News: eBay Specialists Teach Others to Sell
August 21st, 2005 by Laurie BarakSource: RedNova
When Lee Ann Wright moved to Baltimore two years ago, she made plans to start a home-based business selling women’s clothing through the global online marketplace of eBay.
After reading through the site’s guidelines for beginners and purchasing an eBay seller’s kit, Wright was intimidated by both the Web and business tasks ahead of her. So she called an eBay teacher for help. During a four-hour class last month at her Fells Point home, Wright learned how to set up a seller’s account and picked up numerous tips for starting her business on eBay.
Her teacher was Tracy Poletti, a certified eBay education specialist who is one of 1,800 worldwide, including seven in Maryland. More than 100,000 people have taken classes on how to sell items on eBay since the online giant began its own education program in 2000. And more are expected as eBay tries to build its own teaching ranks to compete in a cottage industry of independent consultants and others who have long taught entrepreneurs about mastering the site.
“As a business owner, you don’t have time to sit there and learn the whole thing yourself,” said Rieva Lesonsky, editorial director of Entrepreneur magazine, which publishes a guide on running a business on eBay. “It would make a lot of sense to bring those people in…like consultants.”
Some taught themselves how to use eBay and built successful businesses without any kind of course instruction. Others learned from a relative or friend and applied their own business skills to succeed. And some have turned to eBay’s certified teaching specialists and others. Despite eBay’s efforts, some consultants who teach business owners about the site are critical of the education program. They claim that it targets eBay novices and does not equip teachers with the information they need to help prospective business owners succeed.
Last year, eBay began training instructors. For $149, experienced eBay sellers may take an online course to be certified to teach classes on basic and advanced selling through the site. Five certified instructors reside in the Baltimore area. They charge students between $25 and $40 an hour. Some certified teachers, such as Poletti, have expanded their course offerings to provide lessons that eBay has not licensed. For example, Poletti, of Middletown, tailors her lessons to a client’s needs, making house calls and leading group classes. She is energized by her new gig.
“You can’t open a store with just a couple of items. But you can do that with eBay,” said Jennifer Guenther, who sells children’s items from her Frederick store, Enkore Kids, on eBay and is a certified teacher. “That’s the beauty of it.
Link to the complete article here.
