I think that ebay will die out just like myspace whle keeping a few loyal visitors. Sure, it was "kick ass" during its apex but not now.
If you have a digital product, why not turn it into a course? That is, interview two 'experts' for an hour each, put the interviews on two audio CD's, print a manual, etc? The price you can charge is a lot higher and your profit margin is, too. Sure, you have to invest a little, but I can't imagine that with a little creativity you'd spend more than $100 or $150 for the production of the master copy. Ideas: Get a college student to do graphic design. And the economy sucks - who isn't looking for some extra cash? Contact a recording studio for CD burning referrals Offer a percentage of profit to anyone who can help you instead of paying them up front. Post an ad on craigslist in the "services wanted" section of NYC (yes, New York City) - I generally get 40-50 responses and they'll compete on price. Create an e-mail list of buyers. Send them tons of free, no obligation, meaty good stuff all the time. Sell them something every once in a while. They'll love you, you'll get backend sales, and you won't come off like a guru (I've unsubscribed from ALL of them, as a matter of fact). If you can't write, I know about 20 writers including myself that would be ecstatic to write for a percentage of profit instead of a heavy upfront fee if you could prove you were a good marketer. A graphic designer might be willing to work on the same basis. I suggested you post in the NYC section because it's a digital world... most of my responses weren't even from New York State. Something about that city that makes people think they'll do better in business. Good luck!
ThoughtPunk, I've noticed that niche communities (like PokerSpace for poker, BlackPlanet for African-Americans, etc), are becoming increasingly popular. I guess it depends on who you ask. Facebook is doing quite well for itself.
Im just trying to create an alternative to ebay, not compete with ebay, besides im not charging to use the site but i am going to put ads up later, and yes ebay did ban the auctioning of digital/downloadable products learn your facts and read their TOS. its not nonsense, learn your grammar.
The site has been online for just 2 days and i already got 4 signups and 1 member is selling her own copyright ebook! I have an email campaign starting on monday and i think the site is a good resource considering ebays ban and the fact that its free!
It's spelled "nonsense" by the way! I have the top placement in Google for the search term downloadable products auction! If you dont like it thats fine... don't use it but don't diss it just because its new and only has a few members, every site starts with no members!
I beleive it was to cap all the people that were selling ebooks for like 1c just to increase there feedback score. Yes they did stop digital sales but not via classified but that costs more money.
Well, perhaps you can think of it as getting rid of tons of junk, and making ebooks that exist for sale elsewhere online more noticeable. Many ebay sellers also have their own website for additional selling. You might be able to offer the ebook for sale from your existing website (make it a downloadable with a PayPal "Buy Now" button). If you don't have a website already, consider getting one to promote your business, your ebook, and everything else you sell. Continue selling non-ebook items at eBay as well. Sell the ebook through one of the many sites that exist just for that purpose - to let anyone upload a file to sell. It's not your own site, it's a download marketplace (the marketplace will typically take a cut from each sale). Lots of solutions, just check around! Dan
USE payloadz for digital sales. I wouldnt trust ebay as a seller. It is so easy to be scammed. Even with proper shipping receipt. Paypal + ebay sucks big time. I would rather pay a premium for a service to list my item for sale rather than just go with ebay