Audio scanning

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And I understand that the visual data gives a much better idea of what to buy, but it would be nice to have the option for people who need quick info.

Hi David,

Audio triggers work only if cost is known. For services that only cater to books and media items, they work because you have an assumed cost of ~$1 per item.

Since FBAScout users scout for pretty much anything that can be resold for a profit, triggers don't make as much sense. The same trigger settings for two users would yield the same results if they scanned the same toy, but if one could buy the toy for a much lower price (such as if it were on clearance), then the toy is a deal for one and not the other. Different buying decisions, same trigger results.

Don't worry; we have our own trigger system in the works. A trigger system based on MARGIN :)

Regarding Sales Rank triggers, don't rely on them exclusively. You'll miss good stuff and you may also get bad stuff. More detail info on Sales Rank here:

http://fbablog.com/2011/06/amazon-sal...

Cost isnt that big of a factor. It assumes a buying price of $0. If I am out and scan an item and it tells me the profit if I sell the item is $25 I can simply subtract the cost from that and figure out real profit. ie, if it costs $1 or $10, its simple to just figure on $24 or $15 accordingly.

And I understand that sales rank is not an end all be all way to make a buying decision but its a decent one. I still buy items with not great sales rank but I figure in a bigger cushion of profit for it and decide if I think there is truly a market for that item or not. I dont set my ranking triggers all that differently. I just like to know if the item would make any profit and build in a little extra cushion on poor rank. Some items are poor rank simply because everyone has the item priced too high. Case in point. I bought a Motorcycle restoration book for a motorcycle that stopped production in 1979. It was at a book sale for $.50 and the lowest used price was in the $70s. Sales rank was 2.5m. Easy decision to make for just a $.50 investment right? Sold it in under a week for $59.99 so yes I still buy items with not so great sales rank if the profit margin is still there. Probably not the best example since the investment was so low but I think you get my point. Additionally, If i had to look at the phone after every single scan, I might not have even made it to that book before someone else got it.

I typically use FBA Scout when out looking for toys or homegoods or something like that but use a different 1 as a primary for booksales and thrift stores. Would just be nice to cut that down to just using 1. Even just a noise every time I scan a book that not under $5 total selling price (inluding 3.99 shipping) would be helpful and cut my scanning time down. The less I have to look at the phone the better.

my cost per unit is usually .50 to $4 max, so if I set an alert for $15 that should speed up my scanning considerably. Just bought a axim v50 off ebay.

You are assuming that a live lookup will act as quickly as a database system like your current PDA service. It isn't nearly as fast and as such, audio cues really won't make you scan any faster than just looking at the screen.

For a PDA it might be quicker but honestly, I love following sellers who scan and use audio cues. They miss a LOT of very good stuff. The best trigger setup and audio cue is far inferior to the visual info on the screen. The best scanner is far inferior to the trained eye of an experienced bookseller.

loner, you might be able to scan behind me, but you won't be close behind, What is your time worth? Also just because there is an audible trigger does not mean there is no visual data. You can always glance at the screen. There's no law against it. And I will smoke any real time, internet scanner.

Never said there was a law against it. For me it isn't about speed, it is about learning and buying quality items. The OP wanted an audio trigger on FBAscout which is a real time internet scanner to speed up his scanning. I was just pointing out the fact that since a real time internet scanner is slow in comparison to a PDA based system, adding audio triggers won't speed it up any.

Yeah, you will smoke me as far as speed goes, but that doesn't mean that you will walk out with higher value at the end of the day. I can't tell you how many $250+ books I have pulled from FOL sales after all the scanner sellers have been through. As for what my time is worth, I will gladly spend a few extra minutes to find those true gems and learn a little more about books. That simply couldn't happen if I let a scanner make the decisions for me through an earpiece.

Here is a quick example, just a few months ago I was at a FOL sale where I watched man with a scanner and earpiece quickly (and somewhat frantically) scan through a box of books before anyone else could get to it. I looked over and saw the spine of a book in that box that I knew was worth $100 - $10,000 depending on the printing. I also knew that it was safe because it didn't have a barcode or ISBN so the guy scanning wouldn't know that it was valuable. As soon as he tossed the box aside to move on to the next one, I walked over and pulled the book out. Not a $10K 1st printing (Darn!) but a valuable 13th printing. I sold it in 2 weeks for $415.

Yes, I own and use a scanner. I also own and use FBAscout. I use them as tools to confirm my instincts, not as a tool to make the decisions for me.

that is a bad analogy, if I run through the UPCs, I can go back and manually or voice enter ISBNs if time permits.

But again, no law that a audible scanner can't run ISBNs or titles.

Ummm, this book had no UPS, no ISBN and no barcode. My analogy was that when a seller tunes himself out to anything but the sound in an earpiece while scanning, they will miss things, potentially very valuable things. If they depend on their scanner to make their buying decisions, they are drastically limiting their learning potential.

It sounds as though you are upset that someone has a different opinion than you about the use of scanners. I don't care if you want to use an earpiece or not. I am just saying that speed isn't everything. I have been selling books online for 5 years now and my sales are in the 6 figures. I do that by following after the speedy scanner sellers and pulling the books that they missed. There is room for different types of sellers in the marketplace.

As I said before, there isn't a law against using an audible scanner signal. To each their own, but don't think for one minute that you are finding all of the good books using a scanner. You aren't.

How in the world did my post turn into another pointless scanning vs experience thread? lonebuckent, your posts are irrelevant to the topic. The point was if having audio cues (which most all other scanning programs have) would be beneficial to some, and it would, I have done both and can attest to that fact. Bringing up buying pre-isbn titles is completely irrelevant.

My primary business isnt books, its the toy and baby categories but I do attend FOL sales and hit thrift stores occasionally and can get in and out quicker so I can get back to my main business which is set to generate 6 figure income this year. I neither care to nor have the inclination to learn about pre-isbn books. I'd rather concentrate on more guaranteed streams of income and leave those for the people who have the time and passion to devote to that market.

Okay, you win. I will shut up.

Sorry for bringing my opinion to the board.

Lone, you brought some knowledge also. I can't argue with your model even though it would not fit me, since I don't have the time to title search every vintage book.

Also the market is narrower for antique books, some very low volume. So you have to be willing to sit on a book for awhile before the right buyer finds you.

Your way is your way, not worse or better than mine, simply different.