Rainbo Animation Art's Ad-Maker© III Help

Colors For eBay® Ads

Careful use of colors can make your ad much more attractive. By the same token, sloppy color choices can render your ads unreadable.

Ad-Maker© III Color Chart Aqua Black Blue Fuschi Gray Green Lime Maroon Navy Olive Purple Red Silver Teal White Yellow

If your background color is black, blue, or navy, choose a light color like white, lime, or yellow for your text. And since other colors can be very dark on some monitors, you should probably follow this advice with them, too. When you're trying to create your first ads, use Ad-Maker© III's Preview function to experiment with different combinations of text and background colors. The keyword to keep in mind is "contrast". Bright text on dark backgrounds and vice-versa.

We like to keep the same color scheme in all of our eBay® ads so they're instantly recognizable as ads from Rainbo Animation Art. But there's no rule that says you can't use as many combinations as you like as long as you don't end up overwhelming the bidders with your exercises in creativity.

---

Step 1: Creating A Title For Your Item

Ad-Maker© III requires a title for your item. It will be inserted in your ad as a banner over your item's picture and description. Ad-Maker© III will also use this title in the form that submits your item for sale on eBay®. For most items, the title should be the formal name of the item or something very descriptive. Occasionally a humorous quip is effective, but remember this title will also be used as the subject for EMails sent if the user clicks on the EMail link embedded in your ad. So its best to make it meaningful and keep it rather short - around 25 to 30 characters. And keep in mind that the maximum length for the eBay® title is 45 characters. You will also be allowed to select a font, font color, and a background color for the title banner.

---

Step 2: Picture Information

Having a picture in your eBay® ad is the best thing you can do to increase the chance that people will bid on your item. Many ads on eBay® are so poorly written that it isn't always clear what the seller is actually offering. With the vast number of Disney collectibles in the world, small details can make a big difference in the popularity and value of an item. Condition and overall appearance are extremely important to collectors, so obviously they will feel more comfortable about bidding on something if they can actually see it, too.

The first step is to photograph the item you want to sell. If you have a digital camera, you're in business. Just take the picture and store it on your computer's hard drive. If you have a 35mm camera, just ask the photofinisher to make a Picture Disk or a Picture CD along with the prints. This will add about $5-$10.00 to the cost of the photofinishing, but it is the fastest and easiest way to start.

In order for a webpage or eBay® ad to incorporate your picture file, it needs to know the name of the file and where it is located on the World Wide Web. The location of a file is described using a command called a Universal Resource Locator, or "URL". Whenever you see something like:

you're looking at a URL. You can think of the "www" part of the URL as pointing to the computer that hosts a user's website, and the location of his account on that computer. However, in the case of letting a webpage find the graphics file we need to add the name of the file, as in:

Ad-Maker© III starts you off with the hard to remember "http://" part of the URL, but you need to supply the rest by typing it into the box that asks for the URL.

If you have a picture of your item (and you know you should for most items), check the box in the form that indicates you want to put a picture in your ad, and be sure to enter the URL (for example, "www.example.com/myimage.jpg") for the file that holds the picture. When you check the box indicating you want to put a picture in your ad, Ad-Maker© III will automatically insert the picture alongside the description of the item by using the URL you enter in the form. We keep a file available that displays our name for this purpose, and use it in every ad we post on eBay®, but you can use any graphic file you like for this - although the smaller the file, the better. If you don't have an appropriate file to use as a placemarker, you can use one we've prepared that advertises Ad-Maker© III. The URL for this file is:

If you're an America Online user and you haven't uploaded files to your account's webspace before, we have a set of instructions here. Click here to see them.

Note that if the file containing the picture of your item isn't available at the URL you entered (for example, if you haven't uploaded it yet), the "Broken Picture" icon will appear in the Ad-Maker© III Preview Window. This is normal. In that case, if you have a copy of the picture file on your computer, check the box to tell Ad-Maker© III you want to use a file on your hard disk and fill in the second box below that asks for the "NAME OF THE FILE ON YOUR HARD DISK". Be careful to get the complete location and name of the file. If you make a mistake, Ad-Maker© III won't be able to find the file and you'll see that dreaded Broken Picture icon. If all goes well, Ad-Maker© III will use that local copy of the file instead of trying to find it on the Web at the URL you entered above.

Do yourself a big favor and make it your practice to use a graphics program to edit your picture files before your auctions. Any picture file that takes more than 30 seconds to load will discourage many potential bidders. To be specific, any graphics file over 50,000 bytes is too big. To reduce the size of a graphics file, try these suggestions:

• Crop out extraneous background areas
• Resize the picture smaller - few items need to fill more than ¼ of the screen
• Reduce the color depth of the graphic file to 256 colors. Some kinds of graphics files, like JPGs, can reproduce over 16 million colors, which is beautiful, but the result can be extremely large files. 256 colors is more than adequate for auction ads.

---

Step 3: Enter Your Item's Description

This is where you enter a description of your item. Remember to include important information like the condition, the color, size, manufacturer, and the approximate age of the item. Unless your item is very common or very popular, don't assume bidders will know exactly what your item is. Be specific. Use nouns like "book," "video," or "figurine." You should also include the amount you will charge for shipping, including a notation that bidders can save money on shipping if they win more than one item from your auctions. And don't forget to mention the methods of payment you will accept: personal checks, money orders, or credit cards. Even though the eBay® form has checkboxes for this information, spelling out the details in your ad will always be welcomed by potential bidders.

Below the textbox where you enter the description, you can select the font and the font color for the description's text. And you will also select the color to be used for the background for the description area in your ad. Keep in mind you'll want to use colors that contrast with one another in these settings. Click on the "Help With Colors" link when you go back to Ad-Maker© II for more information.

---

Step 4: Item and Transaction Details

This is where you can enter some specifics about the item you're auctioning and how you will handle the details of shipping and payment and have it appear in a highlighted section of your ad at the bottom of the Description Cell. These are optional features, and you don't have to use them at all. But they can let you point out the best (and worst!) aspects of the item and avoid problems down the road. Using this feature lets bidders see these crucial details at a glance, increasing the chance that they'll place a bid and reducing the chance they'll move on to someone else's.

If you leave an entry box empty, that item will not appear in your ad. So you don't have to worry about knowing everything about your item to include this feature in your ad.

---

Step 5: Enter Your EMail Address

The EMail Link Section is where you enter your EMail address. It will let potential bidders contact you with questions about your item and also allows them to see any other items you have up for auction. Be sure to enter your real and complete EMail address here. DO NOT Enter Your eBay® Nickname Here.

Including your EMail address in your auction ads lets potential bidders easily contact you by EMail and it will also allow them to view the other items you currently have up for auction by using the links in your ad. Ad-Maker© III will not accept any entry that is not a valid EMail address here.

You will also select the background color for the EMail Link section of your ad. The text will be black, so use a lighter color to keep it easy to read. Ad-Maker© III gives you the option of including little picture icons in your ads. If you'd like to use one of the EMail icons shown, just check the box and pick which icon you want to use by pressing the radio button underneath it.

---

Step 6: Information About Your Other Auctions

If you will have more than one item up for sale when you submit this one, checking the indicated box will create a "Click Here" link in your ad that will let bidders see all of the items you currently have up for auction on eBay®.

Bidders often bid on multiple items from the same seller in order to save on shipping charges. You will sell more and get higher bids if your item descriptions make it clear that you will be willing to make allowances in your shipping charges for people who win more than one item from your auctions.

---

Step 7: Preview Your Ad

Pressing the "Preview Ad" button will draw your ad in the Preview Window, showing what your ad will look like on eBay®. You can make any necessary changes to the settings in the Ad-Maker© III form and try the Preview function over and over again as many times as you like until you're satisfied with the results. Be sure to close the Preview Window before you make any changes to the settings in the Ad-Maker© III form.

---

Step 8: Create The HTML For Your Ad

When you've completed the form and like the results shown in the Preview Window, just press the "I Agree - Make My Ad!" button. If you've checked the box marked "Check This Box to Use a Pop-up Window For Your Ad's HTML", a window will pop up containing the HTML code for your eBay® ad. The HTML code will also appear in the text box below the "I Agree - Make My Ad!" button. Follow these steps to complete the process:

If you see the pop-up window containing the HTML code:

• Choose Edit·Select All
• Choose Edit·Copy to copy the HTML code for your ad onto Windows' clipboard
• Press the "Close This Window" button at the bottom of the pop-up window to close it
• Open your favorite text editor (like Windows Notepad or SimpleText for Mac)
• Select Edit·Paste to retrieve the HTML code from Windows' clipboard
• Choose File·Save As in your text editor to save the HTML code for your in a text file for use on eBay®

Some browsers do not support pop-up windows well. If the pop-up window is blank, or if you unchecked the "use a pop-up window" box, you can retrieve the HTML code for your ad from the HTML Box under the "I Agree - Make My Ad!" button using the following steps:

• Use your mouse to select all of the text in the HTML Box containing the HTML code from "<TABLE>" to "<\TABLE>"
• Choose Edit·Copy to copy the HTML code for your ad onto Windows' clipboard
• Open your favorite text editor (like Windows Notepad or SimpleText for Mac)
• Select Edit·Paste to retrieve the HTML code from Windows' clipboard
• Choose File·Save As in your text editor to save the HTML code for your in a text file for use on eBay®

The "Reset" button will clear the entire form and let you start over.

The HTML code for your ad, and all other pertinent information you entered into the Ad-Maker© III form will be automatically transferred into the eBay® item submission form below so you can quickly jump down and enter your item into the auction.

---

Step 9: Submit Your Item To eBay® Now!

Ad-Maker® will allow you to quickly submit your ad to eBay®. First, press the "Transfer" button to copy the HTML for your ad from the Ad-Maker© III form into the eBay® item submission form. Then you need to complete the rest of the eBay® submission form, starting with your eBay® password. For the record, Ad-Maker© III does not store or otherwise record your eBay® password. It uses the same method as eBay's® own form for protecting your password. The rest of the form is a brief version of the form you'd find on eBay®. Keep in mind that eBay® can and does change the fees it charges for the little extras you can ask for, and that the Ad-Maker© III form may not have the current information about those fees. However, eBay® will still give you an accurate price quote when you press the "Review" button.

Thanks for trying Ad-Maker© IIII!

The contents of this website are the copyright © property of the Walt Disney Company®, other studios, Disneyland®, Walt Disney World®, Thinkway Toys®, and Rainbo Animation Art. The images are intended only as illustrations of the art and collectibles being offered for sale and may not be reproduced in any form for any other purpose without the permission of the owners.

Click here for Ordering Information, or simply call us at 612-408-4057 from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM Central time (-5:00 GMT).