The Challenge of eBay

I think I have finally gotten the science of eBay selling down to a science. After months of reading, watching auctions, and selling on eBay, I have come to a conclusion - you can make good money with a little work and knowledge. If you want to make extra money selling on eBay, the first thing to do is determine what sells for the best profit margin. Notice I didn't say what sells at the highest price, but the highest profit margin. Let me save you some research by sharing what I have discovered. The hands down, number one seller on eBay is electronics. Any kind of electronic device that is in good working order will net you a tidy sum. If you can pick up items cheaply, or even free, you will make money on ebay. Another great seller are medical scrubs. I'm not even sure why, but these things sell like crazy. Another great seller is women's clothing, especially brand names. How do you find things to sell? First, clean out your closets. When you are done, do it again. Put everything on eBay. Think it won't sell because it's broken? Nevermind, list it anyway, just disclose the item's condition. eBay is full of people looking for pices and parts. Once you have rid your home of everything you don't really need, it's time to cast your net for eBay items. Tell your friends that you would like to have items they plan to throw away or donate. (You can donate a percentage of your proceeds to any charity upon completion of the sale). Let them know you will be happy to rid them of broken or unwanted electronics, computer games, etc. Next, hit the thrift and consignment shops. I have found that these shops will offer a large variety of things you can't resell, but they always have hidden treasures. For example, the swap shop in my neighborhood is actually a bit pricey, but they sell clothing for $.25 per piece. I go through every item on the rack, focusing on the brand, not the actual item. When I locate a name brand piece of clothing, I then inspect it for flaws. If it's in good condition, in my shopping cart it goes. I will start the item for $.99 on eBay. Even if I only sell it for the starting bid, I still have a huge profit margin. Everyone wins. The swap shop sold an item, I sold an item, and the eBay buyer got a name brand piece of clothing for pennies. So, your challenge for today is to make a game plan and start making some much needed cash on eBay. You CAN do it!

How To Get Hired On oDesk

oDesk is a tremendous resource for those seeking freelance work from home. It doesn’t matter if you are a freelance web programmer, a software developer, looking for web design jobs, or just simple data entry, oDesk is the place to find work you can do from home. Considering a 2nd mortgage or home equity line of credit to pay your bills? Don’t do it! Instead, take your skills and go to oDesk to make that extra cash. It can be a bit daunting to get hired on oDesk, but it can be done. Let’s look at some of the ways you can increase your chances of finding a work at home job on oDesk.
Your oDesk Profile
The first step, once you have registered at oDesk, is to create your profile. This will be your public face to potential employers (known as buyers in oDesk lingo), so it is a very important step. Make sure you choose your screen name wisely. Stay away from the cutsie names like PuddinPie4856, and socially inappropriate names (use your imagination). Pick something short and to the point. Think about the image that comes to mind when you say it out loud. If you upload a picture, make it a professional one. The next part of your profile is choosing your skills. Although you may be talented in many areas and willing to do many kinds of work, try to keep your list of skills focused. Avoid, for example, choosing data entry as a skill, when what you really want are web design jobs. Choose skills focused around the type of work you want. Next, you will be asked to state your average hourly fee. I highly recommend starting low, about half of minimum wage in your area. When you actually apply for a job you will state your desired wage for that particular position anyway. The only reason the wage listed in your profile matters is to inform potential buyers who may be surfing profiles. The last step in your profile building adventure is testing. Everyone has to take a standard proficiency test to be able to work through oDesk. This test is not difficult, but must be passed before you can be available to work. There are numerous optional tests that will showcase your abilities. Take as many of these as you can. If you score well, the scores will be displayed on your profile page. Lots of high scores are very attractive to buyers. Here’s a hint: Open a second browser window while you are taking a test. You can then search for answers when you get stuck.
Applying For a Job on Odesk
oDesk offers two types of jobs – fixed rate and hourly. There are pros and cons to both. A fixed rate job is one in which you and the buyer agree on a set rate for a predetermined task or amount of work. The advantage of a fixed rate job is that you know how much you will make in total. The disadvantage is that oDesk will not assist you should your buyer decide not to pay. I only work fixed rate jobs, and I have learned that they can be a bit risky. My general rule is that communication must remain open between me and the buyer until the job is complete. If the buyer stops responding to my emails, I stop working until he does. This doesn’t happen very often, but it has saved me from an unscrupulous buyer a time or two. Never accept work outside of oDesk from an oDesk buyer. There is no legitimate reason to do this, so you will get scammed if you agree to it, period. If you decide on an hourly job, you will have to allow oDesk software to run while you are working. It will take screenshots that will be used as your “time sheet” and for your buyer to check job progress. You can edit the screenshots, thus remove anything you didn’t want captured, but I find this to be a hassle. Most don’t mind it though; it’s just my personal preference. When you are looking for a job, only bid on jobs offered by buyers whose payment method is oDesk verified. This means they have a payment method on file with oDesk. These buyers are much more likely to be reputable. Read the feedback provided by previous workers. This can reveal a lot about the buyer, both good and bad. Pick a few small jobs and go ahead with the application process. Once you have oDesk experience, you can work your way up to bigger and better jobs, but starting small will allow you to build your provider reputation.
Your Cover Letter
As part of the application process, you will need to submit a cover letter to the prospective buyer. Make sure you create an original cover letter for each job. Avoid the temptation to use a template, buyers can spot them a mile away, and they hate them. Start your letter by introducing yourself and explaining why you want this particular job. Explain what skills you have that make you the right choice for this buyer. Tell the buyer why he should hire you, a newbie. You can do this by telling him about your work ethic, personality, education, etc. This is your opportunity to convince him to give you a chance to prove yourself. Next, include complete contact information, which should include an alternate email address, instant messenger ID, and any other forms of communication you wish to utilize. Note what times you are available to interview (include your time zone). Finally, thank the buyer for taking the time to consider you. Now that you have done all you can do to get a job on oDesk, you wait…and maybe wait some more. Keep applying for jobs daily. If you happened to get several offers, you can always politely decline the ones that don’t interest you.
General Guidelines and Tips
There are some very basic things to keep in mind when apply for a job on oDesk, or any other freelance site. They are subtle, yet can be deal breakers in such a competitive market. First, always use correct grammar and spelling. Don’t rely on spell check; it won’t catch many common errors. Instead, rely on your own eyes and ask a friend to proofread your work. Nothing will turn off a prospective buyer faster than slang and spelling errors. Don’t ever take on a job you aren’t really qualified for. If you do the job poorly, your oDesk reputation will suffer greatly. It isn’t worth the risk. Always be polite in your cover letter and interviews. Buyers are just like the rest of the world, some are more difficult than others. Keep a professional and friendly demeanor, no matter what. Don’t bid the same on freelance jobs as you would expect to get paid for a “regular” job. No one is going to pay you as much to work from home as you would get if you were driving to an office every day. If you consistently bid too high, the offers will stop coming. Be prepared to work, and work hard. You may be sitting in your sweat pants while you work, but you will work just as hard as you would in in office. This is not an easy buck, it’s a job. Now get out there and get hired on oDesk!

Great resources for all of you who are marketing your websites

Hi all! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and I wish you a prosperous and happy 2010! I came across a great website with all sorts of resources for marketing your sites, and I wanted to share it with you. Many of the things are offered free of charge, and there is a neat tool that checks to see if your website is in the top 100 in several search engines. Here's the site: Search Engine Rankings - Instant, online reports of web site rankings in 8 top search engines and web directories, including Google, Yahoo! Search, Bing (MSN), AOL, AltaVista, AllTheWeb, Yahoo! Directory, and Open Directory (Dmoz).">

Another great site for marketing resources is a Boomja's Internet Marketing Directory

I'm a bit partial to Boomja because I work for them, but they truly have one of the best directories of marketing resources I've seen.

Check both of them out, I'm sure you'll find something useful at each site. Why my sudden interest in internet marketing, you ask? Well, I am planning to leave my regular job and work from home. This plan has been in the works for quite some time, and it is now coming down to the home stretch. Part of my plan involves some marketing, so I have been doing some research in preparation. I will keep you all posted as my plan progresses. This is a huge and risky move for me, and for my family. We could win big, or lose it all. Nothing is ever gained by playing it safe, though, and I am ready to take the gamble. I hope you will all tag along as I chronicle my trials, tribulations, and hopefully, my successes. With some luck and lots of hard work, I believe I can do this, and perhaps you can find some information or inspiration that will help you make the leap into the work at home world, too.

EzLaptop Scam

For several months I have been reading ads to earn a free laptop from ezlaptop.com. I finally reached the required number of credits and clicked the link to claim my laptop. I got no confirmation email, not have they replied to any of my emails asking for the status of my shipment. Now let me say this - I went into this with my eyes open, knowing that there was a 99% chance that this was a scam. I am quite tired of these sites that make big promises and then scam their loyal members, so I am prepared to file a complaint against these folks. I am going to bulldog this one, folks, and I'll keep you updated as to my progress, or lack thereof. For any of you who have had issues with this site, full contact information can be found here:
http://whois.domaintools.com/ezlaptop.com

Let's band together and let them know that this is unacceptable!

Make money taking surveys

I just wanted to share with you guys a little tip I figured out about earning money from surveys. The smaller the company, the better your odds of winning their prize drawings. Most survey sites will pay you a dollar or two to take a survey, but also have a prize drawing; usually everyone who attempts a survey is entered in the drawing. I have won twice, and both times they were small, relatively unknown survey sites. This month I won $300 from Macorr Research. They are small, I only get a few surveys a year from them, but heck, $300 is nothing to sneeze at! I was informed by email, received a money order four days later. Another little tip: my notification that I had won went to my junk mail folder. If I hadn't checked it (and I usually don't), I may not have gotten my money because they needed my mailing address. Whew! Close call!

MyLot

I don't know if you have ever heard of MyLot, but it is a great social discussion forum that will allow you to talk about virtually anything and get paid for it. They pay via PayPal, and you can set your payout for $10, $25, or $100. I really enjoy it and I have learned so much about earning online that it would seem wrong to not include it here. You will make friends, earn money, and learn a lot in the process.

CashCrate Update

As of today, my earnings are up to $12.05 and this is only my fourth day as a member of CashCrate! I can't tell you how excited I am about this program. I haven't really worked very hard at it at all, so imagine what I could (or you could) earn if some effort is put into it. I am going to experiment with some promotion ideas over the next couple of months and I will periodically reveal them once I determine their effectiveness. I think it would be awesome if you share your techniques on here, too, should you decide to give it a try. Maybe we can build our own little club of top earners :)

Join Me at i5

I just joined this tonight. I read as many reviews as I could find, and it seems that it is a legit program. I will keep you all updated, but I figured it's free, so why not give it a try?

Join Me at i5

Invite 5 is a free membership available to everyone 13+ yrs old worldwide. Register, choose where and when to view
ads and share in the ad revenue. There are 8 different ways to make money, all from advertising. Interact with 10 Cent
Ads yourself or just share free membership with others.

How can this be? Simple - the audience is the only value to an advertiser. Internet users worldwide provide invaluable
access to advertisers for a share of the dollars spent on the advertising. Members of Invite 5 'request' to view and rate
ads while using any website or search page. When you do this, you make money.

In addition to money, membership also has some cool benefits. A totally customizable toolbar lets you choose the
features, colors, icons and the links so your toolbar is as personal and unique as you. And with the auto-login feature,
one click and you're signed in to all your own links. You can also click the i5 logo and see what cash and prizes we're
giving away each week.

i5 members can install the toolbar, browser button or personal widget. Once installed, sign in, click the ads button or
widget to view some ads. When text ads are clicked an ad window opens. After 10 seconds, a 'Rate it' bar displays to
give your opinion - 1 to 5 stars. Select a star and make money. That's how simple it is.

CashCrate - What's all the hoopla about?

I heard people talking about earning cash through CashCrate, but I never really put much stock in it. I thought it was just another one of thousands of offer completion programs, until I tried it. I joined CashCrate three days ago at the urging of one of my MyLot friends, and in those three days I have earned $8 without really trying very hard. I hate doing offers and those "surveys" that consist of saying yes or no to hundreds of offers. I still hate them, but for this kind of money, I will do them, and do them happily! I am not worried about telling you about this before I actually get paid, I know this program is reputable and has been around for a long time. I regret not having signed up sooner. I think about all of the online cash I could have been earning...well, my bad! Don't wait and regret it like I did, click the button and start making cash today. This one's a keeper!

MyPoints.com

MyPoints is a site where you earn points for various activities. You do not actually earn cash, but the points are just as good as cash. There are so many ways to earn that everyone is bound to find something they enjoy. You can earn just by reading emails received from them, you can complete offers, you can earn huge points by shopping through their site, and you can earn by joining other sites that are affiliated with them. They also have an affiliate program, which I have not tried, that pays cash. I personally use my points for emergency gas money since I earn enough for $20 BP gas cards a month. They do not have a referral program, this post is just for your earning enjoyment. If you click on the post title it will take you to their site. Have fun with it!