How to Think Like an eBay PowerSeller

PowerSellers are the people on eBay who've made it, recognizable by the little 'PowerSeller' badge next to their name. You've probably seen these people around - and to succeed on eBay, you want to think the way they do.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. How to People Get the Right to Call Themselves PowerSellers?
   
   eBay gets to decide who can be a PowerSeller and who can't, and they have strict
   requirements. To get in at the minimum PowerSeller level, you must have a
   feedback rating of at least 100 (minimum 98% positive) and sell at least $1,000
   worth of items every month for three months in a row. There are different levels
   of PowerSeller membership as you sell items of greater value: $1,000 total is
   bronze, $3,000 is silver, $10,000 is gold, $25,000 is platinum and $125,000 is
   titanium.
   
   If PowerSellers ever fail to meet the required amount of sales, or their feedback
   falls below 98% positive, then they lose their PowerSeller status. In short, the
   only people who get to be PowerSellers on eBay are the people who have been
   successful for a good while, and are on track to stay that way.
2. The Shop and the Marketplace
   
   This is the most important part of understanding how PowerSellers think. They
   don't see what they're doing as being some random bazaar, or a hobby - instead,
   they see themselves as a business.
   
   Put it like this. If you run a stall in a marketplace, the chances are that you have a
   general area of business, but you mostly just sell whatever you can get your hands
   on that week. If your dodgy buddy got his hands of a job lot of something at a
   discount, then that's what you'll be selling. This might be fun - and when you
   have a good week, you'll have a really good week - but it's no way to run a real
   business in the long-term.
   
   PowerSellers think far more like shops. They sell the same things again and
   again, every week - regular stock for regular customers. They do 'boring' business
   things like keep inventories and budgets. They know what they're going to be
   selling, how much they buy it for and how much they expect to sell for. Just like a
   real shop, there can be hard times sometimes, but their income is stable and their
   business can grow slowly.
3. Don't take long-term risks for short-term gain. Look after your reputation,
   manage your selling properly, provide good customer service and the rewards will
   come to you in due course. And you'll get a little badge next to your name that
   makes people trust you more!
   
   One possibility that you might have realised so far is what eBay can do for any
   other businesses you might have. Remember, millions of people visit eBay every
   day - why keep everything separate when you're starting to tap into that kind of
   power?