Do you make money with your blog? No matter what you write about, you can spruce up your posts, and earn a little along the way with phpBay Pro. phpBay Pro is a Wordpress plugin that pulls live items from eBay and displays them in your blog posts. It automatically adds your affiliate ID for the eBay Partner Network.
The plugin displays results based on information you supply in your post. The code that's inserted into your post looks like this:
[phpbay]keyword(s), num, "", ""[/phpbay]
You insert your keyword where it's specified, and the number of results you want to display. The third parameter is for the eBay category if you want to be specific, and the fourth is for exclusion keywords.
If you wanted to show kitten heel shoes, 9 of them, in Women's Shoes, but not green, your code would look like this:
[phpbay]kitten heel, 9, "63889", "green"[/phpbay]
And here are the results displayed:
Normally, it searches for one keyword or search term. But what if you wanted to display results for two terms? Just add a vertical bar between the keywords and you can perform an "OR" search. The vertical bar is usually located on the key above the "enter" key, the same key as the backslash.
For an example, I wouldn't normally find John McCain items alongside Barack Obama items. What if I wanted to mingle them together? All in the spirit of unity of course. The phpBay code would like this:
[phpbay]john mccain | barack obama, 9, "", ""[/phpbay]
And here are the two candidates' items all mixed together:
Popularity: 25% [?]
As I've mentioned in a couple of my previous posts, I presented one of the last seminars at [tag]eBay Live![/tag] in Boston two weeks ago. Mikal Belicove (Doba) and I presented to several hundred people there and received a very nice reaction from the crowd. Many, many came up to us after we concluded with more questions, and positive comments. Most said they were going to go straight home and start a blog to talk about their [tag]eBay business[/tag].
A Blog "Kit"
Since I started this site about eight months ago, I've found many [tag]blogging resources[/tag] that I particularly like. I have put them together into a "kit" of sorts to help those [tag]new bloggers[/tag] get started. I'll include the basic components a person will need to get on the way to the blogosphere. It will not just be a discussion of what can be done and what's out there for you - but I'm going to suggest certain things to save you the trouble of figuring it all out yourself. I spent a lot of time up front trying to figure this stuff out, I wish someone I trusted would have just said, "Here, do this." So that's what I'm going to do.
I invite you now to my site called: MyBlogKit.com I sincerely hope you find it helpful. I do not claim to be a blogging expert, but I figure I can share what I've learned to save you and anyone you send here some time.
Popularity: 4% [?]
Blogging to Boost Your Business - Part II: Maximizing Your Blog's Potential
by Mikal Belicove, Director of Community and Education - Doba
In Part I of this article, we give you four great reasons for blogging about the products you sell. A blog won't do much good, though, unless it draws the attention of consumers who are in the market for the products you sell. Fortunately, the Web offers numerous promotional opportunities to steer prospective customers to your blog. In this part, we reveal several of these opportunities and show you how to skyrocket the visibility or your blog and, ultimately, your business.
Capitalize on opportunities to [tag]promote your blog[/tag]
The information superhighway is loaded with space where you can erect virtual billboards and road signs directing traffic to your blog. After you create your roadside attraction, start erecting signs, so passersby know how to get there:
- Spread your link far and wide. Established websites and blogs already have a steady stream of traffic that you can steer your way. Search for websites and blogs related to the items you sell, and ask the creators of those sites to link to your blog. (Steer clear of competitors, of course.) In exchange, offer to link from your blog to their site. For example, if you sell model trains, see if some of the national or regional membership associations for model train enthusiasts would be willing to provide a link to your site in exchange for one back to theirs.
- Take a detour around obstacles. eBay prohibits sellers from linking listings to an external sites that sell goods. You can, however, link to any type of site from your [tag]eBay About Me[/tag] page, without breaking the rules. Simply place a link to your blog on your About Me page, and then delicately mention your About Me page in your eBay listing.
- Use incentives to lure customers to your blog. Add a sweet morsel to entice viewers and send them rapidly clicking to your blog. Your incentive should be clear enough to be enticing but vague enough that readers will need to visit your blog to find out how to obtain the reward. For example, you might say, "Save 10% off your next purchase by visiting my blog.
- List your blog with the leading blog indexes and search engines. This part is really a cinch, as complex as it might sound. Why? Because Google does most of the work for you. As the world's leading search engine, Google is guaranteed to bring blog readers your way with its blog-specific search tool. The best part? You have to ask them not to list you, otherwise, you're automatically in the ring. Aside from Google, you have a few other fantastic opportunities for getting your blog to stand out among the abyss go to [tag]Technorati[/tag].com and register there under "Claim my blog" for free exposure. [tag]The Truth Laid Bear[/tag] Blogosphere Ecosystem does the same for you—head to Truthlaidbear.com/ecosystem.php and sign up for a free account. These sites even let you see how readers are ranking your blog.
Use your blog to shuttle readers to your store
People visit blogs because of curiosity, personal connections, and in a quest for knowledge, and they do not appreciate heavy-handed sales pitches. You can and should, however, mention your products and link to your webstore. Blogs are a perfect venue for
soft-sell sales. Here are a few tips to get you started:
- Talk about your [tag]eBay business[/tag] or eCommerce [tag]webstore[/tag]. Briefly mention your store in every other blog entry or so, and devote an entire entry every few weeks or so to your business. Relate to fellow hobbyists and aficionados on a personal level, cluing them in on the vision behind your business, your reasons for starting it, and your passion for running it.
- Post [tag]links to your store[/tag] in conspicuous places, but keep them to a reasonable minimum. Use your judgment as a consumer to determine how much is enough.
- Optimize the use of page layout to draw attention to your eBay account's presence. Post a link in a speech bubble of sorts near the top of your blog, highlight it with colors and borders, vary the font and font size from that of your
blog, and put it where you know readers won't miss it. Let your creative juices and your intuition guide you, but try not to make it look like too much like an ad.
Clone your blog in other locales
Once you've created a blog, you've done most of the heavy-lifting in terms of design and content. Leverage the power of your blog by cloning it on other free blog hosting services. Here are a couple suggestions:
- eBay's My World at myworld.ebay.com enables you to harness the marketing power of eBay and direct eBay member traffic to your blog.
- MySpace at www.myspace.com offers access to a huge community of active bloggers of all ages. Through the MySpace "groups" feature, you can create your own active, loyal community and drive traffic to your [tag]eBay[/tag] account or webstore.
Tip: As much as possible, design the cloned blog to mimic your own, creating somewhat of a brand presence. Countless site-design tools offer free tips to help you customize a MySpace page, and one great tool I recently found allows you to easily fashion your [tag]eBay My World[/tag] page after your blog. Check out www.isdntek.com for lots of great guides and shortcuts.
As you've discovered in Parts I and II of this article, a blog can be a powerful marketing tool, assuming you manage it properly. Don't let the clamor of other competing retailers drown out your presence in the marketplace. Harness the power of blogging to raise yourself and your business above the rest.
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About the Author: Mikal E. [tag]Belicove[/tag] is an expert at building and supporting online communities of practice and Business-to-Business-related social networks. As Doba's Director of Community &
Education, Mikal oversees the company's efforts to educate retail business owners and connect customers with one another. Mikal is the author of 2007 Edition of the Internet Yellow Pages (Que Publishing/ Pearson, 10/06), co-authored with Joe Kraynak.
Note: You are invited to reprint this article in your own newsletter or on your blog or website, provided that all content—including this signature—is included and remains unchanged.
Popularity: 5% [?]
By Mikal E. Belicove, Director of Community & Education - Doba
To the average online shopper, you're just another small retailer trying to earn a buck on the Internet. If you sell on eBay, all a buyer knows about you is right there in your product listing and perhaps your seller rating, and that isn't much. If you operate an eCommerce-enabled website, maybe you have an "About" page that says a little something about you and your company. At the end of the day, though, that isn't much, either!
Sound brutal? It is. But so is the retail business. In the global marketplace, anyone can attempt to sell anything. To succeed, you have to prove why you're special, and one of the best ways to do that is to publish a blog.
A blog is an online soapbox of sorts, a stage upon which you can demonstrate your passion and knowledge for your product line, individual products, and commitment to your customers. It's a virtual community that encourages visitors to interact and talk back. It's a marketing tool that gives you a daily opportunity to earn credibility and trust,the two most valuable assets that money can't buy.
Technically speaking, a blog is an easily, instantly, and frequently updated website, created and maintained by using free and easy-to-use software designed for people who don't want to learn how to design a website or use HTML.
In Part I of this article, I show you how [tag]blogging [/tag]can help grow your online business. Essentially, our point is this: If you design a blog that attracts readers and earn their loyalty (thanks to your fount of knowledge, charming wit, or stellar writing skills), you should be able to capitalize on the intrigue and convert these viewers into paying customers. With minimal efforts, your customer base can literally multiply.
In Part II, you gather strategies and tips to take full advantage of your blog and maximize its potential for supporting the sale of your products and building an active community of loyal customers.
Establish your credibility as an expert in consumers' eyes
Clearly, if you have enough to say about a topic that you can fill pages about it, you know much more than a thing or two about that topic. Odds are you've done your homework and have gone above and beyond, after all, what passionate person is satisfied with just the need-to-know info about the object of his affection? By exploring and explaining various aspects of a hobby or item and sharing your two cents for thought or discussion, you gain credibility with others as an authority in that field.
Anyone with a degree in Business Administration will recognize this concept as [tag]thought leadership[/tag]. But we know you don't need a business degree to run a successful business, what you really need to know is how to actually achieve this kind of success-building leadership. The key: Know as much as you can about your products, and spread the word like wildfire. Encourage others to participate in the dialogue, and they'll eagerly jump on board your blog. Of course, professional presentation and verbal skill is essential to garnering this kind of respect. By continually investigating your topic and sharing your knowledge with others, in addition to adding your own commentary, you can establish a reputation with consumers as the guru that you are. And who better to buy from than a guru!
Note: Be aware that you can easily create a poor reputation if you don't maintain professionalism in your blog. So, be sure to decide first how you want to present yourself and then consistently follow through with that vision. This is not to say that you should write in a way that readers need a dictionary on hand to decipher your guru-speak. See Part II of this article for tips on setting and maintaining the right tenor.
Enhance visibility and [tag]widen your customer base[/tag]
In everyday life you have numerous ways of communicating about your interests: face to face, on the phone, via e-mail, and so on. You're limited, though, to those people near you or those you manage to meet. Blogging, however, expands your influence; it's essentially your own public monologue that buyers can find and respond to as they wish. With a blog, your potential audience is virtually limitless.
In addition, not everyone who's interested in a particular product or topic is seeking to shop—Cyberspace has window shoppers, too. Your eBay account or online store, then, may be unlikely to reach that audience, but a blog offers a way to attract surfers who may not otherwise see your products. Engage them, direct them to your store, and watch as your sales increase.
Blogs have a number of ways to rise among the infinite sea of Web pages, the most common being via search engines. As long as you establish your privacy settings as completely public, a search engine will pull up your blog among other results when it locates a requested keyword. See Part II of this article for more strategies on [tag]boosting your blog's visibility[/tag].
Establish an emotional connection with your readers
More often than not, common interests attract. A connection is made, a lasting friendship is born, and the story continues. Nowadays, people are taking advantage of the wide expanse of the Internet as a prime locale for building relationships. It encourages interaction simply by virtue of the mandatory mouse-click. Click, read, connect, engage.
Suppose, for example, you blog about your passion for low-brow art (which you also happen to sell). Other lovers of low-brow art are likely to find you, look around your blog, jump in on the discussions, and take a look at the items you're selling on eBay or another eCommerce-enabled site that you conspicuously link out to. They'll see what you're all about, and if they like it, they'll come back for more.
Blog readers don't fool around when it comes to blogs they enjoy; they quickly become regulars, akin to the cohorts at Cheers. Passion meets passion, and sparks fly. The result: a growing relationship based on an emotional connection, initiated thanks to your enthusiasm for the thing you love and sell.
Boost enthusiasm for your products
When you write a blog that relates to your online business, not only does it create a common place for you to connect with readers, but it also builds enthusiasm for your products. The saying "Enthusiasm is contagious" is an age-old adage that still holds some truth. Consider for a moment school pep rallies, pre-game tailgating, reality television, political rallies, and religious gatherings. The same holds true for anything you and others value.
Put yourself in the Web surfer's sandals: Suppose you've taken a liking to model cars. You happen upon a fellow model-car-devotee's blog and are introduced to cars you've never seen and aspects of model-car collecting that you've never considered. Gradually, you're drawn in as you survey the glory of the model car, and thanks to the efficiency of Web browsers, you're able to easily bookmark your new favorite page. Your initial reaction to the site was likely one of excitement, and as you continue to revisit the blog, your gusto grows, sparked by one person's passion for your common love. Sooner or later, you recognize a deep need to act on your quickly escalating hobby. So, you put your money where your heart is, and voila! The blog aficionado has just earned your business, which likely won't be a one-time investment, thanks to the fervor welling up within you (and the goose pimples you got when you clicked "Confirm purchase").
Now that you're aware of blogging's many potential benefits, hopefully you're a little closer to taking the leap and creating one of your own. In Part II of this article, you discover a host of strategies and tips for maximizing the effectiveness of this powerful online marketing tool.
About the Author: Mikal E. Belicove is an expert at building and supporting online communities of practice and Business-to-Business-related social networks. As Doba's Director of Community & Education, Mikal oversees the company's efforts to educate retail business owners and connect customers with one another. Mikal is the author of 2007 Edition of the Internet Yellow Pages (Que Publishing/ Pearson, 10/06), co-authored with Joe Kraynak.
Note: You are invited to reprint this article in your own newsletter or on your blog or website, provided that all content, including this signature is included and remains unchanged.
[tags]blogging to increase business,ebay[/tags]
Popularity: 5% [?]
In an effort to improve my writing ability I've been reading a book entitled "Woe is I - The Grammarphobe's Guide to Better English in Plain English" by Patricia T. O'Conner. She presents the subject in a humorous way and takes a lot of the stuffiness out of learning proper grammar.
