What many haven't thought about is this simple similarity - anyone who sells something on online auctions, is trying to do the same job as a website owner on a sales page!
There are millions of small websites on the Internet run by individuals selling only one product - very often it is a digital product like an eBook or a membership site. Owners of such websites know very well that the success of their business will depend on how well the sales page converts. In other words - how many of the visitors having dropped into the website will take action and buy the product or subscribe for the membership.
Of course, there are loads of other website types, but here we should look only at typical sales pages because the similarity with eBay listings is undeniable. We can't compare eBay listings with informational websites because of a single reason - people don't go to eBay or other online auctions to search for information. They go there because they want to buy something![1]
And the harsh fact that every Internet seller has to face is - the visitor will make the 'stay or leave' decision within the first eight seconds.[2] So the main task of every online sales page is to retain the visitor in the first place. The rest of the sales process also plays an important role, of course, but it all begins when someone enters your sales offer and scans the first details of it.
When someone decides to start selling something online they have basically two options - either do it on auctions and other marketplaces, or set up their own websites. Many online merchants to both, but let's look at only those two options separately.
When someone joins eBay, all the selling tools are given by eBay by default. The listing process, payment processing - all is automated. So the sellers face the main question - 'What To Sell?' This is the most painful question eBay sellers have and their focus all their effort on finding the ideal product and start making online income.
As opposed to auction sellers, people who so the selling from their websites are facing a number of different questions prior to launching the sales process - the look and feel of the website, design, payment processing and others. But the main difference is - they already know WHAT they're going to sell. They focus the biggest effort on HOW to sell, and HOW to get traffic to their websites.
When people sell on eBay, the traffic is more or less GRANTED - you can literally list something and it will appear on the search results. But people who set up their websites on the Internet have to work hard to get the visitors coming in so they are much more orientated towards the very selling process.
Now can you see the difference?
Since eBay gives the sellers all the tools, their mindset becomes more 'product sourcing' orientated rather than 'selling' orientated!
Of course, I'm not claiming all the online auction sellers are falling into this category. There are real professionals selling on eBay implementing the most sophisticated selling techniques. And eBay, on the other hand, also provides sellers with selling advice. Nonetheless, the average simple seller upon embarking the eBay selling business, is unaware of the needed sales approaches due to a simple reason - the default eBay listing gives just a plain data entry box for the description.
So it's completely up to the seller to decide what to write in there. And how can an average Joe know that the best thing to place in a listing is a professionally designed template with a number or product images and other graphical elements? Not to mention sales writing - essentially copy-writing - which is the factor that makes or brakes the shoppers buying decision!
During the years or the growth of online commerce a number of great Internet marketing coaching companies have established their professional expertise. Their main clientele are average people wanting to start their small online businesses and the growth on this sector is just incredible.
Along the general marketing and sales concepts the website design has been also changing. The ultimate form of small website on the Internet selling a single product - just like an eBay listing - is being referred to as a 'miniwebsite'. And the design solution for the miniwebsites has also taken its ultimate shape and concept.
A header, footer, side graphics and the background design are standard design elements of miniwebsites and they're very easy to put together using simple website builders:
The width and the proportions of the design elements have been set to fit the people's perception. Marketing researches have been conducted to find out how people look in the monitor, what parts of websites they scan first etc.[3]
On the contrary the general eBay listing design remains a few years behind.
There are still thousands of eBay listing without any design concept - just plain text chaotically formatted. And those sellers aren't even aware that such formatting distracts people's attention instead of retaining them on the listing:
Yes, eBay do offer listing templates for additional price - but they are very out-of-date - childish, plain images like stars, flowers, dazzling stars all over the listing and similar motives dominate eBay's own listing templates:
So those sellers who choose to use eBay's offered templates probably have never seen any better and they miss out greatly on an option of getting their listings formatted following the best industry standards.
There is a good number of companies working on eBay software and design solutions. Their main clientele are big sellers and the eBay store fronts which operate like whole websites are being designed and set up with big success.
But what about smaller sellers? Can they afford paying up to a couple thousand of dollars for a store front design? Of course they can't. So they use whatever options they know and most of the times it's the old traditional eBay listing description using a plain text. The rest of the job is left for the listing image and the price.
Yes, the price tag is one of the deciding factor when eBay shoppers make their buying decisions. However, eBay sellers must learn that the selling doesn't end with displaying the standard image and the price.
If an eBay seller can capture the visitors' attention and lead them through a highly optimised small sales pitch using psychological triggers, testimonials, additional images and all that is wrapped up using a nice miniwebsite-like design - the chances of getting a bid or making a sale are much more bigger.
So to recap - the solutions are there, but their favour the big sellers - those who can afford to pay more. But let's not forget that many eBay sellers start small and the more marketing and selling knowledge they have at the start, the faster they'll be able to progress in their business.
There are millions of small websites on the Internet run by individuals selling only one product - very often it is a digital product like an eBook or a membership site. Owners of such websites know very well that the success of their business will depend on how well the sales page converts. In other words - how many of the visitors having dropped into the website will take action and buy the product or subscribe for the membership.
Of course, there are loads of other website types, but here we should look only at typical sales pages because the similarity with eBay listings is undeniable. We can't compare eBay listings with informational websites because of a single reason - people don't go to eBay or other online auctions to search for information. They go there because they want to buy something![1]
And the harsh fact that every Internet seller has to face is - the visitor will make the 'stay or leave' decision within the first eight seconds.[2] So the main task of every online sales page is to retain the visitor in the first place. The rest of the sales process also plays an important role, of course, but it all begins when someone enters your sales offer and scans the first details of it.
Main Conceptual Difference Between Auctions And Internet Websites
When someone decides to start selling something online they have basically two options - either do it on auctions and other marketplaces, or set up their own websites. Many online merchants to both, but let's look at only those two options separately.
When someone joins eBay, all the selling tools are given by eBay by default. The listing process, payment processing - all is automated. So the sellers face the main question - 'What To Sell?' This is the most painful question eBay sellers have and their focus all their effort on finding the ideal product and start making online income.
As opposed to auction sellers, people who so the selling from their websites are facing a number of different questions prior to launching the sales process - the look and feel of the website, design, payment processing and others. But the main difference is - they already know WHAT they're going to sell. They focus the biggest effort on HOW to sell, and HOW to get traffic to their websites.
When people sell on eBay, the traffic is more or less GRANTED - you can literally list something and it will appear on the search results. But people who set up their websites on the Internet have to work hard to get the visitors coming in so they are much more orientated towards the very selling process.
Now can you see the difference?
Since eBay gives the sellers all the tools, their mindset becomes more 'product sourcing' orientated rather than 'selling' orientated!
Of course, I'm not claiming all the online auction sellers are falling into this category. There are real professionals selling on eBay implementing the most sophisticated selling techniques. And eBay, on the other hand, also provides sellers with selling advice. Nonetheless, the average simple seller upon embarking the eBay selling business, is unaware of the needed sales approaches due to a simple reason - the default eBay listing gives just a plain data entry box for the description.
So it's completely up to the seller to decide what to write in there. And how can an average Joe know that the best thing to place in a listing is a professionally designed template with a number or product images and other graphical elements? Not to mention sales writing - essentially copy-writing - which is the factor that makes or brakes the shoppers buying decision!
Differences Between Miniwebsite And eBay Listing Design
During the years or the growth of online commerce a number of great Internet marketing coaching companies have established their professional expertise. Their main clientele are average people wanting to start their small online businesses and the growth on this sector is just incredible.
Along the general marketing and sales concepts the website design has been also changing. The ultimate form of small website on the Internet selling a single product - just like an eBay listing - is being referred to as a 'miniwebsite'. And the design solution for the miniwebsites has also taken its ultimate shape and concept.
A header, footer, side graphics and the background design are standard design elements of miniwebsites and they're very easy to put together using simple website builders:
The width and the proportions of the design elements have been set to fit the people's perception. Marketing researches have been conducted to find out how people look in the monitor, what parts of websites they scan first etc.[3]
On the contrary the general eBay listing design remains a few years behind.
There are still thousands of eBay listing without any design concept - just plain text chaotically formatted. And those sellers aren't even aware that such formatting distracts people's attention instead of retaining them on the listing:
Yes, eBay do offer listing templates for additional price - but they are very out-of-date - childish, plain images like stars, flowers, dazzling stars all over the listing and similar motives dominate eBay's own listing templates:
So those sellers who choose to use eBay's offered templates probably have never seen any better and they miss out greatly on an option of getting their listings formatted following the best industry standards.
What Options Are Out There For Online Auction Sellers
There is a good number of companies working on eBay software and design solutions. Their main clientele are big sellers and the eBay store fronts which operate like whole websites are being designed and set up with big success.
But what about smaller sellers? Can they afford paying up to a couple thousand of dollars for a store front design? Of course they can't. So they use whatever options they know and most of the times it's the old traditional eBay listing description using a plain text. The rest of the job is left for the listing image and the price.
Yes, the price tag is one of the deciding factor when eBay shoppers make their buying decisions. However, eBay sellers must learn that the selling doesn't end with displaying the standard image and the price.
If an eBay seller can capture the visitors' attention and lead them through a highly optimised small sales pitch using psychological triggers, testimonials, additional images and all that is wrapped up using a nice miniwebsite-like design - the chances of getting a bid or making a sale are much more bigger.
So to recap - the solutions are there, but their favour the big sellers - those who can afford to pay more. But let's not forget that many eBay sellers start small and the more marketing and selling knowledge they have at the start, the faster they'll be able to progress in their business.
I work in a company called Spicy Auction Templates and our commitment is to provide affordable and professional eBay listing design solutions to all eBay sellers - no matter what's the selling volume and expertise in online selling:
I'm proud to say that since the launch of the company we're seeing more and more small eBay sellers learning the marketing concepts that have been known for years for the general Internet sellers' public.
Our company has filled a gap in the market and I'm sure many will follow. The challenge we're facing is to actually change eBay sellers perception as to how they understand the whole eBay business concept. The sellers are still more 'product sourcing' focused and while it is an essential question before starting an eBay business - the marketing and design is playing more and more vital role in their ventures.
Thanks for your interest in this article!
If you have any questions regarding this while eBay and Internet selling thing - don't hesitate to drop into our website's contact center and ask us anything!
Best wishes,
Robert Kukurs
I'm proud to say that since the launch of the company we're seeing more and more small eBay sellers learning the marketing concepts that have been known for years for the general Internet sellers' public.
Our company has filled a gap in the market and I'm sure many will follow. The challenge we're facing is to actually change eBay sellers perception as to how they understand the whole eBay business concept. The sellers are still more 'product sourcing' focused and while it is an essential question before starting an eBay business - the marketing and design is playing more and more vital role in their ventures.
Thanks for your interest in this article!
If you have any questions regarding this while eBay and Internet selling thing - don't hesitate to drop into our website's contact center and ask us anything!
Best wishes,
Robert Kukurs
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