Que EBay auction templates starter kit jun 2006 ISBN 0789735636

eBayAuctionTemplatesStarterKit
ByMichaelMiller
...............................................
Publisher:Que
PubDate:May22,2006
PrintISBN-10:0-7897-3563-6
PrintISBN-13:978-0-7897-3563-8
Pages:336

TableofContents|Index

Lookingfor"it"?ThatsomethingdifferentthatwillincreaseyoureBayauctionsalerates
andsellingprices?Oneofthemosteffectivewaystogeneratemoresalesathighpricepointsistocreateamoreattractive,attention-gettingauctionlisting.Theeasiestwayto
dothisisthroughtheuseoftemplatesthatyoucanquicklypopulatewithminimaleffort
andwillmaintainastyleconsistencyacrossallofyourauctions.

eBayAuctionTemplatesStarterKitisacombinationbook/CDdesignedtohelpalllevelsof
eBaysellerscreatebetter-lookingeBayauctionlistingsasquicklyandeasilyaspossible.
ThetextdescribeshowtouseHTMLtocreatesophisticatedauctiontemplates;theCD
includesdozensofpre-designedtemplatesthatcanbeusedas-is.Ifyou'realittlemore
ambitious,you'llalsolearnhowtocreategreat-lookingauctionlistingsusingHTML.


eBayAuctionTemplatesStarterKit
ByMichaelMiller
...............................................
Publisher:Que
PubDate:May22,2006
PrintISBN-10:0-7897-3563-6
PrintISBN-13:978-0-7897-3563-8
Pages:336

TableofContents|Index

Copyright
AbouttheAuthor
Acknowledgments
WeWanttoHearfromYou!
ReaderServices
Introduction
PartI:CreatingMoreEffectiveAuctionListings
Chapter1.TheGood,theBad,andtheUgly:Do'sandDon'tsforEffective
AuctionListings
EssentialElementsofanEffectiveeBayAuctionListing
EmployingGoodListingDesign
TenWaystoCreateaMoreEffectiveAuctionListing
TenThingsNottoDoinYourAuctionListings
DifferentWaystoCreateBetter-LookingeBayListings
PartII:UsingPredesignedAuctionTemplates
Chapter2.UsingStandardTextFormattingandeBay'sListingDesigner
FormattingaNormalAuctionListingwiththeTextEditor

EnhancingYourListingwithListingDesigner
UsingListingDesignerThemesineBayTurboLister
UseOtherProgramstoCreateFancyeBayListings
Chapter3.UsingAuctionListingServicesandSoftware
UsingAuctionListingServices
UsingAuctionListingSoftware
AnotherListingCreationOption:Third-PartyAuctionTemplates

Chapter4.UsingThird-PartyAuctionTemplates
HowtoUseAuctionTemplates

UsingCreate-Your-OwnTemplateWebsites
UsingDownloadableAuctionTemplates
UsingtheAuctionTemplatesontheCD
PartIII:CreatingYourOwnAuctionTemplates
Chapter5.LearningHowtoCodewithHTML
UnderstandingBasicHTML
WorkingwithHTMLTables
HTMLCodesYouCan'tUseinYoureBayListings
ApplyingAdvancedFormattingwithCascadingStyleSheets
HowtoCreateYourHTMLCode
TestingYourHTMLCode
Chapter6.CreatingText-BasedHTMLAuctionTemplates
CreatingSimpleTextDescriptions
WorkingwithTitlesandSubtitles
WorkingwithDifferentTypeFacesandSizes
WorkingwithDifferentTextColors
WorkingwithWidthsandMargins
Chapter7.AddingPicturestoYourAuctionTemplates
UsingPicturesinYourAuctionListings
AddingImagesWithinYourItemDescription
AddingBorderstoYourPhotos
ApplyingSpecialPictureEffects
ProtectingYourPicturesfromImageTheft
Chapter8.WorkingwithTables,Borders,andBackgrounds
CreatingListingswithMultipleSections
CreatingMultiple-ColumnListings
ArrangingImagesonthePage
AddingColorBorders
AddingColorBackgrounds
AddingImageBorders,Backgrounds,andBanners

Chapter9.AddingOtherPageElementsandSpecialEffects
AddingWebPageandEmailLinks
AddingSpecialElements
Cross-PromotingYourOtherAuctions
AddingAudioandVideotoYourListing
Chapter10.PuttingItAllTogether:TenReady-to-UseAuctionTemplates
TenSophisticatedAuctionTemplates

WheretoGofromHere
Appendixes
AppendixA.HTMLforAboutMeandeBayStoresPages
HTMLforYourAboutMePage
HTMLforYoureBayStoresPages
AppendixB.ContentsoftheeBayAuctionTemplatesStarterKitCD
SoftwarePrograms
Third-PartyAuctionTemplates
TemplatesandSpecialEffectsfromThisBook
There'sMoreintheReadmeFile
Index


Copyright
eBayAuctionTemplatesStarterKit
Copyright©2006byQuePublishing
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookshallbereproduced,
storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmittedbyanymeans,
electronic,mechanical,photocopying,recording,orotherwise,
withoutwrittenpermissionfromthepublisher.Nopatent
liabilityisassumedwithrespecttotheuseoftheinformation
containedherein.Althougheveryprecautionhasbeentakenin
thepreparationofthisbook,thepublisherandauthorassume
noresponsibilityforerrorsoromissions.Norisanyliability
assumedfordamagesresultingfromtheuseoftheinformation
containedherein.
LibraryofCongressCatalogCardNumber:2006920310
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
FirstPrinting:June2006

090807064321

Trademarks
Alltermsmentionedinthisbookthatareknowntobe
trademarksorservicemarkshavebeenappropriately
capitalized.QuePublishingcannotattesttotheaccuracyofthis
information.Useofaterminthisbookshouldnotberegarded
asaffectingthevalidityofanytrademarkorservicemark.
eBayisaregisteredtrademarkofeBay,Inc.


WarningandDisclaimer
Everyefforthasbeenmadetomakethisbookascompleteand
asaccurateaspossible,butnowarrantyorfitnessisimplied.
Theinformationprovidedisonan"asis"basis.Theauthorand
thepublishershallhaveneitherliabilitynorresponsibilitytoany
personorentitywithrespecttoanylossordamagesarising
fromtheinformationcontainedinthisbookorfromtheuseof
theCDorprogramsaccompanyingit.

BulkSales
QuePublishingoffersexcellentdiscountsonthisbookwhen
orderedinquantityforbulkpurchasesorspecialsales.For
moreinformation,pleasecontact
U.S.CorporateandGovernmentSales
1-800-382-3419

ForsalesoutsideoftheUnitedStates,pleasecontact
InternationalSales

AssociatePublisherGregWiegand
AcquisitionsEditorMichelleNewcomb
SeniorDevelopmentEditorRickKughen
ManagingEditorCharlotteClapp
ProjectEditorDanKnott
IndexerChrisBarrick
ProofreaderKathyBidwell
TechnicalEditorMichelleBrantner


PublishingCoordinatorSharryLeeGregory
MultimediaDeveloperDanScherf
BookDesignerAnnJones
PageLayoutNonieRatcliff

Dedication
ToSherry.Ofcourse.




AbouttheAuthor
MichaelMillerisatopeBaysellerandasuccessfulandprolific
author.Hehasareputationforpractical,real-worldadviceand
anunerringempathyfortheneedsofhisreaders.
Mr.Millerhaswrittenmorethan75nonfictionbookssince1989,
forQueandothermajorpublishers.HisbooksforQueinclude
EasyeBay,AbsoluteBeginner'sGuidetoeBay,MakingaLiving
withYoureBayBusiness,andTricksoftheeBayMasters.Heis
knownforhiscasual,easy-to-readwritingstyleandhisability

toexplainawidevarietyofcomplextopicstoaneveryday
audience.
YoucanemailMr.MillerdirectlyatHiswebsiteislocatedat
www.molehillgroup.com,andhiseBayuserIDis
trapperjohn2000.




Acknowledgments
ThankstotheusualsuspectsatQue,includingbutnotlimited
toGregWiegand,MichelleNewcomb,andRickKughen.
Additionalthanksgotothebook'stechnicaleditor,Michelle
Brantner,whoverifiedthetechnicalaccuracyofallthatlies
within.ThanksaswelltoDanScherfforwranglingallthe
softwareandtemplatesontheaccompanyingCD,andtoallthe
companiesandindividualswhokindlygrantedpermissionforus
toincludetheirproducts.


WeWanttoHearfromYou!
Asthereaderofthisbook,youareourmostimportantcritic
andcommentator.Wevalueyouropinionandwanttoknow
whatwe'redoingright,whatwecoulddobetter,whatareas
you'dliketoseeuspublishin,andanyotherwordsofwisdom
you'rewillingtopassourway.
AsanassociatepublisherforQuePublishing,Iwelcomeyour
comments.Youcanemailorwritemedirectlytoletmeknow
whatyoudidordidn'tlikeaboutthisbook[md]aswellaswhat
wecandotomakeourbooksbetter.

PleasenotethatIcannothelpyouwithtechnicalproblems
relatedtothetopicofthisbook.WedohaveaUserServices
group,however,whereIwillforwardspecifictechnical
questionsrelatedtothebook.
Whenyouwrite,pleasebesuretoincludethisbook'stitleand
authoraswellasyourname,emailaddress,andphonenumber.
Iwillcarefullyreviewyourcommentsandsharethemwiththe
authorandeditorswhoworkedonthebook.

Email:



Mail:

GregWiegand
AssociatePublisher
QuePublishing
800East96thStreet
Indianapolis,IN46240USA





ReaderServices
Visitourwebsiteandregisterthisbookat
www.quepublishing.com/registerforconvenientaccesstoany
updates,downloads,orerratathatmightbeavailableforthis
book.

Introduction
Haveyoueverwonderedhowsomesellerscreatethose
colorful,well-designed,professional-lookingauctionlistings?
Especiallywhenyourstandard-issueeBaylistingslookso...well,
soboring?
It'sallaboutauctiontemplates.Atemplateisabuildingblock
youcanuseforallyourauctionlistings.Agoodtemplate
includesacombinationoffonts,colors,pictures,andpage
layoutthatdoesagoodjobofpresentingtheitemsyou're
sellinginavisuallyinterestingfashion.Onceyouhavea
templateyoulike,youcanapplyittoanyneweBayauctionby
insertingspecificiteminformationandphotos.Youcanusethe
sametemplateforallyourlistings,orusedifferenttemplates
fordifferenttypesofproductsordifferentseasonsoftheyear.
Therearemanydifferentwaystoobtaingreat-lookingauction
templates.YoucanuseeBay'sownListingDesignerfeature;
youcanusethird-partywebsitestocreateyourowntemplates
online;youcandownloadpre-designedauctiontemplatesfrom
avarietyofdifferentwebsites;oryoucancreateyourown
customtemplatesusingHTMLcode.
Ifanyoftheabovesoundstoocomplicated,thenyou'veturned
totherightplace.eBayAuctionTemplatesStarterKitisyour
guidetoallthedifferenttypesofeBayauctiontemplatesfrom
easy-to-usepre-designedtemplatestothekindsofHTML-based
templatesyoucreateonyourown.Whicheverwayyouwantto
go,thisbookwillhelpyougetthere.

What'sinThisBook
Thisbookconsistsof10chaptersand2appendixes,organized
into4majorsections:


We'llstartoutinPartI,"CreatingMoreEffectiveAuction
Listings,"byexaminingsomedesignguidelinesthatshould
applytoalleBayauctionlistings.
Then,inPartII,"UsingPredesignedAuctionTemplates,"
we'lltakealookatvarioustypesoftemplate-creation
services,aswellasavarietyofpredesigneddownloadable
templates.
InPartIII,"CreatingYourOwnAuctionTemplates,"we'll
workthroughacrashcourseinHTMLcoding,completewith
ready-to-usecodeyoucanuseforyourowneBaytemplates
andspecialeffects.
Finally,thebook'stwoappendixesdetailspecialHTMLcode
youcanuseinyourAboutMeandeBayStorespages,as
wellasdescribethecontentsoftheCDthataccompanies
thisbook.
Andthegoodthingis,whatyoureadinthisbookis
supplementedbythematerialsontheaccompanyingCD-ROM.
TheCDincludesready-to-useHTMLcodeforallthetemplates
andspecialeffectspresentedinthisbook,aswellashundreds
ofotherpredesignedauctiontemplatesfromavarietyofthird
parties.There'sevenaselectionofHTMLandphotoediting
softwareyoucanusetohelpcreateyourownauction
templates.Likethetitlesays,thistrulyisa"starterkit"for
creatingalldifferenttypesofeBayauctiontemplates!

WhoCanUseThisBook
eBayAuctionTemplatesStarterKitcanbeusedbyanylevelof
eBayseller.Ifyouwantaneasysolution,readthefirsttwo
sectionsofthebookandusetheready-to-usetemplates
includedontheaccompanyingCD.Ifyou'reabitmore


adventurous,readthethirdsectionandlearnhowtocreate
yourownauctiontemplatesusingsimpleHTMLcode.Thisisa
loteasierthanitsounds,thankstotheready-to-runHTMLcode
includedontheaccompanyingCD.Youdon'thavetobean
experiencedHTMLprogrammertogetstartedalthoughthereare
plentyoftipsandtricksthatevenveteranHTMLcoderswillfind
useful.There'ssomethingforeveryone!

HowtoUseThisBook
Ihopethatthisbookiseasyenoughtoreadthatyoudon't
needinstructions.Thatsaid,thereareafewelementsthatbear
explaining.
First,thereareseveralspecialelementsinthisbook,presented
inwhatweinthepublishingbusinesscall"marginnotes."There
aredifferenttypesofmarginnotesfordifferenttypesof
information,asyouseehere.

Note
Thisisanotethatpresentsinformationofinterest,
evenifitisn'twhollyrelevanttothediscussionin
themaintext.

Tip
Thisisatipthatmightproveusefulforwhateverit
isyou'reintheprocessofdoing.


Caution
Thisisacautionthatsomethingyoumight
accidentallydomighthaveundesirableresults.

You'llalsofindseveraliconsscatteredthroughoutthemargins
ofthetext.Theseiconsalertyoutospecialinformation,as
follows:
Thisicontellsyouthatthetemplate,specialeffect,orsoftware
programunderdiscussioncanbefoundontheCD-ROMthat
accompaniesthisbook.

Thisicontellsyouthattheprogramortemplateunder
discussionisavailablefreeofcharge.

Thisicontellsyouthattheprogramortemplateunder
discussioncostsmoneytouse.


Therearealsolotsofwebpageaddressesinthebook,likethis
one:www.molehillgroup.com.Whenyouseeoneofthese
addresses(alsoknownasaURL),youcangotothatwebpage
byenteringtheURLintotheaddressboxinyourwebbrowser.
I'vemadeeveryefforttoensuretheaccuracyoftheweb
addressespresentedhere,butgiventheever-changingnature
oftheweb,don'tbesurprisedifyourunacrossanaddressor

twothat'schanged.Iapologizeinadvance.
Theotherthingyou'llfindalotofinthisbookisHTMLcode.A
snippetofcodemightlooklikethis:

Thisisalineoftext.

<imgsrc="URL">

Youshouldbeabletoenterthiscode,exactlyaswritten,into
eBay'sHTMLeditorontheDescribeYourItemform(when
you'recreatinganewauctionlisting).Youcanalsoenterthis
codeintoanytexteditororHTMLeditorprogram,forfurther
editing.
Whenpartofthecodeisitalic(suchastheURLintheprevious
example),thismeansthatyouneedtoreplacetheitalicized
codewithyourownindividualinformation.Intheprevious
example,youwouldreplaceURLwiththefullURLandfilename
ofanimagefileyouwanttoincludeinyourauctiontemplate.
Andifyoudon'twanttoenterallthecodebyhand,theHTML
codeforallthetemplatesandspecialeffectsincludedinthis
bookcanbefoundontheaccompanyingCD-ROM.See
AppendixB,"ContentsoftheeBayAuctionTemplatesStarter
KitCD,"formoreinformationonhowtousethecontentsofthe
CD.


Ready,GetSet,Go!
Withallthesepreliminariesoutoftheway,it'snowtimetoget
started.WhileIrecommendreadingthebookinconsecutive
order,feelfreetoskiparound,especiallyifyou'reamore

experiencedseller.Anddefinitelyfeelfreetovisitmywebsiteat
www.molehillgroup.com,formoreinformationonthisbookand
otherbooksI'vewritten.You'llevenfindanerratapageforthis
book,intheinevitableeventthatanerrorortwocreepsinto
thistext.(Hey,nobody'sperfect!)
Sogetreadytoturnthepageandlearnmoreaboutcreating
better-lookingeBaylistingswithauctiontemplates.Notonlywill
yourauctionlistingslookbetter,they'llalsobemore
effectivewhichmeanssellingmoreitemsathigherprices.
What'snottolike?


PartI:CreatingMoreEffectiveAuctionListings


1TheGood,theBad,andtheUgly:Do'sandDon'tsfor
EffectiveAuctionListings


Chapter1.TheGood,theBad,andthe
Ugly:Do'sandDon'tsforEffective
AuctionListings
Thisbookisallaboutcreatingbetter-lookingeBayauction
listings.Looksareimportant,becausethebetter-lookingyour
listings,themoreeffectivethey'llbeyou'llattractmorepotential
buyersandgetthemtobidmoreaggressively.It'snotthatyou
can'tsellitemswithplain-lookinglistings,it'sthatyou'llhave
betterluckifyourlistingslookmoreattractiveandmore
professional.
Haveyoueverbeenonlineshoppingandvisitedanewwebsite

thatlookedgarishandunprofessional?Howdidyoufeelabout
purchasingsomethingfromthatsite?Nottooconfident,Ibet.
Andhaveyoueverbeenonlineshoppingandvisitedanew
websitethatwaswell-designedandveryprofessional-looking?
Howdidyoufeelaboutpurchasingsomethingfromthatsite?
Fairlyconfident,I'dwager.
Yousee,awell-designedwebsiteorwebpagetellsyou
something,atleastonanunconsciouslevel,abouttheperson
orstoredoingtheselling.Acheap-lookingsitemakesyou
wonderaboutthereliabilityofthemerchant.Aprofessionally
designed,easy-to-navigatesitemakesyoumoreconfident
aboutplacingyourorder.Maybebothmerchantsareequally
solid,buttheonethatlooksmoresolidwillgetyourorder,all
otherthingsbeingequal.
It'sthesamethingintheworldofeBayauctions.Awelldesigned,visuallyappealingauctionlistingnotonlyattracts
morebuyers,itmakesthemfeelmoreconfidentaboutbuying
fromyou.Apoorlydesignedlistingwillturnoffsomepotential


buyers.Sinceyouneverwanttoturnawayanypotential
business,youwantyourlistingstodoaseffectiveasalesjobas
possible.
Allofwhichmeansthatyouneedtodesignthelookofyour
listingswitheverybitasmuchcareasyouchoosetheproducts
thatyousell.Thebetterthejobyoudo,themoresuccessful
auctionsyou'llhave.

EssentialElementsofanEffectiveeBayAuction
Listing
Itdoesn'tmatterifyou'reselling$10trinketsor$1,000
antiques,aneffectiveeBayauctionlistingcontainsthesame
essentialelements.Youmustincorporatetheseelementsin
yourlistings,oryourisklosingpotentialbuyers.
Whataretheseelements?Let'stakeaquicklookgoingpretty
muchfromtoptobottominyourlistings.

Title
Everyauctionlistingstartswithatitle.Actually,twotitlesthe
official55-charactertitlethateBayusestoindexyourauction
(andisincludedatthetopofthelistingpage),andthetitlethat
youplaceabovethetextdescriptioninthebodyofyourauction
listing.Thesetwotitlescanbethesame,althoughtheydon't
havetobe.That'sbecausethetitleyouincludewithinthebody
ofyourlistingdoesn'thaveacharacterlimit;itcanbeaslong
anddescriptiveasyouwantittobe.
Sinceyouwantthetitletostandoutfromthebodyofyour
description,youprobablywanttoformatitsomewhat
differently.Thatmeansusingalargertypesize,boldfacetype,
adifferenttypeface,oradifferentcolor.(Figure1.1showsa
typicaltitle,usinglarger,boldfacetype.)

Figure1.1.Atypicallistingtitlethetypeislarger
andbolderthantherestofthelisting.

[Viewfullsizeimage]

Thekeythingistotreatthetitleasyouwouldtheheadlineina
newspaper.Itneedstoattracttheattentionofpotentialbuyers,
andincludeallthekeywordsthattouchthebuyers'hotbuttons.
Thatsaid,thetitlewhiletheoreticallyofunlimited
lengthshouldn'tbetoolong.There'snoneedtolimityourselfto
just55characters,butyoushouldn'tletthetitlestretchmore
thantwolines.Titlesareforgrazing,notforprolongedreading.
Ifthetitlecan'tbeabsorbedinasingleglance,it'stoolong.

Tip
Includingallessentialkeywordsisevenmore
importantineBay'sofficiallistingtitle.That's
becausemostbuyersuseeBay'ssearchfunctionto
finditemstobuy,sothetitlehastoincludethe
keywordsthatthey'relikelytosearchfor.

Ifyouneedtogotoathird(orfourth)lineoftype,consider
breakingthetitleintoatitleandasubtitle,withthesubtitlein
slightlysmaller,perhapsdifferent-coloredtype.(Figure1.2
showsalistingwithbothtitleandsubtitle;notethetypesize
difference.)

Figure1.2.Alistingwithbothatitleanda
subtitle;thesubtitleisslightlysmallerthanthe


maintitle.

[Viewfullsizeimage]

GeneralDescription
Belowthetitle,wegettowhatIliketothinkofasthe
introductiontoyourlistingthefirstparagraphofyouritem
listing.Thisfirstparagraphservesastheintroductiontothe
detaileditemdescription.

Note
Manylaypeopleunknowinglymisspellthe
newspaper'sledeaslead(bothpronouncedas
"leed").Themisspellingmakessensesincethelede
isthe"leadparagraph"ofthestory,butit'sstill
incorrect.Interestingly,thewordledewasoriginally
spelledthiswaytopreventconfusionwiththemetal
lead(pronounced"led"),whichwasusedtomake
theindividuallettersintheoldtypesettingdays,and
withthesimilarlypronouncedleadthatreferstothe
spacingoflinesinprintedtext.Toomanyleadsled
tothewordlede!


NotethatItreatthefirstparagraphseparatefromall
subsequentparagraphs.That'sbecausemanypeopleonlyread
sofarbeforetheyloseinterest.Youseethisintheconstruction
ofnewspaperarticles,wherethemaintopicisoverviewedinthe
initialparagraph.Newspaperpeoplecallthisfirstparagraphthe
lede,anditalwayscontainsthemostimportantinformation
aboutthestorythatfollows.Ifthereaderreadsnothingbut
thatfirstparagraph,hegetsageneraloverviewofwhatthe
storyisabout.It'sobviouslynotasdetailedastherestofthe
story,butitdoesthejobofkeepingthereaderinformedata

glance.
Forourpurposes,theoverviewparagraphneedstotellthe
potentialbuyerjustenoughabouttheitemyou'resellingto
keephimorherreading.Thisparagraphshouldberelatively
short(nomorethan3to4sentences),anduseshort
sentences.Itshouldtelltheequivalentofthenewspaperman's
"who,what,why,when,andwhere"thebasicsofwhatyou're
selling,andperhapswhy.Notalotofdetail,justthegistofthe
story.
Design-wise,thisoverviewparagraphcanbeinthesamefont
andtypefaceastherestofthedescription,oryoucanusea
slightlylargertypeface,asshowninFigure1.3.Theadvantage
ofusingslightlylargertypeistomaketheinitialparagraph
easiertoread.Ifyougothisroute,don'tgomorethan2points
larger.Forexample,ifthemaindescriptiontextisin12-point
type,maketheinitialparagraph14point.

Figure1.3.Theoverviewparagraphoftheitem
description,formatted2pointslargerthanthe
bodytext.