eBay Adds New Feature: Rules and Guides

[Anita]

I think he probably doesn't have a "big thing" or a sense of humor!

[mandy]

Motley Fool Article today: eBay Creates Content

http://www.fool.com/News/mft/2005/mft05101002.htm

It's also another case of eBay trying to legitimize itself as a traditional retailer. Once a pure consumer-to-consumer auction site to hawk old junk, the company has focused its latest marketing campaigns on new (or nearly new) popular items that can be found on the site. The television ads and print catalogs in particular have tried to drive that emphasis home, while the "Buy It Now" option has helped buyers approach eBay as if it were a bona fide online retailer like Amazon

[bargainbloodhound]

the company has focused its latest marketing campaigns on new (or nearly new) popular items that can be found on the site. The television ads and print catalogs in particular have tried to drive that emphasis home

In the long run I think that mall strategy is going to come back to bite eBay in its asp because the same mass market popular items are available on dozens of other large web sites (and many times they're also available for less in B&M stores when you figure in shipping costs).  Sites like Amazon and Overstock are easy to shop at if you want a popular mass market item-- the eBay shopping experience more times than not is a PITA.

The collectibles/unique/hard to find sellers and their offerings are what initially drove buyers to eBay and what differentiated it from the Amazons, Overstocks, Yahoo Shoppings of the online shopping world.  Without those sellers and their items there is little reason to endure (and choose) the time consuming process of shopping on eBay ,