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Article by: Pamela Bruce
In January 2006, eBay announced a new specialty
service named eBay Express. Here are some of the highlights of
this upcoming venture, according to eBay e-mails and websites:
It emphasizes new merchandise. eBay obviously wants to distance
itself from the "online flea market" image that many
people associate with it. However, eBay also states "eBay
Express will allow shoppers to buy products ranging from new,
used, refurbished and more".
It is not auction-based. Everything on eBay Express will have
a fixed price and will be available for immediate purchase - no
more waiting for auctions to end (of course the Buy-It Now feature
has also been available on eBay.com for quite a while).
There appear to be plans for some kind of shopping cart, making
it easier for buyers to make multiple purchases from the same
seller.
There are a number of seller requirements: a feedback score of
100 or more, 98% positive or better, public feedback (as opposed
to private), PayPal Premier or Business account, setting PayPal
account to ship to unconfirmed addresses or make sale-by-sale
decisions (a point that has caused some stir among sellers), and
being based in the US (it seems that eBay Express will be offered
only in the USA at first). Sellers also must state shipping costs,
either flat, calculated or free, rather than forcing buyers to
look for them in the item description or having to e-mail the
seller.
eBay Express is supposed to be launched during the spring of
2006. Like the "IT" campaign, it seems to be another
attempt by eBay to get away from the "cleaning out your garage
and selling stuff on eBay" image and a challenge to conventional
online rivals who have offered fixed prices and shopping carts
for a long time.
Pamela Bruce lives in Austin, TX. She is the owner of Love Beads
Unlimited and sells the sterling silver and Swarovski crystal
bead jewelry she designs and creates both in her eBay store (http://stores.ebay.com/LOVE-BEADS-UNLIMITED)
and on her website at http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com,
where you can also download the free e-book "A Consumer's
Guide to Buying Bead Jewelry Online".
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