Posting
an ad that was created with Dominant Ad Creator is relatively
simple, and can currently be done two different ways. The
best part about creating ads with this software, is that
you can post it on any auction site that accepts HTML formatting.
If you list your ads via eBay.COM, you may wish to try out
the assisted submitting tool integrated into Dominant Ad
Creator to further simplify the process. For this tutorial,
I will discuss the steps required to submit the sample ad
we created in the last tutorial using both methods available.
| Submitting
An Ad Manually (Classic Method) |
The
classic way to submit an ad to ANY auction site is to do
so manually. Prior to Dominant Ad Creator 2.3, users were
required to use this method in order to get their listings
posted on an auction site. Users of eBay's online auction
site may wish to use the Assisted Submission tool included
with Dominant Ad Creator to simplify the listing process.
Before
posting your ad, you should preview it to ensure it looks
like it should. After it looks good, click on the "Generate
Ad" button (F12). The generated
code will then be copied to your clipboard. You will receive
brief details about how to list it, but this tutorial will
go through exactly what to do (using eBay).
Begin
by going to the website you would normally use to list an
ad. If you are using other posting software, you can open
that up instead. In this example, the ad created in the
Create An Ad tutorial will be
submitted to eBay.
Upon entering the eBay site and signing in, we are taken
through a few simple pages asking what our general listing
should be.
1.)
On the first screen, I selected to 'Sell
Item at Online Auction'.
2.)
Following this page, I was asked to select a category. For
this tutorial, I selected Everything
Else - Test Auctions - General.
3.)
After the initial page(s), we are now set to start listing
our ad! On the first page which requires user input, it
asks for the title, sub-title, and description of your ad.
Enter a title
(up to 55 characters) - this field is what users can search
for to find your listing, so be descriptive and only use
worth-while words. You can use the same title that was entered
within Dominant Ad Creator, or a completely different one.
For this particular auction, I used 'D.A.C. Imaginary
Alarm Clock with Volume Control'
NOTE:
Do
not enter a sub-title unless you wish to pay an extra $0.50,
as the sub-title is not searchable and provides very little
difference in your listings. Please understand that the
Sub-Title entered in Dominant Ad Creator will still appear
in the actual listing.
4.)
Next comes the most important part in the listing process.
You must paste the content that was copied
to your clipboard when you generated the ad, into the DESCRIPTION
box of the listing form. Using eBay, it is also equally
important that you have the 'Enter Your Own HTML'
tab selected for the description box. To paste the contents
into the description field, right-click
within the description text-box and select Paste.
You should see all of the generated code pasted into the
text-box!
5.)
Continue filling out the auction details as usual. The next
important section worth talking about involves adding pictures.
Since the pictures have already been added in our description,
you do not technically need any 
pictures
added here. However, it should be noted that if you do not
specify a picture in this spot, you should at least check
the box which reads, 'The description already includes
a picture URL for my item.' Another way would be
to paste (or enter) an image path to one of the images you
already have used in your auction. An advantage to doing
this is that you will then have a small preview image at
the top of each listing.
NOTE:
If the check box mentioned above does not appear on the
eBay selling page, you may wish to paste the URL: http://pics.ebaystatic.com/aw/pics/spacer.gif
into the blank text field as this will result in the same
effect.
6.)
For the rest of the selling information, simply fill it
out as you normally would. Once you are all done with the
selling information, you can click continue.
At
the confirmation screen, you will then see a preview of
the auction along with the listing fees and other important
information. Check it over thoroughly before submitting
the auction. The templates may appear distorted and/or stretched
out in the preview. This is due to the fact that eBay's
preview system resizes your ad to fit in a specific section
and may mess up other portions of the preview as well. Regardless,
the template will appear as expected after it is finally
posted.
7.)
After you see that the preview works (mainly that the pictures
are working), click the submit button found
at the bottom of the page. You
will finally be presented with a message saying your auction
has been listed! You will also be provided with a link so
you can visit your newly created auction right away.
NOTE: It can take up to four hours for your item to become
searchable by other viewers on eBay.
| Submitting
The Ad Using The Assisted Submission Tool (eBay Only) |
Dominant
Ad Creator now allows you to create and submit the ad,
all without leaving the software. This tool acts as a
'form assistant' and includes several time-saving shortcuts
you can use while posting an ad created with the software.
Unlike the automatic submitting portion of the last released
version of this software (2.3), this re-done utility now
gives you complete flexibility and access to ALL features
of the standard eBay selling form. In fact, you can use
this utility the same as if you were submitting the ad
using your standard web-browser - except there are some
great shortcuts now provided! The shortcuts include:
| Automatic
Sign-in |
Logs
you into eBay with a single click - no typing necessary! |
| Insert
Title |
Inserts
the title from the ad (that you created) into the
correct eBay field |
| Insert
Description |
Generates
your ad and pastes the contents into the eBay description
box |
| Main
Picture Selector |
Allows
you to insert an image from your ad directly to
the eBay picture field |
| Gallery
Image Selector |
Allows
you to insert an image from your ad directly to
the eBay gallery section |
| Back
and Continue Buttons |
These buttons are always visible and easier to access
than the ones on the selling form |
This tool has
been tested and works successfully for a standard auction,
fixed listing, and real-estate sale. I created this tool
so that it will require minimal updates in order
to continue functioning correctly. Unless a drastic change
occurs on the eBay selling form (such as a completely
nw selling form or a change in the site URL), you should
not experience problems with this feature. Even if some
of the shortcut buttons would fail to function, the actual
submission process would still work but everything would
have to be done manually.
STEPS FOR
AUTOMATED SUBMISSION
1.)
After creating your listing as described in the previous
tutorial, click on the 'Submit Ad to eBay'
button (CTRL + F12) found on the main
toolbar. You do NOT need to click the
'Generate Ad' button if you plan on using the
assisted submitting tool included.
Even
if you want to list an ad but that hasn't been created
with Dominant Ad Creator, you still may prefer to use
this tool over the standard eBay form and web-browser.
You will find that the back and continue
buttons are conveniently located and always visible when
using this tool, which could speed up any eBay submission
process by a little.
2.)
If it is your first launch, the eBay Username and
eBay Password fields will be blank, and the Selling
URL field will have the default (and generally correct)
eBay selling URL in it. If you plan on using the Automatic
Sign-in feature, you can enter your username and password
in the provided fields. The password is saved in an encrypted
file on your own computer, and is never used except directly
on the eBay sign-in page.
3.)
To start the submitting process, click on the 'Start'
button found farthest on the left of the form. Provided
you are connected to the Internet, you will be taken to
the eBay selling page and that page will appear in the
main area of the form.
NOTE:
If you are not connected to the Internet or the
eBay site is down an error will generally appear and prevent
you from continuing the submission process.
4.)
Once at the sign-in screen, you can either click on the
'Automatic Sign-in' button to have the
software automatically fill in your username and password,
and submit the form. Otherwise, sign-in and proceed to
the actual selling form. You will have to go through a
few setup pages such as the auction format and category,
but you will eventually reach the Item Description section.
5.)
As soon as you are at the Item Description page, the 'Insert
Title' and 'Insert Description' buttons
will become active. If you click on the 'Insert
Title' button, the title from your actual ad
(in the Main window of Dominant Ad Creator) will automatically
be pasted into the eBay Title field. Now, if you click
on the 'Insert Description' button, the
ad will be generated and the contents will be inserted
into the eBay description field.
NOTE:
Due to the way eBay's site is designed, you will
most likely NOT see any text displayed
in the Description field - even after the Insert
Description button has been pressed. None-the-less,
if you do not receive any errors after pressing the button
then everything has been correctly inserted. On the first
run of the listing tool, you will receive a message explaining
the same scenario and how to verify the description contents..
6.)
Next, fill out any other fields that are required
in order to list an eBay ad. When you get to the page
that allows you to insert images, the two Image Insertion
Buttons will become active. Click the 'Pick
Main Image' and you will be presented with the
Add Images dialog box, where you can simply click
the Select button next to the image you wish
to use. If you wish to include a gallery image in your
listing, click the 'Pick Gallery Image' button and then
select a picture to use from the list. Automatically,
the correct gallery image path will be inserted and the
standard Gallery option will be checked.
NOTE:
If you have eBay's own image hosting service
enabled, you will either have to manually insert the pictures
or change your preferences to use your own photo hosting.
If this case arises while attempting to add a picture
to the eBay form, a message will be presented explaining
exactly how to switch the settings on eBay so it works
successfully.
7.)
Finally, continue the listing process as you normally
would (specify any required and optional features you
wish to include). After you get the the review page, make
sure all settings are correct. The ad may appear incorrect
as far as colors or layout goes, but rest assured it will
appear perfectly fine once submitted. After you press
the final Submit (continue) button, the ad will be posted
and you will receive a message telling you so.
The
ad will be submitted and you can then close the listing
window to return to Dominant Ad Creator!
