The eBay Live conference guide shows pages and pages of information about all the classes, lectures and networking sessions going on, and sometimes it seems overwhelming. There is certainly no lack of content at eBay Live, and often times the challenge is choosing between two classes you want to attend at the same time.

For many people, the networking opportunities were more valuable than the classes. This year, eBay set up an organized way to do that: Networking and Speed Networking areas. "I think the networking sessions are awesome, and great to allow people to do networking," said Kevin Shape of Live Internet Auction specialists universallive.com, eBay seller id "universallive."

Kevin's father, head of universallive Martin Shape, said, "There are topics you can provide for networking meals - you each go around the table discussing that particular topic." Kevin and Martin are also meeting up with "several different customers" while they're here.

With "speed networking," said Martin, "People are moved every ten minutes," so it's one-on-one every ten minutes. He pointed out that most people are "shy when it comes to networking with large groups, but one-on-one, they're not."

Julia Wilkinson with Jim Cockrum, author of "The Silent Sales Machine Hiding on eBay"

Legendary ebook seller Jim Cockrum, author of what may well be the bestselling ebook about eBay ever, "The Silent Sales Machine Hiding on eBay," www.silentsalesmachine.com (which has sold about 75,000 copies), said "I think the value of the conference and classes has been hearing from the people who are actually doing the work. The presentations are good, but actually sitting in class with people who are successful sellers and hearing their experiences has been the most valuable session for me."

Cockrum went to the session about selling tickets - "That was the neatest group of people. They knew where all the loose edges were," he joked. "eBay is really going to bat for the tickets sellers," he said. Just because Major League Baseball calls up and asks to have tickets taken down, he said, eBay says "unless there's a law being broken, we're backing our sellers."

He said he was "in and out of several sessions, but "to be honest, the best thing was meeting the people who were selling. I love the wacky little niches, like poker chips," he said.

The question in Thursday's Town Hall with Bill Cobb and other eBay executives may have been the best indication of what people attending eBay Live want out of the classes: a way to take home all the content on a CD, because there are so many that there's no way anyone can take them all in at once. "I took notes, but I don't remember what I wrote down. Can we buy a CD with all the classes on it?" he asked, to much applause.

Jim "Griff" Griffith said that this year they were taping several of the sessions, and they would be available for download in July. He added that "each eBay Live we get more input about how to run the classes."

"They're listening..you'll see even more this year," he said.

A deaf man asked through an interpreter if eBay could include close-captioning on any video of the eBay classes, and Bill Cobb said "I think that is a very good request," and that eBay plans to take that one on.

Some sellers found such "open sessions" as the Town Hall to be the best parts of the conference. "You're getting into the folks who have worked their way up," said Kenneth Boardman, Director of Marketing at "Consider It Sold," www.consideritsoldinc.com (ebay id consideritsold$), a platinum powerseller. He said they sell just about everything except real estate.

"The classes are good when you're starting out," he said. But "does the president of (eBay) North America understand?" That's the kind of thing eBayers can get out of the open sessions and town meetings. He said he does have the sense Bill Cobb is "getting it." Boardman said there had been some discussion of having more advanced classes at eBay Live, but "they're trying to keep a level playing field."

Jerry Greenfield, co-founder of "Ben & Jerry's" talks with an eBay seller

One very popular session on Thursday was the Jerry Greenfield (of Ben n Jerry's Ice Cream fame) talk about "Social Responsibility, Radical Business Philosophy (& Free Ice Cream)." "Wouldn't it be good to run a business and feel good about it?" was how eBay seller Kathleen Schade (knb_subbly) summed up the session. "You don't have to worship the almighty dollar," added Robert Wallace, whose wife, Jeanne, sells as "jeanzbeanz" on eBay. Greenfield also talked about starting the business and initially getting turned down by banks.

The sessions on blogs and wikis, features announced at the eBay Live Keynote speech, were both filled to capacity. eBay employees went through the basics of the new blogs and wiki areas on eBay, and how to create a blog and a wiki article. (There was not a lot of reaction to the wiki feature when Bill Cobb announced it at the Keynote, so the leader of the session said he was glad to see so many people in attendance.)

All in all, the eBay sessions were like eBay Live overall..lots to do and lots to see, and no way to do it all, so you just have to get the most out of what you do choose to do. ---
Julia Wilkinson Author, "The eBay Price Guide," (No Starch Press, 2006, powered by Hammertap) and"eBay Top 100 Simplified Tips & Tricks" (Wiley, 2004-6); "What $ells on eBay for What," http://www.aolmemorabilia.com/whatsells.html; Publisher, Yard Salers and eBayers, http://www.yardsalersebayers.com Blog: "bidbits" at http://blogs.gowholesale.com/julia_wilkinson juliawilk@aol.com email juliawilk (at) aol (dot) com