Four $25 eBay gift cards for 1-year-anniversary sweepstakes were ordered today. What do you think about the design?
If you haven't entered BAM facebook contest yet, you have until 3/16/2013 to enter and be eligible to win one of those gift cards:
1-Year-Anniversary Sweepstakes
Robert
Beginning and Plan A
Buyer Auction Manager (Full) was officially launched on February 24, 2012 so today marks one year anniversary. When I first started working on the original version of the software, I didn't know what I was getting myself into. It has been a long and bumpy journey but the software is better for it. It's now gaining momentum and growing faster than ever before. As part of this journey, I have learned a great deal and I'm learning new things every day.
As some of you may know, I created original version of Buyer Auction Manager for myself after noticing that some Buy It Now items were selling on eBay for low prices. My search did not produce any satisfactory software that would do what I wanted, so I created my own. Original version had only one module (Win It Now) that would search for newly posted Buy It Now items on eBay. After successfully using it myself for a while, I released it to the public as a freeware hoping that people would like it, save money and donate some of the savings. Was I wrong about that! Looking back, I think there were at least two reasons for this. I had no clue about advertising the software to get more users and if you can get something for free, you usually do not pay for it. I'm like that myself so creating freeware and expecting donations was a flawed strategy.
Time for Plan B
Since plan A was not working and my wife was starting to get upset because I was spending a lot of my free time on the computer without any results, it was time to double down and conceive plan B. I decided to leave the original version as it was and create a new version of the software where I would add additional functionality and improve Win It Now module. I started working on that new version in November 2011. I spent several months writing those improvements and finally in February 2012, I released what is now called Buyer Auction Manager (Full).
After the software was released, it was time to work on advertising. I started using Google AdWords, learned a lot about Search Engine Optimization, Internet Marketing, Social Networks and started a blog. I wrote several blog posts over 2-month period but after not seeing big results, I moved on to other things and abandoned the blog for a while. Towards the end of 2012, eBay started making significant changes to their website and functionality that relied on scraping started breaking so I had my hands full trying to fix everything.
At one point, I thought that eBay declared war on sniper programs because their auctions did not have End Time. They would only have countdown to the end of the auction. You cannot snipe accurately if you don't have precise time when the auction ends. Fortunately this was changed very quickly and a few weeks after that, End Time was back in eBay listings.
Recent growth and future
Since the end of 2012, I've been getting more people to try the software and some of those people offer suggestions and ask for new functionality. This is something that I like to see because it makes the software better for all users. I've been making a lot of changes recently and there are some more changes coming within the next month or so, a lot of it suggestions from people who use the software.
I'd like to thank everybody who offered their suggestions and supported Buyer Auction Manager over the last year. Without you, the software would not exist.
Robert
One-Year Anniversary Promotion
Buyer Auction Manager (Full) was released on 2/24/2012. To celebrate 1-year anniversary, I'm running sweepstakes on Facebook and giving away four $25 eBay gift cards. Sweepstakes started today, 2/17/2013 and end on 3/16/2013. After end period, I will randomly select 4 winners and each one will receive $25 eBay gift card.
How to Enter
To enter, click on the image below, like Buyer Auction Manager on Facebook, and enter contest. That's all you have to do. To increase your chances of winning, invite your friends and you'll get 1 bonus entry for each friend you refer who registers for the contest.
Good luck,
Robert
Usually when looking for a computer on eBay, besides the price, the first thing everyone thinks about is performance. What type of processor does it have? How much memory? What kind of motherboard is it equipped with? Does it come with accessories? Although this is all fine and good, when you want to bid and win a computer on eBay, the reality is that the first thing to look at is the feedback.
Yes, looking at feedback is an important thing to do on anything you choose to bid on, but when looking for a computer, feedback is the MOST important thing to look at.
Why? Well, even though we think of computers as being rugged and tough, especially the modern laptops that are available, they are still made of sensitive electronic parts. These parts, no matter how hardy they are made, do not like to be roughed up, jostled, thrown or banged around. Countless amounts of laptops have died because they fell off a desk and dropped on the floor.
You may now be asking what this has to do with feedback? OK, consider this. Feedback also means packaging. Lousy packaging means lousy feedback. An item, no matter what it is that the seller has sold, will garner a neutral or negative feedback response from a buyer if it has been packaged badly. If a person can't adequately package a regular item safely, do you really want to trust them with a computer? Beware the person listing a computer for bid that has bad feedback or comments about inadequate packaging.
On the other side of the coin, a person with impeccable feedback that specializes in selling computers is the safest bet. You may win the comp with a slightly higher bid, but the peace of mind knowing the computer will show up at your door packaged well, which means in working condition, may be the best deal you could ever get when placing a successful bid.
So think feedback first when bidding on a computer off of eBay, because if the packaging is not worth its weight in terrabytes, then the RAM, ROM and megahertz you paid for, will mean nothing when it gets to your front door. And as always, no matter what you bid on at eBay, BAM's got your back!
Bid on smaller items to learn
If you are either new to eBay or you are having trouble winning items you are bidding on, consider first learning the ropes and then using that knowledge to bid and win.
Learn about bidding and winning by bidding on small inexpensive items just to get the feel of it. You can adapt the way you bid by winning these items, because the habits you form here will carry over when you are going for more meaningful or more expensive items. This is the time to try and perfect any sniping program you are using. If you make mistakes here, you can correct them now before you bid on more valuable items. Plus, winning smaller item boosts your positive feedback, and that's always a good thing.
Try bidding in the final seconds
Practice putting in bids at the last second and see how fast your computer reacts. There may be a lag time between when a bid is entered and when it actually shows up on eBay. This knowledge will be extremely valuable when waiting for the last few seconds to make a bid. If you know, for example, that once you press the “Bid” button that it takes 5 seconds before it registers on the site, you will know that your final bid must be placed a minimum of 5 seconds---at the very least---before the auction ends.
Learn about shipping and handling
Understand how to use any shipping calculator that is placed on the site, and inquire about handling charges. You may think that you have just won a valuable item for a great price, but if you don't calculate the shipping charges and find out about the handling charges, you may be in for a rude surprise. Many people bump shipping charges up and will also add in handling charges for one reason or another. You may end up paying more for shipping and handling than the item is worth. Learn how to apply shipping and handling charges to smaller purchases, and ask questions if you are unsure. See this blog post for more information about shipping, handling and taxes: Know total price of eBay item before you bid.
Practice and save
Using these principles will get you the best deals for the money, and by understanding how the whole eBay experience works, you'll always win an item and pay for it with the best price possible.
Start out small, learn the ropes and then bid to win, because as always, no matter what you bid on at eBay, BAM's got your back!