At last, we have come to the really fun part -- the money-making part! Here is where you get the information and ideas you need to change your life. It is a game in which you can build a successful business with minimal risk.
The Net auction business is fascinating and filled with unexpected surprises. Where else can you spot a package of coca-cola gum that sold for $2500? Imagine that…
… $500 to chew a stick of gum! Eat your heart out, Hollywood! One of the beautiful parts about the auction game is that you begin to make contacts. As the word spreads, people are soon calling you. Opportunities appear. Fresh ideas flower. You begin to see all kinds of exciting new opportunities and intriguing directions.
Hopefully, at this point, you have a clearer focus on where you want to go with auctions. The next few chapters will give you lots of ideas to get you on your way. Work with these ideas. Mix and match and create original combinations. Shift an idea to a different field. Basically, use these approaches to open the door to thousands of possibilities.
Will you like every idea that is presented? No way! Perhaps you may like nine of the ideas. If so, make a list of these and prioritize them. Or perhaps you see the potential of certain ideas for your particular situation but they would have to be modified to meet your needs.
The point here is to stimulate your own creative juices, not copy exactly what someone else has already done. A quick word of advice… If you consider this a chore or a task or a drag, find some other way to win fame and fortune. A Net auction business takes serious effort to achieve success and to have fun along the way.
How do you eat an elephant?…
…One bite at a time. The joke might be getting a little stale but the symbolism remains fresh. Grow your Net auction business piece by piece.
This point must be emphasized again and again... be cautious. Experiment and do your homework before you buy really expensive items or rush into Dutch auctions.
We live in the “World of Instant Gratification.” However, auction wealth is a process based on knowledge and experience and the only way to get that is to proceed slowly and cautiously until you know what you are doing.
Sorry to be a party pooper but the get-rich-quick folks are deceiving themselves. Only a tiny handful of people in any field hit the top level right out of the gate. It is prudent to assume that you won’t be an instant success.
On your mark, get ready. Where do you start? Well, just like anything else, at the beginning. Focus on your customer. If you can offer her what she wants, you will be able to get what you want from her -i.e., her business.
Let’s think through why someone will choose to buy off the Internet or an auction site. There are, of course, many reasons but the three primary ones are worth repeating…
1) Convenience -- the commodity most in demand in our culture is time. Personally, I think it is amazing what people will pay to have done for them but there are many affluent people to whom money is of much less importance than convenience.
2) Price -- many other people search the sites for a great price. Sometimes an item costs more on an auction site than it does in the store but it’s rare.3) The merchandise is unusual . In our mass-produced world, there are more and more people who are developing an appreciation for quality, for craftsmanship, for uniqueness. That sentiment provides a marvelous opportunity for you.
Whenever you are seeking goods or services to sell, constantly ask yourself if it has one of these three qualities -- convenience, great price or uniqueness. If it does, investigate further. If it doesn’t, move on down the road.
It goes without saying, no item… no sale. So start looking and be open to the possibilities. What items appeal to you? Which ones do not? What are the latest trends? What might be the next big happening? Search with critical eyes.
Get out of the house. Visit department stores, hardware stores, gardening and auto-supply stores. Go to the mall. Get on mailing lists and look at catalogs. Go to trade shows. Read lots of consumer magazines and study the ads. Meet new people. Make some phone calls. E-mail/write some letters. Try new foods, new hobbies, new sports.
Snoop around. Be curious. Think. Have fun.
This chapter deals with selling your own goods, a popular strategy for Net auction business owners. It does not mean you necessarily have the goodies in your possession, or have spent your own money to acquire them. This method has three variations...
1) Sell merchandise you already own