This last week I have devoted countless hours to web reading trying to discover how to build traffic to my website.
I've looked into stumbleupon, digg, trafficswarm, Facebook, Google + communities, Pinterest, & more. I wish I could crack the code to exponential growth.
Perhaps that is reserved for startups with a fantastically original product.
My store celebrates unique items. I tend to focus on jewelry and collectibles but like to add other "fun" items. I've considered changing my strategy but this store is something I enjoy right now and I want my customers to enjoy it too. I do not want to sell items that I am not interested in. Perhaps that is poor judgement... Only time will tell.
This Saturday, I worked the local Flea Market. I brought a lot of my teacher "stuff" to sell and items to declutter my house. In a smaller corner of the table I had some of the collectible type items I like to list. Anyone who seemed interested in those items, I handed out a business card.
Handing out business cards is new. Is there an etiquette to this? It is yet another area I plan on researching. Everything is new. Everything is exciting. Everything kind of feels like being caught in a rip current where you don't know if you will make it back to shore or drown.
Any advice is always welcome. I will share as I learn which will hopefully help others succeed like me or learn from my mistakes.
Here's to adventure!
Vintage to New, Lowery's Loft LLC has something for you. On eBay, this "Groovy Educator" sells vintage costume jewelry, collectibles and retro toys. I also sell educational activities on Teacher's Pay Teachers and I am currently exploring Amazon Associates in a strong effort to work from home. Suggestions are always welcome.(lowerysloft@yandex.com)
Monday, May 19, 2014
Thursday, May 15, 2014
Special Promotion Going on Right Now-See Below
This week my eBay hobby officially became a business. Lowery's Loft is an LLC!
It is an exciting, yet somewhat nerve-wracking, time.
Starting a small business is a leap of faith. As a former teacher, preparation is key yet there is a HUGE learning curve. Like anyone who takes a risk, there is HOPE. Whenever I start doubting myself I keep repeating in my head "Without risk there is no reward" and "Give it your best try and live with no regrets."
I am reading as much as I can about successful businesses, tips and tricks for gaining more traffic, to my store, and just the "how to's" of everything.
The "How to's" is what led to this post. In eBay's Manage my Store page, there is a new option for creating a special promotions. In the marketing tools section, it is under item promotion. I had to give it a try by clicking on manage promotions.
In an attempt to build a repeat customer base, I want to reward my customers so I am exploring options on how to do that. This tool allows sellers to create coupons (in a link form) that can be added to websites and social marketing sites like Facebook and Twitter.
Right now you can get $5.00 off every $50.00 you spend but you have to follow this link. CLICK HERE. This is only good through May 22, 2014.
It is an exciting, yet somewhat nerve-wracking, time.
Starting a small business is a leap of faith. As a former teacher, preparation is key yet there is a HUGE learning curve. Like anyone who takes a risk, there is HOPE. Whenever I start doubting myself I keep repeating in my head "Without risk there is no reward" and "Give it your best try and live with no regrets."
I am reading as much as I can about successful businesses, tips and tricks for gaining more traffic, to my store, and just the "how to's" of everything.
The "How to's" is what led to this post. In eBay's Manage my Store page, there is a new option for creating a special promotions. In the marketing tools section, it is under item promotion. I had to give it a try by clicking on manage promotions.
In an attempt to build a repeat customer base, I want to reward my customers so I am exploring options on how to do that. This tool allows sellers to create coupons (in a link form) that can be added to websites and social marketing sites like Facebook and Twitter.
Right now you can get $5.00 off every $50.00 you spend but you have to follow this link. CLICK HERE. This is only good through May 22, 2014.
My eBay Seller ID has Changed...
GroovyEducator is now LowerysLoftLLC
If you are looking for me on eBay and want to do a seller search, I am no longer GroovyEducator.
You can type it as LowerysLoftLLC or lowerysloftllc.
I don't plan on changing it again but if I wanted to I would have to wait 30 days. By making everything Lowery's Loft, I thought it would be less confusing. I will still be Groovy Educator on TpT and on my education blog.
I am slowing transitioning and trying to grow this business. Any advice is welcome. :)
If you are looking for me on eBay and want to do a seller search, I am no longer GroovyEducator.
You can type it as LowerysLoftLLC or lowerysloftllc.
I don't plan on changing it again but if I wanted to I would have to wait 30 days. By making everything Lowery's Loft, I thought it would be less confusing. I will still be Groovy Educator on TpT and on my education blog.
I am slowing transitioning and trying to grow this business. Any advice is welcome. :)
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
www.LowerysLoft.com
I'm so excited! Lowery's Loft has a new home - www.LowerysLoft.com.
It has a link to my eBay store and a link to my blog. It also has a link to my Groovy Educator blog.
My DBA (doing business as) paperwork has been filled out and, and, and...It's just exciting!
Friday, April 11, 2014
List, List, and List some More...
Well,
I cannot believe how much time has passed since my last post. Where does the time go? Really...
It has been a tumultuous month. My dearest Dad died at the end of March and I am still reeling from the loss. He was my eBay mentor and biggest supporter. He believed strongly that I can make a living off eBay.
Right now I am praying he is right. Tomorrow is the deadline for letting my school district know that I will not be returning next year.
I have been on a leave of absence since the end of November due to my Fibromyalgia (not contagious- just a pain disorder that I am learning to live with). I have been blessed with short term disability and thought that I would have that through the end of May. Surprise! Nope! It unexpectedly ended and for the first time in my life I do not have the security blanket of a steady check.
Aside from loving to teach children how to read, I loved the security of the job.
Change is so hard. Life is unpredictable. In my Dad's honor I am going to give my all at eBay and hope for the best. Right now I am growing my store. If you have any suggestions on how to spread the word about my eBay store I am open to suggestions.
I am giving myself until June to see if this can be a sole source of income. If not, then I promised my husband I would get another job to make ends meet. I love him so much. He supports me in this endeavor. It's just so scary to be so financially tight. We can do it!
Without risk there is no reward...at least that is how the saying goes. I just can't give up yet. I need to try to succeed at this or I will regret it for the rest of my life.
I've managed to get over 780 listings. I am trying to reach the magic number 900 so I can ask eBay for an increase. Once a month you can ask for increases. My goal is to reach at least 2000 listings. Ideally I want to net a couple of hundred dollars in sales a day. That would be selling 20 ten dollar items.
So far with the increase in listings, I have not seen an increase in sales. Hopefully this is only due to the fact that Tax Day is looming.
It is way late and I am rambling. If you have any expertise in this area, I am open to suggestions.
I am chasing the dream ... on a wing and a prayer... (okay enough cliches for tonight).
I cannot believe how much time has passed since my last post. Where does the time go? Really...
It has been a tumultuous month. My dearest Dad died at the end of March and I am still reeling from the loss. He was my eBay mentor and biggest supporter. He believed strongly that I can make a living off eBay.
Right now I am praying he is right. Tomorrow is the deadline for letting my school district know that I will not be returning next year.
I have been on a leave of absence since the end of November due to my Fibromyalgia (not contagious- just a pain disorder that I am learning to live with). I have been blessed with short term disability and thought that I would have that through the end of May. Surprise! Nope! It unexpectedly ended and for the first time in my life I do not have the security blanket of a steady check.
Aside from loving to teach children how to read, I loved the security of the job.
Change is so hard. Life is unpredictable. In my Dad's honor I am going to give my all at eBay and hope for the best. Right now I am growing my store. If you have any suggestions on how to spread the word about my eBay store I am open to suggestions.
I am giving myself until June to see if this can be a sole source of income. If not, then I promised my husband I would get another job to make ends meet. I love him so much. He supports me in this endeavor. It's just so scary to be so financially tight. We can do it!
Without risk there is no reward...at least that is how the saying goes. I just can't give up yet. I need to try to succeed at this or I will regret it for the rest of my life.
I've managed to get over 780 listings. I am trying to reach the magic number 900 so I can ask eBay for an increase. Once a month you can ask for increases. My goal is to reach at least 2000 listings. Ideally I want to net a couple of hundred dollars in sales a day. That would be selling 20 ten dollar items.
So far with the increase in listings, I have not seen an increase in sales. Hopefully this is only due to the fact that Tax Day is looming.
It is way late and I am rambling. If you have any expertise in this area, I am open to suggestions.
I am chasing the dream ... on a wing and a prayer... (okay enough cliches for tonight).
Sunday, March 2, 2014
Listing Signed Necklaces on eBay
Miriam Haskell is a fabulous designer. She created a very versatile 52" necklace. It can be layered as pictured. You could even add a fancy brooch to upcycle the piece. If you ever run across a Miriam Haskell piece hang on to it because they are harder to find and more costly.
Whenever I am shopping for items to sell, I look for tags on the necklaces because that is often a signed piece. Signed pieces are easier to describe and sell because often there are people that like a particular designer.
If the signature is not on the tag is will usually be found near the clasp on or the clasp if it is a signed piece. When it is in one of these spots it is often super tiny so you need a magnifier.
I found a "loop" in the coin section at the bookstore. It is a 16x powerful magnifier that folds up. When I worked the flea market, I learned about these type of magnifiers because a male shopper had one hanging from a lanyard around his neck. He used it to inspect the pieces that he purchased.
I try not to think of the pieces I may have underpriced and still underprice due to my lack of knowledge. I focus on each aspect of this journey as a new learning experience.
When photographing a necklace, try not to overlook the clasp. It can be an indicator of the age of the piece. A person who is a an avid jewelry collector will look for these type of details. Others will have a better idea of what they are purchasing so the outcome is often favorable. Close ups of the piece are essential for indicating more subtle details that cannot be noted in the average picture.
Right now I am focusing on learning how to list items as accurately and efficiently as possible. I plan to have a notebook on my desk just to jot down these ponderings so that I can research them in my spare time. I can't express how exciting it is to learn a whole new "area." I have focused so much of my time on classroom best practices when I was teaching that I missed out on learning about this type of topic. I really appreciate the layers of knowledge that are required in learning about jewelry. Aside from types of clasps, types of beads, types of chains, types of gems, types of metal, etc...There are also oodles of designers to learn about and what influenced those designers, AND there is all the historical periods. Oh my it is overwhelming. That is why I want to share, share, these tidbits as I learn them.
It's time to "Tweet" for Business - Learning to Use Twitter to Grow Your Business
I have been a "pin-a-holic" on Pinterest in an attempt to grow my business. It is a platform I that I have felt very comfortable with from the beginning. Perhaps it is the structure and organization...Twitter on the other hand not so much.
That is about to change. I am resolving to focus more of my energies on Twitter. It seems so random with tweets - small snippets of information. That can be a good thing.
The eBay mobile app makes it very easy to share your postings in the most popular social networking arenas (Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter in no particular order). All you have to do is click on share your listing after it posted and then select which social network you want to share it with. It's that simple. With a couple more clicks you can share to all three!
I have been religious with Pinterest and somewhat on Facebook. I hesitate with Facebook because it shares to my personal page and not my business page. I do not want to barrage my family and friends with numerous postings. Twitter, I've avoided because it can get overwhelming trying to learn too many new things at once.
It's time to "Tweet" to grow my business. The question is how to grow followers. Customers that are interested in purchasing from my store. When I make a sale on eBay, I've been including an information sheet that includes my return policy and main website www.GroovyEducator.com that links up to my blogs and eBay store but I have not really been pushing the social media.
What made me want to spend more emphasis on this is silly really but on an episode of American Idol there was mention how important social media is. I hope I didn't lose you yet! Well that planted the seed. Tonight when I was visiting eBay's seller information center, there is was again-mention on utilizing social media. You can follow @ebayforbusiness to learn more from eBay! How neat is that.
If you are interested in following me, here is the info: @GroovyEducator
I will work on tweeting new items in my eBay store as well as products in my Teachers Pay Teachers Store. I have been focusing so much on eBay lately that my TpT products have been pretty stagnant. It's hard to balance it all because I have so many interests. In time I will work on tweeting when I have a new blog post.
To get started I am just going to tweet away and hope that more followers find me. The theory is that people only want to follow someone worth following...At least that is what I am guessing. As I learn more I will be sure to share more.
If you have knowledge in any of these areas and would like to share/comment, I would love that. It would accelerate the learning curve substantially.
From being a teacher for many years I have learned that sharing sessions with colleagues is often the most effective professional development. There's even a term for that now: Learning Communities.
Okay, it is late, late, late and I am beginning to ramble...
Here's to "Tweet" dreams! (cheesy play on words I know...)
That is about to change. I am resolving to focus more of my energies on Twitter. It seems so random with tweets - small snippets of information. That can be a good thing.
The eBay mobile app makes it very easy to share your postings in the most popular social networking arenas (Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter in no particular order). All you have to do is click on share your listing after it posted and then select which social network you want to share it with. It's that simple. With a couple more clicks you can share to all three!
I have been religious with Pinterest and somewhat on Facebook. I hesitate with Facebook because it shares to my personal page and not my business page. I do not want to barrage my family and friends with numerous postings. Twitter, I've avoided because it can get overwhelming trying to learn too many new things at once.
It's time to "Tweet" to grow my business. The question is how to grow followers. Customers that are interested in purchasing from my store. When I make a sale on eBay, I've been including an information sheet that includes my return policy and main website www.GroovyEducator.com that links up to my blogs and eBay store but I have not really been pushing the social media.
What made me want to spend more emphasis on this is silly really but on an episode of American Idol there was mention how important social media is. I hope I didn't lose you yet! Well that planted the seed. Tonight when I was visiting eBay's seller information center, there is was again-mention on utilizing social media. You can follow @ebayforbusiness to learn more from eBay! How neat is that.
If you are interested in following me, here is the info: @GroovyEducator
I will work on tweeting new items in my eBay store as well as products in my Teachers Pay Teachers Store. I have been focusing so much on eBay lately that my TpT products have been pretty stagnant. It's hard to balance it all because I have so many interests. In time I will work on tweeting when I have a new blog post.
To get started I am just going to tweet away and hope that more followers find me. The theory is that people only want to follow someone worth following...At least that is what I am guessing. As I learn more I will be sure to share more.
If you have knowledge in any of these areas and would like to share/comment, I would love that. It would accelerate the learning curve substantially.
From being a teacher for many years I have learned that sharing sessions with colleagues is often the most effective professional development. There's even a term for that now: Learning Communities.
Okay, it is late, late, late and I am beginning to ramble...
Here's to "Tweet" dreams! (cheesy play on words I know...)
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