http://sherylschuff.com/blog/selling-on-line/expert-tips-for-on-line-sellers

Eileen Fisher Business will award five woman-owned companies with grants of $10,000 each

For more information, or to apply:

http://eileenfisher.com/ourcompany/cons/women_owned_bus_prog.asp

Sportsters
Like Routiners, Sportsers go online primarily for content. Unlike the Rountiner though this group of online users visits primarily sports and entertainment sites. They spend just 7.1 hours a month online. That’s far below the 9.8 hour average.
The more interactive and flashy your site the more likely you’ll be to grab and keep this group. This group will also respond to the feelings that they are getting something special. If you are targeting this these users try having contests, use video and audio.
Unlike the serious Routiners, who want a membership site for access to useful information this group would respond more to a membership area that was geared toward fun and entertainment. A successful membership site might cater to both these groups – and be highly successful. An example of targeting both the Rountiner and the Sportser is group of fishermen. People who enjoy fishing , would look online for more information about their sport. They’d come looking for latest tips on better bass fishing as well as celebrity interviews with the latest trophy winner.

Routiners
This group of Internet users goes online for content. Only about half of the group has made a purchase online. Routiners tend to spend much less time on the net and visit fewer domains than most. They routinely go to specific sites and check for new information; typically Routiners visit new and financial sites.
To market to this group is a challenge because Routiners are on the hunt for quality content and looking for the sense that they are getting ‘something special.’  This type of user is more likely to respond to a special ‘members only’ group or a paid subscription if the quality of the content is better than average. The challenge is to find the sweet spot this group will respond to and open their wallets.
Membership sites are a perfect fit for Routiners. If you can find a target segment (niche market) and offer valuable information, members of this group will be your most loyal followers.

Today we’re going to look at the group called Bargainers
Bargainers are fiercely devoted to one aspect of the Internet: the quest for deals!
Think you can sell high quality products for a regular retail mark-up on eBay? These hard facts may take your breath away…..
Taking up only 8% of active online users this group represents 52% of eBay visitors.
If your business plan includes selling on eBay and you do not offer a unique or collectible product your best strategy will be to either offer the lowest price (including shipping) for the product or to market your eBay business to other segments of users. In the latter case, you’d downplay the fact that your products are sold on eBay and consider eBay’s service simply a shopping cart/inventory management tool.
If you have a supply of products you can offer these bargainers, selling to them will be simple. EBay offers the community and the price they seek. Your main duty will be to keep the products in stock and shipped out quickly.

Tomorrow we’ll look at the group called: Routiners

Glad you asked! It’s a grass roots event born from the Bonanzle.com forums.

It started as a few members suggesting they get together for lunch and went viral….

Now it’s an event you are invited to attend - for the moment it’s only scheduled in three cities.

1. Seattle – May 16th
2. Wichita – May 23th
3. Mobile – May 30th

This event is still taking shape, but one thing we know for sure is it will be fun. Co-founder Mark Dorsey will be in Seattle and promises to broadcast live for an hour at other upcoming events. He’s making himself available to answer questions about the site.

Want more information – or to start your own area Bonanzleup – visit the official website.

Sounds like fun – I’m off to register for the Seattle BonazleUP – hope to see you there.

Do you know a deserving small business that needs a lift?

One lucky small business owner is going to win the Small Business Kit
provided by Office Depot that includes these products and services

    * 1 Toshiba Satellite® U405-S2911 Notebook Computer With Intel®
Pentium® Dual-Core Processor
    * 1 Fellowes® PS 79ci 100% Jam Proof Cross-Cut Shredder
    * 1 Lexmark X 7675 All-In-One Printer/Copier/Scanner/Fax Machine
    * 1 Year Subscription to the HP Upline Service, an online storage
solution that can be used for both backup and file sharing purposes

I find small business folks to be some of most caring, giving and
helping folks on the planet, so in the true spirit of giving a helping
hand, I am going to let you, my readers, nominate and tell the world
about business owners that you believe are deserving of this kind of
help right now.

Visit here for full details on how to participate:
http://www.ducttapemarketing.com/blog/2009/02/23/small-business-start-up-kit-giveaway/

Congratulations to Bonanzle who won the Excellence in Technology award!

Here’s the press release:

-In what writers called “a runaway,” Bonanzle.com was recently named the top eBay Alternative of 2008 by readers of SmallBusinessComputing, a Jupiter Media company. Over a six week period from November through the beginning of January, readers were asked to choose between Bonanzle and other eBay alternatives, including Etsy, eCrater and Wigix.

“This award validates our commitment to providing users with a marketplace that goes beyond the buzzwords often used to describe it: more social, simpler, and more fun. We worked for almost two years to build Bonanzle before we launched it. The payoff has been an experience so simple yet rich that it has turned many of our users into Bonanzle promoters. These users have helped to drive our traffic up more than 50% every month since we launched – their efforts are really starting to add up, even as we’re still almost completely unknown to the national media,” says Bonanzle CEO Bill Harding.

Walt Koneda, a professional auctioneer and regular contributor to The Examiner, says of Bonanzle, “People in the community are so impressed and appreciative of the opportunity here that they fill the forum with tips and suggestions about how to get the site and individual stores juiced in the search engines… the users have become evangelists for the site, and there is no amount of advertising money in the world that can replace that. This is how sites go viral, this is how fortunes are made.”

I recently had the pleasure to interview Mark Dorsey about Bonanzle. Mark showed us the ins and outs of buying and selling and what makes this site so special. Bonanzle really picked up the ball when eBay dropped it! Bonanzle puts the fun back into buying and selling collectibles and unique items on the Internet.

If you’d like to see what makes Bonanzle so special – join our FREE membership area – to see the interview. Simply sign up and we’ll send you a password to login in.

CJ retired early to sell on eBay. XOXMAS is one of the few sellers who’s trading assistant work is thriving. She’s sold items from collectible chalkware to celebrity fashion and everything in between.

While today she loves selling used goods and collectibles, her life long passion – what makes her a treasure trove of knowledge – is her former work. CJ spent her career as a buyer for several large retail corporations. CJ worked her way up from a shelf stalker & cashier to running a large acquisitions department. She spent her working life going to trade shows, negotiating with vendors and finding products. Her quest for the best prices and products took her all over the country and around the world, including China.  CJ knows how to find products that others haven’t got a clue about finding. She’s the first to tell you, looking on the Internet for the best wholesale products may be easy, but isn’t the best method.

You know, what makes her even better (lots & lots things about her, but) for us in the Seattle area, I mean. She has family up here. And one of her grandchildren is getting married in April.

      Which got me to thinkin…. What if we could talk CJ into swinging by and teaching us some product sourcing techniques?

So, I called her up and asked, “If I can make it worth your while, would you come teach us?” And, she said yes. I know CJ is generous to a fault, but I really don’t want to impose on her (too much). She has a thriving business to take care of and extra days away cut into her profit margin.

Here’s the deal. Before CJ and I go any farther in planning I’m throwing this question out to my Puget Sound Area readers, or anyone who wants to travel to the Seattle area. Would you sign up for a product sourcing class?  Click Here to take survey

Date: Monday April 6th. If we get enough yeses, I’ll book the room and set up a place to for you to buy tickets.

Because CJ will have to take time off and will need to book a hotel room – (I’d love her and her partner MJ to stay with me – but cat and dog allergies prevent it) and I’ll have to pay to book the room and we’ll have a few other expenses – the tuition will be around $80.00 to $100.00 per person, depending on how much interest there is. So, please factor that in as well.

Please help us determine if there is enough interest by taking two seconds to answer two questions “yes” or “no” at survey monkey. Click Here to take survey

The Internet itself is a solution to a problem most people face. Which is why people continue to shop online.

According to eTailing Groups  “Mindset of the multi-channel shopper holiday survery” in October 2008 here are the top five reasons people shop online:

1. Save time (88%)
2. Locating hard to find products (83%)
3. Greater Selection (83%)
4. Avoiding Mall Crowds (83%)
5. Saving Money (80%)

What will you sell online?

Just remember not to fall into the old retailing trap many sellers have fallen into and choose an item or industry where you compete on price. As a small merchant you’ll have a very hard time competing with the big box sellers.

Instead focus on a solution to a problem that consumers face. For instance; as more people stay home this year instead of going on vacation, fix it projects will start to increase. Many people will come to the internet to find out how to remove wallpaper. Maybe you’ve done it many times and know a magic technique to remove it cleanly and quickly. You could write an ebook and sell it online, offer your service locally by using google local, or if you had a special tool you created you could sell the tool. If you can solve a problem that most people face you’ll find that an internet business is recession proof.