User talk:Batsheva pozner

Used-Line
Used-Line is an Online marketplace and Vertical search engine specializing in used high tech industrial and scientific equipment. Used-Line focuses on three major sectors: Electronic Test & Measurement, Laboratory, and Semiconductor & PCB equipment.

Used-Line does not handle transactions—they occur offline or on sellers' websites. Used-Line is not an auction site. It more closely resembles Craigslist than eBay.

Purpose of Used-Line

The purpose of the website is to streamline the task of finding used equipment online by consolidating information from hundreds of dealer websites into one convenient place and format.

Typically, a Web search for a specific model of equipment produces thousands of results. The user performing the search will spend time manually sifting through many web pages returning “hits” for the text of his keyword. Much time can be spent comparing the offerings of many potential sources of the desired equipment.

The Used-Line web spider visits the sites of used equipment dealers, and isolates the relevant information that the user needs, such as pricing information, model specifications, and the condition of the instruments in their inventory. The information is stored and indexed in the database of listings. This allows the Used-Line visitor to find much of the available equipment offered for sale on the web, quickly compare the choices, and contact the sellers directly or through the Used-Line website.

Sources of Equipment Listings

There are three sources of listings on Used-Line:

●	Listings obtained by the Used-Line web spider from dealer websites

●	Data feeds supplied by dealers of used equipment

●	Listings entered manually into the Used-Line database by end users and professional sellers

The Used-Line web spider crawls dealer websites looking for equipment for sale, and automatically indexes the listings into categories. As of December 2010, the number of listings had grown to more than 200,000 in over 700 categories.

Used-Line gives precedence to dealers who pay for having the equipment listed on the website, but hosts equipment data of non-paying dealers as well.

Used-Line Tools

The following Used-Line tools assist visitors with their purchasing or selling decisions.

●	A Dealer Directory with a listing of 700 dealers of equipment, equipment manuals, repair and calibration services, and equipment rentals. Dealers can be selected by country, and, in the United States, can be selected by state.

●	The Equipment Selector for the electronics test and measurement group, a database of models in 23 categories that are either currently listed on manufacturer websites or that have been discontinued by their manufacturers. Many of the models in the Equipment Selector can be found in Used-Line listings. If a user is uncertain of exactly the equipment model that would best suit his requirements he can use the Equipment Selector to select a model, or to compare models, based on brand or technical specifications.

A sample of Used-Line traffic statistics (December, 2010):

Total listings: 205,000

Visitors per month: 100,000

Users who purchased equipment: 47%

Users who checked a price: 30%

Users who looked for a dealer: 12%

Business Model

Dealers who pay Used-Line for listings get preferred services. The Used-Line Dealers pay a flat monthly rate for listing equipment on Used-Line. The rate depends on the expected number of items listed in the database. The Used-Line Referral Service is a commission-based service available for end user sellers and dealers who do not want to pay a monthly fee. Used-Line also generates revenue through the sale of banner advertising to dealers, auction houses, and other companies in related fields.

References

http://www.used-line.com/

http://www.electronicstalk.com/news/use/use100.html

http://www.electronicstalk.com/news/use/use103.html