When you sell on eBay, its important to know how to take advantage of the kinds of markets you encounter in the different seasons. As a rule, the summer months are slow and the winter period is fast, but theres more to it than that.
It Depends What Youre Selling.
Your sales wont necessarily be slower in the summer than in winter they might just be different. If youre selling sports equipment, for example, youll probably find that surfing gear sells in summer while skiing gear sells in winter. You should make sure you are aware of any seasonal variations there will be in your particular market, and plan in advance to take advantage of them.
Selling in Peak Season.
The holiday season is eBays peak, and the best time to be selling on eBay the December rush is relatively short, but if you play it right then you could make half your years profit over those few days.
In the holidays, people are looking for presents, and eBay run more advertising than usual targeted towards buyers, not sellers. Target your auctions more towards new users than experienced ones, writing easy-to-understand descriptions. If you have any items that are in demand, try listing some at auction and some with high But it Now prices, to see what works best.
The chances are youll be surprised when the Buy it Now auctions go almost instantly and the auctions rack up bids like nobodys business. It is important to remember, however, that most of these buyers will only buy from you once.
Selling Off-peak.
For the rest of the year, the market is far slower. Dont worry though you can still make money. Its a little like being a stockbroker: you can make money whether the market is good or bad, if you know what youre doing.
Remember that your target market is a little more expert: youre mostly selling to people who know what theyre buying, and know what they want to pay. Cater to this by providing a service suitable for these customers. Show that you know what youre selling and sell things consistently and youll have people coming back again and again.
Heres one extra tip that you might try. If you know of items that have a consistent value, it might be worth buying up as many as you can cheaply in the summer, storing them for half a year, and selling them during the winter rush. If youre willing to give over a little space for storage, you can make a lot of profit for little effort. After all, you dont even have to take the items out of the packaging the last seller put them in. |
