Ecrater Stores Rock!

ESN Under New Management

2012-03-01T20:14:00.002-05:00

Effective today, eCrater Stores Network, is now under new management. The transfer of the eCrater Stores Network on Ning from Comycgyrl Collectibles to Wolfie was completed this afternoon.

I know we all want to wish Comycgyrl the best with her new venture of opening her own auction house. It has been a dream of hers and we are very happy that she is following her dream. With all the hard work that she has and will continue to have with her new venture, she decided that she couldn't continue with the day to day tasks of running ESN. We really want to thank her for being at the helm of ESN for the past couple of years. Without her guidance, there probably wouldn't be an ESN today.

Wolfie has taken over the ownership of ESN. She is very excited about her new role as Site Creator. Actually, she is about to give me a heart attack - she is going 90 miles a minute throwing out this idea and that idea. I sure hope Hubster gives her a dinky-poo soon.

Seriously, Wolfie and I are very excited and committed to making ESN the best source for marketing eCrater sellers. Don't be surprised to see some new changes over the next several weeks. We also want to thank the ESN members for their continued support and encouragement.

CHEERS!!!

SPRING FLING WEEK

2012-02-27T09:43:00.001-05:00

Who's flinging? EVERYBODY
What are we flinging? PHOTOS, that's what!
When is the flinging? Right NOW!

All members of eCrater Stores Network are invited to upload sale item photos to ESN during the week of Feb. 27 - March 4. This is for Everyone, both free or Pro members.

This is a big transition week, when we go from Winter into Spring. We want to get geared up to highlight what great finds are available at eCrater stores.

REQUIREMENTS:

All ESN Members can upload 5 photos per day.
Each photo MUST have a real title and description.
Within the description section there MUST be a link to the ITEM SELLING PAGE.
It takes 10 photos before you can create an album.

We also encourage members to change out their store color scheme and refresh the front page category pictures. Check the Google Analytics' In-Page Analytics under the Content section to see what visitors are interested in and make those categories easier to find!

Winter can't last forever! Get ready now!

Pro Member Profile: CarolinaBlueLady

2012-02-23T14:41:00.001-05:00

This week our Pro Member Profile highlights one of the most helpful people on ESN. Without her support and encouragement I doubt I would have made it this long. Of course, I'm talking about Donna, of CarolinaBlueLady.

Donna has been on the ESN Admin Team for quite a while now. Time spent on ESN means time spent away from her own stores Carolinabluelady and Carolinabluelady Book Treasures. She volunteered to take care of the photos and groups, checking and approving uploads, answering questions and offering an encouraging word to members when needed. Her efforts often go unrecognized or appreciated .

Donna's customers are treated to exquisite merchandise and exceptional service.

Blog to Market

2012-02-21T08:42:00.000-05:00

Hide long http addresses. Use an actual item title or description, highlight it and add the hyperlink. Now, visitors can go to your store listing, like "Check out my Super Thing!"
Add at least 1 photo. It will show up if your blog is listed on someone's Favorite Blog List where thumbnail is enabled.
Make photos into clickable links. Visitors like to click photos and be taken to your store. If it's not a hyperlink clicking one will only open an enlarged version of the image.
EMPHASISE your item! Hyperlinks in blogs post are underlined and often a different color. Change colors & bold to make that link stand out even more.
NO PRICES PLEASE! Think before adding your current price to a post. If you change the price later you'll have to update all the blog posts too!
DASHBOARD SHORTCUT - Some new Blogger templates cover the Dashboard links in the upper right corner of your monitor. Next time you open your Dashboard, add a shortcut to your Favorites/Bookmark toolbar. Plus using a shortcut eliminates log-in!
Use your 10 static pages. Great for photos, slideshows, text and widgets! Tell about yourself, your business, showcase items, create a links page with photos to other sites, or highlight an event like your last flea market excursion. Access the pages at Desktop >Layout >Add a Gadget >Pages.
UPGRADE YOUR GOOGLE RANK! In a Google search usually a post title shows up after the Blog name. Reverse that order for better rank. - From your Blogger dashboard click DESIGN up top; then EDIT HTML. (Make a backup first). Now click in a blank space within the html. Hit Control/F to do a find and copy and search for this: <title><data:blog.pageTitle/></title> While highlighted copy and replace that with this code: <b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "index"'> <title><data:blog.title/></title> <b:else/> <title><data:blog.pageName/> | <data:blog.title/></title> </b:if> DON'T FORGET TO HIT SAVE!
ADD A FAVORITE BLOG LIST on Blogger: After log-in go into Design > Add a Gadget > Blog List (scroll down below Poll)
WHEN TO BLOG: Research says you list (items) on Monday, then blog on Tuesday.
GET FOLLOWERS who do more than just put their icon on your blog by blogging regularly; and it should be worth the attention.
Write short posts instead of long ones. Most visitors just don't have much time to spend. Cut to the chase, and organize your points for quick scanning.
COMMENT APPROVAL is such a turn-off to guests. Unless you're getting slammed with spam don't use it. You can always delete comments later if needed.
There is a FACEBOOK SHARE button available on blogger. From your blog, go into the Design tab. Click Add a Gadget, do a search on Facebook and find it in the results.
Add a Facebook LIKE BOX. Log in to FB, then go to http://developers.facebook.com/docs/reference/plugins/like
Configure the box to suit. Make sure to use the exact address of the page you want people to like. Copy the IFrame (top) code. Then go back to your blog design, click ADD a GADGET and select HTML/Javascript. Paste the code and save.
Try Blogger in Draft. Write when you have time and schedule to post it later. Blogger will save edits for you so you can have a work-in-progress!
Limit the amount of republished content. If you do republish make sure you have at least the same amount of original content.
Relink to previous posts relavent to your new post. That way your links will dig deeper into your blog. Have others, outside of your own blog, do the same on their blogs too.
Follow the Google blog.

Repeating the Alphabet

2012-02-16T15:03:00.000-05:00

We started Alphabet Soup Day 26 weeks ago. It hardly seems like it's been that long. Each week we created a separate blog for a letter of the alphabet. ESN members could then post their photos and links to any eCrater-available item that was on ESN. Some Letters were easy and some were hard. Some of the posted items were quite a stretch of the imagination as to being relative to the weekly letter. But we had fun and got the word out about sale items.

We've run out of letters! Today's challenge wasn't a challenge at all and members could simply post relative items on any of the previous Alphabet Soup blogs. Next week will not be so easy. Now that there are no more letters ESN will start doing some creative thinking. This writer is thinking 'double letters' maybe? Any other suggestions?

Where They Go

2012-02-13T08:30:00.002-05:00

Comycgyrl Collectibles has made it to the Alexa list of Where People Go At Ecrater!

Congratulations! She's worked hard to get her store there!

I Tried

2012-02-09T16:16:00.003-05:00

I recently tried to do a survey to get opinions from ESN members. I guess that was pretty much a wasted effort since over several weeks there were only 3 responses. I had wanted to know basically, if you thought there was enough interest in trying to keep ESN going for another year when the time comes to renew the Ning contract (July). Way before the deadline gets here things have to take place. While it may seem a long way off, it really isn't, not when you are on the planning end.

Apparently there's not so much interest as I'd hoped for. This is quite depressing because ESN has a lot of good information and people have worked very hard to get things fixed on ESN. We have helped countless new eCrater store owners, I'm proud to say. ESN has come along way since it's first year, but, no doubt, there's always going to be room for improvement.

So when was the last time you contacted any of the Admin Team members to voice a concern or share an idea? I think the biggest problem members have had was being suspended for not being active on the site. They just don't get it. A site like ESN can't survive without people coming on there daily or weekly (or in some cases twice a year would have been nice). It sucks to go to a site, any site and see nothing has changed since the last time you were on there days ago. Who wants to be part of that?

Then some of those same people who do get booted take 6-8 months before responding to the notification that they are suspended. Does that show they really care one way or the other? I don't think so. But and if anyone ever does respond to a notice, they are usually reinstated. Many times they were inactive because of things going on at home, like a health crisis. Those same people couldn't take two minutes to let us know they'd be out for a while, but still somehow managed to keep their stores running, their tweets flowing, and Facebook updated.

This scenario has happened more than once. But enough of that. If there's not enough interest in keeping ESN going, if no one cares, that's ok...we just need to know. I myself, am on ESN each and every day. I work on behalf of all our members, whether they know it or not. I neglect my own store in order to keep a commitment to ESN. I think when people join they make a commitment to support the site, but that's just my own opinion.

I hate to think that ESN will not continue. The Ning contract is almost $250/year now. I certainly can't pay it alone. And I'm certainly not going to beg this year. We struggled for the last two years, coming up short each time. But we made it work.

Take time to let us know your feelings on the subject. We're not mind-readers.
Wolfie

UPDATE: Guess I'll give it one more shot - the survey is on my ESN profile page.

Pro Member Profile: Bead Master

2012-02-02T10:20:00.002-05:00

Meet

ESN member since May 2011

A friendlier guy you'd never meet. He greets everyone who joins with a friendly "hello."

Making The List

2012-01-27T09:23:00.000-05:00

Congrats to Paul! His store, Sirocco's Curios, is now on the Alexa list of Top 50 Places People Go On Ecrater!

http://sirocco.ecrater.com/

Congrats to Elaine! Her store, Embroidery Fashions Boutique, is now on the Alexa list of Top 50 Places People Go On Ecrater!

http://embroideryfashionsboutique.ecrater.com/

Congrats to Wolfie! Her store, Eccentric Thrifter, is now on the Alexa list of Top 50 Places People Go On Ecrater!

http://eccentricthrifter.ecrater.com/

See what commenting will do for you?!

Survey Says

2012-01-25T18:11:00.000-05:00

We now have survey posted on the ESN main page. We are looking ahead to the future, but want to know what your opinions are. Please take a moment to tell us what you think.

Scavenger Hunters Regroup

2012-01-18T06:53:00.000-05:00

2012 is seeing quite a few changes at the eCrater Stores Network (ESN). The Scavenger Hunters blogging group is not being left out either. In an effort to build on the once-a-week blogging habit that members have developed over the past year, this year they will focus more on developing an attack mode with a concentrated goal.

Since the beginning of January ESN bloggers have been posting twice a week on their personal blogs. Rather than having a different theme each week, there is one theme throughout the month. For January the posts are bringing attention to each member's sale items that have been neglected in stores, as shown by the number of visitor hits those items receive each week. This effort is to bring attention to items and make them more visible on Google search results. Whether the effort has the desired results remains to be seen; in the meantime ESN bloggers are developing skills in both post writing and time management. That alone is worth the exercise.

Next month may see a different strategy play out. Unlike other sites like Twitter, where sellers post with the one hope of gaining the big sale, the Scavenger Hunters focus is multi-purposed. Sure, sales are an ultimate goal, but not the only goal. Developing good blogging habits and word skills can help on any site, whether it's a 140 character block or a résumé. Good grammar and punctuation are still necessary in the days of 'I c u." statements to separate the mundane and haphazard from the professional, when it comes to projecting a business attitude. At ESN we strive to encourage this attitude of professionalism in all aspects of our online curriculum, no matter how small.

Anyone can sign up to become an ESN Scavenger Hunter and join the eight bloggers who already enjoy the fun!

What Does Your Week Look Like?

2012-01-10T08:40:00.002-05:00

With any business you must stay on top of things or you can quickly be overwhelmed. At ESN we try to encourage members to stay active, both on our site and within their own store platforms. Over time we've discovered that marketing your own and other members' stores is important not only to ESN, but also to the growth of your business and to you as you become a more disciplined person. Good habits are a key to staying focused. We combine both of these focal points to make visiting and interacting on ESN more fun while still getting the work done. With that in mind here is the current ESN schedule:

MONDAY – 1st BLOG DAY
Blog about one of your items on your outside blog based on the posted Theme of the Week. When you finish share the link in the I POSTED section of the Bloggers Group.

TUESDAY - I LIKE IT TUESDAY
This allows us to LIKE our ESN items, blogs, forum replies etc. here on ESN. Doing so garners spiders which tags them to your store name, thus marketing, and branding you at the same time.
· Only LIKE items on ESN
· You may LIKE your own items or another member's.
· You may LIKE your own item once an hour.
· Do not duplicate the same LIKE in a day.
· Use the "LIKE" button

WEDNESDAY - CATCH UP DAY

All the things you're behind on...today's the day to regroup and tie up loose ends.

THURSDAY - ALPHABET SOUP DAY
Use the designated blog to post a Comment advertisement of your item relative to the posted letter.
· No Duplicates
· Ecrater items only
· Post yours or other member’s items
· One post per hour for your own items
· Images must be no larger than 300 pixels.

FRIDAY – 2nd BLOG DAY
Blog about one of your items on your outside blog based on the posted Theme of the Week. When you finish share the link in the I POSTED section of the Bloggers Group.

SUNDAY - Theme of the Week
The new theme of the week is posted to inspire your creative blog writing. This is more of a way to get you into a consistent blogging mind rather than a marketing ploy. Watch your following increase the more you post regularly.

TIMELY TIPS
· Freshen store appearance on the 1st of each month
· Post on Facebook every other day @ 8-9am for maximum effect.
· The best time to tweet is weekend afternoons!

Full Pro Ahead

2012-01-03T07:10:00.003-05:00

You've heard of 'full steam ahead?' Well, ESN is going to go "FULL PRO AHEAD." Starting January 2012, ESN will henceforth be an all paid site.

The eCrater Stores Network on Ning began operating in 2008. In June 2010 there was a change at the helm; ESN got a top-notch Administration team that has since led the site to become a premier source of information about running an online eCrater store. Outside of eCrater's own Community there is no better place to go for getting answers to your questions in a quick, professional manner and make good friends at the same time. Because we have the experience and the knowledge we believe this resource is worth something. Revenues will be used to finance the site upgrades and maintenance.

In June 1 all members will be asked to ante up $12.00 for the coming fiscal year that runs from July 1, 2012 - June 30, 2013 (think - only $1 per month) for full access and participation of the ESN Site. This includes uploading eCrater sale item photographs, a big draw for ESN site visitors!

The decision to go Paid was not an easy one. There has been much discussion weighing the options during the last few weeks. In the end, a full paid site just makes sense and offers the best opportunity for its members to make full use of the benefits available. The ESN slogan "When One Succeeds, We All Succeed" still stands. That's ultimately what it's all about!

All new ESN applicants are required to pay a fee based on the date of their entry at a rate of $1/mo. through June.

Regroup & Refresh

2011-12-30T06:31:00.000-05:00

It's not just a new year. It's a new attitude, a new commitment, and a new beginning. In the back of your mind little bits and pieces come floating to the top, nudging you into a plan. A fleeting idea, a 'what if' moment, that eventually works itself into a full-blown reason to get up and get on that computer one more time!

So how about starting out with an attitude of commitment? There's a combo for ya! But that's what we need to make 2012 a successful eCrater store year. You get your cup of coffee, or hot tea or whatever takes you into the blissful world of computer genius with a side of marketing maven. You sit at your computer and stare blankly. You know you have stuff to do, but it's swirling around in your head and you can't quite get a grip on one idea or another.

Well, it's time to get yourself together!

Commit to changing the color of your store on the first day of each month
Commit to listing 2 items a day. Just one in the morning, one in the evening...no problem, right? It's better than letting another day go by with items still waiting their turn.
Commit to stopping by ESN. Once a week never hurt anybody. Say hello, hit a like button or two. Be friendly.
Commit to blogging. Don't have a blog? Visit blogger.com, which is great for newbies. Got one languishing from neglect? Get on the stick and Write Once A Week (minimum). Highlight 1 sale item every other post at least. Share who you are the rest of the time.
Commit to follow-through: If you use Blogger your uploaded photos are saved in Picasa. Go add the store link to the photo caption. (You just never know... do you)?
Commit to treating your store like a business. Think like a business. This is not the same thing as writing an email to Aunt Suzie in Kalamazoo. Even a small closet enterprise is still a viable business. The internet now has millions of people doing business, buying and selling, all while dressed in their pajamas. But it's all real business.
Commit to marketing one day a week minimum. Look at your store's Analytics to see where your customers are finding you. Then concentrate your efforts where it makes the most sense. If Twitter isn't doing it for you, then quit wasting time there (or wherever).
Commit to going back over your oldest listings. What you wrote then may surprise you now that you know more.
Commit to eliminating blurry pictures from your store. How professional do you want to be considered by your visitors?

Remember, there's no such thing as getting caught up. Everything is simply here and now. Your missed opportunities will not repeat; only new opportunities will show, so use them wisely. Don't stress -Yesterday is gone. Today is here. Tomorrow exists only in your mind.

Pro Member Profile: Sirocco's Curios

2011-12-23T10:12:00.003-05:00

Meet

Our newest ESN PRO member

What is your eCrater store URL?: http://sirocco.ecrater.com/

Store Promotion's: Hello, my name is Paul and I live in the cold part of Northern Minnesota. Welcome to Sirocco’s Curios, my eCrater store. Over the years I have collected all sorts of stuff. Most of it is stored in a big three-car garage. The garage is plumb full. Pickers would love my place. But, I have decided to list the items on eCrater. Come on in and have a look around. I am listing new items weekly. It will probably take me years to list everything.

Reactive

2011-12-15T13:35:00.000-05:00

The ESN blog had been deleted. At the time it just simply seemed like more trouble than it was worth. Now, as we prepare to enter into a new year that feeling of new starts and hopefulness prevails. So, striking while the option was still available I hit that Reactivate button.

Since the last post in October ESN has continued to grow. There are a lot of new members. There are lots of new items being showcased on ESN that we invite you to see. It's not too late to make a last minute purchase from some really fine eCrater stores.

We don't know what the future holds; we have no idea what the economy will be like in the next few months. But we are still optimistic. Sales this month have been steady, if not overly numerous. Customer feedback is positive and that means that our eCrater sellers continue to be vendors of integrity.

Stop by ESN and see things for yourself. If you own an eCrater store we'd love to have you join us!

L Alphabet Soup Day

2011-10-21T08:43:00.000-04:00

My bad! We were taking care of stuff at home and the Alphabet Soup was not posted yesterday. SO we're going to do it today!

All ESN members are invited to post about any of their items that relate to the letter L in the blog post ALPHABET SOUP L

Plus This

2011-09-19T07:23:00.003-04:00

Do you have a Google Plus account? It's the future. They are combining some of the best features of Facebook with your Picasa web albums and more. A big plus are the Circles. You know how you have tons of friends on FB? With circles you can divide those hook-ups into different groups, like family, friends, online business, etc. Then when you want to send store stuff to a particular set of people the info doesn't go to, say, your aunt and cousin.

There is a page for your Buzz contacts as well as your LIKES. Every time you hit one of those +1 buttons it shows up in your Like Feed. And it also shows up in Google searches.

Right now you must be careful about advertising on GP1. They don't like it or want it. But you can reference your blog or an item and of course you have the +1s. So don't you think you should start hitting the Like Button on your eCrater store items?

[Google Plus invites are still available]

Change is Good!

2011-08-24T09:31:00.002-04:00

The changes we made a few weeks ago are already paying off. ESN is seeing a big upswing in traffic and the Analytics prove it!

In addition to I Like It Tuesday and the Alphabet Soup Thursday we injected Blog-A-Rama into Wednesdays. On Blog-A-Rama days ESN members are asked to write a post on their own private external blogs (Blogger, WordPress, etc), highlighting their own sale items. After posting a link to the site should be shared in the Status/Activity feed .

So the week challenges all ESN members to be active and interactive on the eCrater Stores Network!

You already know that, when you tweet an item, your item hits go up. Did you realize the same thing happens when you post a blog about a single item?!

Change the Bookmark!

2011-08-10T16:38:00.002-04:00

Our ESN Facebook fan page has had one of those awful long numbers for a web address. It was hard to remember and just looked terrible. Today we finally took time to upgrade it to:

http://www.facebook.com/EcraterStoresNetwork

Please remember to update your bookmarks and links!

We invite all ESN members to post their ads on our fan page. And don't forget to stop by and LIKE each other's posts. If you'd like to share a rating we'd appreciate the feedback too!

Alphabet Soup Day

2011-08-04T09:37:00.001-04:00

Today the 2nd new feature on ESN begins! Welcome to Alphabet Soup Day. We will create a blog each Alphabet Soup day, with a designated letter of the alphabet to be used. Members will then hunt ESN for their own or another member's item that correlates with the letter of the day.

Rules

One Post per hour
No Duplicate Posts
ESN posted items only
You may post your item or another members

I Really Like It!

2011-08-02T17:11:00.003-04:00

Today is the first I Like It Tuesday! Today we are asking members to take a moment to come by the house and hit the Like Button! That's all it takes. The rules are simple and posted below. The point is to be interactive with ESN!

Use the "Like" button
Only LIKE once an hour
Do not duplicate the same LIKE
Only LIKE items found on ESN
You may LIKE your own items or another member's.

Yesterday ESN sent out a mass email to members. It's been great seeing so many people show up today on ESN. It is our hope that members who haven't been for a while will continue to participate. For many months we have continued with a small group of faithful members. A big THANK YOU for your continued support!

The reason ESN has such a small membership is simple: it's what we want. We would rather have a small group of participating members than to have 500 people who claim membership without ever showing up. ESN is a marketing workhorse for its members. We comment and click and blog and continually strive to keep our stores highlighted along with ESN itself.

We invite anyone who has a valid eCrater store to join, but only if you are serious about being a member. We don't need more links and RSS feeds to support without their owners.

Making Changes

2011-07-15T16:30:00.001-04:00

Sometimes it's hard to make changes to a store, even when you know you should. You feel the need to move merchandise around, retake photos, redo texts, and more. Your day is filled with listing and marketing.

Recently some people (on venues other than eCrater) have been experiencing a need to change. Their venues suddenly and without warning changed their policies and/or fees. Store owners were caught off-guard and had to make swift decisions to either bail out or pay up.

You hate to lose all that work and time invested in making a store. You've spent hours editing and uploading, creating banners, logos, ad titles, etc. It seems rather harsh that something you took so long to make can vanish with the press of one button.

How many times have you changed your mind about something and later regretted it? Starting over again makes you feel foolish, unsettled, and slightly drifty, In most cases change can be good, but sometimes it can be an "OMG, what have I done?" moment.

Often events like these are a product of burnout. You are just plain tired of dealing with the crapola surrounding you. You post items and feel like no one sees, you write a blog and find no one visits or reads; you tweet and comment and assume you're talking to the wall and you're the only one listening.

That's why ESN is so great. There are friends there who understand your dilemma that can help you make that decision of whether to regroup or hit delete. They can help you over that burnout hump with encouraging words to wait for the next shopping season, don't give up hope, it'll all come together. They have advise that is worth listening to because they have been in your shoes. They know the ins and outs of what it takes to reach a conclusion to a problem.

I would never be able to sell online without my peeps at ESN. They keep me solid.

New Goals, Better Focus

2011-07-02T16:31:00.007-04:00

It’s been discussed, we’ve shared tips and ideas, our hearts are in the right places…but somehow we never quite get around to following a schedule or organizing ourselves the way we want to. For me, I have a long to-do list with no end in sight. I have to get organized and I need to stay focused. There are too many cracks for too many things to fall into these days!

It’s made even harder to settle on a straight and narrow path to success because of the internet and how it’s used is constantly changing. There’s no such thing as “I’m finished” whether it’s listing, researching, studying, reading blogs or tweets or comments. It just never ends.

Goals need to be determined with the mindset that 6 months down the road it will all need to be re-evaluated and new goals set.

About 6 months ago I had read and studied and believed that tweeting 24/7 was not the way to go. Google Analytics backed it up because most of my traffic was NOT coming from Twitter. Who has time for that anyway (unless you have nothing to list in your store and no blogs to write; never mind Facebook)? Like me, most people were frustrated at seeing so much spam and ignored it all. I pretty much quit posting on there about my own sale items. Most of my tweets were automatically made for me when I’d post on another site. It was win-win. I wasn’t wasting my time on something that didn’t work. Now it’s time to take another look at that strategy.

Since that time the world has seen a great rise in the use of Buttons. Google’s got buttons for your blog, you can give data a +1 from a lot of different places. You can hit share after listing a product in your stores and there aren’t enough choices for people to use on your blogs you can insert some selections for them to pick from! So now there’s no excuse to not tweet about your product, send it to Facebook, and tell Google you like it yourself to boot!

Even so, that doesn’t mean that when I visit my Twitter page I want to see a row of 20 posts by the same person touting their glorious whatzitz. I find that invasive and frankly it’s all I can do to block them from ever darkening my day again. Use discretion, please. How would you like to get junk mail from your local used car salesman every day over and over? Not so much! It’s the same thing. Don’t Do It!

So the goals for Tweeting these days is to add your nicely worded ad in such a way as to cause others to want to retweet it for you. You don’t have to bombard – you have to connect, network…let the system do the work for you.

For all the other jobs on your to-day list do small spurts of it consistently throughout the week. Blog on Wednesdays, list at least 2 things every day. Comment on Facebook every other day. Spread it out; don’t get overwhelmed and get back to enjoying the experience.

With a 6 month window you don’t have to feel guilty that you’re behind, or lax, or OMG, getting burnout. Things change. At 6 months it can be a whole new ball game, inning 1, batter 1.

Analytics Shows All

2011-06-14T19:29:00.003-04:00

A list of top Google searches from ESN Google Analytics with the high resulting Stores and the Keywords that were used. Click the store name to visit these fine stores:

Eccentric Thrifter - 2,910 Keyword: Cake Pan, Hawiian Shirt
Carolina Blue Lady - 2,885 Keyword: Depression Glass
Comycgyrl Collectibles - 2,743 Keyword: Jack and Jill TV Radio
Embroidery Fashions Boutique - 2,496 Keyword: Mother of Bride
Barbs Bargains - 2,456 Keyword: Bargain
T-Storm Graphics - 2,300 Keyword: Vinyl
Turning Pages - 1,978 Keyword: Book Lot
Beachcat Bargians - 1,200 Keyword: Bargain
Twilight Slumber - 1,024 Keyword Faery
Mystery Lane Books - 1,005 Keyword Book
Wesley Lambert - 1,000 Keyword: Bead
Nancy's Doll Closet - 1,000 Keyword: Dolls
Hazels Hodge-Podge - 889 Keyword: Cookie Jar
Le Petit Marche - 825 Keyword: Clothing
World Grocery Store and More - Keyword: God

When One Succeeds

2011-06-05T08:22:00.001-04:00

It somehow evolved that the mantra or slogan at the eCrater Stores Network became "When one succeeds, we all succeed!" That really does sum up what ESN is all about. Although competition can be the mainstay among store vendors and selling venues at ESN the claws are retracted and peace and goodwill abounds.

It's nice to have a safe haven on the internet where you are among friends and not competitors. This is the place to ask a question and get a productive answer. Really, there are no dumb questions here. No one thinks you're foolish for not knowing something. You won't get the runaround from people trying to thwart your efforts to have a sale or two. No one wants to succeed while you flounder.

We are in this ecommerce online worldwide explosion together.
Many of us didn't even have a computer when we went to school; some got their first computer after becoming grandparents! It's all been a learning process from day one. The road has not been easy. We've had to play catch-up to those younger, more computer savy sellers.

But we like it!
We have slowly but surely become addicted to sitting in front of the little screen, taking pictures of inanimate objects, and writing ads as if we were studying to become used car salesmen. It is work...a lot of hard, time-consuming work...and it's fun. We have made lasting virtual friendships while doing this new hobby, way of life thing.

At ESN that's the best part. We have a home away from home, where we can find friends, answers, ideas, and a sense of belonging. Even if you don't make a sale this week yourself, if someone else succeeds you feel a joy on their behalf. We share the moments as they come, the good and the bad, the many and the few. So see? If one succeeds, we all succeed!

Across the Globe

2011-05-27T08:25:00.001-04:00

ESN has members from all over the world. The internet has made it possible to talk with like-minded sellers in real time, discussing problems and finding solutions as if we were chatting with a neighbor down the street. To keep up with our ESN visitors and members we installed a rotating world globe from Revolver Maps to help us get a visual on who ESN really is!

Most of our hits are coming from the US; most of our members are from here. But we are getting visits from Asia and Europe and, well, all over! I am fascinated at how quickly our hit counter is going up!

Don't be left out! Come visit ESN and leave your 'dot' on the map!

ReVamp

2011-05-15T15:34:00.001-04:00

ESN is going through growing pains right now. Along with the new year transition we've been busy behind the scenes getting things spruced up a bit. We've changed our bright blue for something a little more subdued and according to one ESN opinion it's a little easier on the older eyes. Well, we're all about making things easy around here!

New Pro member banners are starting to come in now and it takes time to get each of them coded into the right spots. So be patient, it will happen! Besides the store Directory we have rotating banners on both the ESN home page and here on the ESN blog.

If you need to update your old banner or send in a new one make sure it's 335 x 50 px in jpg format. You can message Wolfie when you have it uploaded. Don't forget to list your store selling categories and store address too!

When you're out browsing around and listing your items don't forget to stop by the ESN fan page and put an ad on there too! And while you're there take a moment to "like" some of the other postings. You can never have enough LIKES!

You can also share ESN quickly by clicking the convenient Buzz, Facebook, and Twitter buttons at the top of the ESN home page.

One more suggestion: if you're a blogger, why not get a copy of the ESN blog widget for your own blog. Just click on the link below the widget!

The bottom line is that the more you advertise ESN, the more traffic we get. The more traffic we get, the more you get your store visited! And that's what ESN is all about!

Moms Know Best

2011-05-07T06:38:00.004-04:00

In the Small Business world online, there are probably more Moms at work at their little enterprises than any other group of people. No, this is not based on some elaborate survey or database, it's just a gut feeling I have, starting back in my old eBay days (didn't everyone cut their teeth there?).

Back then it seemed like every vendor was a mom struggling to make a few extra dollars selling reclaimed items from their office warehouse, usually a closet or the extra bedroom. If people could have seen what these businesses were actually made of...!

Hard to believe, but I think most of these little tadpole shops survived. It wasn't because of a big overhead and a sophisticated computer system; it was purely hard-ass work and a strong-willed drive to succeed.

The Mom Businesses survived as women across the country reached out to each other through forums and chat rooms trying to discover the best way to market their yard sale finds and pass-me-down baby clothes. They shared what they learned with other newbie Moms and weren't afraid to ask questions when they didn't know something.

Together we grew. Today, a lot of those same Moms have thriving online eCommerce storefronts. They are selective about their products, they write great ads, they work the system and as it changes and evolves they become Small Time Gurus.

We will never be real competition for the Amazons and Buy.com's of the world, but Moms have surely carved a place for themselves; they have earned a place on our monitor's real estate. Between PTA meetings and shuttle busing the kids, cooking, cleaning, and wiping noses they have succeeded.

They have business cards, magnetic signs on their cars, and enjoy knowing they have generated repeat customers. They have a greater sense of who they are besides chief bottle-washer and child-bearing diva.

They are a force to be reckoned with in this cyberspace world we live in.

Here's to all the Moms! You rock our world and we like what we see!
Happy Mother's Day

Back to Work!

2011-04-25T07:51:00.003-04:00

Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter weekend. But now, it's back to work. There is much to do before Mother's Day and Father's Day arrives!

By now you should have gotten all your shipping costs adjusted to the recent price changes made by USPS. A quick fix is to go 'calculated' on your store items. Take out Media Mail as an option and you won't have anyone picking the cheaper rate for an item that should be going by Parcel or Priority. (Yes, there are those people who actually choose incorrectly).

That fixed, you now have time for you to concentrate on the Google product attribute requirements that need to be in place by May 3. Ecrater is helping you to identify items that need attention by placing a red mark next to the Google Attribute button in your Admin items list. After making a list of these needs go pull each item and look for UPC, MPN, ISBNs and other unique identifiers. If, after plugging in the numbers, you still get a red mark consider finding a different category to list in, such as vintage or collectible (depending on the product, of course).

Not having the right numbers doesn't mean you can't sell the item; it just means the item will not be included in the Product Feed uploads to Google. Although that's a biggie, it's not the end of the world. There are other avenues to pursue to market your items, some you should have been doing all along:

PROMO TIPS

Go back into the Promote My Store section under your eCrater Admin More Options. Add your store to anything and everything that you've missed.

If you don't have a blog, make one and start running ads on there. (Hook up with networkblogs for easy cross-promotion to Facebook)

Showcase your items with slideshows. Blogger photos go to your Picasa albums. Make slideshows for your blog. You can also grab a slideshow code from your ESN photos too!

Hook up with the ESN Blog Group Scavenger Hunters and cross-promote with other sellers.

Tweet consistently about your items. Make sure to add pictures too!

Stumbleupon is the most underused promotion tool. Start educating yourself about it's benefits and then make it your favorite tool.

On Facebook, besides your own page, you can place ads on the ESN Facebook page. (if you haven't LIKED it yet, now's a good time so it will appear on your own page as a shortcut).

Become an ESN PRO member for extra promotion of your store (you MUST be an eCrater seller to participate).

Don't forget about other places like Myspace or Multiply. Tap into what's available to widen your reach across cyberspace.

Set up a schedule, doing something to promote everyday. Don't get overwhelmed. If you start to stress, stop by ESN for a break with the coolest seller friends around, who understand where you are coming from and where you are going!

Our ESN motto is "when one succeeds, we all succeed" and it is so true, especially at a time like this when we are powering through another selling dilemma. Be part of the power and be part of ESN today! It can only help, and knowing you're not alone can make a world of difference to your attitude. Remember, things are not impossible, only a bit challenging at times.

Goal!

2011-04-17T18:06:00.001-04:00

We have reached our goal of having enough sponsor members to continue for another year on ESN! Thank you to all 33 members who have signed up. When the new year starts in July we will be ready with our banner links and more!

This doesn't mean that becoming a Pro member is over! Anyone member of ESN can upgrade from the free membership to Pro. All the details are currently on the ESN Site Value blog post on the site.

ESN PRO MEMBERS Have Reached The Goal!

2011-04-15T09:09:00.006-04:00

Here's our updated list as of Sunday, April 17:

PRO MEMBERS LIST

ESN Benefits

2011-03-30T10:04:00.008-04:00

All eCrater store owners are allowed to join ESN free of charge. ESN is a dedicated eCrater seller group only. There is NO advertising of any other selling platform.

Perks include:

Having your own Profile Page to list your eCrater store locations
List your Blog address on your Profile Page
Attaching an RSS Feed to your store
Attaching an Ecrater Store Widget
Participate in Discussions and Forums
Join and participate in Groups
Store name will be listed in ESN Directory, but no banner
Advertising on ESN Facebook fan page

No uploading of photos
No linking or advertising in the ESN blog (this is a separate site)

For Pro Members perks include all free perks plus the following:

Upload photos of merchandise for sell in eCrater stores on your Profile Page (follow the photo uploading or making album guidelines, please)
Your banner will be shown in the ESN Directory under the categories that you sell in. Banners for multiple stores are welcome if multiple store payment is received. Store name CAN be listed in ESN Directory without banner upon request
Join and Get promoted on ESN Facebook
Add blog link in ESN blogger - Ecrater Stores Rock, the Ecrater Stores Network Blog

Cost to Join ESN as a Pro Member (annual April renewal)

$7.00 per store / 1 profile page setup
No pro rate for partial year

Closer, Closer

2011-03-27T20:41:00.004-04:00

Sign-ups for next year's sponsors has been going pretty good. We are close to getting to our target amount...the amount that it will cost for each participant. A good thing too - the new year starts in Summer!

The Admins have been really thinking hard about making significant changes for the coming year. ESN has grown quite a bit and offers so much more than when it began. In the interim we've been moving features around, and evaluating what worked and what didn't over the last few months.

Some simple things you may have noticed over the last month are some ever changing features. We have had different weekly graphics welcoming you to the site. A specially chosen Featured Item is presented to bring it to the attention of member sand visitors alike.

Of course the Blogging Group is a real headliner, with weekly themes to motivate members to blog about each other and do cross-promotion. On the group's page a member site is featured too. If you haven't seen them stop by.

Members have no idea of how much work behind the scene actually goes into the running of ESN. None of the Admins are professionals, but are simply people who care about making our stores and eCrater the best they can be. To do that and do it well takes an enormous amount of time. Even going through stacks of email is a real time consumer, and consider all the computer jargon we have to research and learn on the spot when solving a particular problem. It's a wonder they have anything listed on their own stores!

But they've figured it out one way or another. Admins are a great support team for the members as well as each other. And they will continue to encourage all members of ESN to strive for the best.

After all, when one succeeds, we all succeed!

To Be or Not To Be?

2011-03-22T08:34:00.009-04:00

That is the question... the annual Ning contract is fast approaching its deadline. For the last month or so the Admin team has been behind the scenes making decisions and coming up with solutions. With the economic slump hitting everyone these days, it has been questionable whether or not ESN would continue in its present format.

So this time the stakes are high. Last year the annual Ning Plus contract fee of $200 was divided by 40 stores at $5 per store. Perks were attached to the Sponsors' membership with store banner placements, featured spots at several sites and more. We don't mind doing that as thanks for helping with the costs.

THE PROBLEM
In recent months Membership has been sliced to the core by Admin who strongly and firmly believes that in order for ESN to remain a desirable destination for eCrater sellers it must be populated by members who participate on a regular basis. To have members that simply sign up, never to return, leaving a trail of links behind is not what ESN is about.

Because of that apathetic slacker mentality we may not have enough to renew the contract this year. And those who would volunteer, but will not come back to participate (as they did last year) are of little help. It does no good to say you want to be here when in reality you are never here. We don't just need money, we want the people!

So, with all that said, ESN would rather survive with 10 active people than 200 no shows.

Should ESN meet the same financial Plan level requirements for another year members will be required to at least show up once a month to remain members, regardless of whether they 'chipped in' or not. ESN is not a cheap 'leave a link' site!

ALTERNATIVES

One alternative would be to down-size to the lower Mini plan with less features including no events, groups or chat, no pages and very limited Apps and photos. Storage would drop dramatically.

Another option is to move to Online Sellers, a free site with lots of RSS and HTML It is similar enough to be fairly comfortable. We'd be able to retain our community friendships and connections and market our stores. Some ESN members are already on there.

THE ANSWERS
Admin sent a mass email to all the members yesterday. Responses are being accepted and will be the utmost determining factor in all of this. Please take time to add your response at http://ecrater.ning.com/profiles/blogs/esn-site-value

Scavenger Hunters Grow

2011-03-07T06:38:00.005-05:00

This week ESN gained another blogger on the growing list of Scavenger Hunters. Embroidery Fashions Boutique has tossed their hat into the ring and now enjoys the benefits of being a participating Scavenger Hunter!

When you join Scavenger Hunters members get the benefit of having their own ESN sale item photos included in the list of potential choices representing the weekly blog themes. Each week members select 3 – 4 items to highlight based on the weekly theme. Currently there are 8 members who see random selections from their own inventory being written about on 8 different blogs! Posters also include links to the owners’ eCrater store items so viewers can go check it out in full and make a purchase or two while at the store.

Using the Configure Blog List Blogger Gadget the cross-promotion is also enhanced by the inclusion of a list of Scavenger Hunters blogs, along with links and thumbnail images of the most recent blog. This helps to make the whole package an excellent marketing tool.

Scavenger Hunters are members of the Blogging Group on ESN.

We're Not THEM!

2011-02-21T08:13:00.003-05:00

Often times, new members on ESN, have come straight from the 'other place,' where, pretty much, we've all been there, and done that. So we all come to eCrater with this preformed mindset that tells us how things are supposed to be.

When we get to eCrater we discover we don't know what we thought we did. All of a sudden the world is a big 'free' place, without all the harsh rules and you-got-to-do-it-this-way-or-else mentality. We're suddenly free to think and be who we want to be.

All along, going back to the first day you signed up for 'the other place' you just wanted to have your own little piece of the ecommerce real estate rock. You wanted your own little store, doing your own little business. Some wanted it for a hobby, and some, for their bread and butter of everyday living, but basically we all started out with that same dream.

Then, after all the hoopla, the bad feelings, the 'over it' that comes for many small mom & pop type stores....many have come to eCrater. But now that you're here, then what?

The old mindset kicks in. Ads and Titles are written like they've been done for years. You look for feedback at every turn. You forget that you are in charge of your own marketing because no one is doing it for you anymore. You don't have that prefab audience and definitive search result you've depended on.

The fact is, you have the whole world for an audience now. Search results show up on many different outlets. Ads and Titles must be written to meet a new set of needs and to help guarantee how your items show up in a world-wide search. Feedback is not required and when you get a good one, you know it wasn't done from a check list, but was actually from a truly happy customer who volunteered to let you know. You set your own prices and shipping costs; you even decide if you'll take cash or not because you are free to choose.

On eCrater there are very few roadblocks in your way. eCrater simply gives you a spot on the 'net to do your thing. All they really ask is that you play fair and with integrity. One of the few 'requirements' is that you refrain from selling certain types of items that most venues require, (so that request is nothing out of the ordinary). All in all, it's on you to make a go of it.

If you are not selling anything it is not eCrater's fault, it's your own. You can't just list an item and not market it. It's your store, your items, your prices, your ads, your everything. Yours, yours, yours... it's all yours! If it doesn't work it's your fault too. So get off your ass and make it work. A great sense of accomplishment awaits you!

To help you in developing your new mindset and discovering new creative ways to showcase your store, we invite all eCrater sellers to join ESN, the eCrater Stores Network.

Hunting for a Scavenger Hunt

2011-02-16T07:49:00.005-05:00

On ESN we have a Bloggers Group. Last October we decided to do a little cross-promotion. Currently we have 7 members who still faithfully blog every week about other ESN members. Each week we have a different focus or theme to base those blog posts on. It's not easy coming up with ideas for Scavenger Hunt themes.

Lately we've been inspired by the bad weather that seemed to have settled over most of the country for an extended length of time. We blogged about WATER a couple of weeks ago; this week we've been blogging a SUNSHINE theme...we are tired of water in any undrinkable form like ice, snow, or hail.

Ah, sunshine...we all want it, we all need it. It seems like it's been so long since we felt the warmth through the gray dismal clouds.

We did a BIRTHDAY theme recently too. I must confess I was inspired because I had a birthday of my own so I thought a birthday theme would be cheerful. It was... we had blogs about balloons, presents, cake... all kinds of viewpoints.

During Super Bowl we blogged about SPORTS...I was surprised at how much sporting goods are for sale by our ESN eCrater store members!

I have a feeling with Spring around the corner we're going to be having some pretty blogs soon. I'm thinking FLOWERS are poking their heads out of the ground now! Our bloggers are so different, coming from all parts of the country with varying lifestyles. It's always interesting to see how each person will take a theme and run with it. If you get a moment stop by and read some of the past posts from our bloggers:

Barb's Bargains - http://barbsbargainsatecrater.blogspot.com/

Bargain Express - http://bargainexpress.blogspot.com/

Carolina Blue Lady - http://carolinabluelady.blogspot.com/

Comycgyrl - http://comycgyrl.com/

Eccentric Thrifter - http://eccentricthrifter.blogspot.com/

Hazel's Hodgepodge - http://hazels-hodge-podge.blogspot.com/

T-Storm Graphics - http://tstormgraphics.blogspot.com/

New Year, New Changes

2011-02-06T15:58:00.003-05:00

ESN has been getting a slight make-over. We still have the same great people and lots of colorful photos of items for sale. But we've been taking a hard look at how the Groups and Forum have shaped up over the last year.

We used to have over 30 special interest groups, for everything from Avon and Auto Parts to Sports and Vintage fill-in-the-blank stuff. A lot of those groups had been joined by people who stopped by one day, left a smattering of photos and RSS feeds, and then left, never to be heard from again. They clearly had no intention of actually participating in ESN, let alone a Group. After much debate and discussion that long list of Groups has been turned into a list that includes consolidation and hopefully, more participation!

CURRENT ESN GROUPS

Bloggers
Books & Home Entertainment
China, Glass & Pottery
Clothing & Accessories
Handmade
Holidays
Jewelry
Variety Stores

As for the Forum, redundancy, with the same information in several places at once, seems to have been a hallmark of the old operation. So, we have gone through the forums with a fine-toothed comb, and sorted and prodded our way to a new resemblance of order. We discovered that most of the information revolved around 4 basic themes:

FORUM DISCUSSION AREA

Advertising
eCrater Help
Marketing Tools
Product Research

These are not huge lists, but they do cover the basics and then some. We try to keep thing current as far as events happening. Information that has been gleaned along the way has been preserved for easy reference. We're not opposed to having more groups along the way, and welcome new input in all of our forums. We all try to help each other learn some new way of doing something, or solve a problem. Everyone benefits from the shared experience.

But the key to success in any idea exchange format is to have participants who really want to, well..., participate. It's all well and good to think that you may have found a site to drop your links that will be free advertising for your venue, and maybe say a couple of hello's before you bail. But that isn't what ESN is about. It's about being an active part of a community of like-minded sellers who care about their own stores AND the stores of their contemporaries. Without ALL the sellers and tradespeople who make up eCrater, there is no eCrater; and without the members of the ESN community, there is NO ESN!

We welcome all eCrater sellers to join ESN and bring your ideas and concerns about selling, your corny jokes and your real life sorrows. We share it all, and through it all you get to become part of a great extended family. Don't delay - join today!

Water Theme Week

2011-01-27T19:10:00.005-05:00

With all the rain we’ve had lately it was only logical to make use of it in some way…hence, this week’s ESN Scavenger Hunt Theme.
I’ve said it before; I’ll say it again – I’m always amazed at how different the responses are to our weekly scavenger hunt. Everyone sees things in such a fresh way, that it’s never the same way twice! You can never get bored with reading the newest posts each week. We are privileged to have 7 committed bloggers who share their insights with us. This week’s water theme was no exception….

Along with a little reminiscing, Hazel also shared some ESN finds related to keeping out of the rain.

Rain, rain Go away come again another day Rain rain Go Away Little Johnny wants to Play.
It's raining, it's pouring. The old man is snoring. He jumped in bed and bumped his head,
and couldn't get up it the morning.

Check out T Storm Graphics take on water. Can you tell where she went with this water theme? Lots of ESN ecrater store owners sell bathing supplies.

Bargain Express took a different route with her Gone Fishing blog post.
Eccentric Thrifter did a post on water indoors and outside. And there are more to see. Stop by ESN – there’s something new everyday!

Don't Blame Us

2011-01-23T05:29:00.002-05:00

I recently found a review where someone had given eCrater a very low rating. They had made a purchase from a scammer and blamed eCrater for not standing behind the product. eCrater responded they had closed the store and investigating. They referred the buyer to his checkout provider to deal with the money issue for the unreceived item.

I was so incensed at them blaming eCrater for their own foolish mistake of not doing any research before buying and then having the nerve to say that eCrater was "all profit, no liability!"

Here is my comment:

What do you mean "all profit, no liability"? eCrater simply gives people a place to host their stores and offers a few tools to use; no more than a lot of hosting sites. They don't get paid for anything...it's all FREE. There is no profit!

This isn't eBay! eCrater is not "running" stores or telling vendors how to operate. Each store and vendor is on their own. eCrater makes it possible for buyers and sellers to come together. When discovered, unscrupulous sellers are barred from using the site. But as far as controling what sellers do and sell that's not what eCrater is about.

It's up to the potential customer to do their homework, ask questions, make inquiries before they press a Buy Now button. That's for any site with any vendor. In this case, if there had been previous issues with this seller, then chances are good that there was already information out there about it.

Those 'bad guys' are all over the internet...getting banned from one site doesn't put them out of business. They just go somewhere else until they are caught again. Buyers MUST be on point at all times!

(Read more comments: http://www.rateitall.com/r-8288015.aspx#ixzz1BqoVEV9n )

The saying Buyer Beware isn't just a slogan someone made up! It's a truth to be embedded into every customer everywhere, regardless of whether the venue is a brick and morter store to the virtual cyberspace world. In this day and age it seems like the bad guys are vastly outweighing the good guys. You have to be responsible for your own actions and decisions. You must be aware of your options and become your own first line of defense. Do your homework, do your research, do the studies...whatever you call it, do it!

Remember the person who spilt hot coffee on their lap while driving and then blamed McD's for making the coffee so hot? We all thought it was ridiculous that they'd blamed anyone but themselves for what had happened. I mean, who drives around with a coffee cup between their legs?! Unfortunately, in this case and probably because the company involved was big-time, compensation was awarded by a judge. We still thought it was ridiculous.

But that seems to be the mentality these days. No one takes responsibility for their own actions and everyone wants to blame someone else because they did something dumb.

Regarding scammers, there's a million of 'em. You're not going to see a big sign on them stating "I'm a Scammer." But if you happen to find one, report it. Then blog it. Comment about it somewhere, maybe everywhere - so others will be able to do that homework and discover who's not playing nicely.

The last word:
eCrater is a terrific place to buy and sell. The majority of the people who use eCrater everyday are fine upstanding people of integrity and honesty...everyday people you'd be proud to call "friend." I am pleased to be a vendor and will continue to use eCrater for a good long while to come.

Welcome

2011-01-05T11:09:00.003-05:00

We extend a warm welcome to our newest ESN Blog author, CarolinaBlueLady. CBL (as she is sometimes known on ESN) has been a member of the ESN Admin Team for quite some time now.

CBL is ESN's chief Officer in Charge of all Groups. CBL does a tremendous job keeping up with the 30 Groups available to ESN members, spending a lot of time.making sure that all the slideshows are kept current with member store item photos. She is constantly in motion!

In addition she is also one of the first people to extend greetings to new members and offers help to anyone needing assistance. CBL is a delight to have on staff and we look forward to her posts and comments here on our Ecrater Stores Rock! blog.

From Blog to Buy

2011-01-01T14:51:00.002-05:00

Do you use Blogger to host your blog? If you do and you haven't done so, go see what countries your blog is attracting.

Go in to check your Stats through your Blogger Dashboard. Then click Design.

Click the Audience tab to see where your blog visitors have been coming from. Get the whole long term stats by clicking All time. Under the map will be a list of the top countries that stop by your place.

Now go check that list against your eCrater store Shipping Matrix. You may want to start shipping to those countries if you don't already!

And while you're checking your blog stats, you may want to click on Traffic Sources to see who's been referring folks to your blog!

Scavenger Hunt Blogging

2010-12-21T17:03:00.006-05:00

We have had a delightful few weeks doing our ESN Scavenger Hunts. Now, with Christmas is upon us and things ever so busy now in these last few days, we have stopped the official (if you can call it that) blogging requests and left everyone to enjoy their holidays and to do postings on their own and in their own timeframe.

The question was posed today, do we continue next year or not? So far, the overwhelming response has been to continue! Here are some recent comments (and links to their blogs):

Bargain Express: Count me in! I have a tendency to slack off if there's nothing to push me into getting it done. I've definitely seen an increase in traffic/referrals from it. And it's fun!!
T Storm Graphics: I like the scavenger hunt! I do need that little shove and guidance to keep me blogging - besides having something to write about helps a lot.
Hazel’s HodgePodge: Enjoyed doing the scavenger hunts. It has helped me get into blogging.
CarolinaBlueLady: I would definitely want to continue doing the scavenger hunts going forward….. it is fun and keeps us on top of our blogging and that for me means keeping up with Facebook and Twitter and I also think it has increased hits on my stores….
Eccentric Thrifter: I've definitely seen referrals from the other bloggers…. I've also seen a growth of new followers on both the blog and on FB. I'm good with keeping it going!
Comycgyrl Collectibles: I would like to keep scavenger hunt going! Was a lot of fun searching for things.

Anyone can get in on the act. We’d love to have you participate! Blogging about each other and putting links on our blogs is about as simple as you can get for marketing. And you get to know some of your online friends better than just knowing their name and where they sell. Real friendships develop!

Drop us a line if you want in for the new round of Scavenger Hunt 2011! But be quick - starts after the holidays!

Two Front Teeth

2010-12-17T15:38:00.005-05:00

The Scavenger Hunt, altho a little bit slowed with the busy holiday season, is still going strong. At this point some people are starting to get into the habit of blogging much more regularly, doing it more than the former "hit or miss" technique they used. That could be the silver-lining of this blogging experiment. This writer believes that blogging, and marketing through blogging is much more effective than simply sending a blurb on Twitter or Facebook. At least, it's more detail-oriented.

This week, because everyone is so preoccupied with Christmas, the theme was "All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth." Catchy, huh? We weren't looking for teeth, but what we looked for was two special items from among all the ESN photos that we would like to either give or receive.

We've all said that it's easier to shop for ourselves than someone else, but actually sitting down to look for something for yourself wasn't really so easy afterall....there are several thousand items on the ESN network and that means there are way too many good choices from which to pick! Simple or difficult, many of our ESN bloggers have written exciting posts sharing their thoughts on items you may want to see for yourself!

It's All About Posting

2010-12-05T07:11:00.005-05:00

The new SCAVENGER HUNT for Dec. 5-11 starts today! The theme is: Your Last 3 Items

Everyone should be blogging like this on a regular basis. It's just good marketing, getting your items out there in another small way. In case you've been lax in the blog posting department, maybe this will give you the push to start doing it more regularly. Add it to your New Year's resolution for 2011.

Christmas is almost here and advertising our own items is more important now than ever! Each ESN member is asked to blog about the last 3 items that they posted on their eCrater stores. Add store links in the paragraph and make the picture clickable so visitors can quickly find your store item.

After the blog is published tell the world. Share the blog link on the I POSTED discussion in the Blogger Group, to Twitter and Facebook and post it on the ESN Fan Page.

The point is to get your item and your links out there for everyone to see! Happy posting!

Holiday Season Starts NOW!

2010-11-29T13:17:00.006-05:00

It is the happy holiday season already! Where did the year go? Seems like only yesterday we were getting started with our January sales, setting up our excel files to hold all our lovely sales data, joining networks, researching new and exciting things to list. Well, don’t worry folks; it’s almost that time again!

But in the meantime, our Scavenger Hunt this week is to look for and blog about something for sale by ESN members that showcase RED and GREEN. What better way to kick off the holidays?

This should be an interesting mix of results. To get the ball rolling here are a couple of candidates:

Just click on the pictures to go to the eCrater store that sells them!

Let’s Sparkle

2010-11-16T17:31:00.005-05:00

Last week’s ESN Scavenger Hunt on Kitchen items brought some really good and diverse blogs to the forefront. Its always interesting to see how each person treats a subject. If you’d like to see the kitchen inspired blog posts visit last week’s posting here.

This week we’re all about SPARKLES

With Christmas coming we’re sure there will be more than one stocking that will be holding a shiny bauble or two. What better place to find the perfect sparkly gift than from a trusted eCrater store?!

The ESN bloggers are invited to look through the thousands of photos uploaded by our members and highlight those items that best show their sparkle! In the coming week we’ll share those ‘find’ with our readers!

Happy Hunting!

Where’s That Kitchen Stuff?

2010-11-11T08:57:00.006-05:00

We apparently have the BEST BLOGGERS around! Here’s some of the latest posts from our Kitchen Scavenger Hunt! Take a moment to see how these great writers view things so differently on the same subject!

Because we are cross-promoting each other with our blogs, the images showing up are making our own blogs look that much better too!

Recycled Shipping Center

2010-11-01T20:00:00.005-04:00

Thot I’d share my little shipping center with you. Basically about a year ago a neighbor gave me this tremendous cabinet about 10 feet long and 5 foot deep with 2 sets of huge doors. It was free just for moving it! I keep my large shipping boxes and packing stuff, like a huge box of foam peanuts in there. You can kind of see how large the doors (and space) would be.

On top of the counter I have put about 7 plastic crates across the back for quick access to recycled bubble wrap I get from received packages. I also have my 50lb weight scale, markers, scissors, etc. in back…easy reach and out of the way. You can’t quite see it, but the little brown pencil holder is one I made in art in 8th grade. OMG! How long ago that was!

Now the best part in my going green shipping center is the recycled freezer basket. It is the perfect size to hold a huge roll of brown craft paper by using a metal rod inside to roll it. I just pull what I need, cut to size, and roll the rest back into the basket. My yardstick fits right in-between the wires so it’s right there when i need it and out of the way too.

The smaller drawers on the right side of the counter is from a set of kitchen cabinets that somebody gave us, along with the overhead cabinets above the counter. I keep all my tape and dispensers in there. I do bulk purchases of clear tape; I also keep a roll of Priority tape, removable tape labels, etc. in the drawers. I use that removable to hold the paper in place until I can get the big mamajama tape put on. Sometimes you just need an extra hand.

And on top of the little drawer cabinet I keep all my international shipping forms in a thrift store find – one of those carved wooden mail sorters.

And of course, practically every time we go to the grocery store or see someone putting up stock we get boxes to recycle. Subways and pizza places often buy cans of sauce, etc. in boxes that are just the right size for medium items.

We ate at a breakfast restaurant not long ago; they were putting up stock. They said to come back on Tuesdays anytime I needed boxes because that’s the day they’re emptying them. We left with a carload!

Ok, there you have it. I’m doing my part to recycle as much as possible!

Let’s Scav

2010-10-26T17:45:00.007-04:00

Let’s scavenger hunt! This week the entire membership of ESN has been invited to participate in a blitz scavenger hunt. The theme of the hunt is Autumn, Fall, whatever you call it….we’re looking for the warm and cozy, the falling leaves, the hot chocolate season’s best items to feature in our blogs.

The happy hunting grounds? The uploaded store item photo pages on ESN! Any properly uploaded photo that meets the theme requirements is perfect for doing a feature article on.

Members choose how many item photos they want from among the over 5,000 available. Then they go to their own blogs and post reviews along with links to those items. As a final step, bloggers come back to ESN and share the link to their blog so we can all ooh and ahhh!

If every member would select at least 3 items to review, think how much potential traffic that would be to eCrater stores?!

Just a Blog Thing

2010-10-12T08:43:00.005-04:00

Over in the ESN Blog Group there is a lively Discussion where our bloggers can sign up for blog cross-promotion. It is the hope of the group to give their blogs more publicity. Each week a different blog rule will be created to make this a fun exercise, with everyone being reviewed on everybody else’s blog without redundancy. By the time Christmas rolls around higher hit counts and sales will hopefully be an obvious result.

This week (Oct. 10-16) every blogger is asked to blog about the 2 members BELOW them (bottom does the 2 top members).

Current Blog Roll:

UPDATE: Week 11/17-23 doing the 2 blogs above yours!

Just a Highlight or 2

2010-10-04T19:21:00.007-04:00

This is a catch-all post to highlight some of our ESN highlights.

I spent last weekend getting the sponsor banners into their own showcasing slideshow. Each banner has it’s own store link for easy access to stores. Not bad for a non-coding geek-wannabe. It’s not the prettiest thing, but it works, the banners look good, and it definitely has links to sponsor stores! [Contact Admin about grabbing a banner for your store].
Last week ESN added our own Facebook fan page. We had to change out the old administration’s link anyway, so why not go full out! So now, all ESN members are invited to post their ads on the eCrater Stores Network Facebook page.
When the Administration of ESN changed hands we took it upon ourselves to cull a lot of the ‘dead weight’ from within the pages. There were a lot of former member who simply abandoned their pages, photos, etc. rather than hit the delete button. Needless to say, the membership roster took a short tumble, but the rebound is going nicely. We are currently up to 260 members and growing more each day. We’d rather have fewer active members, than a roster full of just names.
Per my last post, ESN members who have blogs emphasizing their eCrater stores can submit your blog addy for a link on the ESN blog. Some former blogs on there were chatting up other venues too much for an eCrater site and were cut. I’d also point out that if you don’t have your blog listed on your Follow-Me profile you should add it! Anything to make it easy to be found!

ESN Bloggers

2010-10-01T19:42:00.005-04:00

If you have a blog that regularly touts the delights of being an eCrater user AND if you keep that blog up-to-date then we would like to invite you to submit your blog for inclusion on ESN Blog.

In the past we were highlighting the blogs of our wonderful Blog followers. But alas, many of those blogs are NOT current; in fact some haven’t been updated in over 10 months. Then there are the blogs that are just don’t have much to offer regarding eCrater. A shame too, because out of all the venues, eCrater is one of the best…user friendly, free, 10 photos per item, no constant ‘relisting’ mess….yes, it’s absolutely one of the best.

If you qualify as an modern eCrater lover who likes to talk about your experiences with ecommerce we’d love to see your link on here! We’ll save a spot for you!

Networking vs. Marketing

2010-09-16T15:09:00.003-04:00

This was written as a response to the ESN forum discussion Best Networking Sites. It was to big to update so I thought I’d post it here:

Facebook didn't start out as a marketing vehicle. Sellers made it that as an afterthought. That's why it's annoying to have business stuff showing on your profile page. A Fan page is the obvious business side of FB, but I think it depends on how you handle your marketing skills on there as to whether it's effective or not.

Usually on Facebook, Twitter, etc., you get bombarded with blatant, in-you-face buy my crap comments. We all feel a need to promote; but we get tired of seeing it at every turn. And if we feel it, others do too. So who's gonna buy? Not me, not them. Social marketing should be done, well, socially, with just a neighborly FYI, "Oh by the way, I have this really cool thing you might want to see." I get sick of seeing the same market-ad comment with the particular item as the only changed feature. The redundancy of ads is a huge turn-off. If you're in a social setting, even on your business page, you should still have a real person side to your comments. Nothing makes me want to come back, nothing is interesting if it's just the same old tired mantra of ads.

That said, Facebook is a really great place to get visitors to your stores. But wouldn't you get more if you (the seller) weren't so intent on screaming about the next best deal in town every minute? Relax and make visiting your page a pleasure.

On Twitter I don't know who's bright idea it was to repeat an ad comment 5 times in a row in case viewers had a moment of blindness. By now they’ve probably learned the error of their ways and are sitting back laughing at those who continue to make the worse mistake ever. If you've got to repeat it 5 times, then at least do it 4-5 hours apart to catch a different audience. Morning people will not be there at 11pm. Repeat ads just make it harder to scan thru the comments. When I see the same icon covering the page and I skip them all. I’m sure I’m not the only one who does that.

I've used Linkreferral since 2008 and now their new Linkreviewer. I like the process of reviewing sites and getting reviewed. You don't have to do it often to get results. Yes, odds are, you only get drifters who visit your store a minute, if you're lucky, but you never know when someone will see something they like, favorite your site, or come back later. I don't mind feedback, good or bad. It was feedback, when I'd started my store, that let me know my shipping wasn't showing. And it's the reviews that I've reposted on my blog that let people know someone liked my store. If you get a bad review - listen and fix it. You can now chose by topic or word. I had over 300 eCrater hits. We need to be reviewing each other!!

It makes sense to 'get your product out there' in front of people, but I think we'd be better to make sure we target the right kind of people. I recently set up the Payvment. I think it's better than MarketPlace. I'm not expecting any sales on either; at most they should just be considered advertising formats. I'd rather have visitors come to the store any day to buy. You're probably better off without PV or MP. Spend time upload photos with links (like on ESN) to your Fan page. Add Buy buttons to your blogged items. Comment on other similar interest blogs and sites, leaving a link behind. Stay consistent in your commenting, but not redundant.

The same thing can apply to Flickr and other sites that were not set up for marketing. I've cancelled my Flickr acct now. I used to love seeing photos there, but now there are too many 'items.' Use sites that were meant for marketing. Get a free host and do your own thing. There’s so much free software for making slideshows etc. Creativity has never been easier than it is these days! Use it to your advantage.

MySpace has been a waste of time over the past year. I just quit there too. It seems like they refuse to make anything user friendly on there. Windows Live Spaces is next on my hit list if they don't start getting things right. You would think you would get at least some traffic from these two places, but they are fading into the woodwork and marketing time could be better spent elsewhere.

All we're doing now is following each other, not to help promote each other, but just to get an audience so we can push our products. We need to get back to being real friends and helping each other. I follow some who don't even follow me. Why? I'm not getting any advertising out of it. There aren't any good articles to read? What's the deal with FOLLOW anyway? Is it supposed to really accomplish anything? Without the cross-promotion it is an act of futility. Find like-minded sellers, who have something in common with you, your store, or your items and start sharing some space!

The Bottom Line

Before you were a store, you were a real person - share yourself first and the rest will follow. Do your homework. Research, Google, think.

Ecrater Stats

2010-08-30T10:52:00.006-04:00

I checked on Alexa.com for some fresh data on eCrater today.

FROM WHENCE THEY COME
I know everyone has been all about international shipping lately. Here’s what the facts show for your top 10 visiting countries:

Concentrate.

Alexa says the average visit is about 6 minutes long. You get about 30 seconds to impress a visitor with your item. That means they actually see about 10-12 items!

Say it quickly and clearly. Use lists to highlight features and draw the eye.

WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?
Did you realize that our female visitors are mostly searching from home? What can knowing that tell you? Our savvy gal shoppers are anywhere from 35-64 years old and have some college. There’s just a tad more ladies than gents. These guys are either younger or older and are visiting eCrater from school and work. So what does that say?

FLASH IN TIME
If you get a chance to swing by Alexa, check out the Alexa Wayback Machine to see how eCrater used to look. It hasn’t changed much, but then again, if something’s not broke, why mess with it?

WHAT YOU SAYING?
There’s a place to leave reviews if you want to. The six 5-star ratings that are there pretty much says it all, and nothing that we don’t already know…eCrater is the best non-auction site around.

Eccentric Thrifter Meets 3 Ecrater Stores

2010-08-25T15:45:00.014-04:00

This past weekend Hubster and I went on a mini vacation up north to PA. I’d never been before and what better time than to help a special birthday girl celebrate.

We had a wonderful weekend meeting Lee and Liz of Comycgyrl Collectibles, with all our favorite things rolled into one – good people, a great flea market, plenty of food, and a reason to party. Who could ask for more? And while there, they got me in my first Wii experience. Comycgyrl went out in the rain to do smoked pork, and Chef Comycliz made a huge banquet . Jessie even had two homemade birthday cakes.

We hated to say goodbye, extending our stay until Monday morning before heading 90 minutes east. We made a bee-line as best we could so we could meet a couple you all know around here very well.

We did drive past and made the call for our rescuers to come lead us back to the diner for a chat over coffee. But Elaine and Mike were more than willing to help us out. Elaine runs Embroidery Fashions Boutique and Mike is THE Mike of Mikes Sporting Goods. What a great time we had. Of course we had to talk about ESN and eCrater, toss a few ideas around and have a miniature brain-storming session before we left. Since Mike is the sporting store Hubster was in another of his elements and they chatted away too, like two little chickens (or ahem, roosters).

It went by all too quickly before it was time to get back in the car. But I got Hubster to take a picture of Eccentric Thrifter and Embroidery Fashions Boutique before we left.

My next journey will be heading south – anyone out there?

A Case of Followitis

2010-08-13T08:41:00.002-04:00

Do you have it? this FOLLOWITIS? That’s how people learn, by watching others and doing what they do. You do your research and discover that following and the ensuing posting is perfect – and thus it begins. You’ve got Followitis!

You may be just starting to show symptoms of Followitis or you may be a dedicated, full-blown follower. Simple following can be merely shadowing your current favorite success story, going to sites they go, making links the way they do, etc. But a down-right afflicted Followitis sufferer goes the extra step, becoming a Blind Follower who blindly follows the crowd and current trend of the day, without any thought as to why. They visit and join sites because that’s where everyone else does. As long as the site has any hint of more sales lurking just around the corner, then a Followitis victim is ready and willing to hook up.

Traditional marketing advise used the theory of putting your store links everywhere a customer may happen to see them. So they join communities of like minded sellers, the more the merrier; they join referral sites where “if you visit my site, I’ll visit yours” is the mantra. All you do is set up your page, your lovely icons, banners, and invite friends to follow you.

Twitter your way to success by making sure that every detail about your store and it’s lovely contents is posted on a regular basis. But true success will only come if you post that info, say, 3-8 times every 3 hours. Do it in blocks just in case someone snapped their eyes right when you posted and missed it. Surely, by posting in multiples, you have covered your bases and everyone in your personal following universe knows all about it by the time your head hits your pillow. You sleep, comforted by the knowledge that you’ve done everything you can to make your store a success.

Facebook yourself, using profiles and fan pages; buck the system by setting up several. then post, post, post. Link your blogs, link your links, link your photos, your upcoming, your most recent, and your latest and greatest. Even though it’s far from cutting edge these days, do the same on MySpace. You never know where someone will show up, hunting for your item.

Where did all this blind following come from? How can spamming your item among hundreds of like minded spammers make your item more appealing? Do you really read all the ads from people you follow? Or do you just say you’d follow so your icon will appear on their blogs and pages?

If everyone is busy linking, who’s reading? Who’s buying?

What ever happened to thinking? How do your items get a secured position on Google, Bing, Yahoo? Which of these 3 is the most used or do you even know?! What does SEO really stand for? How about keywords and meta-tags? What they heck are they? You say, “I filled all that in 2 years ago when I signed up on eCrater.” Do you need to re-evaluate them occasionally or are those dated ones still working? What kind of pages should you really be linkng up to? Google doesn’t like just anywhere!
This is a knee-jerk, thought-provoking dissertation on separating away from the pack for a minute. Think about it while you’re plowing through that pile of email from the latest community you joined that announces every time someone dots an ‘i’ or crosses a ‘t.’ Do you really care about everything they tell you about? How much time are you spending answering mail instead of listing new stock?

Everyone starts somewhere; we all did. On ESN we strive to cut to the chase, giving you answers to questions that everyone asks. But you need to remember what you learn, and contribute what you know. Think for yourself. Don’t follow for the sake of following. Try being a leader and let them follow you for a change.

How to Look More Attractive

2010-07-30T07:50:00.004-04:00

Excerpts from an ESN blog posted by Comycgyrl Collectibles on December 5, 2008.

I have been reading books, reading blogs, clippings, any thing I can get my hands on to try and get noticed by my target market....which I might say isn't as easy as saying it. So, in all this reading. I found a few simple ideas that might just make things a bit easier….and I hope, if brings success, I have doubled my traffic and sales.

Back Links
List your website on any forum, newsletter, email, group, family website, a friends website, or any social network. There are all kinds of ways to increase your visibility.
Blog
Write your thoughts down..I am doing it now. A very popular blog to use that is easy is BLOGGER. Everyone has opinions, but as a business owner some are better to keep to yourself than to broadcast and alienate clients. We are here to see the Green of the money, not [discuss] our religion, sex, or color. Those things, if you have issues with them, do not belong in your business. When you have a blog, you have an audience; it's like a fan base. They have certain expectations of you; they want you to churn out hit singles or albums. But they want you to give them more. Even though [blogs] started out as mere diaries or daily jottings of a few people, currently they are excellent link-building, content-management, and search engine optimization tools.
Partner LinksPartner Links are links we sponsor, Example: I partnered with My Book Barn on Multiply. It is like [ESN] as it allows link submissions, gives advice, and helps build the eCrater marketplace. We partnered for the greater good….Feel free to join. You can also use your distributors, the local Better Business Bureau, your bank, local Chamber of commerce, Suppliers, Resellers, Affiliates, Sites selling complementary products etc.
Reciprocal Links
You provide a link to another peer site in return for them linking back to you. This is a good way to get your target industry users to come to your site. Also you introduce your users to other sites that they may be interested in visiting. They will be thankful to you for pointing them in the right direction. And they come to trust you more.
Tracking:
This is where you leave your footprint in places. Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, [and] the links I have given you here are all ways to leave a track. You throw out there “Hi, how is everyone?” Now there is a track back to you from everyone who is a friend. I like tracking, It doesn't generate as much traffic or visitors as some of the other ideas listed here, but they do attract. I say there is no waste of time doing this because money is money.
Free ProductsPeople love freebies....I am one of them, I love to see what I can get in the mail today. Its fun and FREE. It can be as easy as Free Shipping, Free Gift-wrap, Free estimate, Free advertising, etc. Or you could even go with the old Buy one Get one, or 1 free pair of earrings with any 25 dollar purchase. Have a link to the free earrings you are willing to give away and let them pick. Hey there are a million and 1 ways to give something away.
Contests:
Oh let us not for get the contests. They [do] bring visitors to the site; contests for free things, contests for “best of,” contests for featured items, etc. Just use you imagination. Plus there are some very nice websites out there who have pre-built contest boxes you can add to your site.

Read the entire post at http://ecrater.ning.com/profiles/blogs/how-to-look-more-attractive

A Commentary

2010-07-27T16:43:00.008-04:00

This is a response to the ESN blog post, Customer Service with a Smile, A Thing of the Past? by Barbara DeLaughter of Barb’s Bargains.

In this world of "entitlement" that kids are raised in, it's no wonder that rudeness is becoming the new normal. Finding a business that exhibits courtesy and personal care is all but a thing of the distant pass. But, luckily, there are still enough good people left in the world who take a stand to do what is right. Sometimes doing what’s right is being patient with an irate customer.

Barbara was so right when she stated. "Good customer service is the bread and butter of our business." People do notice and remember when they find a business that shows a human, caring side. It's getting to be so rare that people treasure their good fortune in finding such a place at all. Customers who have been treated with respect and integrity, and will come back over and over. In some cases, your business could become a new family tradition as shopping habits are passed down.

It is worth the time to do those little things that have such a big impact on customers. First impressions are hard to overcome if they are less than impressive in that first encounter. The tips Barbara shares are easy to implement and can result in an upswing to the growth of your own customer base and resulting sales.

Start now to get your Customer Service with a Smile dusted off and in place. At this writing we are about 90 days before the start of the traditional holiday season of the year, starting with Halloween and going on through New Year’s Day. Opportunities are on the horizon and you won’t want to miss any of them!

NEW ESN WIDGET

2010-07-26T16:01:00.004-04:00

Stay informed about the latest posts and share the love at the same time!

It’s very simple - just click the Get Widget button at the bottom of the new scrolling widget box. You can find it on this site or get it straight from the ESN site.

Why not post one on your own blogs so others can see what’s going on at Ecrater Stores Rock blog and the ESN Ecrater Stores Network! Then EVERYBODY can find out about us!

What Are We Doing?!

2010-07-24T17:23:00.002-04:00

Lately it seems like everyone has been in a frenzy to upload every photo of every item they have in their eCrater stores. While it’s good to create interest and all, it has to be remembered that ESN is not another storefront!
People keep asking why their items are not showing up in Google Shopping and here’s the long and short of it – NO items are listed HERE!

The way ESN works is that it is a community. We’re all neighbors and we like to talk to each other. We share tips and how-to’s, learn new things, find out what other people are selling and how they are selling them; all the normal neighborly things people do.

Google apparently likes our little chit-chat. Google is picking up our comments, our discussions, our blog posts, our questions, and more. BUT they are not listing your items from this website. That’s for your eCrater store.

ESN is an interest generator. People want to know what all this hubbub is about. The questions our Google pick-ups generate include, “Who are these people? What are they doing that I (meaning other sellers out there in cyber world) don’t know? How can I learn more about selling? And of course, “How can I become an eCrater seller – it sounds like a great thing!”

The more interest we churn up, the more people will take notice. The more they take notice, the more they will want to come and see for themselves what’s happening here. AND the more they visit here the more they stop and look at your photos. From there (if you have those store links ready) it’s a hop-skip-and-a-jump to your stores.

So now you understand how your item photos fit into the scheme of things. Before we get all the dead links, etc., deleted, take some time and go look at some of the older photos. How many views did they get in a year’s time? Of course, with the new ESN team in place and the new Ning perks we have high hopes that those view counts will improve over time.

While you are on ESN in addition to uploading photos take time to write a blog, answer a discussion, visit a new member, let your words do the talking to Google!

PS: (That’s also why you don’t need to put complete descriptions in – make them want more! In most cases you only need that Title and Store Link in the Description.From working with the 7,000 photos we have I’ve learned that a direct link to the item is better than a link to your store front – they’ll find your other stuff just fine. Just get them to where they want to go first)!

Tiny Perks

2010-07-21T15:27:00.007-04:00

MY FAVORITES

This little feature is easy to miss. But the value for you could be so appreciated and help keep one aspect of your ESN experience a little more organized.

We currently have about 7,000 photos of items for sale by eCrater Stores Network members. Being the good companion members that we are, we like to check out each other’s goods from time to time. Before, there was no way to remember where we saw items that caught our eye and making a Christmas shopping list with prospective purchases was a pain. Now there is a way to keep it under control and at your fingertips!

When you open an item photo, on the bottom under the item info you will now see the Favorite link along side your photo sharing links. Click and that’s all there is to it!

My Favorites has now been added to your “where to go” choices. You can easily keep tabs with what you saw where so you can return anytime without having to do a major search!

CONNECTIONS

You have so much to share with the world – about all the cool photos you’ve loaded and your latest sale. You now have an extra customize feature available to help you get the word out!

Go to your personal page and click on Manage My PAGE.

On the Setting Page that opens you now have a link on the bottom of the left list that says CONNECTIONS.

The top section in the middle of the page is where you can set up to send info to your Facebook page. When I did it, this message popped up,”If you connect to your Facebook Page, all of your posts to Facebook will be posted to the Facebook Page and not your personal Facebook profile.”

But test post from your status bar to make sure you’ve done it how you want it. My test post went to my Fan page and not to my profile, just as expected! If you don't have a Fan page then it will post to your profile.

In the bottom section, set up your preferred Twitter account!

Are You Chatting on CHAT?

2010-07-19T17:52:00.004-04:00

If you’re not using this little tool then you’re missing out on the fast lane to getting quick answers!

CHAT was one of the first extra features enabled by the new Administration Team when they took ownership of ESN. It enables members to message one another in real time. For your convenience CHAT has been put on a separate tool bar at the bottom of your screen. You can use it from any ESN page.

The toolbar shows the tool name, eCrater Stores Chat and the number of people online at the time. When you click on the CHAT bar it opens up to a 5 x 7 inch window (on 19” monitor screen).

There are 3 designations on the upper right corner:

The Collape or minimize button is 3rd from the right (inverted triangle over a horizontal bar) and allows you to send the open CHAT box back to the closed ‘hidden’ toolbar position.
The middle Pop-Out button (small gray rectangle lower left of larger gray rectangle) is a favorite! Clicking this releases the CHAT window to be positioned anywhere on your monitor screen.
On the right is the Go Offline button (little gray man with colored dot).

Green = online or visible;
Red = invisible or hidden.
Simply click to change your status. A dialog box will open to ask if you are sure. At a glance you can see how many people are online who have not ‘hidden’ themselves. Double click to use.

After you open the CHAT window you find 3 separate windows:

On the right is the list of members currently online. (being online doesn’t necessarily mean listening to CHAT). Only members who are visible will show up.
The largest upper left section is where the running messages will show up as you talk back and forth.
On the lower left is your input pad – where you write your message.
Above the writing area are 3 more buttons: You can add smileys, adjust the sound, and Clear everything written.

SUPER TIP: If you want to keep CHAT open, but out of the way, click the Pop-Out button.CHAT now opens on the left side of your screen. Change the Sound setting to high so you can hear the beep when someone writes, then click the Minimize button. The CHAT bar is still active, but not in your way at all.

Privatize

Don’t want everyone in on your conversation? No problem! Clicking on a member’s name gives you 3 options: Select Private Chat. (The other 2 options are obvious) Clicking the member's name again will close out the options dropdown.

Going private will give you 2 new headers above the Discussion Area and Online Members boxes. MAIN and the name of the other person you are chatting with. The Members list will vanish. When your private chat is over click the little X to the extreme right side of the other person’s name.

More often than not, someone from the ESN Team is around; when they hear the beep that someone has written in CHAT they are ready to help if you have a question.

Have fun with it – we are no longer like ships passing in the night!

Album Maintenance

2010-07-13T16:32:00.005-04:00

You need 10 photos to make an Album, right?

And I’m checking for photos to items that have already been sold and do not exist, right? These are called dead links.

So it’s possible for an Album to have a cover picture that is a dead link. And if that dead link is deleted then the album no longer has a cover.

The Album is now a candidate for deletion because it now has no cover.

_____

Now let’s say you have an Album with 10 pictures; the cover photo is a dead link and gets deleted. Now you have an Album with no cover and only 9 photos.

The Album will be deleted for both issues. There is no way for me to fix the cover for you or to add pictures to your Albums to make the required 10.

It is imperative for you to make sure you delete sold item photos and that all albums have covers.

NOTE: Deleting an album does not delete the photos.

Look Behind the Curtain

2010-07-12T08:13:00.001-04:00

In “The Wizard of Oz” they said “no peeking.” But I want you to know how much is going on behind the scenes at ESN.

When was the last time you browsed through the photos uploaded by fellow members? How many did you sift through before you quit and moved on to something else? For days now we’ve had at least two of our Admin Team going photo by photo, one at a time, checking to see if there are photos to items that no longer exist (and it gets old). They’re also checking for item hyperlinks leading visitors to your store. There are a lot of photos without links! A lot of those links are in the Location bar instead of the description area. What a waste of time – those links don’t work!!!

Why are we so strict regarding photos and albums? Because on July 20th the ballgame changes – and even with a huge amount of space, it does have a limit. No more albums with a paltry 1 or 2 photos – minimum 10. These albums take up a lot of space, regardless of the number. So the more pics per album, the better. That said, albums of less than 10 pictures, albums with no cover, photos without links, photos without titles (not camera numbers) WILL BE HISTORY.

The Groups and Forums are also getting a cleaning. For example, the What's Your Blogger Link? discussion was a place to simply upload a link to your blog, right? Now, granted we enjoyed chatting throughout, but the “I’m following you now” posts ended up being more than the link posts! To find a link to a particular blog is nearly impossible for wading through everything. Plans are in the works to clean this one up by taking the blog links and putting them in a directory page (without all the fluff), so everyone can follow anyone and everyone easily.

That same plan goes for most of the other favorite pages around ESN. Duplicate info is being sifted down and fine tuned. We see this as improvement, not taking away. We’ll still have lots of interaction and that wonderful community feeling that we enjoy so much with the added bonus of being able to find what we’re looking for in a cohesive and timely manner.

ANY ADVERTISING SPAM will be deleted. You have your own pages for that as well as any pages added specifically for advertising. In the public areas, talk about marketing, but don’t be marketing yourself! Even Group Administrators should not be promoting their own wares!

The Member Roster will be getting a good looking over too. Members inactive for nearly a year or two are now being contacted in an effort to let them know that we miss them and would enjoy their company again. If, after a year or two of absence, they have shown no interest (especially those who’ve relied on our community as their 2nd storefront via photos and RSS feeds) then they will be eliminated. No one wants to join a group filled with no-shows. We need real people, people!

When new members join Admin is there with the first greetings of welcome and directions to the Guidelines and Orientation pages. This is also something that every member should be doing – making Newbies feel wanted. We all remember how cool it was when we joined. It’s Pay It Forward time! Be a greeter and remember Birthdays too!

There’s a lot of daily work involved in keeping ESN running smoothly. Emails alone take time! Add that this is a transition period of monumental proportions and you only touch the tip of the iceberg. In reality Everyone is part of this…it takes all of us to make it work. If you can think of anything that would be helpful to making our community even better than it is please contact an Admin to submit your idea for consideration! We’re all in this together!

Blogger Tags: Administration changes, photos, albums, groups, forum, advertising, spam, new members

Current Trend: Photo Uploading

2010-07-11T08:02:00.005-04:00

Currently members seems to be in a fever to get their item photos uploaded onto ESN. But it does no good if you don’t do it right! Getting the picture loaded is a piece of cake; it’s the identification that gets people into trouble.

Open two windows on your browser to make this easy. Copy and paste the name of the item straight from your item page to put into the Title bar. Then copy and paste the web address; make sure you grab the http:// part too!

When doing a description you don’t need to rewrite your whole ad. This is not your satellite store! If you decide to put more than the link, just put a brief blurb, maybe the size, which can’t be determined from the photo. But the idea is to get your customers into your actual store!!!

It’s ok to put a direct link to your store category rather than to the item page itself. Maybe a visitor will spot something else of interest along the way. But make sure that link is placed within the description of the item and not in the Location bar.

Put good keywords into the Tags section; that’s your magnet! Remember that two word tags are broken apart by Ning: “Pottery Barn” will become ‘Pottery’ and ‘Barn.’ If you are participating in a Group feed don't forget to put the required tags for that in, as well.

The options for photos are already there – use them wisely…That’s really all you need.

Photo Albums

2010-07-09T10:39:00.005-04:00

There seems to be a little bit of confusion regarding the creation of Photo Albums.

One or two pictures does not an album make!

You need at least 10 photos to be able to call it an album! It looks much more professional to potential customers. You don’t want them to think you couldn’t find anything to sell when they open an album expecting an “album,” do you?

Do not keep an album for your sold items!

There are several reasons not to save those old pictures. That’s old news and only takes up space for new items you’re trying to sell today! The sold photos link to dead pages and more, often than not, make dissatisfied customers.

Make a good showing!

Pictures show up better if they are square. If your picture isn't square, then Ecrater will cut it down to size.

Identify your uploads!

Title - Always make sure you title the picture. DO NOT use the default camera name like DC975 or whatever your camera puts out!
Description - Describe the item: is it new, used, vintage, antique...give a few details, but you want your customer to visit the store for more info.
Location - This is where you put your city, state, or Country. DO NOT put links in here – they will not work!
Keywords - Try to use at least 7 and don't forget one of those tags should be your store name ex. mystorename, eCrater

If you follow these guidelines you should have wonderful photo albums and see an increase in hits.

Welcome to Ecrater Stores Ning Blog

2010-07-08T08:57:00.003-04:00

This site is a companion site to the Ecrater Stores Ning a bustling community of both Ecrater store owners and Ecrater store shoppers! Each member gets their own customizable page where they can share their wares, upload photos, post blogs and contribute to the many discussions on the Forum.

In recent months, as Ecrater Stores faced possible demise by Ning’s decision to eliminate free access, community members joined together in the common goal of keeping ESN intact. The thought of having our community scattered all over the internet and losing our special place was not an option. Contributors donated the money necessary to keep it going; that says a lot about the people who make Ecrater Stores what it is.

So the community was saved and is now under new management. New members are joining almost every day, excited to be part of this vibrant site. Ideas, tips, tricks on how to do marketing and improve sales on Ecrater is the basic reason we exist. Everyone wants to be successful in their store; but at ESN everyone also wants everyone else to be successful too. If one does well, we all do well. In the dog eat dog world, it’s nice to come to a place that cares, is friendly and sharing.

If you want to join please stop by and check it out Ecrater Stores Ning today!