21.01.12. eBay Lead the Way as UK eCommerce Sales Hit £50bn
UK eCommerce sales realised a 14% increase in 2011, with online giants eBay and ASOS posting fantastic results for the year. Kelkoo, who announced the findings also expect the same level of growth in 2012; music to the ears of those businesses who have focused on establishing themselves online.
The high street again took a battering in 2011 with a number of established shops falling by the wayside; the most recent being Peacocks which filed for liquidation in January. Thorntons and TJ Hughes were amongst the others who ran into trouble in the last year.
eBay’s vision of being able to shop anywhere and at anytime is fast becoming a reality, with the future of the high street again being called into question.
eBay saw fantastic growth all of the way through 2011, however, it will have been buoyed significantly by $8.5bn being cleared in their bank in October – the final instalment from their sale of Skype to Microsoft. eBay relinquishing their final stake in Skype saw a 354% hike in profits compared with the final quarter of 2010; even with this apart, it’s difficult to argue with their success in 2011.
eBay has not been the only significant success story on the web. Many independents have enjoyed huge growth in 2011, as shopping online is better facilitated. Fashion giant ASOS saw profits rise 10% in the final quarter of 2011, with an astonishing overseas growth of 93%. Christmas is naturally a busy time for online retailers and consumer confidence will have been increased by the lack of extreme weather conditions which played havoc with deliveries in the run up to Christmas 2010.
Surveys have shown that UK shoppers are leading the rest of Europe in online shopping, with internet sales responsible for 12% of average expenditure. Each person in the UK spent on average £1,500 online last year on 39 items.
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13.01.12. eBay Predict $8 Billion Turnover in Mobile Commerce for 2012
EBay CEO John Donahoe recently announced that they expect eBay Mobile transactions to top $8 billion in 2012. These bold predictions are based upon eBay’s huge successes, brought about chiefly through their mobile application which saw over $5 billion delivered by the platform in 2011.
The growth in mobile has clearly taken even eBay aback with them effectively ripping up all predictions of growth in the first two quarters of their financial year. This is obviously great news for eBay who will now be relishing their move into Mobile through a significant aquisition strategy.
eBay has long flirted with mobile; most significantly through their purchase of Red Laser. The application was merged into their own offering; allowing users to scan barcodes on everyday objects and seeing what prices they are available for online. Although the idea behind the technology might be to scan everyday desirable objects, we’re sure that eBay will be turning a blind eye to those users wandering shops, armed with an iPhone and scanning everything in sight. (In fact I saved over £400 on a fridge freezer from a major electrical store).
Perhaps one of the most stunning statistics of all is the acquisition of PayPal’s regular mobile customers. PayPal now boasts over 17 million regular mobile shoppers, a figure up from 8 million only 6 months previous. Surely, this offers the most positive indication yet that mobile shopping is now well established and here to stay.
One thing is for sure; it will be interesting to see what new technologies eBay bolts into its mobile offering in the coming year. Surely, photo recognition of products can’t be far around the corner for the Auction Giant.
30.12.11. Bargain Hunting Opportunities on eBay
Well, it’s that time of Year again…the presents are unwrapped, the ill fitting clothes are sitting in a corner, devoid of any receipts and the Christmas turkey has finally been thrown out after waking to a slightly off putting smell in the kitchen.
What you may not immediately realise is that this is probably the very best time of the year for bargain hunting on eBay. Those unwanted presents are now being hastily listed on eBay before they become lost for eternity in a bag at the back of the wardrobe. Now is the perfect time to snipe something gift related; and we’re not just talking about reindeer sweaters and those annoying executive toys which are rarely even opened. You’ll find everything from bikes, to consoles; practically new and unwanted gifts.
Think of this time of year as the January sales come early on eBay and to be extra precise, the best day for picking up bargains will land on the 2nd of January as 7 day auctions beginning on Boxing day will come to a conclusion.
Ok, so we’ve established that there are bargains to be had. Now we need to address how to find the best ones. Well, if we think about how hastily people will be listing unwanted goods, given that its Boxing Day and left over turkey is beckoning, there are inevitably going to be many misspelt items being listed. This allows for the perfect opportunity to use the Goofbay Misspellings tool. Use it to discover those lazily listed items which are failing to generate the eBay viewings they probably deserve.
Now, once you’ve identified your item of choice, remember, don’t have a rush of blood and bid immediately. We all know how tempting it is to act immediately, but this is just like showing everyone your hand at a poker table. Wait until the dying seconds of an auction and then bid automatically through our Free eBay Sniper. Just can also rest happily in the satisfaction that some unlucky bidder will be screaming at their screen as your bid lands with a mere couple of seconds to go.
Happy bargain hunting and as if you need an example to get you started, here we have an opportunity for a ‘Playsation‘.
21.12.11. eBay Announce their Top Ten Most Shopped Terms
Hot on the heels of similar lists produced by Google and Toutube, eBay have released their top ten most shopped by way of popular culture. This refers to sales related to keyword searches in eBay. The list of heart throbs, technical gadgetry and off the rails film stars includes:
1. NFL 1,837,844 related sales
2. Harry Potter 446,915 related sales
3. Twilight 297,330 related sales
4. Call of Duty 272,821 related sales
5. Green Bay Packers 234,089 related sales
7. Sade 234,089 related sales
6. iPad 215,412 related sales
8. Justin Bieber 156,092 related sales
9. Glee 59,899 related sales
10. Charlie Sheen 22,480 related sales
Most will not come as a surprise, with American sporting goods topping the list, followed closely by the record breaking Harry Potter Franchise. The exploits of Charlie Sheen have clearly influenced people’s buying decisions with 22,480 related sales. Interesting that his Two and a Half Men successor, Ashton Kucher is lagging a long way behind with only 2,260 related sales. Who Sade is is anyone’s guess, but at least she’s ranking above Bieber and Glee!
Also, of interest, the most expensive Cross Category Purchases on eBay Mobile were:
Motors – Mercedes Benz S-Class: $212,685
Fashion – Hermes Blue Sapphire Ostrich Birkin Bag: $19,975
Collectibles – 1933 Goudey – Babe Ruth #53 PSA Baseball Card: $19,500
It’s pretty remarkable to note transactions of such values going through mobile devices. However, if you really want to pick up a bargain, location is no longer a limiting factor in the world of eBay.
12.12.11. HP TouchPad Sale Wreaks Havoc on eBay
Some will have seen the exercise as a huge publicity stunt, others as one of the deals of the year but when HP released refurbished TouchPads at vastly reduced prices at midnight, eBay struggled to cope with the demand.
The auction giant was bombarded with requests for a limited number of TouchPads on their eBay store as 16GB iPads sold for $99 and 32GB Pads sold for $149, reductions from $499 and $599 respectively. The demand appeared to be the result of a leaked memo notifying HP employees of the opportunity. It is however doubtful that any HP employees would have been able to beat the swarms of traffic which lead to basket issues and payment errors on eBay.
The fallout from the offer has seen both positive and negative reactions throughout the social networks as some praise HP for their offer, whilst others have even questioned the authenticity of the offer and whether the offer was ever intended for HP employees.
“This was a big scam, try to find anyone who got one, I won the auction and went to Paypal to pay for the touchpad and a message came up ‘invalid item’—I called ebay and the customer service hung up on me twice,” claimed one individual. “I emailed HP, they said ’sorry we are out of stock’—good luck trying to prove anything. I believe it was a big scam just to get media attention.”
Although many comments may be questionable themselves in their authenticity; what with so many apparently disgruntled HP employees out there, it would appear that several thousand shoppers will be receiving heavily discounted Christmas presents.
The HP TouchPad was well received initially upon its release, but it simply could not cope with the lure of the iPad; especially with its lower retail price. The fact that HP announced its discontinued support for the TouchPad has sparked similar, if less extreme fire sales.
The Touchpads may have been almost impossible to get hold of, but if you’re still looking out for a Christmas bargain, remember to keep checking back to the Christmas Deals page on eBay.
01.12.11. Mobile Monday for eBay and Online Retailers
PayPal, part of eBay Inc. reported an almost 6 fold increase in mobile payment volume on both Black Friday and Cyber Monday; two of the busiest days in the eCommerce calendar. The news reiterates eBay’s successful venture into mobile as it looks on track to hit $5 billion in mobile sales this year, which would be an average of $13.7 million a day.
Tom Nawara of Acquity Group LLC commented; “EBay’s Cyber Monday mobile numbers underscore a trend we’ve seen in 2012: Shoppers are now just more comfortable using their mobile devices to shop for and purchase products,”
“Analysis of the m-commerce capabilities of the Internet Retailer Top 500 e-retailers shows a tremendous uptick in mobile adoption among merchants over the past two years, and that increase, along with consumers’ rapid smartphone adoption and mobile comfort level, is the basis for the terrific revenue numbers we’re seeing this year.”
Cyber Monday sales were expected to reach a record $1.2 billion, this year, with mobile sales doubling year over year. The number of mobile shoppers rose from 3.6 million consumers in 2009 to 7.3 million in 2010 and an estimated 17.8 million this year.
A spokesperson from eBay said the company “expects that mobile shopping will remain popular with shoppers throughout this holiday season.
“As we are apt to say, both consumers and retailers are set to benefit from the convenience provided by shopping via mobile anytime, anywhere.”
The huge mobile growth will be seen as positive news for eBay not only financially, but from a strategy point of view. Their ethos of building a shopping platform which can be accessed anywhere, anytime and at any place is surely coming to fruition.
18.11.11. Stuck for an Idea? Use the Christmas Gift Finder
Click Here to Visit The Christmas Gift Finder
You know its the Festive Period when eBay introduce a wealth of quirky features to get us all clicking and buying. This year is no exception and those who have taken a wander through the Deals page may have noticed the Christmas Gift Finder.
The Finder essentially does what it says on the tin. If you’re stuck for a present, simply select the recipient and eBay will deduce the perfect present through a series of short questions.
The accuracy and overall usefulness of the Gift Finder is slightly questionable, but if you don’t try it, you might miss out on the ideal gift. My perfect gift for my Dad is apparently a Panini Sticker Book; I’d probably get away with this, but best not rely upon such tactics in choosing for wives or girlfriends.
As usual, there’s an opportunity in this for those feeling especially tight fisted this Christmas. You could use our Free eBay Sniper to win your selected gift. Alternatively, you could use our eBay Misspelling Tool to unveil the lesser viewed items on eBay.
There are doubtless many more offerings in the pipeline from eBay, so keep an eye on the Goofbay Blog for updates. Note: Please don’t blame Goofbay for relatives not speaking to you after Christmas; you have been warned!
On a separate note, eBay is hosting a PayPal donations page for Children in Need today. If you’re feeling generous, you can make a contribution here.
08.11.11. Santa’s Workshop Unveiled on eBay
Click Here to Visit Santa’s Workshop
Having seen vast parts of the Country bathed in sunshine just four weeks ago, we’ve now fairly swiftly
encountered Halloween, the clocks going back and Bonfire Night in short succession. This leads us
naturally onto that slippery slope towards Christmas….already!
So, its that time again, where the nights are drawing in and most of us spend our evenings blankly
looking at a laptop. Never fear, though because as ever, eBay is looking to keep us entertained in the
run up to Xmas with a huge range of discounts from Enterprise and Outlet retailers.
If you have a look at the new ‘Santa’s Workshop‘ section of eBay (a thinly disguised weekly deals page), you’ll see a vast array of offers to lure you into actually getting your Xmas shopping done on time this year. Deals range from iPads througgh to a range of Fashion outlet offerings.
Possibly the deal getting the most attention in the run up to Xmas will be the Nintendo Wii Bundle,
retailing for £119.99. Surely this console must grace every living room in the Country by now? There
are no surprises that this offering is available through the Zavvi Outlet. If you’re looking for
electronics in the run up to Xmas, its probably worth checking back here regularly as they seem to be
determined to be central to everything eBay this Festive Period.
If there’s nothing you like in the Workshop at the moment, remember to check back as the offers are
changing on a regular basis.
02.11.11. Pre Xmas Zavvi Sale – Save up to 85%
01.10.11. Sales of iPhones set to Thrive Online
The highly anticipated launch of Apple’s iPhone 5 will see a huge drive in online sales for previous models.
Sales of previous versions of the iPhone are predicted to rise up to 70% as people look to adopt new technologies and prices of older handsets fall. A similar occurrence was evident last year when the iPhone replaced the 3G and the 3GS.
eBay believe that over half a million iPhones have been sold online since they were introduced, with one iPhone per second being sold via eBay UK.
“Our figures show that savvy shoppers are ready and waiting to get their hands on the iPhone 4 at a cut down price,” said Angus McCarey, Retail Director for eBay UK. “The UK leads Europe in terms of smart phone adoption, which is helping to drive the triple digit growth of mobile shopping on eBay. Mobile is fundamentally changing retail as shoppers can now browse and shop on and offline in a seamless way.”
The smart phone market as a whole should see overall increased sales, with the launch of the iphone 5 raising awareness. Both iPhone 5 and previous versions will also be buoyed by the approaching Festive period, which to Apple’s advantage will see a lot of opportunists picking up bargains through channels such as eBay. In fact, iPhone 3 sales outperformed iPhone 4 sales in the Festive period last year.
The iPhone 5 is expected to be released on 21st October. This should coincide with the 10th Birthday of the iPod and several leaked sources appear to back this rumour.
So from a Goofbay, or indeed a bargain hunters’ point of view there will inevitably be opportunities afoot. Firstly, unless you are desperate for an iPhone at this time, it’s probably worth waiting until prices fall. When the launch occurs and eBay is flooded with used phones, the greatest opportunities will inevitably be in misspellings. Below is a search which you could use to immediately reveal misspellings. Feel free to adapt this to match your own requirements, and then save it to receive regular updates.
http://www.goofbay.com/ebay_misspellings_search.html?gmis_cat=9355&gmis_keywords=iphone
Happy bargain hunting!
