Wow Frank,

Consider me now "enlightened."

This kind of post is really, really helpful. Not many people are willing to "reveal" some IM "truths."

Thank you!

P.S.

I'll be back to read the next posting you mentioned is upcoming!

Alicia

Thanks again, Frank, you always have such great tips… you should consider compiling them all into an ebook… sounds like you have marketing ebooks on eBay down to a science.

Does the latter part of your post also work in the same advantageous way for the seller (who is appearing magnanamous but really is getting his or her list built free) in the case of the "you get 100% commissions - just add your paypal email to the end of this URL and keep all the money you earn from referring people to this page…" type thing? I'm guessing the answer is "Yes".

Of course, it is advantageous to the 'affiliate' in the sense that they don't have to bother with download pages, managing any support, etc, because they send the client to the seller for 'handling' but the huge disadvantage is that they also are not building a list…. or getting to take advantage of OTO's and backend sales as you pointed out regarding eBay.

Again, thank you for your very wise advice, and for taking the time to share it so freely. You "rock" as we say over here in the US. Is there a British equivalent of that?

Best regards always,
Donna

Thank You for the great information. I hadn't seen this before but it is sure worth saving for my future endevors.

John

Hey Frank, top tips for selling ebooks on ebay, very clearly explained, well done, keep those tips coming!

Sally

Frank
Very informative. I'm happy to see there are others out there trying to truly help newbies get started without getting taken advantage of. We can all be profitable in an honest straightforward way without taking advantage of anyone. Keep up the good work!
Coach Bill
www.billthecoach.com

Purchasing and attempting to resell ebooks is a waste of time, effort and money for most people. Especially for the person who simply desires to add a second income stream to their portfolio.

You read all the hype on the latest, greatest information product, see a $24 or $49 price tag on the sales page being presented as a hook. Then you buy the resale package at the special price of $17 (because your on someones list who claims to want to help you make a fortune online), but when you try to resell it nobody buys it because they can do a search for the title and find the same thing selling on ebay for $1.99.

Then you have those who rename the book so you don't know it is just the same rehashed information (often obsolete) that has been sold by many others over the last two years.

Sorry guys, this to me this is a scam, aimed at the MLM drop outs that still believe in the "get rich quick" myth and haven't yet learned to base their buying and investing decisions on careful planning and logic as opposed to raw emotion.

If you want to make real money online, you won't do it with other peoples rehashed information products. You have to write your own, something that is not available anywhere else and even then you have a well thought out marketing plan.

There are much better and less time consuming ways to make money online.

May not be what you wanted to hear (and probably wont last as a comment) but it is my honest opinion and this post simply reinforces it.

Mark Hamilton - Web Developer
http://www.internetoutfitter.com

A great post by Frank, but I'm going to disagree a little with Frank on part of this one.

Frank states that some eBay sellers present this to their customers "If you're only just starting, and you don't understand how to set up a download page or a link to a zip file, you can use the zip file on my server instead of your own. It's okay, I don't mind, you can keep all the profit from selling the ebook. I want to HELP you."

Frank seems to insinuate that eBay sellers who do this are dishonest and are deceiving the customer.

But, there is a large segment of the eBay population that want to sell certain ebooks related to their niche on eBay, and don't want to pay for web hosting, learn to setup thank you pages etc. They just want to offer the ebook for sale, and they WANT to use your download page.

I offer this option to my eBay customers. I don't tie it to saving them bandwidth and I don't present it as doing them some sort of great favor.

Their is no deception involved, it's for people who want to sell one (or more) of my ebooks but have no interest in web hosting, html etc. All they have to do is create the auction listing, and email the buyer a download link - done.

Not all customers are created equal, so I try to offer more options

Mike

Hi,
I think that people sale ebooks to make some monay I didnt think on this way till now!?! So you think its not possible to make monay just from selling Ebooks???
With respect , Mario

Thanks for the nice comments, and yes, yes to everybody else. I agree with pretty much everything that's been said.

Nothing is totally black and white.

Donna: Yes, it's important for the product owner and the affiliate to be in a win-win situation, it's more important to the product owner for the affiliate to win more than they do.

Example - SmartDD pays 50% commission to affiliates. Paul and I get less than 50% because we pay the payment processor fees. We think that's the fairest way we could do it. Some programs pay 50% of what's left after payment processor fees have been taken out, but not us.

We want affiliates to *really* get their 50% so there's more incentive to promote. And so we both win.

And this is why the 7 dollar script is still so popular. The affiliate wins by getting 100% commission (usually), and the product owner wins by getting a sign up to their mailing list. Both win.

And as you pointed out, it can be a lot of work to create a product, set up a sales page, download page, offer support etc., so it's ideal if you're just starting out to push traffic in the direction of pre-done 100% commission products. You get paid the moment the item is purchased.

The British translatation of "you rock" is "you rock", so thanks for that.

Mark: Yes, you're right. Absolutely spot on. But (aha, there's always a but) if you use resale rights products as a traffic generator for your own products (which many do), then you can upsell to your own unique item for which you don't offer resale rights.

And THAT can hold a premium price as it can't be purchased (well, legally purchased) anywhere else.

But if it's to an item where you can purchase resell rights for a premium price, well you're right. I never do. I just do EXACTLY as you've suggested and take a look on eBay to see if it's there for $1.99 which it usually is.

All your other comments about the "get rich quick" myth, having a sound marketing plan (don't forget your business plan) are bang on the mark.

Everyone should take careful note about what you've said about this. And I'll just re-inforce it.

There is no such thing as easy money. You have to work HARD to get your business up and running. And you have to be RELENTLESS.

Starting and running your own business is not for the feeble willed. I know, I know, I'll have offended some people with that comment but it's true.

It doesn't matter how clever you are, if you're not filled to the brim with good minded determination and a "bountiful" attitude, you're not going anywhere.

To run your own business can be the hardest thing in the world, but also the most satisfying. And to get the right mind set means self improvement, which is something a lot of people aren't prepared to do.

*phew* Sorry, shall I get off my soapbox?

Mike: Ah, the exception to the rule.

You actually own the products, so it's understandable you would offer that service.

However, some resellers don't own the products, but offer their pages and zip files for download. No, I'm not going to name names, that's the fastest way to a court case.

But tell me, are your download pages and zip files just generic ones, or do you try to get people to sign up to your list?

I'm chuckling here, and I'm not trying to be unpleasant. If you're not list building, you should be.

I tell you what though, I would like to know how you actually do go about providing the downloads. Seriously.

Every day's a school day as far as I'm concerned, and if you have some clever method of serving people who resell your ebooks, I'd love to know.

Mario: If it's reselling ebooks you intend to do, then I would boil it down to saying you make it pay through eBay by building a mailing list. A mailing list is a long term business asset that no-one can take away from you, not a Google slap, not a new eBay rule, nothing.

Your mailing list will always be a group of people you can turn to for help, or to make offers to. But it's very important to remember it's a 2-way thing.

(No, I don't mean you can send me your affiliate links! Not until I'm on your list anyway…)

***

Okay, just one last thing now. I stopped while writing this to have a quick text chat with a friend of mine. It looks like we're going to JV on something that's sort of related to the illegal selling of ebooks on eBay which I mentioned above.

Here's a question for everyone who's interested.

How many people do you think would sell an ebook on eBay illegally if it had their name, email address and home (or business) address inside it?

Hi Frank,

I like those scenarios, I'm about to start selling e-books
on e-bay, and this article has been a big help!

Thanks Frank!

~jeff davis

Hi Frank,
IMHO, the inclusion of an identity stamp and other details would 'deter' most (thre quarters of) folks from illegitimately selling an eBook.

The challenge I see is to ensure they've given you the correct data input at the start to begin with (G I = G O). Thus some verifications and cross ref checking of provided data is needed?

Regards,
Tim

Every thing really does come down to the list….I don't like the tactic but I certainly understand the reasoning. It's a very competitive world out there with everyone trying to make some extra cash. Hmmm…does anyone remember when it only took one income to make a good living?
To keep my sanity I try to overdeliver and make true,real friends and customers.
cheers!

Tim: Usually after payment, the payment processor sends all details back to your web site, including your full name, email address and home or business address.

This usually can't be faked with out the credit card transaction failing.

If you then had some method of embedding / rebranding a PDF "on the fly" with that detail, even before it was downloaded, then it would be (IMO) impossible to share.

Think about it. You just couldn't risk it. If you gave even one copy to a friend with strict instructions not to give it to anyone else, and then they broke and shared it with one other person with the same strict instructions, and so on…

Eventually someone would break completely and say to themselves "well I don't know this guy, I'll send it to all my friends or maybe I'll post it on that forum I go to…"

And then it's all over the web with the original person's name and address in it.

Hans: Building your list is the most important thing you can do online as this becomes your main method of doing your job as an affiliate.

Think of it like this. Your job is to connect the buyer with the seller (and take your cut) to create a win-win-win situation.

The buyer gets what they want. The seller gets paid. You get paid. Usually, everyone is happy.

Really useful eBook tips. Thanks mate