The eBay marketplace is designed on the principles of transparency. This is great for a new seller because you have access to a lot of information about what kinds of products sell and what are the best practices that other sellers use to propel their sales on eBay.
Doing a Completed Items Search
A completed items search allows you to all the listings that have ended corresponding to your search term. You can also see which listings were successful and which were unsuccessful as well as various other details.
1. Click on "Advanced Search"
2. Check the "Completed Listings Only" Checkbox and search for your products
3. While comparing the successful and unsuccessful items be sure to check:
| Title | Which keywords were used? |
| Starting Price | Low, reasonable or high? |
| Description | How much information is provided? |
| Photos | High or poor quality? No photos? |
| Selling Format | Auction, or Buy It Now ? |
| Features Used | Which Features were used? |
| Payment Options | Provided? Not provided? Restricted? |
| Shipping/Handling fees | Provided? Not provided? Fixed or calculated? |
| Return/refund policy | Provided? Not provided? Terms? |
| Category/sub-category | Was the item properly categorized? |
| Hit Counter | How many hits? |
Using Tools to do research:
There are tools available from eBay as well as various third parties that allow you to do research on eBay in far greater detail. These tools will require subscription on your part. Some of these tools are:
- eBay Marketplace Research
- Terapeak
