Bonanzle Wins “Excellence in Technology” Award as Best eBay Alternative of 2008
February 2, 2009, Kirkland, WA - In what writers called “a runaway,” Bonanzle.com was recently named the top eBay Alternative of 2008 by readers of SmallBusinessComputing, a Jupiter Media company. Over a six week period from November through the beginning of January, readers were asked to choose between Bonanzle and other eBay alternatives, including Etsy, eCrater and Wigix. Bonanzle was declared the winner on January 28th.
“This award validates our commitment to providing users with a marketplace that goes beyond the buzzwords often used to describe it: more social, simpler, and more fun. We worked for almost two years to build Bonanzle before we launched it. The payoff has been an experience so simple yet rich that it has turned many of our users into Bonanzle promoters. These users have helped to drive our traffic up more than 50% every month since we launched – their efforts are really starting to add up, even as we’re still almost completely unknown to the national media,” says Bonanzle CEO Bill Harding.
Walt Kolenda, a professional auctioneer and regular contributor to The Examiner, says of Bonanzle, “People in the community are so impressed and appreciative of the opportunity here that they fill the forum with tips and suggestions about how to get the site and individual stores juiced in the search engines… the users have become evangelists for the site, and there is no amount of advertising money in the world that can replace that. This is how sites go viral, this is how fortunes are made.”
SmallBusinessComputing’s editors also praised Bonanzle, adding, “This startup combines an easy listing process with cutting-edge features such as on-the-fly image cropping and live chat and an avid seller community. The founders are scaling up to meet increasing traffic, and we can only hope it continues to thrive.”
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For PR inquiries, please email Mark Dorsey at mark@bonanzle.com, or call us at (206) 396-7321. We are happy to provide interviews or help build story content for all media sources of reasonable size.
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!
Bidtopia CIO Paul St. James on ebay & Beyond Radio Today
Paul St. James CIO of Bidtopia will be our guest this morning on ebay & Beyond: Basics To Business. Join us at 10 AM ET from our website streaming live on the internet.
What Conference Will Replace eBayLive? Where Will You Go?
Now that eBayLive is a thing of the past, (yeah I know, 2010 if you believe in fairytales) where will eBay marketers, and for that matter all ecommerce merchants go to get the latest information and strategies? Where will you go to learn about the latest software and services available to your online business?
I know that there are a plethura of seminars and conferences, but the question is which one will step to the forefront for those that market on sites like Onlineauction, eBay, Amazon, eCrater or any other venue? Will there be an event that steps up and tries to fill the eBayLive void? I don’t believe we will see a company conference the likes of eBayLive in the near future. With it’s vast income, eBay could afford this type of an event. The eBayLive confernece was certainly not a profitable event and never was intended to be self sustaining.
Where Will You Go
While researching this post, I contacted PESA/ECMTA and was given the following information. The will be holding a 2 day event September 10-11 in Melbounre Australia, September 18-20 2008 ECMTA will be at the Inc 500/5000 Conference in Washington DC and finally ECMTA will conduct a 1 day event in San Francisco October 1, 2008. In addition, ECMTA advised me that they are planning on small regional events and larger Summits for 2009 but no dates or locations are available at this time.
Channeladvisor advised me that they are planning another Catalyst event for possibly April or May of 2009 but details are also not yet available.
AsWas’ RocketPlace event is scheduled for September 10-12, 2008 in Las Vegas. This event is focused on eBay marketing but also includes information ecommerce merchants can gain from no matter what venue they sell from. The keynote speaker will be Marsha Collier author of the eBay For Dummies series of books, and other presenters include Jay Berkowitz author of The Ten Golden Rules for Internet Marketing and John Lawson CEO of 3rd Power Outlet plus many other notables.
With the economy in recession, these events vying for your conference dollars are rethinking their positions. I believe there will be much smaller regional events planned for 2009 by the various providers but can’t help but wonder which conferences our readers and listeners will attend in 2009.
If you are planning on attending an event in 2009, let us know which one.
Listen in each week to ebay & Beyond: Basics to Business live every Saturday from 10 AM to Noon ET to hear the latest in ecommerce marketing news and strategies.
ebay & Beyond: Basics To Business YouTube Video
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7qechvGRzQ]
I know this is shameless self promotion, but I just worked all day to create my first YouTube video and just had to share.
The newest trend in marketing online is Social Media Marketing and so I thought I would try it!
Thanks
Onlineauction.com CEO Chris Fain Live Sat. June 14th
Chris Fain CEO of ONLINEAUCTION.com will be our guest on ebay & Beyond: Basics to Business radio Saturday June 14th in the 11:00 AM EDT hour.
Join us to hear the latest news and upcoming improvements on ONLINEAUCTION.com.
We would also like to remind everyone that we will be broadcasting live from the exhibit floor of the eBayLive 2008 conference in Chicago. Listen in and hear the latest ecommerce news June 19-21. Click HERE to see our broadcast schedule.
Proof eBay Is Losing The Small Seller
For months (OK, I have been talking about this for years but only writing a blog for about a year) I have been writing about the lower volume sellers being pushed away from eBay. Many readers and listeners to our weekly live radio program ebay and Beyond: Basics to Business, as well as eBay exec’s have been saying show us the proof. In April, Lorrie Norrington, President of eBay Global Marketplace Operations said in her keynote address at the PESA/ECMTA conference in New Orleans that eBay embraces the smaller sellers, that small sellers provide the unique buying experience that is eBay.
Well low and behold I opened my local newspaper this morning while drinking my first cup of coffee and guess what I found? More proof that what I and many others have been saying for several years is happening in the real world.
In the Sunday June 8th edition of the Jamestown NY, Post Journal newspaper on the front page of the business section there is a story about two brothers that have opened a brick and mortar store because they were pushed away from eBay by higher fees and the lack of customer service.
Roy Walker, owner of the brick and mortar store The Bargain Cave in Jamestown NY is quoted in the article
“ We were selling antiques and collectibles on eBay “
, and when Roy talks about why he decided to open his B/M store he says
“ Another swaying factor in the decision to open a traditional store was the rising cost of doing business on eBay and the customer service. I was giving them a lot of money with the increased fees and they (eBay) weren’t very helpful when I needed it. I was just getting attitude from them (eBay) and started to question whether is was worth it anymore”
I have read 10’s of these articles from newspapers all around the country. This is not an isolated case as we all know. eBay is moving towards a retail buying experience, advantaging the big sellers and disadvantaging the small sellers.
When lower GMV (Gross Merchandise Value) sellers are disadvantaged on the site by being placed low in the Best Match searches, they have a much lower chance of selling their products. If they don’t sell their products they can not grow. This is simple economics.
Listen to our live ebay and Beyond: Basics to Business broadcasts from eBayLive 2008 in Chicago June 19-21, 2008
Ref: The Sunday Post Journal, Jamestown NY
Summer is here….
Looks like summer is here and boy what a season, everything is growing and getting green. I know that alot of you out there will be going on vactions, weekend trips, etc.
So take this as a reminder from Sparky and the ebay & Beyond gang, list your auctions so that they end when your home, not on the road so that you’ll be able to take care of your customer with emails, invoices, shipping in a timely maner.
Customer service is what will help build your business better than most anything else.
Keep your buyers happy and they will return time and time again.
eBay Strike Begins, Onlineauction.com Rummage Sale Features Over 6300 Items
While some unhappy sellers on the site have begun the second round of the boycott, again eBay says that the boycotters actions will not change the course the site has set. While I personally do not think that a boycott is the answer, certainly those participating are unhappy and looking for other venues to market their products. 
To that end, Onlineauction.com sellers have organized wht they are calling the “RUMMAGE SALE” which began on the same day, May 1st, as the eBay Boycott. The rummage sale is being conducted by the sellers to gain exposure to the Onlineauction.com site. I checked this morning while writing this and there are over 6300 items in the rummage sale category which the site set up just for this event. All items in the rummage sale start at $0.99 and are in auction format. To recognize and assist the sellers in their endeavor, Onlineauction.com has purchased and donated 2 new Dell laptop computers and placed them into the Rummage Sale. All proceeds from these items (the laptops) will be donated to St. Judes Hospital.
In full disclosure, Onlineauction.com is an advertiser on our radio program ebay & Beyond: Basics to Business, however that is certainly not the reason I am posting this. I am posting this to point out that all business owners, Brick and Mortar or virtual, must make the correct decision for their business. Like I said, I don’t believe the eBay boycott will be effective. What I do believe is that if a marketing channel does not fit your business model, then you as a business owner need to make the decision to either change your business or make a change.
And that’s my Final Value of the day.
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