Degunking Ebay [Paperback]

Greg Holden (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 22, 2005

Degunking™ eBay is the smart guide for buyers and sellers who want to really fine-tune and optimize their eBay experiences, regardless whether they are buying or selling products, or building an eBay-based business. Written in the conversational, no-nonsense approach that has made the Degunking™ series a huge success, this book can help save you tons of time and money with your eBay activities. It provides a wealth of valuable "clutter reduction" and organization tips for both buyers and sellers. Buyers will learn insider tips and tricks to search through massive amounts of product listings to find what they want, and then to bid and complete successful transactions. Sellers will learn how to assess their markets, find how to get the best price for their merchandise, and how to write attention-grabbing copy.Whether you are buying or selling, you'll get the best results if you have a winning strategy. Avid eBay-er and best-selling author Greg Holden will show you techniques for bidding that will greatly increase your chances of winning auctions. And he offers important information to help you avoid defective merchandise, problem sellers and scams, and where to turn if you do have a problem. eBay sellers will learn techniques for getting their items noticed, making their items look attractive in postings, marketing their products, degunking and streamlining eBay features for sellers, setting up clutter free up eBay Stores, and learning how to research and take advantage of the hot trends. This book gives all eBay users the opportunity to profit from their bursting closets and garages.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Degunking™ eBay is the smart guide for buyers and sellers who want to really fine-tune and optimize their eBay experiences, regardless of whether they are buying or selling a few products or building an eBay-based business. Written in the conversational, no-nonsense approach that has made the Degunking™ series a huge success, this book can help save you tons of time and money with your eBay activities. It provides a wealth of valuable "clutter reduction" and organization tips for both buyers and sellers. Buyers will learn insider tips and tricks to search through massive amounts of product listings to find what they want, and then how to bid and complete successful transactions. Sellers will learn how to assess their markets, find how to get the best price for their merchandise, and how to write attention-grabbing copy.

Whether you are buying or selling, you’ll get the best results if you have a winning strategy. eBay expert and best-selling author Greg Holden will show you techniques for bidding that will greatly increase your chances of winning auctions. He offers important information to help you avoid defective merchandise, problem sellers and scams, and where to turn if you do have a problem. eBay sellers will learn techniques for getting their items noticed, making their items look attractive in postings, marketing their products, degunking and streamlining eBay features for sellers, setting up clutter free up eBay Stores, and learning how to research and take advantage of the hot trends. This book gives all eBay users the opportunity to profit from their bursting closets and garages.

From the Author

Founded in 1995, eBay has rapidly grown to now include more than 26,000 categories for selling or purchasing items. Just trying to keep track of all of the clutter that fills the eBay pages is a full time job! This is compounded by the fact that there are over 150,000 people who have a full-time job of buying and selling products on eBay. There are also currently tens of millions of registered members around the world, and over 12 million items listed on eBay every day. The key to having success with eBay is learning how to get organized, reduce clutter, and develop buying and selling strategies that can greatly maximize your time. That's why I wrote this book - to help you wade through all the gunk on eBay and make more sales!

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Product Details

• Paperback: 350 pages
• Publisher: Paraglyph Press; 1 edition (January 22, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932111999
• ISBN-13: 978-1932111996
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,789,550 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars good help, but doesn't discuss alternatives, January 29, 2005

By 

W Boudville (Terra, Sol 3) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Degunking Ebay (Paperback)

As eBay has grown enormously, it has continually added new features, for both buyers and sellers. The complexities of which help drive the need for a book like this. Holden doesn't just confine himself to explaining procedures on the eBay website. He goes into ancillary topics like what the selling of seasonal items might involve, or the finding of wholesalers of items that you might buy from, and then resell on eBay.

While he discusses both buying and selling, you quickly find that the attention is focused on being a heavy seller. When you read elsewhere of people supporting themselves on eBay, it is by being these sellers. So a lot of the utility of the book is in the advice around building up sales, where the mechanics of running auctions is really a lesser detail.

His advice is generally good, with one important caveat. The book never really questions under what circumstances you might not want to sell on eBay. It does not discuss alternatives like Amazon, if you are selling non-collectible items like books, CDs, DVDs and software. eBay charges a listing fee, even if no bids are placed. And currently, some 53% of its auctions end with no bids. So the listing fees can significantly add to your cost, especially since an auction is just for 10 days at most. By contrast, Amazon levies no listing fees. Though if something sells on Amazon, its commission percentage is higher than eBay's. So there are tradeoffs. Plus, in recent years, eBay has repeatedly raised many of its fees. Leading to deep dissatisfaction from many of its largest sellers, who feel that the company is ripping them off.

The book would be of more use to a reader if it broached such topics.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Designed especially to help novice to intermediate users, March 5, 2005

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Degunking Ebay (Paperback)

Written by seasoned computer and internet writer Greg Holden, whose previous titles include "Internet Auctions for Dummies" and "Cliff Notes Guide to Buying and Selling on eBay", Degunking eBay is a resource especially for eBay buyers and sellers who are high on transaction volume, short on time, and need to make their eBay buying and selling activities as quick and clutter-free as possible. Chapters address how to swiftly look through massive numbers of product listings to find the right items, how to spruce up one's auction descriptions to make more money, how to take advantage of hot trends, how to maintain excellent feedback ratings, and much more. Designed especially to help novice to intermediate level eBay users, Degunking eBay includes tips directly from eBay's PowerSellers, and a "Quick Degunking Sheet" at the front of the book for easy reference. A "must-have" for anyone interested in amassing private collections from or making money off of eBay.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good for Novices, But Author Attempts to Do Too Much, March 3, 2005

By 

Olivia Whiteman (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Degunking Ebay (Paperback)

Have you ever been at a party where you get to talking with someone who has a very nice way about them. Very stylish, very engaging and the topic she's talking about is very trendy. You listen and interject some "oohs" and "ahs" and "I see" and "really, how interesting" but you begin to realize that almost everything the person is telling you is obvious. And you notice how they keep repeating this obvious information as if they were telling you the secrets of the universe. Well, that's how I felt while reading DEGUNKING EBAY by Greg Holden. Greg has a nice breezy way of communicating and Ebay is a word on everyone's lips.

Greg has come up with an all purpose catchphrase, degunk, which he uses quite liberally. Probably because he is promoting the DeGunking series of books.

After reading a few chapters I realized Greg was like that partygoer, a prophet of the obvious. Not that he doesn't have a wealth of information packed into the book, some of which can certainly help a Novice Ebayer. It's just that I feel there the book attempts to do too much.

The premise of the book is the entire universe of Ebay. Buying. Selling, AND degunking your computer. If you are not a PC Pro and you noticed your computer slowing down, the step by step clean-up techniques Greg shares are good.

The buying aspect is pretty straightforward. How to do better searches for items. How to bid more successfully. This is the stage at the party where you are really into talking with Greg. This takes you up to about page 77 in a 280 page book. Then the enthusiasm wanes.

The thought that the average person can start a sustainable business using Ebay is a very INTRIQUING. I'm sure it can be done-IF that person has a heartfelt passion for a craft, closeout merchandise, antiques, and a foundation of knowledge on the subject. If that kind of person reads this book for specific Ebay enhancing tips, the book will prove somewhat useful.

So much of the selling information is common sense: write good descriptions and take clear digital photos. I guess it doesn't hurt to read any of this.

On page 208 the author does indeed tell us to Focus on What You Love as a key to being a good seller.

A few times, Greg made me laugh out loud. That in itself is worth the cost of the book. For example, he writes "Some wholesalers are just interested in getting your money and not in providing you with a regular supply of quality products."
I am SHOCKED to hear that.

Hey, I like the way Greg writes and I bet if i met him at a party I'd listen avidly for awhile. And there maybe others at the party who might find everything that Greg says about Ebay to be fascinating and something they could put to use.

In summing up, if you buy Greg's book there is enough here that you will recoup your investment.