The hard fact with the word unique related to your internet home based business, at this time in the world, is there isn’t much new to be found. However perhaps you have a marketable idea, product or service whose time is come. The bulk of business opportunities are adjusted in relation to the circumstances of the consumer. Your unique business must have a good visibility and an easy access to the consumers. If people are not looking for you in large numbers, what is the point in offering a unique business, product or service?o The basic elements required in making up of a business opportunity are the means to fulfill the needs of the consumer. A method to apply and to benefit the consumer is the most important issue. And the customer is always right – if you want to succeed. It is very often seen that the individuals starting with a unique business lack these basic elements.Due to this particular reason, their unique business opportunity turns out to be a flop. Just because the idea to you is hot does not make it hot for someone else. Set some research into play to find out as much as possible about how people feel and respond to your unique product or service. Be as thorough as possible.For example: a woman was a brilliant photographer and decided she wanted an online home business selling her unique photos. However upon research she discovered that there are literally thousands of free photos of top quality as well as thousands more selling for ten to twenty five cents. Had she not done her research, she would have wasted a lot of money, time and energy.o When creating a business by focusing on the problems faced by the consumers in your target market, you can be sure you are heading in the right direction. Solving the needs of clients is a key for successful marketing. Perhaps you have developed something that will really take off and develop a successful home based business.o There is a difference between unique products and a unique business. If you are going to develop a unique business, give a deep thought on the concept of running it and what that needs to look like to be successful. How can your business be unique? What makes it stand out? If you are delivering your unique product or service, can it be done with flair? Giving a personal touch makes your business unique.Unique internet home based business don’t always prove out to be a beneficial opportunity for you. You might instead want to conduct a proper research and be innovative with the opportunities which have already placed a strong footing in the market. Yet, as a true entrepreneur would do; follow your gut if the research shows good marketing and profit potential.
Starting a Home Based Business Successfully
Starting a home based business is advisable, especially now that computers and the internet are almost in every home. You don’t have to remain on the sidelines and keep admiring those that are presently making thousands of dollars monthly from their simple blogs on the internet. The money making opportunities on the internet are so vast at the moment but if you are at a cross road as to how to begin, you can opt for blogging. This is because there is no need for you to learn any web designing skill whatsoever in order to have your blog on the internet.Are you tired of your present job? Have you been thinking of starting a home based business? You may choose from simple freelance web designing, some paid online surveys, freelance articles and content writings, selling tips on some skills you have and so on. The list is quite large but the point is that you just have to look inside yourself to know what you will be happy to do, and you will find others who will be equally happy to pay you to do it for them. It is awesome to note that you can begin to do such things from the comfort of your home, as long as you have access to the internet.Just before starting a home based business, especially if such business is to be carried out through the net, there are certain factors and considerations you must think of. The first thing is for you to determine your strong points or where your strength lies because you will be providing more satisfactory jobs in such niches. For example, if you are a proficient writer or if you always see yourself spotting errors in the newspapers, you may not know that your talent is just being wasted while you complain of your unsatisfactory 9 – 5 job. You can set up an article or content creating portal on the internet and try as much as you can to know what others are doing in the industry. This will help you to price your services right without scaring your potential clients away. Just take it easy with pricing but determine to over-deliver in the quality of the content you create for any client. With time, you will start getting positive reviews from independent sources and you can then raise your fees.The good thing about starting a home based business is that no one will be there to give any directives and you will be able to work on your own time without any form of interference whatsoever. The heart-warming part of it is that if you are consistent and focused, you will soon start making your 30 day pay in just a few days. What you are reading here is the plain truth because lots of folks have done it and are still doing it, so there is no reason to believe that you can not repeat or even surpass the same feat. Once your business is up and moving, it will be time for you to follow some online marketing routes to increase the visibility of your home based business.
Top Tips for Marketing Your Home Based Business
Starting a home based business is not a very difficult proposition but what matters most is marketing your business if you want to succeed in a competitive environment. Marketing is an ongoing process and you should ensure that your home based business and your image is in the limelight all the time.No business can succeed unless you create sufficient awareness and get people talking about your product and services. The strategies given below will help you in your endeavor to succeed.1. Word of mouth is one of the best forms of promoting your business. As soon as you start working from home, pass the word round to your friends, colleagues and acquaintances about your new business and the quality products you offer. This news will spread around the community much faster than you ever dreamt about. Jeff Bezos the founder of Amazon places great emphasis on this-”If you do build a great experience, customers tell each other about that. Word of mouth is very powerful.”2. However small your home business might be an online presence is essential today. It is important that you have a professional looking website for your business. A well designed website will make your business appear big, professional and organized. Having a website has several advantages such as free advertisement for your products, informing customers about changes in products, information about specials, promotions and discounts available.3. Put the URL of your website, your home based business address and your telephone number on all printed matter that goes out of your business such as letters, envelopes, labels, faxes and invoices. This is an easy way of advertising your business and keeping your image in the public eye constantly.4. Advertising in the local media can play a vital role in promoting your home business. Small classified ads do not cost much money. These ads will certainly create awareness about your business in the local community. Send out regular press releases. Get the local press interested in your home based business and get them to write a news story how it benefits the local community. This will without doubt give your business a great boost. If you have the necessary funds, marketing your products through the radio can be even more effective.5. An inexpensive method of marketing your work at home business is by distributing Flyers. Flyers are easy to produce and in fact can be produced by you in your computer.Provide all the details of your business in brief including the address and URL. Similarly attractive and well designed Brochures are great marketing tools. These can be prepared and placed in clubs, libraries and supermarkets where people gather.6. One of the best marketing tools often ignored or overlooked by most new business entrepreneurs is the Business Card. A business card projects your image and credibility. Whenever you meet people at seminars, trade fairs, conferences and other functions, take the opportunity to exchange cards with them. They are influential people who can be very useful in promoting your business in several ways.Marketing your home based business has to be viewed in the right perspective and your success will be greatly dependent on how efficiently you handle this most important aspect of your business.
Starting a Home Based Business – Choosing The Right Online Business
Home based businesses provide assistance for you to seek an alternate route to earn a residual income from the comfort of your home. With the inception and expansion of the internet, it has become very easy to transact business from your home using a PC connected to the internet. I am very sure that at some point in your life you must have done a look up on Google to get the best home based business idea available. While it is a very good move to find out ways to make money online it is also important for you to do your due diligence before investing your time and money in any home based business. Thousands of people have fallen prey to unsuspecting scammers on the internet in a bid to make money online; it’s very easy to build a website these days so anyone can design a catchy website just to get your interest and to rip you off your money.Before you supply your credit card numbers to any website, it is pertinent to find out in details what the supposed home based business is all about. There are certain ways you can get information about any make money online from home business. I will be discussing them below:1. Do a Google Lookup: Google can give you just about any piece of information you need just at the click of a button. If for example you find business xyz that claims to be a legitimate home based business, you can do a Google lookup by typing “xyz scam,” Google will automatically bring out any scam report about this online home business. Anyone who has been a victim of the scam would definitely want to share his bad experience with the business.2. Visit Home Based Business Forums: Home based business forums provide a great way for you to interact with forum members to find out the best ways to make money online. You can get all the information you need by connecting with knowledgeable and well experience people in the field of information marketing, website flipping, affiliate marketing etc. depending on the type of forum. You will be amazed at the responses you get when you type in a question.3. Send A Mail To Their Support: It is also useful to send an email to the support of the home based business you intend investing your money and your time into; genuine businesses always take less time to respond depends on the volume of mails they are receiving and most of them have a chat support that can answer your questions almost immediately. Others organize online conferences where you can ask questions and get instant clarifications.4. Start Little: Don’t be tempted to throw in all your cash at any online business; you should have a reserve just in case. Start little and as time goes on you can add more funds to it. I am just suggesting this to you; speaking from experience.I have been burnt and ripped off a couple of times while trying to make money on the internet, I have done several work at home businesses that did not pay off at the end; turned out to be a waste of my time and resource. One honest advice I can give you about a work from home business is to find a legitimate home based business, work with it and stick to it. At the moment, I am promoting one business and making a good chunk of money out of it. It is a very simple and realistic program run by a renowned internet business expert Frederick Mann. I hope to make more money from this business; it’s a definitely sustainable business and anyone who wants to make money online should leverage on it; it’s a simple and understandable process with life supports in the form of online conference calls, you can ask the experts questions and get immediate response.I wish you the best.
Facebook Small Business Marketing – How To Get More Traction
We all understand that Facebook is one of the most popular social media platforms in Australia. However, recently some of our clients have expressed their frustration with their ‘Facebook business pages’. The key frustration is that their business page just doesn’t seem to be driving traffic and generating leads and there is little engagement. Lots of time and energy going in but not too many results.Why are small business owners getting these results?Let’s take a closer look at why there might be a lack of engagement on Facebook business pages. Let’s also explore how you might be able to work smarter and use Facebook more effectively and discuss some of the common pitfalls to avoid when it comes to using Facebook for Small Business Marketing.Understanding how Facebook worksFacebook determines what people see in their “news feed” based on an algorithm. It’s a mathematical formula used by Facebook to determine what to show people who are Facebook users. Facebook focuses on the posts that people ‘like and engage with’ most. Therefore, if people like, share or comment on a post from a particular Facebook page, Facebook believes that this information is more relevant to the person because they are spending more time ‘engaging’ with that content. As a result, more content from that page is placed into the person’s news feed.Facebook Small Business MarketingFacebook is a “social” media tool and therefore will always favour content posted by friends, family and social connections over business content. Business content usually doesn’t get the same traction as personal content and often requires a ‘boost’ so that the content can get in front of people. In general, business content gets seen by very few of the people who have liked your business page, these days you need to use paid Facebook advertising to get in front of your audience.Business content on FacebookUltimately, like any other business, Facebook is a commercial entity and needs to make money and profits to satisfy stakeholders and investors. As many of you may have already realised, Facebook knows it’s worth and understands that it can be an effective digital marketing tool, that gives business owners access to a large world-wide audience and prospective customers! Facebook also understands that business owners are willing to pay to access new customers and reach new audiences and therefore has tapped into this market.Boosting Posts & Paid promotionsOne way to get more people to see your posts or news items is to pay so that you can ‘boost’ your post. Remember ‘organic reach’ which is not paid for, is very limited on Facebook nowadays particularly for business pages. Therefore, to get in front of your target audience you really need to consider boosting your posts or running paid advertising campaigns or promotions to increase reach and engagement.How can I get some traction without paying?There are a few ways, at the time of writing this article, but they take more effort.Facebook LIVEFacebook “Live” which is a newer feature that Facebook has introduced, allows users to run live video streaming events. This is a fun and engaging way to reach your audience but you need to be comfortable in front of a camera and ready to answer questions and comments as there is also live interaction features that lets you know what’s on your customers’ minds. It’s not for the faint hearted but gets better cut through and larger reach.Facebook GroupsFacebook groups are different to Business pages and seem to be able to achieve more organic reach. Facebook groups are online forums that allow for small groups to communicate they generally focus on a topic of interest and are there to allow people that share common interest to interact and share knowledge, opinions and ideas. People can join groups that are often administered or moderated by one of more Facebook users. It could be a group that centres around a common cause or an activity such as mountain bike riding or photography, or it could even be centred around supporting others who are in a similar life stage or have similar circumstances such as a single parents group or an Autism Parents network or a group specific to small business owners.With so many different options on Facebook it’s sometimes difficult to determine what is the best option to go with or sometimes even where to start.Keep in mind…Don’t create a personal profile for your small business.Some new business owners and entrepreneurs create personal profiles for their businesses and brands, instead of creating a relevant Facebook Business Page or group. This is not ideal as it puts your business at a disadvantage. This is because Facebook business pages offer you a host of content creation tools, paid promotional opportunities, and analytics that are linked to a Facebook Business Page and will not be available to you if you set up a personal page.Use Calls to ActionOnce you’ve set up your business page, use a Call to action to get visitors to engage further with your business or brand. Is Facebook a referral source but you ultimately want to get visitors over to your e-commerce store or website? What do you want them to do when they get to your Facebook page? Call to actions are buttons with text on them like “Watch Video,” “Sign Up,” or “Book Now” these buttons can be customized or can include a (URL) web link to a ticketing page or e-commerce site.Use your resourcesGet help or use online resources, if you are unsure of where to start with Facebook, jump online and check out Facebook’s help centre. There is plenty of information for advertisers as well as tips and helpful videos you can watch. If you run a small business, are time poor and just want to find out how to improve your marketing reach or how to use Facebook more effectively, consider getting in touch with an agency that offers small business marketing services. Best of luck with your marketing.
10 Powerful Reasons to Start a Home Based Business
Home Based Business has now become a buzz word where ever you go. The key question is, why do so many people want to go into business of working for themselves from home? The revelations are amazing and in this post I want to share with you 10 most powerful reasons why you should join the train of work from home entrepreneurs.
Most home based entrepreneurs are intrigued by the fact of working from home and not wading in morning and evening traffic to work day and night. One other appealing fact is that, you no more have to answer to your boss’s whims and caprices.
The best among all is the fact that in this quick and fast world where your income is devoured by so many social demands, it will always be beneficial to have an extra income coming from some other source apart from your main 8 to 5 job.
Many have a slight idea of what could be achieved from a home based business but majority will be willing to fully embark on it if they are aware of these salient points I’m about to share with you now. Make a critical study of these 10 major beneficial points on working from home, and I guarantee once you take a careful look at them, your desire to start a home base business will soar high.
With that said, let’s go to reason #1.
1. Be your own Boss.
Ever thought of being your own Boss before?
You must also know that it’s not only the pride in being a boss but the ability to now think and make quality decision by yourself without anyone instructing and guiding you. But I must say that, after all is said and done, the experience and the confidence you gain far outweigh even the money and the freedom that comes with it.
Most millionaires will tell you that, the one most exciting thing they gain for being rich is not the money but who they become in terms of experience, discipline, associations etc.
2. Work when and how you want.
You may be working for a boss or for an organization but you always dread Monday mornings when you have to start another boring week after a long week end. When the alarm clock goes off you have no choice but to wake up and get going otherwise you could be fired for being late.
Yes, in most instances like this we all wish the business is ours so we could sleep a while and go as and when we like. For a home business, you could set your own working hours and if you are the type who loves to sleep during the early hours of the day, then you could just cuddle up in bed and sleep a little more.
But be aware of the fact that, running a home based business does not also give you the ability to just do things haphazardly without discipline, commitment and consistency. What started as a good dream could easily become a nightmare and that’s what has resulted in most dot bombs you see around today.
3. Job Security Issues are No More
Running your own home based business puts you in the seat of the boss; you are now the one who hires and fires. You are indomitable, you are the one holding the job, you call all the shots, and no one ever fires you.
You no more think of what happens during cut back and retrenchments, you are no more afraid of whether the company is going bankrupt or not. The issue of job security is now nipped in the bud once and for all.
4. You can start Part Time
Most people look at a home based business as something they can only do on full time and for that matter the fear of stopping their main job and starting a home based job has always created scary moments for them because of the risk of failure.
One good thing about starting a home based business especially an online business is to start small on part time till you are able to grow it into a fully matured business that can take care of your needs and wants.
Working 2 hours a day may be a good starting point for you. Exercise yourself and see some amount of money coming in and then add more hours and see much more before taking that deep leap to stop your day job. Don’t try to do all at a go. Take it easy one day at a time and before you realize you will be there.
5. Your personal confidence will soar
After just a few successes in your home based business, you will realize that your confidence will soar so high. You can now confidently hit your chest and say, yes, I have what it takes to start earning money online or make money from home.
Most times, it’s not so much about the money but the ability to prove to yourself that you can also work towards a goal and get it achieved. Also knowing for a fact that, success begets success, you will soon find yourself moving on to higher heights and crossing barriers you were not able to cross before.
6. You acquire a new level of discipline
As interesting and exciting as a home based business may be, it still requires some level of discipline and commitment to actually see it through to success. Where you do not develop the necessary discipline associated with being your own boss, you will finally observe everything crumbling at your feet.
The required discipline necessary to turn a home based business to success will definitely change your make up by the time you are through with it. It is therefore always good to realize that, it is not just about the money that you will make, but most of all, the discipline and the attitude it will leave within you.
7. You acquire and develop new skills and knowledge
It is impossible to remain at the same skill and knowledge level if you truly immerse yourself into your home based business. Let’s take an online business for instance, before you can truly perfect such a home based business, there are so many skills you need to develop and also certain specialized knowledge needs to be acquired.
It therefore goes without saying that, a successful home based business person will definitely ends up with a series of skills and specialized knowledge up his sleeve. The majority of these specialized skills and knowledge can only be acquired through hands-on practical experience.
8. You may earn a lot of money
Money is a reward for solving a problem; it therefore means that in order to have more money, it’s paramount that you have to solve more problems. It is also not a good decision to start a particular home based business because of the money involved. It is always good to start by doing what you love and the money will follow. As you love what you do, and you are able to help enough other people to get what they want, you will also get what you want.
Feel free to follow your passion without necessarily thinking about money. As you enjoy what you do, you will naturally involve your whole heart and this passion will show on the outside causing people to now respond to your call.
9. You can have freedom
After all is said and done, the key reason why most people want to engage in a home based business is the freedom. When you plan your activities well and you are able to achieve your goals, it’s quite possible to experience both financial and time freedom.
This level of freedom is what every worker yearns for but has eluded many. Freedom to do what you want, when you want it. Freedom to travel and go on vacation whilst your business keeps making money day in day out.
10. You can retire early
Should you be successful at your work from home business and you are earning enough, you could invest your money for it to work for you and go on early retirement. It has been the dream of many to retire early but the means to do so is just not there. With a very successful home based business, this could be achieved with hard work, dedication and commitment.
Many have done it, you are not the first so gird up your loins, fold up your sleeves and get ready to embark on this fruitful journey. There is no limit to what you can do, every good journey starts with the first step, take yours now.
5 Outdoor Advertising Mistakes
Feeling like you’re not getting your money’s worth on advertising and marketing? Then maybe you’re doing it wrong. Take a look at these questions and see for yourself.
5. Are you advertising enough?
Effective advertising does not happen in an instant. It actually requires constant advertising to make sure that your advertisements really sink in. Don’t be afraid to keep repeating on advertising. You may consider Digital Outdoor Advertising since it offers a repetitive means of capturing audience attention. Grab the opportunity and make the most of it.
4. Are your advertisements clear and easy to understand?
Don’t forget what it is you are advertising. If you want your customers to buy your products and services, then make sure you tell them what it is. It’s the simplest things that could cause huge damages to your advertising campaigns.
3. Are you engaging the audience with your ad?
What makes a successful outdoor advertising campaign is how it motivates the consumers to take action. It’s that strong sense of desire an advertisement brings that moves the customer from knowing about a movie to actually watching that movie. You have to make them feel like they really want and need your products or services so that you’re able to reap the benefits of your Outdoor Media Advertising advertisements.
2. Are you aware of your target audience?
Do take time to research on your consumers. In order to effectively convince them that they want your products or services, you have to know what it is your consumers exactly want. Find out what will motivate them to buy what it is you’re offering.
1. Are you advertising at the right place?
What makes an ad really effective is being in the right location at the right time. Knowing your target audience also means that you have to know where they usually are. If for example you’re targeting commuters, then the last place you’d want to advertise is on a highway. Yeah sure, chances are that commuters will pass by. But examine the percentage of commuters that pass by highways than non-commuters. Put yourself in your consumers’ shoes and think outside the billboard box. The best place for you to advertise would probably at transit systems. Not to worry, there are a lot of Media Owners out there that offers these kinds of services. Like SMRT Media who offers one of the largest outdoor advertising solutions and network in Singapore. Make sure your target audience actually sees your Outdoor advertisements and Outdoor Digital Media advertisement. Otherwise you’re just wasting money selling make-up in front of an all-boys school.
If you answered mostly “no” to these question then you definitely need to rethink your advertising campaign. Advertising and marketing is an investment and in order to get all the benefits, it’s important to be strategic about it. Plan ahead. Taking time to plan how you advertise will increase the chances of your advertising success.
The Finer Points of Internet Auctions
WHAT IS A PENNY AUCTION?
Penny auctions have exploded in popularity with the massive growth of the internet. However, few people know the true origins of penny auctions.Beginnings actually stretch back to the Great Depression. Those were hard times for everyone, but even harder for farmers. Farmers struggled to bring in steady income because of droughts and crops not selling as well as they had previously. As a result, the banks would foreclose on the farmers who couldn’t keep up with their mortgage payments.
The banks weren’t satisfied with just repossessing the house, they wanted to raise as much capital as possible, so they resorted to selling off the possessions of the owners of the repossessed houses. There was not much the farmers could do about it so they began bidding ridiculously low prices, pennies, on the items while threatening others who dared to bid higher than a few pennies.
The auctions of today hardly resemble their tremulous beginnings. Being part of a penny auction today is exhilarating, fun, and addictive. It combines the selling format of auctioning with a little bit of chance factored in.Auctions are a game of strategy but also a game of luck.
The premise behind penny auctions is giving people the chance to win an item at a drastically reduced price.Auctions make that possible by spreading out the cost of the product among multiple bidders. In order for a person to take part in an auction, they must pay a set price for each bid. For example, if a person wanted to bid on a fifty dollar Amazon gift card then he would spend a dollar for each time a bid placed. If he ended up winning the gift card, then he would only have spent a few dollars for a fifty dollar gift card. Usually penny auctions sell bids in packages.
HOW PENNY AUCTIONS WORK!
The main foundation of penny auctions is the pay-per-bid format. It is the key that allows bidders to win items at the fraction of their retail value and allows the auction owners to keep their site profitable. Most y auction sites run on the same premise: people pay a set amount for each bid, whenever a person places a bid within the closing seconds of the auction time will be added, the last person left with a unique bid after the clocks runs out will win the item. There are a large variety of items that can be won, but they tend to be popular electronics or gift cards to popular stores.
There are two types of auctions: lowest unique bid auction and highest unique bid auction. Lowest unique auction sounds confusing but it is actually quite simple. A unique bid is when only one person has a bid at a certain price. Bids usually start at one penny, a bidder can then place a bid at two pennies. Until another bidder places a higher bid, the most recent bidder will be the lowest unique bid because that was the only bid at two cents and nobody bid higher. However, penny auctions generally don’t stop at one penny. It is not uncommon to find auctions that end up at a couple hundred dollars based on the popularity of the item being auctioned. However, the same principles apply for those auctions. Highest unique bid auctions follow the more traditional auction format such as eBay. The person with the highest bid at the end of the auction wins the item.
Auction site owners turn a profit by selling bids. Say twenty people are bidding on a ten dollar gift card at one dollar per bid, at the end of the auction if there were twenty bids placed in total then the site owner would have made twenty dollars with a ten dollar profit.Auctions do seem like a win-win situation:The site owner makes money while the bidder gets an item for dirt cheap. However, not everyone wins in penny auctions. The people who paid one dollar each bid but left with nothing to show for their investments will not be so happy.
HOW TO WIN!
Penny auction has a lot of chance mixed into it, but one can incorporate strategy that will help raise the chances of winning. Playing smart can make all the difference between gambling and auctioning.
The first crucial tip to winning penny auctions is to know how to manage your bids. Your goal should be to win as much as possible without spending a ton of money buying bids. Managing your bids means that you should already know how much you are willing to risk in order to win an item. The amount of capital you are willing to risk will determine how many bids you can use. Once you know how many bids you have to spend on an item, then you will be better able to manage how and when you place a bid. That will keep you from blowing away all of your bids in the first few seconds of the auction.
The next tip is to practice time management. When fighting in the trenches of penny auctions, you have two enemies: other bidders and time. Knowing when to bid is a must if you want to have success. Placing a bid when there is a lot of time left on the clock is never a good idea. You have to remember that the key to winning a penny auction is being the last one standing when the clock runs out and that each bid increases the amount of time left. It would be a good practice to wait until the last few minutes of the auction before you begin to bid.
The final tip for successful auctioning is to keep your emotions under control.Auctions have a lot of similarities to gambling, and just like gambling, your spending can get out of control. If you keep your emotions level, it will keep you from making rash decisions and blowing loads of cash. Keep your mind clear so that you can gage the behavior of the other bidders and outsmart them.
HOW TO AVOID SCAM SITES!
Penny auctions are a great addition to the web whether you want to win an item that otherwise you wouldn’t be able to afford or if you simply enjoy the thrill that comes with bidding in auctions. Unfortunately, scam sites have tarnished the reputation of the legitimate penny auction sites. However, there are ways that you can protect yourself from scamers and enjoy your auctioning without having to worry about losing your money due to dishonesty.
Checking the reputation of the auction site before you start spending your hard earned money is always a good idea. Chances are other people have tried the site before you and some of them have left reviews. The reviews are your way to gage whether a auction site is trustworthy or not. If a site is getting overwhelmingly negative reviews, then that is a clear indication that you should steer your business elsewhere.
Another tool you can use to protect yourself is checking the Alexia ranks of the auction sites. Alexia rank will give a solid view of how much traffic the auction is getting. If you see a huge difference in the amount of traffic Alexia is projecting and the amount of active bidders on the site, then warning signals should be ringing in your head. Some auction sites have been known to set up robots that automatically bid on projects in order to keep the auction going and inflate the price. That is known as shill bidding. You can sniff out those sites by comparing the traffic the site should be getting to the amount of users using this site.
CONCLUSION!
New legislation may come out later down the road that will officially make penny auctions gambling, but until then, it is a fun, exciting auction that allows one to win the item they’ve always wanted but couldn’t afford.Auctions are also quite lucrative for the site owners because of the pay-per-bid strategy they’ve incorporated. Penny auctions had humble beginnings with farmers who just wanted to get back at the banks who kicked them out of their house. More recently, auctions have enjoyed an explosion in popularity with the rise of the internet.
There are two main formats fora auctions, lowest and highest unique auction, however they both run on the same premise where the last unique bid wins the item. Winning a penny auction will require a certain amount of mental tactic and a bit of luck. However, you can increase your odds of winning by practicing certain techniques such as managing your bids wisely, learning how to work with the time, and keeping a level head and your emotions under control. When you combine those three strategies to your bidding plan, you will find that you win a lot more often.
It is important that you do your due diligence to protect yourself when participating in auctions. Not every auction is run by honest and trustworthy people. There are people out there who just want to take your money. You can protect yourself by ensuring that you only bid on sites that already have a very positive reputation from real users.
How to Find Great Live Auctions for Resale Items
Hi, my name is Walt. I’m an auctioneer with 25 years of experience in the auction business and licensed in the state of MA. I own Quick Auction Service, a company that specializes in building and running custom auctions, I’m also the webmaster of my own site and have been on eBay for 8 years. Besides eBay, the types of auctions I run most frequently are antiques and on-site estate auctions, although I’ve run everything from business overstock auctions to charity & special event auctions.
I enjoy sharing my knowledge and stories of the auction business. My goal for article is to help folks get the absolute most out of their auction experience.
Whether your fresh out of the package or a seasoned dealer I think I can offer something in this article to help you with your auciton adventures.
There may be as many reasons to attend auctions as there are types of auctions to attend. Maybe you want to attend an auction to buy items for re-sale on eBay, or some other market. Maybe you want to furnish your home with wonderful antiques, or you want to furnish your home as inexpensively without sacrificing quality.Some folks are just looking for a fun night out. With a little perseverance all these things are possible.
There are antiques and estate auctions, auto auctions, overstock auctions, absolute and no reserve auctions, real estate auctions, specialty auctions where only one genre of items are sold, tailgate auctions, live auctions, online auctions, sealed bid auctions, silent auctions, charity and fund raising auctions and many more.
Can you really buy for pennies on the dollar at an auction? You bet! Many times I’ve seen folks buy and re-sell at the same auction on the same night for a good profit, although be advised, this should only be done after the auction is over.
There are a lot of ways to find an auction, but here are some tips on how to find and attend the best ones.
Visit the genre of shops in the area that apply to the type of auction you want to attend. IE: If your looking for a good antique auction to attend, stop in the local antiques shops and ask for what there are for good auctions in the area. Sounds obvious right? But listen to what they don’t say as well as what they do say. Oftentimes when a dealer speaks poorly about an auction he or she attends, it may be likely that they are trying to keep a good thing secret. Think for a moment, why would a dealer keep attending a lousy auction?
Newspaper ads: I personally like to find ads in the classified ad section rather than flashy display ads. Flashy ads are usually indicative of an auction that will be high priced, may have reserves, (a set price on an item), and usually an enormous crowd. While any auction can be profitable to attend, it is usually best to steer clear of the glitzy ones, at least for the beginner.
Here’s the minimum you want to find out before you go. If there is a phone number in the ad, call and ask for the terms of the sale. What forms of payment do they accept? Is it an absolute auction? An absolute auction is one that has no minimum or reserve bids on items. These are the best auctions to attend! Is there a buyers premium? A buyers premium is like a tax that everyone who makes purchases at that auction must pay above the winning bid price. Most auctions these days do charge a buyers premium, 10% is not unreasonable but I feel much more than that is greedy, and the auctioneer that charges over 10% is counting on most bidders not doing the extra math as the bids quicken in pace.
A fair auction will have ample time to inspect the merchandise, usually at least 2 or 3 hours. Find out when inspection starts and make sure to attend! Never attend an auction if you can’t make the inspection, not unless your prepared to gamble. Most auctioneers sell at a rate of about 100 items per hour, which is why they sell “as is”. They simply don’t have the time to give a detailed description of all the items. Since almost all items at auction are sold AS IS, there are sure to be some damaged, refinished, fake and incomplete items at any given auction. Beware of any auctions that offer very little or no inspection time.
Good auctions will usually have 150 to 400 lots. A lot may be one item or a group of items. The exception to this are specialty auctions, auto auctions, real estate auctions etc.
When you attend your first sale, take note of the 1/2 dozen or so dealers that buy the most often. See if you can find out about other area auctions they attend.
When you do find an excellent auction, attend it as often as possible. By frequenting good sales, you help increase the bottom line of that business. It’s difficult for many auctioneers to keep the quality of merchandise consistent, so good attendance certainly helps. And when an auctioneer gets to know you as a buyer, he/she will go out of the way to accommodate you, to keep you coming back.
Hiring An Auction Company
Estimating your assets value:
Typically, one of the first questions a business owner will ask me is, “how much will the assets bring at an auction”. After taking the time to review the assets, the auctioneer should give the client a conservative estimate of the sale based upon his experience and the current market trends. It is important that the company give realistic expectations so the seller can make informed decisions based on their best interest.
Compensation and Expenses:
Is the company you are considering working for you or against you? The agreement you decide may determine this.
A business owner should carefully consider how the auction company is compensated. The most common commission structures include: straight commission, outright purchase of assets, guaranteed base with a split above to both auctioneer and seller, guaranteed base with anything above going to auctioneer or a flat fee structure.
In a straight commission structure, the company is paid an agreed upon percentage of the total sale.
In an outright purchase agreement, the auctioneer simply becomes your end buyer. The company purchases your assets and relocates them. While this can be an option in some unique situations, keep in mind that they will want to purchase your assets at a very reduced price to make a profit at a later date.
In a minimum base guarantee, the auction company guarantees the seller that the auction will generate a minimum amount of sales. Anything above that amount either goes to the auction company or split with the seller. While a seller might feel more comfortable doing an auction knowing that he is guaranteed a minimum amount for his sale, keep in mind that it is the best interest of the auction company to secure a minimum base price as low as possible in order reduce their financial liability to the seller and secure higher compensation for the sale.
In a flat fee structure, the auctioneer agrees to show up for the sale and call the auction. There is no incentive for the auctioneer to get the best prices for your assets. The auction company is compensated regardless of the outcome of your sale.
What is the best option for business owners? In my experience, an agreed upon straight commission structure. This puts the responsibility on the auction company to offer the best outcome for everyone involved. There is an incentive for the auction company to work hard for both parties, set up and run a professional sale, get the highest bid and sell every item on the inventory. Successful auctions translate to a higher bottom line for both the seller and the auction company.
Auction Expenses:
In most auction agreements the expenses to conduct an auction are passed to the seller. If the auction company pays for the expenses, it is simply absorbed in higher commission rates.
All expenses should be agreed upon in advance in a written contract. Typical expenses will include the costs of advertising, labor, legal fees, travel, equipment rentals, security, postage and printing. A reputable auction company will be able to estimate all expenses based upon their experience in previous auctions. An agreement should be actual costs charged as expenses, not an estimated amount.
Advertising is typically the highest cost in conducting an auction. The auction company needs to set up an advertising campaign that will promote the sale to its best advantage and not overspend to simply advertise the auction company.
Once the auction is complete, the auction company should provide a complete breakdown of all expenses to the seller, including copies of receipts within the auction summary report.
Buyer’s Premium:
What is a buyer’s premium? If you attend auctions regularly, you are very familiar with this term. The auction company charges a fee to the buyer when they buy an item at auction.
The buyer’s premium has been around since the 1980′s and is standard auction practice. It was first used by auction houses to help offset costs of running brick and mortar permanent auction facilities. Since then, it has spread to all aspects of the auction industry. It is prominent in online auctions and allows auction companies to cover added expenses incurred from online sales.
It is the responsibility of the auction company to provide clear disclosure of the buyer’s premium to both the buyers and the sellers. Those not familiar with auctions are often taken back by the buyer’s premium. They looked upon it as an under handed way for the auction company to make more money. Reputable auction companies will provide full disclosure within the auction contract, advertisement and bidder registration.
Typically, an auction company will charge online buyers a higher buyer’s premium percentage than those attending an auction in person. Extra fees are incurred with online bidding and are charged accordingly to online buyers. This provides the seller a level playing field for both online buyers and those attending the auction in person. Without the buyer’s premium, there is no way to do this.
Pre-Sales:
We’ve all been there. We’re looking forward to attending an auction only to find that some items were sold prior to the auction date.
As an auctioneer with over thirty-six years of experience, I can honestly state that pre-sales will hurt an auction. When a company decides to liquidate their assets, it is easy to sell off high-end pieces of equipment through online sources, equipment vendors or to other businesses. The seller receives instant cash and avoids paying a commission to an auction company.
Auctioneer’s find themselves appearing to acting in a self-serving capacity when potential clients say they are planning to sell off parts of their inventory prior to an auction. It’s hard not to consider the auctioneer’s commission when they warn you not to pre-sell anything. Yes, the auctioneer wants to earn a commission on those sales but it is more important that the auctioneer protect the sale from potential negative backlash that comes from pre-selling. The buying public knows when an auction has been “cherry picked” prior to the sale and it reflects in their bidding. It becomes a sale of “leftovers” and that impacts prices.
A buyer who purchases prior to the auction usually does not attend the sale. They already bought equipment at a good price with no competition. If they do attend the auction, they tend to let others know of their great pre-sale purchases which again, impacts prices and the overall excitement of the sale.
It is important to understand that auctions work best with a complete inventory. You want competition on your higher end equipment. The easy to sell items make it possible to gain respectable prices for hard to sell items.
When a business owner decides to liquidate their equipment assets, there is only one opportunity to do it right. Hiring a reputable auction company will assist you with a professional, orderly and timely liquidation.