Fundraising on eBay [Paperback]

Greg Holden (Author), Jill K. Finlayson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 26, 2005

An invaluable guide to help your nonprofit or charitable organization reach 135 million potential donors

Fundraising with eBay offers proven strategies for raising money, converting in-kind gifts to cash, and increasing awareness for charitable causes.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Connect with millions of new donors instantly

Looking for a new, fun, and effective way to raise funds? Now you can use the world’s largest online marketplace to raise both cash and awareness for your nonprofit or charitable cause with help from this invaluable how-to guide. Fundraising on eBay is filled with proven tips for leveraging eBay’s 160 million registered users to reach new donors, maximizing the value of donated items, and converting in-kind gifts into cash quickly and easily.

Get step-by-step instructions for planning a highly profitable fundraiser, managing inventory, recording feedback, and protecting your customers’ personal information. Whether or not you have previous experience selling on eBay, this hands-on guide will show you how running an eBay fundraising event is more than just good will--it’s good for business too.

• Organize a one-of-a-kind celebrity auction event
• Create sales descriptions that attract buyers
• Put experiences, gift certificates, travel tickets, and other specialty items up for sale
• Convert in-kind donations quickly and easily into cash
• Expand the reach of solicitation efforts to bring in new donors
• Develop corporate partnerships and participate in cause-related marketing programs
• Cultivate your donor base by providing good customer support

Featuring success stories from high-profile groups including the U.S. Fund for UNICEF and the Starlight Starbright Foundation

About the Author

Greg Holden is the author of more than 30 books, including the bestselling How to Do Everything with Your eBay Business. He has written extensively about eBay, online auctions, and e-commerce.

Jill Finlayson worked at eBay as a senior category manager for Toys, Dolls, Hobbies, and Crafts, growing the category to more than $1.5 billion annually, and was a founding co-foundedmember of the first eBay Foundation Governance Committee. She currently oversees curriculum and training materials for M Networks courses and seminars on starting and running effective online businesses.

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (October 26, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0072262486
• ISBN-13: 978-0072262483
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 7.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,857,094 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best investment you could make for your charity or nonprofit..., February 25, 2006

By 

Thomas Duff "Duffbert" (Portland, OR United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Fundraising on eBay (Paperback)

I don't think I ever considered eBay a source of income for fundraising. But Greg Holden and Jill Finlayson convinced me otherwise in the book Fundraising on eBay. A valuable book that should be a "must read" for nonprofits...

Contents:

Part 1 - Mastering the eBay Marketplace - Opportunities for Nonprofits: Why eBay? A Guide for Nonprofits; eBay Fundraising Success Stories; Planning Your eBay Fundraising Event

Part 2 - Selling Donated Items: Deciding What to Sell; Deciding How to Raise Funds with eBay; Building Your Credibility - and Your Donor Base; Listing Your Items for Sale on eBay; Managing Your Auctions and Building Good Donor Relations; Advanced Selling - Using All of eBay's Sales Options

Part 3 - Leveraging eBay for the Biggest Bang: Making Your Charitable Auction a Major Event; Partnerships - Good for Bidders, Good for Partners, Great for Nonprofits; Marketing to Make the Most of Your Event; Glossary; Index

I've always mentally framed eBay as a way to sell some of your own stuff or for a business to market direct to the consumer. I wasn't even that surprised when cities and governments started using eBay to unload surplus equipment. But I never really thought about how the use of eBay could be leveraged by a nonprofit or charity to raise funds and expand the donor base. Holden and Finlayson make a strong case for using eBay to generate money for your nonprofit, and they cover all the eBay features specifically designed to assist you in this. I've probably seen those features before, but I guess I just ignored them. They also cover the traditional information on how to get set up as an eBay seller, how to price your items, etc. So even if you've never touched eBay before, you can confidently venture forth with this book and get started with little effort. All those books on how to become an eBay power seller can then be used to fine-tune your selling techniques. The abundance of real-life case studies help the reader to see that this really *can* work and has been used successfully by thousands of other groups.

Definitely a unique book in the growing collection of eBay titles, and one that could be the best investment you ever made in your cause...

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Hands On Guide, December 16, 2005

By 

Laura Iverson "zenbreeze.com" (SF Bay Area, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fundraising on eBay (Paperback)

Carefully researched and includes lots of information first-hand from successful sellers and nonprofits. It has a great visual layout too. Lots of illustrations and navigational aids, like Tips, Must Haves, Warnings, etc. It is an invaluable resource to get up & running on eBay in the most effective way.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book for Anyone Who is Raising Money, November 9, 2005

By 

Steve in FL "Steve in FL" (Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fundraising on eBay (Paperback)

I purchased this book for our church group and we are quickly putting it to use. The book is very informative and demystified online fundraising. It is easy to read and follow, with great insight and simple advice. About 20 of us are going to run a holiday fundraiser on eBay using this book as our guide. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is thinking about fundraising.