eBid Widgets

The scope of the problem

As a viewer of social networks I’ve been making a couple of changes to my usage lately, and it’s got me thinking about the rights and wrongs of using networks as a marketeer. 

I’ve recently added Pinterest to my Social Networking sites, which means the list now reads: Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, Tumblr, and Twitter. Since these days I’m pretty much working full-time (albeit in a variety of places) plus still keeping a toe in the eBid waters (newsletter, selling, forums and support via eBid Widgets and eBid Help), I’m aware of being quite demanding about quality over quantity. 

Most SNs (as we’ll call them henceforth) provide some filtering and opting-out facilities so that one is not compelled to read absolutely everything one’s friends and colleagues put forward. 

Facebook allows us to choose the type of updates we see, or to unsubscribe and at dire need unfriend an individual whose posts are becoming tedious or undesirable. Google+ operates on the basis of circles, making it a simple matter to drop those who bore us into a forgotten ring of tedium never to be viewed. Pinterest allows individuals to be followed en masse, or via individual boards so that topics that tire can be excluded from one’s stream. Tumblr operates as a purely opt-in function so boring blogs are never seen and reciprocity in following is not the matter of insistence (Facebook’s friendship model) or etiquette (Twitter’s follow/follow back) as it is with the others. Twitter is rather an all or nothing choice, with unfollowing being pretty much the only option.

Rule of three

I have found that my tolerance for marketing Tweets, Pins, status updates etc is fairly consistent across the platforms. Three’s my limit at any time. If three price-marked Pins appear on my Pinterest board I can live with that, and more so if they still conform to my ethos of style and interest. If the thing you are selling is beautiful and well photographed, or interesting and well photographed, or funny and well photographed… I’m happy to look at it. If you have a blurry pic of a dull box of grunge, don’t expect to stay visible on my boards. If, on the other hand, you do a great job, I’ll happily re-pin. Pinterest is about visuals, so the images have to cut the mustard. Well-photographed, remember. 

Facebook status updates and Twitter tweets are less visual (though both can carry thumbnails) and so it’s simply a matter of not over-loading my timelines. Three posts is about right (none is lovely, but that’s not what we’re trying to achieve here!) Send me more than three, fill my timeline, push my other friends off my screen and there’s a good chance that I’ll unsubscribe or unfollow your posts. If you post a lot of otherwise interesting content, use the SNs for real socialising, I may turn a blind eye or try to tweak my options to remove the ads. But make a habit of it, however funny and chatty you are otherwise you’re probably destined for the bin. 

Google+ is so much in its infancy that at the moment, like many users, I’m pretty non-selective about who gets on my radar and who stays there. But I am using circles to be selective, and only real updates with real content will make to my friends circle, pure marketing goes in the circle o’ spam (not it’s real name, but probably should be) which gets looked at about as much as you’d expect.  Google+ updates tend to be fairly bulky things, especially when accompanied by links and pics as selling notes always are, so not many are needed to fill a page. Three is probably pushing it here, but is still tolerable. One would be better and less likely to irritate. 

Tumblr’s a different beast and was only included for completeness. I’m not aware of anybody abusing Tumblr’s functionality to load me with spam, so it’s a non-problem and will promptly (no offence Tumblr, this is a good thing) be ignored. 

Improving your chances

There is a way to stop your messages, however many you do at a time, from being viewed as spammy. Add value. Mmm… horrible phrase, but memorable and snappy, so let’s go with it. How do you add value to a marketing post? Tell a story, give some background, be amusing. The same way you make any post to any SN or forum worth reading. Selling a fabric off-cut? Cut off what? What’s the story there? Tell your audience something they want to read and you’re not just adding value to the message, your adding it to the item too. People like stories, they like to be drawn in, and they love buying things that have a tale attached. Spare wheel for a bicycle? How come? Where did you find it? Did you bend the rest of the bike so badly only the wheel was left… don’t tell me there’s not a story there!

As mentioned above, good quality photographs matter. They matter anyway when selling - don’t let anybody tell you otherwise, they’re crucial - but when selling or marketing via an SN they are pivotal. So many SNs have a visual element, with Facebook’s becoming more prominent weekly as they move to the timeline model, and Pinterest being entirely graphical, the quality of the image is becoming paramount. If you post a really corking image you will find it spreading across the SNs on its own merit, your marketing blurb being dragged along as a happy bonus. 

Practice what I preach

Now that I’ve thought all that through, and understand how I really feel about it as a reader, I’m ready to put my ideas into practice. Thus far I have largely avoided marketing via SNs since the prevalence of bad examples had led me to believe it was better avoided completely. But I don’t think such extreme avoidance is absolutely necessary (while accepting it would still be nice in many cases). So I’m going to make the occasional marketing post. I hope that you’ll barely notice it’s happening. My goal will be to make interesting and attractive updates that just happen to promote some item or other I’d quite like you to buy.  If you want to do the same, that’s great. Let me know. I don’t expect to notice unless you tell me. :o)

Happy networking,
by Kimbo!

eBid’s loyalty system is called “Buddy Points”. Points are awarded in different amounts for recruiting other sellers (largest payouts available), making sales and placing bids, getting feedback etc. The full table of what gets you which is here.

Buddy points can be used to “buy” things sold on special buddy auctions run by the site itself. You can see those via your  country’s front page any time.

So why should you join in the Buddy fun?

1. The whole point is to promote eBid, and what promotes the site promotes your sales.

2. You can send your buddy link to potential buyers, who may browse your stuff and make a purchase.

3. You  can use buddy points to buy goodies (for example, I’ve “bought” a Kindle, plus various consumables like packing tape and labels).

And finally…

4. Each month the top points scorers appear on the front page of the site, that’s your eBid ID (linked to your All About Me page) right there on the front page for all to see and follow - I think a lot of people miss this bonus!

So start thinking about where you can put your buddy link. On your blog, your website, in signatures for forums, on Facebook and other profiles… spread it about, spread the word about eBid, and start reaping the benefits!

p.s. Don’t know where to find your buddy link? It’s in your My eBid section, just follow this link to see yours. 

It’s useful to know if a site is being regularly updated and maintained, so I’ve done a quick round-up of all announced alterations (excluding the Ninja Lister which has it’s own list) and here’s the list for 2010:

BUGFIX - International shipping details missing from sale notification email

BUGFIX - Top buttons mis-directing on nl.ebid.net

BUGFIX - left and right cursor keys not working on pages with scrolling galleries

BUGFIX - some english spelling creeping into non-english sites

BUGFIX - edited shipping info was still showing cached results

BUGFIX - back link on editing error was changing radio button choices

BUGFIX - eBid Store description hitting character limit incorrectly

BUGFIX - search boxes on frontpage slides showing incorrect result pages

BUGFIX - password reminder page wrong layout

BUGFIX - some page titles irrelevant to content

BUGFIX - wrong text on eBid Store navigation boxes

BUGFIX - “General” folder name translated to all languages

BUGFIX - Blackball bid removal now resets BuyNow option also if applicable

BUGFIX - Missing shipping costs on some USPS invoices

BUGFIX - Missing BuyNow cost on repost form

BUGFIX - Bulk Edit - Min. Feedback to BuyNow not being changed

UPDATE - Lost passwords now reset not sent in plain text for better security

UPDATE - Auctions I’m Running and Auctions I Ran pages quantities not informative enough

UPDATE - Offer details added to My Subscription pages

UPDATE - Multiple bounces now required for new email request

NEW - dk.ebid.net updated to Danish

NEW - Ninja Lister v0.9 beta downloadable

BUGFIX - Green tick showing after editing quantities

UPDATE - Ninja Lister v0.91 beta downloadable

BUGFIX - Incorrect Seller+ costs showing on ZA site

BUGFIX - USPS Priorty Mail error when uploading using NL

UPDATE - Zip file photos uploaded in order of filename

UPDATE - Ninja Lister v0.93 beta downloadable

UPDATE - Ninja Lister v0.94 beta downloadable

UPDATE - Ninja Lister v0.95 beta downloadable

UPDATE - Ninja Lister v0.95.5 beta downloadable. Install whilst NL is not running.

UPDATE - Ninja Lister v0.95.7 beta downloadable.

BUGFIX - Problem with updating email address in My Personal Details

BUGFIX - LOgout message now shows on My Gallery Popup when listing and log out occurs

UPDATE - Start Bid and BuyNow prices added to Watch List emails

UPDATE - Added Fedex Shipping facilities to eBid Spreadsheet > US Shipping

BUGFIX - Auctions being edited to “Featured” being changed back too early

UDPATE - My Default sets sorted alphabetically in dropdowns

UPDATE - Added cnofirmation popups to individual Delete/Close links on Auctions Im Running page

UPDATE - Added “Condition” option to My Bulk Edit

UPDATE - Added SKU info on Auctions I Ran pages

UDPATE - Added confirmation popup on contact us form to stop bad email addresses coming to us and hence no way to reply to ticket

UPDATE - Australian Shipping Methods updated

UPDATE - Canadian Shipping Methods updated

UPDATE - eBid Store urls changes to http://store-title.ebid.net

UPDATE - Individual auction page URLs chagned to include keywords

UPDATE - Users with bad email addresses still receiving emails from meetup

UPDATE - Individual auction page META KEYWORDS changed to be more relevant

NEW - Added recent anwers to Q&A Duty section

UPDATE - SEO URL improvements for category browse pages

BUGFIX - My Bulk Edit wrong count showing in buckets

BUGFIX - My Fees text not visible on Invoice entry rows

BUGFIX - Tidied up some category names for SEO purposes

BUGFIX - Q&A Recent Answers not showing correctly

BUGFIX - Logout link not working correctly from some pages in IE8

UPDATE - Added explanation to Ninja Lister emails if user is not Seller+ Lifetime

UPDATE - Stopped Google uploads being marked as Adult if eBid Store has adult items in it

NEW - Added next page URL simplification for category pages

NEW - Added http://uk.ebid.net/sell/ http://uk.ebid.net/buy/ links

BUGFIX - Recent Answers list was still not 100%

BUGFIX - Export Listings function not working correctly in some cases

BUGFIX - US Calculated Shipping options not showing with cheapest first

BUGFIX - HTML tags appearing in RSS feeds

UPDATE - Message when banned from forums due to bouncing emails a little harsh

NEW - Added Print Invoice option to AAL

NEW - Launched our new search technology, shouldn’t be noticable to the human eye but loads changed behind the scenes

BUGFIX - Printable invoice showing incorrect shipping messages

BUGFIX - Cateory counts in eBid Stores showing as zero

BUGFIX - Genre and Format dropdowns not working for Pre-Filled Info > Books in some cases

BUGFIX - Few more discrepancies with our new search system, counts and missing items

UPDATE - Added auction count to user auctions results page

BUGFIX - Photos not being reposted correctly

BUGFIX - eBid Stores page showing “login now” message even when logged in

UPDATE - Added confrm message to Auctions I’m Running delete and close checkboxes

UPDATE - Increased maximum description length from 40k

BUGFIX - NL intl shipping not allowing more than one option

BUGFIX - IT intl shipping not allowing more than one option

BUGFIX - My Bulk Edit not adding all possible auction to bucket

BUGFIX - US Shipping calculator throwing up server errors on rare occasions

UPDATE - Added “All Folder” options to My Gallery for searching and sorting

BUGFIX - Some usernames missing Store tag

UPDATE - Multiple items auctions are no longer closed if auto-reposts remain and any purchases were made via BuyNow. Auto-reposts will be continued.

UPDATE - Slimmed down Printable Invoice to allow more rows per page

UPDATE - Made usernames clickable on Q&A responses

UPDATE - Added worldwide total count of individual auctions to www.ebid.net frontpage

UPDATE - Added links to auctions listed in successful bulk upload logs

UPDATE - Removed “Notes to Buyer” text on invoices if none present

UPDATE - Removed some english text still appearing on non-english sites

UPDATE - Allowed answers to be added directly to Q&A text area on auction page if only a single answer is due

BUGFIX - Shipping costs not changing on screen on invoices when dropdown box is changed

UPDATE - Added links to share auctions on FB, Twitter and Digg

UPDATE - Added option to update a Standard auction to Platinum to AAL Status message where relevant

UPDATE - Increased eBid Store count update frequency to 4hrs from 12hrs

BUGFIX - New Twitter buttons were causing security warnings on https pages

BUGFIX - eBid Spreadsheet upload showed temporary error after upload and before auction check sequence for large files

BUGFIX - Feedback Duty counts out of sync on rare occassions

BUGFIX - Some Platinum auctions were being limited to 1 photo

UPDATE - Removed loophole of downgradeable auctions after bids have been made

UPDATE - Added larger Pay Me buttons to invoices and moved nearer the top

UPDATE - Hid Pay Me buttons on invoices until they are available to be clicked to avoid confusion

UPDATE - Added check when adding feedback text that a radio button has not been left on “Do Not Add Feedback” by mistake

UDPATE - Added new clickable payment method buttons on auction pages

UPDATE - Removed “Mark As Shipped” from buyers AAL dropdown

UPDATE - If Buyer marks AAL as payment sent a half/half icon will show until sellers marks as payment received

UPDATE -Added buttons to Auction Status section instead of text links to pay

UPDATE - If user wishes to upgrade to SELLER+ LIFETIME and they have zero due because of accumulated payments then they were will be asked to verify card instead of being sent to PayPal

BUGFIX - Listing Similar a Platinum auction and changing to Standard still had BuyNow element remaining

BUGFIX - Users able to upgrade to SELLER+ LIFETIME for zero now send to credit/debit card form instead of PayPal

NEW - Added the first HTVs to Help section

BUGFIX - Removed message to add a BuyNow price when it is not possible to

UPDATE - Added “Reason” field to Blackball function

UPDATE - Removed pagination when not required

UPDATE - Added more Google Checkout user field checks when listing auction

UPDATE - Added category list to frontpage “Buy” link

BUGFIX - Previously large photos on frontpage carousel were clicking thru to a new page instead of simply scrolling to center

BUGFIX - Exporting failed auctions of NL uploads were causing server error

UPDATE - Ninja Lister available to all sellers

UPDATE - Added “no photo” icon to top left area of auction pages without photos instead of white blank space

UPDATE - “My eBid” header dropdown changed to text links

BUGFIX - newly created My Defaults were disappearing

UPDATE - All GOLD users upgraded for free to SELLER+ LIFETIME… Thankyou.

BUGFIX - My Defaults “Start” option not being remembered

UPDATE - Added Youtube video ID to exporting and bulk uploading

UPDATE - Added larger camera icon on showroom listings

UPDATE - Added empty username and password check to login form

UPDATE - Added check to NOT allow all uppercase usernames and eBid Store titles

UPDATE - Added check when deleting My Default sets

NEW - Added country flags to logos

NEW - Added continental sites to allow buyers to purchase from around the world

NEW - Added location/distance searching for US and UK

NEW - Upgraded all GOLD users to SELLER+

NEW - Countries where Calculated Shipping is available can choose where shipping should be calculated from in My Defaults

NEW - Added Search and Sort options to Auctions I Ran

BUFIX - Our forum software has been upgraded today to a current version that fixes some security flaws that we have been notified of. As you can see there are some drastic changes that we will fine tune in the coming days instead of keeping the forums offline for longer.

UPDATE - Forum Closing Auctions added Popular and New

UPDATE - New large photos will be 600x600 instead of 500x500

UPDATE - Sellers could not watch their own auctions

BUGFIX - Continents removed from Advanced Search

NEW - Webcam facility added to My All About Me

NEW - Ghost categories. Sometimes a category can be placed in more than one parent category. We can now add Ghost categories that will appear in the subcategory list of a parent it doesn’t belong to. Eg. Home > Pets > Horse Riding is a ghost pointing to the true category Sports > Horse Riding

UPDATE - Invoice re-sends now count towards the 2 payment reminders required

UPDATE - Most populated category automatically expanded in left column on search results page

UPDATE - “Other” subcategories moved to end of list

UPDATE - Users with incorrect clock settings on their computer should be able to login correctly now

UPDATE - Added shipping method to printed invoices

UPDATE - Category browse pages added vertical breadcrumb to left column

BUGFIX - Showroom view multiple pictures were upscaling small instead of showing medium size versions

BUGFIX - Some pages not showing user as logged in

BUGFIX - DE spreadsheet bulk upload not submitting every time

BUGFIX - Shipping destinations being forgotten on auction pages when refreshed

NEW - US located items uploaded to thefind.com

NEW - Added “Back to Search Results” link to each auction page

UPDATE - Category and subcategory browse pages can now be filtered without a keyword

UPDATE - Added My Watchlist - Auction Auto-Reposted to My Emails

UPDATE - My Invoices pay buttons moved to most recent row

UPDATE - My Invoices pay buttons not shown if under minimum amount £0.40 or equivalent in local currency

UPDATE - Added link from My Fees > My Statement > invoice entry row to My Fees > My eBid Invoices page

BUGFIX - Google Shopping links linking to random eBid country sites

BUGFIX - Removed Social network buttons from pages behind a My eBid login

BUGFIX - Edited eBid Store categories not showing in correct order

BUGFIX - Fedex package type not showing correctly when editing

BUGFIX - Social Network buttons missing from some pages when logged in

UPDATE - Added clearer messages for credit card errors

UPDATE - Added warning message to BuyNow button for users who have already purchased the item

UPDATE - Added requirement of at least one payment option per auction

UPDATE - Business address map not showing on All About Page

UPDATE - Added PayPal link to transaction details for AAL payment entries

UPDATE - Added currency conversions to AAL checkout forms

UPDATE - Added “Continue Shopping” links to BuyNow confirmation page

BUGFIX - Zip/post code box being populated on Advanced Search form incorrectly

UPDATE - Added daily currency exchange rate updates

UDPATE - My Fees > My Invoices simplified with more narration and links to paypal transactions

UPDATE - Items with Free Shipping will be shown as such on Google Shopping

UPDATE - Added facility to Delete All photos from a folder in My Gallery

UPDATE - Added checks for all uppercase eBid usersnames and eBid Store titles to allow for Google uploads to process

UPDATE - Added automatic daylight saving changes for all countries

BUGFIX - Sorting by price not showing in correct order when currency exchange required

BUGFIX - Country name showing in english on non-english registration pages

BUGFIX - Run Until Sold items were being missed out when closing out of date auctions

BUGFIX - Starting Bid field dupilcated on edit form

BUGFIX - Extra Category not showing correctly

BUGFIX - Shipping and Total amounts not showing correctly on PayPal and PPPay checkouts on continental sites

BUGFIX - “Log in for Status” link on auction pages not redirecting back to auction page

UPDATE - Run Until Sold items not being removed after 365 days

UPDATE - OFB and RUS items being removed after 365 days if seller has not logged in for lengthy period of time

BUGFIX - Added Folder filter to My Gallery overlay on listing form

UDPATE - Added Buddy Point balance to bid form on Buddy Auctions

UPDATE - Added link to all users auctions on “More by this Seller” module

UPDATE - Google Checkout payment failure now marks as unpaid in AAL

UPDATE - Adde “Save for Later” button to listing form to save auction data to My Defaults

BUGFIX - Shipping details when creating invoices for continental buyers

UPDATE - Removed eBid watermark from small and medium version of photos to improve visibility. Watermark remains on large photos.

BUGFIX - Switching to Gallery or Showroom view when a non a-z character is searched for shows zero results

BUGFIX - Close Auction search not working correctly in some advanced search forms

UPDATE - Pre filled information / barcode system incorporated into main form to promote it’s use more due to Google Shopping requirements

UPDATE - Added link to HTV page on each FAQ

UPDATE - Changed decimal point character and location of currency sign on some sites

UPDATE - Report Auctions options listed alphabetically

UPDATE - Improved help icon text for shipping options on listing form

UPDATE - Added more obvious links to shipping calculators

UPDATE - Added ISBN/UPC/EAN checks when listing

UDPATE - Added details of up to 100 auctions on mass closing/reposting email

UPDATE - Added Category & Store filters to “Auctions I Ran”

UPDATE - Disabled submit buttons on listing form once clicked to stop double submissions

UPDATE - Tidied up Showroom view gaps

UPDATE - Updated per row error messages for NL & Spreadsheet uploads

UPDATE - Added more inline checks when listing. eg. missing Gallery image, missing price etc

UPDATE - Changed submit button colours and moved Preview button to the right on listing form

BUGFIX - Auction counts showing incorrectly

BUGFIX - Auction ID searching in eBid Stores not working

BUGFIX - My Favourite Searches problems with quotes

BUGFIX - User told they were on hold if they validated account twice

BUGFIX - Hitting “Preview” on listing form too early causes shipping field errors

BUGFIX - Fixed another bug with category counts

NEW - Sitemaps for each eBid site uploaded to Google to enable more comprehensive standard search result spidering

BUGFIX - Javascript error appearing on www homepage

BUGFIX - Preview button on listing form causing JS error on rare occasions and nothing is submitted

BUGFIX - Main image not being uploaded to Google Shopping

BUGFIX - Asking for Price field when Closing auction via edit form

BUGFIX - Bulk Upload message asking to launch items when none have passed tests

BUGFIX - Bulk Edit replace form out of alignment

BUGFIX - eBid Fees Invoices showing as overdue too early

UPDATE - Increased site width for larger screens

UPDATE - Added Brand field to My Bulk Edit

UPDATE - Added SKU field to My Bulk Edit

UPDATE - Added SKU field to Auctions I’m Running search

UPDATE - Added SKU field to Auctions I Ran search

UPDATE - Added Title & Description to Auctions I’m Running search

UPDATE - Added Title & Description to Auctions I Ran search

UPDATE - Added facility to upload eBid Spreadsheets with images all within a zip file

UPDATE - Allowing special characters into passwords

NEW - Added eBid Hong Kong

UPDATE - Added US$ clairification on HK site

UPDATE - Enlarged top photos on wide site auction pages

BUGFIX - Fixed messages on zero result searches @ Auctions I’m Running

BUGFIX - Fixed IE7 Forum posting form page

BUGFIX - Auctions not being found by Bulk Edit search when ebid store category chosen

BUGFIX - Pre-filled info .. photos not being found correctly

BUGFIX - eBid Store category counts not correct in left column

BUGFIX - Error message simplified when session timeout occurs during bulk upload

BUGFIX - Changing zip code on invoice creation not changing shipping amounts

BUGFIX - Auction editor not changing on demand IE7 in edit mode

BUGFIX - Fixed width of Plain HTML Box in edit mode

BUGFIX - Data Transfer Error for Item with calculated domestic shipping and flat international

BUGFIX - Calculated shipping errors for sellers with long US zips

BUGFIX - Shipping data not being saved to My Defaults in some cases

BUGFIX - Calculated Shipping - FedEx packaging choice showing for 2 UPS options

BUGFIX - AAL icons showing incorrectly on Add Feedback page in some situations

BUGFIX - Multiple emails being sent for successful sales on some occassions

BUGFIX - Brand disappearing from relisting form

BUGFIX - Extra Category box causing error when editing auctions

BUGFIX - Close button wasn’t showing on edit form page when a BuyNow had taken place

UPDATE - Added “add” command to My Bulk Uploads

UPDATE - Added “overwrite” command to My Bulk Uploads

UPDATE - Added “close” command to My Bulk Uploads

UPDATE - Added “delete” command to My Bulk Uploads

UPDATE - UK items now uploaded to thefind.com

UPDATE - Added package weight to calculated shipping prices

UPDATE - My Auction Defaults titles used instead of dates

UPDATE - My Bulk Edit limited to 200k items per search

UPDATE - Added more checks to stop closed items getting stuck

UPDATE - eBid Spreadsheet & Ninja files with missing FedEx package types now defaulting to YOUR_PACKAGING instead of error message

UPDATE - Link added to buyers finalised invoice view to “Go Back and Edit Shipping”

UPDATE - Automatically showing calculated shipping on auction page without having to hit calculate

UPDATE - Added Feedback link tabs to feedback add confirmation page

UPDATE - Added Stage One (File Check) info to My Bulk Upload Launching pages

UPDATE - Updated sale notification email subjects

NEW - Added category choices and formatting options to My Notices

NEW - Added multiple item shipping costs for Calculated Domestic Shipping. Flat Rate coming soon.

NEW - Added multiple item shipping costs for Calculated International Shipping. Flat Rate coming soon.

BUGFIX - Quantity showing incorrectly on auction preview page

BUGFIX - Seller location showing by default on invoice create page instead of buyer

BUGFIX - Zip code box not showing on mulitple auction invoice if one or more auctions had calculated shipping

BUGFIX - Google Checkout missing shipping amounts in some situations

BUGFIX - Feedback could be duplicated in very rare situations

BUGFIX - Decimal quantities were being let through when buying

UPDATE - Added BuyNow and Bid boxes for Holiday auctions to make situation clearer

UPDATE - Allow bulk upload images produced by scripts eg. they don’t have .jpg or similar file extensions

UPDATE - Bulk upload rewritten to increase CHECK speed for items with remote images by 20x

UPDATE - Bulk upload rewritten to increase LAUNCH speed for items with remote images by 10x

UPDATE - Bulk upload of zips containing physical images sped up

UPDATE - Added text to My Gallery pages explaining the lifecycle of an uploaded photo

UPDATE - Tidied up some Bulk Upload error messages

UDPATE - New uploaded images will be hosted in the cloud to alleviate problem of low disk space on our hardware

BUGFIX - SELLER eBidders unable to list new auction on rare occasions

BUGFIX - Camera icon on Auctions I Ran list not showing image correctly

BUGFIX - Popular Auctions on frontpage could miss qualifying items

I thought I’d try to build up a library of standard text snippets for people to use if they wish. First one: some text you can add to your emails to try to identify where buyers are coming from. You could just send this out in a confirmation of purchase note straightaway, or add it to whichever part of the process suits.

You can change it if you want, it’s copyright free and no strings attached. 

How did you hear about us?


Thank you for buying from us on eBid. We would love to know how you heard about us, or this item. If you have a moment, please could you hit reply to this email, and mark the boxes below with an X to give us some feedback? Thank you very much for your time.


I found you via:
[ ] Google normal search
[ ] Google shopping pages
[ ] Another search engine
[ ] eBid’s own search
[ ] Facebook
[ ] Twitter
[ ] Other - please specify if you can [ ]


Thank you for your help.

I was asked how to add a donation button to a blog. PayPal makes this very simple, by providing a button builder that produces a complete chunk of code for you to copy and paste.

In PayPal use Merchant Services > Accept Donations.

Take the code produced and make sure you choose HTML mode in your blog editor. Paste the code in, and publish.  The success, or otherwise, of your edit will depend on what elements your blog host allows you to embed. Blogger, for example, will work fine. Tumblr won’t. If you want to do something similar in Tumblr you’ll need to host the button elsewhere and link to it, as I have there. 

A blog is a virtual journal, a personal route to sharing thoughts, talking to an unknown and changing audience, and getting your stuff “out there”. How can this be useful to eBidders?

Why Blog?

Why should eBidders consider blogging? To promote sales, ultimately of course. There are a number of ways blogging can help you do this.

Share expertise.

By sharing your expertise on any subject you help your fellow fans, and in the process (if you do it right!) get yourself a reputation as knowledgeable on some subject or other. Know a lot about what you sell? Then share some of that experience and when somebody thinks “postcards” or “china” or whatever your chosen area is, there’s a good chance they’ll think of you. You can also, of course, use a blog to directly promote a particular listing or range by giving a link and talking about the product, but if your blog is just a series of adverts there’s little motivation for others to read it. However…

Promote items

There is, of course, the option to post about new items, new ranges, particularly interesting offers, and people already interested in your products will find such information useful and interesting. Corgi fans will want to know if you’ve unearthed a rich seam of vintage vans in a recent auction, so they can watch your listings for items they’re interested in. If you list a piece of rare Murano glass, your glass blog will need an update. 

Add value

Make your blog an interesting read, don’t just repeat your advertisements (listings) straight from eBid, add value - tell a story about how you found the item, a bit of history about the location featured, anything that makes it worth reading and holds the attention of your audience for a few moments. Give your readers a reason to follow your blog.

Where to blog

There are a number of blogging sites, large and small. Some of the better known names are Tumblr, Wordpress, Blogspot, Blogger and LiveJournal. Different sites suit different ways of writing; some blogs have a more visual aspect (Tumblr), some are more geared to the written word (WordPress), each has its strengths and weaknesses and you might find you need to experiment with several sites before finding the one that suits you best. Many blogging sites will allow you to embed your blog in your own site, useful if you wish to keep everything under your own domain address. There are also specialist blog sites where a theme is favoured, such as food, crafts etc. Google is your friend - explore! Find a blog you like and that matches your own aims, and that hosting site is probably as good a place as any to try first.

How to blog

The mechanics are going to vary from site to site, but most will allow a variety of update methods: you can type into a web page (as I’m doing here), email updates, send from mobile phones, whatever suits the way you live and work. I find composing via the blogging site’s own web interface works best for me. You may prefer to work offline and build your thoughts elsewhere, then copy and paste in. The process remains the same: think of something you want to say, write it down, publish it to your blog (more of which, later). 

How it looks will depend to a large extent on the theme you select for your blog. It is possible to tailor your own layout and presentation, but unless you get into serious blogging (well beyond needing my help!) you’re unlikely to want to go that route. Most blogging sites offer a selection of themes/templates (free or at a modest price) in which you can present your blog. This blog, for example, uses a free Tumblr blog theme, the credits for which are at the foot of the page. Even as an experienced web designer, I’ve never yet felt the need to make my own, there are so many excellent free resources available. 

Three steps to a blog post

Think of something you want to say

Sometimes easier said than done! If you feel pressured to blog regularly, it can sometimes be daunting to come up with something fresh to add. If you’re just posting adverts, as I said, that can get a little stale - where’s the interest for your readers? So it’s important to have some sort of message; a story to tell, advice to give, even a question to ask. For this blog, for example, the trigger is often a conversation on the eBid forums that makes a little ping! go off in my head - exactly has happened here, and which I made transparent to all so you could follow the process through. Somebody asks about blogging, I clarified that there was an interest/need, decided to write a blog post; write, post, publish. Bingo. In your own area it could be a question about how a certain craft project can be undertaken, where a particular type of ornament is made, the history of a building featured in a painting… anything can be a trigger to a blog post. A trip to the shops, a flat-tyre, wet weather, anything that sends your brain off down an interesting path can produce a blog post. Or, as has been said, it can simply be a “look what I just offered for sale” notice. Your blog is your oyster, so to speak!

Write it down

Whether you compose on the site, on paper, in your head, whatever you choose, the blog post has got to be written somehow. Depending on how you feel about that, it can be huge fun or hard work. It can also be short, long, funny, sad, informative, angry, gripping or dull. In my experience the last one’s the easiest to achieve, and the only one you really want to try to avoid.  Normal rules of composition apply, so try to have a beginning, a middle and an end (unless it’s a simple one-liner), and aim for the best spelling and grammar you can manage. Perfection isn’t necessary (thank heavens!) but you want to make it as readable as possible, and that means clear writing, well laid out.  Break long text into paragraphs, use headings where appropriate, add pictures if possible; imagine you’re writing a magazine page and you want your readers to stop flicking past and stop to read. 

Publish it

Having sweated over your mini-masterpiece, the time will come to publish it. This means make it public on your blog page (it will be hidden from view during composition). Publication will be a built-in function of your blog host, a button to press more than likely. But there will be certain extra functions you’ll want to employ. Most blogs will have “tag” options. Tags are keywords that identify the subject-matter of your post, and should be added to every entry. You can see my examples on any eBid Widgets blog post here. Blog readers can search by tags for subjects that particularly interest them, so make sure you tailor your tags to suit your audience and there’s no reason you should soon be picking up new readers from around the blogosphere. 

Your blog will probably also have options for integrating with your social networking sites (in any) so make sure you set-up your Facebook and Twitter links on your blog and your new posts will be automatically promoted to your friends and followers out there. 

So there you are. Blogging in a nutshell. Think of something to say, write it down, publish it to a blog. What’s keeping you? 

• Personal blog: http://bykimbo.tumblr.com/
• Food blog: http://vegancupboard.tumblr.com/
• Favourite blog by somebody else: http://crispian-jago.blogspot.com/

Quoted with thanks to the Facebooker who kindly posted this entire message to show what eBid’s latest advice is about getting your items uploaded to Google’s shopping base:

To be included for upload to Google Product Search your listing must have at least 3 days to run and MUST have BuyNow feature enabled. 

Recap:

Auction with at least 3 days remaining & BuyNow available
OR
Auction with On First Bid & BuyNow available
OR
Fixed Price with at least 3 days remaining
OR
Fixed Price with Run Until Sold

Avoid placing full capital lettering throughout the title. Use sparingly with capital letters only at the beginning of a sentence or word. All capitals are not allowed. All symbols such as /”!(*#@]+ 1 etc, are not allowed. Never have anything in the first 250 characters of your description that refers to shipping or that says anything not directly related to describing your item. 

Once items have been uploaded to Google Products we are reliant on Google to place the listings in the Searches. Google list items at their discretion and it is not always obvious why an item has not been included.
Please review below. If you feel changes are required, please close the auction/s and repost with the changes and hopefully the item/s will be submitted. We have no control but in the vast majority of cases items will be listed without a problem if they have a ‘Buynow’ feature and more then 48hrs to run.

Prohibited products

Adult goods and services: All adult products must be marked as unsuitable for minors. Posting is not permitted for the promotion of prostitution or non-consensual adult material. Learn more about the adult setting in your Google Merchant Center account.

Affiliates, cataloged drop-shipping programs, and multi-level marketing: Posting is not permitted for the promotion of affiliate or pay-per-click links, products sold through a commission-based relationship, or sites that sell through cataloged third-party drop-shipping programs. This includes item pages that are made up almost entirely of advertisements, or pages where advertisements obstruct the view of the product. Posting is not permitted for the promotion of multi-level marketing (MLM) business products or for other businesses that recruit members and offer them rewards for recruiting others and/or selling services. 

Anti and Violence: products and associated websites may not promote violence or advocate against a protected group. This standard applies to everyone who wants to post on Google, whether we agree with their viewpoint or not. A protected group is distinguished by their race or ethnic origin, color, national origin, religion, disability, sex, age, veteran status, or sexual orientation/gender identity. 

Body parts: Posting is not permitted for the promotion of body parts or human remains. 

Bulk marketing tools: The promotion of the following bulk marketing products is not permitted if the stated or implied use of these products is unsolicited spam:
Email lists that are not opt-in
Bulk email software
Bulk messaging
Copyright unlocking devices: Posting is not permitted for the promotion of mod chips or other devices designed to circumvent copyright protection.

Copyrighted or counterfeit goods: All products must respect copyright and trademark law. Posting is not permitted for unauthorized or “bootleg” copies of media, software, or other licensed or protected material. Posting is not permitted for products that are replicas or imitations of designer goods; Products without a celebrity endorsement that would normally require such an association, fake autographs, counterfeit stamps, and other potentially unauthorized goods. 

Drugs, drug paraphernalia, and drug test circumvention aids: Posting is not permitted for the promotion of illegal drugs and drug accessories, including herbal drugs such as salvia and magic mushrooms. Posting is not permitted for the promotion of products such as drug cleansing shakes and urine test additives.

False representation: You may not post on behalf of Google, or otherwise impersonate a Google employee.

Fireworks and hazardous materials: Posting is not permitted for fireworks and related goods; toxic, explosive, flammable, and radioactive materials and substances. 

Gaming/gambling: Posting is not permitted for online casinos, sports books, bingo, and affiliates with the primary purpose of driving traffic to online gambling sites. 

Illegal goods and services: You must post in accordance with the laws of your target country. Posting is not permitted for materials, products, or information promoting illegal goods or enabling illegal acts. You may not disclaim knowledge of, or responsibility for, the authenticity or legality of the products you offer. You must authenticate any products you sell. Submitted products must be legal in the entire target region in order to be accepted. For example, items submitted to Google Product Search US must be legal in all 50 states. 
Posting is not permitted for illegal knives or other illegal weapons.
Posting is not permitted for pornographic materials involving minors.
Posting is not permitted for fake IDs, passports, diplomas, and noble titles.
Posting is not permitted for manuals, how-to guides, information, or equipment enabling illegal access to software, servers, websites, or other protected property.
Posting is not permitted for products that descramble cable and satellite signals in order to obtain free service.
Miracle cures: Posting is not permitted for the promotion of unsubstantiated cures, remedies or other products marketed as quick health fixes.

Online gaming goods and services: Posting is not permitted for the promotion of currency, items, or related services for online games.

Personal Information: You may not post content that includes contact or personal information about another individual without their permission.

Precious metals: Posting is not permitted for the promotion of rare, scarce, or valuable metals or gemstones.

Prescription drugs or pharmacies: Posting is not permitted for the promotion of prescription drugs without valid PharmacyChecker or the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain (RPSGB) approval. Google only accepts listings for pharmacies that are based in the US, UK, and Canada. Learn more about accepted pharmacies. 

Wholesale currency: Posting is not permitted for the promotion of discounted currencies or currency exchanges. 

Editorial Guidelines

All your product submissions should follow three principles:
Be honest and factual.
Describe your message clearly and accurately.
Include relevant and complete information about your products with attributes.
In addition, make sure you:
Use Standard Spelling and Grammar. Avoid any repeated and unnecessary use of punctuation, capitalization or symbols. Don’t use exclamation points in your product titles. The use of symbols, numbers, and letters should adhere to the true meaning of the symbol.
Avoid gimmicky repetition. You may not post excessive, repetitive, or irrelevant keywords.
Avoid offensive or inappropriate language.

Best Wishes
eBid Support Team