After speaking to a former senior executive at eBay, I found that eBay merchants are getting more and more saavy. They’re no longer focusing their energies on selling through eBay and are actually leaving eBay in some cases. But where are they going? What marketplace is compelling enough to escape the totalitarian leash that’s been in place since ‘95?

How about somewhere without the oppressive walls in place? How about no fees, no restrictions, and the ability to use a portable reputation system? How about some place “worth” more than eBay? How about craigslist?

Yeah, eBay is scared…and they should be. Have you heard of The Unofficial Craigslist Book? Yeah neither did I, until today. But I’m thinking about purchasing a copy. In fact I probably will. For only the price of eight Subway $2.49 specials, honestly, that’s not a bad deal (In case you couldn’t tell, we pretty much eat Subway for lunch everyday).

Just checking out the author’s blog, I found extremeley useful advice such as:

“Upon the first exchange of e-mails never use your real name. There have been instances in which a person’s identity was assumed once they got detailed info about the seller.“

Oops. Good thing I know that now. Is this book going to single-handedly take down Meg Whitman’s empire? Probably not. But this book does look interesting and I’m guaranteeing that it can save you not only a ton of money, but save you alot of grief as well.

Now for all you eBay-turned-craigslist merchants (and everyone else out there), couple these craigslist tactics with online flyers from vFlyer and your Rapleaf reputation and you’re ready to rock ‘n’ rock. In a few years, you’ll forget what it was like to be harnessed to the ground with exorbitant listing fees.

Anyways, buy this book and let us know of any success stories. And be sure to rate your successes with a positive Rapleaf rating