eBay Exposure Tips

What can you do today to promote your eBay auctions? If you're on eBay, you're already online. You have the internet, one of the most powerful resources of our time, at your finger tips. How cliche does that sound? No, this is not a get rich quick blurb. This is a glance at how you can get free exposure, and have fun while you're at it!

Read on, as I discuss internet message boards, and what you can do on the Web to promote your eBay auctions, boosting your sales, and letting people know what you have to offer.

Connect

Message boards, communities, and forums give users a great way to interact online. It's never been so easy to share ideas and information with so many people so quickly.

As you interact, feel free to discuss your eBay auctions when it is relative to the topic at hand. It is important to mention that you shouldn't use online message boards to promote your auctions, unless that is the purpose of the board. Making an out-of-place sales post is often referred to as "spamming".

Use your favorite search engine to find forums that are specifically made for self-promotion and sales. This gives you an effective way to network and learn from people sharing common business interests and goals.

On the other hand, a website hosting a forum about gardening, art, or cars might expect users to stay on topic, but they may have no problem with you adding an unrealted auction link to your signature. I'll discuss signatures in the next section.

By the way, if you sell gardening tools, paintings, or auto detail kits, you've got a better chance at increasing your sales by posting to forums related to these topics, instead of posting at movie forums, for example.

Signatures

Many message boards allow their users to add a customizable signature to the end of the comments that they post. Why not use this space to tell people what you're selling? Whenever you post to a forum, you have a chance to show others what you have to offer, and the kinds of things that you buy and sell. Free advertisement!

Remember to check a site's policies to see what's allowed in signatures, before you post. Link to your eBay page, website, etc., and avoid posting an individual link to every item that you have listed. Make your signature simple and informative.

Avoid creating something that is too distracting. Scrolling or flashing text in jarring colors may look pretty neat, but they can be annoying, especially if you post frequently. Make yourself known as the guy with the cool auctions, not the guy with the signature that causes seizures.

Add a link to your signature that leads to your current items page, or better yet, add a link to your Me Page. This way, even if you are not currently selling something, potential customers can view your unique space on eBay. When someone clicks on your link, they will get a chance to learn a little about you. They can also take a look at your feedback, reading what your customers have to say about transactions that they've had with you.

If a website allows image files within signatures, use a sharp, customized graphic to lead potential customers to your auctions. Again, go for something that is appealing, but not jarring.

Word-of-Mouth

You have the opportunity to make some valuable business contacts on the Web. The more people you talk to, the better. Internet interactions can be like day-to-day communications in the non-digital world in that some one may not have a need for that keyboard that you're selling, but they may have a grandmother or an uncle that does.

Interact online, share your experiences, offer help, and participate in conversations that you enjoy. Knowledge, sincerity, and courtesy, will draw the interest of potential customers.