Auction Forums Auction Info Rare Reads
By KAREN HAYMON LONG
The Tampa Tribune
December 23, 2007
“…Slicker says books that have been made into movies are especially collectible.
That’s true of even newer books, such as Cormac McCarthy’s “No Country for Old Men.” The first edition, published in 2005, jumped to $75 at abebooks.com after the movie came out this year (you can buy […]
The answer may surprise you. Here is a very interesting press release from OnlineAuction.com
While most of us were hurrying to finish our holiday preparations last weekend a major goal was achieved by a small Oregon company known as OnlineAuction.com (www.OLA.com).
The current items listed numbers quietly went on climbing, despite the fact that the item count was dropping on industry Goliath eBay. According to online auction monitoring sites, the number of auction items listed on eBay was 9,815,433 as of Sunday the 23rd, while the OLA.com item number count topped 10,144,000 and kept climbing. As of the time this announcement was written, eBay’s count was reported at 8,985,037, while the OLA.com item count was more than 10,295,400.
Chris Fain, President of OnlineAuction.com says, "One of the many reasons for the explosive growth in the number of items listed is that we don’t charge for each individual item but charge only a low monthly or yearly membership fee and our first million Founding Members are guaranteed low membership rates for life." When asked about eBay’s dropping numbers Fain said he expected eBay would have to soon respond to build their item count with special offers like free listing days.
While it’s true that auction/item counts fluctuate, OLA.com is the only online auction ever to surpass eBay’s item count figures. Fain says that the still small but rapidly growing company expects 2008 to be a banner year!
My experience:
The listing tool is somewhat basic –you have to use basic html commands or you can use a free html editor like PageBreeze. This will have to improve if OnlineAuction.com can achieve success. But the site is getting traffic and I tried listing two items. One sold and one didn’t. If you want to try OnlineAuction.com, here is a promotional code to get you started: 28792AAA with a discount offer. The Founding member deal is excellent but won’t be offered much longer. So be sure and use this code when you sign up: 28792AAA at www.ola.com.
Maps Give Lots Of Decorating Latitude
By PENNY CARNATHAN
The Tampa Tribune
December 29, 2007
“Perhaps it’s a response to the overwhelming presence of Internet maps in our lives, those stark but useful little charts created in seconds by virtual cartography gremlins. They appear in party invitations, on school newsletters and all over our favorite Web sites.
Maybe they’re what […]
AuctionTNT.com announced today the availability of a new free tool to help eBay sellers cross-sell and upsell other products to their auction visitors.
The tool is called “Auction Showcase™”. It appears as a spinning 3D ring showing other auction items that the eBay seller currently has listed. Unlike other “gallery tools”, what makes this tool unique […]
The New Year will be here soon and this may be a good time to think about incorporating your eBay business.
You are probably thinking: “I am just a small eBay seller. Why would I want to incorporate? Doesn’t that cost a lot of money and take a lot of work?” Let me try and answer those questions.
There are three reasons for an eBay or online seller to incorporate:
1. Image
2. Liability
3. Tax Considerations
Image - If you are trying to buy wholesale from wholesale companies that don’t want to work with small resellers or if you want to get into wholesale tradeshows and merchandise marts, being incorporated makes this much easier.
Incorporating is actually very simple and inexpensive There are several online services where you can incorporate inexpensively. Having those letters, inc. after your company name will give you the image of a more-professional company and a greater number of wholesale suppliers will be willing to work with you.
Liability – We live in a country where lawsuit-hungry lawyers have gotten out of control. One of the richest areas for lawsuits is product liability. If you sell a product that injures someone you can be liable. You can buy product liability insurance, but you would probably have to take out a second mortgage on your home to afford it.
Incorporating can usually offer you protection from this liability. When you do business as a corporation you are considered a separate “person” under the law. If you sold a toy on eBay and a child was injured by the toy, the parent’s lawyer would try to sue you. If they won they could attach your salary or other income, your investment accounts and in some states even the equity in your home. But, if a corporation sells the same item on eBay the victim/plaintiff could only sue the corporation. If they win, they can only attach the assets of the corporation. It is a little more complicated than this, but I only have so much room in a newsletter article, but you can read more about liability protection at www.legalzoom.com
Tax Savings– A corporation doesn’t afford the ability to dodge taxes, but there are a few more tax breaks under the corporate umbrella than you can enjoy as a sole proprietor. I have been incorporated for the past three years and each year I see many more tax savings than when I was a sole proprietor.
If you incorporate, I strongly recommend hiring a CPA to do your taxes. Mine charges $300 a year to do my corporate tax returns –but his skill, combined with my corporation, saves me far more than that every year. Also, tax returns signed by a CPA are far less likely to be audited than if they are signed by yourself or a tax preparation firm. If eBay is not your full-time job and you work or have another income, the corporation can even help reduce the taxes you pay on your other income in many cases.
Web site lets you hunt for Goodwill treasures online
www.marionstar.com
Marion Star Staff Report
December 27, 2007
“MARION - Shopgoodwill.com, a nonprofit Internet auction site, is making it easier for treasure hunters and other online shoppers to find exactly what they are looking for. The redesigned site offers an improved search function that allows bidders to quickly preview thumbnail […]
PETA, which owns 120 shares of eBay stock, has submitted a shareholder resolution urging the company to stop selling cats and dogs on its affiliated Chinese Web site, Tom Online.
PETA’s resolution points out that eBay’s online policy states, “eBay generally does not allow the listing of live animals or pets on eBay,” and that eBay’s […]
eBay listings typically crash between Christmas and New Year, so they are running a one-day fee sale to get people listing again.
The listing fee sale is one day only, December 27. Insertion fees and fixed-price listings are only 10-cents until midnight tonight.
Happy holidays to all my readers.
Skip McGrath
A report from technology news site Slashdot has revealed that online auction house Ebay intends to remove listings for all virtual items, regardless of type or game title, clamping down on third-party sales of gold and accounts from many popular MMOs.
Speaking to Slashdot, eBay spokesperson Hani Durzy told the site that the decision, rather than […]
Britney Spears 2002 Ford Explorer and the green umbrella she used to attack paparazzi earlier this year have been put up for sale on online auction site eBay - with a starting price of $25,000.
Share This Article by Email or Social Web
Auction Press release UK Auction News