The Secret of How Used-Line Began

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A Tribute to Simon Pozner, of Blessed Memory

Elijah Pozner, a physicist, would often require various pieces of expensive equipment to conduct his experiments. After he’d complete a particular analysis, the apparatus became of no use to him, and simply took up space in his office.

His brother, Simon, a mathematician, noted this phenomenon and realized that he could help people, like his brother Elijah, reach interested buyers of perfectly good technical equipment – if he’d just be able to post those products somewhere online!

He decided to teach himself computer programming, and with the goal of creating a unique platform designed & dedicated specifically for promoting the sales of technical equipment, Used-Line was born!

In 1999, S. Pozner Technologies, the officially registered name of Used-Line.Com, launched what would become the global online marketplace for new and used technical equipment.

Already by the year 2008, Used-Line.Com received over 100,000 hits a month!

Simon used his genius to develop some of the most advanced and used-friendly tools available online today for the promotion, classification, and searchability of new and used technical equipment.

Some of his most impressive innovations are Used-Line’s:

  • Robot (spider),
  • Advanced & detailed search engine capabilities
  • User-friendly platform for connecting buyers to sellers

To our great dismay, Simon passed away in 2012 leaving his wife, Esther, to assume the position of CEO at Used-Line.

By no means was Esther prepared to let Used-Line rest on its laurels! She went ahead and hired top programmers and developers to take over and continue making Used-Line better, and better, and better!

Indeed, just in 2018 alone, Used-Line developed a number of new & exciting features (make sure you read our newsletters & updates!), and revamped our site to provide an even more user-friendly and aesthetically pleasing experience! So 2019 is a significant year for Used-Line, as it marks its 20- year anniversary. We look forward to sharing more of our experience with you, and helping you sell and buy your equipment quickly and easily!

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What is the D2D-InStock System, anyway, and how can it help me?

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The Used-Line D2D-InStock System Demystified

The Used-Line D2D-InStock System is a shortcut to finding equipment that you need urgently.

How does the D2D-InStock System work?

It’s really quite simple.

Really.

Let’s just have a chat about this – forget about technicalities, how-tos, and all the rest.

Instead, we’ll discuss a typical scenario that describes day-to-day business in the marketplace of used (and new) scientific and industrial equipment, including test and measurement, labs, semiconductor manufacturing, and more.

You are a dealer in used Test & Measurement equipment and one bright and sunny morning you get a call from a customer (let’s call him Bob) requesting – actually, demanding – five Agilent (now Keysight) 4396B RF Network/Spectrum/Impedance analyzers, including specific fixtures. Bob is not his usual calm self. He tells you he needs this equipment right now – in fact, yesterday – and can you ship immediately (if not yesterday)?

Keysight 4396B analyzer

Keysight (Previously Agilent) 4396B (from Keysight Technologies website)

The 4396B is now obsolete, but that’s Ok, you’ve listed it on Used-Line. But, here’s the rub. You have only one in stock right now, not five!

What to do?!

Fortunately, you have already finished your second cup of coffee of the day, so you are able to think relatively clearly. You know that there just has to be at least four Keysight 4396B analyzers somewhere out there in the marketplace, so who should you call? Certainly not Ghostbusters. (Oops, I’m dating myself!)

So, you get out your lists. Long lists of companies who sell new and used equipment. Phone numbers. Email addresses. All dealers like yourself. You gather your troops, asking everyone to join your search. Everyone is eager to lend a hand. They’re a dedicated crew. Well, that’s nice that you have such amenable staff, but how many hours are you all going to spend emailing and calling everyone you know in the business, trying to find these elusive analyzers?

Wait a minute! What is that new Used-Line D2D InStock System all about? Isn’t there some sort of buddy system I can use to check all over the world for the availability of these Keysight analyzers?

Well, yes, there is! And here’s the really simple part of it all! USED-LINE does all the work for you! Ok, almost all the work. There is just one small task you need to perform to contribute to this workflow in order to make it work:

Tell us what equipment you are looking for!

And that’s it. And here’s the one and only instruction that I have to give you:

Send an email to system1@used-line.com telling us what equipment you urgently need.  email

And that’s it! No need for any tables or spreadsheets. Just email us and tell us that you need 4 Keysight 4396B analyzers.

And don’t forget to mention which fixtures or other options you need with the units.

And then what?

man_happy_equipment_found

You go get another cup of coffee, and when you return to your desk, there is a strong chance that there’ll be an email from Used-Line waiting for you to let you know that there are sellers out there who have the equipment you need IN STOCK! Ok, maybe not if you were looking for a rare machine that was last seen in 1960 (a Tektronix 310, anyone?). But if not right away, if someone is selling what you need, you will hear about it from Used-Line SOON if not immediately, and will find all the information you need to contact the sellers.

 

No searching required by you. Used-Line does all the work! And so quickly! We also want to make Bob happy!

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How to Purchase New and Used Equipment in the Used-Line Marketplace

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Used-Line is a marketplace for connecting buyers and sellers of new and use hi-tech & scientific equipment. We specialize in Test & Measurement, Laboratory, Semiconductor & PCB, Industrial, Medical, and BioPharma equipment.

We often get enquiries from customers asking us if we have certain items in stock. We are a marketplace with virtual “stalls” where our sellers can set up their equipment. We don’t sell any equipment ourselves.

So, we decided to provide some quick instructions on how to find equipment on Used-Line and contact our sellers.

Please follow the instructions below to search for your item and contact the seller directly.

There are just two easy steps for purchasing your equipment:

  1. In the Search Equipment text box, enter the model or type of equipment you want. A page opens with your search results.

    Search equipment tool bar

    Search for Equipment

  2. Click open an ad and send a Request to the Seller from the adjacent form.

quick tipIf you can’t find the equipment you want, choose Post Wanted Ad from the top of any page on Used-Line

If you need any further help, please Contact Us.

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Let Used-Line Visitors Click Directly Through to Your Product with our Premium Items Add-On!

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Used-Line dealers can promote their products and bring more potential buyers to their equipment listings with one or more of our special marketing Add-Ons. Each of our three Add-Ons offers a unique function that will enhance your advertising on Used-Line. Let’s take a look at Used-Line’s Premium Items Add-On.

Premium Items Add-On

The Premium Items Add-On refers to a Used-Line listing that includes a large arrow pointing to a clickable thumbnail of your item’s  page on your website.

How Premium Items work

Imagine a user looking for a particular item on Used-Line. Suddenly he notices a clickable thumbnail embedded in one of the listings of this item, which links directly to the item’s product page on the seller’s own website! This valuable Add-On, available at our special low cost, will literally bring our users to your doorstep.

How to add Premium Items to your listings

  • If you have purchased your listing plan on the Used-Line SELL page:
    1. Click Start Selling under For Large-Volume Sellers.
    2. Select the Premium Items checkbox.

Used-Line Add-Ons: InStock Icon, Premium Items, Featured Items

Used-:Line Add-Ons

 

 

 

 

All your ads will be shown on Used-Line with a large arrow pointing to the the clickable thumbnail that links directly to your item’s product page on your website.

  • If you purchased your listing plan by consulting with a Used-Line representative, you may have chosen to make some of your items Premium – but not necessarily all.

To tell the system which of your products are Premium Items:

  1. Send an Excel Spreadsheet to data@used-line.com. Include all the columns as described on our website, making sure to include a column labelled, Link.
  2. Enter a link to the item’s product page in the column labelled Link, next to each item that you wish to make into a Premium Item. A thumbnail will be embedded into each of your Premium ads. The thumbnail will link our users to the item’s product page on your website.
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A Great Way to Promote Your Products: Try our Featured Items Add-On

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Used-Line dealers can promote their products and bring more potential buyers to their equipment listings with one or more of our special marketing Add-Ons. Each of our three Add-Ons offers a unique function that will enhance your advertising on Used-Line. Let’s take a look at Used-Line Featured Items.

Featured Items Add-On

A Featured Item is a Used-Line listing that includes the following three special benefits:

  • Your product listing will appear at or near the top of page results when searched for on Used-Line.
  • You can include up to 5 images with your product listing.
  • You can edit your listing at any time – there is no need to wait for the Spider to scan for changes or for you to send in a spreadsheet with the changes.

Featured Items

Featured Items go to the top of a search list

How to purchase Featured Items

  • If you have purchased your listing plan on the Used-Line SELL page:
    1. Click Start Selling under For Large-Volume Sellers. Select the Featured Items checkbox.
    2. From the drop-down box, selected the number of items you would like to feature: 10, 25, 45, 65, or 85.
  • If you purchased your listing plan by consulting with a Used-Line representative, let your representative know how many Featured Items you would like to purchase. You can contact your representative directly or email sales1@used-line.com.

TIP: You can also – at any point – purchase up to 5 Featured Items on the Used-Line SELL page under For Occasional Sellers. The products you advertise in these ad slots become Featured Items.

How to create Featured Items

After you have purchased your Featured Items:

  1. Choose the My UL menu at the top of any page on Used-Line, and log in to Used-Line if you haven’t already done so.
  2. Click My Ads in the menu on the left side of the page.
  3. Select the My Auto Ads tab for a list of all the products you have uploaded to Used-Line.
  4. Select an item you want to Feature, then click the Feature This Ad button alongside this item. Do the same for all the items you wish to Feature.
  5. Switch to the My Manual Ads (Featured Items) tab, then edit each item as desired.
  6. Enter up to five images for each Featured Item in the spaces provided for them.
  7. Click Save.

 

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Tell Users That Your Equipment is In Stock with the Used-Line InStock Icon

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Used-Line dealers can promote their products and bring more potential buyers to their equipment listings with one or more of our special marketing Add-Ons. Each of our three Add-Ons offers a unique function that will enhance your advertising on Used-Line. Let’s take a look at the Used-Line InStock Icon.

InStock Icon Add-On

The In-Stock icon highlights ads for items that are currently in your inventory.

How the InStock Icon works

The InStock Icon highlights listings for equipment that is currently in your inventory and can ship immediately.

Nothing is more frustrating for a buyer than to order equipment, and then to find out that the item is not currently in stock. A dealer who can ship immediately has an edge on those who are unable to provide a short-term delivery date or who cannot guarantee availability of the item in the near future.

But how does a user know which sellers are stocking their requested item right now?

He looks for the Used-Line In-Stock Icon, of course! IN STOCK

The Used-Line In-Stock Icon is an Add-On you can purchase from a Used-Line Sales Representative or purchase directly on the Used-Line website.

How to add In-Stock Icons to your listings

  1. If you have purchased your listing plan on the Used-Line SELL page:
    1. Click Start Selling under For Large-Volume Sellers .
    2. Select the In-Stock Icon checkbox.

instock icon, premium item, featured item

Used-Line Add-Ons

 

 

 

 

All the products that are labelled as in stock on your website, will be shown with the Used-Line InStock Icon. If none of your products are labelled as in stock on your website, then all of your product listings will be shown with the InStock Icon.

  • If you purchased your listing plan by consulting with a Used-Line representative, you may have chosen to show that some of your items are in stock – but not necessarily all your items.

To tell the Used-Line Spider which of your products are in stock:

  1. Send an Excel Spreadsheet to data@used-line.com. Include all the columns as described on our website, making sure to include a column labelled, in_stock.
  2. Enter a “1” or the words, “in stock” in the column labelled in_stock, next to each item that is currently in your inventory.

After purchasing the In-Stock add-on, your green In-Stock labels will appear as follows when your ads are automatically uploaded to Used-Line via the Robot or your spreadsheet.

  • If any of your automatically listed equipment is marked as “in stock” on your website, then these items will be labeled as in stock on Used-Line – with the Used-Line InStock add-on.

Or

  • If none of your automatically listed equipment is marked as “in stock” speak to your Sales Rep about how best to used your In-Stock add-on. If all of your listings are currently in stock, but not listed as such on your site or on your spreadsheet, then all of your ads can be listed with the In-Stock label.
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Specifications and Features Now Showing in Used-Line Listings

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You’ve seen our T&M Specifications page, haven’t you? Well, it just got smarter. We added behind-the-scenes instruments that don’t necessarily fit into the T&M Specifications categories, but that do show up under ads in Used-Line listing categories.

Ok, we can hear you saying now: What are they talking about?

So, let’s explain.

Here’s how it usually works.

If you visit our Specs page, you’ll find 31 Test & Measurement Categories in which you can perform two tasks:

  • Check and compare product specs.
  • Find a particular model’s listings on Used-Line.

Let’s choose Signal Generators, for example. You view a table of (currently) 426 models and their specs, such as frequency ranges and output power.

Signal Generator Specifications

Signal Generators Specs on Used-Line T&M Specs page.

So, let’s pick one. We’ll select the Spanawave (formerly Giga-tronics) 2550B. When we click through we land on a page showing the specifications and a description of the 2550B. (Scroll up to view the 2550B product listings.)

That is the usual case.

Now, what happens if you want to view the specs of an item that we have not showcased on our T&M Specifications page?

What about a resistor, for example?

A pile of old resistors

Resistor, anyone?

A resistor?! You’re right. We do not have a special category for resistors in our T&M Specifications, but we do have the following categories in Used-Line’s listings of resistors ads:

Now, let’s go to Used-Line and search for a Guildline Instruments 9330, a standard resistor whose design meets the need to reduce the typical sources of errors found in older designs – that is:

  • Temperature coefficients
  • Thermal and electrical time constraints
  • Thermal EMF’s
  • Voltage and power coefficients

Scroll to the bottom of the 9330 listing results and what do you see?! A paragraph discussing the  specifications and features of the 9330 based on the manufacturer’s description!

Now you’re not going to find descriptions of every single product that is advertised for sale on Used-Line.

Yet!

But we’re working on it!

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Special lab equipment update for the 2016/2017 academic year

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Used Equipment Auctions

Used-Line has been serving its colleagues in the world of academia since 1999. We view our involvement in the institutions of science and engineering not only as a business, but also as a kind of community commitment.

PRICE CHALLENGE

Used test equipment auction

We are challenging our dealers to offer special discounted pricing for scientists and researchers in academic institutions, be it for anything from logic analyzers and microscopes, to Bunsen Burners and osmometers, breadboards, or etchers.

 

THE ACADEMIC YEAR 2016/2017 IS HERE

Used lab equipment auctionsTHE ACADEMIC YEAR 2016/2017 IS HERE
The new academic year is upon us, and university labs and research centers all over the globe have started to make their equipment selections for upcoming research and development programs.

Academic_fact

As shown by the U.S. National Science Foundation, academic institutions performed 53 percent of the U.S. total basic research, and 36 percent of all U.S. research (basic + applied), as far back as 2009. This increasing trend in research conducted by academia is now reflected in the numbers for 2015.

Visit Used-Line and find all the equipment you require from thousands of new special listings for academic laboratories in the many fields of science and engineering.

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Online Advertising—What It’s Worth

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header

More and more spending is going towards online advertising than ever before.

Are you onboard?

Let’s think about why this is happening, and consider the following:Why online? Well, how many ads have you seen in newspapers lately? In truth, how many newspapers have you read recently?! Your answer could explain why already way back in 2011, eMarketer correctly predicted a decline in spending for print advertising in the US in 2012, with a rise in online advertising to be seen each year including 2016

 

Chart

But have you been online in the last 24 hours? How many times? Perhaps a brand name entered that area of your brain that stores useful stuff! Without your even realizing it!

There must be a reason that, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report,$60 billion dollars was spent on online advertising in the United States in 2015.

It’s simple! Online Advertising is successful!

How? – You may ask.

  1. You have the right audience.
  2. Your ad works 24 hours a day.
  3. Your ad brings the user to you immediately.

Ok. So what does this all have to do with Used-Line Online Advertising?

B1You have the right audience. Your ad is targeted to Used-Line’s specialized audiences. What are your specialties? Gas Chromatographs? Logic Analyzer Modules? Clean Room Equipment? Well, go ahead and advertise. Your ad will be viewable on the listings page of your specialty.

B2Your listings work 24 hours a day. Well, sure. Used-Line is global. There are users all over the globe checking your listings at any moment of the day. An online audience is HUGE and is INTERESTED. Offline audiences are harder to reach and need to be persuaded. Online audiences are typically right there where you want them to be – where your listings are. More importantly, online audiences are right where they want to be.

B3Your listing on Used-Line brings the user to you immediately. Of course, you could be fast asleep! After all, many of us are – at 3:00 AM. But if a user on the other side of the world sees something he likes after clicking your listing, and fills a quote cart or shopping cart, then you’re in business without lifting a finger!

So, Does Online Advertising succeed?!

Let’s give that a big resounding YES! On Used-Line!

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