Comparison Engine Widgets

[mandy]

From ChannelAdvisor CEO Scot Wingo's CSE Strategies blog:

Desktop beware...widgets are in the air!

Alright, enough cliches and stupid rhymes.  The point is that "official," branded widgets are starting to sprout from major CSEs offering functionality above and beyond simple search capabilities.

How does this affect both buyers and sellers?  And what does the future hold?

There are two common themes here: exposure and entrenchment.

Let's start with exposure.

Widgets by nature are meant to be distributed forms of marketing and functionality -- a platform for awareness, value and consumption...

full article: http://www.csestrategies.com/cse/2007/05...the_w.html

A related article:

Web shop owners are now just a widget away from making extra cash through both the Amazon and eBay affiliate programs.

Mpire today launched a series of revenue-generating widgets that incorporate the company's meta-shopping data into Web sites, blogs and social network profiles. Mpire CEO Matt Hulett says it's the first time the affiliate programs of both Amazon and eBay have been rolled into the same widget offering.

Coding for Ka-Ching
The new widgets are completely free, and don't even require registration (although it is an option). Affiliates insert their ID in the code when setting up the widget and get to keep all profits made. There's no revenue-sharing model and site owners deal directly with eBay and Amazon for payment. Code to the widgets can be found here...

full article: http://www.ecommerce-guide.com/news/article.php/3676616