It’s not about you
In this Success Newsletter:
- Let me try this one more time - it’s not about YOU - it’s about the buyers
- 72 hours left to save over $400
- Online Digital Photography class – by THE Cindy Shebley
- 5 Red Flags When Buying Used Things to Resell
- New Classes are ready – Q&A for eBay fee/site changes, and Profitable Keyword Q&A
Remember, you can read the previous Success newsletters in the OSI Rock Star archives at http://osirockstars.com/?cat=5
I am not Sweden
The first thing I do each morning is answer email, and I am always delighted at what arrives. Usually it is filled with ‘thank yous’ from people who have received a CD, or taken a class, or read one of my books, or have made the decision to Choose Success and join Rock Stars. I love reading how someone increased their Store sales 15% by doing this’ one thing’, or are able to leave their corporate job and support their family, or changed a title in their listing and got 10 more people bidding on their item, or someone who just made PowerSeller. And for that I am very blessed.
But today’s mail included the following as well. I have left out their eBay Store name on purpose.
Janelle,
Although I keep up with your newsletters I may not much longer. I think you should have remained neutral in the boycott issue on eBay. I am a PowerSeller with a 4.9+ overall rating and find that every time I turn around eBay is doing less to help the sellers. If the boycott was needed to attract media attention, so be it. I am afraid that your pro buyer message will lose a lot of business for you.
Gosh, thanks for your words of advice and concern, but I think I will leave the fence sitting to others. As many of you have heard me say on stage, as I travel around the world I am thankful more and more that I live in a country where I can be an educated woman, a Successful entrepreneur, and am allowed to voice my opinions. I will never take these for granted and wake up every morning very thankful that I have these rights. You will never see me hiding from what I truly believe in. I didn’t get the name Feisty redhead for nothing – and I am not sure why you would want someone who is helping you be Successful to be timid.
I have built my reputation in the internet world by the following things:
- My honesty – I would never recommend a product unless I truly believed it would help create success in the world of my readers – and my recommendations have helped many people become wildly successful
- My energy – yep, I’ll take the ‘cheerleader’ button and wear it proudly. I am honored and blessed to be able to share what I know with a group of Success-minded people who take that information and run with it.
- My passion – I truly believe in what I write and speak about…mostly because this is how I also make my living. I don’t just write about it – I walk the talk too. Every morning I wake up with a smile on my face and a twinkle in my heart thrilled that this is what I get to spend the next 10 - 12 hours of the day doing. People know if I can do it – they can do it.
- My convictions – and boy has this one got my name drug over the hot coals of the eBay discussion boards, but I am very happy with that. See, each time that happens the people who disagree with me leave my newsletter & the people who are Success minded sign up for my newsletter. And the educators who are wishy-washy on subjects because they are afraid of what other people will think end up with a newsletter list full of wishy-washy people who never achieve Success. I don’t want that in my business and I don’t want that for my newsletter list. I want people who choose Success and will work hard to get it. I want people who are honest, have energy & passion and stand by their convictions.
So back to your email, again I appreciate your concern over my losing business because I support the buyers – the backbone of any business, but actually my business this past week has increased over 165%. And, from what I hear, my Rock Stars saw increases in their sales this week too!! And not just from eBay – they saw increases in their Etsy, Amazon, blujay, and ecrater sales too – all of the additional sales channels we have been teaching about over at Rock Stars. (extra thanks to Stephanie and Alice and Richard on this one!). Hhhmmm, perhaps there is something to the whole ‘paying attention to your buyer’ thing after all. Gee, maybe my side of the fence is looking a bit greener – pun intended.
Mimi of http://www.mimis-discount-boutique.com/ just sent me this fabulous blog post from my favorite guru, Seth Godin. The image by itself pretty much sums up which side of the fence I, and the incredibly talented Rock Stars have proudly landed on.
http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2008/02/the-boss.html
You rock Mimi!!
The Rock Stars can say it much better than I ever could…
“Whether you are a new online business owner or a seasoned Powerseller and are looking to take your business to the next level…OSI Rock Stars is the place for you!
I have been a member since October and learn something new every day. The tips, tricks and techniques I’ve gained through the educational sources have increased my sales and store traffic over 25% in the first month!
Janelle and her gurus have some of the best marketing and SEO tips available anywhere. The classes on this site given by video and audio are priceless!
This site truly is a community for and by experts willing to give their knowledge to help their community grow and excel!
This site truly does ROCK! Take control of your business and go to the next level with OSI Rock Stars!”
Mary Evans
Drei Katzen Media
eBay Powerseller, Education Specialist and OSI Rock Star!
“My husband and I have spent a lot of time achieving over 10,000 positive feedbacks and we ship out over 50 vintage items every week, so time is important to us!
In the one month or so since I joined OSI Rock Stars, I have spent less than 3 hours a week, reading and listening to information shared by the members and specialists Janelle brings to the site, however, I am thrilled to say that in that short time, I have actually paid for my entire year’s membership solely with hints I picked up from OSI Rock Stars.
The OSI Rock Star opportunity is a bargain, both for the time and investment, and I encourage any eBayer whether new or experienced to take advantage of the benefits of joining.”
Cori : >
http://stores.ebay.com/Vintage-Millinery-Flowers-Shoppe?refid=store
“OSI Rock Stars in a word has been “everything” to me. You see I’m a professional Private Investigator and know very little about Internet Marketing. When I joined OSI Rock Stars, I was skeptical, thinking, “here I go again” throwing money at another guru that professes to be able to help the Internet ‘wannabe’ be successful on the Internet. But… that wasn’t the case. Janelle Elms walks the talk and truly delivers. I stumbled across Janelle’s site and am so happy I did. I have learned so much. I had begun writing ebooks relating to my profession and was looking for ways to learn how to market them on the Internet. As a result of OSI Rock Stars, I have now finished 5 of the ebooks I had started and have put them in an eBay store. OSI Rock Stars has given me the knowledge, confidence and tools to move forward and build my eBay store. The community of OSI Rock Stars have been very helpful and open in terms of offering their assistance. I just got my eBay store live a couple of weeks ago and the very next day after going live, I got my “first sale.” I have spent weeks and literally thousands of dollars on previous Internet ventures by having the “guru’s” build expensive web sites and I never made the first sale. Do I sound excited now? You bet I am and I owe it to Janelle and OSI Rock Stars. My store can be viewed at:
http://stores.ebay.com/PeopleSearch-Education-WorkAtHome
Thank you Janelle and OSI Rock Stars”
Bill Jones
dataprobe
Come join us today and receive:
- Over 115 hours of Success Education from the best Headliners and Legends in online business
- Over 10 hours of Additional Success Education that will be added each month
- Exclusive VIP access to monthly private training sessions held only for Rock Stars
- Elite Rock Star party passes to a monthly Q&A live call with 80’s rocker chick (& eBay entrepreneur) Janelle Elms
- The opportunity to hang out with other cool Rock Stars like you…sharing ideas, opinions, information, support and knowledge with each other.
- The opportunity to take advantage of the incredible power of the OSI Rock Stars PR and marketing machine in advancing my business
- All of the Web 2.0 marketing, search engine optimization, social networking, and peer sharing to increase your Rock Star Success status
- Savings of over $400 by becoming an annual member of OSI Rock Stars
Go to OSI Rock Stars to join now!!
Online Digital Photography Class
Just received notice that Cindy is teaching her ‘very much in demand’ Online Digital Photography Class again starting this weekend. Sign up quick as seats fill up fast for this timely teaching. Now (with gallery photos being free) more than ever you need to be able to stand apart with your online photos – learn from the best AND in the comfort of your own home!!
Just a quick email to let you know I’m starting another Basic Digital Camera Class this Saturday, March 2nd
Take this class without leaving the comfort of your home!
Dial in and watch your computer monitor.
When: March 2, 2008 and March 9, 2008 (Two Saturday sessions).
Time: 10:00 am - 12:00 noon (pacific) - 1:00-3:00 pm eastern
I’ll provide the information necessary to produce great photos and walk you through step-by-step how to use your digital camera.
During these two classes we’ll cover: the various modes and settings your camera has to offer, the basics of composition, how to get those images to your computer, basic software uses, printing and sharing your photos via email and the internet.
We’ll open up the phone lines for questions at the end of each session, so bring your camera, questions and enthusiasm - and never leave the comfort of you home!
Includes a downloadable PDF file with the presentation so you can follow along with your camera instead of taking notes.
For More Information or register about this online camera class http://www.clovercitysells.com/online-digital-camera-classes.htm
Hope to see you there!
Cindy Shebley
5 Red Flags When Buying Used Things to Resell
Our very own Auction Listing Coach Carol Hearn has taken the time to write an incredible article about buying used things to resell. This is good information for all sellers to be aware of. Thanks Carol – your vast and brilliant knowledge comes to the rescue again – we love it!!
I very rarely see this topic discussed, but every person who buys used things to resell is occasionally confronted by a situation where he or she could be involved in buying stolen or disputed property. The vast majority of people with used things to sell are the legitimate owners of those things, but there are people who use unsuspecting resellers as a ready source of cash for stolen (or sometimes just disputed) property.
There is no reason to be suspicious of every person with things to sell, but one of the basics of buying used things is to make sure they are legitimately available for sale, and there are clear signs that should make an honest reseller run in the opposite direction.
Cautions include:
- The seller has too many things to sell (or too many different kinds of things) for them to be from one person’s collection – When someone has “hundreds” of something, a caution flag should go up which should lead to careful questioning about how he put together his collection. If the items are left over inventory from a failed business venture or inherited from a shopaholic relative or any one of a thousand other plausible explanations, there may be no need for concern. If the answers about how he came to have so much to sell are vague, proceed with caution.
- The kinds of things the seller has for sale are too expensive for his apparent lifestyle – A teenager with several diamond rings to sell is not going to inspire confidence nor is a person living a subsistence lifestyle who has a boxful of Royal Doulton figurines. Although there may be a plausible explanation, this is probably the most significant red flag.
- The person says he is selling things he has collected, but he knows very little about the type of item - If a person has a large Hummel figurine collection to sell but doesn’t know anything about the significance of the marks on the bottom or says they are from the 1920s (before Hummels were made), it is unlikely that he is a real collector. People who have lots of different things to sell often don’t know much about them, but those who have lots of one type of item usually have some specific knowledge about that collectible.
- A person wants to sell things he has inherited - It makes sense to ask in a conversational way a few questions like “Where did your aunt live; how old was she; had she collected for a long time”, etc. This is useful for at least three reasons:
- It encourages the seller to talk about a subject he’s interested in (his relative) and become comfortable with you, the buyer.
- If you buy the items, it is very helpful in selling them to have some background to pass along to your customers.
- If the person seems vague or nervous, you are alerted to a possible problem with ownership.
- The seller mentions that there is/was a family feud about the items you are considering buying – If the feud has been settled, the seller may have every right to dispose of the items. However, if they are the subject of an ongoing fight, there could be serious ramifications for a reseller.
There can be serious consequences for the reseller if he or she inadvertently buys stolen or disputed property. These range from embarrassment to legal action. If the true owner of property you have “bought” is able to prove that the seller didn’t have ownership, the least that can happen is a lot of hassle and losing the amount that you invested in the item(s). Much more serious consequences can result if there is an indication that you knew or should have known that you were buying stolen property.
Suggestions:
- Careful questioning will usually reveal those few really questionable situations. It is always better to lose an occasional buy than to face the consequences mentioned above.
- If you decide to go ahead with a buy despite a concern about the seller’s story, I’d suggest telling the seller early in the negotiation that you will be making a written list of the items purchased for them to sign and that you must look at their driver’s license to verify identity. This is actually required in some states and is a very good way to proceed when you have serious doubts. A person who is trying to sell stolen goods will almost certainly not sign a statement listing what he has sold and give you his license. If you make such a list, it should say on it: “I certify that I own these items and am free to sell them.”
Observations:
- When you buy in someone’s home (either on a house call or at a yard sale), the chances are usually good that the items are owned by the seller.
- You are not released from your obligation to be diligent just because you are buying at a flea market or in a shop, particularly when valuable items are offered at low prices.
Carol Hearn
I know it does not happen nearly often enough, but it’s time for the semi-annual coupon…
New Classes for this week…
Hey…get registered ASAP for this week’s classes. All OSI Live classes are fr-ee to attend and instructions are included during the registration process for both the podcasts and the webinars. Remember, you can either ask a question for our special guest or simply put “I Choose Success” in the question box.
2/27/08, Wednesday at 1pm pst/4pm est – Another Rock Star Only Exclusive training - Any remaining eBay fee and site change questions lingering? Your chance to ask them during this OSI Rock Star Exclusive training class. Learn more about these exclusive classes and get the registration link at: http://osirockstars.com/topic.php?id=223&replies=1
2/28/08, Thursday at 1pm pst/4pm est – Another Rock Star training – If you purchased the “Profitable Keyword Training” CD, you received a link to this exclusive training class with your package. Follow that registration link to get registered for this rare Live coaching class with Janelle. If you would still like to purchase the CD, you can at www.JanelleElms.com/cd If you are a Rock Star, learn more about these exclusive classes and get the registration link at: http://osirockstars.com/topic.php?id=223&replies=1
You can find out more about these classes, as well as register, at: www.osiRockStars.com (scroll to the bottom of that webpage for upcoming classes, details and registration information).
Fabulous blessings,
j
Posted by permission of Cliff Ennico – author of The eBay Seller’s Tax and Legal Answer Book – Get your copy at 
