As in all
business dealings, clearly spelling out the terms and conditions
for the TA-client relationship before the work gets started is
usually a key step to ensuring the success of that relationship.
Agreement on critical items such as fees, time lag before they can
expect to receive payment, and what happens to items that don't
sell are best negotiated before the events occur. If a client is
not willing to negotiate terms and sign a standard contract, it may
be best to not engage them as a client.
Market the value of your services, not your
commission rate.
As with any sales process, the first thing to do is convince the
prospect of the value you can deliver with your TA services.
Educate them on the experience you have on eBay and the research
you complete before listing the item. Tell them about the quality
of your pictures and the timely email responses you generate to
buyers with questions. Let them know about your shipping processes
and show them a sample statement so they know what they can expect
from you once you're hired. Finally, discuss with them why all of
these factors makes hiring a TA a great investment and makes you
the right TA for the job. Only then, after delivering the value in
the mind of the client, do you want to start talking about
price.
Flat fees help speed up
negotiations.
When possible, most TAs prefer to charge a flat percentage of the
item selling price and usually that percentage includes all eBay
fees. TA and TA client feedback indicates this makes acquiring
clients much easier than either a "pay my fee of x% + eBay fees" or
a "set-up cost is x, per-item cost regardless of whether it closes
is y, and my take as a TA is z" approach. The one challenge with
the flat fee model is building in an allowance for items that don't
sell, but the benefit of addressing that challenge is a much easier
sales cycle for prospects. One related comment - always sell the
full value of your services
Return all calls - you never know who's on
the other end of the line.
It doesn't matter what the item is or what the client's questions
are, you should return every call in a timely manner with a
professional demeanor. One client with an apparently low-priced
item could just be testing your services and could have numerous
other items, in addition to friends with lots of items. Simply
returning a phone call and providing a quick overview of your
services could lead to future referrals.
Provide an easy-to-review summary for each
client.
Make it easy for clients to understand all the accounting behind
the check they receive. A clear and concise statement that covers
how many items were listed, how many were sold, the amount they
sold for, the TA expenses, and the net amount due the client will
make repeat business and referrals much more likely. One of the
best ways to do this is to build an Excel spreadsheet with all the
right headings and fill in the blanks for each client. Then print
the spreadsheet for each client and send it with their check.
Add a unique client code to all TA client
listings.
Provide the ability for your clients to view their items on line
easily - if you have multiple clients, you can assign each one a
unique code and insert it in the items you list for them (use a
small font and put the code near the bottom of the listing). Then
do a search for each consignor inside your seller list and you'll
get only that person's items. One good system for adding codes is
to use the client's initials and zip code to build a unique code
for each client. For example, if Joe Smith in ZIP 95125 is a
client, his unique code becomes js95125 and that code is inserted
in small text at the bottom of every auction you list for
Joe.
Email clients a live link to their
auctions.
Email clients with a link to their auction(s) once they have
completed the listings - send clients an email that links right to
their live auctions to get them excited about watching the
auctions, and hopefully more likely to bring more product to you to
sell for them. You can send the link as a link to a single item
page or multiple item pages, depending on how many items you listed
for the client. As an alternative, if you use the coding system
above, you can send a link that is a seller search (or seller store
search) for items with that code.
