Full Time eBay Sellers & How Hurricane Irma Struck Us Long Before Landfall

Hi there fellow internet re-seller folk. I am sure even though I am not the best at keeping up with my blog here (ironic when you think about the NEVER SHUT UP part) anyways.... most all that know anything about us know that we are down here in the "Sunshine State" and sunshine, well yeah that was far from the problem recently. I will try to sum this up, even though also those that know me know I am still practicing how to say things quick & to the point (maybe someday... promise... I am working on it... really, I think?).

So summer was coming to an end and we were seeing a big jump in the activity in our eBay store. Not just people browsing and moving along... we were starting to get a decent amount of sales again. I even actually managed to blog about the horrible summer slump being over and it was time to really put all our efforts into 4th quarter (yeah I know I should have been working on that all summer but my brain just doesn't let me work that way). The weekend leading into Labor day was going good and then BAM!! It came on television with a News report that the Hurricane out there "Irma" wasn't shooting north like it was supposed to and was most likely going to hit Florida. I wasn't expecting what came next.......

Apparently weather events have a huge impact on an eBay store and to my surprise when the news reports that a natural disaster is going to most likely happen somewhere in the state you are in it is like your online store instantaneously contracted some horrible disease and buying from you would be the biggest mistake a buyer could make. Okay I know, I know you think I am being dramatic and I can be at times but this was SERIOUS the kind of serious where you are depending on a paycheck and your bosses close up shop and run away to another country leaving you standing staring at a closed sign desperately trying to figure out "HOW? WHY?" & More importantly "NOW WHAT?" I even thought at first okay.... it is a fluke just a total coincidence but NOPE.

In short yep our store went to total ghost town with virtual tumbleweeds rolling on by right up until the storm cleared. Oh boy, did it hurt, oh boy, it still hurts. Nothing like getting to a point where you are just starting to recover from the last time mother nature (and a bad roof) took literally everything from you only to realize all of a sudden.... not only is she aiming at you before you have even finished drying yourself out, but the damage she is bringing is already starting a week before she even actually shows up on your doorstep. Additionally the pre-hurricane financial damage to a re-seller is not the kind of damage that can be easily seen so unlike if a tree is sitting on your car in your front yard.... people probably will not even be aware of what you are going through.

THE MORAL OF THIS RANT IS..... Drum Roll please!!!  Plan... and Plan some more. I know it is not always easy to plan ahead these days when most of us our living week to week. Trust me, I really truly know and feel your pain. This storm though has shown me, no she more like slapped me in the face with the reality that there has to be a back up plan of some sort for income when your main source just comes to a complete stop while the bill companies are sitting there with their hands out going "Hey we are still here and we still need that money you don't have". This has me thinking more and more about not having all eggs in one virtual basket.

 I used to think my local sales could hold us over but as hurricane Irma showed us when it comes to re-selling, just having one online venue & local sales is not enough. Why? Because when mother nature throws you a curve ball (or a drunken hurricane that cannot make up her mind between east west and when to go north) those local sales go POOF also, while everyone scampers to try to save their belongings and/or run for their lives they are not worried about buying those shelves or baby clothes any longer off your facebook/craigslist ad so I am going to be spending some time working on additional streams of income during this 4th quarter and hopefully that hurricane out there right now decides that Florida has had enough for September, at the very least.

AS ALWAYS.... Sorry if I run on and on... and on and...well on some more....  I am not big on editing so you kind of get what I am thinking just right out of the old noodle. Never did care much for scratch copies or outlines even in school. I hope that everyone (the couple of you that read my ramblings) are able to get something from them that helps you and hopefully they are not horribly boring to read (or loaded with typos)......

LOVE & PEACE & MANY BLESSINGS TO YA' ALL!
and planning on keeping up with my blogging more often.... yeah yeah I know... I am going to try PROMISE!

OH, Oh can't forget this SHOUT OUT.... TO EBAY.....  SUPER IMPORTANT!!!! A HUGE HUGE GIGANTIC THANK YOU! (and hopefully I will get to to a devoted blog post about it later tonight) but THANK YOU TO EBAY! For Offering relief to those of us impacted by Hurricane Irma & Harvey. I know ourselves personally were not expecting it but we will NEVER FORGET that eBay regardless of what some say REALLY DOES CARE ABOUT THEIR SELLERS! --- THANK YOU FROM --- ThenAndAgainTreasures eBay Store AKA The Sager Family!

Slow Summer Sales Slump Behind Us

It is that time of year again.... School is starting back up, soon to be some peaceful silence in our home for 6 or so hours each weekday but more importantly as a re-seller we are coming out of that dreaded SLOW SUMMER SALES SLUMP! Anyone who is in retail knows all about the summer blues.... the time when we do anything just to try to make a couple nickles.... and mostly find ourselves prepping for when the day comes that the customers return from the beaches, parks,vacations etc. and start SPENDING in our stores again.

A couple weeks back we all of a sudden had a day where our phone kept going crazy with CHA-CHING sound. Everywhere we went we sounded like a cash register, sometimes awkward when sourcing and trying to stay under the radar ha ha. We didn't care though, of course we were just thrilled to hear the sound over and over instead of a couple here and there through the week. However we thought it could just be all the promoted listings we had been doing and sales. So we did not get too excited just yet. The following weekend was okay, nothing to do cartwheels over but at least it was steady. Following that we had one pretty slow day and since it has been steady for us with a few spikes here and there. So I feel confident now announcing BYE BYE SUMMER SLUMP & BRING ON THE 4th QUARTER!

In reality there is still all of August to prepare for the "true" 4th quarter sales. I know personally we are working hard trying to continue to keep our store growing each day. We are really looking forward to this year as in years past every time that wonderful last quarter of the year came around we were never prepared. As a matter of fact it always fell during some catastrophe or hurdle making it very hard for us to really give it our all. NOT THIS YEAR! This year we are going full speed ahead. I will admit that catastrophe keeps trying to strike us down but I say bring it on... there is no way we are going to stop our effort to make this the BEST 4th QUARTER EVER FOR US! Our goal is for this to be the BIG "turn it up" moment for our business that has been growing more than ever in this last year. Yes we are super excited and ready to work our butts off!

I would LOVE TO HEAR FROM OTHER SELLERS so please LEAVE A COMMENT! SHARE -

1. HOW WAS YOUR SUMMER?

2. DID YOU USE SUMMER TO PREPARE FOR 4th QUARTER?

3. DO YOU FEEL LIKE THE SUMMER SALES SLUMP IS OVER

4. ARE YOU READY FOR 4TH QUARTER?

Well I better get to eating my lunch real quick because I have a bunch of packages that wont pack & ship themselves. I hope everyone else is seeing the Summer Slump in their rear-view too!

Soon To Come From Never Give Up Or Shut Up

Hi there ya all.... Quick Blog Update Here......

As many know my blogging over the years has been very limited. As much as I love doing it with our eBay store and other ventures it makes it difficult to find the time to write... In addition to this fact there is also something I have been wanting to switch up for a long time as well. I want to make multiple blogs each one more dedicated to one subject matter.

There will always be my "Never Give Up Or Shut Up" No Frills Blog, but most likely I will keep this one dedicated to our journey in reselling from now on and how to make your own money without making a boss more money! No get rich quick scams EVER! We are down to earth REAL, people... a family just like many of you that are trying to survive in a painful economy. Our goal is going to be to show the Good, The Bad, The Ugly... from items to keep an eye out for, to sharing our big wins/flips, to talking about staying motivated and so on.

So keep an eye out as we will share our other blogs here probably as links on the home page. We will also more actively post on this main blog as well as the others. Don't forget too we still have our Deals blog (yes it is a ghost town right now) BUT that is going to change too. I will try to get at LEAST 1 great deal a day shared on it starting by this weekend at latest. Then the first additional blog that will be added is one near and dear to me and it will be strictly a motivational/spiritual one.

Thank you for stopping in, we hope you decide to keep coming back AND that you enjoy the changes soon to come!

Sincerely,
Kim Sager & Family
ThenAndAgainTreasures eBay Store

Kids Eat FREE Healthy Food All Summer Long Find Location Near You

Every parent knows how quickly that grocery bill can multiply when school lets out for the summer and it can really put a dent in your budget when your trying to ensure your children continue to eat healthy meals without breaking the bank. During the school year many parents have the assistance of free or reduced breakfast & lunch at school, but then summer comes and the worry of how to make the food money stretch sets in. Do not fear, Help is near, and it includes 2 words we all love HEALTHY & FREE.....

You may or may not have heard of the summer food program for kids. Maybe you have heard of it but thought it was for only those that are homeless or extremely low income. Maybe you thought it was a hoax going around FaceBook, Twitter and other social media outlets, it is not. I have personally confirmed the information is 100% true. Please if you find yourself struggling to ensure your kids are not just eating cereal for lunch don't be shy or embarrassed. Times are hard and making sure your child eats a good meal is nothing to be ashamed of. 

There are many locations so even if you do not have transportation, in many cases there will be at least one possibly more within walking distance of your home. The best part is there is no long application process, no making a dozen phone calls to find out where to go, you don't even have to make a single call at all..... Just TEXT to find a location & hours near you...... and you can be bringing your kids for their HEALTHY & FREE Breakfast and/or Lunch TODAY!

Now, unfortunately they are not in everywhere so there is a possibility that they are not in your town. Don't fret though as there are no restrictions stopping you from bringing your children to the nearest location to you. If you do not have a vehicle try teaming up with another parent who does so you can go together. Also look into assistance places in your area that offer monthly discounted or free bus passes. It is very likely you can find a location close to or right on a bus route. 

Hours seem to vary depending on location, but all tend to be approximately around 8am to 9:30 am for Breakfast and Lunches approximately between 11:00am - 1:30 pm. So double check the times at the ones in your area to be sure of exact time. Also I noticed that some locations do lunch only while others do both lunch & breakfast. 

Look No Further TEXT the word "Food" to 877-877 (or "comida" for Spanish) to find FREE SUMMER MEALS in YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD - System was developed by: No Kid Hungry with the USDA. 

Time to WAKE UP No More Oversleeping or Always Being LATE

I have a friend that has inspired me to get back to blogging in the oddest way. My friend always finds herself in the morning rushing & racing due to waking up late. I have told her countless times she needs an alarm clock and each time she says she usually sets the alarm on her cell phone but when it goes off one of the main reasons it doesn't work for her is she shuts it off and falls back asleep, or the other times it fails to even work at all. The obvious answer to this one is simply - ALARM GOES OFF, GET UP! However everyone has different issues, reasons or plain old excuses as to what keeps them from waking up on time in the morning. This morning my friend woke up late again, and I have not written a blog post in a while so here we are...... TIME TO WAKE UP!

1. The obvious set an alarm. Not a low sounding, barely can hear it when your awake alarm. Get an obnoxious blaring most annoying alarm you can find.... better yet get TWO different horrible sounding, people down the street can hear the bells alarms. In my opinion I say stay away from the cell phone alarms. Also use actual alarm clocks that have battery back ups or older style wind ups with the big bells. Things happen such as power surges or your cell phone battery dies, or an automatic update, or some glitch next thing you know the cell phone alarm fails you. 

2. Make sure your alarms are set. I know... again you are thinking this is so obvious. It is also one of the main reasons people with problems waking up, do not wake up to their alarms. They simply forgot to set them before going to bed. This is an easy fix and very important step. Don't wait until you are tired, and have a hundred things on your mind to try to remember setting your alarms. Your alarms should be set for the following morning right after they have woken you up current day and you shut them off. Right then is the best time to set for next morning. It is then done, ready to go and you don't have to worry about forgetting at bed time. Also if you are using an older wind up type this is the time to make sure its all wound up! 

3. Break the SNOOZE TRAP! We probably ALL have been guilty of falling into the "Snooze Trap" at some point in our lives. This is a fatal way to set up a routine of being late/oversleeping. Snooze seems to be such a great little function, and some people are capable of using it correctly hitting it once then actually getting up at the next alarm blaring sound BUT unfortunately MOST people can actually develop a routine of hitting snooze to point where our brains literally become used to hearing the sound of alarm and instead of that alarm sound waking us up eventually we will wind up sleeping right through it just as if it were a lullaby! DON'T HIT SNOOZE.... Cover that button up OR skip to Idea #4 for best results

4. Make Yourself Stretch Or Actually Move to make that annoying sound stop! This is by far in my opinion the MOST IMPORTANT step in getting yourself up on time & avoiding constantly being late. In addition to setting multiple alarms (not multiples on 1 alarm clock - get 2 different alarm clocks) do not put them in the same place & never should be within arms reach of where you slumber. The first should be close enough that you will still hear it (really hear it) so make sure it is far enough away that you will REALLY have to stretch those arms. Then this is where the second alarm comes in handy to actually GET YOU MOVING! The second alarm should be just as loud if not louder and be far enough away that you must get out of bed and take a couple steps to shut it down.... 

Now that you are OUT OF BED the battle is over. DO NOT lay back down for ANY reason. Luckily as long as you eat healthy & get a good nights rest even if you did lay back down it wouldn't be as easy to just drift right back off into dreamland. Even still it is best at this point to get going into your morning routine. 

Unfortunately over the years extra features on alarms have made it easier and easier to stretch out our waking up process by allowing you to hit snooze again & again or on cell phones allowing us to set multiple alarms minutes apart convincing us it is okay to just sleep 5 minutes more, 10 minutes more etc. then the next thing you know you now sleep right through all of your alarms because you have trained yourself to do so. 

To some this all seems obvious, or you may think "my alarm goes off and I get up"..... It is not the case for many though.Okay, I admit it.... Yes it was my friends experiences that made me want to write this up real quick, but it was also because I myself am recovering from THE SNOOZE TRAP!!!

60 Empowering Quotes to Help You Get Things Done

60 Empowering Quotes to Help You Get Things Done  

I just had to share this with my readers as I found it to be one of the BEST lists I have ever read online. Enjoy, I hope you find them useful & be sure to share with your friends, family and just anyone..... I know I am printing out some copies to put up around my house......



Also SORRY BEEN MIA. I will be back writing soon. Never seems to be time between family time & my eBay store working time, and hauling/metal scrapping. Barely time to sleep no less writing. I will try harder though PROMISE....



Thanks for taking time to read.



Kim Sager & Famiy

ThenAndAgainTreasures on eBay

eBay Feedback Can Be Fun Fancy or Funny Buyers & Sellers

Every once in a while I will get a feedback from one of my customers or a seller that REALLY stands out. Personally I have leaned toward the more conservative side when leaving feedback on eBay, until today! I have always mixed it up and never left the exact same feedback for every person, every single time. I also try to take advantage of all or most of the space provided. I also do leave special feedback for those eBay users that were just... extra special, but still stay "conservative" even then. I was thinking today though.... why can't it always be fun, friendly, pretty, or the kind of feedback that is sure to make someone smile? 

Here is a simple list I have compiled that has some of my favorite pages/sites for my readers to get their creative juices flowing or simply copy/paste (I will keep adding more so check back). All credit goes to the creators of these great guides/sites/blogs/generators etc.

1. 101 Fun And Fancy eBay Feedback Designs (On eBay)
2. How To Leave a Funny Feedback (On eBay - not funny but another nice list)
3. Ebays Most Funniest,Creative & Wackiest, Feedbacks (On eBay & a Fave of Mine)
4. Fun Feedback - Cut And Paste!   (On eBay Nice collection)
   
5. Positive Feedback Samples To Leave Buyers & Sellers (On eBay)
6. Ebay Feedback Generator (Feedback generator site - Simple to use)
7. Feeling Lazy Feedback Generators (Another Generator site - Simple to use)
8. DO YOU HAVE A LIST or Feedback Site? -  Send to us, if we add credit will go to you!
9. coming soon
10. coming soon

Don't forget if you want quick access to this list any time or just to check for updates be sure to  bookmark my blog so you can pull it up whenever you need some help with leaving the PERFECT feedback.   

Fun Just Stands Out & Makes People Smile
So Be Brave, Have Fun, Be Noticed!

Another thing to remember about feedback in my opinion is it can be another chance to be sure to make a person REMEMBER YOU. Then again when others look at the feedback it makes them want to check out "who left that silly feedback" too, and you just never know that curiosity could lead to said person then seeing something in your eBay store that they just cannot live without. It's the little things... that make the biggest impact sometimes in multiple ways...

 

Brought to you by
Kim Sager Then And Again Treasures Store on eBay
Find Me Online Everywhere on my About.Me Site