How Newsletters Can Increase Traffic to eBay Stores

Marketing, while a time-consuming, is a necessary aspect of operating a business. Creating direct, targeted advertisements to potential customers can be done on a budget. One of the best ways for budget-conscious sellers to market themselves is with a newsletter.

Newsletters can be printed relatively inexpensively and marketed with volunteer labor. Items in a seller’s newsletter vary depending on type of products sold but most commonly include name of store, contact information, featured products or listings, payment and shipping information, and helpful guides. Since printed newsletters are distributed locally, special wording should be included advising bidders to contact the seller to arrange for a local pick-up; since they will not need the item shipped.

When deciding which products to feature, consider listing those with “buy it now” or 30-day listings. These will allow for more long-term usage of the newsletter and attract interested buyers desiring to make an immediate purchase. If having a very unique item, a seller may want to mix immediate purchase items with bidding ones. Offer items with a low bid to spark interest in potential buyers. The buyer will most likely visit the eBay listing and check on its current price. If satisfactory, a bid may be placed. If not, having a running ticker of other items on your listing may spark the buyer’s interest.

Another way to decide which items to feature is to use seasonal availability. Start offering seasonal items to sell at least two months in advance. This leaves room for bidding, payment and shipping wait times. A good rule of thumb is to allow bidding time, a week for payment processing time (may be more or less depending on payment type), and a week for shipping time. Combined with the item’s listing time (if doing a timed listing) and this is approximately how far in advance seasonal items should be listed.

Be sure to put yourself in the shoes of a buyer. Everyone loves discounts; so why not incorporate one into your online store? This would mean offering potential buyers a coupon code or discount day. If selling on a 30-day listing, consider reducing the item by 25% on day 27 or so. Designate one day a month and market that as your sale day. Since most people work Monday through Friday, having a weekend sale date will allow for more buyers to have access to their own personal computers.

Included in the newsletter should be some relevant information. This is where a seller’s bragging rights come in. Potential buyers want a seller with positive feedback and reliability. Boast a little and write how many positive feedback transactions have been accomplished. Buyers will take comfort knowing their seller has many positive recommendations.

Newsletters can be distributed in some of the same locations as other independent sales products. Racks at grocery stores, cubbyholes at libraries, corkboards at apartment complexes and lunch tables at worksites are great places to distribute newsletters. Ask friends and family to suggest any places they may know of to distribute newsletters. Track your sales over a three-month period to see where orders are originating. If coming from your local area, add additional newsletter outlets and wait for even greater profits. However, if few sales are coming from the newsletter, revamp it and keep trying. When local sales take-off, you will know that format is the one to keep.