A couple of years ago, eBay changed their default Search Results to sort by the ‘Best Match’ listings when a search is performed on the site. The purpose is to highlight and reward the Sellers who consistently offer excellent customer service, by bringing up their listings for the Buyers to consider first. If someone is new on eBay or if they don’t know how to adjust the Search Results settings to sort by ‘Time: ending soonest’ or ‘Price + Shipping: lowest first’ or otherwise, the Buyer will see the ‘Best Match’ listing first.
So, how can someone get some extra exposure to their eBay listings and get more potential customers to view their listings? Why not use your knowledge to increase traffic and drive more customers to your eBay listings?
If you sell in a specialized category or if you have found your niche on eBay, you may want to consider writing a ‘Guide’ to let the eBay Members know that you are an expert of that niche.
Let me show you how easy this process can be. It will take some time to write your ‘Guide’, but once it is written, it will be a part of your profile and the traffic is all yours – and best of all, it’s 100% FREE.
There are a few ways to get to the ‘Reviews & Guides’ section of the site. The easiest way is to click on your Feedback Score to take you to your Feedback Profile page. On the right hand column, under the section called ‘Member Quick Links’ locate and click on ‘View Reviews & Guides’. This will take you directly to the ‘Reviews & Guides’ portal page.
Another way would be to scroll down to the bottom of any eBay page, above the copyright info, locate and click on ‘Site Map’. Once you’re on the ‘Site Map’ page, on the far left hand column called ‘BUY’, scroll down to the section called ‘Buying Resources’, click on the link for ‘Reviews & Guides’. This will also take you directly to the ‘Reviews & Guides’ portal page.
On this page, you can write a ‘Review’ to share your product experience with the eBay Community, but what you want to do, is to write a ‘Guide’ to share your experience and knowledge.
To get started, click on the link called ‘Write a guide’ and this will take you to a form to write your Guide.
The first section is the ‘Guide Title’. Here you have 55 characters for your title. Use only appropriate keywords that will describe the topic of your Guide.
The format is: KEYWORD SPACE KEYWORD SPACE
There is no need to use commas or any other characters as they would be a waste of space and it is not searchable.
The second step is simply start writing about your experience or knowledge. Write as if you are speaking to another person, telling him or her what you know about a specific topic or experience. Do not stop to edit your Guide until you are done writing because if you keep stopping to edit, you will never get to the end. Keep typing until you are done, then, go back to edit your Guide.
A simple format to follow may be something like this, but depending on your topic, you may write as much as needed:
- Introduction (approximately 100 words)
- Point #1 (approximately 100 words)
- Point #2 (approximately 100 words)
- Point #3 (approximately 100 words)
- Conclusion (approximately 100 words)
Once you have edited your Guide, go to the last section to ‘Enter Tags’ – these are keywords that will help others find your Guide. Click the ‘Preview’ button to have an idea how your Guide will look to others.
When you are satisfied with your Guide, click the ‘Save & Continue’ button and your Guide is live on eBay!
How will this help increase traffic to your eBay listings?
The Reviews & Guides on eBay are being indexed by all the major search engines, such as Bing, Google and Yahoo. Let’s for example, you sell GPS units on eBay and you wrote a Guide on how to shop for an GPS unit with information on what features to look for, etc. Someone looking for an GSP unit may be on the search engines searching for information about how to shop for one or to find out what to look for or what features are important. Since your Guide is being indexed by the major search engines, it may show up as a result. If that person clicks on your Guide, he or she will be able to read your information and learn from you. This establishes TRUST and that you are knowledgeable on this subject. And BEST OF ALL, on the right hand column of the page, that potential customer will see your eBay listings for GSP systems.
Another scenario would be someone who is already an eBay Buyer, looking to find information about GSP systems by going to the ‘Reviews & Guides’ section and searching for a Guide. If your Guide comes up, and it contains valuable information, that eBay Buyer may click on one of your listings and become YOUR eBay Customer.
Remember, when doing business online, by establishing trust and appreciation, you will have loyal customers who will refer your business to others.
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