I have never understood...

> ..... Next time you walk into a shop, look round the shelves and consider
> that this also happens to shopkeepers :O) - so I can sympathise.

how shopkeepers stay in business.

I have (just for fun) watched certain small shops for a couple of hours at a time during prime business hours (no, I don't sit on the curb and watch shops, bwahahahaha, but often I would be in the car waiting for my daughter, etc.) and absolutely NOBODY went inside -- or maybe one person who then came out empty-handed.

I don't get it.

There's a used book store in town that I just went in for the first time, and the owner told me he's been in that spot for 23 years. I've spent a huge amount of time across the street and have seen a grand total of three people go inside, and one of them was me.

> .... ok, now's the time to figure out what was the difference between the
> items that sold for $50 and the items that you bought to resell. For
> instance, the make of china, the number of pieces; the color. Did the
> other auction titles sell "50s China" - or a "Royal Doulton
> China set" .....

Yup -- that's where a large part of my time goes -- figuring out which descriptions sell and which ones don't. And I always match up the make and pattern and condition when deciding whether to buy something.

My first success was an antique adding machine that had just sold for $21, but I went back and found a totaly different description that sold for $63; I made mine similar to #2 and got $49 and I was happy, and it was a good lesson.

Sell by the place setting? By lots of a single piece?? Who knows.

It changes constantly --

which is why I could never NEVER make it in retail. I just don't have a feel for that kind of thing at all. I had the same problem when I tried to do the flea market thing 25 years ago -- but at least on Ebay, where it's right in front of me, I seem a bit more able to pick up the clues, which is why I'm encouraged to keep trying.

Am I mistaken about this?... I thought you could see completed auctions way back, but now it's only (two weeks). Did they change it, or am I missing something?

> On your driftwood auctions, it might be cool to use your
> lostcoastdriftwood logo at the top of the auction - and that way, you can
> start to market your driftwood web site too :) - and to use the image of
> the sea crashing onto the shore as your gallery image.

Thanks! I never would have thought of that.

> Have you tried auctioning smaller lots of driftwood?

Oh yeah -- I never intended to do "lots," but they were going like crazy for a while... just simple, unfancy pieces like mine. Of course when I put mine up, they stopped.

I really think timing is everything -- but then there are those who just seem to post anything and everything in massive quantities (like 2500 auctions at a time), and they don't seem the least bit concerned that only 15% of those sell and the fees wipe out the selling price six times over.

> ... another wee thought - when you buy items on eBay, what makes You click
> the "Bid" button? is it the description or is it the pictures?

Both -- but I won't buy if there aren't really good pictures, preferably from every angle.

> .... or is it the brand name? If you're comparing/contrasting several
> different auctions for similar items, do you have time to read a long
> condition report?

On used stuff, the condition report makes a huge difference to me, and the more detailed the better -- but like I said in another post, I often wonder if a three-liner would be better.

> You've probably asked yourself these questions thousands of times over -
> so sorry if I'm repeating what you've already said to yourself :O)

No no no!!

The more repeating the better!! I really think a lot of people are interested in this (I hope) (if not, I hope their pinky works and they can just move on).

Luv,