For Your Review

How would you like to increase your business's traffic by almost 20 percent, simply by bragging about how great your products are? Platinum PowerSeller Jude Hodge did just that using eBay's Reviews & Guides. Hodge, the owner of GPS Specials, which specializes in auto and marine GPS navigation systems and electronics, knows how powerful the Reviews & Guides section of eBay can be for marketing a business. After she created a few reviews and guides, Hodge saw sales of her $9,000-a-month Brookings, Oregon, business grow. "We have increased our traffic by 16 percent," says Hodge, 46.

Hodge writes reviews of products she carries in her store as well as guides to help people understand the benefits of those products. "eBay [has] so many brands and features, so a guide or review really helps consumers understand the product before they spend their hard-earned money on it," she says. She's right: In the world of e-commerce, customers are increasingly relying on product reviews to conduct research before making purchases.