What to do about The Summer Slump - Tips

At this time of year every year we here the complaints in the selling community! My store isn't getting enough traffic. Looks like my store has become invisible! It was doing good before. Well daah. Every business has its slumps and for the online community it comes in the summer when more people are getting outdoors and vacationing and entertaining children who are off from school.
So what do you do when the dreaded slump hits your e-store?
1. This is a great time to work on your store, re-evaluating your inventory, researching what is selling and what is not. Make it the best it can be for those who do get online and for the selling season.
2. Find new ways and places to advertize so that your store gets seen. Here is a new page I have started atSquidoo.com Let me know what you think.
3. Join a forum and try to help other online sellers.
4. Have a web page to link back to your store, give some information, and show off some products.
5. Discussion boards are also a great place to help others.
6. Have an rss feed of your store and blog.
7. Don't forget to ping your feeds to keep them fresh
For more information on feeds and blogs you may want to visit here
8. Learn a little html and get prepared. Seasons do change and when people can find what they are looking for they will come.

What makes a collectible worth collecting

I have heard it said that everything is collectible. That might be true for some people but not for everyone. Some folk collect just a certain date. Maybe it was a special anniversary or birthday. Not everything is collectible just because it is old though. Old baseball cards were put in bycicle spokes by little boys having fun. This created a scarcity of cards in good condition. Many such items are more collectible because of their scarcity. Uniqueness is another quality that makes an item collectible. Any one of a kind item is more desirable than something made in bulk. Some items are collectible for their artistry. Others are desirable for their quality. I love items with a historical significance. Who wouldn't want to collect anything about a famous or not quite so famous loved one. These are great for studying history or Geneology. This book about Tiger Woods and other golfing pros from the 2000 Open at Pebble Beach should be very collectible as time goes by. It has brief write ups about many of the golfers as well as a list of 100 champians and is a first edition. There is also a page in memory of Payne Stewart.

Elvis Presley

Elvis was wildly popular with teen of the 60's not only for his singing but for his dark hair and flashy costumes. There have been many impersonators of Elvis but this little guy really cracks me up! He is a Fanciful Frog named King Croak from Westland Giftware. Westland Giftware began in 1972 and is still in operation today. Have you kissed any frogs today? That song just kept going through my head.