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Good Samaritan Award: Queenstown Motel Apartments October 26, 2009

Posted by Michael Carney in : auctions, charity auction, trade me, trademe , 2comments

One of the neatest things about Trade Me — and after five years of studying the site, it still blows us away — is the way the Trade Me community helps others. Apart from the Community Noticeboards, where you’ll constantly find veterans offering advice to newcomers, you’ll also find a steady stream of charity auctions flowing through the site.

One that just caught our eye — sadly, too late to help market the auction but certainly time enough to offer a well-deserved bouquet to the organiser — was this auction for a truly wonderful visit to our jewel of the South Pacific, Queenstown.

On offer: “Three days of pure pleasure, action and scenic packed days at Queenstown for 2 people”

All money raised to be donated to the New Zealand Red Cross Samoan Earthquake and Tsunami Appeal www.redcross.org.nz

Over $2,000 worth of accommodation and activities, valid for 12 months at a time suitable to the lucky winner subject to availability.

Thanks to the kindness of the following local Queenstown businesses for their donations the package includes:

• Three nights accommodation for 2 people at Queenstown Motel Apartments in their honeymoon suite with lake and mountain views, a spa bath and breakfast or brunch at their favourite cafe. www.qma.co.nz value $820.00.
• Milford Sound Coach and Cruise for 2 people with Real Journeys from Queenstown. www.realjourneys.co.nz value $460.00.
• Travel on the TSS Earnslaw Vintage Steamship to Walter Peak for 2 people with Real Journeys. www.realjourneys.co.nz value $136.00.
• Skippers Canyon Jetboat trip on the Shotover River for 2 people www.skipperscanyon.co.nz value $218.00
• Lord of the Rings tour for 2 people with Nomad Safaris www.nomadsafaris.co.nz value $298.00
• Voucher for Dinner at The HMS Brittania Restaurant, The Mall value $100.00
• * Voucher for Dinner at Prime Restaurant www.primerestaurant.co.nz value $100.00.

Queenstown Motel Apartments owner Dianne Smith was behind the whole thing. You can read her story here.

Bravo, Dianne. Outstanding effort.

Hot Toys for Christmas 2009 October 11, 2009

Posted by Michael Carney in : Christmas, top ten, top twenty, toys, trade me , add a comment

What? The School Holidays are still in their final few hours and we’re already looking towards Christmas?

Yep, if you’re a Trade Me seller, now’s the time to start rolling out your Christmas selling programme — you’ll see the big retailing chains throwing up the tinsel and dusting off those trees even earlier than ever in 2009, as they work hard on offsetting the lousy sales of earlier months and bidding a less than fond farewell to the recession.

And if you’re a Trade Me buyer, now’s the time to start planning your purchases — early bird gets the worm (not just a ‘Sold Out’ sign) at a hopefully healthy discount.

So, as a public service, allow us to tell you about the year’s hottest toys, as designated by US toy megaretailer Toys R Us:

THE TOYS”R”US 2009 HOLIDAY HOT TOY LIST

From Baby’s First Christmas to Big Kids, the Toys”R”Us Holiday Hot Toy List represents the top new toys for 2009 in each age group:

• BABY’S FIRST CHRISTMAS

3-in-1 Smart Trike from little tikes
From babies to beginning riders, even the tiniest tots will enjoy taking a spin on this adjustable tricycle. Featuring a full metal frame, handle and shade canopy, parents can push their little ones while strolling the neighborhood and then pop out pedals when a child is old enough to ride on their own. Two included seats can be swapped out to accommodate different aged riders, including a harnessed version to keep babies safely strapped in. A storage bucket also lets kids take their favorite treasures along on any neighborhood adventure. No batteries required. Ages 10 to 36 months.

Laugh & LearnLearning Farm from Fisher-Price
Babies and toddlers can have fun on the farm as they learn about animals, the alphabet, counting, opposites, colors and more in this double-sided role-play activity center. The magic begins when little ones open the barn door and crawl through, triggering sing-along songs, lights, music, sounds and fun phrases. In learning mode, kids are introduced to animal names, the sounds they make and the food they eat. While in music mode, a crop of songs will delight even the tiniest tots, with a selection of classics and fresh tunes. 3 “AA” batteries required (not included). Ages 6 to 36 months.

Little Superstar Jammin’ Band Musical Microphone from Fisher-Price
Young tots can get rockin’ with a musical activity center designed to prepare them for their first pretend concert. Filled with instrument play and other fun activities, this working microphone lets toddlers amplify their voices as they sing along to six songs and four karaoke tunes or explore their creativity with “build a song” mode. As budding superstars grow, the microphone can be adjusted from a sit-and-play activity into a toy where kids can stand and dance while proudly showing off their performance. 4 “AA” batteries required (included). Ages 6 to 36 months.

• 13 MONTHS TO 2 YEARS

Color Me a Song from Crayola Beginnings
Combining Picasso and Miles Davis, tots can strike up a band and create their own tunes while exploring their first artistic expressions. Toddlers can exercise their creativity by drawing on a blank sheet of paper with the eight included Crayola Washable Triangular crayons, while the speed of their scribbles determines the pace of the music. The faster kids color, the more the tempo increases, and toddlers can mix sounds from a piano, banjo, trumpet and drum, while switching between different musical styles such as salsa, rock, swing and country. Built-in storage for eight triangular crayons allows kids to take their masterpiece-making-band on road trips. 3 “AA” batteries required (included). Ages 24 months and up.

Little Momm Baby Ah-Choo from Fisher-Price
Baby Ah-Choo sneezes, wheezes and sniffles as kids squeeze her tummy in an attempt to nurse her back to health. Toddlers will love making Baby Ah-Choo “all better” with accessories, such as “a spoonful of medicine” and a thermometer that interact with this baby doll to elicit fun reactions. Featuring over 30 sounds and phrases, such as, “Can I have a tissue?” and “My nose is running,” Baby Ah-Choo comes with a box of tissues and medicine bottle, offering kids everything they need to “cure” the common cold. 3 “AA” batteries required (included). Ages 2 years and up.

Sesame Street The Original Tickle Me Elmo from Fisher-Price
After more than a decade of bringing laughter to kids of all ages, The Original Tickle Me Elmo is back, exclusively at Toys”R”Us. Tickle him once and he’ll giggle. Tickle him twice and he’ll laugh. Tickle him three times and watch him convulse with laughter! This classic toy started a phenomenon when it was first released and still brings smiles to little ones today. When Elmo’s tummy is squeezed, he’ll let kids know, “That tickles!” as he breaks out in laughter. 3 “AA” batteries required (included). Ages 18 months to 4 years.

Tonka CHUCK & FRIENDS CHUCK MY TALKING TRUCK from Playskool
Chuck is a friendly little dump truck with the gift of gab, chatting while he works on his construction projects. With more than 40 phrases, sounds and actions, kids can lift his dump bed, press his roof or push his bumper to hear Chuck say phrases such as, “Time to find some dirt!” Chuck is fully interactive, featuring sound recognition that lets him roll his tires when kids call him. An accompanying storybook, “Get to Work,” lets kids explore Chuck’s world, which includes his construction vehicle friends. 3 “C” batteries required (included). Ages 2 years and up.

• 2 TO 4 YEARS

Disney-Pixar Toy Story Interactive Buddies Talking Action Figures from Thinkway
Buzz Lightyear and Woody are back from their owner Andy’s toy box, and just like in the movies, they banter and bicker like real pals. With this Toys”R”Us exclusive, kids can choose between three different interactive modes to hear these buddies speak individually or with each other, using their actual voices from the movies. Between Buzz and Woody, the duo can say over 100 phrases, including lines from Toy Story and Toy Story 2, along with additional buddy interactions. 3 “AA” batteries and 3 “AAA” batteries required (not included). Ages 4 years and up.

Disney Princess: Just One Kiss Princess Tiana Doll from Mattel
Stepping out of this holiday season’s highly-anticipated animated theatrical release from Disney Studios, The Princess and the Frog, Princess Tiana is ready to find her prince, even if she has to kiss a frog or two first. Dressed to regal perfection, Tiana is a vision of loveliness with a tiara, necklace and blue ball gown adorned with firefly lights that sparkle and shine. She’s accompanied by the frog prince, who desperately yearns for a kiss to transform him back into a man. When girls bring the frog up to Tiana for a kiss, she will turn her head away and say one of the phrases from the movie. The fourth time the frog is brought up to her, Tiana finally agrees to kiss the prince. 3 “button cell” batteries required (included). Ages 4 years and up.

Imaginext Dragon World Fortress from Fisher-Price
With action at every turn, this fortress world allows kids to open gates, make lightning crackle, and unleash a powerful dragon with a fierce roar. Two medieval-themed action figures activate all of the castle’s secret abilities, including a launching cannon to ward off intruders and a boulder that can be released down the dragon’s tail to attack invaders. With fantastic accessories and battle sound effects, kids will believe they’ve been transported to the age of swords and sorcery. 3 “AA” batteries required (included). Ages 3 to 8 years.

Paperoni Deluxe Studio from Spin Master
With a dash of imagination and this Deluxe Studio, young artisans can create 3D artwork using tiny, colorful paper rolls. This mess-free set lets kids devise and craft animals, friendly faces and more using a child-friendly cutter that helps them effortlessly cut Paperoni paper rolls into six different lengths with the turn of a dial and the push of a lever. Offering additional depth to every work of art, crafty kids can design dozens of creations with 600 1/2-inch Paperoni pieces, 32 9-1/2-inch Paperoni pieces, one 2D self-adhesive template, one 3D template, Tweezers, eight gems and additional embellishments. No batteries required. Ages 4 years and up.

SCATTERPILLAR SCRAMBLE from Hasbro Games
Preschoolers can challenge their friends in a race to climb to the top of a giant Scaterpillar as it dances and grooves to its favorite music. As kids move their marbles, one at a time, into the Scatterpillar’s hands, it squiggles and squirms, dropping marbles and setting players back. The first player to get all eight marbles to the top wins. 3 “AA” batteries required (not included). Ages 4 years and up.

Text & Learn from LeapFrog
Because we all want our littlies to learn to get addicted to crackberries from an early age! Little learners can explore in a grown-up way by mimicking how mom and dad use their Blackberries with this oversized version that provides educational fun through three different modes. Whether exchanging text messages with their puppy pal Scout or checking Scout’s planner to see his weekly schedule in pretend browser mode, toddlers will learn the basics of communicating while using a real keyboard. Additionally, children can match letters, identify shapes, learn letter names and more. 3 “AA” batteries required (included). Ages 3 years and up.

• 5 TO 7 YEARS

BAKUGAN BATTLE BRAWLERS NEW VESTROIA Maxus Helios 7 in 1 from Spin Master
Fans of Bakugan Battle Brawlers beware – the Maxus Helios Mega Bakugan has arrived This ultimate fighter is formed by connecting seven different Bakugan marbles: Helios, Scraper, Klawgor, Foxbat, Fencer, Leefram and Spindle. Maxus Helios can battle as one united force, or individually, to give kids a variety of combat options to help them excel in Bakugan, which combines trading card game play with collectible marbles. No batteries required. Ages 5 years and up.

Barbie Fashionista doll collection from Mattel
Decked out in the best outfits, shoes and accessories, this collection of fashion-forward Barbie dolls each feature their own distinct fashion personality, including Glam, Cutie, Girly, Wild, Sassy and Artsy. With 12 points of articulation, these Barbie dolls can bend their elbows, twist their wrists, bend at the waist and roll their heads, allowing them to pose over 100 different ways. Each doll comes complete with one stylish outfit, and endless possibilities, for hours of fun. No batteries required. Ages 3 years and up. Each doll sold separately.

Battle Strikers Turbo Tops Tournament Set from MEGA Bloks
Battle Strikers Turbo Tops put a new spin on battling tops by letting kids launch without ripcords or pull strings, while offering unprecedented control. Kids rev up the handheld turbo launcher, which reaches speeds of 6000 RPM, and release their Striker top into the battle arena to compete against an opponent. Once the Battle Strikers are launched, kids can direct their tops with the flick of a fingertip through a magnetic controller that fits over two fingers. With 16 types of Strikers to collect, players can mix and match components to customize as they prepare for battle. The 17-piece Tournament Set includes two Turbo Launchers, two magnetic Controllers, two exclusive Strikers and one Battle Arena. 6 “AA” batteries required (not included). Ages 6 years and up.

ChixOs Pink Design-A-Luxury Loft from Spin Master
The ChixOs Design-A-Luxury Loft offers the perfect space for an amazing party, but the fun can’t begin before kids decorate their stylin’ pad. To prepare for the festivities, kids can dress and style three ChixOs dolls from 243 possible choices of mix and match body parts, then give them a dusting of glitter for the finishing touch. Junior interior designers can also decorate the loft by building 3D furniture and accessories when they join PixOs with water to create couches, tables or anything imaginable. No batteries required. Ages 4 years and up.

Egyptian Pyramid from playmobil
Kids can bring home one of the seven wonders of the world with the Egyptian Pyramid, available exclusively at Toys”R”Us. Featuring a 14-inch high pyramid, which kids can construct, young architects will be able to assemble tricks and ambushes with removable plastic walls, a collapsible staircase, chute, scorpion trap, secret treasure chamber and trapdoor with slide. Now, children have everything they need to help the Pharaoh safeguard his jewels against treasure hunters. No batteries required. Ages 5 years and up.

Harumika RUNWAY SHOWSTOPPER SET from Bandai
Future designers create fantastic fashions by folding fabric over a dress mannequin and locking the swatches in place. Once a new dress is formed, kids can capture images of their garment with an included USB camera before uploading them to the Harumika website where their styles can join an online fashion show. The set comes with everything needed to design runway perfect couture, including a pink dress form mannequin, stylus tool, several rolls of foldable fabric, accessories, rhinestones, stickers and two Harumika charms that hold special codes that unlock exclusive content on www.harumika.com. Even the handle on the display case offers fashion forward opportunities, transforming into a bracelet. No batteries required. Ages 6 years and up.

Matchbox Rocky the Robot Truck from Mattel
This hard-working, interactive dump truck is ready to roll with sensors, motorized movements and 100 phrases. Quickly becoming any child’s best friend, Rocky tells jokes, dances and flashes his headlights as he speaks. With a rugged design and a full-tilting bed, kids can even use Rocky for construction projects like loading up, moving out, hauling and dumping. When the work is done, Rocky even sleeps and snores. 4 “C” batteries required (included). Ages 3 years and up.

Moxie Girlz Jammaz dolls from MGA Entertainment
Breaking into the fashion doll scene, Moxie Girlz are ready to help empower girls to express themselves with courage, determination and energy. Since there’s no better place for kids to have fun than at a rock-themed slumber party, all dolls in the Jammaz line, Lexa, Avery, Sasha and Sophina, come decked out in their favorite pajamas with accessories guaranteed to help show off their inner rock stars. A wig, heart-shaped guitar, microphone, tiara and glasses complete the transformation from doll to pop princess. No batteries required. Ages 6 years and up. Each doll sold separately.

NERF N-Strike Raider Rapid Fire CS-35 from Hasbro
Ready to take on any dart challenge, this NERF blaster has the capacity to hold up to 35 NERF darts at once, ensuring kids will have a blast long before ever needing to reload. Providing versatility, the NERF RAIDER can instantly switch from “single” fire mode to launch one dart at a time or “slam” fire mode to unleash a rapid stream of 35 darts. A removable stock and Tactical Rail System complete the package, allowing players to customize their blaster for every scenario. As an added bonus, the NERF RAIDER features a collapsible stock and a drum magazine that can be used with additional NERF products. No batteries required. Ages 6 years and up.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars Clone Turbo Tank from Hasbro
When the Clone Army protects Jedi during a rescue mission or helps overcome an attack from the Separatist Droid Army, the Clone Turbo Tank is part of the action. This heavily armed and armored ten-wheel vehicle features a Tank Gunner action figure, cannon pods with firing missiles, a rotating gunner station, doors that can open and close, a removable command center and room for an entire squadron of Clone Troopers. To help the troops chase escaping droids, an included Speeder Bike can launch into action from the rear of the vehicle. Lights, sounds and Clone Trooper phrases complete the battle scenario for kids who are playing “a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.” 3 “AA” batteries required (not included). Ages 4 and up.

TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN CONSTRUCTICON DEVASTATOR from Hasbro
Kids can take control of the ultimate weapon in the evil DECEPTICON army with this monstrous TRANSFORMERS action figure that can be built by combining six different construction vehicles known as the CONSTRUCTICONS. Before converting into DEVASTATOR, children can pretend they’re waiting to ambush the heroic AUTOBOTS at a construction site with these Robots in Disguise, including LONGHAUL, MIXMASTER, SCAVENGER, RAMPAGE, SCRAPPER, and HIGHTOWER. After changing into its ultimate form, DEVASTATOR can unleash its weapons with lights and sounds that bring the excitement of this summer’s blockbuster film TRANSFORMERS: Revenge of the Fallen to life. 2 “AA” batteries required (included). Ages 5 years and up.

Zhu Zhu Pets Hamster from Cepia
These adorable, furry, interactive hamsters double as the perfect family pet and a best friend. With five hamsters to choose from, kids can select one that reflects their personality, including Patches, the flower-lover; Chunk, a laid-back surfer; Pipsqueak, a tiny titan of power; Mr. Squiggles, who loves to explore; or Num Nums, who loves to eat. With more than 40 different sound effects and artificial intelligence, these pets will dart around the house, play in hamster tubes, run on wheels and more. Zhu Zhu Pets also make fun sound effects, such as toilet-flushing, teeth-brushing sounds and sleeping noises. 2 “AAA” batteries required (included). Ages 4 years and up. Each hamster sold separately.

• 8 TO 11 YEARS

Barbie b-nails digital nail printer from Mattel
Young fashionistas can glam it up like Barbie with a spa-like manicure in the comfort of their own home. This new digital nail printer allows girls to select designs from over 1,000 available images or upload their own creations from their computer. Whether using the printer to add decals over polish or directly onto a nail, young manicurists can place their fingernail into the printer after using scaling and sizing tools to select the perfect style. Printing takes only a few seconds and the designs last for days. No batteries required. Ages 8 years and up.

Disney Netpal from ASUS
Available in Princess Pink and Magic Blue, this Disney-themed netbook computer was designed with Internet safety in mind, allowing parents to create a web-safe computing environment for their kids with more than two dozen parental controls. Once kids turn on the netbook, they’re logged on to the Disney Desktop, an intuitive software program that offers simple operation for children, along with easy access to the Disney web browser, which is preloaded with several kid-friendly websites. The Disney Desktop also comes with a “gadget tray” with icons for easy access to applications and a collection of 15 widgets, including a stopwatch and a digital memo pad. Rugged and durable, this has a spill-proof keyboard and a 16GB SSD drive that can withstand bumps. A preinstalled card allows the Disney Netpal to access networks wirelessly. 1 “4200mAh Polymer” internal rechargeable battery is required (included). Ages 6 years and up.

EyeClops Mini Projector from JAKKS Pacific
Children can create their own big screen entertainment with this pint-sized projector that can display an image up to 60-inches when connected to a DVD player, multimedia player, video game console or other video device. Once kids plug the unit into the A/V jacks of any home entertainment device, they can turn their ceiling into an arcade, the side of their house into an outdoor movie theater or the seat in front of them into a TV screen. Children can also take their big-screen experience on the road by plugging the projector into an outlet with an AC adaptor while inside or powering it with an included battery pack while outdoors. 4 “D” batteries required (not included). Ages 8 years and up.

Fast Lane JLX OVER DRIVE RADIO CONTROL ALL TERRAIN VEHICLE from Toys”R”Us
Remote control drivers can take the wheel of the ultimate R/C experience with this miniature ATV that reaches scale speeds of 225 MPH, performs awesome stunts with self-propelled flipping action tires and has the ability to drive on almost any terrain, including land, water or snow. Kids can even take this Toys”R”Us exclusive to the air with a ramp-assisted jump that can propel the JLX more than 6 feet. The JLX features a recyclable Nickel Metal Hydride battery pack, offering a longer battery life with each charge. 1 “9V” battery and 1 “12V” rechargeable Ni-Mh battery required (included). Ages 8 years and up.

Liv from Spin Master
This new collection of dolls, designed to look like real teenagers, merges the world of fashion play with an online community. Using a code provided with each doll, children can peer into the daily routine of the Liv girls, Daniela, Sophie, Katie and Alexis, when they visit www.livworld.com, which offers daily diary entries, virtual closets filled with fashions, webisodes, games and more. Beyond offering a real teen perspective, each Liv doll comes with realistic glass-like eyes, 14 points of articulation for greater poseability and wigs that allow children to switch their doll’s hairstyle or color easily. No batteries required. Ages 5 years and up. Each doll sold separately.

Mindflex from Mattel
Mindflex challenges players to test their mind-over-matter skills by levitating a soft foam ball in order to move it through an obstacle course, using only the power of their mind. Kids just strap on the included headset that contains sensors for the forehead and earlobes to measure their brainwave activity. With deep concentration, the ball rises on a stream of air, and when the mind relaxes the ball begins to descend. Players must master these mental maneuvers to guide the ball through an obstacle course that they design from hundreds of interchangeable combinations. Up to three friends can challenge each other with five unique game modes, including multiplayer games, to prove who is the most accurate mental warrior. 4 “C” batteries and 3 “AAA” batteries required (not included). Ages 8 years and up.

Star Wars Fan’s Choice Anniversary Edition Home One Mon Calamari Star Cruiser from LEGO Systems, Inc.
Modeled after scenes from Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi, this 789-piece construction set contains enough pieces to build the classic Mon Calamari Star Cruiser’s command deck, briefing room and repair hangar. Developed after it was voted by fans as the most sought after Star Wars spacecraft never before produced as a LEGO model, this massive set also comes with an A-wing fighter that kids can build, featuring an opening cockpit, rear doors and two flick missiles. Six mini figures, including Admiral Ackbar, a Mon Calamari soldier, Mon Mothma, General Lando Calrissian, General Madine and an A-wing Pilot let builders take control of the ship by directing Admiral Ackbar on his command seat to plan an attack on the Empire with the Death Star hologram. No batteries required. Ages 9 – 14 years.

• FOR BIG KIDS

Bakugan Battle Brawlers from Activision
Now video game players can heed the “call to brawl” with the first Bakugan game developed for Xbox 360, PlayStation3, PlayStation2, Wii and Nintendo DS. Taking control of their favorite Bakugan characters from the animated series, players can participate in intense battles and create their own Bakugan Battle Brawler in an environment featuring cartoon quality graphics and multiplayer combat. No batteries required. Rated “E” for “Everyone.” Video game systems sold separately.

DSi from Nintendo
Building on the popular Nintendo DS platform, this updated system combines the fun of handheld gaming consoles with the ability to take pictures and search the Internet. Available in black, blue or pink, the Nintendo DSioffers dual-screen, touch-sensitive play, and comes with a stylus to help control in-game action. Users can play any of the hundreds of existing DS titles or grow their gaming library with Nintendo DSi-specific titles and downloadable DSiWare content, including games and applications. The sleek, folding design easily fits in a hand or pocket, so users can listen to music as they walk down the street, get directions to the nearest restaurant or snap pictures they can edit, send to friends or upload to Facebook. One “lithium ion” rechargeable battery required (included). Ages 6 years and up.

Reader Pocket Edition from Sony
With the capacity to store approximately 350 standard eBooks in a device that can easily fit into a pocket, this Reader lets anyone flip open their favorite books in the car, on a plane, at a restaurant or even in a library. Sporting a five-inch electronic display, and available in a variety of colors such as navy blue and rose, this device offers clear and crisp pages for easy readability. Users can also take the Reader on all of their trips, long and short, with up to two weeks of reading enjoyment on a single battery charge. The Reader comes equipped with a USB cable that can connect to a computer to download books from a variety of online sources, as well as public libraries across the country. One “lithium ion” rechargeable battery required (included). Ages 12 years and up.

Wii Sports Resort from Nintendo
This sequel to the popular Wii Sports takes the action out of the console and onto a virtual island resort, filled with a dozen fun activities. Using the Wii Remote and Nunckuk controllers, players can take control of their Mii characters to compete against the computer or their friends in archery, basketball, bowling, golf, table tennis, fencing, air sports, canoeing, cycling, Frisbee, power cruising and wakeboarding. Adding to the challenge, Wii Sports Resort comes with one Wii MotionPlus accessory that attaches to the base of a Wii Remote, enhancing players’ precision by recognizing the slightest twist or turn of the Wii Remote. No batteries required. Rated “E” for “Everyone.” Wii system sold separately.

A couple of final observations from TOYS R US:

• There is no ONE hot toy for every child – While attention may be paid to one specific hot toy each year, that item is not necessarily appropriate for every child. The hottest toy for a five-year-old girl may not appear on an eight-year-old boy’s wish list. The age and interests of a child are key factors in determining the perfect gift.

• Quality AND Value matter – Value has two components: what consumers pay for an item and what they get for that price. Toys that last for years to come and provide open-ended play are among the most sought-after items during the holiday season.

CHRISTMAS DOWN UNDER

From what we understand, most of the above goodies will be available in New Zealand. For those that are not — Trade Me sellers, you know an opportunity when you see one! Happy trading and a Ho Ho Ho to you!

Love me, love me not, love me … October 7, 2009

Posted by Michael Carney in : success secrets, trade me, trademe , 4comments

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.

What? No bids? After all your good work, how could this happen?

If you find your items left at the altar, here’s a little advice.

First, look at the stats. There are three pieces of information you need to know about an item that’s just sitting there, apparently unloved:

1. Is your auction not getting any pageviews?
2. Is it getting views but no bids?
3. Or are people viewing it and then just adding it to their watchlist?

How do you know the answers to these questions? Go to My Trade Me and thence to your Items I’m Selling section. The three key auction numbers are there for you to see.

ON THE WATCHLIST?

If several people have added your auction to their watchlist, don’t change anything. They’re probably veteran Trade Me buyers and are saving up their energies (as well as their Auto-Bidders) for a sudden flurry at the end.

VIEWS BUT NO BIDS?

If you’re getting views and not bids, you know there is demand and interest in the item, but there’s something wrong with your price, your description or your photos. Tinker with the description, consider changing the photos — but don’t touch the pricing. Time enough for that if you have to relist your item.

NO VIEWS?

If you’re not even getting views, then either:

• There’s no demand or interest in the item;
• Your item is listed in the wrong category; or
• Your headline is letting you down.

WHATCHA GONNA DO?

First, head on over to the “more options” link in the Search box, and search for recent sales of similar items under Expired Auctions.

If you find a reasonable number of recent sales at acceptable prices, then you’ve established that there is demand for what you have to offer.

Dig a little deeper: click the most successful sold items and confirm if they were listed in the same category you’re frequenting. If not — and if you still have at least a day before the auction ends — change categories. If the successfully sold items were listed in the same category, probe even deeper.

How does your headline stack up? Is there anything you can learn from the headlines used by the successful sellers? Nothing that’s immediately obvious? At this point you have two choices:

1. Suck it in and wait for the end of the auction. To all intents and purposes, your listing stacks up. Take your chances on attracting attention as your listing moves into the endgame, passing through the Closing Soon pages on the way to temporary oblivion.
2. Tinker under the bonnet, trying some random changes to your headline and/or your choice of category.

We recommend choice #1. But that just might lead to…

COPING WITH FAILURE

No battle plan survives contact with the enemy. The same is true of online auction listings. No top seller on Trade Me achieves a 100% success rate, first time every time. We don’t imagine you will either. For some reason, those potential buyers out there have a mind of their own.

Sometimes, there’ll be no bids. Sometimes the bids just won’t reach your reserve. It’s a numbers game — and a game of perseverance. Even the professionals fail between 20% and 55% of the time. As for the rest of us: across the whole site, only one in four auctions closes successfully.

However, all is not lost. If your item doesn’t sell first time you can:

• Make a limited-time offer to any bidders or watchers. However you should note that because it’s so much easier these days to add an item to a Watchlist, you’ll attract many watchers who have only a mild interest in your item. So don’t get too disheartened if nobody bids.
• Relist your item in a different category. Your research amongst Expired Items might have unearthed appropriate alternatives. If not, just think creatively.
• Relist the item with a different description. Sometimes you can achieve success just by changing how you describe an item (refer the Trade Me Success Secrets book for advice on writing effective descriptions).
• Relist your product with a changed price offer. Maybe you were too ambitious with your pricing. Try again.
• Store it for now and try again later. Maybe this is a bad time to sell widgets.
• Add your item to a group of related products (ie, bundled together). Sometimes people don’t appreciate what goes with what (especially with fashion or design items). Combine and attempt to sell the new collection as a unit.
• Add extra value (such as a gift with purchase). The Gift With Purchase strategy is a tried and true sales tactic for retailers. It just might work for you.
• Add premium promotional options. Maybe enough people didn’t notice your listing. Add pictures and pay to have one featured as a Gallery image. Pay for your auction to be listed at the front of the category.
• Turn the whole thing into a publicity opportunity. We can see the headline now: widget that didn’t sell first time round on Trade Me now reaches record sales figures (see our earlier story “Five essential ingredients to make your listing famous” to see what can be done).
• Make the whole thing a learning experience! Use it to explore Trade Me in greater detail than you ever have before (and, ahem, may we suggest that a great way to master Trade Me is to read our Trade Me Success Secrets book).

Let’s not be gloomy about failure, though. It gives us a chance to learn new ways of doing things on Trade Me! Eventually, as winter turns to spring (soon, surely!) and thence to summer, failure will blossom into success.

Social Selling September 8, 2009

Posted by Michael Carney in : Twitter, auctions, facebook, new zealand, trade me, trademe , 4comments

Can you use Twitter to sell stuff on Trade Me? Is it fashionable or a complete social disaster to promote your auctions on Facebook?

The first answer, the purist answer, is ‘No’ – you shouldn’t use either service just to flog your auctions. And especially ‘No’ if you intend to turn your Twitter and Facebook presence into Spam Sausage Machines, churning out endless updates fixated on your Trade Me listings. Epic FAIL.

Of course, if ‘No’ was all there was to the answer, that would make for a pretty short blog post. So let’s quickly point out that there are circumstances under which it can be both acceptable and desirable to harness the power of Twitter or Facebook to promote your offerings [you probably knew we were going to say that].

A MATTER OF FOCUS

Regardless of whether we’re talking about Twitter, Facebook or any of the many other microblogging or social networking services, the key question is focus. What’s the purpose of your online presence? To keep in touch with your friends? Just to have an outlet for your rants and raves? Or to help with your business or professional ambitions, whether it’s to further your career or just help you earn a decent crust?

You may not have even considered the question before – most people haven’t. Now’s the time to do so.

If you decide that all you want to do online is hang with your friends or indulge in a good old-fashioned soapboxing from time to time, thanks, nothing to see here, move along please.

Otherwise, let’s talk about developing a new online focus – specifically, on those products that you sell on Trade Me. We’ll assume that they’re all part of a related product portfolio – in other words, you’re not selling car batteries today, dolls’ clothing tomorrow [if you do dabble in what we’ll charitably call a “diversified product range”, you either need to reconsider your overall selling strategy or else develop separate online identities* for each collection of products].

*EDIT: You can’t use multiple identities on Trade Me, of course, but you can and should have different  Twitter accounts and Facebook Business Pages for your various offerings. And thanks, Tim, for pointing out that this wasn’t clear in the original post.

Your focus can be reasonably broad (eg “Baby Clothing”) or very narrow (eg “Bronze Age Marvel Comics”). Either way, we’ll presume that there’s sufficient interest in the product category within New Zealand that you’ve been able to build a viable market niche selling such products on Trade Me.

Identified your focus? Great. The rest of the process can be simply described in four steps:

1. Ensure that your online identity reflects your focus (eg your Twitter User Name and profile details are all about your passion for Model Railroads of the Twentieth Century; you have a Facebook business page that talks about your comprehensive Swatch collection);
2. Start regularly posting useful information (eg to your Facebook wall or to your Twitter account) about your chosen topic: “Ten Worst Movies Available On BluRay”, “My Favourite Scrapbooking Technique”, “How Open Source Software Changes The World”;
3. Actively build a database of followers by seeking out other service users whose posts and profiles indicate that they are interested in your category;
4. Every once in a while (about every 15^th tweet, for example), in the midst of all the other useful information you’re posting, mention a relevant Trade Me auction that might appeal to your followers.

The guiding principle: provide an ongoing source of valuable information about your specialist topic (setting yourself up as an expert in the chosen field), attract those interested in your field and then interject with very occasional commercial messages (but don’t over-pollute).

These things take time, of course – don’t expect to be an overnight sensation. But once you build an enthusiastic following in your niche, you can significantly multiply the effectiveness of your auction listings.

GETTING SPECIFIC: TWITTER

Twitter is the flavour of the year. The service’s popularity has exploded around the world, and New Zealand is no exception. Twitter’s share of daily visits in Aotearoa increased 305% from the start of 2009 until mid-April (the latest data we have available), at which point, according to researchers HitWise, it was our 49th most visited web site.

Twitter’s most endearing feature is its ability to multiply messages exponentially. To paraphrase a (very) old commercial: with Twitter, “you tell two people and they each tell two people, and they each tell two people,  and so on and so on …” and before you know it, your message has been retweeted around the world six hundred times, reaching every person on the planet (okay, perhaps not, but certainly you can reach far more than just those on your own list, provided your message is of enduring interest).

So where do you start on Twitter? Returning to our four-step process noted above, start (STEP ONE) by claiming your online identity on the site. Go to www.Twitter.com and attempt to claim your Trade Me user name as a Twitter ID (we’re assuming that your user name reflects your product focus). Note that you can have no more than 15 characters in a Twitter ID (and it’s first-come, first-served globally), so you may need to modify or abbreviate to fit.

• If your Trade Me user name is too long or not available, consider using a descriptive name (related to your product focus) in your Twitter ID – that will help people find you and understand what you do.
• You also get to choose a thumbnail image to accompany your user ID. Choose or create an image that reflects your focus (but try to give it a personal twist – people like to follow other people, not corporations).
• Twitter also lets you include a single biographical weblink to let people click and learn more about you. If you’ve created a meaningful, product-focussed profile on your Trade Me member page, use that as your link (and if you haven’t already fleshed out that page properly, do it right now).

STEP TWO: Posting. You have 140 glorious characters within each tweet – not very much to provide useful, meaty information about your chosen topic (which is why many Twitterers tend to include links to more detailed blog posts in their tweets). Remember, remember, your role is to position yourself as an expert in your chosen field of endeavour, so post useful information on a regular basis. Also be aware that some will be receiving your updates on their mobile phones (and may be paying for the privilege). If they don’t think they’re getting value for money, they’ll quickly stop following you.

STEP THREE: Building a following. In essence, you want to attract a core group of (ideally Kiwi) followers who are very interested in your topic, as many people as possible with a mild interest in your topic and a smattering of others who might occasionally become prospects for your products.

How do you go about doing that? We won’t reinvent the wheel – Promo Magazine covers the topic in depth with a useful excerpt from “Twitter Power: How to Dominate Your Market One Tweet at a Time” by Joel Comm (John Wiley & Sons, 2009):

How to Be Intentional about Creating Your Own Network of Experts

High quality followers can do different things. Some will be the type of followers who hang on to your every tweet, follow all your links, and buy your products.

You certainly want to have lots of those … but identifying them isn’t easy. Few Twitterers write on their bios that they’re looking to buy lots of products about Corvettes or football—or anything else.

What you can find very easily on Twitter, though, is experts.

This is really Twitter’s strength. The site is stuffed with people who have great information about particular subjects and are willing to share it.

Find experts on a topic related to yours and encourage them to follow you, and you’ll be giving yourself a massive and very valuable network.

Enter your keywords [in a Twitter search engine] and pull up tweets that contain that phrase.

You’ll then be able to see who’s talking about your topic and, by looking at the bios and reading their tweets, see which of those Twitterers are the leading experts. It’s much more efficient to identify the key Twitterers on the topic and get them to follow you.

If other people see that the expert is following you, they’ll assume that you’re also an expert and want to follow you too.

One way to succeed on Twitter is to hang out with the influence-makers. Find the top people in your topic on Twitter, and become a part of their circle.

When you’re one of the prominent Twitterers on the site, you’ll find it’s much easier to persuade people to read your tweets. In fact, you won’t have to do anything but make sure that your tweets are interesting, informative, and entertaining.

Read more at http://promomagazine.com/interactivemarketing/news/building-twitter-followers-0331/index1.html

STEP FOUR: Once you’ve built a useful following, you can afford to mention your auctions on an occasional basis.

AND WHAT ABOUT FACEBOOK?

Facebook overtook Bebo in April this year to become New Zealand’s most popular social networking site (Source: ComScore). Amazingly, Facebook has also (according to HitWise) overtaken Trade Me in the last month to become New Zealand’s second most visited website behind Google.

Facebook requires a bit more care than Twitter, because the site doesn’t allow you to register as anything other than an individual. However you can set up (free) a business page and populate that page with info about your products.

What to do next? John Marshall to the rescue:

Step One: Who Is Your Target Market? That’s the million dollar question. Lets say you were selling video games. You only want to add friends who play and buy those video games. Think of your target market.

Step Two: Find your target market. You ask how do I do that. It’s very easy if your target market is video games, you go to groups and search for stuff related to video games.  Once you find these groups of people you now have your target market in front of you.

Step Three: Build your following. It’s time to start adding friends and having fun. Here are a few things to keep in mind when building your following:

• Only add 50 Friends a day (If you go too fast FaceBook will tell you to slow down)
• Don’t use a program to add friends (Facebook will kick you out)
• Add a personal message when adding friends. (Draft a message, one that sounds professional, and keep it handy)
• Approve all requests for friendship from others.
• Join Groups in your target market (people will invite you from these groups)
• Join the conversation (Get out in the conversation and be seen)
• Write on your friends’ Walls.
• Link your FaceBook to other websites: your blog, Twitter, MySpace and YouTube.

Social Networking specialist Deltina Hay also provides some highly valuable advice for taking advantage of sites such as Facebook:

To avoid the scattershot approach, choose one or two social networking sites that fit your business well and invest the time to maximize your presence in them. Let’s explore what that might look like if Facebook is one of your choices.

Prepare your best information before you start.

Avoid the “I will go back and fill that in later” trap. Have all your necessary information on hand, ready to copy and paste on the spot. Complete a worksheet containing:

1. Key Terms:
Make a list of your best key terms and weave them into the rest of your worksheet items. Key terms are one, two, or three word terms that someone might use if they were searching for your business in a search engine.

2. General Information:
Your Name
Business Name
Email Addresses
URLs
Instant Messaging screen names

3. Biographical and Descriptive Information:
Short bio (50 words)
Longer bio (100 words)
Short company description (50 words)
Longer company description (100 words)
Business mission statement

4. List of Products

I based these worksheet items on a typical Facebook profile and page. If you choose a different social networking site, examine some completed profiles and base your worksheet items on them.

Create an account and thoroughly complete your profile

If you haven’t already, get a Facebook account. Completely fill out your profile using your worksheet. Under the relationships tab, choose “networking.” You can skip the personal and education tabs for business profiles, but there is no harm in filling them out. If you have an existing account, upgrade your profile information using your key terms.

But don’t stop there!

Facebook, like most good social networking platforms, offers many marketing opportunities for businesses, some for free. You can find these by clicking the “Advertising” link in the footer of the Facebook site, or by following this link: http://www.facebook.com/business/.

Since I can’t cover all of the marketing tools in one article, let’s focus on my favorite: The Facebook Page. It’s my favorite not only because it is free, but because it makes use of the many diverse Facebook applications.

Facebook pages are specifically for marketing a business or a product. They offer a way for a business to represent itself to the Facebook community in an authentic way. Facebook users can search pages the same way they search for people within the network community.

Create your page by going to “Page Manager” in the left sidebar of your Facebook profile, or by following this link: http://www.facebook.com/business/ and choosing Facebook Pages. Choose the best category for your business.

Use key terms in the name of your Facebook page!

It seems that the actual page name is the only text on a Facebook page that is used in a search. With that in mind, use at least two of your best key terms in your page name.

Populate your page with all of your best worksheet information. You may have only a few seconds to catch a reader’s attention, so put your best key terms forward.

Once your page is in place, add applications to help represent your company in your own unique way. To find applications for your page, click on “Applications” in the upper left corner of your page, or search for them here: http://www.facebook.com/apps/.

Applications are not difficult to install and are usually very easy to set up. Use this general rule of thumb when choosing an application: If you can’t figure out how to set it up after the second try, find another one. There is often more than one application available to accomplish the same task.

Applications Top Picks:

• My Flickr (http://apps.facebook.com/myflickr/): Display photos from your Flickr account using this application. These photos can include logos, product photos, photos from events, etc.
• Upcoming (http://apps.facebook.com/upcoming/): Add all of your events to upcoming.org, and you can easily display them on your Facebook page with Upcoming’s Facebook application.
• YouTube Box (http://apps.facebook.com/videobox/): Allows visitors to play your YouTube videos right on your Facebook page.
• Simply RSS (http://apps.facebook.com/simplyrss/): This allows you to display up to eight RSS feeds on your Facebook page and display the feeds from your business’s main site and newsrooms.

Implementing these applications creates an interactive page that also gives visitors a personable look into your business.

MORE READING

We’re really just scratching the surface of social network marketing in this article. We suggest you do your own additional homework as you go along (recommended tutor: Old Missus Google).

Anyway, back to the original questions: Yes, you can use Twitter or Facebook to promote your auctions, but only as a side-effect of your development as the Expert in your Chosen Field. BTW, you’ll find a few other useful side-effects along the way, as you develop and publicise your expertise. We’ll leave it to you to discover them!

Surviving The Recession Through Trade Me August 12, 2009

Posted by Michael Carney in : Uncategorized, new zealand, top twenty, trade me, trademe, what's hot , 27comments

Most of us are keen to get a good deal when we’re shopping for stuff, even in the good times. When it’s the worst of times, economically speaking (and if it’s not that now, this is as close as we want to come, thank you very much), we’re seriously committed to finding hot deals — or not spending at all. Thank goodness we’ve got Trade Me!

Normally, around two-thirds of visitors to Trade Me are looking for a bargain (the remainder are looking for something unique, either a collectable or some other one-of-a-kind offering). However, in the midst of a recession, expect nine out of ten Trade Me visitors to be in bargain-hunting mode.

So the first part of your mission is to take the path less travelled (i.e. go to the sections on Trade Me least populated by other members), lest spontaneous bidding should break out around you.

Avoiding Bidding Wars

So where should you go on Trade Me, to minimise human contact (and thus reduce your chances of squabbling with another keen hunter over some enticing goodie)? Some statistics to the rescue.

Last month on Trade Me, the 20 least popular categories (those which achieved the lowest sell-through rates — the site average was 23%) were:

• Business, farming & industry: Businesses for sale (just 4% of listings sold)
• Art: Photographs 6% sold
• Art: Drawings 9%
• Art: Other 9%
• Crafts: Greeting cards & envelopes 9%
• Electronics & photography: Memory cards 9%
• Antiques & collectables: Phonecards 10%
• Clothing: Wedding 10%
• Electronics & photography: Camera accessories 10%
• Gaming: PC games 10%
• Home & living: Lifestyle 10%
• Sports: Waterskiing & wakeboarding 10%
• Antiques & collectables: Food & drink 11%
• Books: Rare & collectable 11%
• Computers: Blank discs & cases 11%
• Crafts: Painting & drawing 11%
• Crafts: Woodcraft 11%
• Health & beauty: Naturopathy 11%
• Music & instruments: Music DVDs 11%
• Toys & models: Magic tricks & sets 11%

NB We excluded Carbon Credits, which topped our list of Trade Me’s worst, attracting a big fat 0% sales in July. Our research indicates that in tough times consumers prefer to save their families first, before they get around to saving the planet.

If you’re in the market to buy any of these items, head over to the relevant category and browse away. Don’t mind the empty halls — that echoing sound you hear is the sound of the savings you’re likely to make when nobody else bids.

Plan B: Less Likely To Buy

On the other hand, none of those categories might look particularly compelling. Plan B involves taking a look at consumer buying intentions in recessionary times.

Relax, we’ve already done the heavy lifting. A US study conducted in July by BigResearch.com tells us that fewer people in the land of hope and glory are planning to spend in these categories in the next three months: 

• Apparel
• Shoes
• Sporting Goods
• Toys/Games
• CDs/DVDs
• Books
• Electronics
• Home Improvement
• Lawn & Garden Furniture
• Home Decor
• Linens/Bedding

Our own research suggests similar trends in New Zealand, as Kiwis cut back (though not perhaps to the same extent as their American or UK counterparts). So if you’re looking for a sharp deal in one of these categories, now would be a good time to let your keyboard do the walking. 

General Trade Me Buying Advice

Apart from these current trends, there are also a number of tricks and techniques to use when searching for hot deals on Trade Me. Here they are, excerpted from our Trade Me Success Secrets book: a dozen of the best types of auction listings to peruse when you don’t want to spend much:

1. POOR IMAGES OR NO IMAGES
Many people simply won’t bid on an auction if it doesn’t include an image, or if the image is so small or fuzzy that you can’t distinguish the product from the background. That’s why such listings can be great bargains. Yes, there are obviously risks. But if you’re bidding for an item like brand new single sheets, with a reasonably comprehensive description of what’s on offer, from a seller with more than a hundred positive feedbacks, the risk is minimal. On the other hand, if you’re tempted to bid on an unillustrated diamond ring from a brand new seller, we might encourage you to get seriously acquainted with Chapter Three of TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS, which shares some useful perspectives on fraud.

You won’t find image-less listings on Trade Me by searching, alas – you’ll have to browse through the categories that interest you, looking for something that isn’t there. Once you find a listing without images, you’ve still got to decide whether it’s worth taking a risk. If it’s a listing placed by a local seller, you may be able to arrange to pick up the item, giving you the chance to inspect it properly before you pay over any cash. If it’s an out-of-town seller, chances are reasonable (seven degrees of separation theory applies here) that you or a friend know someone nearby who can check the item out on your behalf before handing over the cash. Don’t be put off by a little thing like location.

2. NIGHT OWLS & DAWN CHORUSES
Trade Me operates around the clock, attracting buyers and sellers twenty-four hours a day. Some of those sellers, however, perhaps not quite completely aware of Trade Me’s automated listing processes, add new listings either very late at night or very early in the morning. There’s nothing wrong with doing that if you pay a premium to choose a suitable closing time (i.e. when there are people around to bid). If you don’t set such a closing time then the auction will close at the same time as you listed it, an appropriate number of days later. Such auctions are fair game for the dedicated buyer willing to stay up late or rise a little earlier than usual.

High-volume sellers are particularly likely to be offering products through auctions that finish at odd times. Not because they don’t understand the Trade Me system, but because (if you’re selling multiple copies of the same product) Trade Me’s automated relisting system automatically relists the product to close in increments of 24 hours since the last sale. In other words, if some insomniac buys your widget at 3.27am, your next widget will be relisted to close at 3.27am a (user-specified) certain number of days later.

Canny Trade Me buyers can and do exploit this systemic weakness by adding high-volume sellers to their ‘Favourite Sellers’ list and watching for timing anomalies.

3. ON HOLIDAY OR AT THE GAME
Our political masters don’t plan an Election Day during the school holidays or when there’s a big rugby game scheduled. No-one would show up to vote. For the same reason, you should never end an auction on a public holiday, in the middle of a big sporting event or when it’s going to clash with a major television show like the final of Dancing With The Stars or Outrageous Fortune.

Fortunately for us, sellers don’t always have an event calendar at their fingertips when they’re listing their auctions, so auction closing times seldom take account of what’s happening out there in the real world. Sure, most sellers avoid Christmas Day and the more obvious public holidays, but even so there are often times to snap up bargains because the rest of the population are cheering on the All Blacks or fighting with their tentpegs in some sodden holiday paradise.

4. MISSPELLED WORDS
Lousy spelling can be the kiss of death for Trade Me sellers – but a glowing beacon for buyers in search of a bargain. How do you find such auctions? Try looking at popular Trade Me search terms in your desired category and predicting what mangled variants might exist out there – do a search and prepare to be horrified. Alternatively, browse through the auction listings keeping your eyes peeled for almost familiar brands and keywords.

5. POOR DESCRIPTIONS
Even when they do the other things right, sellers who say little about the items on offer – or who describe them badly – are likely to scare away potential bidders. A collectable Anchor Tea Towel, listed in the Antiques & Collectables category under the headline “Tea towel”, could only attract a $2 bid. The not exactly riveting description that kept the price low: “Anchor butter,in very good condition with no tears or stains,highly decorative and nostalgic item.” Bargain hunters who can see past such descriptions stand to make a killing.

How do you find such gems? It’s not difficult – just browse through a category and look for items that seem good value but haven’t attracted many if any bids. Some sellers seem unable to find words to describe their products satisfactorily. If you’re one of those sellers, read Chapter Fourteen of TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS – Second Edition (Chapter Twelve of the First Edition) before you list another item.  

6. OBSCURE HEADLINES & HEADLINES WITHOUT KEYWORDS
Auction headlines should be treated like gold – every word should be a potential keyword someone will be searching for. And those odd characters that populate the top row of the keyboard are a definite no-no, if more than sixty percent of Trade Me users find listings by searching.

Have you ever searched for the keyword “l@@k”? We just did, and the Trade Me search engine just came back and told us “No results for ‘l@@k’ in New Zealand”. Yet sellers keep using such symbols in their headlines, trying to attract the attention of casual browsers. It’s a mug’s game.

The other common headline mistake: not using keywords. We searched for Tupperware and found 460 listings. The first 422 listings displayed had Tupperware in the headline – the last 38 only had a mention within the main body of the listing. The most popular of the 460 auctions had the headline “Tupperware Modular Mates x 4”, had attracted 573 pageviews and bidding stood at $41.50. The least popular was burdened with the headline “Jelly Molds x2 )”,  had no mention of Tupperware,  three pageviews and no bids. 

• Want to find bargains when you’re browsing? Look for the headlines with the funny symbols. These listings are less likely to show up for searchers, reducing your competition come bidding time.
• Looking for bargains when searching? Start by searching for your desired keyword – but then go through the listings in reverse (go to the last page of the listings and work your way back to the front). The items at the end of the listing results will attract a lot less viewers than those at the front, thanks to keywords not included (in the headlines).

7. LISTINGS IN THE WRONG CATEGORIES
Trade Me has a great many misplaced listings thanks to the joys of self-classification. Not all the listings are wrong – the Lord Of The Rings movies, for example, can be found listed under various DVD categories, including Action, Adventure, Scifi, New Zealand,Boxed Sets and Collectors. Arguably, they’re all valid categories – yet most of the LOTR DVDs have been listed under Action or Adventure and that’s where fans would be most likely to turn first. If you find The Two Towers under Scifi, it’s likely to have attracted fewer pageviews – and probably not as many bids. 

Misplaced items aren’t particularly easy to find deliberately. But if an item shows up during a search that appears undiscovered by others, check out the category in which it’s listed. If it’s wildly out of place, you could be in luck.

8. MARKET KNOWLEDGE
All those wonderful TV programmes where innocent consumers parade their home treasures in front of experts, to be told that they have a $500,000 Rembrandt hanging in their smallest room, are great entertainment – and a wonderful fantasy for Trade Me buyers. Reality seldom delivers on the dream but, if you specialise in a particular product category and know it well, you will have a definite advantage over casual sellers. As more and more new traders set up shop, your specialist knowledge could just come in handy.  

9. FADING FASHION
We live in an instant gratification society. When it’s hot we want it now. That’s why cinema chains can charge blockbuster pricing when a movie is first released – and why some patient (and thrifty) souls are willing to wait a few weeks until the price drops. The same dynamic applies to online auctions – when a hot new DVD or CD is just released, you’ll end up paying about the same to buy it on Trade Me as you would through a retail store. If you’re prepared to wait, however, the price will drop. How long should you wait? Check on the final sale price of similar items on a regular basis. When the price drops to a level that seems acceptable, get ready to bid.

In the same vein: buy off season. Buy your Christmas ornaments after Boxing Day and your swimming accessories at the end of summer.  

10. BROWSING RATHER THAN SEARCHING
If you only use the Search facility on Trade Me, you could be missing out on bargains listed by sellers who (either through some of the poor practices already outlined here or through other misadventures of their own) have done a lousy job of listing their offerings online. It’s worth taking a bit of time to browse through categories of interest – like a jumble sale or a lucky dip, you never know what surprises are in store.

11. OVER-PRICED LISTINGS
Every once in a while you’ll see a product that you want that’s overpriced – either the starting price is too high or, even if there’s been some spirited bidding, the reserve still hasn’t been reached. Don’t do anything rash – just add the product to your watchlist and wait until the auction closes. Unless the bidding gets out of hand, the auction is likely to finish unsuccessfully. Once that happens, you can use the Trade Me system to get in touch, asking them either to relist the item or make a fixed price offer – hopefully this time their expectations will be more realistic.

NB Some sellers simply refuse to make their products available via fixed offer — something about “gannets” and “scavenging”. Their loss.

12. ATTITUDE THAT OFFENDS
Some sellers, presumably as a result of previous problems, seem determined to drive away potential buyers by tough talking in their listings: “payment within three days or the item will be relisted and negative feedback will be posted.” It’s OK to have a bad hair day every once in a while but if you’re the public face for your organisation (as Trade Me listings are) then it’s not a good career move to operate on a customer-is-always-wrong model.

If you’re willing to take the risk of offending these somewhat prickly traders, go ahead and bid. Other more delicate souls may be put off, lessening the competitive pressure. Just make certain that your actions after the auction are squeaky clean.

To List Is Human, To Sell Divine

Just before we leave the topic of recessionary trading, some advice for sellers (who’re also trying to survive and thrive in the economic downturn):

The Seven Things Every Trade Me Seller Should Know About Consumers In 2009

1. Conspicuous Consumption is out of fashion (for now). We don’t want to be seen to be over-indulging while others are suffering. Bling is out, dowdy is in. Subtlety and decorum, please. We will allow ourselves small indulgences — but with discretion. So — even if you have ostentatious items to sell, a little bit of taste, please.

2. Climate Change has been postponed until we can afford it again. Yes, products still need green credentials but they’re just not the most important attribute right now. So mention any sustainable attributes your products might boast, but price your stuff competitively.

3. Security Really, Really Matters. So many finance companies and other institutions, supposedly safe, have fallen into the abyss. We won’t be nearly so trusting anymore. It also means we’ll look more closely at your feedback and your past history, so behave already.

4. Country of Origin is now a significant issue. The melamine-tainted milk powder scandal really brought it home to us — we’ve now started checking labels to see exactly where products are made. Good news for Kiwi Made, not so good for importers. Be open about the source of your products.

5. Staying In is the new Going Out. We’re eating out less, spending more on our little home nests. It’ll take a compelling offer to lure us out in 2009. Focus on selling items that improve quality of life in our homes.

6. We’re Slower To Spend.  In tough times, we procrastinate more about when, where and how we spend. We spend more time searching for information before we commit to purchase (and look further around for the best deals). And we negotiate harder when we do decide to buy. So make those listing details as comprehensive as possible and add lots of pictures.

In the US BigResearch study mentioned earlier, consumers told researchers that their new order of priorities – what they look for first when they shop — is:

• 71% Price
• 54% Selection
• 39% Quality
• 34% Location
• 13% Service

You know what you have to do.

7. We have new Spending Priorities. A September 2008 European Study on Discretionary Spending by Execution Primary Research (”what would you cut back if you had to make savings?”) saw Broadband Internet, Fixed-Line Phone Calls, Toiletries and Cosmetics and Mobile Phones as the least likely to be cut back in tough times. Most vulnerable (in order): New furniture or floor coverings, Gambling, Going Out, Electronics, Music, DVDs, Books & Games and Home Improvements.

The implication: that thrifty consumers could be interested in second-hand goods or maintenance products (e.g. “keep that carpet alive for longer …”)  in the most vulnerable categories; or in upgrades, accessories and supporting products in categories such as mobile phones (”you’ll have to pry the handset from my cold, dead hand”).

It’s The Economy, Stupid

If you’re trying to sell stuff, Trade Me is still the place to be. In fact, online auction sites typically blossom in a recession precisely because they’re the ideal place to find a bargain. Just be aware that value is the single most important attribute right now. One last collection of statistics from that July 2009 BigResearch study, this time capturing the parsimonious attitudes of recession-conscious consumers:

• 52% say they’re now considering purchases more carefully
• 49% are more price-conscious
• 47% are (gasp!) sticking to their budgets
• 45% are dining out less
• and 42% are racking up less credit card debt

Finally, just to complete the set (and so you can know what items you should be selling), here’s a list of the Top 20 Items selling most on Trade Me (July 2009) despite the recession:

• Electronics & photography: iPods (67% of listings sold)
• Baby gear: Walkers 62%
• Music & instruments: Concert tickets 59%
• Mobile phones: Telecom network 58%
• Sports: Event tickets 56%
• Baby gear: Bouncers & jolly jumpers 53%
• Home & living: Laundry 53%
• Baby gear: Monitors 52%
• Home & living: Heating & cooling 47%
• Baby gear: Safety 45%
• Electronics & photography: DVD players & VCRs 45%
• Sports: Gym memberships 44%
• Computers: Computer furniture 43%
• Art: Tattoos 42%
• Baby gear: Cots & bassinets 42%
• Home & living: Beds & bedroom furniture 41%
• Mobile phones: Vodafone network 41%
• Health & beauty: Shaving & hair removal 39%
• Baby gear: Sleep aids 38%
• Electronics & photography: GPS 38%

PS We would be remiss if we didn’t sneak in one last plug for our book, TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS. Its subtitle is “How to buy for less and sell more profitably on New Zealand’s most popular auction site” — and that’s what we all need, especially in tough times. See our listings on Trade Me.

We’ve Moved! August 5, 2009

Posted by Michael Carney in : Uncategorized , 1 comment so far

We’ve moved the TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS blog to a new host.

It all should work properly, but we’ll apologise in advance just in case.

Oh yeah — but please bookmark this address for future use. Thank you!

Are you ready for … July 16, 2009

Posted by Michael Carney in : auctions, movies, trade me, trademe , add a comment

So here we are, Bastille Day behind us, the latest Harry Potter movie just opened and the 40th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing coming up this weekend. All great opportunities to flog some stuff on Trade Me — did you?

Yes, there’s still time to list some lunar droppings on Trade Me  — personal letter from Neil Armstrong, perhaps, thanking you for the flight training lessons — but the reality is that you should be planning a little further ahead. You should look at the promotional calendar in TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS to note the regular seasonal highlights of the next couple of months. Events peculiar to 2009 include the following movies (which just might lead to some merchandising sales opportunities:

AUGUST

Coraline and the Secret Door
Animated tale from Henry Selick, writer/director of ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’, based on the book by Neil Gaiman. Eleven-year-old Coraline walks through a secret door and discovers a parallel reality. Voice credits: Dakota Fanning, Teri Hatcher, Jennifer Saunders and Dawn French. Our view: distinctive animation and a quirky storyline may limit this movie’s mainstream appeal but it’s likely to attract a passionate following amongst young urbanites.

• Check out some of the available Coraline merchandise here.

G. I. Joe: The Rise Of Cobra
The world’s favourite ‘poseable action figure’ turns into high-octane action with this big budget makeover. Your toybox will never look the same. Our view: the producers took a look at what Michael Bay had done to Transformers (explosions! mayhem! more explosions!) and chose the same route for G I Joe. This is an ideal vehicle if you want to reach males who like to watch stuff blow up.

• Already decades of G.I. Joe merchandise on sale on Trade Me, but if you have something rare, NOW would be the time.

Case 39
A social worker (Renee Zellweger) fights to save a girl from her abusive parents, only to discover that the situation is more dangerous than she ever expected. A mix of crime, suspense and horror. Our view: creepy, will appeal to twenty-somethings who like to be scared out of their wits.

• Good time to promote other Renee Zellweger stuff — posters, previous movies etc

Inglourious Basterds
In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as “The Basterds” are chosen specifically to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by scalping and brutally killing Nazis. Blood-splattered Quentin Tarantino directs, Brad Pitt (sporting an atrocious Southern accent) stars — what else do you need to know? Our view: for those who enjoy blood, guts, gore. Best avoided if your brand has a weak heart or a tender disposition.

• Brad Pitt, Quentin Tarantino, what’s not to sell?

The Young Victoria
This year’s historical drama/romance with a royal theme: a dramatization of the turbulent first years of Queen Victoria’s rule, and her enduring romance with Prince Albert. Emily Blunt and Rupert Friend portray the two young lovers Victoria and Albert in what’s described as “a touching romance and a gripping human drama”. Our view: good association for products appealing to older women or those of a monarchist persuasion.

• Royal memorabilia rocks!

District 9
Peter Jackson produces this sci-fi morality tale of an extraterrestrial race forced to live in slum-like conditions on Earth suddenly find a kindred spirit in a government agent that is exposed to their biotechnology. Our view: set in South Africa, this film draws interesting parallels with apartheid. Given its local provenance, could do well with older Kiwi audiences.

• Time to sell off that Peter Jackson collection

SEPTEMBER

The Taking of Pelham 123
Denzel Washington, John Travolta and James Gandolfini star in this remake of the popular 1974 original and do a good job by all accounts. Armed men hijack a New York City subway train, holding the passengers hostage in return for a ransom, and turning an ordinary day’s work for dispatcher Walter Garbe (Washington) into a face-off with the mastermind (Travolta) behind the crime. Our view: pretty good for a remake.

• Anything from Denzel Washington, John Travolta or James Gandolfini (Sopranos)

Up
Animated adventures of 78-year-old Carl Fredricksen, who sets out (by tying thousands of balloon to his home) to fulfill his lifelong dream to see the wilds of South America. Currently topping the US box office. Our view: solid family fare, appealing to all ages.

• Look here for Up merchandise (books, soundtrack)

Aliens In The Attic
A group of kids must protect their vacation home from invading aliens. Think family movie, with the next holidays just around the corner. Our view: another family favourite in the making.

• Great toys from the folk who bought you AITA (see here to learn more about them)

Funny People
When seasoned comedian George Simmons (Adam Sandler) learns of his terminal, inoperable health condition, his desire to form a genuine friendship cause him to take a relatively green performer under his wing as his opening act. Our view: the writer/director Judd Apatow (director of The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up) says he’s “trying to make a very serious movie that is twice as funny as [his] other movies”. The trailer suggests a reasonable attempt.

• Adam Sandler and Judd Apatow. Lots of stuff around for both.

Imagine That
What if your daughter’s imagination… was the secret to your success? Eddie Murphy stars as a financial executive who can’t stop his career downspiral. Then he’s invited into his daughter’s imaginary world, where he magically finds solutions to his problems. Our view: terminally cute Eddie Murphy vehicle. Variety rated it “…an undemandingly pleasant, mildly amusing fantasy…” which has done average business at the American box office.

We figure the potential for the remaining September titles is pretty obvious:
Shorts
From Robert Rodriguez (director Of ‘Spy Kids’): A young boy’s discovery of a colorful, wish-granting rock causes chaos in the suburban town of Black Falls when jealous kids and scheming adults alike set out to get their hands on it. Our view: good appeal to the kids, with fun gadgets, silly jokes and town bullies who get their comeuppance. Useful association for family-focussed traders. Don’t forget the “Spy Kids” link.

G-Force
A specially trained squad of guinea pigs is dispatched to stop a diabolical billionaire from taking over the world. It’s animated, it’s from Disney, it’s the school holidays, there’ll be merchandise. Our view: this one should do good business, another family-friendly movie.

The Year One
Jack Black and a collection of caveman/historical parody jokes. Our view: not for the Rialto crowd.

Fame
An updated version of the legendary 1980 movie musical which centered on the students of the New York Academy of Performing Arts. Our view: attempts to catch the spirit of the original, the same passions and dreams that drive people to enter shows like American Idol. Should resonate well with Gen Y.

Happy planning!!

What are the hottest selling categories on Trade Me? July 11, 2009

Posted by Michael Carney in : Bestsellers, top ten, trade me, trademe, what's hot , 2comments

Trade Me is a glorious bazaar stuffed full each week with more than 1.3 million items, any one of which would surely look absolutely fabulous on your mantelpiece, in your garage or draped over your shoulders.

And yet, despite the inherent appeal of the items listed on sale, they don’t always sell — at least not right away. In fact, on average only one in four auctions on Trade Me ends in a sale.

Has that ratio changed, especially in these recessionary times?

Not much. If we examine the figures for the most recent month available, June 2009, we find that 23% of auctions closed successfully. In comparison, 22% of auctions in June 2008 were similarly successful; while 24% of June 2007’s auctions resulted in a sale.

Of course, some product categories are more popular than others. If we rank Trade Me’s various sections in terms of popularity, here’s what we find:

• 41% of items listed in Mobile phones sold successfully in June 2009 (was 38% in June 2008)
• 37% Baby gear (was 33%)
• 29% Home & living (27%)
• 27% Electronics & photography (23%)
• 26% Toys & models (26%)
• 25% Sports (25%)
• 25% Building & renovation (24%)
• 23% Gaming (23%)
• 23% Health & beauty (21%)
• 22% Computers (19%)
• 20% Antiques & collectables (20%)
• 20% DVDs & movies (18%)
• 20% Music & instruments (21%)
• 19% Clothing (18%)
• 19% Jewellery & watches (17%)
• 18% Crafts (18%)
• 18% Pottery & glass (17%)
• 17% Art (15%)
• 17% Books (17%)
• 17% Business, farming & industry (24%)

If we drill down even deeper, to Trade Me’s sub-categories, we find much more dramatic results. These were the Top Ten best-selling product types on Trade Me for June 2009:

1. 66% Baby Walkers (59% in June 2008)
2. 66% Telecom mobile phones (64%)
3. 65% iPods (not listed separately in June 2008) 
4. 61% Concert tickets (57%)
5. 59% Baby Monitors (not listed separately last year)
6. 55% Laundry items (47%)
7. 54% Sports event tickets (58%)
8. 52% Heating & cooling (40%)
9. 50% Baby Bouncers & jolly jumpers (44%)
10. 45% Tattoos (not listed separately last year)

And those categories that improved most (in terms of sell-through rate) between June 2008 and June 2009?

• Up 65% GPS devices (were 23%, now 38%)
• Up 61% Trampolines (were 18%, now 29%)
• Up 60% Pottery & ceramics (were 10%, now 16%) 
• Up 58% Baby Car seats (were 19%, now 30%)
• Up 55% Domain names (were 11%, now 17%)

And those that fell furthest?

• Down 40% Crafts: Transfers (were 20%, now 12%)
• Down 40% Music DVDs (were 15%, now 9%)
• Down 50% Flags (were 26%, now 13%)
• Down 50% Businesses for sale (were 8%, now 4%)

And the very worst performer of all?

Carbon credits. This time last year, they enjoyed a sell-through rate of 71%. In June 2009 there were NO sales. Clearly an idea whose time has come – and gone.

Five essential ingredients to make your listing famous July 8, 2009

Posted by Michael Carney in : auctions, new zealand, trade me, trademe, what's hot , 9comments

You’ve probably heard of the “scary washing machine”, last month’s insanely popular Trade Me phenomenon. Sadly, your mint-condition washing machine (or any other worthy but ordinary item) won’t attract a fraction of the frightening one’s admirers (806,220 pageviews) – nor the $5160 final windfall. Not without some very special magic.

So what does it take to create a Trade Me sensation?
There are a great many answers to this question, but at a minimum you need the following five essential ingredients if you’re to have any chance of attracting exponential attention on Trade Me:

1. An auction listing with “the right stuff”
Your product might be ordinary but the listing can’t be. Not if you want people to talk about it. When we spread the word about a Trade Me listing (or any other topic), it’s because it enhances our standing with our friends, not just because we like the listing or topic.

Successful listings that attract lots of attention typically tap into some pretty basic human motivators:

• We like to be entertained
• Greed is (sometimes) good
• Given the choice, we’d prefer to do good (and sometimes, to be seen doing good)
• We’re afraid of doing the wrong thing
• Our ego could always use a boost

Most of the auctions that became famous on Trade Me were at least entertaining; some held out the chance of acquiring an item that would significantly increase in value at some point in the future (engaging the greed gene); “proceeds to charity” validated our bidding actions; the fact that we were bidding on a very popular item suggested that we were indeed doing the right thing; and being the successful bidder on a high profile auction can do wonders for the ego (at least until buyers’ remorse kicks in).

If we look back at some of the items that have caught the popular imagination on Trade Me, we find that in most cases the headline and/or description started the process of making the auction memorable.

The legendary paper clip auction (34,801 pageviews, final selling price $173) is a very good example:

• $1 RES – ONE RED PAPER CLIP
  One red paper clip.
  Excellent condition.
  Held important documents in a time of need, no longer need now so selling on.
  Hope this paper clip goes to a good home or office. Has served me well.

It was inevitable that such a good-humoured listing (penned by Aucklander Rhys White during a quiet day in the office) would attract frivolous questions. And that brings us to essential ingredient Number 2:

2. Interactivity (with a sense of humour)
One of the neat things about Trade Me is the “Ask the seller a question” facility. For 99 .9% of listings, the questions that are asked are mundane and practical (and relatively few). For those special listings that catch the imagination of the public, however, sellers can be inundated with quirky questions. Answer appropriately (tongue firmly in cheek) and you’ve got the makings of Trade Me magic.

When an iceberg floated close to New Zealand in November 2006, it was listed by an opportunistic seller (“In good condition. Some small stains – should come out. Girlfriend doesn’t like it and says it needs to go. Buyer must collect.”) and attracted (ahem) a flood of questions:

Q. How much does it weigh? I may need to rent a trailer…
A. I don’t want timewasters here mate. You don’t use a trailer to remove an iceberg. Come on, you are being silly.

Q. Hi. I’m looking for something along these lines for a christmas decoration. Do you have any in the shape of a reindeer?
A. By the end of the auction it may look like that. Get real drunk and check back in.

Q. I don’t wish to pour cold water on this, but I must point out that MAF regulations require that this ‘berg will need to be held in quarantine for 8 weeks. This may impact on delivery.
A. That’s only if it has a bird in it. But thanks for checking.

Q. Hi. do you have these in any other colours? Thanks.
A. No sorry. Besides, you don’t want the yellow icebergs.

For the record, bidding on the iceberg reached $99,999,999 before the auction was removed (as an obvious joke listing).

Of course, with more than 1.3 million items listed on Trade Me at any given time, it’s tough to stand out. Your item also needs to conform to essential attribute Number 3:

3. Original and Scarce
If you want your item to become famous, then the item needs to be “one of a kind” – even if (as was the case with the ‘scary washing machine’) that uniqueness is simply in how you describe it. You can expect copycats to emerge – we lost track of the number of ‘cute’ stationery listings that attempted to cash in on the fame of the Paper Clip – so you need to be first and freshest in your particular category.

On the other hand, if you do have a genuinely unique item, such as the cast (sold in February for $18,500) which adorned John Key’s broken arm – or the handbag wielded by Tana Umaga to discipline an unruly colleague ($22,800 in June 2006) – then your focus should be on capturing the flavour of said collectable and communicating appropriately to those who would be most interested in acquiring the item. Which brings us to essential ingredient Number 4: 

4. People who know people
As soon as the listing is posted, spread the word – to journalists, twitterers, bloggers, anyone with a suitable/relevant audience. Of course, they’ll only be interested if said item already stacks up as unique and scarce – but they’ll also be looking for timeliness. They won’t want to be talking/writing about something that’s already old news – they’ll want to be bringing exclusive news to their followers.

Of course, everyone can’t be first – the second person you tell may not have heard about your listing but you can’t pretend that they’re the first to know. So instead, like a true public relations practitioner, you need to look for an angle, a spin that can be unique to that correspondent.

An example? Bono’s bird kite which the U2 frontman had been flying during his 2006 NZ concert.

The first angle: Bono’s kite up for sale on Trade Me. Then: caught by Tauranga woman (local spin for the Bay of Plenty Times). Next: proceeds to Oxfam. Follow-up: pictures from the concert, showing Bono flying the kite. You get the idea.

And that leads us to the fifth of our ingredients:

5. Topical
If you can leverage current events, that’s another quick way to spread the word. The current furore around Michael Jackson’s untimely demise is a classic example, with quick-thinking sellers offering personalised plates (THRLER, JACK5N, WACKO or MOONWK), replica Thriller jackets, web addresses (RIPMJ.co.nz) and a wide range of other Michael-related memorabilia on the site. In such a high profile event, however, there’s a very real danger of over-exposure, so media interest may quickly burn out. In other words, choose your topicality with care.

Apart from the five ingredients noted above, there are several other qualities that will stand you in good stead when it comes to conjuring up some Trade Me magic. To all the above, add perseverance, imagination, initiative and plain old luck (‘right place, right time’).

Your 15 megabytes of fame awaits.

PS: Of course, there’s quite a skill to creating effective listings. For a more in-depth look at “The Art Of The Listing”, may we humbly point you towards TRADE ME SUCCESS SECRETS the book (now in its second edition). In Chapter 14, you’ll learn about the eight different types of effective headlines, the pictures that sell a thousand words and the vital ingredients of a successful product description. The following chapter guides you (in rather more depth than we can manage in this blog entry) through many of the promotional options available to help you drive the sale — and suggests alternative actions if your item still doesn’t sell.

You’ll find the ‘Trade Me Success Secrets’ book in your local library, from leading booksellers or on sale at our Trade Me store.

Google joins the Property party July 6, 2009

Posted by Michael Carney in : Google, auctions, property, trade me, trade me property , 2comments

Things just got a whole lot more complicated in the property market in New Zealand with the news today that Google is now inviting real estate agents and data providers to add property details to Google Maps — for free, in the usual Google tradition.

What does this news mean for prospective buyers?
Looking for a home to rent or buy? Now you can go to the real estate section of Google Maps, nominate a city or suburb and then be presented with available home listings in that area. [A little word of warning -- because Google Maps is a global service, you do need to be quite specific in your location, otherwise you're as likely to be presented with maps for "Hamilton, New Jersey" or "Epsom, UK" as their local equivalents]

Your search parameters can be further refined by:

• whether the property is for sale or for rent
• type of property
• number of bedrooms
• number of bathrooms
• parking capacity (number of cars)
• and even area sought, in square metres

Listings details are relatively limited, but include a link back to the real agents’ site or to aggregator sites such as realestate.co.nz where you can find more details about each property. Presumably in due course we’ll also see links back to Trade Me Property listings as well.

This new Google Maps real estate service has just launched, so you’d expect to see only a few listings — but already at least some of the NZ maps look like they’ve got a bad case of the measles, with spots designating available properties scattered everywhere, prepopulated courtesy realestate.co.nz and leading agents such as Harcourts.

What’s unique about this service, from a buyer’s perspective?
As more and more properties get added to the maps, it’s likely to become (as far as we’re aware) the only property listings site where you can look at a specific area such as a suburb on a map and see what’s currently available in that area. That’s likely to make it a good starting point for property searches.

In time we’ll also start to see the service integrated into Google’s main search  results: search for “townhouse for sale Christchurch” and you’ll eventually see a map at the top of the search results, with featured properties flagged.

And from a seller’s perspective?
Did we mention “free”? And, of course, there’s the small matter of all that traffic passing through Google — better to be included than not, especially if you can point viewers to a link containing full details.

What about from Trade Me’s perspective?
It’s another competitor, at least for eyeballs. And who’s to say that somewhere down the line Google won’t charge a fee for this service, once it reaches critical mass? Or remove the ability to link back to another site? Still, Google’s already gotten into the game, so Trade Me might as well tap into the promotional power of all that Google traffic.

As the cliche goes, better to have Google inside the tent than outside …

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