Ebay Secrets Blog

Free Wholesale Sources for eBay Sellers

admin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 06:00:06 +0000

My latest newsletter is out. I just returned from the ASD/AMD wholesale trade show in Las Vegas where I connected with over 200 new wholesale sources who will work with small eBay sellers. I listed 40 of them in the latest issue of The eBay & Online Sellers News.

The rest of them will be uploaded to the member’s area of the website where those who have purchased The Complete eBay Marketing System can get access.

The show was excellent this year. In past years a lot of wholesale vendors didn’t want to work with eBay sellers. This year they were all over me when I said I was an eBay seller. The show had fewer attendees this year which made it more pleasant –but it was busy nevertheless. And the vendors were selling. I spoke with several vendors who said business was brisk and they seemed to be upbeat about the economy improving.

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Is Trust in Social Media Dying?

admin — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 06:00:10 +0000

All,
This morning I joined a round table discussion entitled “The Death of Trust in Social Media” hosted by Val-Pierre Ganton of “the grilling” blog. Panelists included:

Richard Brewer Hay, Chief Blogger at eBay
Michael Brito, VP of Social Media at Edelman Digital
Michelle Broderick, Marketing Director at Yelp

According to a survey by Edelman, just 25% of consumers say they trust their friends to give them good information about a company, compared with 45% in 2008. Social marketing is built on the idea that people trust their friends more than they trust official voices so what does it mean for the future of social media? Our discussion was aimed at providing insights on how we’re using and trusting social media today and what the future holds for this space.

We tackled the following questions:
** Is trust in social media dying?
** Do social media platforms need to change in order to adapt to peoples’ behavioral evolution on the web? How so?
** Is there a difference in the community’s trust when we compare transactional and non-transactional social networks?
** Is the future of trust likely to be the migration towards official voices or your friend’s recommendations?

Here is an archive of our conversation. Apologies for the poor sound quality at the beginning… I’ll be getting a cleaner version shortly. For now…

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Fashion Week Wrap-Up: London

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 18:00:07 +0000

Of all the fashion capitals, London produces the most daring fashion. So naturally, the trends that come off the London Fashion Week runways are usually the most progressive of the season.

Of all the fashion capitals, London produces the most daring fashion. So naturally, the trends that come off the London Fashion Week runways are usually the most progressive of the season. If you consider yourself ahead of the fashion game, why wait until fall? Use our eBay picks to try the trends right now. And for some additional options, check out our New York Fashion Week Wrap-Up.

Long Skirts

Roksanda Ilincic Runway (Photo by Samir Hussein/Getty Images)

Mid-calf hemlines gave skirts a romantic yet modern feel. The Big Love ladies may wear below-the-knee skirts as part of their conservative uniform, but Acquascutum’s take, which was lean in wool, is part of the house’s modernization strategy. Margaret Howell sent out skirts that were a-line and assymetrical; Jonathan Suanders placed techno elements like sheen and perforations in his offerings; Pringle showed pleated in leather; and Roksanda Ilincic paraded lustrous silk with coats of the same length.

Get the Look on eBay:

Missoni Long Purple Yellow Knit Sequin Skirt (buy it now price, $239.99)

Killer Prints

Basso & Brooke (Photo by Antonio de Moraes Barros Filho/WireImage)

Forget your run of the mill stripes, polka dots, or florals. In London, the more outlandish the prints, the better. Emilio De Le Morena’s prints heightened the designers deconstructed, yet feminine layers; Louise Gray piled on various colorful prints in several layered looks; and Basso Brooke’s abstract looked like optical illusions. Erdem was also experimental, but the talented designer showcased a palpably gorgeous collection of floor length gowns and shifts engulfed prints that though offbeat, could be identified as birds and flowers.

Get the Look on eBay:

Marni Print Long Sleeve Pleat Dress (buy it now price, $399)

Dramatic Cuts
In New York, we saw geometric cuts that allowed flirty peeks at the skin. But what was peek-a-boo in New York mutated into no holds barred across the pond. Ann Sofie Back randomly slashed dresses and body suits leaving little to the imagination; Mark Fast’s body-con numbers had a series of holes, which created patterns all over the body; and Danielle Scutt’s alpaca coat featured semi-circular cuts at each side about the waist. Mario Schwab returned to London from New York, and followed up his work at Halston with a more rigid outing, complete with with rectangular necklines that framed faces.

Ann-Sofie Back (Photo by Antonio de Moraes Barros Filho/WireImage)

Miu Miu Cut-Out Retro Dress (buy it now price, $890)

Inventive Fabric Effects

Mark Fast & Mary Katrantzou (Photo by Antonio de Moraes Barros Filho/WireImage)

Arguably the best collection of the season, Mary Katranzou’s outing was heavy in design ingenuity. Yes the clever way she uses large format prints was there, but what grabbed our attention this time was large, statement-making gold jewelry-like appliqués on fabrics as well as the layers of lace that hutted out of dresses. Holly Fulton continued the plastic appliqués on dresses; Meadham Kirchoff’s Indian- inspired collection produced a wonderfully schizophrenic amalgamation of beads, lace, sequins, and leather in brave outfits; and Christopher Kane hand=painted leather with florals in utterly desirable skirts, dresses, and tops.

Balenciaga Kaffiyeh Beaded Dress (winning bid, $2,036.99)

Patchwork Panels

Burberry Prorsum (Photo by Chris Moore/Catwalking/Getty Images)

Michael Van der Ham presented himself with the incredibly difficult task of stitching together panels of silk, wool and lace into outfits. Thankfully, he has the construction skills to execute this challenge, which he proved in appealingly light dresses. Peter Pilotto took on the same task and achieved it equally well, but his technique was less organic and more geometric. Burberry’s Prorsum’s show was live streamed in 3D all over the world, and Christopher Bailey’s update of the labels heritage included patcwork paneled lace pencil skirts.

Marni Golden Silk & Wool Patchwork Tank Top (buy it now price, $269)

Robert Cordero is editor at JC Report, an influential online global style publication, where he also works on the new media company’s business development and marketing initiatives.

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Introducing the eBay Green Team Challenge

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 06:00:09 +0000

eBay launched the Green Team Challenge earlier today and, in doing so, committed to saving up to a quarter of a million acres of rainforest for consumers who choose to reuse. For the first 250,000 people that pledge to reuse on eBay, an acre of rainforest will be protected in their name through a new collaboration with Team Earth, a unique coalition of NGOs, private sector companies and individuals convened by Conservation International (CI).

“We are delighted that eBay continues to demonstrate their strong support for the environment by becoming a member of Team Earth,” said Julie Blackwell, Senior Director of Team Earth at Conservation International. “eBay’s passionate community has changed the way we shop and we have no doubt that they can change the way we consume. They are a perfect partner to rally collective action around some of the most pressing environmental issues of our day.”

eBay also introduced its new green shopping hub – green.ebay.com – designed to help consumers access the millions of green products available on the marketplace. The hub encourages consumers to follow three simple guidelines: first, choose items that are pre-owned, vintage or refurbished; second, check whether an item is made from sustainable materials, such as those featured on WorldofGood.com by eBay; and third, choose energy and other resource saving products.

I became an eBay Green Team member shortly after I joined eBay back in 2008 and it now boasts over 150,000 members!

Throughout March and April, eBay will additionally leverage its powerful eBay Giving Works program to generate funds for a variety of environmental organizations in an effort to extend the impact of the campaign further. A series of high-profile charity auctions will offer consumers the opportunity to bid on a variety of one-of-a-kind items and experiences that will benefit green nonprofits and causes, including The Nature Conservancy, Make it Right, and The Uniform Project’s beneficiary organization, the Akanksha Fund.

Related Reads:
NY Times: EBay Highlights Conservation as a Benefit of Buying Used

Cheers,
RBH

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Annual eBay Wholesale Issue Coming Next Week

admin — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 18:00:05 +0000

eBay Wholesale Sources News

I just returned from the ASD/AMD Wholesale Trade Show in Las Vegas. I found tons of new sources who will work with small online sellers and great products to sell on eBay and Amazon.

I am working on an expanded special issue of The eBay Sellers News to come out next week that will feature triple the number of wholesale sources we usually provide. So look for the new issue and if you don’t already subscribe you may want to. The eBay and Online Seller’s News is FREE. It comes out twice monthly and is the oldest and largest newsletter for professional eBay, Amazon and online sellers.

Click here to read the current issue

Click here to subscribe

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From the @eBayCP folks: eBay Certified P…

admin — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 06:00:32 +0000

From the @eBayCP folks: eBay Certified Provider Kyozou Helps Sellers Maximize Efficiency

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Met with folk in Trust & Safety today, t…

admin — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 06:00:30 +0000

Met with folk in Trust & Safety today, then saw this article. Pretty timely to say the least. A very good read: Online Advertising Recall

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Shopping Cart and eCommerce News | Will …

admin — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 06:00:25 +0000

Shopping Cart and eCommerce News | Will New USPS Plan Affect Your Ecommerce Business? http://ow.ly/1pIp5u

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Heading off to a meeting with the Trust …

admin — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 06:00:23 +0000

Heading off to a meeting with the Trust & Safety team. Wonder if they have any info nuggets for Ink.

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@rksmythe You want the whole face? I’m …

admin — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 06:00:23 +0000

@rksmythe You want the whole face? I’m thinking about adding the red shoes to the foot of the blog. Thoughts?

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