Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

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AuctionBytes Blog
News and insight focusing on
ecommerce and the online auction industry
by Ina Steiner, Editor of AuctionBytes.com

February 03, 2009

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

By: Ina Steiner

Tue Feb 3 2009 03:59:12

Data from Nielsen Online shows Amazon.com beat eBay again in December in terms of unique visitors (see article in today's Newsflash). In the fourth quarter, eBay participated in Microsoft's Cashback program, and it sent coupons to existing buyers in addition to its Internet Marketing efforts, but it did not do any television advertising. In addition, it has made changes to its affiliate program - unfortunately I don't have any quantifiable data to show the effects, but changes to the incentive structure might have had an impact on traffic to eBay. The closure of the eBay Live Auctions platform on December 31, 2008, may effect eBay's January traffic figures.

Interestingly, we've not heard from top eBay execs this year other than John Donahoe's participation in an analyst conference call to discuss fourth-quarter earnings. The silence is deafening.

Comments (44) | Permalink

Readers Comments

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: eBuyer Feedback

Tue Feb 3 10:05:25 2009

But what about pageviews? I'm sure with Amazon's streamlined design they must have fewer pageviews than eBay?

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: Ina

Tue Feb 3 10:07:20 2009

The pageviews chart is in the Newsflash article - see the link in the post above. :)

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: ebay = penny stock

Tue Feb 3 10:14:00 2009

Page views phooy. Anyone with brains knows that it takes more clicks to even find anything on Ebay. So page views would be higher than Amazon whose site is very easy to navigate.

Ebay is in a downward spiral. Management doesn't have the faintest idea on how to correct it.

Higher fees are a coming this month.

BONANZLE is the place to be.

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: Daisy

Tue Feb 3 10:19:09 2009

Ebay has lost it's way. John Donahoe held the golden goose and it wasn't good enough for him. So, in the short term, we all suffer. But there is definitely a need and a want for the seller of unique and used items and there always will be.

Ebay has lost all it's good will. Small sellers are just waiting for the new venues to pick up the traction needed and then it's bye bye Ebay.

Good luck with that new plan, John. Going swimmingly, eh?

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: o.c.d.collectibles

Tue Feb 3 10:39:55 2009

They should have never been in competition with Amazon. They could have developed their auction platform much better than they did, and they could have focused more on the technology of the site, rather than spinning their wheels making stupid investments. All that cash should have been put in tech.

They really don't care. Obviously, this is all about the Board of directors. They would not allow Donahoe to stay if they really were interested in maintaining and building the site. He specializes in taking companies apart, not building them. That's a Bain trait.

Meg took him in, bought his stupid ideas, got stabbed in the back for her job, then Pierre was stuck with him. Pierre is too much of a wimp to do anything about it.

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: show us the proof

Tue Feb 3 10:50:25 2009

"BONANZLE is the place to be."

Prove it. Show us the sales data. Not views, not sellers, show us the buyers. Its not a complicated matter; just show the data to correlate success.

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: Joe

Tue Feb 3 11:01:43 2009

The Fourth Quarter is when eBay when live with Best Match as default search and DSR's. Both have adverse effects on pageviews, Unique Visitor, and Sale Thru's.
Get rid of Best Match, refine and correct the DSR glitches for immediate improvement.
And one other thing eBay...
STOP TREATING SELLERS LIKE SH*T...

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: Patricia

Tue Feb 3 11:49:05 2009

We may never again have a place where we could put up our wares and have an almost 100 percent sell thru rate....not even on EBAY! So, the only alternative small sellers of unique items have is to build other sites. I know my business on Ebay dropped 99 percent of what it was just a year ago. What do I and others do? Keep pouring money into a dry well?...keep being hidden in best match or not shown at all? We MUST move forward and that means diversifying by opening our own websites and listing on various other sites and marketing ourselves by contacting our past customers and telling them where we are. Its the price we have to pay and it can't be done any other way. If you can't profit on Ebay under the present management and business model you must move on. So....when someone says "Bonanzle" and someone else says where's the sales....I counter with where are the sales on Ebay???? How much in listing fees are you wasting by planting yourself there and waiting for things to turn around? How many hoops does Ebay have you jumping thru? How much guff are you taking from empowered buyers? I've moved on. Now I sit on the sidelines and watch Ebay's decline. Its sad to see a once fine company going thru this but its self-imposed and I don't intend to be a part of it. I can be found on Etsy and Bonanzle and my own website.

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: Mechelle

Tue Feb 3 11:52:40 2009

@show us the proof

Why not come get your own proof?? What do you have to lose it costs nothing to list your items on Bonanzle. Come on over list all your fabulous products and see if Bonanzle will work for you.

Bonanzle is working for me, but I don't know how to prove that to you here on AuctionBytes. Any suggestions?

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: rofl

Tue Feb 3 12:02:16 2009

The proof of the pudding is in the tasting. Ebay has left a bad taste in everyone's mouth.

Don't need to be a weatherman to see which way the wind blows.

And ebay *really* blows.

Open your eyes and stop the denial. The proof is plenty. The proof is everywhere.

rofl

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: Mechelle

Tue Feb 3 12:27:32 2009

February - eBay 0 Bonanzle 5

Past 7 Days eBay 112.92 (one item not Paid for yet after 5 days for 12.99 so completed transactions 99.93) Bonanzle 108.50 (all paid for)

Pathetic showing for eBay - but good for me and Bonanzle.

Oh - difference in FVFs alone (not including eBay insertion fees or subscription fees)

eBay $13.55 Bonanzle $4

eBay use to do much better for me- now it is pathetic considering

eBay has 85,000 active members, 24 to 28 million listings everyday, and a 13 year history

Bonanzle on the other hand does not even have 6 months since its official launch in sept, hit 1,000,000 listing on January 27th - currently 1,093,065 & 26500 members of which 7767 are sellers

I'd say Bonanzle is doing pretty well and eBay is finished

Oh and the 17 people who bought from me in the past 6 weeks all signed up to Bonanzle to purchase from me none were already members. I am pretty pleased with the results so far

oh all of my 17 transaction cost me 17 dollars total

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: jay

Tue Feb 3 12:30:57 2009

"The silence is deafening"

That says it all. By now in past years, the fee increases have been announced. Usually, there is some kind of damage control going on. But silence?

Last year there were top Ebay seller summits, and many of the large Ebay sellers were out doing Ebay's PR for them. Not this year.

I assume Ebay execs are tabulating the results of the month long auction listing fee sale coducted during January before they decide how to increase fees. I don't believe they can do anything to save Ebay. They don't understand that an Ebay seller cannot go even one week without making sales. They take months to correct for their mistakes, and by that time 1000's of sellers have had to move on to other ways of making income.

Ebay needs to hire someone with actual retail experience to run the company.

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: evilldave

Tue Feb 3 13:57:31 2009

As much as i would love another popular venue to sell on along-side ebay and amazon, Bonanzle is not it right now. I uploaded 1500 products to bonanzle in Q3 and Q4 2008, and zero sales.
Bonanzle - if you're reading this, put some more money into advertising. I and other sellers will be waiting.

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: o.c.d.collectibles

Tue Feb 3 14:59:27 2009

"by: show us the proof
Tue Feb 3 10:50:25
"BONANZLE is the place to be."

Prove it. Show us the sales data. Not views, not sellers, show us the buyers. Its not a complicated matter; just show the data to correlate success."

Here ya go hun!http://mashable.com/2009/01/27/bonanzle-social-medias-quickly-grow
ing-alternative-to-ebay

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: john

Tue Feb 3 15:41:10 2009

Bonanzle isn't the place to be. For sales....Ebay and Amazon are.

Even on BAD HORRIBLE DEPRESSING DAYS...we will sell 30 items on Ebay. We do this 7 days per week.

On Bonanzle....as many have reported, it takes months for 1 sale overall....let alone 30 every single day.

The more and more I hear about how Bonzanzle is the place to be....I really wonder what their motives are as it isn't bringing buyers to the site.

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: john

Tue Feb 3 15:43:05 2009

As for Bonanzle fees....who cares?

Sure...it's nice to pay $5 in fees were Ebay might charge $30.

However, it's nicer to have $5,000 in weekly sales on Ebay than $20 on Bonanzle. I most certainly don't mind paying Ebay $200 more per week than Bonanzle would charge when I would make $3000 profit per week more on Ebay than Bonanzle.

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: Pete

Tue Feb 3 15:58:19 2009

Totally in agreement with john. No buyers on Bonanzle. Only sellers there. I rather pay the fees that bring in buyers.

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: Kal

Tue Feb 3 16:17:59 2009

BONANZLE is worthless for me. It's only BIN. I do auctions of ''one of a kind'' piddly shit that used to fetch big $$$. Now, with the economy the way it is, these items, well, fetch, ''shit''. However the hit counts are still there at eBay, just no buyers - or 1 buyer, in the last 2 seconds at the opening price.

BONANZLE is NOT NOT NOT NOT for an auction seller. I wish people would be more honest in what they say before they just shout ''BONANZLE! BONANZLE! BONANZLE!'' For me it's BALONEY.

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: jason

Tue Feb 3 17:50:10 2009

Have to agree with John. Buyers just don't show at BONANZLE.

Amazon Beats eBay Traffic in December

by: Jennifer

Tue Feb 3 19:50:23 2009

I have sold nearly $200.00 worth of books on Bonanzle in the last two weeks. I have a blog and a website, and I am a member of multiple forums related to what I collect and sell. I have mentioned Bonanzle in all of those places, and my buyers and my collector friends are coming over to Bonanzle.

In my area of interest, it is now very difficult to make sales on eBay. The books category is completely flooded with the hundreds of thousands of books from the diamond powersellers. I now have to exclude around 20 sellers from my searches in over to have any hope of spotting the books I want. Many buyers are not going to go to the multiple steps to exclude sellers. It is a hassle, and I hate doing it.

My sales during the last week in December have always been good on eBay during the last 12 years. My sales this year were horrible, and I sold only about 25% of my books. For that reason, I moved to Bonanzle. I am paying less in fees, and I am still able to make sales.

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