HONG KONG, August 24, 2010 – Alibaba.com (HKSE: 1688.HK) (HK.1688), the world’s leading e-commerce company for small business, has entered into an agreement to acquire Auctiva, the leading third-party developer of tools for eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) sellers. With more than 170,000 active users, Auctiva provides a variety of listing, marketing and management tools as well as image hosting and online storefronts that make it easy for small businesses to sell successfully via e-commerce on sites like eBay.
The acquisition of Auctiva, as well as Alibaba.com’s purchase of Vendio in June, combined with Alibaba.com’s strength in sourcing, will create a significant source of tools and resources for U.S. small businesses looking to leverage e-commerce. The combination of both the Auctiva and Vendio acquisitions brings more than 250,000 new customers to the Alibaba.com family of products, and significantly expands the size of Alibaba.com’s U.S. operations.
Through its recent acquisitions, Alibaba.com is building the world’s first global e-commerce supply chain. This end-to-end network connecting manufacturers and wholesalers with e-tailers and consumers will allow small businesses to easily source from suppliers all over the world, then conveniently manage and sell those products through popular online channels like eBay, Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), their own online storefronts and more.
“Time and money are the two most important things to me as a small business owner,” said Don Pinard, owner of www.peggsbargains.net, an Auctiva and AliExpress customer. “I spend a lot of time online looking for products I can sell. I used to use liquidation sites, but AliExpress is much better, and more reliable. If I can trim the cost of purchasing items by just 7% that will cover all store fees and shipping costs, which will really increase my profit.”
The online merchants who use both Auctiva and Vendio will have direct access to almost 1.5 million supplier storefronts on Alibaba.com’s sourcing platform andAliExpress (www.aliexpress.com), a wholesale transaction platform operated by Alibaba.com. This new connection from supplier to online merchant represents significant potential cost savings to customers. By sourcing their products directly from the manufacturer, reducing travel and taking advantage of global markets, Alibaba.com hopes to help small merchants increase their profit margin in the long term. For example, a jewelry retailer can sell a silver bracelet with black agate stones for US$12 on eBay and make a profit of US$7.09 if he/she originally purchased their inventory on AliExpress for US$4.91 per piece. These savings combined with the additional efficiencies of sourcing online will represent significant savings for the average online merchant.
With the acquisition, Auctiva’s platform will be integrated with AliExpress, allowing Auctiva users to connect to AliExpress via a tab on the Auctiva Web-based platform. This will enable customers to easily search for suppliers, acquire merchandise and list those products on eBay through their Auctiva accounts. Exclusive promotions and special deals on AliExpress products will be available to Auctiva users.
“Small online retailers are just starting to see how they can use international sourcing to their advantage, and we have seen the significant opportunity through customer reaction to our initial integration with Vendio,” said David Wei, chief executive officer of Alibaba.com. “Many small business owners never even thought that they would be able to source their products from overseas, as they didn’t have the staff or technological resources to do so. We are bringing both sides of the equation together to make international sourcing as easy as possible for any business.”
“Our mission has always been to help users sell more successfully online, particularly through the eBay channel,” said Jeff Schlicht, founder and CEO of Auctiva. “With more than 10,000 new users joining Auctiva each month, we are constantly looking for new ways to serve our customers and drive value for them. Joining Alibaba.com and connecting our buyers to the vast supplier base on Alibaba.com and AliExpress.com is the perfect way to help them grow and thrive in an increasingly competitive environment.”
The acquisition closed on Aug. 18, 2010, and is part of the US$100 million investment plan for AliExpress that Alibaba.com announced in April 2010. Auctiva will operate as a new business unit within Alibaba.com and will retain its own brand name and operations.
Rothschild was the financial adviser to Alibaba.com for this transaction and Morgan Joseph was the adviser to Auctiva for this transaction. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Yesterday eBay laid out their date for the ending of 3rd party checkout on its systems. No more will you have to use services to facilitate checkout, eBay will do that…. As you know, checkout is a crucial part of every eBay transaction. A consistent checkout experience helps buyers complete their purchases in confidence. For sellers, checkout touches critical business processes including payment collection, shipping, and tax reporting. That’s why I’m writing today-well in advance-to let you know that as of June 30, 2011, eBay Checkout will be the only checkout process on eBay. We’re now working closely with ChannelAdvisor to make your transition smooth and seamless. We’re also making significant enhancements to eBay Checkout to provide the key features and services you expect: More credit/debit card processing services Enhanced shipping support including support for more carriers, standardized services, and more control over shipping to Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorates, and APO/FPO addresses An advanced sales tax calculator and more — Todd Lutwak, eBayVice President, Seller Experience
Yesterday eBay laid out their date for the ending of 3rd party checkout on its systems. No more will you have to use services to facilitate checkout, eBay will do that….
As you know, checkout is a crucial part of every eBay transaction. A consistent checkout experience helps buyers complete their purchases in confidence. For sellers, checkout touches critical business processes including payment collection, shipping, and tax reporting. That’s why I’m writing today-well in advance-to let you know that as of June 30, 2011, eBay Checkout will be the only checkout process on eBay. We’re now working closely with ChannelAdvisor to make your transition smooth and seamless. We’re also making significant enhancements to eBay Checkout to provide the key features and services you expect: More credit/debit card processing services Enhanced shipping support including support for more carriers, standardized services, and more control over shipping to Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorates, and APO/FPO addresses An advanced sales tax calculator and more — Todd Lutwak, eBayVice President, Seller Experience
That’s why I’m writing today-well in advance-to let you know that as of June 30, 2011, eBay Checkout will be the only checkout process on eBay.
We’re now working closely with ChannelAdvisor to make your transition smooth and seamless. We’re also making significant enhancements to eBay Checkout to provide the key features and services you expect:
eBay Moves on 3rd Party Checkout and Alibaba buys Auctiva (ColderICE.com)
Auctiva, a leader in tools for online sellers, is launching AMP – the Auctiva Marketplace Platform. AMP takes item information from thousands of individual e-commerce stores and groups them together into one platform that developers can use to build custom marketplaces and applications. This simple idea offers an opportunity never before seen in the e-commerce space: open development of e-commerce marketplaces. Developers can sign up and start using AMP today at www.poweredbyamp.com.
Only a handful of online marketplaces exist today. Prior to AMP, creating online marketplaces has been unattainable for most, requiring millions of dollars of investment and a sizable infrastructure. Auctiva Founder and CEO, Jeff Schlicht, says, "AMP allows developers to create whatever it is that excites them for the e-commerce world. By releasing AMP we hope to open a new range of possibilities and kick-start innovation in the e-commerce space."
As an example of what AMP can do, Auctiva is also announcing the beta release of Elefy (www.elefy.com), a marketplace with a search-driven interface. Other AMP projects currently in development by Auctiva and its partners include a marketplace for vintage items and another focusing on "green" and eco-friendly products.
A key feature of AMP is that the items for sale on the platform come from multiple "inventory providers." It is this feature that allows AMP to launch with over half a million items from Auctiva Commerce stores and from launch partner BuyitSellit. "AMP will allow our sellers to reach buyers in multiple locations, without a seller having to do any additional work," says Greg Sisung, President of BuyitSellit, LLC, "It took minimal effort to integrate with AMP, and now our sellers will see their items in new marketplaces as they are developed."
With developers able to build apps and marketplaces of all kinds, AMP seeks to put sellers’ items all over the Web instead of locking sellers into one site. Open development on AMP not only allows for multiple marketplaces, but also apps to reach mobile users, and apps to target specific audiences on social networking sites and blogs. "Developers are creative people," says Alan Lewis, AMP Product Manager, "We have only seen the beginning of what AMP can do."
An online store offers items from a single seller; marketplaces offer items from multiple sellers in one place. In the same way that a farmers’ market has much more foot traffic than a roadside fruit stand, online marketplaces bring more buyers by having inventory from multiple sellers.
The Auctiva Marketplace Platform, or AMP, as we call it, is a technology framework that allows software developers to build custom marketplaces. There are lots of products that allow people to create online stores, but AMP is the first to make it easy to build online marketplaces.
Listing Solutions – eBay Certified Provider Program
How each of the listing solutions stack up on eBay
tags: channeladvisor, inkfrog, vendio, auctiva, listing, tools
Channel Dollars » How To Win the Buy Box on Amazon
How to Win the Buy Box on Amazon
tags: Amazon, buy, box, winning, the
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Today is a very special episode so here are the show notes for a can’t miss episode of B. S. Walks today at 1:14 pm. No surprise here, I guess I will be taking the calls from the audience on these stories…
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http://3rdpoblogs.com/colderice/2009/06/10/it-was-all-a-bad-dream-auctiva-was-just-jerking-sellers-chains/
http://3rdpoblogs.com/colderice/2009/06/06/the-ecommerce-summit-was-a-sell-out-success-for-ecommerce-sellers/
I came up with the title of this post about "jerking the chain" and then before I started to write I decided to look up the origin of the phrase. Word origins can be an exciting way to uncover history and linguistics is fascinating to me.
I was surprised and even shocked at what it stems from and then how APPROPRIATE the use of the term is in this context.
Jerking Your Chain – Is a phrase coined in the US back in the early days of the history of this county. It comes from the slave days when overseers would jerk the chains of slaves which would cause irritation, pain and frustration. It also was a way to ensure unruly slaves were reminded of who had the control.
According to a new staff written blog post … After monitoring Auctiva’s community forums, support cases, e-mails and other forums, a few things were clear, notes CEO Jeff Schlicht: Customers thought the original plan was too expensive and they didn’t want to pay final value fees. They prefer a "simple, no-surprises flat-rate pricing structure."
And that’s what they’ll get with Auctiva’s new plans, Schlicht says. A $9.95/mo. Flat Rate Plan gives users unlimited listings and up to 1 GB of image hosting, while a $2.95/mo. option with up to 500 MB of images is geared toward those users who typically post fewer than 15 listings per month. Additionally, as part of its complete e-commerce solution, Auctiva continues to offer its Auctiva Commerce off-eBay stores, which provide sellers the opportunity to diversify their online selling efforts while increasing revenue and lowering costs.
I am so confused. So before I make my comments, I would like you to read the comments from the CEO of Auctiva Mr. Jeff Schlicht…Click for full story
"If you’re asking yourself, ‘Why didn’t they just use this pricing in the beginning?’ the answer is that I thought our customers would like to have the choice of picking a tailored plan based on usage," Schlicht says. "We spent a lot of time developing our different pricing packages to best meet the needs of the many different types of eBay sellers who use Auctiva. Clearly, I was wrong, so we made changes. All too often, large companies fail to listen to their customers," Schlicht notes in his letter to users. "Auctiva’s brightest future includes the users who brought us this far. Among all third-party listings services, Auctiva remains the best-poised to meet your current eBay selling needs, help you grow your business and facilitate your journey beyond eBay." — Jeff Schlicht (CEO Auctiva)
"If you’re asking yourself, ‘Why didn’t they just use this pricing in the beginning?’ the answer is that I thought our customers would like to have the choice of picking a tailored plan based on usage," Schlicht says. "We spent a lot of time developing our different pricing packages to best meet the needs of the many different types of eBay sellers who use Auctiva. Clearly, I was wrong, so we made changes.
All too often, large companies fail to listen to their customers," Schlicht notes in his letter to users. "Auctiva’s brightest future includes the users who brought us this far. Among all third-party listings services, Auctiva remains the best-poised to meet your current eBay selling needs, help you grow your business and facilitate your journey beyond eBay."
— Jeff Schlicht (CEO Auctiva)
Thanks for the clarity of focus and the admittance to your error in judgment. But I really do not understand how you got that $199 tier down to $9.95? I am missing that part of the equation? How in planning did you ACTUALLY think sellers would "prefer" to have a "choice" of picking THAT tailored plan based on usage? Dude, now you got me all messed up.
Did they REALLY find that $199 a MONTH was just a little too much? How do you go from $250 down to $199 and then finally land at $9.95? So the response now is basically … Ooops my bad? Come on guys WTF?
Is it just me? Am I the stupid one that just does not get it? Or was this a clear case of profiteering and jerking your subjects chains? Hmmm, were they just jerking sellers chains to make sure we knew who was "the massa"? OUCH dude, stop it!
Why in the world do people care what I think? I am not trying to be funny, I am being serious here. I am "just a squirrel trying to get a nut", either that or I am just a NUT, you can take your pick, LMAO
So I write a story that gives an example (albeit, a very simple one) that explains what round-tripping means as it relates to eBay Partner Network (ePN). That was a follow-up comment from the Auctiva shift to paid platform story.
From that, I got to speak with both InkFrog and Vendio on how they plan to respond. And now Auctiva has contacted your boy to "school me" on the situation at hand. So Spencer Smith, Auctiva’s Director of Marketing reaches out to me in this regard. First I want to give you the quotes…
Thumbnails (pictures) that are in the scroll galleries sellers embed in eBay auctions have NEVER had cookies attached to them.
The search box and the "click to browse items" DID have cookies attached to them ONLY after the buyer leaves the eBay site and goes to a DIFFERENT item from the same or different seller.
Auctiva NEVER took share if the buyer went back to the same item from the same seller.
eBay audited ALL activity by Auctiva and Auctiva was NEVER in violation of any ePN rules. When the terms changed, Auctiva complied to all changes and was never in violation.
Just to let you guys know, I don’t use ANY of Auctiva’s tools so I have ZERO skin in this game. There is no dog in the fight for me, but as a seller I realize how changes in fees can impact an eBay sellers business dramatically. My phone was ringing all weekend about this issue. So my goal is to educate and inform, BUT not report!!!!
I AM NOT A REPORTER, I am a commentator. Ina? Now she is a reporter. She does that better than anyone in this auction space. If you live in the UK, then the guys at Tamebay are reporting the news for you. Lil’ ol me? I am just here for levity
Auctiva is in about 20% of all eBay auctions. You do NOT get that much real estate in the eBay systems (IMHO) without eBay being in the loop. I can really understand that Auctiva could not ever be in violation of rules because eBay always held their "on-off money switch". So I can see how they would have to always play inside the rules and be in constant contact with the ePN compliance team. Personally, I feel the notion that Auctiva was doing wrong is complete and utter NONSENSE. To put it plainly I think it is bull’ish and is FALSE.
Having said that, I do believe that a buyer on eBay that clicks a link in ANY ad that takes them off of eBay and then back to eBay (to the same or different item) is STILL round tripping. If I leave Chicago from O’Hare and then return at Midway….Or if I leave New York from La Guardia and return to Kennedy, I am still back in New York and that my friends is a ROUND TRIP TICKET not two one way tickets!!! So get off my arse dudes, LMAO. Phew, glad I got that out of the way.
eBay has said that going forward even links that take you to a different item will no longer be paid by the ePN program (announced in September 2008). They were OK in the past but in the future they will no longer be calculated as a paid commission and THAT my friends is what is going on.
Some points of clarity on the pricing structure that Spencer did let me know about.
So, I hope this informative post lets you guys make an educated decision when selecting a paid provider for your eBay auction tool.
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Vendio
I was rather critical of the timeframe given for sellers to adjust. When you move from free to $9.95 or as much as $34.95 a month PLUS transaction fees, that is like and INFINATE price increase. That is like going from 0-60 mph on the Superman ride at the amusement park, it takes your breath away.
tags: auctiva, inkfrog, ebay, vendio
In my video on the new Auctiva price increase I was rather critical of the timeframe given for sellers to adjust. When you move from free to $9.95 or as much as $34.95 a month PLUS transaction fees, that is like and INFINATE price increase. That is like going from 0-60 mph on the Superman ride at the amusement park, it takes your breath away.
Price is not at issue with me, hell everyone has GOT to make money and that is real. What I was most concerned with was users were only given 30 days notice. Now that was some BULL’ish IMHO. It is so bad, you have to laugh at the absurdity of the timing (oops, I think I did in the video).
So to aid in helping those who are looking for more options or need to evaluate alternative platforms, I spoke to InkFrog and now Vendio is going to offer old Auctiva users FREE access!!!
On the floor at the Ecommerce Summit, I met up with Michael Levit who is the Senior VP of Marketing for Vendio.com
Why oh why is the eBayosphere all up in arms? Well it is quite simple. Back in September 2008 eBay changed its policy for what is known as “round tripping” links. Ebay pays affiliates for driving traffic to eBay through ads, websites and keywords etc. Many of these affiliate will set up shops that contain eBay product ads and those ads drive buyers to the eBay site. When a buyer makes a purchase a portion of that is paid to the original sender of that traffic.
One of the techniques used by some of the “black hat” crowd was to take a buyer on eBay, off the eBay site via methods of showing more pictures, or extra descriptions or even via email in response to customer questions. When the buyer would visit this off eBay link, they would drop an affiliate cookie into the browser and then get paid from eBay as if this was a true referral, hence the name “round tripping”.
To combat this behavior eBay announce the “ART (Anti-Round Tripping) rule” to much HOOPLA in the ePN community. eBay has responded that …
“Our goal in making this change to our Terms and Conditions is to ensure that affiliates are getting compensated for bringing us traffic to eBay, not for taking traffic that is already on eBay through a link to another page deliberately and sending it back to us with a cookie to get credit for a subsequent transaction.” … “you can’t send buyers from an eBay page to another page that can set ePN (eBay Partner Network) cookie and bring them back.”
At issue for sites like Auctiva was many of their free tools and seller stores would post inside of auctions on eBay and drive buyers from one item to others offered by sellers using affiliate codes. Auctiva would be paid a fee for this “traffic” PRIOR to the changes in the terms of the ePN agreement. Once eBay made the change, Auctiva was a dolphin caught in a tuna net. Their major revenue model just got 3 flats and nail in the 4th tire. This puppy was on life support overnight!
So now after attempts to breath life into the model the CEO, Jeff Schlicht has revised his platform and announced a fee based platform beginning on July 1, 2009. Buy doing this move in such a stunning fashion BLOOD is in the waters now and the sharks are schooling. With the Monster Virus fiasco earlier this year, and now this MAJOR change, other service providers see an opportunity to take share and they are gearing up for a hoped Auctiva exodus by users.
Reports are saying that Vendio is making an offer of FREE service tools for 2009 for all former Auctiva users. However, I have not spoken with anyone from there to corroborate that report so right now it is just a rumor.
But I did speak with the new Marketing Director for InkFrog over the weekend. Deb Levitt (of AsWas) is now working at the marketing helm for InkFrog. She was very candid about what they have in place to assist users wanting to switch.
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