Entries Tagged 'Presidential Race' ↓
August 27th, 2008 — Presidential Race
Could the pant suit be the new Elmo TMX for the holiday season this year? Will crazy shoppers be storming the local Sears store at 6AM to get the last orange pant suit?
U.S. politicians, especially presidents have set trends in fashion for many years. Presidents wore top hats to their inaugurations from the days of honest Abe Lincoln until Lyndon Johnson was inaugurated in 1965. First Lady Jackie Kennedy set the tone for women in the 1960's. Now Senator Hillary Clinton is making her mark.
Could the pant suit be the new "little black dress"? If Breakfast at Tiffany's was remade today, would Audrey Hepburn wear pant suits?
Get ready for the holidays! Start shopping now while there is still a choice. You do not want to be the one in an ill-fitting (and God-forbid) floral print pant suit at the family Christmas dinner this year.
You can be on the cutting edge of pant suit fashion right here. Go shopping! Beat the rush!
Popularity: 15% [?]
August 23rd, 2008 — Presidential Race
The big news broke about Barack Obama's choice of a running mate last night as I was finishing my Little Debbie Oatmeal Cream Pie. Joe Biden, the Democrat Senator from Delaware is the man. I did a quick search with Terapeak to see how eBay items related to the Senator have been performing.
Between August 12 and August 18, there were only 12 (yes, one dozen) items with the keyword "Biden." The sell-through rate was only 25% with an average price of $6.31. Not too impressive by any stretch.
When I looked this morning, there were 150+ items. (Actually, when I started writing this post there were 140, now it's 152.) This is a good example of how to ride a wave of media coverage. Lots of items are obviously CafePress creations by quick thinkers. 
This phenomena will happen again during the run-up to John McCain's announcement, and the Republican convention. Will you be ready?
Some cool political memorabilia will be rolled out - such as Joe Biden's Senate cufflinks listed today. Here are the latest Joe Biden items. Will they be a good investment?
Popularity: 13% [?]
June 17th, 2008 — Presidential Race, eBay News and Talk
I hope you have your agenda completed for eBay Live! in Chicago. I'll be speaking each day and hope you'll attend my classes and introduce yourself. Here's my schedule:
Picking a Niche and Pricing for Profit Thursday, 12:30 to 2:00 PM
I'll be presenting this along with Lisa Suttora from WhatDoISell.com, and former Director of Community and Education for Doba, Mikal Belicove.
Here's the description:
eBay sellers often wonder what they should sell, and how to sell it for a profit. Knowing the answers to these two questions is vital to the success of every online retailer. In this seminar, you will learn how to answer these questions for themselves as we share tips and techniques employed by top-selling eBay sellers and successful online businesses worldwide. Specifically, you'll learn: How to pick a profitable specialty niche, how to increase the passion for their online business, why we might see a "retail" price cheaper than "wholesale" and why creative marketing is more important than competitive pricing.
Blog to Boost Your Business on eBay
Mikal Belicove and I presented this last year to a packed room. We've freshened it up for this year and will present it twice. Friday, 1:00 - 2:30 PM and Saturday, 3:00 - 4:30 PM.
Here is what we'll cover the blogging seminar:
Stay competitive in the packed world of e-commerce. Blogging provides you with a marketing medium like no other stage, where you can demonstrate your passion for products and commitment to your customers. Here, learn how to implement a blog in your marketing programs. After attending this session, you will be able to add the personal touch that's missing from a majority of buyer-seller transactions, boost your credibility and find that competitive edge you need to take your eBay business to the next level.
Popularity: 14% [?]
February 5th, 2008 — Presidential Race
[tag]Super Tuesday[/tag] is here and people are [tag]voting[/tag] in 21 states across the nation. I have used Terapeak to track [tag]eBay[/tag] sales related to the various candidates throughout the past several months. In doing so, I've seen a very interesting trend over the past month. (See the chart below)
Barack pulls way ahead of Hillary
Throughout the entire year, [tag]Hillary Clinton[/tag] supporters or fans have kept her name at the top of the list with the highest number of listings, sell-through rate, and total sales. In the month of January though, [tag]Barack Obama[/tag] has swamped her on eBay. Over twice as many listings, 10% higher sell-through rate, higher average price, and $15,000 higher total sales. Wow. Talk about a surge, Mr. Obama even beat Ron Paul, and Hillary only did that once. This surge of support for Barack Obama has me predicting he will be the overall winner at the end of the day today, and ultimately receive the Democrat nomination for president.
Ron Paul still ahead, bless his heart
[tag]Ron Paul[/tag] has led one of the most interesting campaigns I've ever seen. His supporters are fascinating. They have used eBay in ways no other presidential campaign ever has. More than any other candidate, his supporters have used eBay to sell campaign materials supporting their man. They've been amazing.
The actual results though, show he doesn't have much of a chance at really receiving the nomination. So although he's been on top of the Republican list all year, I'm looking further down the list.
[tag]Mike Huckabee[/tag] has also had a following on eBay, but again, looking at the situation so far this year and the states since Iowa I have to say there hasn't been much new movement. I'm moving down the list to [tag]John McCain[/tag].
McCain has had the biggest surge in eBay activity over the past month. In fact I actually took him off the list at one point because I thought he was about to pack up and quit. So to see him have over a thousand listings to his name, with a 55% sell-through rate is pretty impressive. I think things are building for John McCain. I predict he'll squeak by tonight when all the votes are in.
[tag]Mitt Romney[/tag] continues to be the most boring candidate left. With a 39% sell-through rate, I won't be buying any Mitt Romney merchandise just yet for resale on eBay. It's ironic too - since he, Meg, and [tag]John Donahoe[/tag] are acquaintances. Is Mitt getting the eBay seller backlash? Could eBay's recent changes have shifted the [tag]Presidential Race[/tag] and ultimately changed world history? Oh the humanity!
Here's the chart: 
Popularity: 4% [?]
December 3rd, 2007 — Presidential Race
[tag]Ron Paul[/tag] supporters have pushed their man to new heights over the past month by selling over $100,000 worth of goods in his name. Much goes to directly support the campaign, and other items lend support through signs, and bumper stickers. In any case, these people are virtually blowing away the competition - and it seems no one in major media is noticing.
Throughout the summer, I've followed the presidential candidates on [tag]eBay[/tag] - or should I say, interest in the [tag]candidates [/tag]- as indicated by sales on the site. There have been some minor ups and downs, but candidate Ron Paul has consistently maintained a substantial lead over the other contenders. His supporters have used eBay as a fund raising platform as well as a way to simply draw attention to their man.
Part of the reason Ron Paul is so high on this chart is an interesting [tag]gold coin[/tag] on eBay. This coin vaulted Ron Paul to the top of the charts and many of the sellers are explicitly listing them as a way to directly support Senator Paul. It's the Ron Paul [tag]Liberty Dollar[/tag] and it is available in gold, silver, and copper. You won't be able to buy them through the Liberty Dollar people however, since the [tag]FBI[/tag] raided their offices on November 29, 2007. Evidently, it's not okay with the [tag]federal government[/tag] to make dollars. So the price just keeps going up on eBay.
For all the hubbub over [tag]Huckabee[/tag], [tag]Hillary[/tag], [tag]Romney[/tag] and [tag]Obama[/tag] - they stink when it comes to eBay sales. Okay sure, maybe their supporters aren't eBay people. But which demographic is that? eBay sellers can be found across the board. So how can the difference be explained? I'm not going to make this a political blog, but any readers are invited to comment below.
By the way, the [tag]Hillary nutcracker[/tag] came in ahead of all the candidates except Hillary and Ron Paul. Seriously...wow.
Popularity: 4% [?]
November 7th, 2007 — Presidential Race
...and [tag]Ron Paul[/tag] is still winning.
The amount of Ron Paul items sold on [tag]eBay[/tag] over the past month beat every other candidate for [tag]U.S. President[/tag], including [tag]Hillary Clinton[/tag]. I have been tracking items on eBay related to the presidential candidates for several months. It is amazing that dark horse [tag]candidate [/tag]Senator Ron Paul continues to outshine a former first lady, the popular and well-known former mayor of New York, and other better-known senators -on eBay.
Who are these people?
You may have heard that Ron Paul had a record [tag]fund raising[/tag] day last Monday. He raised nearly $4 million, and some feel he may raise up to $12 million by the end of the year. His supporters are not slowing down. These are the same tenacious people who sell items on eBay to support their man. Notice the difference in the metrics between Hillary and Ron Paul in the chart:
- Number of listings - Hillary has over twice as many listings mentioning her than Ron Paul
- Average Price - Ron Paul items are selling for 40% less than the former first lady
- Sell-through Rate - Ron Paul has an amazing 69% sell-through rate (this is good for any eBay category)
- Total Sales - Even though he has less items, and the average sale price is less, Ron Paul still comes out ahead because of the high sell-through rate
The difference is in the items themselves. The Hillary items that sell are mostly memorabilia. Old items will autographs, etc. Ron Paul items are campaign supplies. Bumper stickers, car-top signs, buttons, pens, you name it.
I hope the Ron Paul supporters on eBay get invited to the inaugural ball.
Oh by the way, the [tag]Hillary Nutcracker[/tag] continues to sell at a higher rate than everyone but Ron Paul - it even sells better than the Hillary stuff.[tags][/tags]
Popularity: 5% [?]
September 30th, 2007 — Presidential Race
[tag]Ron Paul[/tag] supporters helped their candidate stay at the top of the heap this week on eBay. Selling buttons, pins, bumper stickers, banners and anything else to support their man, Ron Paul items totalled $3,341 last week compared to the top Democrat Hillary Clinton's $2,252. Once again, the popular [tag]Hillary Clinton nutcracker[/tag] came in near the top of both Democrat and Republicans at $920.
Everything has it's price...
I have a few things with autographs that I hold as special keepsakes. My [tag]autographs [/tag]from Red Skelton, Rodney Dangerfield, and Henry Ford II all hold a special place to me. Those guys were important to me and took time to stop and pay attention to a teenage kid. I wouldn't sell those items. So why are so many people selling autographed [tag]Hillary Clinton[/tag] books? Is that a sign of support? I don't think so. It seems more a sign of jumping on the bandwagon and selling something while there are buyers. Wouldn't the book be worth more if she was the first woman president? Are people dumping the books because they feel she won't make it?
Ron Paul supporters once again are almost without exception selling items to further the "[tag]Ron Paul Revolution[/tag]." I must say, [tag]Fred Thompson[/tag] supporters are also using eBay as a way to spread their candidate's paraphernalia.
The Polls
With Ron Paul the usual exception, eBay items reflect the current average poll standings of candidates from both parties. I even saw one seller of old LPs breaking the eBay rules by inserting "Ron Paul" in his eBay listing titles just to get people's attention I suppose. Does Ron have anything to do with the musical "Hair?"
[tags]eBay, Presidential Race[/tags]
Popularity: 4% [?]
September 23rd, 2007 — Presidential Race
In the race for President of the United States, supporters come up with novel ideas to promote their candidate. Ten years ago, few people thought eBay could become a vehicle for getting the word out, but now it has become just that. If you ever wondered what to sell on eBay, CafePress, or any other online shopping spot, the next year will offer a built-in opportunity.
How can a seller find products to sell for their candidate? The election is but one trend on the horizon, there is also the end of the NASCAR season, the holiday selling season, Super Bowl XLII, and so on. It takes a little time, so now is the time to start. You can get in touch with the actual wholesalers and manufacturers by using the directory at Worldwide Brands. You'll find the products you want to sell, and people willing to do business with small sellers. Read their FREE article titled:
Understanding Consumer Buying Trends — Building Dynamic Product Lines
Ron Paul and Ru Paul
Where else could you see these two together? In an interesting social commentary, I found that people are more interested in Ru Paul than most of the people running for U.S. President this week. (If Ru Paul ran for president, which box do we check? Man, Woman, Other?) In any case, once again the results for most candidates is pretty dull.
Hillary, Barack, Ron, and Fred
In a nutshell (no pun intended):
- Ron Paul came in a solid first again this week. As usual his supporters spreading the word of their man using the World's Online Marketplace.
- Hillary Clinton made the Sunday talk show circuit today, so we'll see if it makes people run to their computers for Hillary items in next week's installment. By the way, the Hillary Nutcracker is still selling at a steady clip, as noted in the chart.
- Barack Obama is holding steady at third overall. I must say he is very consistent from week to week.
- Fred Thompson is the big mover this week. He has really jumped up in the results and holds a very solid second with Republicans. Barack Obama may lose his third place spot to Fred if he doesn't do something big in the next week.
[tags]Ron Paul, Ru Paul, RuPaul, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Fred Thompson, Hillary Nutcracker, Rudy Giuliani, eBay, Presidential Candidates, sales trends[/tags]
Popularity: 3% [?]
September 17th, 2007 — Presidential Race
Ron Paul continues to lead this week in eBay items sold that bear his name in the title. He is so far ahead that it's almost humdrum. Hillary Clinton is second as she has been for some time. This week however, I have broken out the Hillary Nutcracker into it's own box, and that is the real news for this week.
Hillary Nutcracker nearly beats Obama
The Hillary nutcracker scored sales of $1411 last week with a great sell-through rate of 84%. That beats nearly every other candidate from either party. Poor Barack Obama was nearly beaten by a kitchen utensil. There is still a year left to come up with some other clever idea and jump on this bandwagon.
Fred Thompson makes a big jump
As expected, Fred Thompson made a big jump this week taking second place in the Republican chart. He's at nearly $1000 for the week and the items being sold are quite similar to the Ron Paul items that have been selling for months. Campaign buttons, bumper stickers, and signs for Fred Thompson are hot - as indicated by his above-average sell-through rate.
John McCain and Rudy Giuliani really slipped this week. I'm not sure what big event precipitated their fall, but Thompson and Paul mopped the floor with them.
As usual I thank Terapeak for their research tool. Try out Terapeak here.
[tags]Hillary Clinton,Barack Obama, Hillary Nutcracker,Ron Paul,Rudy Giuliani,John Mccain,eBay,Presidential Race,eBay Sales,Fred Thompson[/tags]
Popularity: 3% [?]
September 8th, 2007 — Presidential Race
Well, it's that time of week again. I've researched [tag]eBay [/tag]for items related to the US [tag]Presidential candidates[/tag] for the week of August 29th through September 3. [tag]Ron Paul[/tag] is far and away the leader again this week. His supporters continue to use eBay to spread the "[tag]Ron Paul Revolution[/tag]".
Hillary Items Last Week
Wow. Hillary. Just doing some straight research puts [tag]Hillary Clinton[/tag] about $1000 behind in this 
weeks dollars spent on eBay. However, doing a little filtering for anti-Hillary items, takes her down to over $1200 less than Ron Paul. Let's look at a couple of these items.
First of all the [tag]nutcracker[/tag]s. Lots of nutcrackers are selling. In fact over $200 this week. But that wasn't the most interesting item. I think the 1991 Hillary Clinton [tag]Dominatrix[/tag] Standup Figure was the most interesting. The seller is clearly not a Hillary supporter, adding to the description that the standee is suitable for target practice but "has not been shot at yet." This item cost the new owner $20.50.
Fred Thompson makes it official
When [tag]Fred Thompson[/tag] made his bid for President official on the [tag]Jay Leno[/tag] show last week, I thought we'd see a little bump in his listings. We do see a lift from about 53 items to 65 this week. And the items for sale are closest in nature to Ron Paul's pure campaign items. We'll keep an eye on Fred. Oh and if anyone finds a standee of Fred Thomson in leather and holding a whip, drop me a line okay?
[tags]barack obama,john edwards,dennis kucinich,mike huckabee,jim gilmore,rudy giuliani,joe biden,sam brownback,john mccain,tommy thompson,christopher dodd,2008 election[/tags]
Popularity: 4% [?]
September 4th, 2007 — Presidential Race
I just got back from [tag]San Jose[/tag]. My mother-in-law had a heart attack so I've been occupied with that situation. While driving north on Highway 17 near [tag]eBay[/tag] headquarters, I saw on an overpass a big banner for the Ron Paul revolution. That's the same overpass where impromptu flags, and banners were placed right after 9/11. A [tag]patriotic[/tag] spot evidently.
The past two weeks results
I've missed the eBay tally for the past two weeks. So I'm going to catch up today. I was quite surprised by the spread which is actually 
increasing in favor of [tag]Ron Paul[/tag]. In fact, Ron Paul supporters are using eBay to an extent no one else has ever done to promote their candidate for [tag]President[/tag]. As I mentioned in earlier posts, Ron Paul supporters are moving large amounts of campaign materials through eBay at relatively low rates. This shows that they're not solely interested in making money, but they are really getting the word out via bumper stickers, flyers, and of course the Ron Paul car-top Sign.
I've only included the results for [tag]Hillary Rodham Clinton[/tag] and Ron Paul for these two weeks. The other candidates are still way back and I'll include them in next week's tally, boring results and all... But just look at the difference for these two weeks. And - the sell-through rate for Ron Paul remains incredibly high at nearly 80%. Comments are welcome. Thanks for your interest.
[tags]presidential election,2008,hillary,revolution[/tags]
Popularity: 3% [?]
August 19th, 2007 — Presidential Race
If he is, you can find a campaign button on eBay that testifies to that. In fact those buttons are about all that pushed Ron Paul past Hillary in this week's eBay Presidential standings.
What are they selling?
Ron's supporters are busy selling campaign related material such as bumper stickers, yard signs, campaign buttons, and pens for the 2008 U.S. Presidential race. The items for other candidates are primarily focused on historical items such as signed books, and photos. Again I believe the difference in the items reflects the difference in the supporters passion for their candidates. In fact, many of the collectible items don't really show support for the candidate so much as an opportunity to grab a cool book or autograph while it's hot. They could be supporters or not. But if you are selling or buying 50 Ron Paul bumper stickers, chances are you feel Ron Paul is your Homeboy - as the expression goes.
Hillary Nutcracker
One item that has me a little flummoxed is the super hot Hillary Nutcracker. My research puts this item in the "Hillary" column, however I'll wager they are not laying around in the break room at Clinton for President Headquarters. I don't really think it's in support of Hillary per se, but I can't really start judging individual items within the results now. There's no clear way to throw nutcracker support to any particular Republican candidate. So I'll leave the results as is for now with the reasoning that if Hillary wasn't running, nutcrackers in her likeness would be at a virtual standstill. So lets give her some credit. And hide your nuts.
[tags]Ron Paul, Hillary Clinton, nutcracker,eBay,campaign,giuliani,mccain,obama,presidential race, hillary nutcracker[/tags]
Popularity: 4% [?]
August 11th, 2007 — Presidential Race
What does it say about a candidate that they haven't got enough buzz to show up on eBay? Hillary Clinton has been in the public eye for thirty+ years, Mitt Romney is making gains, and Barack Obama and Rudy Giuliani have girls fighting over them on YouTube. Yet Ron Paul supporters have trounced all of them in the world's largest online marketplace.
Other eBay Item Details
I'm not sure what it means, but there are a few other differences in items mentioning the Hillary and Ron.
- Ron Paul items ending on Sunday between 9-10AM (Pacific) have the highest success rate.
- Hillary Clinton items have the highest chance of success on Tuesdays, between 10-11AM (Pacific).
- The most successful Ron Paul items contain the keywords "for" and "bumper", and are found in the Collectibles category on eBay.
- The most successful Hillary Clinton items contain the keywords "2008" and "president" and are also listed in the Collectibles category.
The amazing thing is still Ron Paul's high conversion or sell-through rate. It just dipped below 70% this week. That's still very high for eBay, where people are always looking for a successful product line to sell. So Ron Paul supporters, this is your chance! The other candidates supporters seem to be missing the boat here.
How are they doing it?
First of all, the passion for Ron Paul, by Ron Paul supporters is amazing. They really believe in him and want to spread the word. It really shows a difference between Ron Paul and the other candidates. A lot of them are making things to sell on their own to support their man.
If you're not familiar with it, CafePress.com
is a great site to make your own t-shirts, hats, coffee mugs, etc. with your customized design or slogan. Then you can either sell the items through [tag]CafePress[/tag] or eBay. Just shopping there is interesting. There is some extremely funny items as well as unique merchandise you won't find on eBay or anywhere else. Take a look at their 2008 Political stuff here.
Shop Political T-shirts and More at CafePress.com
[tags]eBay, Ron Paul, Obama, Hillary Clinton, Giuliani, 2008, president, Cafe Press, Mccain, election, polls, politics[/tags]
Popularity: 4% [?]
August 5th, 2007 — Presidential Race
Sales of Ron Paul items on eBay last week put [tag]Ron Paul[/tag] back on top in the eBay Presidential Race over Hillary Clinton who had taken the top spot for the two previous weeks. Items include bumper stickers, signs, and commemorative silver dollars - but also the backlit car top sign which has been reduced in price to $89.95.
Rudy and Barack doing better this week
Items for Rudy Giuliani and Barack Obama have done better this week, solidifying both of their number two spots for this week.
Changes on hand for next week?
It will be interesting to see if there's any changes in store for the Democrats after the Yearly Kos convention in Las Vegas. The attendees have a lot of influence through their blogs and those online readers are also online buyers. We'll see next week.
Differences in the research this week
When researching eBay for these results, I've used saved searches for consistency over the past several weeks. However, I've decided to tweak a few things to make this contest more realistic. Lots of factors play into this decision, such as [tag]Hillary Clinton[/tag]'s association with Bill Clinton and their place as historical figures not related specifically to the 2008 race. For example, if people are selling Bill Clinton's book, with Hillary's signature, that's not a real indication of support for her [tag]run for President[/tag], but a historical collectible. If someone is selling items that deal specifically with Hillary though, I'm leaving them in the mix. So I've gathered results this week on Hillary and excluded Bill. I've looked back over the past couple of weeks to see if that would have changed the standings, and although it would have been tighter, it didn't change the order. Also, for [tag]Obama[/tag] and [tag]Giuliani[/tag], I've only included research on their last names, since they're pretty unique and many sellers don't mention their first names or spell them wrong.
One thing I'd like to do is drop the laggers at the ends of both lists. But I think their weak showing makes a strong statement, so I'll leave them on for awhile.
As usual, comments and questions are welcome.
[tags]presidential race, 2008 race,presidential candidates, Yearly Kos, bloggers, Bill Clinton, eBay[/tags]
Popularity: 4% [?]
