Creative Compulsion

It’s been a busy afternoon for those who pay attention to the goings-on at eBay.

The rumors have now been confirmed and it’s official: Meg Whitman will be retiring as CEO of eBay effective March 31st. She will stay on as Director. Slated to take Meg’s place is John Donahoe, who currently runs the Marketplace division. Announced in the same article is eBay President Bill Cobb’s retirement which will take place later this year. What remains to be seen is whether this is a positive or negative change.

Also taking place tonight was the Q4 2007 earnings call. Of interest to sellers was the announcement that a new fee structure will be introduced sometime next week that will cut fees on auctions and fixed price listings. It’s assumed that eBay will also begin advantaging sellers with lower shipping and a good customer service record (remember those DSRs!).

Should be interesting…I’m still reserving judgment until I see the new fees. While many sellers are still moaning about the store fee increase of 2005, many of us simply adjusted our business plans to either make it work and/or began venturing to other sales channels. So far, the eBay boards seem pretty upbeat about the news tonight. Nice to see for a change

For a great synopsis of tonight’s call, visit Scot Wingo’s eBay Strategies Blog.

read comments (0)

Yes, I admit it. I let my blog suffer a slow, torturous near-death the last couple of months. Christmas kind of snuck up on me and before I knew it, I was knee-deep in work and no time to myself. It hasn’t changed too much; things are still fairly busy, but at least I’ve been able to catch my breath.

Some interesting things going on in the near future at eBay. Scot Wingo confirmed on his blog the other day that eBay has been “telegraphing some big changes coming to the fee structure“. A couple of the ideas being tossed around are category-specific fees and bulk listing discounts. Scot also reintroduced his “3F” approach to cleaning up eBay, proposing that fraud and finding need to be cleaned up prior to a fee adjustment. I couldn’t agree with him more. My guess is… NOT gonna happen.

Further speculation regarding the new fee structure is that eBay will lower listing fees (and include free or lower cost gallery) and increase the backend (FVF) fees. I guess I’ll reserve my opinion until the adjustments are announced. My guess is that this will be a boon for some sellers and a death toll for others. What I can’t wrap my head around is the whining that is already taking place on the eBay boards. Do these people just like to complain?

Listen folks, if you’re not willing to adapt your business to the changing times, economy, market, etc., etc., then perhaps sales/business isn’t the career for you. By adapt, I don’t even mean adapting to sell on eBay. If eBay has priced themselves out of the market for you, explore your alternatives. Be ready to do some work and research. If you’re not willing to be flexible and change/adapt your business plan to remain competitive (or afloat!), then you really should consider a regular 9-5er with a dependable paycheck.

I realize eBay is no longer the only “show in town”, but if you’ve ever run a B&M and seen the numbers that flow through on a monthly basis, you’d have to agree that it’s still a pretty decent bang for your buck. No matter what, the expected announcement next week should prove to be interesting (if nothing else, entertaining!).

read comments (0)

Friday 5 for October 12: Lasts

1. What was the last thing you baked? Chocolate Pudding Cake

2. What was the last thing you tried on for size? Sweater

3. What was the last thing you purchased on credit? I rarely use credit… I think it was for one of my computers

4. What was the last thing you put a postage stamp on? eBay shipping

5. What was the last thing you took a photo of? My doggy

read comments (0)

I admit it, I’ve been pretty lazy on the blog front lately. As expected (or at least I was hoping!), the kids going back to school and upcoming holidays have steadily pumped up sales on eBay and my sites - I’ve been hopping lately! Here in New York we’ve gone from record 80+ October temps to 46 degree blahs. Oh well, I suppose the cooler weather means more online shopping!

On the personal front, I’ve taken on (yet another) new hobby. Umm, did I mention I think I’m ADHD?? A few months ago, I tried using and then started making handmade soap. I did so strictly for personal use - I have super, super sensitive skin and almost every soap/detergent out there gives me red, itchy skin and sometimes hives. Yuck! So… I’ve been using handmade soap exclusively for about 6 months now. I’m telling ya, I swear by it! Not only has my skin been free of itchy flareups, it’s never been softer. I really don’t even need to use lotion anymore. Very, very cool! If you’re looking to try handmade soap, please visit my “net pal” Patty of PixieSoap.com. She has WONDERFULLY scented soaps that just feel good. She’s very reasonably priced and I promise, once you try handmade soap, you won’t go back to any other!

On the business front: WHEN is eBay going to learn that the holiday selling season is not the time to introduce new “glitchancements”? First of all, have you noticed the SYI form has changed? Yup, along with brand spanking new glitches! When trying to list new items yesterday with a custom weight, I received a message that my item weighed more than 150 lbs and I had to list shipping as Freight. HUH? The max weight I tried to list was 25 lbs. After emailing support, I was informed that this is a known issue, but there is a “workaround”. Gee… thanks. Here’s a thought - DON’T fix things that ain’t broke!

Next, we’ve been informed of a new multi-seller checkout system that eBay plans to introduce “by the end of this year”. Now, the checkout system does sound great - a bit more streamlined (read: easier for customers) while allowing payment to multiple sellers. But holy schmoly… why oh why would you attempt to introduce a major feature like this during, what is for many, the busiest shopping season of the year?

UGH… enough rant. I have to admit, while I wouldn’t consider myself an eBay cheerleader, overall I’ve been really happy with having a large portion of my business there. You would just think that a little more common sense (and perhaps a bit more bug-testing before roll outs) would prevail in a company the scale and size of eBay.

That’s all for today! Happy Fall and Happy eBaying!

read comments (1)

So I decided to stop fighting my self-diagnosed adult ADHD. No, I don’t say that mockingly, I’m actually dead serious. My daughter concurs with my diagnosis. I just have to being doing 10 million things at once and can’t concentrate on anything for very long. I flit from one project to another (well, except my “real” job on eBay/my sites) and stop and start all kinds of things. Mix that with a healthy dose of OCD… whew, I tire myself out.

But, I digress…

I’ve been making web templates for around 10 years now. I used to design blog templates regularly for a site called Blogfrocks.com (don’t bother visiting, it’s now defunct). I started selling auction templates on eBay about a year and a half ago and also here on my site. I got too busy with other things and kinda let it fall by the wayside (sorta like my jewelry which I create regularly but only sell when the mood strikes).

Anyhoo… the name of my blog, Creative Compulsion, pretty much says it all. When you’re an artist, any kind of artist, you have this kind of inner drive or compulsion that just doesn’t let go. This week I suddenly found myself desperately wanting to draw. That led to re-opening some of my archived templates. That led to saying “Hey, why not sell a few”. That led to a new category in my main eBay store.

I doubt I’ll offer them for sale here on CC so if you’re interested in seeing/purchasing, send me an email to sarah [at] creativecompulsion.com and I’ll be happy to provide you with a link to my store. AND… I’ll also give a 10% discount off BIN/Store Inventory Templates if you mention my blog when you purchase

read comments (0)

I haven’t paid too much attention to the comment spam that my blog gets mainly due to the awesome plugin for Wordpress, Spam Karma 2. For whatever reason, I decided to go through the log today to see what spam has been left recently (actually, the reason is probably because the Wagglepopper’s have launched their latest spam campaign and got me thinking about it).

I noticed that the majority of the comments are referring to pharmaceuticals. Interesting. Well, sorry bot-boys, I don’t really have much use for Cialis. Tramadol sounds interesting, but my allergy to codeine is probably going to keep me from trying it any time soon. Viagara, well, same as Cialis - but I promise to visit your site if I change my mind. Ambien - got that already, but I will be visiting you soon to see if you can beat my pharmacy’s rates. Damn insurance company has issues with Ambien all of the sudden. All in all, I truly appreciate the time you took to initiate these bots to offer me several drugs that I can obtain on the DL. Your marketing strategy clearly works and I have actually decided to follow in your footsteps and try a little spamming of my own:

Buy from Creative Compulsion on Etsy. Now. Cheap. Low shipping. Discreet. Buy from Creative Compulsion on Etsy. Now. Cheap. Low shipping. Discreet. Buy from Creative Compulsion on Etsy. Now. Cheap. Low shipping. Discreet. Buy from Creative Compulsion on Etsy. Now. Cheap. Low shipping. Discreet.

Wow… somehow that was bizarrely therapeutic

read comments (0)

Unconscious Mutterings - Week 235

1. Voices :: Schizophrenia
2. Have to :: Needful
3. Machine :: Cog
4. Seventh grade :: My son
5. Beach :: Cape Cod
6. Roommate :: College
7. Cyclone :: Twister
8. Theater :: Loge
9. Pregnant :: My sister
10. Phoebe :: Cates

read comments (0)

So, I haven’t posted in a few days. I wasn’t being lazy… honest! It just seemed as though every time I tried to post last week, something else would come along that better deserved my attention. I did manage to post a few new things to my Etsy shop. I got a large package of Alexandrite Czech crystals and set out to make a few pretties…

Alexandrite, Tanzanite & Sterling Bracelet on Etsy

Alexandrite & Clear AB Earrings on Etsy

And this last one is a rosary bracelet I created for my mom:

See? I really was busy, lol.

read comments (1)

Unconscious Mutterings - Week 232

I say … and you think … ?

1. Situation :: Place
2. Theme song :: Jingle
3. Kelly :: Green
4. Club :: Golf
5. Swerve :: Veer
6. Couch :: Potato
7. Bigfoot :: Yeti
8. Arbitrary :: Random
9. Inventor :: Edison
10. Blazer :: Truck

read comments (1)

1.) Pomegranate Raspberry Wine Coolers by Bartles & Jaymes are da bomb. I mean seriously.

2.) My dog is in worse shape than me. Instead of the typical walk around the block, we’ve begun taking daily 2-3 mile jaunts. By the last leg of the walk, she’s looking up at me as though to say “Mommy, you’re nuts!”. She’s half Border Collie for crying out loud… doesn’t she know she’s supposed to have limitless energy?

3.) I’m not cut out to live in places with extreme heat. I realized what a wuss I am. I’ve always thought I’d like to retire somewhere warm and having lived in Western NY all my life, I just hate the cold winters. This week we had several days of 90+ degree heat. Holy crap! How do those people in AZ or FL do it?

4.) The rate increases at the USPS suck. I just started shipping jewelry again. A package that would’ve cost $0.66 before now costs over $1.50. More than double. Ouch!!

5.) Not getting enough sleep makes me cranky. Ok, this really isn’t something I just realized. With the heat this week, though, I rediscovered my bitchiness on a new level. Anybody wanna share their Ambien?

6.) DirectTV sucks. Ya know, I love it for the most part, really I do. What annoys me is that it takes a single raindrop to interrupt the service. I really don’t watch a lot of TV but there are certain shows that are “musts”. Interrupt Hell’s Kitchen and I become exceptionally cranky. Although, maybe it has to do more with #5 above… who knows?

7.) There are no “good” guys left. When I was 20, there were lots of “nice” single guys out there. Now, at 35, I’ve realized that they’re a.) psychotic, b.) Momma’s boys, c.) liars & cheaters or d.) some combination of the above. Let’s suffice it to say I’m thinking I’m better off alone. Hell, my dog makes better company most of the time.

8.) I’m not a photographer. I have to take like 15 pics just to find one I’m happy with. Even then, I’m not happy. I’ve tried every tip & trick I could find. Some work better than others, but I think I need to stick with my day job.

9.) My parents are awesome. This isn’t a new realization either, but every so often, they remind me yet again that they still know more than me. Love ya Mom & Dad!

10.) Customers can be insane. Anyone who deals in customer service knows this. I have to say that for the most part, I’ve been blessed with wonderful customers. People I will do backflips for to earn, and keep, their business. That said, sometimes I wish I had a supervisor to refer them to. Do I have a sign on me that says “Let me be your whipping boy?” I mean, if something is genuinely my fault, I accept responsibility, but if the mistake is on your end, ranting and raving isn’t gonna fix your problem. In fact, I’ll probably ignore you.

11.) Screen names draw strong mental images. To protect the (not so) innocent, I won’t list the screen name, but I recently encountered an eBay user with a name that contained the word “sexy”. After looking over her feedback (horrible, I might add), the visual I had was of some 400 lb slob sitting behind her monitor eating a pound of chocolate, cackling while she left less than satisfactory feedback for people when it’s pretty clear she’s the problem (ok, I’m still fuming - refer to #10 above). People, be responsible with your names. Or not, hehe.

12.) My ex-husband isn’t so bad. I can’t believe I’m saying that. The funny thing is, he’s actually given me some good advice recently. Or maybe I’m still upset about #7. Who knows?

13.) There are lots of talented artists on Etsy. I’d like to give a lil shout out to OklahomaMama, SewNimble and Pixie Soap. All very talented and great women!

14.) Ray Romeo has finally lost his mind. If you don’t know Ray, refer to my Wagglepop posts here and here. I signed on to WP yesterday, as I always do, only to find my user name has been de-activated. Now, everyone who reads this knows I’m not the biggest fan of the site, but I’ve never posted on their forum much less caused any trouble on the site. Oh… must be the whole C ‘n P thing that’s got him going. Ya know, catching those priceless posts by disgruntled Poppers before they’re guillotined by the PopMaster. I know I’m not the only one to have my ID suspended and personally, I think the guy’s finally lost it. Alienating potential customers is not smart, Ray. Or Andrew. Or Karen. Or KarAndRay. Whatever you’re calling yourself these days.

15.) Finding 15 random things I realized this week wasn’t as easy as it sounds.
I’m pretty sure I realized more than 15 things this week, but sitting down to actually write about it… well, let’s just say I may be a candidate for early Alzheimer’s.

read comments (0)