Well, eBay has made its changes and boy it is a lot of work AGAIN for eBay seller to deal with. I guess if you constantly change directions you will ultimately end up somewhere right? LMAO.

I am not sure what direction eBay wants to go in right now, but they seem to have a glimmer of hope. eBay hopes that making the changes which they should have made back in 2004-2005 will help. What would have been “major” advancements in ecommerce 5 years ago, now seem rather hoo-hum. These moves at eBay are sort of like throwing out the ugly shag carpeting in the guest room, FINALLY.

But I must admit, I hated that ugly carpet so I think the changes would help too. I am just not to sure it will help that much though, but they sure can’t do much worse than they did in 2008 now can they? Or can they? That still remains to be seen. Remember eBay normally falls flat on its face when they actually IMPLEMENT change, not when they make simply make announcements of change

So to help you along, our geek squad leader, Scot Wingo just made a new guide available for download. You can get it for FREE here. 

eBay Spring Changes white paper now available – HERE

Now being the “cool ass, bro ham” that I am, the “dudes” sent over a few angles they learned so I could share them with the ColderICE readers. See they know that you guys are cool as hell too!

• This is really eBay trying to Amazon-ify the secondary market.  They haven’t been able to win in primary / mainstream products, so they’re taking cues from Amazon and applying them to secondary market products. 
• Look at the Amazonian history: free shipping, fixed prices, trust improvements, and now catalog pages, better item pages, multi-SKU, the BUYING GUARANTEE…more proof of this in the eBay analyst day slide we included in the report
• Look at the New York Times story titled “Undoing Meg Whitman’s eBay” 
• Auctions are REALLY falling out of favor. Multi-SKU will probably become another death-blow as the number of listings really dries up (more consolidation, less focus on listing coverage). Look at the 12% fixed price growth, -20% auction growth
• Blackthorne and other eBay tools may not support multi-SKU until OCTOBER!  This is going to hurt a lot of sellers and really delay their transition to parent / child.
• eBay’s changes make it easier to go multi-channel — they’re finally adopting the parent / child structure that everyone else has (Amazon, Buy.com, Web Stores, etc.)

By now, anyone that listens to my weekly radio show (B.S. Walks When Money Talks) is already familiar with Jeff Brathwaite or JB as he likes to call himself. JB has been a good resource for my business for nearly 5 year and we have become truly great friends in the process .

I am such a tech geek that speaking to some other business owners is like talking in French. Over the years I have found that while these executives and CEO are wizards with a balance sheet, they are “lost” in a spreadsheet if there are no graphs.

One of the things that many businesses are missing is the use of automation and tools that can make the daily tasks of running your business smoother and easier. That is where a good “technology coach” comes in. A Tech Coach can analyze what you are doing currently and then adjust those tasks with automation using FREE and paid technology to smooth out the process.

JB is the CEO of 2 The Next Level, and business blogger of the company blog as well as a Twitter Marketing blog. He is constantly on the forefront of technological advancements that can aid businesses in using tools and techniques to automate process and procedures. He is a wealth of technical information and a guru of technology tools on varied platforms. Check him out weekly on http://www.wednesday114.com and check out this exclusive interview with JB right now!

Listen to the Interview NOW!
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Every once in a while we got to do something fun to release the pressure on our minds from outside sources.

So what if It has some silly stuff in here, I found it pretty darn funny…

It’s now time for the Twitter Re-Cap from 04.22.09. If you still aren’t following @ColderICE on twitter, make sure you do that today! Hope everyone had a great Earth Day, and in honor of that, let’s start out with an article:

1) "Reduce Your Footprint this Earth Day" http://ow.ly/3A7J Adam Pash over at Lifehacker put together a great little series on things you can do to decrease your environmental footprint. Not only does he talk about the standards of creating a greener living for home life, but he also mentions creating a ‘green’ computer environment for yourself.

2) "Price of Italian mineral waters to get bloated" http://ow.ly/3yIK Who said turnabout is fair play? After the Europen Union’s ban on American beef earlier this month, the US has decided to increase the tariff on importing Italian water. The EU stated the reason for banning the beef was the increase levels of hormones in the cattle, but as American beef makes up a very small percentage of export in Europe, up to 40% of Italy’s mineral water is exported to the US. Demonstrators in Chicago have been outraged.

3) "Acting Freddie Mac CFO commits suicide" http://ow.ly/3yHI Such sad news, but still part of a bigger story. David Kellermann, acting CFO to the company Freddie Mac since September of 2008, apparently hung himself on early Weds morning. Freddie Mac has faced many accusations about reckless business practices, and it’s these accusations that have created a ‘pressure-cooker’ type environment recently. Kellerman had been with the company for 16 years.

4) "Consumers spending less time shopping online" http://ow.ly/3zX8 Bad news for ecommerce: the number of retail sales have been down in the UK, although the amount of activity on social media sites has increased. This decrease is specifically related to “pay-per-click” advertising, as it is now estimated that only around 9%, down from 11% last year, of sales come directly from those sources.

Follow @ColderICE on your Twitter page for more news, and enjoy the rest of the top fives from yesterday!

"Consumers spending less time shopping online" http://ow.ly/3zX8

"50 Incredible Photography Techniques and Tutorials" http://ow.ly/3A18

"Yahoo to cut nearly 700 jobs after 1Q results fall" http://ow.ly/3A4N

"EU Regulators Set Texting-Without-Borders Fee Caps" http://ow.ly/3zWj

"Tracking the Trackers" http://ow.ly/3yGK

"18 Seriously Helpful Cheat Sheets for Easier Coding" http://ow.ly/3yIb

"Meeting the Cost-Effectiveness Test With E-Commerce Innovation" http://ow.ly/3yGB

For some people you have to learn marketing, for a select few they just do it by nature. Meet Antonio Thorton the dude that wrote the book on how to attract and manifest money with clever marketing.

Through 20 years of research of the human brain, Psychology, Eastern Philosophy and personal experience, Antonio Thornton has discovered and developed easy-to-use technologies and processes that have helped thousands get the things they want in life with effortless ease.

Antonio’s “practical approach” has been praised by many including Les Brown, Bob Doyle & James Ray (of the Secret), Shawn Casey and many others.  He is dedicated to sharing his teachings and philosophies in an effort to positively impact the lives of 1,000,000 people by 2012 with tangible and measurable results

This dude is absolute genius when it comes to creative ways to market your products or services. Antonio lives, eats and breaths the laws of attraction and with that comes wealth.

Listen to the Interview NOW!
(press play button and be patient, it takes a minute to buffer)

OR Click to Download

OR Subscribe to the series via iTunes 

Press "Play" to listen now

Be sure to subscribe so you do not miss an episode.

Hey, guys, here are the daily re-caps for the @ColderICE twitter postings yesterday, 04.21.09. As always, you can get live updates by following @ColderICE on your twitter account! Let’s start out with a little good news, first:

1) "Hawking ‘to make full recovery’" http://ow.ly/3vbh As most know, Stephen Hawking has been hospitalized in a Cambridge hospital with a respiratory infection for the last few weeks. Although early reports stated that doctors feared the worst, it is now expected that the esteemed Cambridge professor will make a full recovery.

2) "Video Ideas: 4 Ways to Engage Visitors and Increase Sales" http://ow.ly/3v9I Although an estimated 80% of Americans watched around 5 hours of video in just last December alone, video stills remains in often time overlooked form of media to advertise with. This article offers several suggestions on how to use video as a way to promote yourself and your business.

3) "GM to lay off 1,600 this week" http://ow.ly/3tex Anyone who isn’t under a rock has heard that GM is in a lot of fiscal trouble. As the company continues to struggle against what many people deem an impending bankruptcy, it is now the ‘white-collar’ workers who are feeling the axe.

4) "Great Wall of China ‘even longer’" http://ow.ly/3r85 Previous estimates of the Great Wall of China have it listed as approximately 5,000 km long; the State Administration of Cultural Heritage and the State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping, using infra-red and GPS technologies now says that number is closer to 8,850 km. That’s a pretty big difference.

5) "10 Health Habits That Will Help You Live to 100 on Yahoo! Health" http://ow.ly/3r7i A lot of these tips are common knowledge, but they are still really effective in keeping in body in great shape, and living a longer, more active life. Also, the tip on consuming whole foods instead of supplements (as many people do) is good advice.

Still want more? Here’s the rest, and remember to add @ColderICE to your twitter followers!

"Caption contest: it’s deadbeat-tastic!" http://ow.ly/3vaf

"64 Things Every Geek Should Know" http://ow.ly/3vaL

Check these out: "600 Free Design, Twitter and Social Media Icons: A Collection Motherload" http://ow.ly/3hga

"Does Oracle’s Sun Deal Mean Dark Clouds for Big Blue?" http://ow.ly/3v9C

"Online Taxes Aren’t New Taxes" http://ow.ly/3teo

"Update Notifier Finds Newer Versions of Windows Apps" http://ow.ly/3tf5

"5 Ways to Get Your Questions Answered on Twitter" http://ow.ly/3teI

"IBM Posts Q1 Declines, Sees Bluer Skies Ahead" http://ow.ly/3teb

"You Cant Fix What You Don’t Think Is Broken" http://ow.ly/3r6M

"10 Health Habits That Will Help You Live to 100 on Yahoo! Health" http://ow.ly/3r7i

"Study: pirates biggest music buyers. Labels: yeah, right" http://ow.ly/3r7s

"Making Social Networks Pay, Part 1: Strategies and Technologies" http://ow.ly/3r6n

ColderICE to Help Fight Breast Cancer; “Chest to Save Breasts” Charity Auction

Note: Special thanks to Richard Brewer Hay from the eBay Ink Blog for donating his time to make this professional press release.

Leading ecommerce video blogger uses eBay Giving Works to raise money through innovative branding effort

Snellville, Ga., April 27, 2009 – John Lawson, Founder and CEO of the online urban clothing store, 3^rd Power Outlet, and author of business blog, ColderICE.com, today announced the launch of the ColderICE “Chest to Save Breasts” Charity auction. The online auction, running from April 27 – May 4, 2009 will give businesses an opportunity to obtain key brand real-estate at the eCommerce Merchant Summit, June 3, 2009 in Atlanta. Lawson is using his chest as a billboard for the highest bidder. The auction is running on eBay Giving Works with 100% of the proceeds going directly to Breast Cancer research.

“In my opinion, it’s a no-brainer for forward-thinking businesses interested in marketing their company to a captive audience,” said John Lawson.

“We’re also lining up corporate sponsors that will pledge a minimum of $100 to Breast cancer. I will be making daily videos wearing the shirts that business sponsors send to me. These videos are online and shared for weeks, months and years to come. The opportunities are endless and timeless.”

During the 7-day auction week of April 27 – May 4, leading industry bloggers, radio hosts and podcasters will be continually promoting the event, granting additional exposure to each participating sponsor. The action will be ending with a live show hosted by Auction Wally on the evening of May 4^th. For more information about the auction, please visit http://ColderICE.com/charity.

About John Lawson

John Lawson, Founder and CEO of the online urban clothing store 3rd Power Outlet (http://www.3rdPowerOutlet.com) and author of business blog ColderICE.com (http://www.ColderICE.com), has been growing and changing his business with the continuously shifting world of e-commerce since he began selling a few used IT books on eBay for extra money in 2001.

Now that he has not only established himself as an eBay Platinum PowerSeller and eBay Certified Education Specialist but also successfully navigated his business through the dot com bubble burst, Lawson is turning his focus to teaching, speaking, and consulting.

Lawson regularly participates in and reports from regional and national eBay and e-commerce business summits and events. Recently, he has been interviewed by The Washington Post, PC World Online Magazine and featured by ChannelAdvisor with a case study of his company. He has also lent his insight and know-how to Wall Street analysts.

MEDIA CONTACT:

John Lawson

Phone: 678.400.0580

Email: John@ColderICE.com

Twitter: @ColderICE

Here’s a quick Twitter re-cap if you missed the @ColderICE updates yesterday, 04.20.09. If you still haven’t satisfied your news lust, add @ColderICE on Twitter to follow!

1) "Programmable Tattoos" http://ow.ly/3nz0 These have been seen in Sci-Fi stories in the past, but it seems like they’re poised on taking over the future. Want to remember what to buy at the grocery store? Your tattoo implant can be updated for details. Trying to come up with an interesting approach to advertising? Facial implants can have your company’s logo.

2) "The 7 Ways to Approach Twitter" http://ow.ly/3nAW Are you trying to find your place in this mad, mad Twitter –ing world? Whether you’re here to promote yourself, your business, or your bosses business, this article is great way to figure out how to get started and how to introduce yourself – once you’ve figured out who that is exactly.

3) "Is this Cleopatra’s skull? The thrilling finds at the dig to discover Egypt’s lost queen" http://ow.ly/3ko3 For years, archeologists and scientists have worked hard to discover the final resting place for legendary Cleopatra and her equally famous lover, Marc Antony. Are researchers one step closer?

4) "Reid Hoffman: My Rule of Three for Investing" http://ow.ly/3kpg If you’re having a little trouble adjusting to the economy, and want to know how to successfully manage your business fiscally, this is a great article for a step-off place.

5) "Scientists glimpse ‘end of the world’ in space dust study" http://ow.ly/3nAb Dust has been found in burnt out stars, or white dwarfs, from other dead planets, similar to ours, has been found by scientists. This glimpse into the future shows that earth may have a similar fate one day.

Still interested? Check out the other posts, and add @ColderICE to your Twitter follows!

"SAG Poised to Cut Its Losses without Net Deal" http://ow.ly/3nzq

"The Fastest Growing Social Sites" http://ow.ly/3nBh

"Dire Predictions: Global Ad Spending to Plummet" http://ow.ly/3klC

"Burglars caught in taxi ‘owned by victim’" http://ow.ly/3kqe

"Open Source and the Cloud: Pay Dirt or Parasite?" http://ow.ly/3kl0

Check this video out from MarketWatch, thanks to our buddy Randy Smythe for posting this on his blog earlier. The best part to me is when the guy in the video says, “what I want really want to sense is paranoia out of the management team…” Ouch, that is pretty straight to the point, LMAO. That comment comes at 2:20 minutes into the video.

Update as of 10:30 pm et … The YouTube account has been REINSTATED in FULL!!! CONGRATULATIONS ALL!!! You all made a huge difference.

Wow, that is all I can say. I guess the old saying is TRUE, “no good deed goes unpunished!” I am in utter astonishment and stunned. As you know we here at ColderICE are working hard to help Breast Cancer charities with fundraising in these hard times in American giving. We are auctioning the front of the editor’s T-Shirt via eBay Charity Giving Works on April 27th. This fundraising venture has 100% of the donations going to the American Breast Cancer Foundation

For a corporation that has a policy or written moral code of conduct and ethics that states "Don’t Be Evil", Google/YouTube has done something so EVIL I am shocked. The account for the “Chest to Save Breast” Charity Auction was deleted by Google today!!!

Google should really be ashamed of itself for doing such EVIL in the face of something so GOOD.

-  John (ColderICE)

Yes, you heard me right! Not only was the video removed but the ENTIRE ACCOUNT was completely deleted from the YouTube systems. There was no notice, no email, no warning and NO SUPPORT to find out anything.

A call placed to YouTube/Google at Google headquarters (+1 650-253-0000) was answered by a gentleman, we explained the situation and his response, for the company of “Don’t Be Evil” was, “Go to the YouTube website.” After explaining that this is where I got his information I was again told there was no support for YouTube and to go to the website.

Then a call was placed a 2nd time and I got a female on the line this time. My prayer was that, as a woman, she would POSSIBLY be more empathetic to our situation.  However she was a even MORE cold and robotic than the first individual. She did listen to my pleas for HELP, but refused to give me so much as a first name. She basically did not care at all about the charity or the work we were doing.

Just to note, in all my years on YouTube I have NEVER received not one warning, NEVER had a video removed and most certainly NEVER have I been temporarily suspended!!!

Right this minute as I type these words, my heart is breaking. My spirit is  heavy and the disappointment is apparent I am sure. How can Google do such an EVIL and heartless thing? Could you please let them know what YOU THINK about what they just did? Call the headquarters at 1+ 650-253-0000 AND send an email to PRESS@Google.com to let them know that we are NOT going to just let this one go.