iOffer.com Unveils Enhanced Item Detail Page

Another iOffer press release:

New Design Improves Buying Experience with Better Features, Selling Experience with Increased Item Exposure

San Francisco, CA -- Online shopping consists of two elements: buyers and sellers. Buyers must be completely satisfied with their purchase, and sellers must provide the best service to retain buyers. Buyers must understand the full buying terms up front, and sellers want to expose their items to more buyers. iOffer's new item detail page satisfies both buyers and sellers, with advanced buying features and extensive selling attributes.

Enlarged item displays add clarity and focus to each item listing, followed by a full description to reiterate its importance. Buying terms are grouped together to let buyers grasp relevant information immediately, stating the item's asking price, quantity, shipping info & price, payment options, and available actions on the item.

A "Meet the Seller" box introduces the seller and his or her store to buyers, displaying recent activities and feedback ratings. Buyers can access the seller profile, past transactions, feedback comments, and seller statistics through the rating chart before making informed buying decisions.

Multiple gateways to the seller store are strategically placed on the page, including a permanent slideshow and a gallery view of their items. This convenient path connects buyers and sellers to help foster and develop a strong business relationship.

An organized tabbing system eliminates the need to scroll down the page, showing all buying information in one central location. The simple and clean layout allow item detail pages to load faster, permitting buyers to browse more item listings and find the best deal in a shorter amount of time.

The new item detail page is centered on item description and buying terms, creating a global buyer appeal. Placing the most prominent information in the center inspires buyers to proactively initiate negotiations with sellers to speed up transactions. As a result, buyers and sellers are satisfied, and both obtain better online shopping experiences.

About iOffer, Inc.

iOffer, Inc. is recognized as a leading alternative online marketplace worldwide. Since 2001, iOffer has been changing the way online transactions are conducted, providing a safe and friendly community for its members to buy, sell, and trade through open negotiations. iOffer believes that active communication and interactions are keys to the success and enjoyment of their members. For more information, please visit www.ioffer.com.

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iOffer.com Reports Growing Revenue and Traffic in January

Here's the latest press release from iOffer:

Successful Start to 2009 Brings Higher Expectations and Goals

San Francisco, CA -- The 2008 holiday season is over and 2009 is carrying higher goals for iOffer.com. December 2008 left the alternative online marketplace web site wanting more with record numbers across the line. Despite the continuing effects of the declining economy and the need for consumers to save money, January statistics in terms of traffic and revenue have fulfilled and surpassed all expectations for iOffer.

Key Metrics January 2008 vs. 2009
- Dollar Sales: $3.8 million vs. $8.5 million (124% growth)
- Unit Sales: 67,000 vs. 242,000 (261% growth)
- Traffic: 2.4 million visits vs. 5.8 million visits (142% growth)
- Page Views: 25 million vs. 65 million (160% growth)
- New Member Registration: 35,000 vs. 93,000 (166% growth)

New members and item listings are pouring in every day. Total transactions and dollar sales are increasing steadily. January set the tone of a successful year for iOffer, as more improvements are planned to enhance the overall buying and selling experience of its members.

About iOffer, Inc.

iOffer, Inc. is recognized as a leading alternative online marketplace worldwide. Since 2001, iOffer has been changing the way online transactions are conducted, providing a safe and friendly community for its members to buy, sell, and trade through open negotiations. iOffer believes that active communication and interactions are keys to the success and enjoyment of their members. For more information, please visit www.ioffer.com.

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Item Detail Page, Secure Payment Protection, Google Checkout

Here's a new update from the iOffer Announcements page:

Posted February 21, 2009

The new item detail page enhances the buying experience with improved features and faster load times. A simple, clean layout lets you view the most prominent information quickly and easily (item info, buying terms, seller info). Sellers benefit with increased exposure to their items, having multiple links to their store.

Click here to view a summary of the changes.

To increase online security, we implemented a Secure Payment Protection for credit card payments through Verified by Visa™ and MasterCard SecureCode™. All you need to do is create a PIN to authenticate your Visa or MasterCard, confirming your identity as the cardholder.

Prevent unauthorized online use of your credit card(s) before it happens.
Verify your credit card information to activate Secure Payment Protection immediately.

In addition to Mpayy, PayPal, credit cards, and checks/money orders, sellers can now use Google Checkout to pay their monthly iOffer account balance.

-The iOffer Team

Selling on iOffer Part 7: Store Policies and Profile

In addition to listing your items, uploading your items to Google Base, and promoting your items, your iOffer profile and iOffer store policies are more useful than you think.

If you've heard of search engine optimization, then you'll know what keywords and phrases you put on those pages can do to your store. If you don't know what I'm talking about, please read on to see how your store can have better search results rankings.

Go to your Edit My Store and Edit Profile pages on iOffer.

Here, you should fill in as much information as you can in the available spaces about your store (description, welcome message, etc.).

Use SPECIFIC KEYWORDS & PHRASES.

Type in item categories, item keywords, anything you think others will type in to find your items. This is a basic understanding of search engine optimization. If you have specific keywords and phrases on your pages, new buyers typing in those keywords will be more likely to find your store as opposed to another seller's store who didn't give any clues to search engines like Google and Yahoo on what their stores are about.

The more keywords you let search engines know, the better they'll treat you. Try to keep them towards the top of the page as well.

Selling on iOffer Part 6: Promote Your Store

Did you upload your items to Google Base yet? That should be the very first step you take after listing your items.

Then it's time to promote your iOffer store. Start off with these iOffer promotional tools:

Store Widget and Profile Banner

A widget is sort of a custom advertising box for your store. It's very easy to set up, and you can post it all over the web (blogs, profiles, emails, web sites, etc.). Just post it and you're set; you don't need anything else. Profile banners work the same way, so start posting!

iOffer Community Clubs and Events

One of the better ways to expand your online presence is to interact with people. Join some iOffer clubs and participate in the discussions to get your name out there. Attend the live events to make friends. Your items will be automatically featured in events.

These tools should be a good start to your self-promotion. Remember, the more work you put into it, the better results you'll get in driving in more traffic to your store.

Selling on iOffer Part 5: Google Base

Once you have listed a few, or a bunch, of items, it's time to let the rest of the world know that you're selling on iOffer. That's where Google Base comes in.

What is Google Base?

Google Base is a free Google service that helps you publish virtually any kind of information -- be it your latest riveting screenplay or a listing for your slightly dented 1989 Honda Accord -- on Google Base or other Google properties.

Your item will fall into one of several categories based on its content. This category determines which Google property will display your item. For example, your screenplay and robot schematics may appear on Google Base, and your humble Honda may appear on Google Product Search.

According to many experienced iOffer members, sellers must do some self-promotion. If you don't do anything, Google Base is the single, one thing that you MUST do. This little feature will get you the traffic you need to your store.

So once you have items ready, use this iOffer Tutorial to upload your items to Google Base.

Also, members of the Seller Central club will kindly help you through the entire process.

I will talk about other promotional tools that you can and should use to advertise your new iOffer store.

Selling on iOffer Part 4: List a Single Item

After a thorough understanding of how Want Ads and Snag a Sale leads to selling your items on iOffer, it is time to finally list your items.

To the right is a Simple Listing Form on iOffer.

1. Choose a category and sub-category.

2. Use a title that is rich in keywords.

3. Describe your items in as much details as possible.

This is what buyers will see on your item listings. The more information you put, the less questions buyers will ask and the more likely they'll buy the item after reading everything they need to know about it.

If you're HTML savvy, I would recommend you click on Edit HTML and add your own flare to your item listing. Colors, fonts, sizes, your item listing can look that much better. Here's a little HTML help if you're not too familiar with it.

4. Choose 4 different sets of unique keywords for your items.

These keywords, along with keywords in your title, are crucial to your item listings. They may be the thing that makes or breaks the deal. These are the words that buyers would type in to get to your item. Make good use of these keywords, as well as keywords in your item description as well.

5. State an asking price.

You can leave this blank if you want to let buyers make an offer to start, but I highly recommend you to put a price so buyers have an idea to start off. If they like it, they'll buy it. If they don't like it, they'll make you an offer. Plus, you must have a price to submit your items to Google Base, which I will get into later.

6. State the shipping costs.

Be reasonable. Don't trick people by having a cheap asking price and charging $100 for shipping. iOffer charges the final fee on the combined total, so this trick will not work. Feel free to add a couple extra bucks for handling, but again, be reasonable.

7. Add pictures.

Pictures are FREE on iOffer, so add as many as you want. Get pictures from different angles so buyers know exactly what the item looks like. If you were buying something, you would want to see more pictures too, right?

After you've done all that, your listing is set. Preview your listing to see what it looks like. If you're okay with it, create the listing and before you know it, your item will turn into cash.

Selling on iOffer Part 3: Snag a Sale

Did you have a good start with the Want Ads? Here's another starting point.

Selling is like fishing. You wait and you wait, until something finally happens. You feel a tug at your pole, so you start pulling. For all you know it could just be a garbage bag.

Likewise, sellers wait awhile before they make a sale. When someone finally comes and takes a look around your store, you get excited and give them your full attention, not knowing if they're actually buying something or not.

To make sure that you get the real deal, use iOffer's Snag-a-Sale.

Snag-a-Sale is a feature that lets you see the offers and negotiations that are taking place in front of you, whether there's a question or offer in place.

Why do you care?

The transaction is not completely done. There's no commitment yet. That's where you come in. If you got the same item or something similar, jump in there and offer the buyer a better deal.

Just like fishing, snag the buyer quickly with your offer before it's too late. It's a big ocean out there; everything is fair game.

Selling on iOffer Part 2: Want Ads

Want Ads again?

I want to emphasize how important Want Ads are and how often people look past it not realizing the power of these Want Ads.

Here's an important quote at the end of my first Want Ad post:

"When you want to start selling, browse new Want Ads to see what buyers are looking for and list those items first."

Many new sellers overlook the fact that Want Ads help them start their business. Buyers post Want Ads because they want something that they can't find. Your job as the seller? Find that item and list it for the buyer. If you already have the item, you're one step ahead of everyone else.

If you don't believe me, try posting a Want Ad yourself. You'll receive responses fairly quickly.

You could be that seller responding to the Want Ad. Don't just sit there and ponder about the kinds of things that you could be selling. Just sell the things that you know will sell...by looking at Want Ads.

Selling on iOffer Part 1

As promised in my previous post about Want Ads, it is time to talk about selling.

Just like the little lonely "For Sale" sign in the middle of a vast plain of green grass, or a little guppy in the Pacific Ocean, where do you start and how are you supposed to just jump in and blend in with the rest of the crowd?

For starters, you should see how selling works on iOffer. Take a look at their Seller Help and Seller Safety Guide pages. Take a look at their Fees and Credits Policy to gain a sense of how much it would cost you to sell something, and how much you would profit from it.

Second, why don't you see how their selling process works. Take a look at their simple listing form. Fair enough, it's easy and straightforward. You only need the basics: category, title, description, keywords, price, shipping, and pictures. Everything's on one page, so fill out everything and preview it to see what it'll look like.

This should get you going for awhile. Spend some time and play around with it.

I'll leave you with some incentives for you to Sell on iOffer:

• Free Listings


• Free Pictures


• Free Store


• Free Web Adress


• and much, much more!