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Hunting for Dogs on Ebay (Part Two)
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by Jody D. Weinberg
In Part One, I showed you how to do basic, but effective searches on Ebay.com for whatever canine collectable your heart desires. Consider that a primer. Whether you’re a buyer, seller, or both, Part Two will now show you how to do more advanced searches to narrow down your hunt for dog treasures extraordinaire.
As I demonstrated, when you type the word "dog" into Ebay's search engine (the search feature that hunts the auction website exclusively for matches to your word/s) you will average over 100,000 results at any given time, all of which are listings of dog items being offered for sale on Ebay.com. The search is further broken down for you by category such as “Collectable” and “Home and Garden”, with subcategories listed below them, such as ‘Postcards & Paper’ and ‘Home Décor’.
Looking for a set of throw pillows featuring embroidered English Setters on them? Check Home Décor …though you will have to scroll through over literally 1600 listings (at this writing) to possibly find what you are looking for, and that’s if an item like the one you seek is listed for auction at the time of your search. Tomorrow’s another day… So how do you narrow down that search to find such a throw pillow, if one exists, without having to scroll through over sixteen hundred auction listings? You use advanced searching techniques; you refine your search.
CATEGORY SEARCHING
First, start at the main/home page: www.Ebay.com. Then, using the list of categories provided, search within the category you feel your item would most likely be listed in. Searching within a category keeps Ebay from going all over the place to match items in other categories to the words you decide to search for. Some sellers do place items in categories you may not think to search in. That pillow may be listed under “crafts” because it is handmade, or under “bedding” because the seller thinks it would look best on a bed even though you want it for your sofa. Though this happens often enough, don’t let this overwhelm you. Simply start your search within the category you would expect to find the item you’re looking for. You can always widen your search later using more advanced techniques (discussed later in this article) if you need to.
When you search or browse the Ebay categories, you will get a listing of subcategories, broken down even further into more sub-categories. Keep clicking on the category and related sub-category names until you have narrowed your search down to the section that would most likely list the item you want. When you reach that section, you will see a search box on the left side of the screen/window and the category listing on it’s right, already set-up to tell Ebay’s search engine to dig through that category specifically using your key words
Searching within a category eliminates the need to use key words that match the words in the category name. For instance; once you browse to the “pillows” section of the “Home and Garden” category, you won’t need to type “PILLOWS” into the search area.
Now that you have found the right category to hunt in, it’s time to do your search! Keeping in mind that one seller may list a set of throw pillows as a “throw pillow set”, while another may list them as “three decorative pillows”, you can see that the singular and plural of the key words in your search could affect that search. This little problem is removed when you search within categories instead of doing an all-site search. Unless you specify singular or plural by using quotation marks around your keyword/s, Ebay’s search engine gives you results for both word versions regardless of which you use in your search.
So, what do you use as your key words now that you are in the “pillows” section? Well, the word “dog” is too general and will yield far too many results to sort through. Using “setter” is not a good idea if you don’t want Irish and Gordon Setters included in the results given. If an English Setter is what you’re looking for, then “English Setter” is the term to use, in quotation marks just as you see it here. Quotation marks around a group of words or a phrase tell Ebay’s search engine to look for that combination of words specifically. And if you want a throw pillow and not a standard-size pillow, then toss the word “throw’ in there, too. No quotation marks necessary.
ALL CATEGORY/ALL-SITE SEARCHES
If your category search yields little or nothing, click on the category box (to the right of your key word search), choose ALL CATAGORIES, and do a full site search. Again, that pillow you’re looking for may be listed under “crafts” because it is handmade, or under “bedding” because the seller thinks it would look best on a bed. Rather than search each of those categories individually, simply do an all category search.
An all-category search sifts through the entire Ebay website to find listings matching your keywords. This is a great alternative when specialized category searches don’t produce the kind of item you’re seeking. Full site searching can be tricky, however. You will need to be very specific with your key words to locate exactly the kind of item you want, and you must be willing to change those words and try others if your first search isn’t productive.
THE IMPORTANCE OF KEY WORDS
The words you use in your search will match the exact words sellers have used in their auction titles. You might decide to use the key words “English Setter throw pillow” and someone may have listed just what you’re looking for under the title ”hunting dog cushions”. Or, they may not know the breed. To find my beloved Chesapeake Bay Retriever, I have had to search variations on the breed name, as well as its original title: “Chesapeake Duck Dog”. Often, sellers don’t recognize this breed, and when pictured on an item they're selling, they will call the dog a Chocolate Lab, Chocolate Labrador, Brown Lab/Labrador, or they use simple (and vague) keywords in their titles such as: “hunting dog” or “bird dog”.
If one set of keywords isn’t working well for you, try another or a variation on a theme. As you search Ebay more and more, you will get an idea of what words work best when searching for the particular items you are interested in. I have found some real treasures that other collectors of my breed have envied and, when learning I got a collectable on Ebay, exclaimed, “How did you find THAT? I didn’t see it listed!” Of course they didn’t. They didn’t know how to key word search. ;)
When I used the key words <“English Setter” throw pillow > in an ALL CATEGORY SEARCH, I found a listing titled: “16 x 16 ENGLISH SETTER/PHEASANT THROW PILLOW NEW”. It was listed in “Sporting Goods > Hunting > Other Items”. It’s very likely I would not have checked that category specifically in my search for an English Setter throw pillow. So... should you give up on category searches because I wasn’t able to find what I was looking for in the category I expected it to be in? Absolutely not! Tomorrow someone may list three such pillows in the pillow category, and the pillow category is the first place to check when looking for pillows.
Start in the category you would expect to find your desired item in and widen your search only if you need to. But first, play with key words within the category you select to see what matches come up. Until you learn how to refine your searches using key words, all-category searches can be quite overwhelming, which is why some people will tell you they can’t find anything on Ebay. Again, they simply don’t know how to hunt. Like a good dog, you have to be trained, and you train yourself by working with key words.
Now, let’s get back to that English Setter pillow… and let’s suppose the seller offering it does know the breed. If your breed is listed as a category (most breeds are) you can search in that particular category to not only find pillows with your breed featured on them, but find many other interesting items as well! When I searched the pillow category for an English Setter pillow, I didn’t find a one. However, when I searched under the breed category (“Collectibles > Animals > Dog > English Setter”), I found this listing: “ENGLISH SETTER needlepoint DOG PILLOW VINTAGE”. Could I have found this just as easily doing an all–site/all category search? It depends on how many listings there were at the time of my search and how many of those listings I wanted to scroll through. This is why the right key words are so important, and the “right” keywords are simply those that match the titles of listings offering what you’re looking for. Again, you will become more familiar with the best words and phrases to use as your key words through repeated searching.
Now, though the seller of the auction cited above didn’t have to use the breed name in their title (because the breed was already a category), they included it in their title anyway. Seasoned sellers know that most people will include a breed name in their searches. However, not all sellers title their auctions so perfectly. So, how in the world are you supposed to find those auctions containing your breed, or your item of interest, when you are using key words that don’t match the sellers’ titles?
SEARCHING WITHIN AUCTION DESCRIPTIONS
When you want to really dig through the listings and do some serious hunting, check the search box that says ‘SEARCH IN TITLES AND DESCRIPTIONS’. The descriptions are what you see on the actual auction pages only. They are the seller’s way of telling you about the item for sale and giving you more details, as well as photographs of the item. When searching within descriptions, the Ebay search engine digs through the descriptions of all auctions (on all of Ebay, or in a specific category if the category box is checked) and shows you any listings that have the key word/s you searched for in the listing’s description, even if those same words do not appear in the listing’s title.
Be warned that many sellers know that potential buyers search descriptions and therefore, list every dog breed in existence in their descriptions, causing their listings to show up in search results they wouldn’t otherwise appear in. Someone may be selling a dog collar in varying sizes and will include the breeds that can use such a collar in their descriptions. As a seller, this is a great way to get people to see your auction listing, a neat sales trick, but it's annoying to potential buyers. Fortunately, you can usually tell by a listing title if you want to click on the particular listing and learn more.
Besides that minor annoyance, there is another that is much more common; undesired word associations. While you’re searching Ebay, make a note of all the undesired words and phrases that show up in your searches, those you do not want to search but that show up anyway, such as the word “exercise” when looking for a fancy dog-themed writing pen.
In Part One of this series, I explained the many reasons to sell one’s canine collectables on Ebay.com. The enormous amount of web traffic (website visitors) makes Ebay the perfect place to expand your collections and/or help others build theirs. Ebay is open 24-hours a day, seven days a week, making it the perfect place to introduce potential customers to your work and wares. As a seller, one can list items in multiple categories, sell multiple items in one auction, and even operate your own online store, whether or not you already have a website. Infact, if you do have a website, Ebay can put you in touch with hundreds, if not thousands of people you wouldn’t ordinarily have access to. One of the best ways to do this is so operate your own store on Ebay.
EBAY STORES
An Ebay Store is basically your own website on Ebay. The Ebay Stores service is a great way to feature your business, and to run one on-line. Access to Ebay’s Business Resource Center provides you with exclusive promotional and marketing materials, such as free downloadable templates (layouts) for professional-looking business cards, Ebay’s Cross-Promotion Tool, Email Marketing Tool, the Accounting Assistant that enables you to export data about Ebay and PayPal.com transactions into QuickBooks, and free monthly sales reports that outline activity by category (e.g., monthly gross sales, conversion rates, number of buyers).
Whether you choose to sell items at a fixed price format (Buy It Now) or at online auction, an Ebay Store gives you your own customizable showcase to display them in. Items for sale appear in your store and in standard auction searches, bringing potential customers to your exclusive listings. Custom categories that you create within your Ebay Store give viewers a breakdown of the kinds of items you offer. A store-specific Search Box further enhances the operations of your Ebay Store, and the combined effect of a Store’s features and its Promotional Tools encourage buyers to purchase now and to come back for more later, helping you build a customer base and generate repeat business!
The increased exposure of an Ebay Store produced from searches, marketing, and promotions helps generate higher sales than standard auction listings. Ebay.com reports that their store sellers see an average 25% increase in sales three months after opening their stores! Establishing credibility as an online retailer certainly helps one’s sales. Sellers with Ebay stores tend to be taken more seriously, thanks to the professional presentation and operations. And while a store seller is making money with their Ebay Store, they’re also saving money thanks to special bulk inventory listings that cost less and last longer than the standard auctions. Durations include 30, 60, 90, 120 days or the popular "Good ‘til Cancelled" option. Ebay Store sellers also get special discounts on eBay fees and save money on administrative costs, as eBay not only helps keep track of sales, but helps you print shipping labels and invoices. For more information on Ebay Stores, and how to get one for yourself, check out: www.stores.ebay.com
Now that you know the many good reasons to sell your items in an Ebay Store, it’s time to learn how to price and title your auctions. Here is where Completed Item Searches come in.
COMPLETED ITEM SEARCHES; A SELLING STRATEGY
Completed Item Searches show auctions that have already ended. They can be sorted by final price; the best sort for sales research being “highest to lowest”. Amounts listed in green indicate final bids, while black or default-colored prices indicate the starting or asking price, which was not met. Completed Item Searches show you the highest price paid by a buyer for an item you may be considering selling. These specialized searches show all auctions that have ended in the last 30 days, giving you a month’s worth of listings to explore.
Using the Completed Item Search feature, you can determine:
if your item or a similar one was listed on Ebay in the last thirty days
what it sold for, on average
the highest someone paid for it
what category or categories the seller listed the item in
how the item was described and what condition it was in
what type of photo/s the seller used to show off the item
whether the seller used a decorative or plain page format
This information can be very helpful to you as a seller. If you are not sure if an item will sell, how much you can expect it to sell for, what category would give it optimal exposure, or even how to best describe and/or feature the item, a completed item search can help you do the research and find the answers you seek. Though you should never copy another seller’s auction description, you can use the descriptions and layouts of successful, high-selling listings to get ideas of how to feature your own items.
To do a Completed Item Search, simply go to Ebay’s Advanced Search page (a link is given below the search box on every page of Ebay’s website) and check the box instructing Ebay’s search engine to show you the “completed listings only”. Then type your key words into the search box and begin. When you get your results, start by arranging the listings from highest to lowest selling price. Then look for the green-colored final pricing to see what the item sold for. Keep in mind that, just like with active auction searches, different key words and combinations of them will give you different results.
By now, you should be well on your way to finding anything and everything canine on Ebay.com. Give these techniques a try and then move onto Part Three, which will show you how to further refine your searches, as well as tell you what key words not to use when searching or selling on Ebay!
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