That joke article about Japan being on sale at Yahoo Japan auctions reminded me of something I saw the other day: Someone had an item for sale on Yahoo auctions and they had spelled the name of the item wrong.
People who can't spell well need to be very careful when using online auction services to sell their goods. Why? Well, if they misspell the item that they are selling then people have a difficult time finding their goods for sale. Even though the search engines are getting better and smarter, incorrect spellings are still a really great way to lose potential bids
If people have a hard time finding the goods, then the seller will get few bids.
There are professional dealers spending lots of times searching these online auction site for people who misspell their items. Because, as I said, the item is misspelled, the seller will get few bids and will let the item go for a lower price. These professional dealers make offers at well below market value then, once the item is bought, turn around and sell it for a much higher price themselves.
So, you need to be careful when you use an online auction site. Always spell check....
Or, take this advice and here's a possible idea on how to start up a side-business from home in here somewhere.
2 comments:
This seller may actually get a lot of hits from people mis-typing Pansonic into the search box.
"Yafu Oku", as the Japanese call it, is great. Someone just bought a box-load of slim dvd cases for just \1! Yes, \1, as in one, solo, singular, not plural! I know because I was the seller. And I got more (shameless plug alert) here and here. Buyer just pays shipping.
Mike, someday you should write the story of why EBay failed in Japan. I'm sure there are many lessons for Western businesses in that episode.
Walmart seems to be doing ok. From the Nikkei: "10 years after Wal-Mart arrived, Seiyu has evolved into a new breed of discount store, one based on aggressive American-style cost-cutting and subtle Japanese marketing.
Oh, and it has turned the corner financially. Same-store sales increased for a third-consecutive year in 2011, when operating profit reached its highest level since 2008."
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