As most of you know, at Auction Inn we are committed to helping nonprofit organizations raise additional funding for their programs. A large part of that has been helping nonprofits in our local areas solicit donated merchandise that we sell on eBay for them, as we are doing for 12 organizations this year so far in our Lancaster facility. In order to make these fundraising events relevant and successful for each nonprofit, it is essential that we get the entire local community behind the cause.

Recently we started a program with Hall Communications’ WROZ 101.3 the Rose radio station that serves as a great example of how a community can come together to help those in need. As many of you know, radio stations have an obligation to carry what are commonly known as public service announcements as a benefit to their local communities. Hall Communications recently agreed to take that one step further, and work with Auction Inn in promoting the causes of some of the nonprofits that we work with. Last month we kicked off this quarterly campaign to help the Water Street Rescue Mission, an organization who has been serving the homeless and disenfranchised in Lancaster County for over 100 years. The Rose teamed up with the Rescue Mission and Auction Inn to help promote their mission through pre-event promotion, a live broadcast at the drop off site, Walgreens on Lititz Pike, and post event following of some of the interesting auctions

As of this writing we have sold over $3,000 worth of donated merchandise for them and we’re still counting. We believe this public/private collaboration to help our communities is a great model for the future as for profit businesses chip in to help nonprofits become sustainable, and find it helps their bottom line as well.

When searching for an item or listing an item on eBay, one of the most important steps is selecting the right keywords. Selecting the right group of keywords is necessary for your item to get the most possible exposure on eBay. A default eBay search only scans the keywords of items, not the description, making your 55 allowed digits that much more important. Here at Auction Inn we use a number of tools to help us find the right keywords for our products to get the best possible exposure on America's largest marketplace. Past experience with similar products is the best, but when that may not be applicable we use online keyword tools such as Keyword Discovery. By simply inputting descriptive words about your product (name, model, condition, etc.) it gives us a list of similar words or groups of words along with their count history for the past 30 days. This, in turn, helps us select the right keywords to get the most exposure of the item, therefore the highest selling price.

Here is an example of how good keyword choices can drastically help your item to be seen. You have an older electric guitar to sell and you want to have as many people as possible view it. The best way is to start broad then add more specifics. To start we'll put "Electric Guitar" in the keyword. Now that sure isn't enough to market your items, right now on eBay there are 11,500 different listings with that in the title. Adding the brand "Fender" quickly cuts the list down to about 730 items. That is a good start so far, but what if somebody was just searching for a classic guitar, not necessarly a Fender. "Vintage" is a great word to add which, when plugged into Keyword Discovery shows us that 1500 people have searched for "Vintage Electric Guitar." All of those people now have the possiblity of viewing you item. Adding the model of the guitar "Strat" would also be an ideal addition to further specify which type of Fender guitar this is. Now we get to more specifics that may draw in more viewers such as "w/ case," "strap," and "mint." "Vintage Guitar Strap" alone pulls over 800 keyword hits. "Mint Vintage Fender Strat Electric Guitar w/ Case Strap" comes out to an even 55 characters, giving you the most possible exposure through keyword searches.

-Kevin Shaw
Auction Inn Listing Specialist

Auction Inn’s partnership with Manheim Auto Auction, the world’s largest auto auction, allows employees and WORK-ABLE trainees to get an inside look at the process of condition report writing. From May 22nd-24th , several members of the Auction Inn team were fortunate enough to go to Manheim to get the inside scoop on how to properly evaluate a car before auction. The first day of training began with a slide show presentation which demonstrated how to use the Mitchell Manual, which allows you to look up replacement prices and repair time, and “the brick” which is a handheld computer that the Condition Report Writers use to input information on each car.

The next two days of training consisted of hands on work with the cars. Auction Inn employees and Work-able Trainee Edgar Gonzales examined the levels of paint using a special tool called an elcometer and felt their away around each panel for paint lines and previous repairs which could indicate that the car was in an accident. Every dent, ding, scratch and chip needs to be documented so that the dealers know exactly what they are bidding on in the high speed auction that occurs at Manheim every Friday. “It was a very educational experience. I will never look at a used car the same way again,” said Cory McClain, employee of Auction Inn York. Those who went through the training are now fully prepared to inspect a car before auction on eBay with Auction Inn Motors. For more information on Auction Inn Motors program please contact your local Auction Inn.

All of this training came together recently during a meeting with Horsepower Enterprises of Lancaster PA. They have announced this month their new partnership with Auction Inn Motors. Auction Inn will now list classic cars on eBay for this dealership. Often times it is difficult to adequately convey information to a potential buyer regarding a classic car, but now Auction Inn is implementing a new “dealer ad” program, which will, among other things, allow interested bidders to communicate directly with Horsepower Enterprises during the auction. Richard Bennett, President of Horsepower Enterprises and also active board member of The Boys and Girls Club of Lancaster, is very excited to be working with Auction Inn and the trainees of the WORK-ABLE program. He was pleased to see Gizz professionally reporting on the different cars that will soon be put on auction, due to his great training at Manheim Auto Auction. Click on the Horsepower image on the left to see the cars we currently have on auction!

If you would like more information on these vehicles please visit www.auctioninn.com, or if you are interested in consigning a vehicle with Auction Inn Motors, please feel free to call us at 888-TO-THE-INN.

On April 24-26, John Painter, VP Operations, and Jeremy Meeks, Manager of Auction Inn York, attended an exclusive gathering of top online merchants at the Spring PESA Summit in Chicago. PeSA (Professional eBay Sellers Alliance) hosts the annual event, which this year was sponsored by eBay and Paypal. The summit occupied 40,000 square feet of the McCormick Place Convention Center, making it PeSA’s largest event since their formation in 2003. The main focus of PeSA conferences is it gives Power Sellers an opportunity to network with other professional sellers, as well as the face-to-face interplay with eBay and PayPal that major eBay companies need.

"As the leading trade association for eBay sellers, PeSA continues to look for new and innovative ways to help our members optimize their online business," states Jonathan Garriss, PeSA's Executive Director. "Our summits now cover every aspect of e-commerce, from auction and website sales to inventory management and fulfillment to customer service and payment processing.

Representatives from eBay, Paypal, Amazon, Google, Yahoo, and other Fortune 500 technology firms provided attendees valuable information on trends in online sales and marketing. This year’s summit paid special attention to brand building, something we at Auction Inn strive to attain by providing outstanding service and value to our customers. Through our superior services, Auction Inn would eventually be “the” name in the eBay trading marketplace.

“The summit is an incredible resource for us to keep abreast of where the online market is and where it is going. This allows us implement changes that continually improve the product we offer our customers,” comments John Painter.

The Auction Inn Team is proud to announce that Edgar “Gizz” Santiago, WORK-ABLE trainee, has completed his education at the Pheonix Academy! Edgar recently completed a two month program that allowed him to obtain his high school diploma. Gizz enrolled himself in the Pheonix Academy’s program, which allows students who have dropped out of high school obtain their high school diploma. Gizz will be receiving his diploma, complete with cap and gown, on Saturday June 9th. Through the months that Gizz has been with us at Auction Inn, with the WORK-ABLE training program, we have seen a positive change in him. He has proven himself to be a motivated, confident, talented young man. We are immensely proud of the steps that Gizz has taken to complete his education, and wish him the best in all of his future endeavors!

This month, we would like to start introducing the employees of Auction Inn to you, giving you an inside view on who the people are behind the company. For May, we have decided to start with the listing department, which is currently managed by two listing specialists, Kevin Shaw, and Robert Reichard. We are very fortunate to have them, and their expertise, as part of the Auction Inn team!

Kevin has been with Auction Inn since August of 2006. Originally from Doylestown, Pennsylvania, he graduated from Elizabethtown College with a degree in Psychology, and currently lives in Millersville with his wife, Lauren. Besides listing, Kevin is also the webmaster and helps to format this newsletter. When not at work he enjoys working on his home, playing with his 2 cats, and seeing movies.

Robert has also been an eBay listing specialist with Auction Inn since August of 2006. He graduated from J.P. McCaskey high school in 1999, and then went on to earn his Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Millersville University in 2003. In his spare time he likes to get involved with youth sports in the Lancaster community. He also enjoys tennis, basketball, baseball, and live music. Robert continues to grow as a professional and is looking toward a bright future with Auction Inn!

This month’s “hot” item has come from a Lancaster stamp collector, who has spent a greater part of his life collecting stamps and similar memorabilia, and has decided to come to Auction Inn to pass his hard work onto others that share his interest. Among other items, he consigned with us this 3 volume set of Scott International Postage Stamp Albums. This set went for $808.08, and was sold to an enthusiast in Houston, TX. Auction Inn will be listing more collectibles similar to these soon, so keep checking back with us!

The HUMC-SHOUT (Hempfield United Methodist Church) Youth Group recently held an online fundraiser powered by Auction Inn. This local Youth Group is heading to Buchannan, Virginia this summer for a mission trip to help out those in need within that community.

All 25 Youth Members were responsible for raising their financial costs for the trip. Many of the youth have already raised their goal and others are continuing to find items from their attic, basement, and garage, as well as asking their friends and family for items. With this new fundraising style permanently etching it’s way into the eBay community, Auction Inn saw this as an opportunity to use the internet trading medium as a way to personalize this experience even more. We created a separate category in our eBay store, and labeled it “HUMC-SHOUT”. To go along with this, we created subcategories which were the individual youth member names. This allowed the youth to send their store hyperlink to friends and family to gain support and promote their items up on auction. Last weekend the church also had a congregation wide drive that allowed anyone to donate items to the youth. This drive was scheduled to help "fill in the blanks" for those still needing financial support in reaching their goal for the trip. With the trip date quickly arriving, we hope to help HUMC accomplish their fundraising goals, and ensure all 25 youth members have a summer experience to remember!

Also, this weekend, June 2-3rd!!!

WLCH, 91.3 FM, is hosting a Donation Drive powered by Auction Inn at their radio station on 30 North Ann Street, Lancaster. WLCH is a Spanish nonprofit radio station with listeners in both Lancaster and York counties. This special event showcases Auction Inn’s first company wide fundraiser. Listeners from both York and Lancaster are urged to donate to their local Auction Inn location to help keep this radio station on the airwaves. Also, stay tuned to 91.3FM WLCH for our continuing interviews and advertisements for this new fundraiser!

**We are also still accepting items on behalf of Water Street Rescue Mission. If you belong to or know anyone who participates in these groups, please feel free to drop items off to help these fundraisers. They are all for great causes and could use all the community support they can get!

Over the next few months, Auction Inn Lancaster will be teaming up with many more local groups for what we hope to be bigger and better fundraisers than ever before! Some of these groups include:

Schreiber Pediatric Friendship Community Lancaster Heritage Museum Love, Inc.

If you belong to a local nonprofit group in either the Lancaster or York, PA areas, and would like more information about our fundraising options, please feel free to contact us at 888-TO-THE-INN!

Update from Jeremy Meeks, Store Manager of Auction Inn York

Greeting Again from the West side of the river, it's been a busy month over here in York. We've seen all sorts of exciting items come in through our doors, and with our Mobile Intake truck "Lyle" (We're on Car-Lyle Ave!) we're bringing back all sorts of neat stuff. Look for an increase in estate items, collectibles and household items in the following weeks.

Yard sale season is in full swing and we've been on the prowl for deals. Our own Crystal Scearce found a great vintage Princess House punch bowl and glasses and sold it through Auction Inn for over 4X what she paid for it! Once you're hooked selling items on eBay it's hard to stop! Check out our article on York's Greatest Yard sale being held right across the street from our store!

Auction Inn York has, once again, received another greatly sought after item, one that recently sold for $252.30 on auction for them! This item was an 1882 Edition of Charles Darwin’s classic text “The Origin of Species”. This is the sixth edition of the book, and it is still in excellent condition. This book was won by an Australian buyer, and we hope he is very happy with his new collector’s item!

Auction Inn York is gearing up for summer home improvements with Black and Decker, the first commercial product line for our location. Well known by their black and orange signature colors, Black and Decker has quality tools at affordable prices, perfect for the home handyman or professional contractor. Check out the great deals we have on Laser Levels, Jig Saws and much more by clicking HERE and visiting our eBay store!

On Saturday June 9th, Auction Inn York and Bell Socialization Services have teamed together for a friends and family yard sale. Twelve by twelve foot spaces for the sale are available at the price of $15. This event serves as an opportunity for Bell to turn the donated items that Auction Inn could not accept or items that did not sell into funding for their Mental Health/Mental Retardation program. The yard sale will be run by Bell employees and consumers, as well as Work-able Trainees.

On this same day, other members of the Auction Inn team will be stationed across the street at the York Fairgrounds for “York’s Greatest Yard Sale.” With 600 vendors, The York’s Greatest Yard Sale (formerly known as “World’s Greatest Yard Sale”) is attended by 35,000 people over two days. Auction Inn employees will serve to educate yard salers about the money they can make by selling their items on eBay. York’s Greatest Yard Sale will also take place on Sunday June 10th. Come support Bell Socialization and Auction Inn at this fun event!