prints and vintage newspapers, illustrated books, rare antiques and collectibles.

When I have the information, such as above, I would merge it all into my description, like this:

-------------------------------

Multiview postcard, real photographic, photographed by (Name), published by (Name) depicting various breeds of dog and used as an advertisement by the RSPCA to raise funds for a new shelter in (Location), London. (As I continue writing my description I would delete the information already used from my template to avoid duplication). The postcard is being sold on behalf of a f

I read once that writers need refer to just four lines of rhyme to ensure their articles, manuals, today even eBay listings, provide all the information the reader needs to know about a particular subject. I follow those four lines in whatever I write, especially eBay listings.

Those words come from a poem (after The Elephant’s Child) by Rudyard Kipling and they go like this:

I keep six honest serving-men;

(They taught me all I knew);

Their names are What and Why and When;

And How and Where and Who.

All that matters for our purposes are six words: WHAT, WHY, WHEN, HOW, WHERE, WHO.

It’s important to remember the poem also, to recite it each time you list something on eBay, every time you write a report or guide on eBay or follow techniques mentioned elsewhere in this newsletter about marketing outside of eBay.

Those words are important to most items listed on eBay, where potential bidders want to know (for example) WHAT is the product, WHY is it for sale, WHEN was it created, HOW old is it, WHERE did it originate from, WHO will benefit from it?

Those are quick examples, in practice you’ll probably use the same word several times in some listings and not at all in others.

Let me show how I might use those six words to describe an old postcard. I won’t tell you what the card depicts, how old it is, you can guess for yourself from my worked example below.

-----------------------------

WHAT: Multiview Postcard. Dogs. Advertisement for RSPCA. Real Photograph.

WHY: Belonging to a client.

WHEN: Postally Used 1906.

HOW: Used to raise funds for a new shelter in (Location).

WHERE: Shelter in London. Posted from London to New York

WHO: The postcard was sent by a member of the RSPCA in London to a friend in the USA. Published by the RSPCA, photographer (Name).

------------------------------

Okay, it’s rough, and I’d have to be pretty sure potential profits from the postcard concerned are worth the time spent creating such a detailed description. I would not use the format for cheapie postcards, or common-a-garden types such as park scenes, little-known artists, and other generally low price cards. But I would use the technique for postcard types I’ve researched on eBay and found to fetch regular high finishing prices.

I would also use the technique for one-off prints and vintage newspapers, illustrated books, rare antiques and collectibles.

When I have the information, such as above, I would merge it all into my description, like this:

-------------------------------

Multiview postcard, real photographic, photographed by (Name), published by (Name) depicting various breeds of dog and used as an advertisement by the RSPCA to raise funds for a new shelter in (Location), London. (As I continue writing my description I would delete the information already used from my template to avoid duplication). The postcard is being sold on behalf of a fa

HOW, WHERE, WHO.

It’s important to remember the poem also, to recite it each time you list something on eBay, every time you write a report or guide on eBay or follow techniques mentioned elsewhere in this newsletter about marketing outside of eBay.

Those words are important to most items listed on eBay, where potential bidders want to know (for example) WHAT is the product, WHY is it for sale, WHEN was it created, HOW old is it, WHERE did it originate from, WHO will benefit from it?

Those are quick examples, in practice you’ll probably use the same word several times in some listings and not at all in others.

Let me show how I might use those six words to describe an old postcard. I won’t tell you what the card depicts, how old it is, you can guess for yourself from my worked example below.

-----------------------------

WHAT: Multiview Postcard. Dogs. Advertisement for RSPCA. Real Photograph.

WHY: Belonging to a client.

WHEN: Postally Used 1906.

HOW: Used to raise funds for a new shelter in (Location).

WHERE: Shelter in London. Posted from London to New York

WHO: The postcard was sent by a member of the RSPCA in London to a friend in the USA. Published by the RSPCA, photographer (Name).

------------------------------

Okay, it’s rough, and I’d have to be pretty sure potential profits from the postcard concerned are worth the time spent creating such a detailed description. I would not use the format for cheapie postcards, or common-a-garden types such as park scenes, little-known artists, and other generally low price cards. But I would use the technique for postcard types I’ve researched on eBay and found to fetch regular high finishing prices.

I would also use the technique for one-off prints and vintage newspapers, illustrated books, rare antiques and collectibles.

When I have the information, such as above, I would merge it all into my description, like this:

-------------------------------

Multiview postcard, real photographic, photographed by (Name), published by (Name) depicting various breeds of dog and used as an advertisement by the RSPCA to raise funds for a new shelter in (Location), London. (As I continue writing my description I would delete the information already used from my template to avoid duplication). The postcard is being sold on behalf of a f

s and not at all in others.

Let me show how I might use those six words to describe an old postcard. I won’t tell you what the card depicts, how old it is, you can guess for yourself from my worked example below.

-----------------------------

WHAT: Multiview Postcard. Dogs. Advertisement for RSPCA. Real Photograph.

WHY: Belonging to a client.

WHEN: Postally Used 1906.

HOW: Used to raise funds for a new shelter in (Location).

WHERE: Shelter in London. Posted from London to New York

WHO: The postcard was sent by a member of the RSPCA in London to a friend in the USA. Published by the RSPCA, photographer (Name).

------------------------------

Okay, it’s rough, and I’d have to be pretty sure potential profits from the postcard concerned are worth the time spent creating such a detailed description. I would not use the format for cheapie postcards, or common-a-garden types such as park scenes, little-known artists, and other generally low price cards. But I would use the technique for postcard types I’ve researched on eBay and found to fetch regular high finishing prices.

I would also use the technique for one-off prints and vintage newspapers, illustrated books, rare antiques and collectibles.

When I have the information, such as above, I would merge it all into my description, like this:

-------------------------------

Multiview postcard, real photographic, photographed by (Name), published by (Name) depicting various breeds of dog and used as an advertisement by the RSPCA to raise funds for a new shelter in (Location), London. (As I continue writing my description I would delete the information already used from my template to avoid duplication). The postcard is being sold on behalf of a f

London to a friend in the USA. Published by the RSPCA, photographer (Name).

------------------------------

Okay, it’s rough, and I’d have to be pretty sure potential profits from the postcard concerned are worth the time spent creating such a detailed description. I would not use the format for cheapie postcards, or common-a-garden types such as park scenes, little-known artists, and other generally low price cards. But I would use the technique for postcard types I’ve researched on eBay and found to fetch regular high finishing prices.

I would also use the technique for one-off prints and vintage newspapers, illustrated books, rare antiques and collectibles.

When I have the information, such as above, I would merge it all into my description, like this:

-------------------------------

Multiview postcard, real photographic, photographed by (Name), published by (Name) depicting various breeds of dog and used as an advertisement by the RSPCA to raise funds for a new shelter in (Location), London. (As I continue writing my description I would delete the information already used from my template to avoid duplication). The postcard is being sold on behalf of a f

prints and vintage newspapers, illustrated books, rare antiques and collectibles.

When I have the information, such as above, I would merge it all into my description, like this:

-------------------------------

Multiview postcard, real photographic, photographed by (Name), published by (Name) depicting various breeds of dog and used as an advertisement by the RSPCA to raise funds for a new shelter in (Location), London. (As I continue writing my description I would delete the information already used from my template to avoid duplication). The postcard is being sold on behalf of a family selling the collection of a deceased relative and there are many more similar postcards being listed in the coming weeks (neat touch, keeps people returning to your listings). The postcard was postally used in 1906 from London to New York by a member of the London branch of the RSPCA to a friend in New York.