Happy 20th anniversary, eBay! We noticed you didn’t have “New Perception” on your wish list. But boy, would we like to give you one.
Okay, that’s a little mean-spirited. But it’s kind of true.
The 20th anniversary-related announcements eBay made on Tuesday would have been a great day for the marketplace to change its brand perception, which falls somewhere between “we’re more than just an online auction site” and “We’re not Amazon, but buy from us anyway.”
Instead, eBay announced it would hold 20 Days of Deals, which may or may not be 20 times better than Amazon’s Prime Day. And it launched app version 4.0. And it announced a 3-city road tour, complete with a wrapped Airstream, to promote all the good things eBay has to offer.
But many consumers still see eBay as a place to unload junk to people who want to bid on it. While that’s one aspect of the marketplace’s business, nChannel President and CEO Steve Weber points out that 80% of items listed on eBay are not sold by auction.
Weber told Multichannel Merchant that eBay could change its image by working with brick and mortar retailers on a local level – for example, offering an Uber-like delivery service, and adding a store locator as part of its new app.
Weber said eBay can gain more consumers by promoting itself as a one-stop shop where you can buy anything, including hard-to-find items. eBay could also help itself by letting its merchant sellers market their eBay presence for them.
And while marketplace newcomer Jet.com is taking off full throttle, and had not cannibalized eBay (or Amazon), ChannelAdvisor CEO David Spitz said it’s certainly possible that Jet.com can give eBay a run for its money.
“eBay has had a bit of an identity crisis,” Spitz told Multichannel Merchant. “They are trying to find out who they are in this ecommerce world.”
Spitz said he thinks eBay is trying to establish itself as the marketplace with the broadest spectrum of items: From new, to last season, to refurbished, to used, from retailers to individual sellers.
Here’s a look at what else shaped the ecommerce world this week…
Marketing
Best Buy is testing a store-within-a-store concept with Macy’s… Facebook is testing a revamped Pages service in order to attract more businesses, including the addition of a “shop” section that lets visitors make purchases without leaving the social site. …Instagram expanded marketing reach for businesses by adding 30 second video ads for businesses….Zachys Wine Auctions partners with Invaluable, an online live auction marketplace to offer online bidding on the Invaluable marketplace site….Timberland debuted a new ad campaign called “Made for the Modern Trail” highlighting everyday adventures and exploring what the outdoors mean for urban shoppers.
Ecommerce
Moda Operandi has rebuilt its website with an imagery focus…Neiman Marcus expanded its Snap.Find.Shop feature to more categories on its mobile devices… eBay is celebrating its 20th anniversary with 20 Days of Deals… And then Pornhub launched its own ecommerce apparel site, And a pop-up store…Staples announces online 3D printing platform allowing small businesses and consumers upload their own 3D designs.
Shipping and delivery
Uber reportedly plans to launch same-day delivery to shoppers in New York and San Francisco this fall, through partnerships with dozens of retail and fashion brands. It is also reportedly talking to ecommerce platform providers Bigcommerce and Shopify about integrations to extend its reach. … The union representing UPS pilots may hold a strike vote beginning on Oct. 1, four years into negotiations and 19 months into federal mediation. The Independent Pilots Association (IPA) said the vote results would be announced by Oct. 23. … Google Express has expanded into 7 Midwestern states with overnight delivery, and plans to test out grocery delivery in San Francisco and another market.
Cross-border
Alibaba Group has announced plans for its 2015 11.11 Global Shopping Celebration. You may know of it as “Singles Day.”… ShipStation is now integrated with Amazon Mexico… Should marketplace selling be a part of your cross-border strategy?… Amazon is getting ready to open 7 fulfillment centers in India… Endicia has expanded its global shipping service to include Mexico and Brazil… World First has a payments partnership with Newegg… Amazon India has announced seven new fulfillment centers, giving it 20 in 10 states covering more than 1.6 million square feet with a storage capacity of nearly 4 million cubic feet.
Financials
IKEA reported an 11.2% increase in full-year sales as a result of Chinese and Russian markets…. luluemon Athletica Inc., reported a net revenue increase of 16% to $453 million from $390.7 million in 2014. Direct-to-consumer sales net revenue also saw an increase of 30% to $82.2 million. Barnes & Noble reported a decrease in sales of 1.7% to $939 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2016.
… And more
Macy’s plans to close 35 to 40 stores, but says stores are still a vital part of its omnichannel strategy…GameStop announced it is allowing customers to use Android Pay in stores.