Q – How long have you been a member of eBay? 

I’ve been a member for around two years but I’ve only been a seller for about one. 

Q - Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? 

I am a BUSY stay at home Mum with two girls aged 10 months and 2 1/2 yrs. I am 24yrs old and have been married to David for almost three years. Used to work as a reception supervisor before the little ones came along.  

Q – What sort of products do you sell? 

I sell all sorts of things, toys, clothes etc and my stock is changing all the time (I’m a bit of a Del Boy on the quiet!). I sell a lot of stationary and craft items for children and adults and I always have a seasonal section (i.e. Christmas/Summer). In addition to this I have a clearance shelf where you can pick up some really good bargains. I pride myself on the quality of the goods I sell and the service that I provide for my customers. I charge reasonable, realistic postage prices, and discounts are given to buyers with multiple purchases. 

Q – Do you have an eBay shop? 

Yes, I have a shop called SmellyMelly’s Silly Sales, which has been trading for around ten months. 

Q – Do you have any top tips; shortcuts or selling secrets you would be willing to share with the other subscribers? 

Firstly I would recommend that you keep your postage costs down as over priced postage will lower the final sale price or prevent it from selling at all. Also (from a personal stand point), I find that ‘Buy It Now’ items listed with realistic price tags add to my volume of sales, as the customer has access to an item without waiting for the auction to end. I think that in some instances, potential customers put an item on watch and forget about it! 

Q – Have you ever had any bad experiences with customers? 

Fortunately I’ve only had to deal with 2 rude customers in the past. 

Q – Is there anything else that you would like to add? 

I am always on the look out for suggestions about products customers would like to see in my shop or any other comment/suggestions to improve service etc, so if anyone visits my shop and has any such comment please feel free to email me. 

Q – Are you offering a discount to WomensBay subscribers? 

YES - Any WomensBay subscriber can have a 5% discount on any spend over £5 (excl Postage), when they quote ‘W Bay’. To claim the discount, subscribers must contact me BEFORE checkout so that I can send an adjusted invoice.

I have included a very small selection of what Melanie sells in the pics above. You can click on the pics to go directly to her ac, if that doesn’t work you can use the link below. Get your giant Santa sacks – the shops always sell out of those!!

This concludes this months interview on our featured subscriber  - If you would like to visit Melanie’s shop you can either search for her on eBay using her user I.D or you can click on the link below. I’ve had a good old nosey around her shop and it is bargain city ladies. I would get yourselves over there soon if I were you or it will all get snapped up for Christmas. As Melanie’s stock is changing all the time, I’d advise that you add her to your favourites list so that you can easily keep checking back!

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/SmellyMellys-Silly-Sales