Intro: What is an eBay Store, Why own one, Why Customize
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On eBay UK "eBay Stores" are referred to as "eBay Shops". I have not found any difference between them aside from that so for convenience I'll be referring to both as Stores here. eBay descibes eBay Stores as
..."a special part of eBay where individual sellers can display all of the items they have for sale. A Store allows sellers to tell you more about their business through their own customized pages."
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which summarizes well what an eBay Store is from a shoppers perspective. From a seller's persective there's much more to it including opportunities for improved marketing, brand recognition, cross-promotion of other items for sale by store category, and the potential for reduced listing costs.
There is a monthly fee to own an eBay Store which is worth the investment if the seller can take advantage of the opportunities which include customizing the store for maximum effectiveness.
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How eBay Stores are customized, the method I employ
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eBay's "Manage My Store" pages include links to a number of settings and tools available to customize the content and appearance of storefront pages. It is quite a labyrinth and even after having learned how to fit everything together knowledge and experience using HTML is necessary to acheive anything more than a variation of the standard cookie cutter layouts.
My approach is to keep all the helpful features eBay provides and bypass most of the limitations. eBay's tools only allow for a limited amount of customization within the header area and within the side bar. My method employs a custom header that includes code which reaches down into the page to alter the entire appearance.
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The automatically provided eBay helpful features such as gallery view and list view of current items for sale, as well as the left navigation bar are retained. They're just altered to produce a unified coordinated appearance throughout.
My method prevents you from needing to revise the pages of your store when your store categories and items for sale change. Store searches and store category pages all inherit the same look and feel established by the presence of the custom header code.
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Examples of eBay Stores I've Helped Customize
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Probably the most dramatic eBay Store transformation I helped with is thebootwarehouse on eBay AU:
When you visit the store notice that each store page you visit (any of the store categories, About Us page, etc.) all retain the same header and the same formatting for the items being sold. This seller has great skill with graphics which are incorporated very effectively.
This seller also uses FreeForm2 for the item descriptions, again with graphics that are well designed and effective.
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If you are not very skilled with graphics, no worry. All that is needed is an "inspiration piece". The sisterbeads eBay Store is designed entirely based on the banner you see at the top.
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JandDtees is another layout inspired by the banner at the top
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Or, you may have a web site you've invested time and money to produce. Leverage that investment and unify your web presence with a similar look and feel on eBay. Understand, I do not create web sites. My talent is adapting them to work on eBay as I did with those below. Visit the eBay Stores and the websites along with various pages within each to see just how closely they can be matched:
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$50 USD is all I ask, no advance payment required
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To get started please write to me including the name of your eBay Store, your web site address/domain name (if you own one) and what you have in mind for your store. No payment is required in advance. I'll do my best to provide you with a great looking store and if you aren't happy with the results you don't pay anything.
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If you are interested in using FreeForm2 to produce your item descriptions I'll set you up with a matching template there as well. No additional charge.
Write to rob@robshelp.com
Thanks!
Rob Bell
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