As we were growing up and in school we were always told not to copy other people and if we did we got into serious trouble not just at school but also when we got home. Then as we grew up we often carried this thought into all areas of our lives, business and personal. But today I want you to through this thought out the window and take another look and re-visit the idea of copying other people and businesses.
When we sell online and on sites such as eBay, we can brainstorm and spend weeks and often months looking for that brand new product or service that no one has heard or seen before, now while there is nothing wrong in this concept and I would also suggest we are on the lookout for the next big seller there is another way, that often people miss use or just pass on over as it seems so easy.
Before we get into the main part of the article I want to say what this process is not. It is NOT copying someone title word for word, nor is taking their pictures and listings and using their wording and lastly it is NOT using layout to the letter. So, now we got that out the way let’s take a closer look at what I am talking about.
While you are searching eBay for a new product or product range you use research tools such as eBay pulse (eBay pulse shows a snap shot of what is hot right now in each category and is updated on a very very regular basis.), you come across some hot sellers in say the baby category. After further research you find these items are fast sellers and sell multiple times a day and there are dozen of sellers all selling these items. This tells you this item sells.
Now you can either jump on the band wagon, source the same brand name item and join them, and make some money. But let’s look at this copy cat idea a bit deeper………go onto a site such as Alibaba and source some non-branded product that is the same it just does not have the brand name on it. Very often this allows you to buy at a cheaper rate. Here you have copied the idea, but gone with a non-branded name.
Next take a look at the keywords they use, number of pictures and types of pictures they use, then using your own layout and titles and descriptions start to list the products and then watch the products sell.
As I mentioned at the start this is not about taking the listing and product and copying it word for word, no it is about copying the idea and then putting your own slant and touch to it.
Andrew Milburn is an eBay Consultant based in Lichfield Staffordshire, for further details please phone 07582 889 050
