A WIN-WIN Scenario On eBay For Buyer/Sellers: Tips For Hunting Want It Now Postings

"Ask And You Shall Receive" Policy Works!

You're one-of-a-kind baby clothes sat for the last month oneBay with no buyer. Why? Perhaps your item is sospecialized that buyers have a hard time finding you. Afterall, how many buyers are looking for a handmade rubber duckysweatshirt for an infant? You'd be surprised, if you knewthe right venues to bring those buyers to you. Maybesitting around eBay with your item listing isn't the rightapproach. Perhaps what you should be doing is going outthere and finding your buyer!

Until now, the only option on eBay was to hope someone wouldmake general searches for items and stores like yours.However, many Buyers get lost in the great web that makes upeBay. Fortunately, for these Buyers, they have a new routeto explore - "Want It Now", or also affectionately known asWIN.

The easiest way to enter "Want It Now" on eBay is by goingdirectly to "Want It Now" online(http://pages.ebay.com/wantitnow/). Once you enter the homepage of WIN, you can either enter as a Buyer making a postor as a Seller browsing postings. The steps from therefollow the basic eBay protocol.

The beauty of "Want It Now" is Buyers can list theirrequests, referred to as posting, for free at this eBayspecial service. The Buyer's posting fits into one of over30 categories. Inside these postings, many Buyers includean exact description of this wanted item, along withpurchasing restrictions. Rather than wasting their timesearching through pages and pages of general Seller listingfor the exact item that they really want, these Buyers arehoping a Seller notices their "classified want ad" andpoints them in the right direction.

Sellers have long believed that in the eBay listing practiceof "If you build it, buyers will come". However, in thehighly competitive market of eBay, sitting still in one spotcan lead to sitting still in one spot for a really, reallylong time. A wise Seller is willing to go out and find hiscustomer and make a deal that increases the odds for a quickturn-around. "Want It Now" is chalk-full of Buyers whotruly are looking for what you're selling. Simply put, WINis an eager market of willing customers. The cost for aBuyer to browse around these classified ads is free and thebenefits are outstanding if you can convince a Seller ofyour match.

"Want It Now" hasn't been around a long time, under a year;still, this format's concept is an old familiar one. Manypeople's perception of this service is it's a lot like anauction, whereby bidders ask what's available before theactual sale to get a feel for what's out there. Otherpeople compare this set-up to a newspaper's classified wantads, whereby someone is searching for a service or productand wants the sellers to come compete for their business.Even though "Want It Now" is packed with numerouscategories, the best performing categories from theSeller/Buyer perspective is for highly specialized products& services (such as tickets and collectibles), highlysought-after items (such as electronics and clothing), andextreme deals (such as used book & CDs and bulk shopping).

Below is a sample of some WIN categories:

Antiques; Art; Books; Business & Industrial; Camera & Photo;Cell Phones; Clothing, Shoes & Accessories; Coins;Collectibles; Computers & Networking; Consumer Electronics;Crafts; Dolls & Bears; DVDs & Movies; EntertainmentMemorabilia; Gift Certificates; Health & Beauty; Home &Garden; Jewelry & Watches; Music; Music Instruments; Pottery& Glass; Real Estate; Sporting Goods; Sports Memorabilia,Cards & Fan Shop; Stamps; Tickets; Toys & Hobbies; Travel;Video Games; Everything Else; and eBay Motors.

The primary reason that Buyers use WIN is to find a match.For a Seller who works on commission, "Want It Now" is aripe venue for drawing very interested customers into youreBay store. Much like a special mailing announces abusyness's presence, informing a Buyer of your services anditems on eBay is employing WIN as a valuable marketing tool.Upon checking out a Buyer's posting, the Seller has theability to "respond" to the posting. Responding entailsentering your product or service's item number from eBay.The Buyer then receives an email regarding this item numberand has the prerogative of following up or not on this lead.

Do you want to know if a market does exist for your serviceor product? WIN is one way to conduct an easy andinexpensive informal market research. A Seller curiousabout what's hot or in demand can quickly scan these postingfor confirmation. What could be better for a new businessor reviving an existing business than staying ahead of on upand coming trends!

Although from the Seller's perspective, "Want It Now"requires a more assertive approach to finding Buyers thanwaiting around in your tiny corner of eBay, Sellers can useWIN to their advantage and improve their profits. Buyerslike the ease of using WIN and not fiddling around withpotentially getting an item that doesn't meet their needs.After all, what could be better than a source that announcesyour intentions clear and loud to a captive audience!

Jackie McCutcheon is the author of a new eBook titled "What to Sell on eBay to Make a Pretty Penny," a step-by-step guide to increasing your eBay profits. Learn more: http://www.jackiemccutcheon.com