Finding the right prospects on eBay
eBay.com is an ideal source to find bartering prospects. It’s not usually used for bartering, but it is the perfect
environment for these type of transactions to take place.
eBay contains 3 main features that make it appropriate.
√ A large community of people and items
√ People trying to get rid of/sell those items
√ Free Membership to contact those people
Laksman often turns to eBay for different items he is looking for.
Here’s a partial list of products he has successfully bartered for through eBay (all items were sold brand new by
merchants):
√ Office Supplies & Stationery (Dr. Grip Pens, etc)
√ 760w Sony XPLOD Amp
√ Buslink USB Portable Hard drive 64Mb
√ Nike Rio Portable MP3 Player
√ Digital Web Camera
√ Designer necklaces and jewelry
√ Car Audio Equipment
√ Lava Lamp
√ A4 Tech Wireless Keyboard/Wireless Optical Mouse
√ Stylish headphones
√ Electronic Equipment (surge protectors, battery backups, etc)
√ Printer/Scanner/Copier
√ Weight Equipment
√ 304 CD Case Holder/Binder
√ New Gel-nimbus Asics Shoes
eBay is the premiere online marketplace. Whatever it is that you are looking for, it’s very likely that eBay has it.
This is where most of Laksman's deals come from. If you’re not an eBay user yet, you’ll need to register by
clicking here. Having a membership will allow you to use the contact seller feature on auctions, but he does not
encourage contacting a member directly through eBay because this activity is forbidden. If they find out, they will
suspend your account for contacting someone regarding off-site selling of items.
However, it is still possible to make a deal with the seller. Most sites you will be targeting are run by small
internet businesses that will have their actual website address listed somewhere on the auction, whether it be at
the top of the page, the bottom of the page, in big bold print, or in a captivating graphic, they will usually place it
somewhere on the auction. You can then follow the link to their website and contact them through their website
and not eBay’s system.
It can be tricky getting the seller to bite onto your deal. Before you email, you have to understand the seller.
There are many sellers out there ready to jump at what you have to offer them, but some sellers are probably not
interested in bartering. There is a reason for this. It’s not too hard to tell the difference, I’ll explain more later. For
now, let’s start at the beginning.
First login to eBay. This will keep you from having to log in each time you want to contact a seller.
Next, begin to search for the item you want. There are usually many auctions for one certain item. For example,
at the time of writing this e-book, searching for the term “lava lamp” on eBay returns 491 auctions. That’s a
whole lot of bartering prospects. All you need is one. Once you find an auction page selling the exact item you
want, you can contact the seller by clicking on their username. This will bring up a page with a form box to email
them. However, before contacting the seller, you need to ask yourself a few questions in order to see if it’s even
worth emailing them.
Is the seller a Power Seller?
Power Sellers are sellers that have consistently met with eBay’s guidelines and rules.
They will have a little logo similar to the one above next to their eBay username. Since this shows their
credibility, you can be more confident in having a smooth transaction when doing business with them. Laksman
has been able to find a Power Seller for every product out there I’ve bartered for on eBay. They are more
reliable. Also, take note of the seller’s feedback %. It’s just a hassle to deal with sellers that are not dependable,
so look at their feedback to see if anything stands out at you. In Laksman's Networking Bolt software, you can
do a search that will return only the PowerSellers.
It will also show you their feedback percentage.
How many items has the person sold?
Next to the seller’s name, you’ll see parenthesis with a number inside. This number is the number of
items/transactions that this person has completed successfully. When bartering with eBay, if the person has not
sold at least a 1,000 items, I would not bother contacting them. There are two main types of people selling on
eBay. One is the person who has found junk around their house and sells it occasionally or needs to get
rid of something so they decide to setup an eBay account. These people usually sell “for fun.” The other type of
person is the person who sells many items on eBay, probably for a living or extra income. These are the people
you want to target with your bartering propositions. It would not do much good if you email a house-wife
selling off a brand new lava lamp she got as a present but decided she did not want it.
You need to look for the aggressive seller, the seller that does business, the seller that could be interested in
what you have to offer. There are an abundance of these type of users on eBay, more than you probably think.
Is the seller selling more than one of the same item?
Under the seller’s username, click “View seller's other items” and check to see if the seller has multiple auctions
running for the same item. This is usually a good sign that the supplier has the product you are looking for in
bulk, making it easy and convenient for him to give you one in a bartering deal.
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