Lynn’s eBay Ezine Volume V, Issue Number 14

 

Hi!
What a whirlwind. We are finally back in Palm Desert and I am working on my sales taxes and income taxes. How fun!

  • Lynn Recommends: Debbie Ybarra Teleseminar
  • Special Announcement: 5 Seats Left for Live Boot Camp
  • Feature Article: “As Is” and Worn out can be Better than NEW
  • The Queen’s Update: Requesting more stories from YOU

This ezine is published every two weeks.

July 16, 2009, Volume V, Issue 14

We had a blast in Cooperstown. The highlight for me was Houston hitting a home run. And it wasn’t just any home run, it was a walk-off to win the game and it was over the twelve-foot-high Green Monster fence!

He was up to bat in the bottom of the 4th inning (the last inning because of rain), the score was tied 6 to 6, there were two outs and the pitcher had 2 strikes on him. Needless to say, it was at this point that I walked away. Then came the bomb, right over the high green fence. I have never seen such a smile on a kid’s face and he slid into the home base (just for fun!).

I went up and gave him a hug afterward and he said, “I did it for Papa.” (His grandpa.) Well, I am so glad that my parents were able to join us in Cooperstown and I have never seen such a big grin on my dad’s face either.

Indy (my talented photographer/videographer) also made a video of both of Houston’s home runs. You can view the short clip on our YouTube account here.

The boys ended up as the 8th seed and I am very proud of the entire team. Then it was off to NY City. On our way to Manhattan, I bought a huge bag full of plush in upstate NY in the Catskills at a darling thrift store. I shipped it all home and I bet it ends up paying for itself.

Here is the plush…

…and here is one of the listings.

I am back into plush mode after receiving some AWESOME emails about success stories after the Debbie Ybarra teleseminar last month. It has prompted me to invite Debbie back for another teleseminar. Please read the Lynn recommends section to learn more. You do not want to miss this one!

OK, I just can’t help myself. I have to share one story here from Caroline. It isn’t about making a fortune, but it is about making a child’s day!

Hi Lynn,

I thought you should share this with Debbie Ybarra. Last night about 9:00 PM we get a phone call, and my husband looks at me and says Black Lab Webkinz with a puzzled look on his face. Meanwhile he is still on the phone, so I nod and he continues talking. I hear him say we are open 24/7, I am thinking he’s joking, right?

To make a long story short, a man had called about the Webkinz Black Lab Stuffed Animal Lil’ Kinz I had listed on eBay. He has a 3-year-old who cried herself to sleep last night, she had lost her lil’ black lab. He wanted to come and get it right away, so it would be on her pillow when she woke up this morning. He says she cried all afternoon and cried herself to sleep over losing hers. He said she had chewed off the labs tail and he was a mess. This Dad went on eBay last night and queried eBay for this dog within 50 miles of his home. I was 15 minutes away.

He was soooooooooo happy to be able to get it last night. He was so nice, he made my day and I hope I made his. I hope his 3-year-old was delighted to wake up this morning to a new black lab.

This is the “GOOD STUFF”!

Caroline

Here is the lab. Be sure to check out Caroline’s other items!

After that amazingly touching story, let’s get back to NY. I have to admit, I do NOT like driving in Manhattan. I have never done it before and probably won’t again. After I successfully parked (Let’s be honest, I jumped out and let the valet deal with it) our rented SUV in front of the Westin, we began our 1⁄2 day in NY. On our first evening in the city, we saw a Broadway play, Mary Poppins, which was fantastic. And we had an awesome steak dinner at Shula’s restaurant.

On our second day, we rode the subway to a NY Yankees game at their new stadium. It was so much fun! Then we toured the Titanic exhibit that we had seen three years earlier in LA at the Natural Science Museum, but the kids didn’t remember it. Houston and Indy just love historical exhibits–lucky for my mom and me! Then we had a snack in the Theater district and watched the fireworks over the Hudson River.

On our last day, we took the double-decker bus tour of NY. It was so interesting. We got out of the bus to ride to the top of the Empire State Building, visit Ground Zero and walk to the edge of Battery Park to view the Statue of Liberty. For only being in NY for 2 1/2 days, we sure accomplished a lot.

After Manhattan, we drove to NJ to spend time with my good friend from college, Annie, and her family. Then it was off to Albany and our flight back to Las Vegas. I spent my birthday in Las Vegas and we drove home to Palm Desert the next day. Thank you to all of you who sent email cards and notes. I so appreciate it!

Just writing about those two weeks makes me exhausted. It was very hard to get back to work after such an exciting trip!

With Live Boot Camp coming up at the end of August and with only 5 seats left, I am going to do something different. Read about it in the Special Announcement section. Reserve your spot now, before it sells out. We want to see you in La Quinta this August!

I wanted to write about Clowns this week because on the Queen’s Court ID forum there seem to be a lot of clown items this month. One member even decided we should call the month of July, the Clown month! Well, when I went to find all my clown items to list and write about, I did NOT have any clowns that were not listed.

Here is one of my plush clown toys that are listed in my store. I only have 3 clown items in my eBay store of over 5,000 items so it just goes to show you that clowns sell. Well, I will write about clowns another day. Send in the clowns! And watch for clowns when you are out saling.

Here is one of the clowns in my store.

For this week, I decided to write about AS-IS items. You know those items. The ones that stare at you forever because you think why even bother listing it–it is AS-IS. Don’t miss my feature article for my top 5 tips for selling as-is items.

Finally, we are looking for more of your stories. Read below to find out how to submit your stories for consideration.

Happy eBaying,

Lynn Dralle, ‘The Queen of Auctions,’ Creator of the best-selling eBay Boot Camp in a Box and Boot Camp in a Box Lite.

Join us this Monday!

The teleseminar in May with Debbie Ybarra of eBay-Mommy.com was incredible. I learned soooo much about selling plush toys and clothing.  Because it was such a huge success we are going to be doing another one on Monday evening, July 20th.

If you are a Queen’s Court member this is your gift for July. Please post your questions on the forums. If you are not a member, you can buy it at the low introductory rate here and email your questions to Lynn@TheQueenofAuctions.com.

Check out this email I got from Lynnette Seymour about the first teleseminar with Debbie:

Hi Lynn –

I just wanted to thank you for that great teleseminar with Debbie. Since listening to it just a few weeks ago, I’ve already picked up and sold enough plush for pay for my Queen’s Court membership this month and then some – on items I would have previously never even looked at! Plus there are some fabulous plush in my store that will pay for another month as soon as the right buyer comes along.

I’ve already listened to it twice and now have more sections to check out in the thrift store. Usually, I may or may not have browsed the men’s section for Hawaiian shirts. But now I am on the hunt for a Coggi sweater! In the meantime, I’ve found Tommy Bahama, Façonnable, and even a Versace! Looking forward to getting those listed soon.

Anyway, I was excited when I did the math and wanted to thank you – sold 4 plush for a total of $60.96 with at most a $3 investment. The Queen’s Court is invaluable to me.

The QC was really energized and buzzing after that teleseminar and for the weeks that followed.

I’ve also adopted Debbie’s idea of writing stuff down in an address book. On the QC we are calling it a BOLO book (for Be On the Look Out). I’m going to listen to it a 3rd time with my new BOLO book in hand and every future teleseminar.

Thanks! I plan on going fulltime within a year – and that I am SUPER excited about. Who’d a thunk that first Boot Camp in Palm Desert would change my life so much? :)

Thanks!

Lynnette

Shyflea’s Style Store

I am so proud of Lynnette and all of my Queen’s Court members. Even if you are not a member, don’t miss out on the Debbie teleseminar!

Click here to pre-purchase the teleseminar for Monday night!

Our ONLY Live Boot Camp of 2009 is coming up soon. Friday, August 28th, Saturday, August 29th, and Sunday, August 30th at the world-famous La Quinta Resort! There are only 5 seats left! More information about Live eBay Boot Camp can be found here.

Click here to get your special invitation. When you email just let Mo know if you are a Boot Camp in a Box Lite owner, a Boot Camp in a Box owner, a prior graduate, a Six-Steps to eBay Success owner, or none of the above.

With only 5 seats left, I have decided to personally talk to those of you who are considering coming to help you discover if Live Boot Camp is right for you. I have set aside a few 15-minute time slots on Tuesday, July 21st and I will talk to those of you who are seriously considering it. If you would like to grab one of those time slots and talk to me on the phone, please email Mo as soon as possible so that you don’t miss out!

Talk to you soon! And for those 19 of you already signed up, please get the questionnaires back to me with a photo as soon as possible. We like to start memorizing your faces and names so that we hit the ground running! It is going to be a blast and you are going to learn sooo much!

‘AS IS and Worn Out can be better than New‘

by Lynn Dralle, The Queen of Auctions

Before we get into this article, just what does “As Is” mean?

My grandmother always marked items in her store with “as is” when something was wrong. It was common knowledge (and probably still is) in the business that “as is” meant that you should ask the sales clerk or store owner what was wrong with the item. Often times there wasn’t enough room on the tag to write, “crack on the base,” or “chipped at the rim,” so the dealers would write “as is.” Sometimes, the dealers would also just put an “x” or “xx” to indicate that there was damage.

I love it when stores, estate sales, and garage sale people mark their items “as is” if there is something wrong with the item. It can almost be thought of as meaning “sold as found.” But that “as is” prompts you to look closer and ask questions.

Now my tips for selling “as is” items on eBay.

  1. Never pass up a chipped, cracked, or repaired piece if it is from a good maker.

As I went through my new 100 Best BookHome Run, to write this article, I was shocked at how many stories involved “as is” items.

If you have the book, check out stories, 26, 36, 39, 40, 47, 50, 55, etc! It is amazing to read how much some of these “as is” pieces went for. Some of them sold for over $200! Speaking of the 4th 100 Best book, I am recording the audio this week and the audio edition is available for pre-sale with free shipping. Click here to purchase now.

I just listed a really neat toby style mug on eBay this week. Even though it had chips at the top it was by a good maker and should sell.

Check it out here.

  1. Make sure you put As-Is, xx, Chipped, Cracked, or Broken in Your eBay Title

If there is room, I try and get As-Is or Chipped in the title. Too many times I have sold items and the buyer has not read the description. They have quickly read the title, looked at the photo, and purchased.

I also try and put the damage IN CAPS right at the beginning of my description. If you do that and also get the As-Is in the title and show a photo of the damage–you will save yourself numerous returns.

In fact, just last month a lady was haggling with me over a duck baking dish. We finally agreed on a price and even though I had chipped in the title, and a clear photo of the chip, I thought to myself, I had better clarify this with her before I ship off this heavy item.

Sure enough, she had not noticed the damage and by emailing her beforehand I saved myself a costly return.

Here is that duck back in my eBay store.

  1. Don’t wait to list “as is” items. List them immediately.

This is what prompted me to write this article. As I was looking back over my sold items from this past week, I kept shaking my head over a Villeroy and Boch antique bowl that was very “as is.” We are talking, cracked, crazed, and chipped. I don’t know why I bought it for 50 cents, but boy was I glad that I did. And I had stared at it for over a month, not wanting to list it. Who knew that it would sell for so much and during the summer!

Click here to see what it sold for.

  1. Worn and broken in Sporting Equipment can sell for good money.

Used sporting equipment like worn-in baseball gloves and used cleats can bring in big bucks. Many young athletes grow too quickly and they don’t have time to break in a glove or cleats. I sold three used catcher’s baseball gloves for charity last year and they brought in over $80.00 for the three! Just last month, I sold a pair of my son’s used baseball cleats for $9.99. Don’t throw anything away!

Check out the cleats here.

  1. At Least don’t throw anything away before trying it on eBay.

My mom was cleaning out my kitchen cupboards, and she put a salt and pepper shaker in the throwaway pile because the base of the pepper was broken off. I said, “Are you crazy? Those are Quimper Faience”. I put them on eBay and got $27.52 for them.

My As Is Quimper Faience salt and pepper.

The bottom line is that “as is” and used items will sell. Before you pass up any broken items or throw anything away, look at the item and ask yourself, “Is this worth $10 to someone on eBay”? If the answer is yes, get it listed! In this economy, everyone is looking for a bargain, and eBay is where they are going for those bargains. More eyes than ever are looking at items on eBay. Remember, your trash, is probably someone else’s treasure and that sometimes “worn in” and “as is” can be better than new.

Happy eBaying!

Lynn

We are looking for your eBay success stories to share with our ezine readers and possibly make it into a book of our reader’s best eBay stories.

A big thanks to everyone who has already submitted a story! We are looking for more great stories of your eBay adventures. We know there are many great tales out there, so please submit your story along the lines of the stories from the 100 Best Books and a great side story with photos will help. If we use your story, you will receive a $35 merchandise credit on my website and you will have your story featured–along with your user ID–in my ezine! It may also eventually end up in a published book!

By the way, when I mention my ezine readers’ user IDs with links to their auctions–it actually helps their sales! Amazing how that works. Click here for the guidelines for submitting your stories.

eBay PowerSeller and third-generation antique dealer, Lynn Dralle, is the creator of Boot Camp in a Box, the home-study course where you can learn to implement the Dralle Method to maximize your eBay profits.

If you liked today’s issue, you’ll love this step-by-step course that is guaranteed to be the most complete and enjoyable guide to selling on eBay that MAKES YOU MONEY.

Read all about it here.

The Queen of Auctions also offers articles, teleseminars, how-to books, tracking guides, DVDs, eBay Boot Camp training, and other resources to help entrepreneurs make their eBay business a six-figure sales machine. Click here to learn more.

The Queen of Auctions/All Aboard Inc.

PO Box 14103

Palm Desert, CA 92255

760-340-6622

Lynn@TheQueenofAuctions.com


Happy eBaying!!

Lynn


Visit my eBay Store.

Visit my eBay auctions.

For more great eBay tips and stories, visit my website at:

http://www.thequeenofauctions.com

Lynn is an experienced eBay Power Seller, author, and teacher. If you want to know the eBay tips, tricks, and tools that Lynn uses for buying and selling at an online auction click here.