What’s Hot Report: Liquidation of a Not-so-Hot Inventory

September 19, 2006 (13:59)

Listen to Greg explain how you can most effectively liquidate your inventory of a product that used to be hot, but is now nearing the end of its life cycle.

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Hello eBay Sellers, I’m HammerTap’s Jen Cano with a What’s Hot on eBay newsflash.

This week I looked into consumer electronics. My husband is looking for a new flat screen monitor for his computer, so I thought I would do some price checking on the eBay marketplace. While I was there I was astounded at how well some brand are selling.

Dell's flat-screen monitor, model E177FP has an extremely high sell-through rate. Ninety-three percent of these babies sell on average, but sell-through rate isn't everything.

To bump up your selling price, list it as a regular auction without buy it now between ten and eleven in the evening. Bold and reserve price also help to bump up the price, but the most significant price booster is in the keywords. Use the word "warranty" to get an average of $30 more per listing. How much more could you be making on your listings?

Visit HammerTap.com to find out.

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Hello eBay Sellers, I’m HammerTap’s Jen Cano with a What’s Hot on eBay newsflash.

Just for fun this week, I thought I’d check back in with video games. If you remember, the last time I reported on Video Games, I told you that Mario Kart was the #1-selling game. I was curious to find out about the longevity of this game on the eBay marketplace.

I was shocked to find out that after five months, this game is not only still the leader, but it’s success rate has risen from 82% to 86%. Other hot-selling games are Pokemon Ruby, Kirby, Nintendogs, and the Empires Collection. I’m going to keep my eye on these items and watch for even more opportunities to enter this exciting market.

If you want to know what’s going to stay hot long enough for you to make money, visit HammerTap.com. That’s HammerTap.com.

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Hello eBay Sellers, I’m HammerTap’s Jen Cano with a What’s Hot on eBay newsflash.

Today I’m looking at fall sports, and since my son is in karate, I thought I’d find out about hot-selling martial arts apparel. Overall, items in this category sell only about 30% of the time. That’s one in every three or four listings. Not great if you’re going for the average. So, of course, I went hunting for some products that are in higher demand.

Kimono-style uniforms have about an 80% success rate. End these listings any day except Sunday and Friday, and you bump your chances of selling even higher—with a higher profit, to boot. And here’s something else to think about. If demand for your item is increasing and the number of competing sellers remains the same, you know you’ve entered the beginning of a heat wave for that item!

If you want to know what’s going to stay hot long enough for you to make money, visit HammerTap.com. That’s HammerTap.com.

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Hello eBay Sellers, I’m HammerTap’s Jen Cano with a What’s Hot on eBay newsflash.

Have you been battling with a category of products that you’re really interested in selling, but the competition seems overwhelming and the demand seems underwhelming? Does this mean it’s time to give it up? Are your chances of finding a hot niche in that category slim? Not necessarily.

Today I’ve taken the challenge of finding a hot niche in a not-so-hot category. Handmade, artisan beaded jewelry only sells about 26% of the time. But, I used HammerTap research software to uncover three possible niches for you jewelry makers out there. Here’s where the demand is: borosilicate beads, coin-shaped beads, and Japanese-style beads. These pieces sell between 70% and 80% of the time.

If you want to know more about how to find a lucrative niche in a tough category, visit HammerTap.com. That’s HammerTap.com.