Contents:
Listing an Item
The Title
Writing a Searchable Title
The Description
Summary
How to Write a Good Product Description
Details
Measurements
Postage and Returns
How to Leave No Questions Unanswered
Terms and Conditions
Should I Pay for a Theme and More Features?
Categories
Choosing the Right Categories
Images
What Makes a Good Image?
Postage and Packaging
How Much Should I Charge for Postage?
Feedback
How to Avoid Bad Feedback
The Most Common Reasons for Negative Feedback
Ensuring Good Feedback
Aftersales
How to Entice Customers to Come Back
Summary:
Anyone can sell on EBay, this is, after all, the appeal of the marketplace, however, to maximise potential, it’s best to follow a few best practice tips.
With a little research and some clever marketing, tailor-made to EBay, you can enjoy increased conversions, higher bids and more profit.
We’ve put together a best practice guide to help you make the most of selling on EBay and to ensure you tick all the boxes to ensure you sell your items for the best possible price.
Listing an Item
Your transformation into an EBay seller starts with the listing of your first item. EBay have made this very simple, however, you shouldn’t overlook the fine details needed to make your item stand out.
Due to the popularity of EBay there will always be competition, you can stay ahead with a brilliant listing that inspires confidence in the buyer and sets your product apart from the others.
Top Tip No.1 – When you start selling on EBay, use a PC to upload your listings. Although it’s tempting to use a mobile device, not all features are available and you could miss out on potential sales.
The Title
Your title, along with the primary image, is what will entice a buyer to click. It’s much more than this though. Like Google, EBay has its own search algorithm that makes some products rank higher than others when a buyer searches. Take advantage of the generous character limit by using every word to ensure you show up in highly in search.
How to Write a Searchable Title
For example:
If you are selling a jumper, consider how people shop for clothes, they may choose a garment based on:
- Colour
- Size
- Style
- Material
- Brand
- Condition
If possible, all of these features need to be included in your title, so when some searches using their preferences, your jumper shows up.
For example:
You’re not just selling a black jumper, you’re selling:
New Monsoon Black Batwing Wool Jumper or Pullover in Size 12
This ensures that searches such as:
- Size 12 jumper
- Monsoon Pullover
- Batwing jumper
- New black jumper
- Wool pullover
- Black wool pullover size 12
Show your listing. If you have space for extra characters, try to use them wisely. Add variations of the name, such as sweatshirt and top or add the occasion, such as formal, casual, elegant.
Although some sellers use the extra space to add adjectives such as stunning or gorgeous, this is unlikely to improve the search rankings of an item and so should be avoided. Of course, if you have ticked every box above and still have a lot of room to spare, you can be creative with your title and add some sales patter. As a general rule, the description will cover this for you.
The Description
The description is your time to shine. This is what will convince a buyer to buy. Unless your product is an essential item, a buyer will read your description.
Your description should also appeal to the EBay search algorithms, as many buyers will search the title and description for the product they’re looking for. Include the search terms from your title into your description to ensure you show up in searches.
How to Write a Good Product Description
To write a good description you first need to consider the scanner. We don’t read webpages the same way we would read a magazine or newspaper. Instead, we scan information. This is why it’s important to prioritise the info you have on your description while still writing enticing copy that encourages the viewer to press the “buy it now” button or to place a bid.
It’s best practice to first write a summary of one or two lines about your product so scanners can absorb information quickly while having the option to delve deeper if they need to know more (such as specifications and measurements). Specifications and measurements can make a description quite boring, and so these should be reserved for the end, in a clear space, where they can be easily found.
A summary for our product above would read something like:
This brand new size 12 batwing jumper looks beautiful in black and fits to curves to accentuate the waist. The style is reminiscent of Monsoon’s commitment to craftsmanship and it is the height of fashion for the autumn season.
We would then continue on to discuss more details.
For instance:
The jumper benefits from a pocket at the front, along with beading along the hem. It is in perfect condition, and can be seen at all angles in the photos.
We’d then have a clear area, with a heading for measurements.
Measurements
The sleeves measure 20cm from wrist to shoulder.
The jumper measures at 60 cm from collar to waist
We’d then discuss anything of note to ensure positive feedback across the board. On EBay it is advisable to mention any small details, along with some terms and conditions, as feedback will impact greatly on your search visibility and sales.
For instance, at this point we would say.
- The item is brand new with tags and has never been worn. (For used products we may mention a slight bobbling, admit to it being worn, advise on the absence of tags and so forth).
- The model in the photographs is 5 foot 10 inches tall, the jumper may fall below the waist on a person shorter.
- The colour is represented in the photographs, however the use of a flash may have altered the real perception. The colour is best compared to farrow and Ball’s [insert paint name] in order to give you the best idea.
We’d then discuss postage and returns with a clear heading again.
Postage and Returns
The item will be posted within 2 working days and you will be given a tracking number. I cannot be held responsible for delays out of my control with the selected courier.
I will accept returns within 14 days, as long as the item is in the exact same condition as received.
To avoid to avoid this process for every item, you can set up a general return policy within EBay that will add the information to every listing for you.
How to Leave No Questions Unanswered
It’s important that you leave no questions unanswered in a product description. Of course, the buyer has an option to “ask the seller a question” but by the time you’ve replied, they’ve probably found an alternative product and completed their purchase. (Unless your product is 100% unique).
Therefor consider all the questions a seller may ask and try to answer them within your description. There will still be buyers who scan the description and ask the question anyway, but it will maximise sales.
For instance, in the case of the black jumper, buyers may ask:
- What are the measurements from shoulder to shoulder?
- How does the material feel?
- Has it ever been worn or tried on?
- Is it from this season’s range?
- Will you accept offers?
- Will it fit a size 14?
Should I pay for a theme and more features?
Buying a theme on EBay for your description can make it look a little more professional, however, as a general rule, money is best spent on promotion rather than adding colour to the description. There’s no evidence to suggest a theme will help sell more of your product. In fact many buyers find them chunky and hard to navigate, especially when shopping from their phones.
As long as your title, description and images are optimised, you shouldn’t need to pay for extras such as themes or subtitles. It can be tempting, but it soon adds up, especially when selling multiple products.
Choosing the Categories
It’s astounding how many sellers fail to put their products into categories. This means, when a buyer refines their search, the product will not show up. Make sure you choose the right category, sometimes it is an idea to invest a little extra if your product spans more than one primary category.
For sub categories, for our item, we would make sure we chose:
- Colour
- Size
- Brand
- Condition
- Material
For other products, the range of subcategories will vary but there will always be an extra four or five to choose from.
Images
Your images may sell your product before a buyer has read your title and description. These should not be underestimated as their power is immense.
Extremely high res images may take longer to load for some that have a weak internet connection but you should choose images that are the best version, clear and succinct with no other distractions.
If this is your first time selling on EBay it may be an idea to invest in a white box or light box in which to display your products before taking photographs. If your product is too large, try to find a white wall or background in which to take the photographs.
What Makes a Good Image?
Avoid having anything else but the product in the primary photo (unless it’s a garment, in which case you need the model too). In subsequent photographs you can add lifestyle shots, where the item is being used in its real setting, but the primary photo should display the item clearly and succinctly so a buyer is in no doubt they have found the right product.
Top Tip No.2 – Take Advantage of All the Free Spaces for Images
The more photographs a product has, the better it performs on EBay and the higher the conversion. You can add photos to show the relative size, you can add photos of the real colour, and you can add close up photographs of any damage or signs of use.
Make sure your photos clearly represent the product as one of the most common reasons for returns is due to the picture not being a real representation of what the buyer receives. Of course, not all returns will result in negative feedback, but a listing should be set up to minimise, or eliminate returns.
Postage and Packing
How Much Should I Charge for Postage?
What you decide to charge for postage and packaging can set you apart from the competition. As too can the speed of delivery. As Amazon steps into the bespoke and used products market, more buyers than ever are expecting next day delivery on a range of items.
Buyers on EBay generally understand that it takes a few days to receive a product, however they will often pay more for a quicker delivery, which highlights just how important speed is.
Those that perform best on EBay offer fast and free delivery. If you can’t afford to do this, look at your competitor’s prices and see if you could incorporate it into your prices. If you can’t, try to keep your postage to a minimum, research different couriers to find the best prices and speed, and make sure to add clear details to your listing.
Feedback
EBay feedback is so important that it’s almost like a separate currency. Your feedback needs to be faultless in order to receive the most sales possible. You’ll find, on starting up, that sales are difficult to come by with a feedback rating of zero, however, as your feedback improves, so will your conversions.
Feedback is one of the most challenging aspects of managing an EBay account, as customers are quick to leave reviews, especially if they feel disgruntled.
Even the best sellers will occasionally come across an unhappy customer, and this could be something completely out of your control, such as the speed of the delivery courier.
How to Avoid Negative Feedback
This is why we mentioned in the descriptions guide to cover all angles. If a buyer leaves feedback that isn’t true, you can ask eBay to remove it. For example, if a buyer of our black jumper complained because it was too short, we can point EBay to the part in our description that shows we highlighted the height of the model and advised how it could hang differently on those shorter or taller.
Common Reasons for Negative Feedback
The most common reasons for negative feedback include:
- Item doesn’t match the description
- Item took too long to arrive
- Item is faulty or damaged
- Item doesn’t look like the picture
- Customer service leaves a lot to be desired
- Poor communication
Although returns can’t be avoided, subsequent negative feedback can. A customer is unlikely to leave a bad review on returning the item if the matter is dealt with quickly, professionally and in a friendly manner.
Try to hit a target with your replies to questions and queries, such as responding within an hour. Keep communication lines open at all times and make sure your images and description detail all a buyer needs to know about a product.
How to Receive Good Feedback
It can seem to be a challenge, enticing satisfied customers to leave feedback, however you can do this while making them aware of new products you may be selling. Use the opportunity as a marketing exercise that will boost your ratings while hopefully, bringing loyal customers back to your eBay Listings.
Aftersales and How to Entice Buyers Back
For instance, you can send a quick email such as:
Dear [name]
Thank you so much for your purchase. We hope you’re happy with the product and the service you received. If you have any concerns please contact us directly and we’ll do all we can to help.
If you are happy with your purchase, it would help us immensely if you would leave a positive review on EBay [insert link to leave feedback]. While you’re there, you may want to check out the new items we’ve listed that we think you’ll love. [insert link to eBay store]
Thank you for being a loyal customer of ours, we look forward to your feedback,
Kindest Regards,
This ensures you leave the communication channels open, so if they do have a complaint, they can contact you directly, and you have the opportunity to resolve it.
It also lets them know that you update your stock regularly and so are one to keep an eye on when shopping on EBay.
EBay updates and changes regularly, but this best practice guide will ensure you submit clear, concise and honest listings that will never go out of fashion with customers.
We wish you every success in your eBay venture!