I have not mentioned OSI RockStars for some time now. But if you have just started to read this blog, or have as yet not looked at the OSI RockStars site then please pop on over and take advantage of the 10 minute backstage pass.

Janelle Elms the brains behind OSI Rockstars is adding content to it the whole time, and with the forums you have a great resource on learning all about selling on eBay and other online selling platforms.

Go on and take a look, you have nothing to lose but a load to gain.

Andrew Milburn

I have not mentioned this site for sometime, but if you are really serious about taking that next step and learning more about eBay and other methods of online selling and how to drive that all important web traffic to your site, then you need OSI Rock Stars. OSI Rock Stars is the brain child of Janelle Elms. Janelle has an insight into e-retailing that is out of this world.

Janelle and the team at OSI Rock Stars are not affraid to think outside the box, and this shows in the great ways they come up with the ideas to draw traffic to their sites.

f you do decided to join OSI Rock Stars you will learn things about :

Blogging
Video
Article Marketing
Squidoo
Networking
ETC, ETC

There is now well over 100 hours of audio and visual training, with much more being added on a regular basis. And as well as this training by Janelle and her team, you have a very active forum, who are always willing and able to help you with the questions you may have.

So go on, and pop on over to OSI RockStars and take a look.

Happy eBaying

Andrew Milburn

I

In Love

I know In Love is a strange title for a business blog, but I have a reason. Today I was talking with a girl about product sourcing  and she asked me, do I have to love my product or can I sell anything.

To be honest this got me thinking for a bit, and to give me time I asked her to explain what she meant. (As an eBay Education Specialist knows that is a good idea to give you time to think)

Well she came back at me with “Well I love the clubbing scene can I sell products to it” So I went through the usual teaching. Is there a Market, have they got money, have they got a means to pay for the product, etc etc. And she answered yes to all. And when we looked online it backed up all she had said.

But I did warn her that at times being in Love can cloud your business judgement, and if you have fallen in Love with a niche or a product you could be selling well passed the time it can make you money.

Now this girl is one sharp cookie. She maybe only young, (she was doing a business course at the local college ) and you could see her thinking. She said Yeah see what you mean……So again being a bit naughty said see what………she said it is like love in real life. She explained that she could really fancy a lad at uni, and go out with him and fall in love, but soon the lad starts cheating on her , but she is madly in love and cannot see it, even though all her mates are telling her. And it takes her some weeks before the penny drops that he is bad for her. And during that time her energy has beed drained etc.

I said well yes, at times we can all sell a product that we love, and at times have problems dropping it, but if we enter a market with a product like that we must be prepared to drop it or else the product we are in love with will drain our business.

Now a question I would like to ask you all and please leave loads of comments for and againist.

Can we sell a product we don’t love , don’t have feelings for and really market it to it full potential?

Andrew Milburn / AndyUk

Product Sourcing Tips

My last bit of research took me to using the phone and chatting to men and women who had Tattoos.

OSI Rock Stars

Product Sourcing

For anyone who runs a business either online or offline and you sell a real product, product sourcing must be in your blood. If as yet you have not had a Product Sourcing implant than ask me or any of the other Rock Stars and we will help you get one.

Product Sourcing needs to be at the forefront of your mind 24/7. I shall start to cover the basics of how you do this in the blog posts next week.

But here is the Product Sourcing Tip for today.

Look around your own home and what ever you have not used for 12 months add it to your eBay stock.
Once you have added your own items go around family, and if they will not just give you the items, say if it sells you will give them a percentage of the sales price, most times they will agree to this.
And when you have gone through your family, try your friends.

Now I can hear you think yes ok this is a good idea, but think of all the hard work in writing listings , taking pictures, postage and package. Yes it will be hard work, but there is nothing wrong with hard and it will get you used to writing good listings, taking pictures. And this will get you ready when you start to pay for you stock.

Have a Great Day.

Andrew Milburn

OSI RockStars

Amazon Fun Part Three

Today we are going to set up the different parts of opening an Amazon Account. This is easy and staright forward. 

If You do not have an account you need to Get one by Click Here For An Amazon Account . If you do have an account you can skip to next stage.
Next  you need to go to this page Start Here .  Once at this page enter the details of the first item and follow the on screen prompts. It takes less then a minute to list an item, then just keep repeating until all of the item are listed.

During the process of listing Amazon will ask you you have a Payments account set up, if you do not just follow the screen and this will be set up, this allows for them to pay you every fortnight.

Hope This Has Helped You.

Andrew Milburn

OSI ROCKSTARS

Here in the UK we are not as lucky as our friends over in the USA. We do not have garage sales as such….. we have car boot sales, this can be a good place to source products to sell.

Another place to source is Charity Shops, Bring and Buy sales, looking at adverts in the local papers, Craig List,  eBay, Amazon and the list goes on and on.

Today I am going to talk about Charity Shops. Most towns have a few and the largers ones have over a dozen. Pick a day when you are going to visit the town or area. As well as picking the area decide before you leave home the budget you are going to spend in the day. Take this in cash with you because a lot of the shops do not have Credit Card facilities.

Also say to yourself right my budget is £100.00 and do not go over this……. a good way to keep to this is to leave your cards and cheque book at home.

You need to take with you a laptop if you have one (you can use these in Coffee shops most free of charge), if not a laptop then a mobile phone that can access the internet.
Failing those two, a phone so you can phone home or a freind so you can research the items you find.
If you know what you are doing you can buy blind, but I do not recomend this.

When you get to the shops, go round each one first and if you see a goods buy and it works out ok on the computer buy it But do make a round first and get a feel see whats in them, make notes.

Then it is time for a rest…….have a coffee and open your computer up and see if what you have seen can make you a profit. Make a note of all the winners, finish the coffee and go and buy.

When you have bought up the town, head for home and take your pictures and do the listings.

A question I am always asked is, what mark-up (profit) should I allow. And my answer is what do you want or better still what does the market want.
Your best action is put it on eBay as a starting price for what you bought it for then if you only get that price you do not lose money.

Hope This Helps

Andrew Milburn

OSIROCKSTARS

Today if you go into any bookshop, a place that sells magazines or do a search on Google, you will come accross a host of tens of items that offer you information on selling eBay and online.

Now although these are often very good, they are often written or run by people who are good at research and writing but have never sold on eBay or the other online places.

Now out there in cyberspace there are a few very good training sites of which I believe OSI is the best. There is a few others I have come accross and they too offer great content, but at present lack the content that Janelle offers. Over the coming months I will tell you about these others as I feel it is only fair to tell you so that you can make up your own mind.

OSI will take you by the hand and not only show and tell you what to do to take your business to the next level, but you have other people in the forums who will also help you along the way. OSI is like a family and all the members want you to succeed.

But one thing I kep saying and will always say is. Yes OSI will teach you, but until you put into action what you have been taught nothing will happen in your business or or life.

So go on and do your self a favour. Join OSI today and put into action what you learn and your online business will never be the same again

Have fun

Andrew Milburn

osi RockStars

How often have you wanted to learn something about eBay or selling online in general and most of the time have come up against a brick wall. Well I know I have then one day I came accross a site called OSI RockStars. OSI RockStars is a site run by people who are active in the area of selling and buying on eBay on a daily basis.

Janelle Elms has been around eBay for a long time know and regularly takes part in eBay live as a trainer and other eBay events. Janelle then came up with the idea and concept of running a membership site aimed at training site aimed at taking people to that next level in their eBay business either as a seller, Trading Assistant, Education Specialist or consultant.

At present Janelle has over 120 hours of webinars and podcasts teaching you on things such as how to source products, how to work a trade show, how to get key words and the list goes on and on.

Plus Janelle Elms and her team are adding new coment every single week.

As well as these classes there is also a forum where once you are a member you can go and ask and answer questions and as there are people from all areas of the world you can post a question and within minutes you could get an answer back how cool is that.

Membership is a low monthly fee and is worth it’s weight in Gold, pop along today and take a look and see how OSI RockStars can help you in your eBay business.

AndyUk