ebay & Beyond: Basics To Business Podcasts Reviewed By AuctionWally
While prying open my sleepy eyes this morning I was greeted by a Direct Message (DM) from my good friend Walt Kolenda aka AuctionWally. As I was downing my morning coffee I about sprayed my computer screen with said coffee when I read the link that Wally had sent me! Imagine my total surprise when I began reading Wally’s review of my weekly live internet radio program ebay & Beyond: Basics To Business (also available as a podcast on Talkshoe and iTunes).
Walt has been a contributor/writer for Examiner.com for some time and recently has been charged with reviewing podcasts. I am totally floored that he would chose our program to be one of the first podcasts he reviewed.
Wally’s article is glowing and complimentary! Thanks so much Walt for the great review and exposure. As we approach our second anniversary show next week, I truly appreciate the attention and review by one of my peers.
eCommerce Marketing Radio Network Takes It To The Next Level
Janaury 23, 2009
Sherman, NY- eCommerce Marketing Radio Network announces today the beginning of a new era in live talk radio! Beginning Saturday January 24th 2009 ebay & Beyond: Basics to Business the longest running independent live weekly interactive talk radio program for ecommerce sellers will be simulcast live on both Talkshoe.com and live video on Ustream.tv.
As a pioneer in ecommerce news radio, the next progression is to provide live video streaming for better listener, (and now viewer) interaction. Using the wonderful technology of the internet, ebay & Beyond will now be able to demonstrate visually the products, software and techniques to improve ecommerce.
Initially we will provide live streaming video of the program and in the very near future, provide live screen shots of software, products and services that will enhance the listeners understanding of these items.
ebay & Beyond: Basics to Business is heard every Saturday morning, 10 AM to Noon ET.
eBay Announces Changes to Stores and Search, The Sky Is Not Falling
One Persons View
Over the past several weeks there has been much speculation regarding changes on the eBay platform. Historically, eBay has made changes after the busy holiday shopping season and many pundits felt there may be announcements made in early 2009.
eBay Did Not Disappoint Some
While my personal feeling is that there will more changes (more about that later) the announcement yesterday of changes to the eBay Stores templates policy and search in my opionion are for the better. Even though I do not sell on eBay much anymore, and probably won’t in the future, I do still shop on the site.
Some store owners have paid THOUSANDS of dollars to have their store template professionally created by companies specializing in this. Some of these companies have stretched the boundries of the eBay rules regarding stores template designs. OK, some companies and individuals have even exceeded those boundries. eBay has been somewhat lax in their enforcement of these boundries in the past but that is apparently about to change.
This is NOT AN ACTUAL EMERGENCY!
Many template design companies have known about these upcoming changes for months! These companies have in many cases been working with eBay to help create these changes and beta testing them.
There are some eBay Stores template design and development companies that wish to portray these changes as “The Sky is Falling” unless you have been or plan on doing business with “US”. These same companies point out that under the changes some Stores will be “Broken”.
The truth is that eBay will make these changes effective at the end of March 2009 which gives Stores owners nearly 45 days to make the necessary adjustments to comply with the changes. eBay has even provided a preview link that allows sellers to see how their stores will look after the change.
While this change MAY have a significant impact on a few thousand eBay Store owners (maybe even tens of thousands), it is nothing that can not be dealt with, and will provide a more consistent shopping experience for buyers. This is a good thing for ecommerce sellers on the eBay Stores venue and that is a GOOD THING!
eBay Solicits Select Sellers For Jan 22 Research Project
Yesterday I received an email from eBay inviting me as a seller to participate in what eBay is calling a:
voluntary research project about eBay
Here is the complete email:
eBay sent this message to David White
Your registered name is included to show this message originated from eBay. Learn more.
Dear David,
In a continuing effort to provide our users with the best possible online trading experience, we invite you to participate in a voluntary research project about eBay taking place on January 22, 2009 and conducted by our research partner, Invoke Solutions. Your valuable feedback will help us improve our service to you.The research project involves participation in an online live session to help us understand how we can improve the seller experience on eBay. This unique online session will be held real-time on the Internet and will be interactive. Qualified participants who complete the entire online session will receive $20.00 in appreciation for your time.
Involvement in this research project is completely voluntary and we are inviting only a select group of people to join our online session. To see if you qualify, we ask that you answer a few short questions by clicking on the link below (or copy the address into your browser):
Your answers to our questions will be held in complete confidence and no marketing or sales efforts involving you will occur as a result. Your personal information will be used only to qualify you to participate in this specific research session and mail your incentive check. By completing the survey you consent to being contacted by Invoke Solutions to invite you to the online session.Those who qualify and are selected to participate will receive access instructions via email to the live online session. The online session will last approximately 90 minutes and can be accessed from your home or another location that is convenient for you. During the interactive online survey, you will be asked to interact with both a moderator (discussion leader) and other participants. This will be an engaging, lively session and we are sure you will find it enjoyable.
If you have any difficulties (or any questions or concerns), please contact recruitment@invoke.com.
Regards,
eBay User Research
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All information collected is confidential and the information you provide will be used strictly within eBay’s Privacy Policy.
If you do not wish to receive further communications, sign into “My eBay” by clicking on the “My eBay” link found at the top of the eBay home page and change your Notification Preferences. Please note that it may take up to 10 days to process your request.
Visit our Privacy Policy and User Agreement if you have any questions.
Copyright © 2009 eBay Inc. All Rights Reserved. Designated trademarks and brands are the property of their respective owners. eBay and the eBay logo are trademarks of eBay Inc. eBay is located at 2145 Hamilton Avenue, San Jose, CA 95125.
For purity of the research project I have removed the link in the above email that takes the recipient to the “qualification” pages.
When I clicked on the link I was asked for my email address, my gender, and then asked if I was involved in a list of about 12 different occupations which included whether or not I was involved in news media. Of course, knowing the outcome but wanting to be honest I answered yes and was immediately informed I did not qualify for the project. This is fully understandable as eBay certainly does not want the information given in this project to be public knowledge.
What I do find somewhat refreshing is the fact that eBay is at least outwardly interested in the “seller experience”. The timing however does concern me as eBay typically announces major changes in the later part of January and I wonder whether this “research project” is an attempt to see what the reaction will be from sellers to possible upcoming but yet unannounced changes? I am sure there may be some leaks or posts after this event takes place.
What do you think?
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