Lessons From eBay On Location Atlanta

eBay's first 'On Location' event was held in Atlanta this past weekend. A Networking Reception was held Fri evening and the training portion took place on Saturday.

The first session, 'Strategies to Grow Your Business' was presented by Sarah Brubacher, eBay's Director of Top Seller Development. The key growth strategies listed were:

• leverage the new fee option
• maximize search visibility and sales
• delight your customers
• optimize effectiveness with tools & resources

Leveraging the new fee option included information on eBay stores and how to determine the right subscription level. Maximizing search visibility included information on choosing the right listing format, optimizing item prices, earning/maintaining Top Seller status, writing great listing titles and offering free shipping. Various ways to use 'Best Offer' was an interesting part of the discussion.

The next talk was called 'The Art of (Customer) Attraction.' Mike Michalowicz, The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur, gave a lively and informative talk about finding and keeping repeat customers. He discussed loyalty programs, email marketing and how to create great buyer experiences.

Next was the 'Top-Rated Seller Secrets' portion of the day. This was a panel discussion moderated by Griff. Panelists Cindy Shebley, Jordan Insley and Lynn Dralle were quite candid in answering a wide range of questions that had been submitted by the audience.

After lunch Sarah Brubacher returned to the stage to present 'The Power of Productivity' - talking about how to reduce costs and grow sales volume. This is what was covered:

Next up was a presentation by Rieva Lesonsky, former editorial director for Entrepreneur magazine. Unfortunately I did not attend this session as I was in a break-out session with Griff called 'Know Your Numbers.'

Griff's talk was all about the numbers that are important in running a business on eBay. To quote him "you can't manage what you do not measure." He went over Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV), Costs, Net Profit, Average Selling Price (ASP), Conversion or Sell Through Rate (STR) and Sales Velocity and Price Balancing Act. An interesting part of the discussion was about 'Who Sets the Price' and how frequently you might want to check up on your competition.

The final presentation was 'I Just Tweetered on FaceSpace' by John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing. He defined social media and reminded us that eBay pioneered social networking. After describing the pillars of a social media system as listening, optimizing your assets, using content for lead generation and managing it all, he showed examples from various social sites as well as a variety of useful tools. This talk ended with a list of action steps: Set up Google Alerts, Create a Content Hub, Grab 2-3 Profiles and Create 1 Outpost.

There were additional Break-Out sessions during the day. They included 'eBay Seller Tool Demos,' 'New to eBay Stores' and 'Shipping Q&A.' These sessions had limited seating and tickets to attend were distributed in the early morning on a first-come, first-served basis.

Sponsors of this event included the USPS, endicia, PitneyBowes, eBay Giving Works, ProStores, eBay AdCommerce and eBay Green Team. All had space in the exhibition part of the venue.

eBay On Location in Atlanta & The Aftermath

'eBay On Location' is a series of local events sponsored by eBay to provide practical information to help eBay sellers take their business to the next level.

The 1st 'On Location' event will be held in Atlanta (at the Omni Hotel) in less than 2 weeks - on March 19-20. 'On Location' will then travel to other cities including Dallas & Chicago & end up in San Jose in time to celebrate eBay's 15th anniversary.

Some of the speakers who will be in Atlanta iinclude:

• John Jantsch (Duct Tape Marketing) - I Just Tweetered on FaceSpace
• Mike Michalowicz (The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur) - The Art of Customer Attraction
• Rieva Lesonsky (GrowBiz Media) - 10 Steps to Entrepreneurial Success

On Fri evening (March 19) eBay will be sponsoring a networking opportunity at a Welcome Reception from 5-7pm.

After the Welcome Reception is the VIP event of the weekend -
'The Aftermath: eCommerce After Party'
hosted by John "colderICE" Lawson.

This is THE place to 'meet & greet' the Rock Stars of eCommerce including:

• John Jantsch - Duct Tape Marketing
  
• Richard Brewer-Hay - eBay InkBlog
  
• Brent Leary - Customer Relationship Management
  
• Toby Bloomberg - Diva Marketing Blog
  
• Peggy Duncan - Personal Productivity Expert
  
• Charles Lumpkin - eCommerce SEO Strategist
  
• "JB" Braitwaite - Internet Technology Expert
  
• George Trantas - CEO Designer Athletic
  
• Melinda & Kat - co-hosts of eBay and Beyond Radio
  
• Cindy Shebley - WebSellersCircle
  
• Marlene Gavens - The Savvy Seller :-)

Be sure to register asap for this opportunity to get up close and personal with these Rock Stars! Featuring a VIP lounge and prizes and giveaways, you won't want to miss this!

Who's on Your iPod?

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Many people buy iPods so they can listen to music while they're on the go.

The iPod came into my life so I could listen to audiobooks while I was exercising. Exercise is my favorite thing to do - NOT! - so it was my hope that listening to a book would provide the necessary motivation.

And then I found podcasts. Currently my iPod is 90% podcasts and webinars and only about 10% music (mostly classical).

So, who's on my ipod?

Janelle Elms: Janelle's OSI Rock Star site contains hundreds of hours of podcasts and webinars all related to eCommerce and online selling. Comprehensive information that is essential to know if you want your business to succeed.

John Jantsch: These Small Business Marketing podcasts are mostly interviews with the movers and shakers in the 'internet marketing for small business' world. Informative and inspiring.

Jay Berkowitz: The 10 Golden Rules podcasts include tips about leading internet marketing trends, interviews with superstars in the field and interesting contributions from the 10 Golden Rules staff along with the 'song of the week.' A delicious sampling that delivers the goods.

AuctionBytes: eCommerce Industry SoundBytes provides an excellent overview of the eCommerce world as Ina Steiner interviews leaders in the field.

StartupNation Radio: There are several channels here but I like the 'Tips for Entrepreneurs' podcasts best. These address subject areas not found in some of the other podcasts.

Anita Campbell: Small Business Trends Radio is an hour-long radio program featuring in-depth interviews with small business experts. A wide variety of topics are covered and some of the most interesting/helpful are the stories from the trenches which include abundant tips and advice for the small business owner.

Dave White: Dave's eBay and Beyond: Basics to Business podcast and streaming video provides candid, informative and timely information for eCommerce entrepreneurs.

Walt Kolenda: Brainstorming Bonanzle is full of information not just about the Bonanzle platform but about eCommerce selling in general. Topics are always relevant, timely and informative.

John Lawson: Your boy, John 'colderICE' Lawson serves up knowledge along with his winning personality during the B.S. Walks podcast and live streaming video. Definitely a spicy new flavor and perspective on eCommerce!

Debbie Levitt: Debbie Levitt, CEO of AsWas, hosts a call-in radio show called Talking eBay with AsWas which encompasses eBay, website selling strategies, branding, marketing, design, business models, tools and social media.

Who's on YOUR ipod??