Buying Goes Mobile June 8, 2011
Posted by Michael Carney in : iPhone app, mobile , add a commentMore and more traders are now doing their browsing and buying through their mobile phones, especially since Trade Me launched their iPhone application in November 2010.
Are the numbers significant? Actually, yes:
- In April, around 1.5 million Trade Me sessions (just over 1% of all sessions) occurred via a mobile device
- Over three-quarters of those visits occurred via the Trade Me iPhone app
Mobile browsers don’t only use the iPhone — Nokia, Android, iPads and Blackberries are also in evidence (visits to Trade Me’s mobile site at http://m.trademe.co.nz represent 23% of total mobile visits). But the growth in mobile has definitely been driven by the iPhone app – mobile activity started to move upwards noticeably when Trade Me launched the app 7 months ago.
The take-up for the new app has exceeded all expectations. Trade Me estimated they’d get perhaps 50,000 downloads in the first seven months — so far they’ve hit over 125,000, with more than 15,000 downloads of the application in each of March, April and May.
Here are some of the drool-worthy stats for the Trade Me iPhone app:
- 42,000 users sessions per day
- 275,000 sessions per week
- 1 million sessions per month (1.5 million sessions in May)
- 86,000 people have used the app since it was released
The most used functions via the iPhone app: search, checking watchlists.
So are these mobile browsers actually buying stuff this way on Trade Me, or do they just like to watch?
Check out these numbers:
- 3000 items were sold on Trade Me via the iPhone app last week – note that this is just successful winning actions (bid/fixed price offer/buy now). The level of participation in auctions is much higher as not everyone wins just because they are bidding from an iPhone! In fact, 14,000 people place a bid via iPhone app in a typical week.
- And these bids aren’t just for cheap stuff. The biggest recent sale was a motorhome that sold for $140,000 via the iPhone app.
Implications for Sellers
Yes, 99% of Trade Me transactions still take place via the good old web browser, so the iPhone isn’t going to take over the world of Trade Me anytime soon. But, with more than a million Trade Me visits a month happening via iPhone, you should at least be aware of the way your auction listing is displayed on an iPhone — and what you need to do to achieve the best result for your listings.
First, let’s take a look at how the iPhone displays the results of searches:
Note that only part of the headline — typically the first 25 characters — is displayed on this initial screen (just half of the 50 characters that you’re allowed to use in headlines). Suddenly the order of the words in your listing headlines has become really important — put the key benefit first.
You’ll also note from the above example that only really short headlines (such as the first listing) have space to display the “Pay Now” symbol and the “New” designation. It’s up to you to decide whether including those elements is important enough to forego making as much use as possible of the Headline space.
Next, let’s drill down and have a look at how a typical listing is displayed on the iPhone:
Not a lot of words displayed on that first screen. It’s all about the picture of the product. Suddenly, images (and especially that first photo on display) have increased dramatically in importance. Don’t settle for anything less than compelling for your primary photo.
Too Soon?
If you just look at the usage percentages, 1% seems a pretty minor share for mobile phones — hardly worth the effort. But take a look at smartphone penetration overall and you get a different perspective. By the end of 2010, it’s estimated that around 25% of Kiwis were carrying smartphones — and something like 80% of new mobile phone sales are of smartphone models. Since most of us change our phones every couple of years, we can expect smartphone penetration to increase dramatically here in NZ (as elsewhere around the world). Within the next twelve months, it’s likely that smartphone ownership will be in the majority — and many of those people will be starting to transact on Trade Me via mobile as they get more comfortable with the capabilities of their new toys.
Are you ready?
Should sellers offer “Buy Now”? May 11, 2011
Posted by Michael Carney in : Buy Now, selling , add a commentOne of the intrinsic appeals of any auction is the uncertainty surrounding the final amount to be paid. For the buyer, there’s the tantalising possibility that they will score the item on offer for far less than it’s really worth. The seller, on the other hand, is ever hopeful that a bidding war will erupt that just might result in a windfall being paid, if two or more eager bidders drive up the price.
These days, many Trade Me auctions offer a “Buy Now” option — a chance for buyers to grab an item without going through the auction process. “Buy Now” does remove uncertainty from the equation — but at the same time it also takes away some of the fun (and the possibility of unexpected outcomes, for better or for worse).
So is “Buy Now” a good option for sellers to offer (and buyers to use)?
We took a recent look at the numbers to find out.
If we start with the total number of Trade Me general auctions that closed successfully over the last twelve months, on average 36% of auctions closed using Buy Now, 54% by Auction and 10% by Fixed Price Offer (after the auction has closed).
That’s the result across all general categories on Trade Me, but there are variations depending on the type of product on offer (and whether the items are new or used). Some highs and lows:
- In Used items the category with the highest percentage of auctions sold using Buy Now is Gaming at 40%, followed by Mobile phones at 39% and Computers at 36%. The category with the lowest sold using Buy Now is Pottery and Glass at 15%.
- In the case of New items, Mobile Phones are at the top of the list at 73% sold by Buy Now, followed by Movies & TV at 71% and Pets and Animals at 68%. The category with the lowest sold by Buy Now rate is Jewellery & Watches at 28%.
The conclusion we draw from those results: that where items on offer are more easily understood and evaluated (especially with new products featuring well-known brands, in sectors such as technology where product specifications and comparisons are readily available), buyers are comfortable with what they are purchasing and willing to make an rapid and informed decision (and commit to that decision via Buy Now).
However where the value of items on offer is more subjective (eg art, jewellery and the like), consumers are less confident and more likely to look to the market to set the price. As a result, they’ll either simply add the item to their watchlist (and check in later to see how the auction is going) or place a bid at a price they’re comfortable with — and see what others are bidding for the item as the auction nears its close.
So if you have products to sell in the right sorts of categories, a “Buy Now” price is likely to be reasonably effective in encouraging instant purchases.
If your products fall into more subjective areas, then you’ll need to provide more objective reinforcements — eg testimonials from happy customers, external price comparisions (“Recommended Retail Price is $X so you’re getting a great deal”) or compelling reasons to act now (“only three left so click on Buy Now to claim your copy”).
Another possibility, if you want to encourage Buy Now usage: offer a bonus if they click on Buy Now (eg “free shipping with Buy Now”). Of course you’ll need to set your Buy Now pricing to cover the cost of providing such extras, which leads us into the next topic:
How Much?
Another issue for sellers to consider — if you’re giving up the possibility of bidding-war windfalls, how should you set the price of your “Buy Now”? The same as your Start Price? A premium?
Again, we look to the statistics for guidance:
- Over the last year on average 50% of auctions with Buy Now have the Buy Now matching the Start price, although that jumped to 61% in December 2010 with more sellers taking advantage of the busy Christmas season.
- Overall, Buy Nows are on average 13% greater than the Start price, although this dropped to a 10% difference in December 2010 (NB Needless to say, auctions that started at $1 and had a Buy Now were showing a premium many hundreds or thousands of percent higher).
Here, we suggest that other pricing dynamics are in play (and we refer you to Chapter Eleven of TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS, which covers in much greater depth the pricing possibilities on Trade Me). Briefly, however:
- You might set your Start Price below the normal selling price to attract interest, with the Buy Now price still attractive but not quite so low
- You might have a product that is in significant demand, so your Start Price is the recommended retail price but the Buy Now offers instant gratification for those who just can’t wait
- Or your product might be readily available offered by a number of sellers, so your Buy Now price is set at the same as your (competitive) Start Price, to meet the market
Three-quarters of general auctions on Trade Me now offer “Buy Now”. As we’ve seen on our romp through the numbers, that works well for some categories — but not for everyone (or at least not without other encouragements or sweeteners).
How to be a Great Trade Me Buyer April 7, 2011
Posted by Michael Carney in : buying , 1 comment so farThe auction’s over. You won. Congratulations! You are now the proud owner-to-be. Time to get acquainted with the seller.
As soon as the auction is finished, if you’re the successful bidder the seller’s email address will be displayed alongside the auction details. Both you and the seller will be emailed each other’s contact details by Trade Me. If the seller is making use of Trade Me’s automated services, you’ll also receive an email giving Payment Instructions (and possibly offering the opportunity to use Trade Me’s Pay Now service).
Your next step is simple: email the seller promptly, confirm that you’ve won the auction and, if the item is to be sent or delivered to you, give your address details (unless you too are taking advantage of Trade Me’s labour-saving devices and have already set up your delivery address info through your “My Trade Me” pages). If you haven’t already received the seller’s Payment Instructions, ask for their fiscal particulars (e.g. their bank account if you’re paying through that method) and await a response.
Not everyone constantly monitors their email — from the seller’s point of view it’s probably been a week since they listed the item so they’re not necessarily hanging around the keyboard waiting for your message. Give them a couple of days to come back to you before sending through a polite reminder.
PAYMENT
Once the seller’s been in touch with you and given you their payment details, pay promptly.
If the seller does offer Trade Me’s Pay Now credit card payment service (and you’re in a position to take advantage of that service using either credit or debit card), fantastic! All the relevant information (including your user name, auction number and chosen address) is automagically communicated to the seller. If you can use Pay Now, we definitely recommend you do so — it removes a whole lot of pain from the virtual paperwork you’ll otherwise have to face.
Alternatively, if you’re paying directly into the seller’s bank account, make certain that you include the Auction Number (and, ideally, your User ID, since it is possible for the same Auction Number to refer to two different auction transactions) in one of the reference fields so that they can easily identify the payment.
We recommend you send a followup email to the seller once you’ve paid, giving them all the payment details and again referencing the Auction Number and your User ID. Some Trade Me sellers (particularly the 10,000 who qualify as Top Sellers) list hundreds or thousands of auctions on the site every week. It can be a nightmare for them to track down your payment if you don’t give them the right details.
PATIENCE, GRASSHOPPER, PATIENCE
You’ve paid, you’ve told the seller you’ve paid, maybe you’ve even had an email back confirming receipt of the payment.
Time to wait. Sending stuff out is the most time-intensive part of doing business on Trade Me and some sellers prefer to organise all their despatches on the same day. Then there’s the time in transit. If your item has been sent by courier (or tracked NZ Post services) you can Track and Trace it all the way home. Otherwise, stand by your (snail) mailbox: here it comes…
LISTEN TO THE PROS
When we were interviewing top traders for the “Trade Me Success Secrets” book, we asked them to tell us about their favourite Trade Me customers. If you want to be appreciated as an excellent Trade Me buyer (and get great feedback), learn from these examples:
- queeneQ: ‘They trade efficiently, i.e. get back to you with required information well ahead of the time allowed, you get all the information you ask for first time and they pay when they say.’
- silverrow1: ‘I have a few special return customers that always bring a smile to my face as they are such lovely people to deal with. I even have a few who have my account details permanently logged on their online banking.’
- kris21: ‘They pay on time, they are honest. If they cannot pay within the three days stated on the auction, they will ask if they can pay by a certain day.’
- dartangnan: ‘I have a regular customer base of wonderful buyers who use Buy Now, have my account details on file and pay right away. They send chatty emails about friends and family and are a pleasure to deal with in every way.’
- cher4u: ‘Very grateful, thankful … they even write and let me know how much. I offer clothing for ladies size 22 and over, for those that can’t go into a shop to buy.’
- chelley: ‘I have quite a few regulars who are always great to deal with. They almost become friends. I do remember one guy who was so rapt with his purchase that he felt I had undervalued it and put more money into my bank account.’
- saje: ‘My best buyers are prompt payers who do what they say they are going to do, when they say they are going to do it. They place good feedback for a good trade and they let you know if something goes wrong in the post without taking it out on you.’
- alfle: ‘Our best customers? There are a lot of them out there and they all do the same thing … they read the auction, they decide after some research that the product is right for them, use a Buy Now, provide address and full details straight away, read our email (all of it) containing payment details, pay immediately, reference the payment with their auction number as asked. We send the product to them with a tracking email. They wait two days but Courier Post have misdirected it, so they ring CourierPost directly and Courier Post promptly redirects their package without us even knowing. They get the product and they read the manual. In short they are intelligent, independent people.’
There is a real art to being a good Trade Me buyer, but in essence it all boils down to the Golden Rule: do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
PS Biggest single gripe about Trade Me Buyers by Trade Me’s Top Sellers: buyers who pay but don’t send through address details, requiring costly manual followup emails. Stay off their Grump List: don’t forget to send out your delivery address!!
Selling your home on Trade Me March 2, 2011
Posted by Michael Carney in : property , 1 comment so farYou don’t have to look far to find gloomy property numbers (from a seller’s perspective).
The February 2011 NZ Property Report published by Realestate.co.nz shows 11,395 new listings coming onto the market for the month, down 20% compared with February last year. The market continues to be weak and the recent 12 months is the lowest level of activity with just 133,883 new listings in the recent 12 months, down 3% compared to the same period 12 months ago.
Meanwhile actual property sales hit a new, record low (3,252 sales in January 2011).
Despite that. there’s no shortage of hopeful sellers. Currently there are more than 68,000 properties listed on Trade Me Property. Of course, some have been there a while — the oldest listing we found (and we didn’t look that far) dated back to March 2007. Real potential buyers (bless their cotton socks) have to struggle through a lot of virtual mean streets before they stumble across your [much-loved, reluctant seller, hurry] property.
Curious about with how many you’re competing? By area, here’s the breakdown:
| Northland | 7118 |
| Auckland | 18410 |
| Waikato | 8456 |
| Bay Of Plenty | 5477 |
| Gisborne | 227 |
| Hawkes Bay | 2213 |
| Taranaki | 1087 |
| Manawatu/Wanganui | 3843 |
| Wellington | 4726 |
| Nelson/Tasman | 1246 |
| Marlborough | 1413 |
| West Coast | 1647 |
| Canterbury | 6308 |
| Otago | 4952 |
| Southland | 1578 |
- If yours is a typical three-bedroom home, you’re up against 23,127 others around Aotearoa.
- Want to quit your apartment? A slightly easier sell, with just 3,177 currently on the market.
- Quitting your retirement villa (perhaps you’re a Baby Boomer, forever planning to be young)? Only 351 of those retirement units currently on offer around the country.
So how exactly are you hoping to get your house sold right now?
START HERE
We refer you first to the Second Edition of TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS, where Chapter 13 (“Location, Location, Creation”), devoted to the topic of selling on Trade Me, takes you through 21 Steps to get your property up and running on Trade Me. We’ll share some of the key points from that chapter shortly, but first some homework for you to do before you even consider how your real estate gem should be listed on Trade Me Property:
1. Profile the best buyers
To whom would your home most appeal? Be realistic – is it ideal for a couple with a young family, hopeful first home buyers, elderly citizens, empty nest baby boomers, swinging singles? This is a vital first step — once you identify the very best prospects for your mansion, you can focus all your attention on the attributes that would appeal to such prospects — eg schools & parks for young families, indoor/outdoor one-level living for the seniors, easy motorway access for business couples, and so on. In this market, one size definitely doesn’t fit all.
2. Know your competitors – in the neighbourhood
Get yourself to as many Open Homes as possible in your neighbourhood (head here for upcoming Open Home details), and see what sorts of houses you’re competing against. Listen to the chatter of other visitors to understand what they’re looking for — just resist the opportunity to invite those visitors to come and see your own home (“much nicer than this one”), or you’ll blow your cover and get yourself kicked out by a disgruntled agent or home-seller!
3. Know your competitors – online
Use Trade Me’s Advanced Property Search to:
(a) Identify properties in your Region/District/Suburb
(b) refine your search by numbers of bedrooms and/or bathrooms and/or price
(c) refine further by type of dwelling
and then (d) make it easy on yourself by setting up an automated alert to catch new competing houses coming onto the market
4. Agent or DIY?
Should you use an agent or sell your home yourself? That’s for you to decide – but typically in this sort of market you need as much help as possible, so we’d recommend opting for an agent. Just understand that you’ll need to put in a massive amount of additional effort yourself to get your house sold in a timely manner — you’re the one with everything at stake.
5. Finding the right agent
How to find the perfect agent? The best way is to get recommendations from friends whose judgement you trust (and who’ve enjoyed selling success AFTER the downturn). Ask your friends directly or just put the word out on Facebook (but watch out for sneaky suggestions from friends of friends of friends who you don’t know — they might turn out to be real estate agents themselves).
So what should you look for in an agent? Our thoughts:
- experience
- knowledge of the local area
- recent references (and please, do check them out with a phone call)
- honesty
- a good communicator
- and someone who can give you a detailed plan showing how they aim to promote and sell your house effectively.
6. Finding the flaws
We’ll assume you’ve found the ideal agent (such optimism!). Ask them to evaluate the condition of your home — and to be brutally honest. How does it look compared to other homes they’ve sold successfully? Is it in a good enough condition to sell? What needs to be painted, repaired, replaced? Also ask informed friends to give their opinion. Then fix what you can. Buyers can afford to be much fussier these days, either demanding large discounts for smallish faults or simply walking away entirely.
7. Checking Out Common Structural Problems
In this world of leaky buildings, we can’t afford to overlook structural maintenance. The Building Research Association of New Zealand identified these common maintenance problems:
INTERIOR
- unrestrained hot water cylinders and header tanks
- header tanks venting from bathrooms and kitchens into roof spaces
- defects in the ventilation of kitchens and bathrooms
EXTERIOR
- inadequate ceiling insulation
- inadequate subfloor ventilation (or blocked existing vents)
- Inadequate clearance from the ground level to wall cladding
- missing or corroding subfloor fasteners
- poor maintenance and deterioration of timber windows
- deterioration of wall and roof claddings
- inadequate bracing
- high moisture levels
- borer and decay in subfloor timbers
Fix first and avoid litigation later. And keep the receipts — proof of timely maintenance is a great selling point (and it just might make prospective purchasers think twice about your competitors’ homes if they don’t have good maintenance records).
8. Make It Special
Your home needs to stand out from the crowd — to look so special that buyers are quickly won over. If you can, hire an hour or two of an interior decorator’s time and ask them to look over the inside of the house and (based on their years of experience) suggest ways to make the house as desirable as possible (for a small outlay). In a similar arrangement, invite an architect to give his/her point of view on the exterior. A few hundred dollars or so spent wisely just might add thousands to the final sale price.
9. Make your home sparkle
Buyers mostly lack imagination (with apologies to those who don’t). And they often can’t see past surface problems like untidy backyards, dark corners or small fixit jobs. Solve the problem for them, with a bit of elbow grease and (perhaps) a few dollars spent wisely.
10. Get real on pricing
Ask your agent to do their homework on pricing, identifying recent sales in and around your area of comparable homes. Decide whether you can live with the results.
11. A gift with that purchase?
Prospective buyers walk into your Open Home and see a glorious large-screen TV. The agent, seeing their interest, gets right to the point: “the lucky buyer of this home also gets the TV”. Or a killer stereo system. Or the late-model car in the garage. Or power and water paid for six months. Gardening/pool/maid service for a year. Or a free trip to Fiji, once all the unpacking’s over. It’s a small additional cost to you (compared with the value of the home) but it’s amazing how the Wow! factor impacts on otherwise rational home buyers.
12. Brief the agent properly
Do all your homework on your house, as recommended in Chapter 13 of TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS (Second Edition). Write up all the features and benefits of your home and run through it with your agent. Don’t forget to focus on the things that matter to your best prospects.
Okay, time to turn to Chapter 13 for some of that advice on exactly how your property should be listed. You’re probably tempted to leave it to your agent to stick your details on Trade Me.
Don’t. They may be the world’s greatest real estate agent, but most of them are — how shall we put this — Trade-Me-challenged. Even if you get them to do most of the actual donkey work, guide them through the following steps (we’re assuming you/they know how to find the Property section on Trade Me):
13. The headline
Your first decision is the Listing Title (we call it the headline) – how to describe your pride and joy. We recommend that you leave the headline until last, after you’ve worked your way through the rest of the listing detail. Then you’ll be in a much better position to decide exactly what makes your property special so that you can flag those qualities in the headline.
14. Choose your location
Noting a location is simply a matter of selecting from the appropriate drop-down boxes. Simple — unless you live in an area that straddles two of the districts offered as choices by Trade Me. Though it’s tempting to simply nominate the more sought-after district, we recommend you do a search on Trade Me for homes listed in the two districts under consideration. Who will you be competing with in each district? Will you be the worst house in the best district? And (if there are similar homes listed) how does the pricing compare? Don’t decide where you live until you’ve done all your homework.
15. Details matter
The listing form asks for lots of detail — number of bedrooms & bathrooms, floor area, land area, rateable value, yadda yadda. Give as much information as you can– if prospective buyers can’t easily find out what they want, they’ll quickly skip to the next listing. Not only that, but — because most of us use the Search facility on Trade Me — if prospects search for a keyword such as “bath” or “study” and you have such amenities but haven’t included them in your listing, the search engine will simply pass you by.
16. Rateable Value
This is an optional field (but not for you). Potential purchasers assess the rateable value as a useful comparative (and objective) measure when considering the relative values of various properties. Add in the numbers.
17. How Much?
Trade Me asks you to choose an Expected Sale Price. This number determines whether your property will feature in the results when a searcher nominates a price range. Be realistic. Be very realistic. If your house doesn’t show up in the search results for those people who might be interested in your property (and could afford to buy it), you might as well be invisible.
18. The Description
Good old Chapter 13 goes into this in far more detail than we could possibly hope to canvass here. Let’s just say that your job is to make potential buyers fall in love with your home. You don’t have to be a Mills & Boon author, but you do have to sell the sizzle.
19. Say Cheese
Pictures are so very important — for many prospective visitors, the Trade Me photos are their first (and perhaps only, if they don’t like what they see) view of your house. Chapter 14 deals to photographs, with hundreds of words about capturing your property at its best. Here, we’ll just say: tidy up around your house first, capture the main features of your home and above all show that it’s a warm and inviting place that many would love to own.
20. Promote, promote, promote
Once you’ve completed your listing, get the word out there. Our research tells us that people still look at their local Property Press and (to a lesser extent) the local paper, so get your listing details into those publications. Ensure that your agent gets the details into RealEstate.co.nz and their own agency website. And, of course, get your (enhanced) listing on Trade Me Property. Are you on Facebook? Tell your friends your home is on the market. Got a video tour of the house? Pop it up on YouTube.
21. Make your home incredibly inviting
It’s Open Home time. You should make yourself scarce during session times, but make the home as inviting as possible first.
22. Responding to those insulting low offers
You’ll get offers well below what you think your home is worth. Develop a thick skin. And then think creatively — are there ways to do a deal leaving money in or swapping some chattels or exploring other options? In this market, you need to Think Different.
Even if you follow all our advice, your home will still take time to sell. Patience, we’re told, is a virtue …
PS We’re currently putting together a special report on “How to make your home sell (and help potential buyers fall in love with your home)”. It covers the whole property-marketing process in much greater detail, and includes a Brief for you to fill out and give to your agent, as well as a helpful guide to giving your property the right kind of TLC to make it look its best for potential purchasers. If you’d like to be advised when that report’s available, please add yourself to our free newsletter (simply sign up using the Subscribe box at the top of the page)
Check that Feedback before you click February 2, 2011
Posted by Michael Carney in : feedback , 1 comment so farWHAT INTENDING BUYERS SHOULD DO BEFORE THEY BID
Once you’ve found something you like on Trade Me, it’s tempting to move directly into Buying Mode and bid for that sucker.
Not so fast.
First, check out the seller (look at the box at the bottom of the listing labelled “About the seller”):
- If the seller has a high number of feedbacks (such as 300 in the example above) and a score of 98-100% positive — and has been a member of Trade Me for several years — then you can stop digging through the feedback. Those results aren’t going to tell you anything more — clearly this particular Trade Me member has been trading responsibly on Trade Me so far. If their behaviour has suddenly changed, you won’t be able to tell that from their past record.
- On the other hand, if they only have a small number of feedbacks (under fifty, say) or if they have a score below 95%, you owe it to yourself to investigate further. Click on the feedback number (eg 300 in the above example) and you’ll be taken through to the feedback comments.
- Once there, you can review whether their feedback comes from Buying or Selling by clicking on the tab near the top of the page.
If all their feedback comes from buying, then you can’t draw any conclusions as to their credibility as a seller. You’ll have to use other criteria to judge whether the item on sale is a risky purchase or not (see TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS for a comprehensive list of suggestions on what to look for).
On the other hand, if they have amassed reasonable feedback from selling, take a closer look.
From the feedback pages you’ll be able to see:
- the buyer rating (yellow smiley = happy camper, blue = disgruntled but not fatally, red = Danger, Will Robinson)
- the actual comment left by the purchaser, which can (very occasionally) illuminate the feedback
- the auction number, linked to the actual auction (if you want to drill deeper and see what was purchased)
- the price paid (only for the first 40 days after the auction closes)
Check the details carefully — not all buyers share the same values. For example, in the screenshot above, a blue neutral feedback is given because the purchaser was unhappy with the courier (but was very happy with the seller).
Once you’ve satisfied yourself that the seller is reputable, then (and only then) should you consider moving into bidding mode — although, as we’ve noted elsewhere, there’s more homework you should do before you place any bid.
FOR HOW LONG CAN YOU POST FEEDBACK?
Trade Me member arthurdent2 investigated the matter and contributed these comments recently on the Trade Me Message Board:
I’ve asked questions on here from time to time about this issue and got two different answers:
1. It is 45 days to the exact closing time of the auction in hours and minutes.
2. It is 45 days until midnight of the day the auction closes.
I contacted Trade Me and they weren’t sure either -they asked me to let them know if I found the answer!
I did a couple of experiments on auctions that I wasn’t going to place feedback on because the buyer had not completed the trade. I clicked the ‘Place Feedback’ button and then, without entering any text in the box, clicked ‘Submit Feedback’. That brought up a message reminding me to enter text but also confirmed that placing feedback was an option at that time.
I went through this process at 4 different times:
1. Several minutes before the 45 days to the minute was up.
2. Several minutes after the exact closing time.
3. Several minutes to midnight on the 45th day.
4. Several minutes after midnight on the 45th day.
Conclusions:
1. The auction disappeared from my SOLD ITEMS PAGE on the 45th day at the exact auction closing time. Feedback could therefore not be placed FROM THIS PAGE after that time.
2. STARTING FROM THE AUCTION PAGE, the Place Feedback button was still visible up until midnight on the 45th day and feedback could be placed. Several minutes after midnight the feedback button was no longer available.
Awesome, thanks arthurdent2!
HOW TO ATTRACT GREAT FEEDBACK (IF YOU’RE A SELLER)
There are no guarantees that buyers will say really good things about you, but here’s how you can at least improve your chances:
- First and absolutely most important, be squeaky clean in your trading dealings. Describe each item honestly and completely, answer any questions quickly and comprehensively during the auction, send out Payment Instructions quickly at the end of the auction (ideally through an automated service such as Trade Me’s own offering), and then despatch the item promptly.
- Once you’ve done all that, then ideally, post feedback as soon as you’ve posted the item off to the fortunate buyer. You’ve completed your part of the transaction. Also, it’s another reinforcement to the purchaser that their item is actually on the way [and you do have the opportunity to adjust or delete your feedback if problems arise later].
- If you’re a high volume seller, on the other hand, you’ll need to streamline the various parts of your operation so probably can’t afford the time to give instant feedback. In that case, schedule time at least once a week for posting feedback on all that week’s auctions; 15 minutes should be enough.
- Try to be unique and creative when you leave feedback. Yes, you could just create generic feedback statements, such as ‘Great buyer, quick payment, A+++’, but you’ll make a better impact with more customised feedback. You never know when a few thoughtful words will lead to new customers.
- When preparing your Feedback content, first highlight the buyer characteristics thatwill be most helpful to other traders who might subsequently browse the Feedback pages. Talk about the speed of response from the buyer — how quickly they paid, how well they communicated with you after the sale, whether you would recommend them.
- Next, thank the buyer for their business. They could have chosen anyone, but they chose your auction.
- And finally, use the remaining words in your Feedback to mention yourself and your services. Be subtle but a little commercial, eg “Thanks for doing business with MYBRAND, supplier of fine embroidered linen on Trade Me since 2002. Do visit us again if you are looking for [your most popular products].”
If you give good, lengthy, helpful feedback to buyers (before they’ve even received your product), you’ll often be rewarded with a reciprocal good deed — and even if you aren’t, the Feedback formula above is still worth following. You might just be noticed by other potential purchasers.
What about if you’re a buyer? How and when should you leave Feedback?
- Wait for the safe arrival of your item. If it turns up in good condition and matches the auction description, give positive feedback promptly.
- If there are problems, try and resolve them with the seller before you resort to posting negative feedback. It’s easy to get into a feedback escalation situation, both buyer and seller posting feedback flames. Try not to go there.
On the other hand, if the seller is a ratbag and simply doesn’t meet his/her obligations, you should seriously consider giving that red-face negative. The Trade Me community is self-policing but relies on all members to do their part.
If, despite all the above, you do receive negative feedback:
- Learn from it
- Mend your ways if necessary
- You do have the right of reply posted directly below the feedback – use it wisely
- You also have the facility to post feedback on the trader – but try to avoid retaliatory feedback
And of course you can (and should) try to rectify the situation — the trader has the ability to remove the feedback they posted.
Trade Me will not review negative feedback unless:
- It contains swear words, vulgarities or defamatory statements (but note that Trade Me reserves the right to determine what it considers swear words, vulgarities or defamatory statements)
- It contains the trader’s contact details, phone number, surname, email address or other means to individually identify the trader
- The trader placing feedback has been permanently removed from Trade Me for misbehaving
- The feedback refers to an ongoing investigation by Trade Me, the police, or any other authorised party
- Trade Me is ordered by a valid court order to remove it.
If you feel that any feedback has breached these terms, you can report it to Trade Me (as long as it’s not more than 30 days old).
And one more thing: you can be held legally responsible for damages to the trader’s reputation under New Zealand law. So keep your feedback factual.
The Feedback system isn’t perfect – but it’s a very useful guide to other members of the Trade Me community and helps keep us honest. Imagine how much better behaved we’d be in real life if we all had to walk around wearing Feedback ratings given to us by our colleagues and customers! ["don't ask that salesperson to serve you, look how many red faces he has!"]
Wisdom of the Boards January 20, 2011
Posted by Michael Carney in : trade me , add a commentMany Trade Me users have not yet discovered the Trade Me Message Boards, a hotbed of discussion, argument, rhetoric and often extremely funny comments about a desperately diverse range of topics.
- IMNSHO
In My Not-So-Humble Opinion. (wootha) - CRS
Can’t Remember Stuff. . . applies to those of advancing years with short term memory loss when wrapping 50 packages on Saturday morning. (oberkat) - BuyNow
DecideNow and PayWhenever. (wootha) - Postage
second only to religion as a cause of wars. (wootha) - Pass the Parcel
a game sometmes played by NZ Post.The winner keeps it! (raker) - Fastpost
quaint historical custom whereby goods were delivered in the same week they were posted. (wootha) - Keyword spamming
using lots of words not related to what you have listed in an auction. Very useful in really annoying many on TM. Dirty dog, Hermes, Paris Hilton,Gucci, and so on. (raker) - S=R
an alphabet in trouble. (giraffeinfall) - S=R=BN
alphabet in serious trouble. (wootha) - Dropshipping
your purchase is dropped off a container ship in the middle of the ocean and arrives by tidal action. Can also mean parcel comes via Nigeria, China, Middle East, Africa and ….( not necessarily in that order). (raker) - pick up only
ask for it to be posted (giraffeinfall) - TYPO
whne our fingres are tooo fast or fat and we clikc post message before we raed whta we typed… (jalmac_traders) - BNWT
Brand New With Tags (just as soon as I find them & can manage to poke them back though that tiny hole in the garment tag after I’ve washed it cos I wore it out to this rave the other night & some plonker threw up all over it but …..).(mazalinas) - One day after winning the auction
is NOT a long time to wait to hear from the seller/buyer. (bookette1) - “happy to combine postage”
Instead of two lots of $3.50, It’s now only $7.95 for both to be sent together… (andyandlois) - Watchlist
where you keep a list of All the watches you want to buy. Not to be confused with Watchers. They can be imaginary people who never bid on your auctions. (raker) - Other stuff you may like
Other things you can’t afford… (andyandlois) - Refund
When you were supplied with the correct sized clothes you asked for, don’t fit because you are in denial about your real size . (mmm12) - Shy Buyer
“When I’ve paid I will forward you my details” (wisconsin) - Broke Buyer
“Thanks you letting me buy your auction, sorry I can’t pay for two weeks, hope that’s OK” (wisconsin) - Affluent Buyer
Pays but never answers your emails about where to send the goods. (wisconsin) - Small Buyer
“hi, I did a buy now on your auction for 3 *** but I only want one. Can you sell me just one” (wisconsin) - Large Buyer
“Hi, I just won an auction for 24 beads but I actually want 28, can I get 28 for the same price” (wisconsin) - Silly Sod Buyer
“ah I accidently bid on your auction. Can you please remove my bid?” (raker) - *Whoosh*
when someone doesn’t get your underlying message. (bopeep80)
Seven Smart Trading Tips for 2011 January 11, 2011
Posted by Michael Carney in : buying, selling, trade me, trademe , 6commentsReady to do things differently on Trade Me this year? These seven tips will help you buy better and sell smarter in 2011.
A. BUYING
1. Don’t settle for the first item you find.
When you have your heart set on buying something, it’s tempting to grab the first product that meets all your needs. If it’s a rare collectable (perhaps a handwritten note from James Cook to the British Admiralty with details of a fabulous long-lost treasure stashed somewhere in Gisborne), then by all means grab, grab, grab. Otherwise, do a little homework first, before you place any bids.
For example, let’s hypothesize that you are looking for a set of petanque boules, to while away those long summer nights (we picked petanque because it was one of the first items we stumbled upon when we began browsing on Trade Me today).
Perhaps you, like us, found this listing:
The product looks good, the price (at $23.99) seems perfectly reasonable for a new set and the seller has a 99.8% rating. All systems should be Go, right?
Well, that would be true if you were browsing in a shopping mall — but this is Trade Me. The rules are different.
How so?
Well, for a start, unlike in a retail environment (where stores need to sell products to make a living), many Trade Me sellers aren’t in it for the money. Sure, most of us would like to make a few extra pennies selling our surplus wares on Trade Me — but that may not be why we’ve listed our goods on the site. Sometimes, we just want to be rid of the stuff cluttering up our attics and garages and shelves (or perhaps our significant other has hinted at GBH “if I have to look at that moosehead one more time”). So items that might be worth a lot more get listed for a low price just to get rid of them.
Secondly (and sorry, there’s no tactful way to put this), not every seller knows what he or she is doing — in other words, they haven’t read TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS. As a result, you never know when you’ll find valuable artifacts listed with a low starting price (and no competing bidders). That’s especially true if sellers have done a poor job of describing the product in their listing — or the photos look like they’ve been taken underwater.
Our first smart buying tip for 2011, then: look around before you bid.
And the easiest way to do that? For that advice, turn to Tip #2 (about which more in a moment).
But first, sticking with our petanque example: if you looked around on Trade Me, you would have found quite a few listings for petanque.
Are any a better deal than our original find? To work that out, sort your results by price:
Lo and behold, a couple of potential petanque bargains emerge immediately:
[Even though the second seller shown above has listed a $50 Buy Now price, he/she has still started the auction at $1 with no reserve (the yellow flag indicates that any bid of $1 or more could take home the prize) -- so you could well end up with a very low-cost petanque set.]
Add both prospects to your watchlist and keep your bidding powder dry until just before the end of each auction (see Tip #4 below for more details).
2. Use the Search facility properly.
At the top of the page on Trade Me, you’ll find the Search box. If you’re a Trade Me regular, you no doubt use the Search box all the time — but you’re probably not taking full advantage of all the capabilities available to you.
Trade Me Power Searchers know that:
- Adding quotation marks around a phrase tells the Trade Me search engine to ONLY look for that phrase, helping you narrow down your search. For example, searching for computer desk returns 2073 listings which feature computer and desk (not necessarily together), including 138 irrelevant listings for computer peripherals and 116 similarly superfluous results for laptops; while asking for “computer desk” narrows down the search to 604, all of which include the words “computer desk” (with just 10 laptop listings now featured).
- Add an asterisk (*) to the end of a word to search for possible variations on a word, e.g. cup* matches cup, cups and cupboard
- Use an uppercase OR between two search terms to find either one of the terms, e.g. Canon OR Nikon will give you results for either one of those brands.
- Use an uppercase NOT between two search terms to find the first term but ignore the second term, e.g. iPod NOT shuffle will give you results for iPods but exclude references to shuffle.
- By default, Trade Me will find variations of search terms, e.g. fish will give you results for fish and fishing. Use a plus sign (+) immediately before a search term to find only that exact term, e.g. +fish will only give results that include the word fish.
There are more than a million listings on Trade Me every week. Using smarter search strategies to find the items you really want should make life a lot easier and avoid your having to sift through the 999,999 items that really aren’t you.
3. What’s it worth?
Despite the fiscal optimism of many sellers, if a product is priced too expensively on Trade Me it mostly won’t sell. So how do we judge what products are really worth, before we decide whether or not to bid on them?
We use the Trade Me Time Machine and take a look back to see what similar products sold for on the site.
Okay, Trade Me don’t really call it a Time Machine — but it serves that purpose. The path to the time machine is via the little link on the right of the search button labelled “More options”.
Click on that link and you’ll be taken to an Advanced Search options page that enables you to search what Trade Me calls “Expired Listings” — auctions that have closed.
If we search closed auctions for petanque, we find (amongst other results), auctions that closed recently with petanque sets going for $1.50 — so we know we just have to be patient to score a good deal.
4. Hold your breath — and your bid
This is the most important buying tip of all: don’t bid until the last few minutes of any auction. Otherwise you’ll just end up attracting other bidders.
For more information, may we respectfully point you in the direction of Chapter Six of Trade Me Success Secrets. It deals with the topic in far more detail than we can address effectively here.
B. SELLING
Finally in our roundup, three selling tips to guide you through 2011. NB: Follow the links to some of our most popular past columns — it may be a New Year, but much of this advice is timeless.
5. The Six Little Words
These six little words, added to your listing, can double the number of prospective bidders for your auction: “add this item to your watchlist”.
6. What should you sell on Trade Me?
So you’ve decided to get serious about Trade Me and make some real money on the site. But what should you sell – and where can you find goodies at the right price to make a good profit anyway?
7. When bad things happen to good auctions
Sometimes, Trade Me auctions sell out in a flash. Other times, not so much.
You polish up your headlines, take some great photos and write sizzling words that (you figure) will have people bidding like crazy. You kick-start your auction with great hope and check back in a day or so later.
The Seven Tips
- Sign up for our free newsletter;
- Get your own copy of TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS; or
- Find out about our Advanced Selling on Trade Me online ecourse, starting soon.
What Kiwis want for Christmas November 30, 2010
Posted by Michael Carney in : Christmas, auctions, selling , add a commentSo you want to make a few extra pennies for that Christmas break? What better way than selling a few goodies on Trade Me!
Hold on a minute, though — before you run off and start baking those gorgeous Christmas cakes (caution: may contain nuts, if you’re following the recipe), pause a moment and let’s have a look at what prospective buyers have been searching for in recent times. We just might find inspiration which will help guide our choices …
First let’s sneak a peek at the very hottest choices on Trade Me — the Top 15 Most Popular Searches on Trade Me are carried every month in the Trade Me newsletter, so that’s a good place to start.
As you’d probably expect, the iPhone (#1 in October), iPad (#5) and iPod (#9) are amongst the most sought-after goodies on Trade Me (as enthusiastic but cash-strapped consumers look for bargains). Unless you’re an authorised Apple orchard, you probably don’t have access to those products at a price that makes the igadgets worth reselling. However if you are able to source useful accessories (eg cases & covers) at a hot price, the continuing popularity of the core items suggests that there’s still good demand for add-ons.
Another technology on the Most Wanted list: GPS (#8), the ideal gift for the male of the species. Finally, a technological compensation for the genetic aversion to stopping and asking for directions.
If your prospective customers’ tastes run more to fashion than firmware, perennial favourites that keep making the bestseller list on Trade Me include Karen Walker, Country Road, Trelise Cooper and Roxy. Demand is clearly there; your challenge is to arrange supply at a profitable price point.
If we dig beyond the published Top 15 list and take a look at the fifty most searched-for items on Trade Me (this time for September 2010), here’s what we note:
- If you’re flogging furniture, chairs (#18) are more popular than coffee tables (#24), any other tables (#27), drawers (#28), mirrors (#35), or lounge suites (#49)
- At this time of year, shoes (#17) are more sought after than boots (#32)
- You don’t need to be a fashionista to realise that black (#30) remains far more popular than white (#47)
- Today’s kids may have been wired since birth, but parents keep trying to cut the cable: Lego (#16) is wanted rather more than the most popular console, PS3 (#31)
- Most wanted musical instrument? The guitar (#44)
- The iPad may be the most preferred portable computing device, but laptops (#22) are still an affordable alternative
- Weddings (#38) are still in style, but there’s a bit more demand for chainsaws (#36)
If what we ‘ve covered so far doesn’t do it for you, let’s take a look beyond Trade Me, at what consumers are searching for through Google. We can’t drill down very far for New Zealand searches, but we can for Australia so let’s take a look at what was hot across the ditch in the last seven days:
- In books, Harry Potter remains incandescent, newly joined by the Chronicles of Narnia (ahead of the launch of the newest movie in the series, Voyage of the Dawn Treader)
- In health and beauty, Laser Hair Removal is tops, followed by GHD Hair Straighteners and StrawberryNet
- Gran Turismo 5 is hottest in games
- Christmas songs are on the up and up
- Fishing is the most popular recreation search, followed by Bikes, Boats and Horses
- Most popular science topic: coolmaths4kids
- Fastest rising travel search: Cambodia
To figure out more popular items worth selling, head to Google Insights for Search and do your own crunching.
PS Merry Christmas!
Doing your Christmas Shopping on Trade Me November 2, 2010
Posted by Michael Carney in : Christmas, buying , add a commentWhat? Too soon?
Bah humbug — many savvy shoppers were snapping up Christmas stocking goodies a couple of months ago. But for those of us who aren’t quite so prepared, here are some helpful hints on shopping for the festive season on Trade Me.
Something Old, Something New
Around half of the products for sale on Trade Me are new (and the proportion of new stuff grows at Christmas-time). So don’t worry that you’re only choosing from used goods. Of course, pre-loved pressies can be great, too — for example, a Star Wars card autographed by the voice of Darth Vader, the legendary James Earl Jones, just might be the thing for the geek in your lfe.
Or perhaps your nearest and dearest is a royalist? Check out such goodies as this Chuck and Di cup:
CHRISTMAS SHOPPING ON TRADE ME
PART A: IF YOU ALREADY KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU WANT TO BUY
Sometimes we know exactly what sort of gift we want to buy. Gives us a warm, fuzzy feeling inside. So buying that gift is more a matter of knowing exactly where to find it and how much to pay.
1. Search
Start your quest by searching for the item (let’s be incredibly creative and describe it as a ‘widget’) on Trade Me. Make a note of who’s selling widgets and at what price they’ve listed each widget.
2. Browse
Browse in the widget category for misspellings, products without pictures and other items that won’t show up in searches (for more details, read our earlier article on how to find bargains on Trade Me).
3. Verify
Check out the feedback of the widget sellers. Look for any recent negatives. Cross out any sellers with poor reputations, highlight those with better than sterling customer service. Add the good ones to your “favourite sellers” list to be emailed details of their new listings.
4. History Check
Go to the Trade Me Search Box and click on “More Options”. Use the advanced search facility (with “Expired Items” selected) to see at what prices those widgets previously sold (or didn’t sell). That will give you an idea of the actual value of the widget in the Trade Me marketplace. (NB If your widget is rare or obscure, there may be no recent auction listings).
5. Real World
Don’t forget the non-virtual world. Check out widget pricing in actual stores or in printed catalogues. And see what the Recommended Retail Pricing is, perhaps by phoning up widget stockists.
Get ready to buy
Having down all your homework, you’ll now know what sort of price to pay for your widget. Identify target auctions, hurry up and wait.
Hold your breath – and your bid
As you move into Bidding Mode, may we respectfully point you in the direction of Chapter Six of Trade Me Success Secrets. It reveals the most important secret of buying successfully on Trade Me, and deals with the topic in far more detail than we can address effectively here.
CHRISTMAS SHOPPING ON TRADE ME
B. IF YOU HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WHAT TO BUY
What types of gifts would your family/friends/significant others like to receive this holiday season? This is what American consumers told researchers last season:
- 72% of 18-24 year olds wanted Clothing or Accessories, as did 58% of 25-34s
- 40% of men (just 26% of women) wanted consumer electronics or compter-related accessories
- 55% of 25-34s wanted books, CDs, DVDs, videos or video games
- 26% of men wanted sporting goods or leisure items
- 26% of women wanted home decor or home-related furnishings
- 56% of 35-44s wanted gift cards or gift certificates, as did 53% of 45-54s and 49% of those 65 plus
- And 26% of women but just 7% of men wanted personal care or beauty items
This data from BIGresearch’s Consumer Intention & Actions study
Specifics
Want more specific advice? Google “most wanted gifts 2010″″ and you’ll find a variety of lists of the Most Wanted, for men, women, kids, teens, you name it.
And finally, if you’re buying for kids, check out top toy lists such as this one:
The Toyworld Annual Top 20 Hot Toys for Christmas 2010 (listed below in alphabetical order):
1/ BABY born; – A life like doll that can drink, wet her nappy, eat and use her potty, cry and squeak and be bathed Suitable for ages 3+
2/ BAKUGAN – This is a collectable battle game with characters that pop open when they’re rolled onto a game card! Suitable for ages 5+
3/BARBIE The timeless and ever popular Barbie range features the latest for 2010 including Fashion Fairy Tale Barbie who flashes when you press her dancing queen belt. Suitable for ages 3+
4/ BEYBLADES – Let it Rip with Beyblade Metal Fusion – the ultimate battling top. Collect, customize and compete like never before with a new, metal gear system! Challenge friends around the global with Beyblade virtual battles on line – www.beybladebattles.com Suitable for ages 8+
5/ BIKES – Always a favourite under the Xmas tree. New colours and styles to choose from. Suitable for ages 4+
6/ HOT WHEELS RANGE-Collectable diecast to massive playsets which encourage hours of fun. Suitable for ages 4+
7/ LEAPFROG RANGE – Educational early learning products that enhance oral, sound, colour and motor skills for toddlers. Suitable for ages 6 – 36 months
8/ LEGO AND LEGO GAMES RANGE – Creative building can be enjoyed by all age groups from preschool being Duplo to City or Technic for the older enthusiast. Lego’s New Games offer a new and exciting way of game play. Suitable for ages 3+
9/ LITTLEST PET SHOP RANGE – How BIG is your Littlest Pet Shop collection? This brand provides the ultimate choice for girls who love to collect. Girls simply can’t get enough of these quirky, edgy and cute pet pals and the playsets and accessories that make the experience complete. Newly released Blythe doll, fashionista and pet sitter, adds a whole new dimension of play Suitable for 4 Years – & Up
10/ MY LITTLE PONY RANGE – Sugar and spice and friends for life My Little Pony core cast live in the fun-filled world of friendship choose from Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Toola-Roola, Cheerilie, Scootaloo, Starsong, or Sweetie Belle – or collect them all! These ponies make the perfect friend for any little girl Suitable for ages 4 years and up
11/ NERF RANGE – Win every battle with Nerf! When you’re in the heat of battle, you need a high-performance blaster that will have your back – whether it’s a Supersoaker water blaster to drench your friends, or a dart blaster N-Strike arsenal, Nerf has the blaster for you! Beware of imitations – its Nerf or Nothin’ this Christmas Suitable 6 Years – & Up
12/ PAPER JAMZ GUITAR – Pick up Paper Jamz Guitar and instantly become a Rock Star. Active Graphics Technology allows you to jam out by simply touching the surface. Built in speaker. Also has connection for earphone or amplifier. Age range: 8+
13/ PLAYWORLD – OUTDOOR PLAY EQUIPMENT – three, four and six swing and slide sets and trampolines provide a complete outdoor fun centre for your garden. Suitable for ages 2+
14/ POCKET MONEY COLLECTABLES – Mighty Beans, Zoobles, Party Animals, Gogo Crazy Bones. Cheap ranges that kids love to collect. Suitable for ages 4+
15/ REMOTE CONTROL (RC) RANGE – Includes cars, helicopters, boats and new and exciting innovative product such as Vectron Wave which flight mode is control by the palm of your hand. Suitable for ages 5+
16/ SCOOTERS – still a popular favourite, kids can ride to school and have hours of fun with their very own scooter. Suitable for ages 5+
17/ SYLVANIAN FAMILIES RANGE – collectable range of miniature dolls. The design of the range sets it apart from most of the other alternatives that are available and the unique little animal families, each with their own story, give children hours of pleasure (and many grown-ups too!). 4 years and older Ages
18/ THOMAS WOODEN RANGE – The Thomas Wooden Railway’ is designed to grow with your child’s increasing ability and creativity, so the fun and adventure always stay fresh. Suitable for 18 MONTHS +
19/ TONKA CHUCK MY RUMBLIN TRUCK – Your boy’s best buddy. Rumblin’ Chuck knows when he’s picked up, pushed around, or loaded up and says fun phrases for each. With over 50 phrases and sound effects, plus a bonus stock book (all that and he does wheelies too! Suitable for ages 3+
20/ ZHU ZHU PETS RANGE. Collectable characters which have their own unique personalities. With their whimsical sounds watch them scoot, scamper, bump and boogie across the floor or through their hamster habitat. Suitable for ages 4+ For more information visit www.toyworld.co.nz
7 Key Facts for serious Trade Me sellers October 1, 2010
Posted by Michael Carney in : auctions, selling , 2commentsIf you want to get serious about selling on Trade Me, take note of these seven key facts about Kiwis buying stuff online.
1. More of us are now shopping online. In April this year the Nielsen Company was reporting (in its 2010 Online Retail Report) that 45 percent of New Zealanders (and 57% of regular Internet users) are online shoppers.
The implication for Trade Me sellers: your market is bigger than ever — but it also includes a segment of potential purchasers who are new to all this, and consequently still nervous about shopping online. So you still need to be on your best behaviour as a seller and offer reassurance to those who are newbies.
2. We’re shopping online more often. 35% of New Zealanders who shop online made six or more purchases on the Internet in the past 12 months, an increase of 12.7 percent on the previous year.
That’s good news for Trade Me sellers. Those who are already buying online are now buying more often — great for those who offer products that can be repurchased on a regular basis.
3. Here are the Top Ten types of products purchased online, according to that Nielsen 2010 Online Retail Report:
You may not be able to sell Airline Tickets (for security reasons, most air tickets cannot be resold) but all the rest of the categories are fair game.
4. These six little words, added to your listing, can double the number of prospective bidders for your auction: “add this item to your watchlist”.
5. Auctions that have a $1 start and reserve price attract 20 times more bids than other auctions.
6. The five Trade Me categories that showed the most growth over the past twelve months were:
- Mobile Phones
- Business, Farming & Industry
- Health & Beauty
- Antiques & Collectables
- Computers
7. The consumer’s ability to pay (or willingness to do so) still plays a role in determining the success or failure of our auctions. Our latest consumer research study (September 2010) tells us that Kiwis are still watching their pennies.
Kiwi consumers aged 25-54 have cut back on:
PS Apart from these seven sets of facts, there are a few other things you need to know if you want to sell successfully on Trade Me. For further homework, may we encourage you to check out our Trade Me Success Secrets book or (if you’ve already mastered that) our online course on Advanced Selling on Trade Me.
