Guide to Help You

Attract Prospective Buyers

By listing your wares on South Africa’s online marketplace bobshop.co.za you are taking the first step en route to your successful online selling enterprise. Tens thousands of visitors browse bobshop.co.za every day with the intent of making a purchase, and each and every one of them is your prospective customer.

To ensure that a good portion of Bob Shop’s high volume traffic flows straight to your products, follow these best practices when creating your listings.

Structure it well

An impeccable attention to detail is called for here! Take your time to:

Choose the selling format, which can be an auction or a buy-now.

Select the correct category for your product. Bidorbuy has about 30 main categories and thousands of subcategories. The chances of visitors landing on your product are much greater if it is located in the right spot!

Specify product details such as the condition (new or second-hand), location (South Africa or international) and the relevant product attributes. All of that helps prospective buyers to refine their search.

Include the GTIN code to get more exposure and views to your product. Read more about GTIN.

Set the accurate market price if applicable.

Allow offers, especially for your high margin products. This could help you get a sale and allows you to communicate directly with the user.

Flesh it out

The title, description and the images need to present your product accurately and in the best light possible. Keep your language professional and grammatically correct and avoid gimmicky ways of drawing attention to your listing.

The title has to be clear and specific. It will be used to match your product to a user’s search, so put the most important features first. If your product is branded, use this formula: brand + product name + additional attributes.

The description gives visitors more detailed information about the product. Use this section for text only and do not include images (except possibly your logo). Start by repeating the full title; then give a brief overview of the product; follow with the main selling points; and conclude with detailed specifications. Take care to include any damages the product may have, especially if it is second-hand.  Cross-sell your products by including a link to your seller’s page on Bob Shop in the description.

The image carousel is there to give prospective buyers the complete “look and feel” of a product they cannot touch. Include several images of the product from different angles and choose the best one for your thumbnail. Upload all images in the carousel provided by Bob Shop; it can hold up to 15 images. Use good quality images, preferably with the products on white background. Crop the image to the 1:1 ratio and make sure that the size is at least 600 x 600 pixels. Avoid overlaying your image with text or a logo and avoid collage images.

Round it off

In this section, prospective buyers will find the information pertaining to your conditions of sale.

Warranties and guarantees you offer can make your product more appealing and therefore more likely to sell.

Shipping fees and expected delivery times have the power to make or break a sale. Always charge actual shipping fees. Take time to set up your shipping charges and make use of the shipping options integrated with Bob Shop.

Payment options should be as inclusive as possible. The more options you offer, the more likely your product is to find a buyer that prefers a specific payment option. Read more about payment options available on Bob Shop.

Give it some oomph

When you create listings, you have the option to enhance them. Enhancing a listing simply means promoting it on Bob Shop. See the Bob Shop enhancement fees rate card.

bobshop also offers different advertising and promotional options for sellers on various channels, including:

• Site banners
• Social media posts
• Newsletters
• Search engine campaigns
• Sponsored blog posts

Contact advertising@Bob Shop.co.za for more information on our marketing packages for sellers.

See it through

The service you offer is the best ticket to your success on Bob Shop. Here are some must-dos:

• Answer all questions promptly.
• Rate your buyers as soon as they have paid.
• Keep your customers updated on the status of their order.
• Keep your customers updated on the status of their shipment.
• Do not spam your customers with unsolicited promotional emailers.
• Honour any warranties and guarantees you promised in your listing.

Final thoughts

It is a good idea to occasionally review your listing practices, especially on the eve of seasonal mass shopping sprees that South Africans go on, such as: Black Friday, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and so on. All of these are big shopping events on Bob Shop, extensively promoted on different channels. Make sure to follow the best listing practices in order to make the most of the seasonal shopping bursts!

Trade feed and bulk upload sellers should ensure that their presence on Bob Shop is optimised at all times, and especially during the peak shopping seasons.

Want more? Check these tips for creating a good listing!