I think you’ll really like this list I found

Posted by in Creative Ideas | 21 comments

I came across a website recently that lists out the top selling accounts (by eBay ID) on eBay.

The site is: www.TopSellerListLive.Com

It’s an interesting list because you can learn a lot about what works well on eBay just by visiting some of the listed sellers to learn how they do what they do on eBay.

To look up any of the sellers listed use this link for the eBay seller look up page.

One of the most interesting things I immediately saw on the list at TopSellerListLive.com is the number of sellers that are using a domain name as their eBay account name. For example, on the day I checked the list someone with the eBay ID “justdeals.com” is listed as one of the top accounts on eBay. I’ll bet that website gets a ton of traffic from all that targeted eBay exposure!

When you look at the list of sellers and visit the listed accounts found at TopSellerListLive.com what observations and lessons do you learn? Take five minutes and explore a little…and share your thoughts!

Use the comments button below to submit your observation or question. I have a prize for the most insightful observation.

UPDATE: CONTEST WINNER

You guys came up with some great observations. Thanks for sharing them with us! Comment #10 by Melissa wins the prize though. She DIDN’T win because it was the longest comment or because it spoke very highly of my books and newsletter (although I do appreciate that). She won because she presented some great ideas that ANYONE can use to profit on eBay. Nice job Melissa! Her prize? $40 paypal cash!

  • Chris Hunter

    Jim,

    It's my understanding that you can no longer have a domain name as your eBay ID any more. Those that still have one had it grandfathered in. I'd love to do it but I'll have to stick to your suggestions in your book.

    [[reply from Jim]] Ebay does have a double standard there. If you've had your name for a long time they let it slide, but if you come in with a brand new account and try to do it they'll ask you to change it. There are still many strategies that eBay allows though that can get traffic to your site. EBay just doesn't want to be used as only a sign post pointing to other websites.  One strategy is to put your email address in all of your auctions and make the domain name of your website logically connected to the products you sell. (i.e. service@SamsCatSupplies.com)

  • Nick

    I think they need a faster server, Jim! I've got a reasonably fast broadband connection and I have just visited the site, along with about 500 others according to the site's stats, and it takes several minutes to load a page! But if I could browse the site faster, it looks promising. I am amazed that the site doesn't have any copyright notices or contact info. If I were the developers, I would make the site a membership site (assuming, of course, that the info has been obtained from eBay legally) before someone else grabs the data and profits from their hard work!

    [[reply from Jim]]: I think we swamped the server…it seems to have smoothed out now though.  This website is a great example of a way to monetize eBay without selling on eBay. They have Google adsense on the page, but there has to be other ways they could cash in on this service…

  • Harvey Levine

    Jim, Can not open this link.

    [[reply from Jim]]: We burried their server in traffic when we told you about this link. It's back up now.

  • http://www.LDSBookLovers.com Bret

    Jim,

    I was emailed about 6 months ago by ebay and told I had 30 days to remove the _com from my ebay username or my account would be changed to a new, randomly generated, username. I used to use ldsbooklovers_com , but their email stated it was a violation of terms. I was very upset, but made the change. Have any other readers gotten this email?

  • http://noneyet BJ

    Thanks, Jim, this info is almost as good as your book, Silent Sales Machine. Now that my thinking is "tuned up", the minute I clicked on this link and scrolled through the info given, I saw TWO places I could contribute and make a profit; however, prize or no prize, I am not posting them here! thanks for the book, the updates, and especially the newsletter!  (eBay is my only "website" right now!)

    [[reply from Jim]]: Can't blame you for keeping a great idea to yourself! I edited your eBay ID out of your comment so that you don't pick up any "stalkers" waiting to copy your beautiful idea!  Glad you picked up some ideas from that site!

  • Mike

    Hey Jim!

    Just got done looking over the TopSellerListLive.com site. I went through the Top 1000 sellers list from top to bottom. Saw a lot of familiar id's there. There are about 23 sellers out of 1000 on the list that use the everything else category, which is what must be used when selling digital information products. Only 1 out of the 23 are selling info products.

    I quess my observation would be that at the Top end of the totem pole, there are very FEW people (1) selling digital information products. At the bottom there are many, trying to all sell the same old tired products (ebooks, reports, old articles. Then in the middle, with 10K to 50K feedbacks, are the people who are IN THE ZONE. Fresh products, interesting articles and reports, and a constant flow of ideas for new products.

    I believe digital information is by far, the most profitable and easiest item to sell online, especially when you have a Jim Cockrum to show you how to do it in a way that you probably would never have thought of. Enough ramblin. Thanks Jim, for all the tips and advise. Keep up the Great work you do, and keep those little "how to" videos comin!!

  • http://www.Auction-Misspellings.com/ JTS

    Say, uh, anyone know why the eBay seller JayAndMarie isn't listed there? They currently have 308428 feedback and at one point a few years ago were the top seller on eBay with their OneCentCDs store selling used CDs.

    [[reply from Jim]]: found a flaw did you…? Are they still in biz?

  • http://www.Auction-Misspellings.com/ www.Auction-Misspell

    All of those sellers have an eBay Store – the homepage of which replaces their About Me page. Perhaps this list might be a good place to start when seeking JV partners, as per suggestions in Jim's book SilentSalesMachine.com.

  • http://just1month.comworkinprogress June Young

    I found the site a litle slow to load but I am sure this will improve in time. They do say that they are 'developing'.

    The main thing I have learned from this is not to focus exclusively on one category! (The results are feedback based)

    For instance; on researching the top seller in the category that is my main interest – health & beauty – I found that he is also selling in Sporting Goods, Business, Home & Garden, Clothing, Cell Phones.

    In other words he seems to be offering a huge spread of items and still managing to become the top health & beauty seller.

    If this is his chosen niche market he is obviously quite happy to sell anything else he can get his hands on to keep his feedback figures rising.

    As well as these details they give a very useful graph so that you can see his rise in feedback over a period of time

    I shall now go on ebay and look at the items he is selling in my area and how his sales pages are set out, what is his selling feature and look at his ME page.

    [[reply from Jim]]: If you are considering selling in multiple categories you are going to love the next newseltter. I'm doing an interview with the CEO of a large wholesalerer that sells pallets of customer returns. Some of the best pallets are "mixed lots" of electronics, clothing, tools etc. Look for it…

  • http://www.flea-market-vendor-resources.com Melissa

    I just wanted to share my observations just reviewing the top 10 sellers. All of these sellers had an about me page. Most sellers listed thier website address within the copy of thier about me page, with some even linking directly to their website. However, all of the websites listed were sales sites and not information sites.

    In my opinion some of these sellers could benefit by listing resources or some other form of content for their auction visitors. These sellers could benefit greatly by reading Jim's SSM book and implementing some of the techniques within the ebook.

    Some of the sellers offered newsletter subscribtions but only offered it on their website. I didn't sign up for any of these so I don't know what they offer their subscribers within their newsletter.

    There are many lessons to learn from these sellers and plenty of room for adjustments within thier listings and ebay marketing. Overall, I think you can learn a great deal from reviewing some of these sellers. However, I didn't find one seller that was using all of the lessons that Jim teaches in his SSM. ebook. The sellers within that list did prove that the techniques and tips that Jim offer in his ebook do work. So by combining the lessons you learn from the top sellers and the information within Jim's SSM ebook, I think you will have a full arsenal of marketing tactics to use within your ebay marketing.

    For those fellow SSM readers that have time to implement the JV idea, here are some suggestions. Go through the top sellers list and make a note of some of the sellers that sell products that you know alot about. Reread through SSM, to refresh your memory of the material. As you reread the ebook, make notes of some of the ideas that you can use to JV with the top sellers from your list. (There is some specific information regarding JV's within the ebook, so make sure to read those sections). Once you have read through the ebook and have some ideas, check out your list of sellers and see what you can add to or improve within each seller's (from your list) ebay marketing.

    You could JV with these sellers by offering a related newsletter, resources and tips about the products they sell (or complimentary products), create an info product about their product, etc. to their customers/visitors. Maybe you could approach them about paying a monthly fee to list your related content website, newsletter, ebook, etc. on their about me page. (I'm not sure if this is legal or not, this is just an idea. If you choose to use it, please do your own research on the legalities of this.) You would want to track the traffic/response you get from this and see if it is worth the investment and how much you would be willing to pay.

    There are numerous ways that you could JV with these sellers. The sellers on this list have a very high feedback rating and probably sell alot of merchandise and get alot of traffic. With a little brainstorming and creativity you could create a few win-win situations for yourself and these top sellers. Of course make sure that it adds value to their customers as well by saving them time, money, or both. So you would want to create a win-win-win situation.

    I hope these observations and suggestions help my fellow SSM readers.

    By the way, thanks for the link to this website Jim! As always, I can count on you to provide me with a useful resource. Thank you again!

  • Gloria

    Wait a minute..Did I read what I think I read? There are only (just over) 203,000 sellers??? Honestly I couldn't get past that one fact. Is this right Jim? If yes, then my overall observation would be that, out of the millions of visitors each day to eBay, only 203,000+ are reaping the lion's share of what is possible as a seller? Look out below, I'm jumping in…. Gloria

  • Francis Mckee

    Jim, I found that only very few people here sell digital products. That leave the market wide open. hmmm I just got done developing one to put on ebay.

  • Rachel

    I know that last year JayandMarie were still in business because I had an email exchange with Marie regarding sourcing for CDs and DVD's.

    I found it interesting that 5 out of the top 10 sell cameras and it appears that most of the top sellers are importing from China cheaply in order to be able to sell and profit at that level. Although other categories of items are integrated, it looks to me like electronics is the name of the game and most in demand. Three of the top ten had the word "deal" in their IDs and one had "bargain". These ID's were strategically chosen based on the marketing psychology of having the bidders perceive themselves as buying for the best price, thus empowering the buyers.

    I have not observed the auction listings yet, but certainly will at my first opportunity.

    Rachel

  • http://siscolee.com Lee

    Jim,

    As already mentioned, all of the top sellers use their about me page (in different ways) to promote their business. I particularly liked the seller who gave a freebie lesson on how to set up your about me page. This in turn got me thinking – why not have in your auction a special surprise gift for visiting the about me psge? Then when the visitor clicks on about me, he or she can choose one category (only one) of their choice. Example:

    1-Best Fitness & Exercise Program In The World, Great For All Ages.

    2-How To Generate Your Own Electrical Power.

    3-What Is The Real Fountain Of Youth?

    4-Natural Cures For All Types Of Cancer.

    5-How To Achieve Better Vision Naturally.

    6-How To Lower Your Property Taxes.

    7-How To Avoid Identity Theft

    etc.

    By allowing only a choice of one report, the visitor may return to your about me page for a crack at another report. If given good information, that should greatly increase your chances of a repeat customer for the items you sell.

    Lee

  • http://www.financialbreakthrough102.com Increase Sales

    Hey Jim this is the first post I've made to your blog. Anyways I just wanted to say thanks for all of the great info you pass on.

    Life is busy and there are many task to be done. So I only can pay attention to certain newsletter and info. and your newletter is one of the few I make sure I don't miss. Your my expert for ebay.

    Thanks for the list. It was a interesting and eye opening.

    Have a great day

    Kenneth Edwards

  • http://siscolee.com Lee

    Jim,

    After a deeper review of the top 25 sites, I see that the high volume guys are using templates, banners, good photos, in most cases good sales information, and you can certainly see the difference in their auction layout over the average eBayer or newbie.

    Having said that, I also believe that a guy like Marlon Sanders or you would be able to find a lot of little things they're doing wrong, or could improve upon. That could lead into a guru specializing with a service to eBayers of designing auction pages for them or editing their descriptions (for a fee of course).

    I'm sure that all of the high volume sellers have put systems in place to move out auctions that are dozens or hundreds per day.

    But the biggest weakness I see is that their follow up customer service is not as good as it should be. Looking at a lot of negative feedbacks, a theme that runs through them is that when a problem occurs (late shipment, faulty merchandise, item received not as described, etc.) they stumble in this area.

    Buyers saying the seller didn't answer their question, didn't give a prompt replacement or refund, etc. They're too busy selling stuff.

    If a volume seller has made 10,000 transactions and gets 200 negatives for a 98% rating, he or she now has 200 people who would never buy from them again. And there are more dissatisfied customers who were kind and just left a neutral rating. Some of the big guys don't even respond to a negative rating – again they're too busy selling.

    I would guess that your featured guy Rob in North Carolina is not part of that "keep slinging it out to them" crowd.

    Lee

    And many of them just ignore the negative feedback and keep pumping out their products.

  • http://resellforprofit.waynester.net Wayne Larimore

    There are several sellers on this list that I actively buy from. I zero in on the ones that start auctions at 99 cents and are liquidation companies. I turn around and resell these at HUGE profits upto 500%. I have found that these sellers do a poor job at presenting their items – so I scoop them up and apply some of my own personable touches to my auctions. I have started using Jims SilentSalesMachine techniques to offer my own info products on how I am RESELLING Liquidated Items FOR PROFIT. Of course, I personalize it depending upon my ebay user account theme. For instance, I have one userid that just sells gadgets – so I speak to the gadgeteers on my auctions and about me page. 

    Keep up the good work in motivating us to excel in our online ventures. I am the person who emailed you a couple of months ago about having 5 kids and nearly debt-free (this coming March 2007). I took your advice and am in the process of writing an ebook about how we are doing it – due out around Tax Season :o )

    Wayne Larimore
    http://HomeBiz.Waynester.Net http://ResellForProfit.Waynester.Net

  • http://www.lovinglifetoday.com Caitlin Lorraine

    When looking at a few top sellers completed auctions one thing that stuck out to me was they definetly stayed within one theme–be it shoes, vehicle parts, niche electronics ect. Also to me most of their auction pages seemed very cluttered and I actually did not prefer the look to a more streamline (yet proffesional) auction page. I also noticed that grapevinehill was selling high quality, high dollar shoes and her feedback still maintained 100% because her customers were so satisfied and it is an item that is easy to ship without getting damaged. Justdeals.com had 98.0%, barely holding on to powerseller status because he had received 145 negatives in the last month and I think another 40 or so neutrals. He was selling electronics that had a tendency to not work or get damaged in shipping. He also makes the grave mistake of showing his postage on his packages and getting several negatives for overcharging–he should use Paypal shipping, edicia or even usps.com's shipping printing services that hide the postal amount. Because of the massive amount of sales he is making he has no time for good customer service or communication so he is a bit more like a hit and run seller probably for lack of time as anything else. In my opinion it is better to sell fewer items like grapevinehill, and higher quality items, so you have more time for your customers and get more repeat customers becaue they were so pleased. The 13,000 items she lists each week is still far more than I want to do, but I like her course of auction better.

  • Linda

    Hi Jim,

    As always your book and newsletter are the best, and I learn and stay encourgaged by them.

    I was disappointed, though that there never seems to be any stats on Ebay Motors. Since that site generates a majority of Ebay's business, according to them, I am surprised that no one seems to study it. I sell 99.99% in that cateogriy and would find it very helpful. I know the TopSeller website is new and still working the bugs out,as they left out Jay and Marie! lol! Maybe they will include stats for vehicles and the parts and accessories categories in EBM, which is huge, and would be very helpful. Thanks for all of your continuing good references and suggestions!

    Linda

  • Ray Harris

    Jim,

    I couldn't help but notice how many top sellers were in the same categories. What came to me was to use this information to set up ebay affiliate sites for those categories and drive traffic to the sites.

    Ray

  • http://ebaytools.waynester.net/eFeedBackSpy.aspx Wayne Larimore

    I have just created a website that will SPY on these Top Sellers! Simply put in the ebay user id and see what they are selling and for how much! It's FREE for all of Jim's subscribers and blog viewers.

    Wayne Larimore
    http://ebaytools.waynester.net/eFeedBackSpy.aspx