Don't Get Caught With Google Adsense Click Fraud

Many web site owners are getting their Google Adsense account terminated when they have done nothing wrong to deserve the punishment. Considering the money that they are getting from Adsense, they would certainly want to get back into it. Considering the money to be made with Adsense, it is no wonder that they would want to get back into it. It is that same consideration why the Google Adsense click fraud is thought of and why many people are getting into it.

Click fraud is the act of clicking on ads for the purpose of costing the advertiser money. It is simply the same as paying out cash for false leads. Many people website owners are aware of this fraud and are sharing the same sentiment that this is the one big problem that Adsense is facing.

How do you prevent being involved in this fraud?

Majority of web hosts are offering access logs. Once this is offered to you, it is necessary that you hand it over to Google as well. This allows them to look for any suspicious activity on your site. Problems like this are very serious and giving it to them is saying that you would want to help them in any way you can in solving the problem.

It can also help if you have a click monitoring software. If you do not have one yet, you should try and get one. There is absolutely no major factor preventing you from having one because most of this software is free. As usual, all the information you have received should be turned over to Google. This is showing Google that you too are fighting against click frauds and is in no way a part of it.

Study your server logs and watch for any activity that seems suspicious. Report anything that you may find odd, may it big or small thing. You may want to consider disabling ads for your own IP address and local geographic area. This will certainly prevent accidents and will not make Google mistake another user as you. You can do through a htaccess file. This will avoid Google mistaking as clicking on your own ads and be kicked out because of it.

Keep your Adsense off on pop ups and pop unders. Your ads should not be displayed on content sites that promote illegal activity or tampering of the legal rights of other people or business. Included in this are the content that is considered adult and gambling ones. If you think that you may be breaking this rule, immediately remove your content or Adsense from the web page.

Be truthful and confess up to Google about times when you might have clicked on your own as, whether accidentally or intentionally. Or the times when you have done something that is against the Terms of Service that they are implementing. Be honest about anything that you may have done that is wrong. Confessing is way better than Google learning about it eventually. It would mean eventual termination and no getting back what you have worked so hard for.

Do not tell your family or friends about Adsense on your website. Chances are they may start clicking on them to help you make money without you knowing it. They may be doing more harm to you than help by trying it in the first place. If ever someone you know chanced upon your Adsense, make sure they understand that they cannot click on your ads under any circumstances. It would be wise to brief them on important things about Adsense and what not to do with them.

Most pay per click networks have different measures in hand to protect website owners against click frauds. Other search engines can track more than 50 data points, IP address, browser’s information, user’s session info and pattern recognition. They also have “systems” available that detects fraud. Not to mention the specialized teams monitoring how things are going and helping advertisers stop click frauds.

Google offers suggestion on how to avoid click fraud. Using “negative keywords” can be used to keep your Adsense showing on products and services that are in no way related to yours. Adding tracking URLs to your links so you can track the traffic coming from Google. Do not be caught in the Google click fraud. Be aware and be wary.

eBay Sellers: How to Deal with Difficult Customers

If you are an eBay seller, you will have to do business with eBay buyers. As traditional retailers do, you may also have a problem with some customers. While the majority of eBay buyers are more than pleasant to deal with, there are some who can “ruffle your feathers.” While your first thought may be to give a difficult eBay buyer a piece of your mind, you may want to refrain from doing so, especially if you rely on eBay to generate income for yourself and your family.

When it comes to dealing with difficult eBay buyers, one problem that commonly arises is with your current auction listings. It is not uncommon to get an eBay message from a buyer requesting that you lower your price on one of your listed items. In fact, it is not uncommon for an eBay buyer to mention that other eBay sellers have the same items listed for less. If and when this ever happens to you, you will want to keep your cool.

You should simply state that you are unable to lower your asking price. Kindly suggest to the eBay buyer in question that if they are looking for more affordable prices, they should consider doing business with an eBay seller who offers more affordable merchandise. The decision as to whether or not you want to lower your eBay prices is yours to make, but you should never feel pressured into doing so.

Another situation that commonly arises on eBay, concerning difficult eBay buyers, is the payment process. There are many eBay buyers who make the mistake of assuming that all eBay sellers accept the same methods of payments, but not all do. One of the most common methods of payment accepted is PayPal. If you currently do not have a PayPal account, you may want to look into doing so. Regardless of what methods of payments you do accept, you are urged to outline them in your auction listings.

Yes, eBay has a section for that, but, unfortunately, not all sellers make their way down to that section. Should you have a buyer that wants to make alternative arrangements, you need to use your best judgment. If you cannot reach an agreement, eBay should be notified.

One of the other common problems that arise on eBay, with difficult eBay buyers, is those who refuse to pay. With eBay, if you bid on an auction and win it, you are responsible for making payment; however, that doesn’t mean that everyone does. When trying to request payment from a non-paying eBay buyer, you will want to stay professional when doing so. By simply sending a few reminder notices you should still be able to keep your positive image. If you haven’t heard anything from your non-paying eBay buyer, you may want to contact eBay after about a week. eBay has a process that allows you to get your fees back, as well as a process that will gives non-paying eBay buyers a negative feedback rating.

It is also not uncommon for an eBay buyer to be unhappy with the item that they purchased and received from you. If this happens, you need to also use your best judgment. To prevent a problem from occurring, you will want to make sure that you provide a detailed description of whatever you are selling, as well as numerous pictures. It is also advised that you outline a return policy, whether or not you actually have one. Should you have intentionally or unintentionally mislead an eBay buyer, you should make the situation right; however, stand your ground if you are being scammed or “taken for a ride.”

The above mentioned situations are just a few of the many that you may come across as an eBay seller. No matter what situation arises, you are advised to use your best judgment and also keep your cool. In the end, you will be glad that you did.

eBay and Drop shipping – Getting the Product to

If you hope to own an eBay business, and make a full time living at it, you can easily make that dream come true – even if you don’t have a product of your own to sell. eBay provides many people who want to quit their corporate nine-to-five jobs with a way to make a good living, without having to put up a lot of start up capital.

This is made possible with the help of drop shippers. Drop shippers send merchandise to the customers of business owners. If you have an eBay business, you are a business owner. This will allow you to offer a wide variety of stock in your eBay store, without having the need to warehouse all of those products!

All you have to do is set up your auction, and sell the product. You then pass the customer’s information on to the drop shipping company. The drop shipper does the rest, and they will even use your company information, as well as your company logo if you have provided it to them. When the product arrives at your customer’s home, they will have no idea that your company didn’t send it. The drop shipper will package, label, and ship the products that you sell, allowing you more time to set up even more auctions, for greater profits.

You must establish a relationship with several drop shipping companies in order to become successful. In the beginning, most companies will require you to pay for the items that your customers order before they are shipped. You need to fill orders in a timely manner, so you should pay for the items with a credit card for speedy service. Eventually, you will be able to have the drop shipper fill your orders, and then bill you for them later.

When you set up your eBay auctions, make sure that your reserve price is set higher than the price that the drop shipper will be charging you for the item. The idea, of course, is to earn a profit! Depending on the item you are selling, a markup of about 10% should be about right, but you should do some research to see if the item is selling for a lower price in another eBay auction, or through other online sources.

By starting an eBay business using the drop shipping method, there is essentially no financial risk involved. The product will be sold before you pay the drop shipper for the item. This is one of the few businesses where you can actually turn a profit before you have expenditures!

EBay Income Possibilities.

If you've ever read an article about eBay, you will have seen the kinds of incomes people make - it isn't unusual to hear of people making thousands of dollars per month on eBay.

Next time you're on eBay, take a look at how many PowerSellers there are: you'll find quite a few. Now consider that every single one of one of them must be making at least $1,000 per month, as that's eBay's requirement for becoming a PowerSeller. Silver PowerSellers make at least $3,000 each month, while Gold PowerSellers make more than $10,000, and the Platinum level is $25,000. The top ranking is Titanium PowerSeller, and to qualify you must make at least $150,000 in sales every month!

The fact that these people exist gives you come idea of the income possibilities here. Most of them never set out to even set up a business on eBay - they simply started selling a few things, and then kept going. There are plenty of people whose full-time job is selling things on eBay, and some of them have been doing it for years now. Can you imagine that? Once they've bought the stock, everything else is pretty much pure profit for these people - they don't need to pay for any business premises, staff, or anything else. There are multi-million pound businesses making less in actual profit than eBay PowerSellers do.

Even if you don't want to quit your job and really go for it, you can still use eBay to make a significant second income. You can pack up orders during the week and take them down to the post office for delivery each Saturday. There are few other things you could be doing with your spare time that have anywhere near that kind of earning potential.

What's more, eBay doesn't care who you are, where you live, or what you look like: some PowerSellers are very old, or very young. Some live out in the middle of nowhere where selling on eBay is one of the few alternatives to farming or being very poor. eBay tears down the barriers to earning that the real world constantly puts up. There's no job interview and no commuting involved - if you can post things, you can do it.

Put it this way: if you know where to get something reasonably cheaply that you could sell, then you can sell it on eBay - and since you can always get discounts for bulk at wholesale, that's not exactly difficult. Buy a job lot of something in-demand cheaply, sell it on eBay, and you're making money already, with no set-up costs.

If you want to dip your toe in the water before you commit to actually buying anything, then you can just sell things that you've got lying around in the house. Search through that cupboard of stuff you never use, and you'll probably find you've got a few hundred dollars' worth of stuff lying around in there! This is the power of eBay: there is always someone who wants what you're selling, whatever it might be, and since they've come looking for you, you don't even need to do anything to get them to buy it.

So you want to get started on eBay? Well, that's great! There are only a few little things you need to learn to get started. Our next email will give you the lowdown.

FOREX Boomerang Testing

The term "forex" is short for "foreign exchange," and represents the brisk trade in international currencies. The global forex market is very busy, with an average daily turnover of $4.0 trillion as of April 2010. The market operates 24 hours a day, 5 days a week. It continues to grow, with almost 55 percent of forex transactions taking place through banks in Great Britain and the United States. Many forex traders are individuals, and the boomerang is a strategy individual traders test and use in the market.

Forex Basics
Forex is also known as FX, or sometimes 4X. Forex is an over-the-counter market, which simply means that one financial instrument is traded directly for another. All trades are done by computer, and a trade is executed in the act of buying one currency while simultaneously selling another. In short, a trader exchanges one type of currency for another. Approximately five percent of forex traders consist of companies that buy and sell products with foreign countries, and convert profits into local currencies. The other 95 percent of forex traders are speculators who trade strictly for profit.

Testing
Testing refers to simulation of a trading environment. The simulation is used to test trading strategies without actually risking any money. The theory behind testing is that trading strategies replicated successfully in a testing environment, using historical market data, may be successful in real trading. Strategies can be implemented manually, or automated with software known as trading robots.

Boomerang
The boomerang strategy is designed for the EUR/USD currency pair. This is the most commonly traded currency pair in forex and it has a narrow bid-ask spread, which is the difference between what a seller is asking and what a potential buyer is bidding. A narrow spread is conducive to trading strategies involving quick execution. The boomerang is that type of strategy, and is based on the tendency of the forex market to have very little activity at certain times of the day. This is due to inactivity in the three major forex markets -- Great Britain, the United States and Japan. This creates unpredictable and unreliable market movements.

The Strategy
The boomerang strategy starts with a sell order for a currency, entered at a price that is above the current market price. This allows a possible execution if the market moves higher. At the same time, another trade is set as a buy order at a price below the market, to execute in case the market moves down. A common term in forex trading is "pip," which stands for "percentage in point," and is the smallest allowable change in price, equal to $0.0001. In the boomerang strategy, trades are set at 15 pips above and below the market price, with stop-loss orders placed on each trade in a 15-pip margin. A stop-loss, also known as a stop order or stop-market order, is a sell order placed to execute when a security --- in this case, a certain currency --- reaches a designated price. Stop-loss orders are used to limit a trader's losses on his positions.

Trading Activity
Since trading activity is very thin during the major markets' downtime, one large trade order can move the market, with the probability that the market will retrace, or move right back to where it was. This provides the opportunity to execute at least one trade. This strategy is designed to close trades quickly to make a profit, but is best used by an experienced trader.

Automated Forex Trading: Clever yet Effective Technology

Why Forex trading? This is probably one of the questions that you need a reasonable answer. There are hundreds of investments out there that you can prefer, but why go trading foreign currencies instead? Forex investment is unique in various aspects. Its trading volume is relatively huge compared to other market.

It has extreme liquidity or the capability of either buying or selling the currency without causing significant movement in the market price. It has the largest number and variety of traders. It is one of the markets that have long trading hours (24 hours each day, except during weekends. Trading locations are almost everywhere, not just in the United States or major cities of Europe. There are different factors that affect foreign exchange rate.

Another whooping fact that will make you excited to go on Forex trading: it has an average turnover in traditional foreign exchange market of around $1.88 trillion daily, according to the Triennial Central Bank Survey of the BIS (Bank for International Settlements). Here are the daily averages of turnover on the Forex market for the last 17 years:

$500 billion (April 1989)
$750 billion (April 1992)
$1.18 trillion (April 1995)
$1.48 trillion (April 1998)
$1.16 trillion (April 2001)
$1.88 trillion (April 2004)

From the figures alone, you will notice that the average trend of Forex turnover is increasing. It is estimated to reach as high as 2 to 3 trillion dollars within the next 8 to 10 years, if the number of traders around the world will continue to increase. As a matter of fact, everyone have the chance of getting a substantial slice of the Forex market wealth pie, especially that the Forex trading marketing is now on its automation process.

The concept of automation becomes the new trend to the foreign exchange trading market. The Interbank spot Forex market has also considered switching to the automated method as well. There are several benefits that a Forex trader can derive from automated Forex trading. Here are some of such benefits and figure out why Forex trading as well as other investments (futures and commodities) prefer the automated process.

Through automated process, transactions can now be done in real time. Although manual systems have existed for quite some time now, it is difficult to achieve such benefit that the automated Forex system can offer to its traders. All of the trades can happen within a few milliseconds and can be a big plus for automated transactions against the manual system. In fact, there are problems that are addressed using automated Forex trading especially if the trader is losing a few times in a row that prevents him from making new trades. Such problem could be addressed using the automatic trading system.

With automated Forex trading, you will have a greater diversification. It means that you can trade in various markets in different time zones at a time. You can execute trades with traders from Singapore or London even it is already 12 midnight in the United States. This benefit allows you a multiple exchange model option. You can use varying trading models to evaluate short-term data. This means that you will be able to predict the trend for a shorter period of time, let us say from fifteen minutes to half an hour.

As previously mentioned, the Forex market is unique because of its extreme liquidity. This liquidity is increased when the market goes automated. Risk management problems are solved through automated Forex trading. International checks, which are commonly used in making purchases on Forex market, are synchronized through automated technology. Since the transaction in an automated process is now on real time, there is a slim chance that the payments will be delayed, reducing the risk of non-payment by either parties. Although there are problems noted with the use of the automated system, it can be fixed through consistently-updated technologies.

With automated Forex trading market, the prediction of $2-3 trillion average daily turnover within the nest 8 to 10 years can be changed within the next 4 to 5 years. Given the quick yet efficient trades on varying time zones, automated Forex trading will now be among the existing lucrative business around the world.

Creating Profitable Forex Trading Systems in Five Easy Steps

One rule of thumb that every aspiring entrepreneur should remember is that to make huge profits, you should know how to do it by yourself—and not rely on other’s efforts. Being independent from other people will help you determine what things are best for your business.

Such rule applies on all types of investments, including foreign currency trading, or mostly known as Forex trading. It cannot be denied that Forex is the largest existing market around the world, which is estimated to have an excess of 2 trillion U.S. dollars worth of foreign currencies are traded each day. It is larger than the magnitude of the New York Stock Exchange, which is approximately 50 billion U.S. dollars. Thus, Forex market exceeds all combined equity markets around the world.

With such huge wealth circulating around the Forex market, one of your financial goals is to grab a major slice of that $2 trillion average daily turnover in the market. How you will be able to get a substantial portion of that average turnover if you do not know how you will handle your Forex business? Although you cannot live in the market alone (you need business partners and/or financial advisers to help you along), only you can determine what the best Forex business there is for you.

To get huge profits out of your Forex trading career, you need to build your own profitable system—a trading system that will bring your not just hundreds but thousands of dollars worth of Forex revenues. Such trading system is available on the market, but as previously mentioned, you need to be independent—and you need to have your own Forex trading system that will help you achieve your financial goals.

For new traders, it is difficult for them to device their own trading system since they do not have too much knowledge about the Forex market. However, even a neophyte trader can device a trading system that will fit on his personal preference and needs—in just five easy steps! Before we discuss the five easy steps towards a profitable Forex trading system, you need to learn first the three main characteristics of a successful Forex trading system. These are as follows:

1. A successful Forex trading system is simple. There is no need for a complicated trading system with too many rules. It is a proven truth that simple systems work better than complicated ones, and they have higher chances of success despite of the “brutal” characteristic of Forex trading.

2. A successful Forex trading system cuts losses and runs profits. Keep in mind that you need a trading system that gets the huge possible profits and eliminates losses quickly, if not instantly.

3. A successful Forex trading system follows long-term trends. You will never cover your losses if you are just generating small profits. Keep in mind that the Forex market is worth $2 trillion U.S. dollars, thus there is no point in trading in exchange for just small profits if you have the opportunity to make trades for larger revenues. Focus on long-term trends and you will be able to see better results.

Now, here are the five easy steps in building a profitable Forex trading system:

1. As previously mentioned, your trading system must be as simple as possible. Integrate few yet essential rules and an extensive investment management system.

2. Always look for long-term trends (preferably on a weekly basis), then shift to daily charts and to time entry. This will help you analyze market trends efficiently.

3. The ideal way of trading foreign currencies is through breakout method.

4. Always watch for any break that you will note on your chart, which is commonly confirmed by stochastic crossed with bearish divergence. This will be your great timing tool whether you will enter a certain deal or not.

5. You must integrate effective time management within your system. Time is gold and is one of your precious resources. Design a trading system that is time efficient—where you can maximize the potential of your time resources to generate huge profits.

Get away with complicated systems; it will just ruin your entire Forex trading career. Build a simpler one and see for yourself how profitable it is.

Click Fraud

If you're using AdWords or AdSense you must have heard about an emerging practice in the underworld of computing called "click fraud". But what exactly is click fraud and how is it accomplished?

Well AdSense uses a payment mechanism that awards a certain amount of money to a publisher (someone who holds an AdSense banner on their page) every time a person clicks on the said banner. So click fraud is the attempt to have people clicking the ads just so that they can earn a greater income.

There are people setting up sites for the sole purpose of fraudulently generating revenue through Google's AdSense program. These users achieve an incredible number of clicks through many methods, some complex and sophisticated and some rudimentary and simple. One of the most complex is through the use of so called "hitbots". These are automated programs who emulate clicking the links in AdSense banners (there are some that actually click the banners as well).

Google's AdSense protection scheme is by no means perfect and nearly anyone can find the details of surmounting the protection mechanism, ironically just by doing a Google search. Another, more rudimentary method is to hire a lot of people in a poor country to click the links on your site. This means these people will actually sit all day and just click links so you can earn a fortune. They come from very poor countries like India, and they're prepared to do so for just $0.50 an hour.

Of course, there's a problem with this mechanism. Once Google receives a large number of clicks from a single address, the address and the site that had the AdSense banner will be banned, and the illicit behavior might even get the fraudster sued. To prevent this from happening, many people use a large number of proxy servers for the purpose of clicking. These are basically trojans, located on computers throughout the world (though mostly in the US). What's even more daunting is that these clicks will appear to originate from an actual computer so such scams are really hard to detect.

And don't think this happens only in isolated instances. There is a great deal of illegal activity in this domain. In fact there's so much that if search engine companies don't increase their security with such programs as AdSense, such criminal behavior could become more become even more damaging. Google has a very strict policy regarding click fraud, and it has sued those employing such techniques in the past. But while the search engine giant tries its best to minimize the risk of click fraud there's certainly room for a lot of improvement.

It is estimated that more then 20% of the clicks that follow an AdSense link are just done in order to get money from the person paying for the ad. Some people believe the number of fraudulent clicks to be even twice as large. There are a great deal more schemes involving click fraud, such as groups of AdSense publishers clicking each other's links (which is referred to as "clicking rings", or spamming people so that they click such links.

Despite Google still holding click fraud on a leash, the phenomenon is certainly raising concerns for the advertisers on AdWords, but despite this advertising with Google's AdSense still remains more profitable for the advertiser, as opposed to traditional untargeted advertising schemes. There are some means of protection against such schemes and all advertisers should be savvy enough to employ them. Many advertisers choose to avoid the content network all together for fear of click fraud.

eBay - Part Time or Full? How to Decide.

Going full-time as an eBay seller is living the dream: making a real income, working from home, being your own boss and all the rest of it. It's the promise of a million scams, and it's finally come true - at least for some. What they don't tell you in the success stories, though, is that becoming a full-time eBay seller is by no means for everyone. You really, really ought to try it part-time before you even consider taking it up full-time, and even then, caution is advisable. Before you burn your suit, here's a list of questions you should ask yourself.

How Much Do I Earn From eBay Now?
Work out how many hours a week you spend doing eBay-related things (be honest here), and divide it by the average amount of profit you make in a week. If you were doing full-time hours, would you earn as much as you earn now?

Do I Have a Good Job?
Think about what you might lose if you give up your job to focus on eBay. If you're in a well-paid job with good promotion prospects then it's well worth reconsidering: you might get a few years down the line and wish you'd stayed in your traditional job, as you'd probably be the CEO by now.

Would I Really Make Much More Money?
Unless you're selling a large quantity of small goods, most of what you do on eBay will be waiting for auctions to end - and you can wait at work just as easily as you can at home. This is why whether you would make more money on eBay really depends on what kinds of items you're selling - for low value items, going full-time could be a good move. For high-value ones, the chances are you'll hit the limits of how much money you have to invest in inventory long before you hit the limits on your time.

Is my Home a Good Place to Work?
Quite apart from anything else, you might find that the dream of home working is more of a nightmare in reality. People can start to depend on you to get things done that need to be done during the day. If you have a wife and children then they can resent the fact that you're in the house but refuse to have anything to do with them for large parts of the day. Giving in to any of these things and stopping work for a while will cause your profits to fall.

Can I Survive if it All Goes Wrong?
In the end, would you be able to get by if you had a month or two where you sold literally nothing? Or would you be desperately looking around for a job and cursing the day you ever discovered eBay? That's the real test. If you made it through all these questions, then I guess you're cut out for the eBay life - and even if you didn't, you'd be surprised just how far you can get part-time. In our next email, we'll show you how to think like the eBay elite: the PowerSellers.

FOREX Coaching

Forex coaching is provided by expert forex traders to novice traders via various media. The Internet is the most widely used medium by providers and seekers of forex-coaching services. Forex coaching services include various levels. The cost for each level differs accordingly.

Types
Online video courses are an effective method used in forex coaching. Training videos are usually recorded in a live trading session, while explaining each step of action, reaction and result in the charts.

Considerations
Since forex trading involves a great deal of risk, a legitimate forex-coaching service would not guarantee a successful forex career upon completion. The National Futures Association has implemented rules and regulations pertaining to training providers.

Warning
Forex courses might seem a lucrative investment from the outside. But actual success in live trading requires more than just participation in forex-coaching courses. Learning basic principles of forex does not cost anything more than the time spent on learning. Even if a forex coaching program is required to master forex skills, be cautious and at least seek personal recommendation from industry experts.

FOREX Clubs in the Atlanta Area

The foreign currency exchange market (forex) is one of the most popular trading arenas in the world. Forex trading is not subject to the same strict federal day trading regulations required for stock and options, and most brokers open accounts for as little as a couple hundred dollars. As a result, almost anyone can engage in the high-stakes game of forex. However, it remains a challenging field. For many, getting to know fellow forex traders is helpful in conquering the learning curve. Atlanta provides such clubs.

Atlanta Thinkersand Swimmers
The ThinkOrSwim trading platform is popular among forex traders due to its all-inclusive brokerage and charting service. Clients of ThinkOrSwim in the Atlanta area meet regularly to introduce themselves and discuss both trading and the techniques of the ThinkOrSwim platform. Sessions include a casual setting where members get to know each other, followed by instructional tutorials on a variety of trading vehicles. As of February 2010, the group had 58 members. Events are organized through Meetup.com and are usually held five miles outside Atlanta in Marietta.

SouthEast Forex Group
The SouthEast Forex Group meets eight miles outside Atlanta and focuses on sessions covering forex basics and currency charting techniques. Meetings cost $10 per session. Traders from all levels of experience are welcome. For those who cannot attend in person, the sessions are also available over the Internet via Webinar for $25. The group has been active since 2007 and has 234 members as of February 2010. Some members have found the meetings to be as informative as professional forex conferences.

The Suwanee Forex Trading Meetup Group
The city of Suwanee near Atlanta provides the location for this club dedicated to forex analysis. Its 50 members (as of February 2010) meet to discuss the complicated area of trading psychology as it relates to foreign currency analysis. Using forex as the basis for a home business is one of the topics on which the group focuses their time. The group does not meet as regularly as some other clubs, but membership is free and a worthwhile addition to any Atlanta forex trader's roster of social get-togethers.

FOREX Friday Effect

The "Friday Effect" is often mentioned in connection with the Forex (Foreign Exchange) market. It is used by some traders to guide the direction of their trades, particularly in a weak market.

What is It?
The Friday Effect is the inclination of the market to rally as closing time approaches at the end of the week -- particularly on the last day, according to Saurabh Mukherjea, head of India equities at Noble Group; a British investment bank.

What Causes It?
Traders and brokers like to close trades before the end of the week as they can get overtaken by events if the market suddenly changes direction during the Australian, Asian or European trading hours. They are then unable to react until the U.S. market opens.

Other Causes
There is also an idea that brokers do not want to upset the Asian markets when they open after the weekend, according to InTheMoneyStocks. If the main markets close on a downturn, the Asian markets may follow suit, depressing the market further.

Other Friday Events
Friday is often the day for bad news to be released--the theory being that it will get forgotten over the weekend. There are also some regular important news announcements, such as the monthly release of the non-farm payroll figures.

Warning
Despite the fact that the Friday Effect is very often seen in the market, it should not be relied on for trading purposes. There are many other factors that can influence the closing price.

eBay Gift Certificates – The Gift Solution Suitable for

Everyone. We all know one. There is at least one in every family, and one in every circle of friends. There is even one in every office! There is always that one person that you know who is absolutely impossible to buy a gift for! These people either have everything, or want nothing. They don’t drop hints at all, and when asked, they simply say that they don’t know, they don’t care, or they don’t want anything.

Well, now you can buy a gift for that person. The solution lies in an eBay gift certificate! This will allow your loved one to essentially buy anything that they want, in a very exciting way. eBay gift certificates can easily be purchased through paypal, in varying amounts. There are things that you should point out to the gift recipient, however.

For instance, eBay gift certificates do expire. eBay gift certificates will not be accepted for all auctions either – they can only be redeemed for those auctions that accept Paypal as a form of payment. Other than that, your loved one should not have any problems redeeming their eBay gift certificate!

eBay Auction Buyer's Tips and Tricks.

eBay isn't just an auction and a marketplace: often it can feel quite a lot like a game. Like any game, you can get ahead if you think strategically, using your head to outwit the other buyers and get the best price. Here are a few things you can try.

Shop in the Summer.
This is simple, but effective. Summer is the quiet season on eBay - almost everything sells for less. While everyone else is out enjoying the sun, invest a little time to find some real bargains.

Beat Them by a Few Cents.
Outbid people by a few cents instead of a few dollars - if they don't check back before the auction ends, then you will be the winner. To avoid people using this tactic on you, though, always bid strange, hard-to-guess amounts instead of round numbers.

Play Dirty.
If you know when the auction ends, you can get in there at the very last second and outbid your rivals. The chances are that they won't have the time to sit in front of the auction waiting for it to end - as a rule, he who stays wins. If someone else does retaliate at the end of the auction, though, try not to get carried away in those last few seconds and end up paying too much!

Take Risks.
This is a strategy for the braver eBay buyer. All of the advice you will see for eBay beginners tells you to buy items that have good pictures, clear descriptions, trustworthy sellers and all the rest. If you're brave, why not take a risk and do the exact opposite?

Many buyers won't want that item from the seller with a feedback rating of 5, no picture and a one-line description. If you take a calculated risk and bid anyway, you might be able to make a tiny bid and win by default. There are people on eBay who make their living from winning auctions like these, taking good pictures of the item, writing a good description and then reselling it at a huge profit. Be careful, though: do this for long enough, and you will inevitably lose your money at some point. It's especially unwise to try it with very high-value items.

Avoid Bidding Wars.
There are few things on eBay that are so rare that you'll only see them once and never again. There are usually quite a few sellers who have an item. What's more, they will generally have more than one to sell, even if they haven't listed them all at once. Always check your seller's history to see whether they sell your item all the time - and if they do, then wait for the next one instead of bidding to the skies.

Now, there may come a time in your eBay life when you realise that you've screwed up your bid, and you wish there was an 'undo' button. Here's the good news for you: there is! The next email will be all about withdrawing your eBay bids.

Forex Trading Education: Preparing yourself for Profit and Risks Involved

Many Americans or even other foreign nationalities are interested in getting involved on Forex trading. Who on Earth will decline to the wealth offered by the Forex market, which is the largest market around the world—a whooping $2 trillion U.S. dollars worth of daily turnovers. Anyone inside the Forex clan has the opportunity of getting a big slice of that huge wealth. Aside from the huge possibilities for its traders, Forex market provides an extensive list of benefits—round the clock financial transactions, extreme liquidity, real-time and efficient trade executions—and the list goes on.

However, before taking home the “bacon”, you need to get a Forex trading education. Just like any other investments, you should never step on the Forex ground without knowing what you are stepping into. With proper education regarding Forex trading, you are assured that you are on the right track and you are on your way in making substantial profit.

So, what are the things that you will learn when you undergo a Forex trading education? You will understand the real nature of Forex trading. As you probably knew initially, Forex stands for foreign exchange or the simultaneous exchange of a pair of foreign currency to another pair of foreign currency. By learning the nature of trading foreign currencies at the right time, you are assured of gaining profit, although expect that it is not huge enough like the profits earned by professional and experienced Forex traders. And getting a Forex trading education will teach you how to do it.

The first part of your Forex trading education will focus on studying the Forex market background. Remember that the Forex market is a volatile market—conditions are frequently changing, most especially the foreign exchange rate. Through getting a Forex trading education, you will know how to examine such market changes and make appropriate decisions.

After studying and learning the whereabouts of Forex market, the next part of your Forex trading education is about risk control and management. It is important that you understand the risks involved in Forex trading. You need not to over invest or be overconfident at the thrill of opportunity of making huge money.

Also on this part, you will learn how you will cut potential losses or getting out of a deal before your losses reach and even exceed your limits. It is natural that you will lose money when you start Forex trading. It is the most crucial part of your Forex trading education because it will determine whether you will end up making your way to riches or to a black hole.

Once you learn how to control the risks, you will learn how to start and manage your Forex trading account. You will be involved in practice Forex transactions using a demo account and virtual money. Through this way, you will be able to get the grip of your trading account before getting into real trading transactions. With a Forex demo account, there is no risk involved yet the nature is just as realistic as the real Forex trade. Moreover, your Forex trading education will also let you know whether you are ready to do the real thing or you need more practice. Only then will you be able to start and manage a real Forex trading account.

There are various ways to obtain a Forex trading education. One of the best resources to get a Forex trading education is through the Internet. There are different free sites that allow you to open free Forex demo accounts to practice your Forex system and trading strategies. There are also free e-books where you can read essential information about the Forex market and its attributes.

Free webinars (web-based seminars) conducted in real time are available at random schedules. You may also seek some valuable advice from different active Forex traders. These individuals can provide you some insights and important advice regarding the subject of Forex trading.

Now that you know a little about Forex trading, it is time for you to get some good Forex trading education. Take your time and do not rush things. With an average daily turnover of $2 trillion U.S. dollars, there is just a lot of money involved in Forex trading. Prepare yourself to grab a slice of that wealth as well to the risks involved.

How to use meta tags in search engine promotion

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Find Your Niche Market on Ebay

Many of us dream of working from home by selling products on Ebay. But what would we sell? And how would we know if a market exists for the items we have? To avoid listing items that nobody wants, or items within an already flooded market, some research is in order. The goal of this research is to find your niche on Ebay.

Many Ebay sellers provide their goods within one niche. Others have a handful of niches that they specialize in. The key is to find a group of products that you're already familiar with. Perhaps you've been a collector of antiques for many years. If so, you probably know when you come across an item that could potentially sell for a good amount of cash. Likewise, you have a good idea of which items are likely to collect dust on your shelves. You can put this knowledge to work for you on Ebay. Your expertise with antiques gives you an edge over many competitors.

Once you have a good idea of the niche you wish to fill, it's time for the second half of your preliminary work. Start a spreadsheet that lists the different types of items you would like to sell. Then add a monetary value to each entry. This reflects how much you can expect to purchase the item for. Be realistic; you want to lay out an accurate portrait of how much money you will be spending to build up your inventory. Optimism won't help in this circumstance.

Expand your spreadsheet to include other niche markets, just in case. These can be items you enjoy working with, have expert knowledge of, or something you've always had an affinity for and think you could be successful with. Remember: no matter what your niche is, someone will buy from it as long as you list quality items at reasonable prices. Estimate the initial cost of each item, including shipping and sales tax. Then prepare to immerse yourself in Ebay as your research begins in earnest.

Go to Ebay and search through the completed auctions. This allows you to see the actual price that items similar to yours have sold for. Is the average price something you could live with? Remember to factor in shipping costs. Also, pay attention to the quality of the sold items when deciding whether this niche is something you wish to pursue. Items in “mint” or “like new” condition will bring considerably higher prices on Ebay than worn, scuffed items.

Now reflect on your findings. Did the completed Ebay auctions fetch your target price, or were the closing bids uniformly low? Did any of the items fetch a surprisingly high amount? If you were unimpressed by your findings, go back and consult your spreadsheet; it’s time to start researching another niche. If your observations were mostly positive, you may have found your Ebay niche already. In that case, go out and start building up your supply. Don’t go overboard; you’re still in the testing phase. Purchase a dozen or so items at fair prices. Then list them on Ebay.

For many sellers, waiting is the hard part. But you’ll need patience for this phase of your niche-finding project. Monitor your listings and see how they perform. If they do well, you can build up your stock even more and increase your listings. If they don’t quite live up to your expectations, you can go back to square one. Pick another niche from your spreadsheet and start researching it.

The key to finding your niche on Ebay, as with many challenges in life, is simply to never quit. If you have a wide variety of interests, you’re more likely to find a profitable niche that you will enjoy filling. Think of all the things you enjoy doing, making, or collecting. Then come up with a list of ten items related to each. This sort of brainstorming is a sure-fire remedy for pushing past your seller’s block. Let your imagination roam, and you’ll carve out your Ebay niche in no time.

An Introduction to Bidding and Buying on eBay.

Have you noticed that whenever you open a newspaper, watch the TV or have a conversation, people seem to be talking about eBay? If you've never used it and you've no idea what it's all about, then the chances are that you're starting to feel a little left out. But don't worry! This email contains everything you need to know about the basics of bidding and buying on eBay.


So What is eBay?



eBay is an online auction website - and not just any auction site, but the biggest one in the world. If you know how an auction works, then you already know how roughly eBay works. Someone adds something they want to sell to the site, and then buyers come along and place bids on it. The highest bid wins the item! It's that simple.



eBay being an online auction makes a big difference, though. Buying and selling are not reserved for any elite. eBay accept almost any item, no matter how small, and will then advertise it on their sites all over the world. It's a powerful combination of an auction and a slightly chaotic marketplace.



What is Bidding?



Bidding is when you say how much you will pay for an item in an auction. Bidding on eBay, however, doesn't work in exactly the same way as a normal auction, at least in theory. On eBay, you tell the site what the maximum you are willing to pay for each item is, and then eBay places the bids on your behalf. That means you could say you were willing to pay up to $100 for something and only have to pay $50, if that was the highest maximum bid anyone else placed.



It's not as complicated as it sounds - the best way to get used to it is to give it a try. First, the best thing to do is to go to the eBay website designed for your country. If you don't know the address for it, just go to www.ebay.com and it will tell you there. Now, on the front page you should see a big box marked 'search': just type in anything that you'd like to buy there.



Wasn't that easy? Now you should have a list of items for sale in front of you, along with how much people are currently bidding for them and the time when bidding ends for each item. If you click one of these, you can read the description, and then - if you're happy with the item and happy to pay more than the current highest bidder is - you can bid!



How Do I Bid?



Go ahead and scroll down to the bottom of an item's description page, and type the maximum you are willing to pay (your maximum bid) into the box. Then simply press the 'place bid' button - you will need to sign in once you press the button, or go through a quick registration process if you don't have an eBay username).



If someone else's maximum bid on that item is higher than yours, then eBay will tell you and give you the opportunity to bid again. Otherwise, you're now the new highest bidder! All you need to do now is wait until the end of the auction - if someone else outbids you, then eBay will email you and you can bid again.



All sounds great, doesn't it? But by now you might be wondering whether a site as chaotic as eBay can really be all that safe to buy from. That's why the next email in this series will be about your rights when you buy from eBay.

eBay Users: What You Need to Know About Phishing Scams

Are you an eBay user? Whether you use eBay to do your online shopping or if you use eBay to generate extra income for yourself, as an eBay seller, there is something that you need to be aware of. As an eBay user, whether you are a seller or a buyer, you need to be on the lookout for phishing scams. Phishing scams are rapidly increasing in popularity and many are using eBay as a front. To protect your identity, as well as you finances, you need to be on the lookout for them.

If you are relatively new to eBay or online shopping in general, you may not know exactly what phishing scams are. Do you? If not, you should know that phishing scams are actually complex online scams. A shady individual or a scammer makes a fake website that is similar to eBay or at least a fake eBay sign in page. You are then sent an email that appears as if it was from eBay. The only thing is that it wasn’t.

The goal of a phishing scam is to get you to visit the fake page and enter in your eBay sign in information, including your eBay screen name and your eBay password. Once a scammer has your information, they get access to you personal information stored on eBay, as well as free use of your eBay account.

One of the reasons why phishing scams are so easy to fall victim to is because they give you the impression that is something is wrong with you eBay account or that you did something wrong yourself. For instance, many phishing scams contain a message asking why you didn’t pay for an item that you ordered or outline the fact that your eBay account has been suspended. The goal is to get you so worried that you will automatically click on the link to get the problem solved; however, as previously mentioned, the link takes you to a site that looks just like eBay, but it isn’t. There is where the trouble comes in.

If you get an eBay phishing scam email, you will want to do a little bit of detective work, before actually clicking on the link. In fact, you shouldn’t even click on the link. The first thing that you will want to do is look at your name, as most eBay phishing emails start with “Dear eBay Member,” or something along those lines. Real eBay messages will refer to you by your eBay screen name or even your real name.

You can also roll your mouse over the link provided to you and see where it will actually take you. In most cases, you will find that you are being directed to another site, not eBay.com. All eBay messages should appear in your “My eBay,” message box. To see if eBay really sent you an email, you can log into your eBay account, from a brand new window that you open up, and check your messages, if you even have any at all.

If you do receive an eBay phishing scam email, you are advised to contact eBay or examine eBay’s help center. There you will find instructions on how to report the email or send a copy of it to eBay. Although your first thought may be to delete the eBay phishing scam email, you will actually want to follow eBay’s reporting instructions. You may know that you are being scammed, but other may not. Reporting an eBay phishing scam to eBay allows them to take care of the problem; thus likely reducing the number of eBay users who fall victim to similar scams.

Now that you know exactly what eBay phishing scams are, you are urged to be on the lookout for them. Keeping an open eye is your best line of defensive against eBay phishing scams or any phishing scams for that matter.

eBay University – What Is It All About?

eBay University is the learning program that eBay established to help people become successful eBay merchants. For convenience, eBay classes are held in many locations throughout the United States, and classes may also be completed from home, using your computer.

You should note that all of the information you will learn through eBay University can be found on the website – for free. However, understanding that free information isn’t always easy. eBay University will teach you how to open a seller’s account, how to conduct research and create listings, how to improve listings for greater success, how to integrate Paypal with eBay, how to monitor your auctions, and how to complete transactions.

Once you’ve finished the Selling Basics course, you are ready for the ‘Beyond the Basics’ course. This advanced course will teach you how to start and grow an eBay business, how to choose and create listing formats that sell, how to use all of the eBay resources, how to market your business, how to pack and ship your items, and much more. Both courses are reasonably priced, and well worth the short amount of time that it takes to complete.

Forex Trading - should you invest?

Forex trading is all about putting your money into other currencies, so you can gain the interest for the night, for time period or the difference in trading money all around. Forex trading does involve other assets along with money, but because you are investing in other countries and in other businesses that are dealing in other currencies the basis for the money you make or lose will be based on the trading of money.

Constant trading is done in the forex markets as time zones will vary and the markets will open in one country while another is near closing. What happens in one market will have an effect on the other countries forex markets, but it is not always bad or good, sometimes the margins of trading are near each other.

A forex market will be present when two countries are involved in trading, and when money is traded for goods, services or a combination of these things. Currency is the money that trades hands, from one to another. Often times, a bank is going to be the source of forex trading, as millions of dollars are traded daily. There is nearly two trillion dollars traded daily on the forex market. Should you get involved in forex trading? If you are already involved in the stock market, you have some idea of what forex trading really is all about.

The stock market involves buying shares of a company, and you watch how that company does, waiting for a bigger return. In the forex markets, you are purchasing items or products, or goods, and you are paying money for them. As you do this, you are gaining or losing as the currency exchange differs daily from country to country. To better prepare you for the forex markets you can learn about trading and purchasing online using free 'game' like software.

You will log on and create an account. Entering information about what you are interested in and what you want to do. The 'game' will allow you to make purchases and trades, involving different currencies, so you can then see first hand what a gain or loss will be like. As you continue on with this fake account you will see first hand how to make decisions based on what you know, which means you will have to read about the market changes or you will have to take a brokers information at value and play from there.

If you, as an individual want to be involved in forex trading, you must get involved through broker, or a financial institution. Individuals are also known as spectators, even if you are investing money because the amount of money you are investing is minimal compared to the millions of dollars that are invested by governments and by banks at any given time. This does not mean you can't get involved.

Your broker or investment advisor will be able to tell you more about how you can be involved in forex trading. In the US, there are many regulations and laws in regards to who can handle forex trading for US citizens so if you are searching the internet for a broker, be sure you read the print, and the information about where the company is located and if it is legal for you to do business with that company.

Can I Make My Own Forex EA for Metatrader

A forex EA, or expert advisor, is merely a set of rules that is used to tell the Metatrader software when to make trades. If you wish to make your own forex EA, then you can either learn to program the meta trader language or you can hire a third party to do it for you.

Develop a Trading System.
You will need to have a good understanding of technical analysis and system development in order to begin developing your own EA. Most expert advisors that are currently available on the market are based off of one of three systems: scalping, trend following or counter trend trading. Unfortunately, with the exception of the trend following system, the other two will have a high winning percentage, but will lose money over the long term. If you decided to develop your own system then make sure that you have back tested over at least five years worth of data to see that it is a winning system over the long term.

Learn MetaTrader Code.
If you want to develop your own EA, once you have your system rules you will need to learn how to write code in Mql4 the MetaTrader 4 language. MetaTrader comes with an integrated development editor (IDE) called MetaEditor which is designed to make writing code relatively easy. It also comes with a text editor, and you can can compile the program yourself by clicking on the F5 key. This will produce the usable script.ex4 file, which can be installed on the MetaTrader 4 software.

Use VisualTrader.
Another way to build an expert advisor is to use a program called Visual Traders Studio. This has a drag and drop interface that will allow you to build an EA within minutes without having to write any code. Using a visual programming tool it will write the code for you and compile it for you so that you don't need to learn Mql4.

Hire a Third-Party Programmer.
The final route to developing an EA is to hire a third-party programmer. A few that you might consider are iTicSoftware, OneStepRemoved and MQLSoft. These are independent programmers that will translate your trading ideas into a software system. Consultations are free, but coding the EA is charged at between $60 to $85 per hour. In general, a simple expert advisor should only take about three to five hours to write the code for.

Forex Signal Trading: Thing You Should Look For

The Forex market is one of the most popular ways to earn money. In fact, many people even became millionaires almost overnight. First of all, the Forex market is the largest and the most liquid market in the world that operates 24 hours a day and generates exchanges that amounts to 3 trillion dollars each day.

With this kind of features, everyone would want a piece of the action going on inside the Forex market. However, with all the money making opportunities that you can definitely have in the Forex market, there are also risks involved. It is a fact that many people who traded in the Forex market lost, and some of these people suffered extreme financial loss. Because of this, before you join the Forex market, you should have the proper knowledge and skills on trading currencies.

The Forex market is simply the buying and selling of different currencies around the world. It operates 24 hours a day, making it the most liquid market in the world. With all these things, people are willing to invest money in the Forex market in order to make their investment bigger.

In the Forex market, there are tools that you can use in order to maximize your earning potential. An example of a great tool that you can use in the Forex market is the charts. The Forex charts provide visual information of what’s going on inside the market. It provides information regarding what currency is increasing or decreasing in value.

Forex signal trading is one of the most popular tools used by Forex investors to maximize their earning potential inside the Forex market. This tool includes identifying trends by analyzing charts. There are also indicators that you can use to do Forex signal trading.

Forex signal trading helps you, as the trader, on what is the good time to buy or sell a particular currency. Signal trading is usually done by brokers and analysts that you can hire to use signal trading. Signal trading can really give you the chance of acquiring huge profit in the Forex market.

With signal trading in the Forex market, you can really increase your earning potential and minimize the risk of no profit or losing money. Signal trading is offered by analyst and brokers by subscription. Oftentimes, you will be alerted via email. However, some higher levels of subscription will also allow you to be alerted through your mobile phone or through your pager.

Some signal trading subscription can cost one hundred dollars a month or more, depending on the signal trading service feature you want. Signal trading can really work for your benefit. For example, if you hire an analyst to alert you on when the best time to buy or sell a particular currency, you will save a lot of time and effort on doing the analysis alone. With this benefit, you can leave all the analyzing to the analyst or the broker.

This is especially beneficial for people who have other jobs other than trading in the Forex market. You can concentrate on your job and at the same time, profit in the Forex market without having to analyze all those charts and indicators.

However, if you make a career out of trading in the Forex market and have the sufficient knowledge and skills to analyze charts and spot market trends, you might as well do the signal trading yourself. This can save you a lot of money. The Forex market is a very complex market. Before you invest in this very liquid market, you have to think not just about the potential income you may make, but also the losses that may happen.

Always remember that Forex is not really for everyone, you have to be prepared to lose money on the first few months of trading. If you cannot afford to lose money, then Forex trading is not for you. Big earning potentials in the Forex market are very much true. So, if you have the money for it, consider signal trading as it can be beneficial for you.

Always remember that although hiring an analyst or a broker to give you alerts in signal trading can cost a lot of money, you should also think about how professional these people are in analyzing trends in the market. You can really minimize the risk of losing money in the Forex market if you do signal trading.

FOREX One Hour Trading Strategies

Thousands of aspiring traders come to the foreign exchange (or "forex") markets each year to earn their fortunes day-trading, but many find it boring to stare at a computer screen all day long. For a much easier alternative, try one of the many reliable forex one-hour trading strategies that just utilize price charts, trading volume, and moving averages.

Setting Up Your Trading Station
Log on to a free charting service, like FreeStockCharts.com. Arrange a chart that will simultaneously display the symbols of the currencies you are interested in and their respective hourly prices. To achieve this on FreeStockCharts.com, click the "New Chart" tab at the top of the screen twice. Two price charts will pull up; design one as a "quotes" charts, where all the currency-pairs symbols will be input, and make the other a "price" chart, where hourly price action will be displayed. Link the two screens by pressing the upper right-hand tab in each screen. You can now see corresponding price action while scrolling through your quotes.

Using Moving Averages
Research moving averages. To do this on FreeStockCharts.com, click the "Indicator" tab on the price chart's screen and select the five-period SMA (simple moving average), the 15-period SMA, and the 34-period SMA. Moving averages can help you spot an upward trend in the forex price action. You want to see price action and the MAs both moving up. Make sure to confirm the trend you've spotted by checking it against the moving averages for all three time periods.

Adding Trading Volume
Research trading volume. To do this on FreeStockCharts.com, click on the price chart's "Indicator" tab and select "Trading Volume," which will be displayed on the price chart. An increase in volume and price means more buyers are coming into that particular forex, and the price will be driven higher. Conversely, a decline in volume for a forex with a flat or declining price means that the price will not be driven up.

Hunting Trades
Scan through the currency symbols on the hourly price chart, looking for upward trends. Once you've spotted a forex on an upward trend, wait until the price pulls back to either the five- or 15-period SMA (while staying above the 34-period SMA) and the forex is trading at low volume. Locate the hourly price bar that sets the lowest low; when the price trades over the high of that bar on higher trading volume, enter the trade in the direction of the upward trend.

Risk Control and Profit Taking
Set your stop-loss point below the price bar that set the significant low. Calculate your risk by subtracting the stop-loss point from your entry price. Exit the trade if the price hits your stop-loss point or if it hits your profit target, which should be three times your initial total risk. For example, if your risk is $100, then your profit target should be $300.

eBay Sellers: Tips to Help Your eBay Items Sell

Are you an eBay seller? If you have been looking for a relatively easy way to make money, there is a good chance that you are. Different individuals use eBay, but many use eBay to make a little bit of extra money or even to financially support themselves and their families. If you are an eBay seller, how is everything currently going? Are you making as much money as you had hoped to? If not, you will want to continue reading on; as some tips are outlined below on how you can help to make sure that your eBay items sell.

When it comes to buying items on eBay, there are many eBay buyers who are the lookout for eBay scams. Before purchasing an item, one of the first things that an eBay buyer does is check the feedback of the seller. Doing business with a highly rated and recommended eBay seller reduces or completely eliminates the chances of getting scammed on eBay. Feedback helps to give you a good reputation, but there is something else that can help you get a good reputation too, an “About Me,” page. This is a page where you are able to introduce yourself and give a little bit of background information about yourself or your eBay business. “About Me,” pages are optional, but there are a number of benefits to having one.

Once an eBay buyer has learned that a seller who has an item that they want for sale is a reputable one, they will then continue to examine the product being sold. This is where your biggest chance of making a sale comes in. First, you will want to make sure that your products are being sold at a fair price. Keep in mind, when making your auction listings that you want to make a profit, but you don’t want to scare off any potential buyers with high prices. Just making sure that your prices are reasonable is enough to increase your chances of making a sale.

Secondly, you will want to make sure that you accurately describe all of your items that are being sold. For instance, if you are selling a lot or a group of children’s toys, you may want to take the time to list the names of each toy being sold. Outline the condition that each toy is in as well. If you are selling toys that require batteries, you may want to state whether or not the batteries are included. Providing a detailed, accurate description of all of your items will definitely increase the chances of them selling.

In addition to a detailed description, it is also important that you have pictures of your items. eBay allows you to post one free picture, but more can be posted for additional fees. Don’t let these additional fees deter you from posting additional pictures, as they are likely to increase the chances of making a sale. In fact, you may want to look into free photo sharing websites, such as PhotoBucket, as they allow you to post additional eBay pictures for free. When taking pictures of your eBay items, you will want to make sure that you take a number of close-up pictures. Also, make sure that the pictures are easy to see and that the lighting is good. Having poor pictures or no pictures at all is one of the many reasons why many eBay items go unsold.

The methods of payment that you accept may also have an important impact on how well your eBay items sell. One of the most common forms of payments used, to pay for eBay purchases, is PayPal. The reason why PayPal is so popular is because it enables shoppers to buy items from you, without having to disclose their account numbers. If you aren’t already accepting PayPal, you will want to look into doing so. Although most eBay buyers use PayPal, you will also want to remember that not everyone does. For that reason, you may also want to accept other methods of payment, including money orders or personal checks. The only thing with personal checks is that you may want to wait until the check clears before shipping the buyer their merchandise, especially with large purchases.

By implementing the above mentioned eBay seller tips, you may start seeing an increase in your eBay sales, even right away. In all honesty, you need to think of it from a seller perspective. Look at your auction listings; would you buy what you were selling?

eBay’s Turbo Lister Program: Should You Use It?

Are you an eBay seller? If you are, are you familiar with eBay’s Turbo Lister program? If you are not, you may want to take the time to familiarize yourself with it, as using eBay’s Turbo Lister program can make selling on eBay as easy as can be.

eBay’s Turbo Lister program is a program that is available for download, free of charge on eBay’s website. What is nice about eBay’s Turbo Lister program is that it is easy to install and use. In fact, like eBay’s traditional way of listing items for sale, you are given step-by-step instructions. Even if you have minimal computer knowledge, you should still be able to use eBay’s Turbo Lister program, without any problems.

Now that you know exactly how you can get eBay’s Turbo Lister program, you may be wondering exactly what it is or how it can help you. See, when you download eBay’s Turbo Lister program to your computer, you can access it at anytime, even if you are not connected to the internet. eBay markets its Turbo Lister program to those who are high or medium volume eBay sellers, but it is also great for those who have dialup internet. Listing a large number of eBay auctions can tie up your phone lines, but with eBay’s Turbo Lister program you don’t even have to be online!

The eBay Turbo Lister program sets up all eBay auction listings or “Buy It Now,” listings the same way as it is done online, through their website. For instance, when using eBay’s Turbo Lister, you need to assign your item to a category, make a headline for your auction, write a detailed description of the item that you are selling, upload pictures if you have any, mention how your item will be shipped, as well as outline what methods of payment you will accept. As stated above, this process is easy, as everything is explained to you step-by-step. With eBay’s Turbo Listing program, listing on eBay is still as easy as it was before, if not easier with the ability to do so while not connected to the internet.

Speaking of not being connected to the internet, you may be wondering how your eBay items can be listed on eBay’s website if you are not connected to the internet. This is where the internet connection comes in. eBay’s Turbo Lister program enables you develop as many eBay auctions as you want, even thousands of them, without being connected to the internet. When doing so, you have the ability to save your listings for a later date; a time when you can sign online. Once you are connected to the internet, a simple click of the mouse and your eBay listings will automatically be uploaded to the eBay site. In addition to giving you the ability to work offline, you also have the ability to time your auctions, like if you want them to start or end at a certain time.

As mentioned above, if you are interested in downloading eBay’s Turbo Lister program, you can do so through their online website. Since downloading and using eBay’s Turbo Lister program is free, you are urged to at least give it a try. Should you not like the way that the program works, you could always return to listing your eBay items the traditional way, though the eBay website.

eBay Sellers: The Importance of Communication

Are you an eBay seller? If you just recently became an eBay seller, you may still be learning the ins and outs of eBay, particularly how to make a profit. While there are an unlimited number of tips that could help increase your chances of making a profit on eBay, like detailed product descriptions and such, there is one way that is relatively simple; having an open line of communication with all of your eBay buyers. Although you may not necessarily think about it at the time, communication goes a long way when it comes to online business transactions, particularly on eBay.

When it comes to keeping an open line of communication with your customers or potential customers, there are three main situations that you should take advantage of. First, if you are selling a popular item, you may have a number of bids or even a number of questions. If your product description wasn’t very detailed, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to you to have messages from other eBay members seeking more information.

While some of these questions may be good, valid ones, others may seem a little bit out in left field. In fact, some eBay member questions may leave you wondering if they even looked at your auction listing. Still, it is advised that you answer all user questions in a polite and timely matter. Doing so will increase the chances of your item or items being sold.

Once an eBay buyer has agreed to buy an item from you, whether it be through a traditional auction listing or a “Buy It Now,” sale, you will want to send your customer an invoice, showing the total amount of money that they owe you. After you have received payment, there is a good chance that you will box up the items sold and head to the post office. A great way to make a good impression is to send your customers an update email; an email that can let them know that their items were just shipped. Many eBay buyers like this because it gives them an estimated arrival time frame. Should you have purchased a package tracking number, you will want supply your customers with that information.

It is also advised that you follow through, within a few days or a week, to see if your customers received their items. You may also want to send a personal note asking them how they liked the items and such. One thing that you definitely want to include in a follow-up message is a thank you note. You will want to thank each of your eBay customers for doing business with you. You should also state that you hope to do business with them again. In today’s society, many consumers are not thanked for their business anymore, although many wish that they still were. Sending a thank you follow-up note will only take a few minutes of your time, but it is something that your customers will likely remember for sometime to come.

As it was stated above, having an open line of communication may increase your eBay profits. Why you may ask? Well, you need to think of it from a consumer standpoint. If you could shop at two different retail stores, which both had the same products available for the same prices, which store would you choose? If you are like most consumers, you would respond with the store with the best customer service. eBay is no different. With competition increasing each day, you need to be able to set yourself apart from other eBay sellers. The best way to do this is to go the extra mile for your customers.

Keeping an open line of communication before, during, and after each sale will help give you a good, positive reputation among many eBay buyers. It will also likely result in return customers; customers who can help to increase your eBay profits.

eBay: The First 10 Years.

Yes, you read that correctly: ten years. eBay was created in September 1995, by a man called Pierre Omidyar, who was living in San Jose. He wanted his site - then called 'AuctionWeb' - to be an online marketplace, and wrote the first code for it in one weekend. It was one of the first websites of its kind in the world. The name 'eBay' comes from the domain Omidyar used for his site. His company's name was Echo Bay, and the 'eBay AuctionWeb' was originally just one part of Echo Bay's website at ebay.com. The first thing ever sold on the site was Omidyar's broken laser pointer, which he got $14 for.

The site quickly became massively popular, as sellers came to list all sorts of odd things and buyers actually bought them. Relying on trust seemed to work remarkably well, and meant that the site could almost be left alone to run itself. The site had been designed from the start to collect a small fee on each sale, and it was this money that Omidyar used to pay for AuctionWeb's expansion. The fees quickly added up to more than his current salary, and so he decided to quit his job and work on the site full-time. It was at this point, in 1996, that he added the feedback facilities, to let buyers and sellers rate each other and make buying and selling safer.

In 1997, Omidyar changed AuctionWeb's - and his company's - name to 'eBay', which is what people had been calling the site for a long time. He began to spend a lot of money on advertising, and had the eBay logo designed. It was in this year that the one-millionth item was sold (it was a toy version of Big Bird from Sesame Street).

Then, in 1998 - the peak of the dotcom boom - eBay became big business, and the investment in Internet businesses at the time allowed it to bring in senior managers and business strategists, who took in public on the stock market. It started to encourage people to sell more than just collectibles, and quickly became a massive site where you could sell anything, large or small. Unlike other sites, though, eBay survived the end of the boom, and is still going strong today.

1999 saw eBay go worldwide, launching sites in the UK, Australia and Germany. eBay bought half.com, an Amazon-like online retailer, in the year 2000 - the same year it introduced Buy it Now - and bought PayPal, an online payment service, in 2002. Pierre Omidyar has now earned an estimated $3 billion from eBay, and still serves as Chairman of the Board. Oddly enough, he keeps a personal weblog at http://pierre.typepad.com. There are now literally millions of items bought and sold every day on eBay, all over the world. For every $100 spent online worldwide, it is estimated that $14 is spent on eBay - that's a lot of laser pointers.

Now that you know the history of eBay, perhaps you'd like to know how it could work for you? Our next email will give you an idea of the possibilities.

eBay Sellers: How You Can Use Completed Searches to Your Advantage

Are you an eBay seller? If so, are you successful at what you do? Perhaps, the better question to ask yourself is if you are making a profit selling on eBay? If you aren’t, there are a number of steps that you can take to increase your chances of making a sale.

When it comes to improving your chances of making a sale on eBay, your first impulse may to be change the way that your eBay items are listed for sale. For instance, it is often suggested that you upload detailed pictures of your items, provide detailed descriptions and such.

While you will want to try doing so, you will also want to focus on the items that you are trying to sell. Your problem, with making a profit on eBay, might be the items that you have listed. If you have a poor quality item, you may not be able to sell it, but you would still be responsible for paying your eBay fees. In this case, you will not only be unable to make a profit, but you may also end up losing money.

When it comes to knowing which items you can profit from selling on eBay, there are many sellers who think that it is impossible to do. While it may seem impossible, it isn’t. Before actually trying to list a particular item for sale online, like an old music CD, you can check to see if that item has been sold on eBay before. If that particular item was sold before, you can also figure out exactly how much money it sold for!

This will give you a good idea as to whether or not it would be worth it for you to spend the time creating your auction listings and paying eBay’s fees. Although the decision as to whether or not you still want to post your item for sale is yours to make, it may give you inside information; inside information that you will want to take into consideration when making your decision.

To perform a search of completed auctions, you will want to perform an advanced search. The link to the advanced search form can be found by eBay’s traditional search box. The only thing that you will to do differently is check the box labeled “Completed Listings Only.” Your results will include auctions that meet your searching criteria, but that have already been completed. If an item sold, its price will be outlined in green print. If an item did not sell, the asking price will be outlined, but in red print. As previously stated, performing an eBay completed search gives you the ability to tell whether or not you have a good seller on your hands.

In fact, you can not only use a completed listing search to determine if an item you already have is worth money, but you can also use this eBay tool to help you make money. If you are like many eBay sellers, there is a good chance that you are always on the lookout for great deals, bargains, or antiques. Familiarizing yourself with popular eBay items, ones that can be considered “hot sellers,” is a great way to make yourself a profit on eBay. Should you have the ability to do so, you may want to have a partner at home looking up eBay completed listings, while you are out shopping for items to sell at yard sales, flea markets, or thrift stores.

Performing an eBay completed listing search will only take a few minutes of your time. Despite only taking a few minutes of your time, eBay completed searches can help you make money as an eBay seller, not lose it.

Benefits of Buying on eBay - Part 01

Are you one of the millions of Americans who prefers to shop online?  Shopping online is popular because it is quick, easy, and convenient.

It is also popular because, when shopping online, you have a number of different options, as there are a number of different retailers that you can choose to shop online with.  One of those is eBay.  If you aren’t already shopping on eBay, you may want to look into it, as there are a number of benefits to doing so.

Perhaps, the greatest benefit of shopping on eBay is all of the products that you have to choose from.  eBay isn’t like a traditional retailer.  They are actually an online auction website.  eBay has other internet users sell products that they have to consumers, just like you.

With this type of set up, eBay has an unlimited number of products to choose from. For instance, you can buy real estate, cars, clothing, toys, pet supplies, home décor, entertainment items, and much more on eBay.  Basically, anything you are looking for, within reason of course, you should be able to find on eBay.

Another one of the many benefits to shopping on eBay is that you have a number of sellers to do business with.  As it was previously mentioned, eBay allows all internet users to sell items that they no longer need or want to own.

Over the past few years, the popularity of eBay has reached an all time high.  This is what has lead to an unlimited number of eBay sellers. Since many sellers are selling the same products or similar products, you should have the option to choose who you want to do business with.

Benefits of Buying on eBay - Part 02

When buying a product online, particularly one that is offered for sale by a number of different sellers, you are advised to examine product costs, shipping and handling costs, as well as each seller’s feedback. Doing so will make shopping on eBay a positive experience for you.

It is also important to note that eBay is easy to use.  In fact, ease of use is one of the many other reasons why eBay has become so popular in recent years.  As an eBay buyer, you need to create a free eBay account.  That account will allow you to buy on eBay.  Once you are a registered eBay member, you can easily start searching for products that you are looking for.

For instance, if you are looking for a particular music CD, you can just type the artist name and album name into eBay’s search box and you should be presented with a number of auctions which have your CD available for sale.

If you are only looking to spend a certain amount of money or purchase a CD that is located in the United States, you can perform an advanced search.  An advanced search makes it easier to find what you need.

The above mentioned benefits, to doing your online shopping through eBay, are just a few of the many that exist.  In fact, even if you are unsure as to whether or not you want to start shopping on eBay, you are advised to at least examine it.  eBay guests can navigate the site to get a taste of what items can commonly be found for sale on eBay.

With a large selection of products, a number of sellers to choose from, and ease of use, there is a good chance that you may find yourself doing the bulk of your online shopping on eBay.  And, if you end up doing so, you will definitely not be alone.

eBay Sellers: Why You Should Accept PayPal

Are you looking to become an eBay seller? If you are interested in making money online, possibly even enough to support yourself, you just may be. Over the past few years, eBay has revealed itself as an online market place where just about anyone, including you, can make money.

Although it is relatively easy to make money on eBay, as an eBay seller, there are a number of important factors that come into play. For instance, you will want to have good, quality items to sell, detailed descriptions of those items, as well as easy to see pictures. Perhaps, those are some of the most important components of becoming a successful eBay seller, but there is something else that can be just as important, your accepted methods of payment. For the best chance of success on eBay, you will want to accept a wide range of payments, including personal checks, money orders, and PayPal.

Speaking of PayPal, PayPal is one of the most common methods of payment accepted on eBay. Despite being one of the most preferred ways to shop on eBay, there are still a number of sellers who don’t accept PayPal as a form of payment. If you have yet to setup your eBay seller account, you will also want to take the time to set up a PayPal account. Of course, you can still make money on eBay without accepting PayPal as a method of payment, but your chances for success are higher when you do. That is why it is extremely important that you at least look into getting a PayPal account.

When it comes to getting a PayPal account, you will find that you can have a personal account or a business account. If you want to make the most out of PayPal and eBay, you will want to get a business account, as it enables to you accept credits cards as a method of payment. The only difference between a business PayPal account and a personal PayPal account is the fees. The fees that you are charged will vary, but you will be charged a small fee each time someone, namely an eBay buyer, sends you a payment.

Although the PayPal fees may be a turnoff for you, you should let them be. By accepting PayPal, you are more likely to have more sales, as well as higher priced product sales, as more eBay buyers rely on PayPal to shop online. This will essentially make the fees seem minimal, as they easily pay for themselves overtime and you are still able to make a profit. In fact, your PayPal fees, from a business standpoint, can even be tax deductible.

One of the many reasons why eBay buyers like to use PayPal is because it gives them a sense of security. When using PayPal to buy items on eBay, buyers do not have to actually provide you with their bank account information or their credit or debit card numbers. This information is automatically stored in PayPal’s secure system. eBay buyers simply have to follow the instructions on the invoice that you send them, enter in their PayPal sign in information, click a few confirmation buttons and they are good to go; no important information has to exchange hands.

If you aren’t already accepting PayPal, you will want to think about the many benefits to doing so, some of which were outlined above. For more information on PayPal, you are urged to visit PayPal’s online website, which can be found at PayPal.com.

eBay Title Writing Tips.

Trying to be help your buyers find your auctions can be a truly daunting task. Most people only search eBay by title, not by description, and that means that you only have those 55 characters of the title to cover all the possible search terms. That's not easy. In this email, I'll give you a few pointers.

Don't bother with eBay clichés: There are plenty of eBay auction titles that say things like "Super rare camera wow look low price". These are stupid things to put in your title, as no-one is going to search for them. Think like a buyer: If you were looking for your item, then what exactly would you type into that box? If you think it'd help, try searching yourself to find someone else selling your item. What were the first things you thought of typing?

Think like other sellers: Keep an eye on which sellers are doing best with items like yours, and try to copy their title styles - if it works for them, it can work for you. Be specific: You should be sure to write the item's brand and specific model number in the title, as people will often search only for this information. Make sure that you also say exactly what the item is.

A Few Examples.

Here are a few examples of good titles. They're real, and they're on eBay right now, making their sellers money. So what makes them good?

"Dell Latitude Laptop P3 500mhz Notebook PC Computer"

If you know about computers, you'll know instantly what this auction is selling. It has manufacturer (Dell) and product line (Latitude), followed by a few technical specifications (P3 500mhz is the processor speed). Notice also that the title includes the four words 'laptop', 'notebook', 'PC' and 'computer', as the seller wants people looking for any of those words to see his auction.

"OASIS Don't Believe the Truth CD Album (New)"

This auction for a CD is well formatted: it gives the artist name in capital letters, followed by the album name. It then manages to include the two key words 'CD' and 'album', as well as the word 'new' - that means that anyone searching for 'new oasis cd', 'oasis new album' and so on will find this auction.

"1840 Penny Black stamp, certificate, four margins"

Here's a slightly more obscure one, from the exciting world of stamp collecting. A penny black is one of the oldest and most famous stamps. It uses a few key words that collectors will consider important: 'four margins' indicates that the stamp has been cut out with some margins around it and so isn't damaged, and 'certificate' tells you that the item has a certificate of authenticity - it's a real penny black. Remember to use every bit of space to squeeze in as much important information as you can in the title. So now that you've written a winning title, you need to start on a great description.