Old valve seating tool

Valve Seating Tool


ended - Friday, June 6, 2008

Auction grade: D

Starting bid: $5.00

Final selling price: $0 - no bids


Up for sale in this eBay auction is an old valve seating tool for use in engines. Nothing more is stated in the auction.

The main problem with this auction is the distinct lack of information and text in the title and description. Seeing how the auction's title is repeated in the description, this auction has a grand total of only six unique words. Unless this is an old tool that still works in today's engines and is in demand, this seller is going to have a very hard time having potential buyers find this auction.

The auction's title is in desperate need of a few more key words. In this case, words such as "engine", "old", "vintage", and even "mechanic" would work well to help this auction appear in more search engine listings.

This is all that the seller stated in the auction's description:

"Real Neat Old Valve Seating Tool"

Looking at the different combinations of words in the text that most people would use to search for an item like this, I can use most of my fingers to count out the different combinations. Considering this is eBay with many similar items for sale, that's a very low number of search terms to draw in the buyers.

The target consumers for an item like this is going to be limited. It's already established that those looking specifically for a valve seating tool will find this auction, but what about those mechanics and collectors who would like something like this but search for it with different terms? What if they're just looking for older or just engine tools in general?

This is where adding a little bit of extra text in the description is key. By typing out basic information about this tool such as the type of engines it can be used with (diesel, gasoline, etc.), if it was made to be used with any car manufacturer in particular, or even the different types of valves (intake, exhaust, etc.) it can be used with will definitely increase the chances of other buyers finding this auction.

Sure, some of that stuff may seem like common knowledge for most people, but remember that even basic information like that is filled with relevant key words and search terms. Don't underestimate the potential of typing out even the most basic information about items like this one. You never know how the potential buyers are going to search for a tool like this, so you're best off trying to cover as many angles as possible but without taking a long time to make the auction. Time is money, so if this is believed to be a cheap item, don't spend all day thinking of different search terms.

If you're going to take the time, cost, and effort to make an auction, you may as well try to draw in as many bidders as possible. If it involves spending an extra ten to fifteen minutes doing some basic research and then typing a description, then do it. You're just wasting time and your own money if you're not going to try to draw in the extra buyers.

Despite the title and description, the rest of the auction looks pretty good. You can clearly see the engine tool in the picture, and the shipping cost and starting bids are fairly reasonable. I don't know if other people are experiencing this same problem, but this is a very tall auction template filled with a lot of empty space in the middle of it. I had to do quite a bit of scrolling before reaching the bottom of the page.

It's surprising that a PowerSeller is able to make sales with other auctions as basic as this one. Many of this seller's other auctions have very simple titles and descriptions, but quite a few of the pictures are really poor. This seller obviously has many good items to sell, but if he put in a little more effort with the text and pictures, imagine how much more money he could be making.

My last suggestion to this seller is to set up an official picture taking area. Take a light brown or blue cloth and create a neutral setting for each item for sale. Taking some pictures on the deck, others on the kitchen counter, and even others out in the garage is unprofessional. Unless an item is very large or heavy, try to take all of the pictures in one official area and keep things consistent.

Roll of old wheat pennies

FOUND - OLD ROLL OF WHEATS FOUND IN BANK LOCK BOX!L@@K


ended - Friday, April 18, 2008

Auction grade: D

Starting bid: $4.00

Final selling price: $0 - no bids


Up for sale in this eBay auction is an old roll of wheat pennies from the 1910's through the 1950's.

The title for this auction is horrible. People who use the default search settings are going to have a very hard time finding this particular auction of old coins. Instead of telling us where you found the coins, you need to instead be talking about the coins themselves. The title only gives you so much room to work with, and you need to fill it with as many relevant key words and phrases as possible.

For this auction, good key words in the title would be "coins", "pennies", "old", "wheat", "roll", "undiscovered" and even "vintage". Stick with words like that first before wasting the remainder of the available space with things like "L@@K".

The extremely large font used in the auction's description needs to be lowered. Using all capital letters is the equivalent to having a person shout at you in person. Using all caps with a font this large is like somebody standing in front of you and using a bullhorn to talk. It's very annoying and gives you the appearance of trying to scam a person. It's also insulting to the buyers.

The actual text in the auction looks pretty good. It's fine how the seller says how he found the coins, and it's also good that he mentioned some of the different decades for the pennies. However, previous customer feedback implies that not every roll of pennies that this guy sells will include coins from the decades that are listed.

"WE TRY TO PROVIDE ROLLS OF QUALITY TO ARE BUYERS."

This sentence says it all.

This stock picture of some of the pennies needs to be replaced with a real picture of the exact roll of pennies for sale in this auction. Buyers are going to be disappointed and will leave negative feedback if their coins don't look exactly like the ones in the picture (condition wise). I've seen it happen many times.

Finally, the last item of concern in this auction is the handling time and the fact that the seller only ships the items one day each week.

"HANDLING TIME WILL BE 4 BUSINESS DAYS. ALL
ORDERS WILL SHIP ON A THUR OF EVERY WEEK"

If you're trying to pass yourself off as a real eBay seller, you really need to find a way to ship your items two or even three days a week. Seeing how the postal service doesn't operate on Sundays, most people are going to have to wait at least an extra four days after the item is shipped before they'll receive it. I hate unnecessary delays in receiving my items as much as the next buyer. Do them a favor and make an effort to put the items in the mail faster.

Overall, this seller needs to make a few title and appearance adjustments if he wants to become a more professional and respected eBay seller.

Old baby doll carriage

Old Metal Baby Doll Carage


ended - Thursday, March 27, 2008

Auction grade: D

Starting bid: $9.99

Final selling price: $9.99


Up for sale in this eBay auction is an old, metal baby doll carriage / stroller. There's no indication of the age or general condition of the stroller.

The auction's title needs a lot of work. First of all, the seller needs to know how to spell "carriage" correctly. In addition to that, the following key words would be most beneficial for search engine results: "stroller", "child", "vintage", "antique", and a word I hate to use because of its general overuse in other applications, "buggy".

The current title is bland and looks unappealing, and the lack of key words will prevent it from showing up in most default searches.

The auction's description doesn't add much to the desirability either.

"Old metal doll stroller. The wheeles are wooden. I don't know much about this item."

So as a potential buyer, right now we don't know anything about the stroller's age, general condition (it looks really shoddy in the pictures), manufacturer, or even if a particular type of doll was made for a stroller of that size. If the seller's mother-in-law is somewhat of an antique dealer, she should have been able to provide some kind of information about the stroller. At least we know that the wheels are wooden.

I like how the seller used a ruler to give the buyers a sense of scale in the pictures, though the main picture doesn't load correctly for me. Also, the ruler doesn't line up anywhere near the end of the stroller in the second picture. I would have been nice if the seller at least gave us the stroller's basic dimensions (LxWxH).

Overall, I'll be very surprised if this item sells on eBay. The main problems with this auction are with the poor title and lack of information regarding the stroller. By not having any information and charging at least $18.94 ($9.99 starting bid + $8.95 shipping), it's going to be hard to make the sale.