why eBay, did you not think of That!

Hmmmm - maybe eBay can sign up for Google Commerce Search and scrap this whole "finding" experiment... Maybe with Google Search installed on eBay.com, the term Best Match might actually mean that the best product matching the search terms entered will be presented.

Oh - what a novel idea - Actually allowing the person doing the search to determine what it is they are searching for...

But I Digress - eBay and Google burned bridges long ago and ever since that time, Google has grown stronger while eBay - well we all know where eBay's numbers are - in the hands of PayPal!

So... what is Google Commerce Search anyway? (Get most of the scoop at this link Google Support)

Evidently Google has a few tricks up their collective sleeves...

Continue reading “Ut’ Oh eBay… Google enters eCommerce – Best Match or Best Darn Search – You decide” »

Free ShoeMoney Internet Marketing Course and New Jay Berkowitz Sponsored Internet Marketing Club

Posted on October 9, 2009 by Scott Pooler

Free is good and in Internet marketing good education is everything... therefore, why not combine the two great opportunities to learn for free in one article?

Yeah, why not... hmmmm Ok - here goes, this will be short and sweet...

My friend, Jay Berkowitz of the Ten Golden Rules of Internet Marketing consulting firm, has started a new NING community called the Internet Marketing Club.

If you don't know Jay Berkowitz you may think, "Oh - Great a new guy hawking his wares on Ning" - Think Again!

Ten Golden Rules Host - Jay Berkowitz

Jay is all about sharing and education when it comes to Internet Marketing and his podcast "The Ten Golden Rules" is one of the most widely respected Internet marketing audio podcasts in the world. I have written about Jay's delivery and insights before here

Excerpt:

"I appreciate his genuine awe struck and outgoing way of bringing his listeners sound bytes from some of the most powerful and cutting edge Internet marketers and pioneers in our World today. Jay rubs shoulders with and interviews the likes of Seth Godin and Jason Calacanis on a weekly basis. If you don't know who those people are, it's OK because Jay will share the highlights of the careers of these .com and Internet moguls with you when he reports on the Ten Golden Rules podcast. I say Awe Struck, not because I think Jay does not belong in the same room with these mega-tycoons of our industry but because he has a way of approaching these interviews with the kind of exuberance and giddiness of someone who may not belong, but is happy to be there, would bring. Jay belongs - one only needs to read his resume on the Ten Golden Rules website to know he has been playing in this sandbox for some time now. He simply has a style which brings the listener into the room as if we were flies on the wall and Jay is the only person who knows we are there".

The Internet Marketing Club has gone from zero members to 50 in the course of one short day. Jay is adding content which is informative and educational and there are no DVD's or at home courses to be found. Of course if you want to hire Jay to help you boost sales or your brand online, I am sure he wouldn't mind but his approach is to give without asking for a return. It seems to work for him and this new Club is just one more example of Jay spreading the good word of Internet marketing to the masses. Thanks Jay!

More about the Internet Marketing Club:

Starting in October, we will run weekly webinars on topics such as Social Media including Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, Search Engine Marketing - Search Engine optimization (SEO) and Pay Per Click Marketing (PPC), Affiliate and Performance Marketing, Conversion Strategies and Analysis and Analytics.

Next on Today's Agenda is the Free 12 Week Internet Marketing Course - Provided by: Jeremy Shoemaker

If you are not aware of who Jeremy Shoemaker of "Shoemoney" is... Well, then I would wager that you may not have not been around the web 2.0 or blogosphere for very long. Jeremy Shoemaker helped put the spit shine on blogs as a a way to make money and he walks the walk and cashed the checks to prove it. I have been reading his Shoemoney blog for at least 3 years and it is full of good stuff.

Quote:

Google Adsense Check for $132,994.97

ShoeMoney.com, shares my ups and downs in the world of online marketing to a loyal daily readership of over 30,000 people. ShoeMoney.com has been named the Best Affiliate Marketing Blog and ranks in Technorati’s top 50 blogs for the past three years.

Of course Jeremy is selling an extensive Internet Marketing tools kit subscription at the end of this free 12 week course. Even though Jeremy would like to continue to make money from his knowlege he is not just putting together some e-book and expecting to get rich. The tools he provides at ShoeMoney Tools have a great deal of value.

I have signed up and completed all 12 weeks of the Free Course and I must say that there is a great deal of valuable information in this Free version. I see no reason to avoid learning from a guy who has made a great deal of money online. All information is good information if you utilize it - right?

Hello, I'm Jeremy "ShoeMoney" Schoemaker and for 13 years I've been building successful online businesses. For the past five years I've been working hard writing a book to help others get started online. I recently decided that there is just too much great information in my book to exclude people from reading it. I have now backed out of my major book deal and turned it into a completely FREE 12 week guide to Internet marketing. No strings attached. Enter your email and start receiving the weekly guides directly in your inbox!

Week 1 - The Beginner's Guide To Internet Marketing

Week 2 - Affiliate Marketing 101: Everything You Need To Know To Start Promoting Products

Week 3 - Market Research: How To Crush Your Competitors And Discover Hot Niches

Week 4 - Introduction to Pay Per Click

Week 5 - Advanced Pay Per Click

Week 6 - SEO Tips, Tricks, and Tactics

Week 7 - Content Creation: How To Create Articles That Attract Users And Increase Sales

Week 8 - Marketing: How To Use Social Media To Spread Your Brand

Week 9 - Make That Cash: 10 Ways To Monetize Your Site And Increase Profitability

Week 10 - Testing & Tracking: How To Optimize Your Site & Make Sense Of The Figures

Week 11 - Building Your Team: How To Network With Others And Find Long Term Partners

Week 12 - Launch Day: How To Kick Start Your Business And Manage Your Projects

Bonanzle 10,000 User Milestone Reached Today

Posted on November 23, 2008 by Scott Pooler

: 10,000 Users

Bonanzle is an online market where buyers and sellers get together to exchange merchandise in stress free friendly atmosphere.

Today, as I write this article, Bonanzle reached a milestone.

10,000 users have registered to buy and sell on Bonanzle. Yes, I agree, this is not a significant number when compared with the registered user of sites like eBay, Amazon.com or even Etsy. Yet, the speed in which this milestone has been reached is a significant development.

Bonanzle is barely 6 months young, oh what an interesting six months.

Bonanzle has introduced itself to sellers in a very positive way. The upgrades and improvements to the site are too numerous to list. And it is almost a task to try and keep up with the changes and improvements to the site as developer and founder Bill Harding releases them.

New Categories

One of the most significant recent developments has been the inclusion of the entire eBay category structure for listings on Bonanzle. Including the standard eBay categories an then possibly refining and improving all of those categories will only serve top make both search and new seller transfer easier than ever before. In checking the category structure yesterday on the site while crafting some listings, I found the process of finding the correct category even easier than it is on eBay. This is a major new seller and buyer feature in Bonanzles favor when compared to other eBay competitors, in my opinion.

Google Base

Another significant advantage to selling on Bonanzle i the very easy to set up and pain free automation of exporting inventory listing to Google Base product search. I set this feature up on Bonanzle in less than 5 minutes several weeks ago and it has run flawlessly ever since. From the day that I set up the Google feed on Bonanzle and saw it reporting data to Google, I have noticed a significant increase in views of my items listed on Bonanzle.

Cleaning up

I spent nearly 3 hours on Bonanzle yesterday working to set up my Bonanzle booth. Actually I should be honest and say that I was working to clean up the listings I had imported to Bonanzle from my eBay store. You may asking, why would I need to clean up eBay imported listings? Well, it seem that as an eBay seller for the last 11 years, I have developed a eBay listing template that includes much more shipping and payment information and rules than are needed in the outside world. My listings on eBay contain a great deal of disclaimers and protectionist boilerplate legal information (displayed in tabs in my template). Since Bonanzle is all about clean, simple and easy to understand listings, I decided I should remove all of the eBay centric content.

Bulk Editing

Luckily, on Bonanzle with the bulk editing tool, the task was a breeze. This is a point that can not be overlooked, the bulk editing tool makes it very easy to manage the entire inventory of products I have on Bonanzle. I have worked with advanced tools designed to handle inventory on multiple platforms in my career, I can say that while this bulk editing tool on Bonanzle does not have all of the features of higher cost tools and software, it does make editing multiple listings a very intuitive and straightforward process.

So, today, when Bonanzle has reached 10,000 users, I suggest that anyone who is interested in looking at another venue for selling online, a venue with tools and the steady growth in both products listed and hits received, which will bring in buyers an sellers alike, take a good look at Bonanzle!

Can Bonanzle function as a replacement for complicated eCommerce shopping cart solutions?

eBay Layoffs a Reality – 10% of eBay Workforce on the Job Hunt

Posted on October 6, 2008 by Scott Pooler

eBay Announced this morning...

eBay Layoff

Prior to the "Investor Relations" teleconference, eBay will lay-off 10% of its workforce while the stock price hovers near a 5 year low.

I am scheduled to tune in to the investor relations call, and hope to gleen some sort of further insight from the information presented, but be assured eBay will promote this as a good move. It remains to be seen if Wall Street agrees (what with Wall Street having its own problems of late).

I will follow up after the early Monday call....

Oh, and sorry if you are one of the eBay employees packing up your desk today, really... I know it hurts.

eBay Inc. Buys Leading Payments and Classifieds Businesses, Streamlines Existing Organization To Improve Growth Continue reading “eBay Layoffs a Reality – 10% of eBay Workforce on the Job Hunt” »

PESA – Telling eBay What's The Problems Are = No Confidence

Posted on October 1, 2008 by Scott Pooler

PESA

When the longest standing eBay trade organization comes out with a statement like this, few additional words or commentary are needed.

Other than to say...

Listen Up eBay, in political parlance - You have lost the core audience, your evangelists are few and far between... When PESA publicly sends out a message like this... Someone should take note.

From: noblespirit
To: ! Professional eBay Sellers Alliance

Subject: PESA/ECMTA Position Paper, September 30, 2008

September 30, 2008

PeSA Official Statement on eBays Marketplace:

Deteriorating eBay Market Conditions Erode Seller Confidence Continue reading “PESA – Telling eBay What's The Problems Are = No Confidence” »

Win 3 Laps In the #88 Amp Chevy with Dale Earnhardt Junior on eBay

Posted on September 26, 2008 by Scott Pooler

eBay is a hotspot for celebrity auctions and today Dale Earnhardt Junior, the most popular driver in Nascar, has joined the eBay family of celebrities. Today the driver of the #88 Amp Energy Chevrolet and Hendrick Motorsports team member, launched a charity auction. The eBay auction offers 3 laps for anyone who wins the bid in the car on the track with Dale Earnhardt junior driving!

We were informed about this Nascar eBay connection by Keith Bloemendaal of Favorite Teamwear, a Nascar focused website offering team merchandise and blog commentary on the sport.

Dale Earnhardt Jr Auctions Ride In #88 At Lowes Motor Speedway

Bidding opens today at 7:00 p.m. EDT on eBay and will continue through Friday, Oct. 3. Following the final bid, Wrangler® will donate 100 percent of auction proceeds to the Victory Junction Gang Camp, a NASCAR-themed medically sound camp that enriches the lives of children with chronic medical conditions or serious illnesses.

“Whether it’s signing a pair of jeans, giving away the door from one of my cars or driving a generous fan around the track, I’m more than happy to do my part in contributing to Victory Junction,” said Earnhardt. “Wrangler has continued to go above and beyond in helping this great charity and I’m honored to be a part of it.”

Fans can get more information or place bids by visiting www.wrangler.comor www.ebay.com/wranglerjeans.

Dinesh @ eBay Says Fixed Price 30 Days is Good To Go

Posted on September 16, 2008 by Scott Pooler

Ok eBay sellers.... Time to load up on your fixed price 30 day options... Got your strategy set? Ready to start raking in that 30 day fixed price profit potential? Think it will improve your business or eBay's business?

Time will tell, but here it is and it's here to stay.... (At least we think it is)

September 15, 2008 | 03:20PM PST/PT

Dinesh Lathi

Hi everyone. I'm here with a reminder that the new pricing structure for Fixed Price listings, as announced by Lorrie on August 20th, goes into effect at midnight Pacific time tonight. That means that sellers will be able to start taking advantage of the new 30-day duration for Fixed Price listings for the new low Insertion Fee of 35 cents, and just 15 cents in Books, Movies & DVDs, Music, and Video Games.Also starting at midnight, and good through the end of the year, our special holiday promotion goes into effect for Books, Movies & DVDs, Music, and Video Games: Fixed Price Insertion Fees are just 5 cents when you use Pre-filled Item Information (see details here).

If you haven't already, make sure you've reviewed all of the information pages we've provided to learn more about the other changes she introduced: "recent sales" as a factor in Best Match search results for Fixed Price listings (which may take a few days to roll out across the entire site), new maximum shipping and handling charges in Books, Movies & DVDs, Music, and Video Games, our paperless payments policy, our seller standards, and more.

In addition, check out the Seller Checklist, which will help you stay on top of when various policies and features will take effect, and provide updates on the availability of tools for bulk-editing your listings. A few key upcoming dates:

Starting October 1st and through the end of the year, sellers will get a free Subtitle listing upgrade, and eligible PowerSellers will get double their Final Value Fee discounts for items sold with free shipping.

By October 5th, make sure your first domestic shipping option in your Books, Movies & DVDs, Music and Video Games listings is within the new maximum charges.

On October 20th, our paperless payments policy will begin, and checks and money orders will no longer be allowed as payment methods.

Also by late October, you'll need to specify your handling time and return policy in your listings.

As we did on August 20th, we'll be answering your questions about these changes on our special discussion forum on September 16th from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT.

Sincerely,

Dinesh Lathi
VP, Seller Experience

Jet Blue Breaks eBay Terms of Service Offering Numerous "Mystery" Auctions

Posted on September 15, 2008 by Scott Pooler

Jet Blue has gained a lot of notoriety with the recent announcement the Airline would be auctioning off flights on eBay. Unfortunately the big box retailer of airfare and travel packages apparently has not read the eBay rulebook or terms of service and has begun breaking the very same rules standard sellers on eBay must abide by within the first week of Jet Blue/eBay operations.

Jet Blue offers Mystery Auctions on eBay - breaking an eBay policy announced May 19, 2008 by: John McDonald of eBay Trust and Safety.

John McDonald - eBay

Mystery Auctions prohibited
Due to the high rate of claims and bad buying experiences related to these listings, starting early June, the Chance Policy will now also include Mystery Auctions as a prohibited item.

Mystery Auction by Jet Blue ended at $3,350.00 with 40 Bids

The Jet Blue listing above offered a "Mystery Auction" with the following ad text:

PACK YOUR PASSPORT AND SUNSCREEN AND JET AWAY TO A “MYSTERY” TROPICAL DESTINATION

Plus, get a complimentary $100 food and beverage credit**

Get ready for an exciting travel adventure! This JetBlue Getaways vacation package includes roundtrip flights for two (2) and five day/four nights accommodations at a 4 star Marriott resort in one of JetBlue’s tropical destinations such as St. Maarten, Bermuda, Cancun, Aruba, or Puerto Plata.

Your final destination will be revealed at the end of the auction so bid now! VALID PASSPORT AND DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED

FLIGHT DETAILS

Roundtrip flight on JetBlue Airways for two (2) people:

JFK -New York, NY (or valid connecting city via JFK) to Mystery Destination

Please note - VALID PASSPORT AND DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED

The Chance Policy on eBay Defines Mystery Auctions This way:

Mystery Items:

Mystery items are listings where the seller doesn't specifically identify the contents, number, quality or condition of the items for sale. Mystery item listings are not permitted.

We suppose Jet Blue could say that a flight to an unknown destination which requires a Passport is not a mystery... but how many regular eBay sellers would be allowed to dance this fine line of semantics? As an eBay seller myself, I am painfully aware of how the rules can be very specific in some cases and not so much in others. In this case, I think Jet Blue got a "pass' from eBay...

The fact is Jet Blue offered an item for sale on eBay and they did not define what exactly the bidders would receive in exchange for the $3,350.00 final bid. Jet Blue auctioned off a chance to receive an undefined item. This is the definition of a Mystery Auction and Jet Blue called it a Mystery Auction boldly in the description. Resulting in a clear violation of the eBay terms of service and the listing should not have been allowed.

eBay has allowed numerous instances "Mystery Auctions" as presented by Jet Blue however, as of the date and time this publication several of these Mystery listing have closed with winning bidders who obstensably have no idea what it is they have won or where they may go... No "Mystery Auctions" are currently live on eBay however.

The point here is not that Jet Blue is defrauding anyone. I have every confidence the winners of these packages will receive their money's worth from the airline... The point is eBay has turned its head away from a violation of listing policies for one of the new big box vendors they recently have courted with rumoured discounted fee structures and other incentives, something they swore would never happen. eBay made a promise to the long standing sellers and users of the eBay platform which stated that something like this would or could never occur...

Well it has, on multiple occasions.

For the record, I have stated in public that I am not against Jet Blue offering flights or travel packages on eBay... I am against them getting away with breaking eBay terms of service that the rest of the community of sellers must abide by...

What do you think?

Trading Assistant Journal

eCommerce News & Internet Marketing Commentary by: Scott Pooler

Category Archives: News