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Each One, Teach One: eCommerce OPEN Discussion Thursday Again

Written by John Comments
Last Updated February 25, 2010

I am really starting to look forward to Thursdays now, just for the opportunity to post these discussions and then follow it. I really am learning alot and the resources are fascinating. 2-10-2010 3-26-59 PM If you missed any of these informative discussions, be sure to check back to the prior weeks:

Week #1 : Brands and Branding: What is it?
Week #2 : Keyword Research

These weekly topical discussion are really a great resource and I am enjoying the information that is being shared.

Each Thursday we will post a topic related to us as merchants and the the COMMUNITY…YOU GUYS will come in on the comments and post. You can post your comments on the subject, links to articles or posts to other blogs on the topic, you can post links to YouTube videos or Podcast episodes. I do not care what you post as long as it furthers the education of the community, it qualifies. But of course this will ONLY work if you participate. I want to see if the community would participate to make it great. Come on guys, lets each one, teach one!!!

Topic this week?

Marketing Channels: Which one is the BEST for WHAT and WHY?

Is it eBay? Or maybe Amazon? Even Craigslist? How bout them Comparative Shopping Engines (CSE’s), or even Etsy, Bonanzle, etc. OH dayam this is time for the showdown! Let’s go for the gusto…LMAO

OK, I need your input now so lets start posting to the thread topical information on Brands and Branding.

eBay 2010: A Change Gonna Come…With or Without You

Written by John Comments
Last Updated February 8, 2010

It’s 2010 and things have changed, I remember back to 1997 when I sold my very first item on eBay long ago. It was a pair of tickets to see Elton John at Madison Square Garden in New York City. I scored some sweet lower level seats that cost me $300 bucks and then I could not get the time off to fly from Atlanta to New York so I had to sell them. I put them on eBay and started the auction at $99.00. Those tickets ended at $800 for the pair, and I was instantly HOOKED on eBay.

Of course it was years later in 2001 that we created the company that is now one of the more successful 3rd party sellers on sites like eBay, Amazon, Yahoo and the web. The ONE thing that I would attribute our multi platform success to is our constant tweaking of the brand. The ability to move and shift with the state of eCommerce has made my company successful in marketing on these different venues by simply keeping up with the Jones’ and then out pacing them.

standout eBay 2010: A Change Gonna Come...With or Without You When "everybody" is doing it, that is when we STOP doing it. When "everybody" sits, we stand. And I am personally pushing the envelope in design to really bring our look and feel to maximize the direction of the different platforms we sell on. And EACH platform has its own uniqueness, and what works on one, will not work on another. I feel like a mad scientist trying to concoct plans and scenarios to get a perfect blend and balance. So every year we look to update and redesign components of our stores and templates to keep positioning for success. So this is one of those times.

eBay is CHANGING and the entire world is changing whether you or I like it or not. And the eBay platform is NOT in the forefront of this change, their customer are. That is one of the things I think constantly gets dismissed every time eBay takes a dramatic step, the sellers scream and yell, but I NEVER hear the buyers complaining?!? Some point to declining sales on eBay to the changes on the platform, but I think a more realistic analysis would show that the declines are due to the platform not changing ENOUGH to keep pace with a very fickle consumer. Are these the correct changes? I don’t know, time will tell. What I do know is what changes will be right for my company.

eCommerce is changing rapidly and eBay MUST change just to stay competitive. You know why? Because eBay is trying to keep up with a buyer base that is changing and evolving and they are somewhat stuck with a small portion of their seller community that is fearful of any change. They are comfortable with ways of 15 years ago, still reminiscent of Beanie Babies and Jesus Toast auctions. Unfortunately time does move on and if you are not willing to move with it you get to sit on the sideline and watch. Some will close their shops, some will leave the platform, some will just give up. After you "give up the ghost", you can always create a "sideline spectator" blog site about it too if you like, I know several that choose to do that instead of actually selling on eBay…guess it pays more?!?

I found these pictures the other day on my PC and I had not seen them in years, this was my business in the early part of the last decade. I have never been so attached to a product line or ideal that I would not abandon it for success. I got in business to be successful in BUSINESS not be successful at selling a particular product to the detriment of my livelihood, WTH is that?!? There is an old saying that "pride goes before a fall", so I am not too proud to adjust my business plan instead of falling. We can not control the changes to the platform, but we can control how we react to the changes.

Sure I am like most sellers, I bitch and moan sometimes but then I have a funeral. I bury the past knowing it will NEVER return and move on to the next great thing. So here are just a few pictures of our past…

This one was early in our game, I was not too proud to use my kid as a model for our rolling coolers. This was back in 2002 when it was a novel idea and new to the market.

This was around 2004 when we were selling desktop and laptop PC’s. That was our business for years, selling electronics and PC’s. That was my dining room!!! We were eating in the living room back in a 2 bedroom condo long ago…wow.

Then I came across these pics, LOL! We got lucky and scored a van load of Tickle Me Elmos, just b4 Christmas in 2006, man those were FLYING off the shelf. We don’t even sell toys normally, but I was happy to sell the hot Christmas toy that year and would do it again to have a successful season.

"Change is hard." "People hate change." Those are two of the most common quotes heard when you study change management. It occurred to me that if people hate change, they have a funny way of showing it. Every iPhone sold serves as counter-evidence. So does every text message sent, every aluminum can recycled, every new Facebook post. And I haven’t even mentioned the biggest changes: Getting married and having kids. (If people hate change, then having a kid is an awfully dumb decision.)

It puzzled me–why do some huge changes, like marriage, come joyously, while some trivial changes, like design or business plan changes, meet fierce resistance?

Some brilliant psychologists discovered that people have two separate “systems” in their brains—a rational system and an emotional system. The rational system is a thoughtful, logical planner. The emotional system is, well, emotional—and impulsive and instinctual.

When these two systems are in alignment, change can come quickly and easily (as when a dreamy-eyed couple gets married). When they’re not, change can be grueling (as anyone who has struggled to quit smoking can attest). In those situations where change is hard, is it possible to align the two systems? Is it possible to overcome our internal "schizophrenia" about change?

I am a stubborn spirit, I simply do not have an "I QUIT" bone in my body. Neurologically I don’t have the option to just give up?!? This business is how we feed the kids, this is our business and we own it, to quit this and just get a job?!? HELL NO, that is not a option. My ONLY option is to "meet and overcome all obstacles in my path" and that included the changes to eBay.

eBay would have to simply shut me down for me to run away from this venue. Honestly, I am not cheering the changes, I just know they are HERE to stay and that they come every year, like the seasons. After nearly 10 years in ecommerce, I not only expect them, I now have begun to embrace them. It is a challenge that I look to come at me year in and year out. But of course if I could not stand the heat, I guess then I would leave the kitchen…that day has not come. We have changed and tweaked the business model, the product lines and the pricing to stay on top of our game.

This should really be an interesting year and I am sure the next 2 change cycle announcements will not be as easy on us as this one from January. My guess is this 1st set of changes were the "easy" ones…hmmm. Gird up your self, cause there could be more arrows coming from San Jose. Will you stand or fall? Like the Elton John’s song says….I’m Still Standing (Yeah Yeah Yeah). Dayam, this video is soooo ’80’s LMAO

Elton John – I’m Still Standing

HOLY COW Amazon Crushes It! Sales Up 42% over 2008 in 4th Quarter

Written by John Comments
Last Updated January 28, 2010

http://assets.kaboose.com/media/00/00/0f/bc/5294292f3285459b0defbdd8a884f8158a90c1ee/476x357/l9465008123-1453_476x357.jpg

SEATTLE, Jan 28, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) today announced financial results for its fourth quarter ended December 31, 2009.

Operating cash flow was $3.29 billion in 2009, compared with $1.70billion in 2008. Free cash flow increased 114% to $2.92 billion in 2009, compared with $1.36 billion in 2008.

Common shares outstanding plus shares underlying stock-based awards outstanding totaled 461 million on December 31, 2009, compared with 446 million a year ago.

Net sales increased 42% to $9.52 billion in the fourth quarter, compared with $6.70 billion in fourth quarter 2008. Excluding the $354 million favorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, net sales would have grown 37% compared with fourth quarter 2008.

Operating income increased 75% to $476 million in the fourth quarter, compared with $272 million in fourth quarter 2008. Excluding the $31 million favorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, operating income would have grown 63% compared with fourth quarter 2008.

Net income increased 71% to $384 million in the fourth quarter, or $0.85 per diluted share, compared with net income of $225 million, or $0.52 per diluted share, in fourth quarter 2008.

"Millions of people now own Kindles," said Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com. "And Kindle owners read, a lot. When we have both editions, we sell 6 Kindle books for every 10 physical books. This is year-to-date and includes only paid books — free Kindle books would make the number even higher. It’s been an exciting 27 months."

Full Year 2009

Net sales increased 28% to $24.51 billion, or 29% excluding the $182 million unfavorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the year, compared with $19.17 billion in 2008.

Operating income increased 34% to $1.13 billion, or 39% excluding the $40 million unfavorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the year, compared with $842 million in 2008. Included in 2009 operating income is the impact of our settlement with Toysrus.com LLC for $51 million. In 2008, operating income included a $53 million non-cash gain recognized on the sale of the Company’s European DVD rental assets.

Net income increased 40% to $902 million in 2009, or $2.04 per diluted share, compared with net income of $645 million, or $1.49 per diluted share, in 2008.

Highlights

Kindle and Kindle DX are available for immediate shipment to over 100 countries. Additionally, the Kindle for iPhone App is now available from the Apple App Store in more than 60 countries. Customers around the world can now synchronize reading between their Kindle, Kindle DX, personal computer, iPhone, iPod touch and soon, Blackberry, Mac and iPad.

The U.S. Kindle Store now has more than 410,000 books, including 100 of 112 New York Times Bestsellers, more than 8,000 blogs, and more than 130 top U.S. and International newspapers and magazines, including: The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Times (U.K.), Le Monde, The Economist, The New Yorker, Newsweek, and Time.
The Company announced that authors and publishers around the world can now use the self-service Kindle Digital Text Platform (DTP) to upload and sell books in English, German and French to customers worldwide in the Kindle Store.
Amazon.com announced a new 70 percent royalty option for Kindle DTP, enabling authors and publishers to earn more royalties. Beginning June 30, authors and publishers who select the new royalty option will receive 70 percent of list price, net of delivery costs.
The Company introduced Kindle Development Kit, which gives developers access to programming interfaces, tools and documentation to build and upload active content for Kindle.
North America segment sales, representing the Company’s U.S. and Canadian sites, were $4.96 billion, up 36% from fourth quarter 2008.
International segment sales, representing the Company’s U.K., German, Japanese, French and Chinese sites, were $4.56 billion, up 49% from fourth quarter 2008. Excluding the favorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, International sales grew 37%.
Worldwide Media sales grew 29% to $4.68 billion. Excluding the favorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, sales grew 23%.
Worldwide Electronics & Other General Merchandise sales grew 60% to $4.61 billion. Excluding the favorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, sales grew 54%.
The Company completed its acquisition of Zappos.com on November 1, 2009. Zappos.com contributed approximately $200 million to fourth quarter revenue.
Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS), a new web service that makes it easy to set up, operate and scale relational databases in the cloud, was introduced by Amazon Web Services (AWS). Amazon RDS provides cost-efficient and resizable capacity while automating time-consuming database administration tasks, freeing users to focus on their application and their business.
AWS introduced Spot Instances for Amazon EC2, a new option that allows customers to purchase and consume Amazon EC2 compute resources. With Spot Instances, customers bid on unused Amazon EC2 capacity and run those instances for as long as their bid exceeds the current Spot Price. Spot Instances can enable lower costs and provide significant short-term capacity for customers with flexibility in when their applications can run.
Both Amazon EC2 and Amazon S3 lowered pricing during the quarter. Amazon EC2 lowered prices up to 15% for all On-demand instance families and sizes, while Amazon S3 introduced new pricing tiers that will reduce storage cost for multi-petabyte customers by more than 15%.

Separately, the Company is announcing that its Board of Directors has authorized the Company to repurchase up to $2 billion of the Company’s common stock. The program allows the Company to opportunistically repurchase its shares from time to time when it believes that doing so would enhance long-term shareholder value. The repurchase authorization does not have a fixed expiration. Purchases may be effected through one or more open market transactions, privately negotiated transactions, transactions structured through investment banking institutions or a combination of the foregoing. This stock repurchase authorization replaces the previous $1 billion stock repurchase authorization, approved by the Board of Directors in 2008.

Financial Guidance

The following forward-looking statements reflect Amazon.com’s expectations as of January 28, 2010. Our results are inherently unpredictable and may be materially affected by many factors, such as fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, changes in global economic conditions and consumer spending, world events, the rate of growth of the Internet and online commerce and the various factors detailed below.

First Quarter 2010 Guidance

Net sales are expected to be between $6.45 billion and $7.00 billion, or to grow between 32% and 43% compared with first quarter 2009.
Operating income is expected to be between $275 million and $365 million, or to grow between 13% and 50% compared with first quarter 2009. This guidance includes approximately $110 million for stock-based compensation and amortization of intangible assets, and it assumes, among other things, that no additional business acquisitions or investments are concluded and that there are no further revisions to stock-based compensation estimates.

How To Save $40 on the Amazon Kindle eBook Reader

Written by John Comments
Last Updated December 14, 2009

Some things are just too good to keep to yourself and this happens to be one of them. Santa Claus came to my house today in his "brown uniform" with the electronic signature pad and the big brown truck

Yeah, that guy left me my Christmas gift and I do an unboxing video for you on the Amazon Kindle that I just got at $40.00 OFF! Directly from Amazon.com at a huge discount. In this little video I show you how I did it and you can get one too in time for your holiday gift giving or gift keeping, LOL.

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Would Amazon Fulfillment Centers Makes Santa Jealous?

Written by John Comments
Last Updated December 11, 2009

A recent story from The Daily Mail showcases the size and scope of just ONE, yeah just 1 of the dozens of fulfillment centers for Amazon.com

The size and scope of this operation really hits home when you see it in wide angle view from the top. Just thinking about the systems and management processes make me nauseas. I need to sit down and get a drink, LMAO.

Amazon fullfillment centre near Milton Keynes,

Santa's one-stop-shop: The Amazon warehouse near Milton Keynes has everything you can think of - including the author's own book!

John Donahoe Is Not Giving Much Hype About eBay’s Sales Data

Written by John Comments
Last Updated December 8, 2009

ebay%20image John Donahoe Is Not Giving Much Hype About eBays Sales Data On Monday, John Donahoe the CEO of eBay declined to give out much information on eBay sales for the holiday season. At the investors conference, Donahoe was giving most of the hype to PayPal which has seemed to be the song and dance of 2009. You talk about the moving ball to keep all eyes off the one that is sitting and not moving. I have noticed this a lot from the CEO in his most recent appearances, eBay does seem to be second to PayPal on the hype meter right now.

Donahoe is quoted in a Wall Street Journal article saying, “There’s no killer item this year. There’s no Xbox or item that’s out of stock that everyone has to have,” he said. Zhu Zhu pets, the stuffed hamsters that have become intensely popular in recent months, are an exception and are doing brisk business on the site.

amazonlogo John Donahoe Is Not Giving Much Hype About eBays Sales Data We do know that Amazon reportedly topping the list as the most visited retail website on Cyber Monday, seeing a 44% increase in visits compared to 2008. Amazon received 15.53% of the visits among the top 500 online retail sites.

On the flip side, eBay released a eBay “heat map” for Black Friday on its website and that caused many to ask well how much was sold for real? The visuals are cute and all, but why all the techno crap? What were the NUMBERS? That was my question.

With Donahoe’s continued interest in luxury brands and the new out-of-season mentality of eBay 2009, I want to know if it is WORKING? Do the numbers show that eBay is more successful than in the past? Is the number moving the needle to the left or right? Guess we will not know?!?

However on Monday, Scot Wingo (CEO, ChannelAdvisor.com) decided to break out a calculator and do some "Fun eBay Math" and concluded that…

If that math is correct, Black Friday’s 1m transactions were actually 25% below average and Cyber Monday was a paltry 3% above average. Of course our assumptions could be off here, but they’d have to be off pretty significantly to change these results. Also they are based off of real-world data points so they are far from guesses.

Why Does Buy.com Sell New Music for $7.99 on eBay & 11.19 in Store…WTF?!?

Written by John Comments
Last Updated November 23, 2009

Pop Quiz for the holidays! Put on your thinking caps all you smart entrepreneurs. Riddle me this, here is the layout, answer this puzzle….

The NEW Carrie Underwood album is selling right now for $7.99 with FREE shipping on eBay from Buy.com

One the Buy.com website, that same CD is selling for $11.19 with FREE shipping.

In comparison on Amazon.com the CD is $9.99 and the MP3 download is $8.99

While iTunes has Carrie’s CD download for $10.99

Yes, I do think I have my answers to why this is and what they might be doing…but I want your opinions before I start to pontificate, LMAO.

eCommerce Analysis from Scot Wingo CEO of ChannelAdvisor

Written by John Comments
Last Updated November 23, 2009

Scot Wingo blows the roof off! This interview is so full of sizzle and STEAK. Man, I have not heard this much great information and insight anywhere, honestly. This is such a good "exclusive" interview.

Hey, Scot even brought some brand new stats on Amazon CGM, eBay Antique Sellers, Google vs. Bing…Damn I could go on, but why? Just look at the notes and PRESS PLAY!

Listen to the Interview NOW!
(press play button and be patient, it takes a minute to buffer)

OR Click to Download

OR Subscribe to the series via iTunes

Scot Wingo – CEO ChannelAdvisor.com and eBayStrategies.com

2:12 – Amazon vs. eBay Growth
3:05 – What is EGM?
4:10 – Amazon partitions are growing at up to 54%
5:50 – 5 Points – Value, Ease, Merchandising, Trust, Selection
7:12 – 600 Million Shoes … wow
8:03 – Amazon has moved marketing $$$ to free shipping
8:54 – Can eBay subsidize its free shipping model?
10:22 – Is ChannelAdvisor keeping up with eBay changes?
14:24 – How does WalMart.com & Sears.com factor into the eCommerce mix
15:29 – Marketplace Wars
16:34 – Is the Kindle a factor for Amazon’s traffic success?
17:26 – Google Commerce Search Changes
18:15 – Google Search 62% – Bing Seach 35%
19:20 – eCommerce Search is up to 40% of all search
20:12 – eBay Best Match Search
21:14 – eBay Top Rated Seller Program
24:21 – Should eBay Go Retail? (http://ow.ly/ECvi)
26:01 – Some EXCLUSIVE eBay Numbers Data From Wingo!
28:00 – Are Antiques and Collectables suffering on eBay?
29:40 – Will eBay changes squeeze out the SMB’s on eBay?
30:30 – eBay vs. Paypal
33:00 – 45% of Paypal is actually eBay (the Paypal Monopoly)
34:15 – Paypal is holding up to 15% of sellers GMV
36:17 – Social Media – is it a viable channel for selling?
37:01 – eCommerce on Facebook
39:27 – Mobile commerce (red lazer, shopsavvy, deocrab)
42:00 – ChannelAdvisor Catalyst May 3-5 (www.ChannelAdvisor.com/Catalyst)

Press "Play" to listen now

Ecommerce edutainment on demand

Be sure to subscribe so you do not miss an episode.

Amazon Testing Buy Used Box on the Platform: WOW…Cha Ching?!?

Written by John Comments
Last Updated November 19, 2009

BUB Amazon Testing Buy Used Box on the Platform: WOW...Cha Ching?!? On November 17, Amazon launched a pilot program to allow select media product offers to win placement in a new feature we call the Buy Used Box. Each category will roll out over the following weeks starting with video and DVD.

Wow, now you can sell used items on Amazon right on the product page! Used goods have been available on Amazon for a while, but it was a very unfriendly, dark, back of the alley, level of clicks. I would equate it to going around and knocking on the back door of a retail location to get the previously owned goods.

Not all media product detail pages will display a Buy Used Box during the pilot period. Amazon will be evaluating customer response to this new feature in order to determine future expansion or refinement to create a better online buying experience. All criteria below are subject to change by Amazon at any time

The "Buy Used Box" works much like, and is positioned just below, the Buy Box on a product detail page. It gives customers a quick way to initiate the purchase process by adding a "Used" media item to their shopping carts.

Only qualified sellers may compete for the Buy Used Box. Qualification is evaluated on the following criteria.

Only Pro Merchants who sell media and subscribe to the Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) service can compete for the Buy Used Box.
Sellers can learn more about signing up for the FBA service in your Seller Account and on the amazonservices.com website.

For those sellers that qualify to compete for the Buy Used Box, their product listings are evaluated based on factors chosen in an effort to give customers the best shopping experience.

Product qualifications include:

Condition: The item must be in "Like New," "Very Good," or "Good" condition.
Media: The item must be classified under Books, Music, Video or DVD categories.
Fulfillment: The item must be fulfilled using the FBA service. For media items in "New" condition, only those sold and fulfilled by Amazon are eligible to win the Buy Box. Customers should expect the same fulfillment options and level of customer service, regardless of whether the item is new or used. Sellers are able to meet this expectation by using the FBA service.

This could be another game changer for the eBay vs Amazon wars. Exposure for your used media had been extremely obscure prior to now. Of course this does require the merchant to use FBA services, which means a BIGGER chunk for Amazon on the back end. However sellers with mass inventory could really see large gains now that used items are being shipped via Amazon and qualifying for Amazon Prime shipping.

I told you this heavyweight championship match between Amazon vs. eBay was going to be fun to watch.

STOP The PRESS: Amazon Traffic Beats eBay For The First Time EVER?!?

Written by John Comments
Last Updated November 18, 2009

OMFG! Do my eyes deceive me? NO, it cant be? HELLO, is this thing ON? Did Amazon just became the #1 site in eCommerce for unique visitors? HOLY FREHOLIES Batman! We, in the industry knew this day would come, we have been talking about it, but NO ONE thought it would happen this fast this soon!!!

Please Rate My Video with 5-Stars DSR’s

For the first time ever, since I have been watching this chart, Amazon over takes eBay for unique visitors. Wow, not only that, Amazon traffic is GROWING and eBay traffic is declining for the last 2 months.

Pass the crown there is a new king in town? EBay.com still leads Amazon.com in the number of page views it gets and the amount of time users spend on it. But those are not necessarily positive indicators—On eBay their sellers spend time looking at their own stuff to check progress and display.

Also, thanks to the new eBay "Best Match" search (dubbed best "MESS" search by many in the eBay community) buyers and sellers, including myself have found the search more time consuming and less accurate.

This is just before the Christmas rush? OMG, that is an alarming stat in my opinion. eBay traffic is down 4.57% in the last month while Amazon is UP 3%. Year over year Amazon is up 29.82% and eBay is up only 9.61%, that means Amazon is GROWING 31% faster than eBay!