Shock and Aw’e'Bay
Why not tone a bit I thought to myself. Don’t overdo it now, eeeeeeasy does it Mark….., let’s just stick our big toe in the shallow end of eBay’s shark infested waters.
Sorry that’s not me. When I go timid I fall flat on my face. If I fall in line with the rest of the eBay pack over there I’ll get my head handed to me in a lunch bag.
I learned a heck of a lot by pushing myself to the limit in many different areas I’d never learned if I went “normal”.
I’ve made “normal auctions” for low speed connections and will run those as well.
I want to tap into that “big traffic machine” that is eBay and drive some of my “eBay page views” to my eBay “About Me Page” and then over here. I also want to drive them to www.javajans.com where they can sign up for a Newsletter I’m creating for our JavaJan’s line of Fine Coffee Products called “Jitters”.
I started to develop this simple story board back on February 7th when I “Climbed Mount Terapeak” to pick this product line and before I found out about the two ebay gurus Travis from our Auction Genius Class 18 pointed out to us. When I took a peak at Travis’s ebay gurus it reaffirmed to me that a little wacky can generate a ton of page views over at eBay.
But I’m developing a genuine business model not a few cute auctions and don’t want to come across too wacky. Although the first auction I developed was way out there and I’d have went with it except I showed it to Janet first. She was mortified and I thought I’d better not embarrass her too much. Probably for the best anyway.
Oh, and yes I’m wearing my “Cloak of Power” in bed in these pictures. Don’t ask why cause I don’t know. It just felt right. Us actors are a finicky bunch ya know.
If this effort goes flopiddy….flop….flop….flop, I hope the only thing hurt is my pride. Being inexperienced, there are what seem like a zillion details that go into something like this. I’m sure I’m going to find some “T’s” not crossed and “I’s” not dotted but I did the best I could with my allotted time and just have to lay it out there on the line and see what happens.
I’ll let you know what I could have done better with this auction in future posts. Now go take a “look see” for yourself. Don’t be afraid to buy one either. You won’t hurt my feelings a bit!
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Comments
Original Post: 3/13/2006 05:49:06 AM
rebay said…
Brilliant Mark …It’s coming together … Fantastic ..Praying for you
Rob
Original Post: 3/13/2006 09:09:40 PM
Bill U said…
Shazzaammmm!!!
Mark,
I love your auction. I put on my copywriters hat and took a look.
1. You lead with benefits not features.
2. You answer the question ” What’s in it for me?”
3. It is personal and not so serious.
4. It tells a story and got me involved.
5. You ‘proved’ value comparing to Amazon
6. There is an eye on future business.
7. A freebie
8. You told me that care is taken in packing.
9. You are different and catchy.
10 Your policies were clear and fair.
If I could make a suggestion…the link to click through to your about me page does not look like a link, with different colors and such.
I have done a lot of research on niche markets from an adsense point of view and “gourmet coffee” (both words) is a winner for expansion and linking to affiliates, great job on research. Here is a ‘quickie’ adsense site I put up when I was learning and found that niche. http://www.gourmet-coffee-secrets.com/
As a newbie in class 19, I am inspired that you ‘got er done’ and are off to the races. The best…
Bill U
Original Post: 3/13/2006 11:02:48 PM
Mark said…
Thanks for the compliment and more importantly the prayers Rob!
Thought I’d have some fun with this first auction go round and test some boundaries. I’ve already learned a bunch of stuff since listing a little over 24 hours ago.
These auctions will be refined big time. It’s not like I’ve been able to spend hours and hours specifically on the adcopy side of things. It’s been hours and hours on “learning” HTML and other odds and ends. It seems as you learn one thing in one area it opens up doors and possiblities in other areas.
I love to learn. It keeps me young.
Patrick I’m not sure it’s courage so much as a fun loving spirit and willingness to try something different and learn.
Bill thanks for your comments. You know your stuff. As the weeks pass each of your points can be improved in my product line templates.
Your right about my “About Me Page” link. I’ll fix it soon.
Mark
Original Post: 3/12/2006 11:05:18 PM
Patrick said…
Hi Mark,
Well my friend you sure did it this time! I would never have the guts to put up an auction like that but I guess that’s why us timid guys swim in the wake of the guys with the courage. I will watch and learn quietly. Terrific start. Patrick