Welcome to this edition of Adam Ginsberg's "Insiders" Newsletter. Each issue is designed to provide you with insights, tips, secrets and overall strategies on how you can build your online auctions business. I'm sure you love this issue! This week will show you how to make a fortune with eBay Motors!

Start Your Engines: Make a Fortune with eBay Motors!  

Did You Know...eBay Motors is the #1 automotive site on the Internet, with more than 10 million unique visitors per month?

Whether you’re buying or selling cars, parts or anything automotive, eBay Motors is the place to be.

Prior to eBay Motors, sellers would actually list automobiles in eBay’s Model Car category. As a result, eBay added a new category: eBay Motors. eBay's decision to be in the automotive business was spurred on my the members of the eBay community...and the rest is history. eBay Motors begain in 2000. Today, eBay Motors is the #1 automotive site on the internet, with more than 10 million unique visitors per month.

According to Rob Chesney, senior director of vehicles for eBay Motors, “Of all the time spent doing anything automotive on the web, 40 percent of those minutes are spent on eBay Motors.” And, most of that time is spent doing business, as evidenced by the fact that an automobile sells on eBay Motors sells every single minute. In 2004, eBay Motors delivered $6.2 billion in world-wide gross merchandise volume.

Have you ever considered selling cars online? Perhaps one huge benefit is the margin that comes with selling a big ticket item. If the concept of making money by selling cars on eBay is overwhelming, keep reading. You don't need to be a car expert to make a ton of cash on ebay with eBay Motors.

eBay Motors has some special benefits for both buyers and sellers. Buyers get more information about vehicles than they could obtain from venues such as dealer lots and newspaper ads. eBay makes it simple for buyers to find any vehicle they want, and to look for features such as mileage, year, and ultimately price. In addition, eBay provides numerous services and features to support every step of the automobile buyer process, including vehicle history reports, purchase protection, access to inspections and even financing.

As a seller, you can tap an international marketplace at a low cost. For a fee of $40 to list and another $40 when the sale is complete, vehicle sellers once limited to local markets can present their wares to a global audience of millions. Compare that to the $400 to $500 it costs to advertise and merchandise a vehicle using conventional means, and the economics become compelling.

Create Your Own Online Dealership With eBay Motors

Speed is one big reason eBay Motors is an effective way for you to grow your automotive business online. Through this method of selling you now have access to buyers outside their local markets and who are much further along in the buying process.

Sellers who do best on eBay Motors take extra steps to make the most of the channel. Perhaps the first step is to make sure you have a distinctive presence. One way to do this is to create a niche. Specializing in one vehicle type helps you master pricing, supply and other features of a given niche. Specialists are better at sourcing, pricing and merchandising the right product the right way.

Generally, the right vehicles for eBay Motors include aged inventory that would otherwise be sold at auction or to a wholesaler. Another winner: vehicles that don’t sell well in your region or climate, but are hot properties elsewhere.

For example, vehicles from Southwestern states such as Arizona will be popular with buyers in states like Chicago because the vehicles will not have endured tough winters, which bring about rust problems. Discontinued models, high-performance vehicles and ones with strong fan followings are also good choices.

Discontinued models, high-performance vehicles and ones with strong fan followings are also good choices. For hard-to-find cars, such as fuel-saving hybrids and diesel pickups, eBay Motors is a natural fit.

Cement your ownership of the niche by creating an About Me page. Describe your business and its history on eBay Motors. Give prominent placement to feedback and ratings. Link to related services and sites, such as your dealership’s website.

Once your get some traction (no pun intented) with your automotive business on eBay, consider hiring an employee dedicated full time to eBay Motors. Having an internet sales manager increases the likelihood you’ll pick the right vehicles, list them well, communicate effectively with bidders and complete the sale in a satisfactory manner.

Effective Listings

Vehicle listings are the linchpins of eBay Motors. Before listing, spend time researching the vehicle and thinking about how you’ll present it.

Tip: Study similar listings, visit manufacturer websites, and read automotive reviews. In addition to basics such as model, Year, and mileage, study up on engines, transmissions, air conditioning, power windows, leather seats, stereo systems and other features.

If you don’t illustrate each listing with a dozen or more photos, you’re probably not giving buyers as much information as they’d like. Also, be extra-sure to provide clear pictures of any damage or excessive wear. Include shots of the front, back and both sides. When photographing the exterior of the vehicle, think of the buyer first approaching the vehicle and taking in its overall appearance and style. It’s important to provide a full exterior view so the buyer can have a complete perspective of the vehicle.

Tip: With your interior photography, document all the important details that the consumer will find inside the vehicle. Take close-ups of the odometer, interior, dashboard, trunk and engine.

Advanced Tip: Bolding, highlighting and other listing features draw attention, drive more bids and generate higher sales prices. eBay Motors will automatically populate the listing title based on vehicle information. The seller can use the subtitle to highlight specific features of the vehicle or applicable terms that sellers may be searching for on eBay Motors.

The next step is managing your listings. Monitor your listings at least daily. Respond to bidders in a timely manner, and promptly answer any questions from all visitors. Don’t just talk to bidders – check them out by looking at their feedback. Feedback ratings can make or break your reputation.

Closing the Sale

eBay Motors does much of the heavy lifting when it comes to closing the sale. Still, a considerable amount is left up to the individual dealer. To begin with, sellers who do a specified number of vehicle sales may have to be licensed as dealers by their state. Check with your state department of motor vehicles to find out whether you will be required to obtain a dealer’s license.

Before closing, a seller must clearly specify any fees or taxes buyers will have to pay. State a reasonable time for deposits or full payment to be received – eBay Motors gives buyers at least three days for this process. Close price-sensitive buyers with the help of Best Offer. (see below for more on the Best Offer feature) This feature lets you negotiate online.

Seller Tools and Resources

eBay Motors sellers have many additional tools and resources to help them list and sell. Click the “ Dealer Center” link on the eBay Motors home page to tap into many of them.

Online Reputation Building

Dealer reputation is critical. eBay Motors has many ways to help you establish yourself as reliable businesses, beginning with an eBay staple: the feedback system. You definitely want to encourage buyers to submit feedback once a transaction is complete, and keep close tabs on their feedback ratings.

As a seller on the site, you can utilize numerous tools and features designed to encourage buyers to feel safe and comfortable when buying automobiles sight unseen. These include ready access – often as simple as clicking a link from the listing – to vehicle history reports, inspections and a vehicle purchase protection plan up to $20,000.

Given the worldwide reach of eBay Motors, buyers have to know they can receive their purchases safely and conveniently. With that in mind, eBay Motors provides links to reliable automotive shipping services that can deliver any vehicle anywhere in a timely and cost effective fashion. Buyers can also finance purchases through the eBay Financing Center, saving time and encouraging peace of mind.

The popular perception of eBay Motors is that it’s a place to buy and sell passenger cars. However, substantial numbers of commercial vehicles, recreational vehicles, parts and accessories also pass through its pages. A motorcycle sale on eBay Motors occurs, on average, once every four minutes, and parts and accessories transactions happen two seconds. More than 50 million parts have sold on eBay Motors.

The Future of eBay Motors

eBay Motors has unlimited possibilities. The site constantly is evolving. One recent innovation is Best Offer, which introduces the give-and-take negotiation of transactions on a dealer’s lot to the online format. Rather than providing the dealer a lead, Best Offer brings in a buyer with a specific offer for a particular vehicle.

When a buyer submits a best offer, the seller is notified through email as well as on his or her “My eBay” page. Then the seller, using a text box on the eBay site, can email a response to the individual who made the offer.

The prospective buyer and seller can continue to negotiate in this fashion, or the seller can move on to other prospective buyers who have made their own offers for the vehicle.

Note: The Best Offer option is available to any eBay Motors user who is eligible to use Buy It Now. Qualifications include a feedback rating of 10 or more to list a single vehicle, or a rating of 5 or more if the seller is registered for PayPal. A seller can also become qualified by becoming ID Verified on the eBay website.

Best Offer is an example of a feature implemented because of feedback from the eBay Motors community. This type of interaction with the community allows the site to change with the needs of buyers and sellers.

To learn more about how you can make money with eBay Motors, Click Here

Until the next issue...

Knowing No Boundaries

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