Ebay's microenvironment is stabilized by ongoing growth throughout the companies services. Ebay constantly faces the challenges of finding new, innovative ways to promote their services to continuously offer a variety of items on the website. The ability for the company to find easier ways to provide selling and buying services to consumers is a constant task for the website developers, so that the site can stay competitive in price and promotions amongst other online trading sites. The most difficult task when it comes to Ebay's microenvironment is the ability to stay seamlessly connected to its customers while find a way to combine its' services with the reliability and security they offer. Based on growth throughout the website, since Ebay is already the largest online international trading website, the ability to stay competitive in all markets, whether international or within the U.S. and maintain an even flow of goods, a consistent marketing strategy and a advanced user friendly site are their biggest challenges.
Ebay's macroenvironment is challenging because they must continue to find ways to not only communicate their services to those within the U.S. but also buyers and sellers from other countries. The ability to make communication easy for U.S. based customers and international customers can be come difficult when dealing with different currencies, taxes and shipping services. The ability to sell items online is simple for a customer when dealing with a territory that they are familiar with, but when adding the element of an international trade, this can add complexity to the transaction that Ebay must have thorough and up to date knowledge in walking the customer through. Ebay must also constantly find ways to cater to international clients by continually being aware of not only their trade and sale policies but their country's economic background, so that Ebay can stay competitive amongst other companies in foreign countries as well. Since Ebay is worldwide, the issue for them to promote their services is not necessarily that they have to advocate themselves as a service to use, but to make sure their customers from all demographics understand how to use their services as it pertains to each individual circumstance and sale.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Ebay's Positioning
Ebay positions itself as not only a safe online auction site but also a user-friendly site for selling and buying various items. The website is arranged in a way where it would be extremely difficult for anyone visiting the site to not search or click on some of the items on the "Welcome" page. The site captures the initial person just browsing the web and sticks out in a consumer's mind as possibly the only place to conduct online trading. Ebay's name is recognizable to almost anyone who surfs the web, whether they have bought, sold or browsed the site for items. Most consumers will use this site because of the competitiveness of the items listed as well as the variety. Most other online trading sites may offer lower prices to post items, but this changes the buying price of items therefore leading to less of a chance for a seller to sell their item(s). Various online trading sites also may appear shadier and less user-friendly which can turn-off a new comer searching for their place in the online trading world. Ebay's advantages are not only the way they position themselves as far as advertising but their consistency in providing easy, safe services for consumers whether buying or selling.
Ebay's Core Competencies
Along the lines of the 4 P's (Price, Product, Promotion and Placement), Ebay possesses strengths in each of these areas.
Ebay educates sellers in negotiating and finding the best price for selling an item in the marketplace, benefiting not only the seller and buyer, but the company as well. Ebay's costs to sell an item online are unbeatable compared to that of other smaller online trading/auctioning sites. The price of posting items online is extremely attractive to anyone looking to sell an item online, whether it be an automobile or a screw driver. The website also allows the seller to determine the price of shipping for any given item allowing to maximize profit in this area as well.
Ebay offers a wide variety of items, from electronics to furniture to automobiles, and allows for any buyer to be able to easily purchase and process safe transactions through their affiliated payment company, Paypal. Although Ebay does not have a material product, their valuable intangible product is the low-cost advertisement "space" any person interested in selling an item can use for a reasonable fee to showcase their item(s) nationally or internationally. Since Ebay reaches millions of people on a daily basis, it is nearly the only online trading/auction website that most customers will look to nowadays.
Ebay is brilliant when it comes to promotion, when asking anyone that does frequent or infrequent online purchasing or web surfing, you can almost guarantee that they have visited Ebay's site at least once in their travels. Ebay promotes itself through other online sites, magazines and most importantly word of mouth, which is probably the companies most valuable promotional method. When researching online trading websites, most people without a question will immediately look to Ebay as their source for various reasons. The costs of posting an item are the lowest online has to offer, the safety of the transactions are attractive to many customers or potential sellers, and the large spectrum of differently priced items entices a variety of people all over the world. Ebay is the one auction site you could search for a "toe nail clipper" and find several listings for both new and used items. Ebay provides exceptional live online help to customers, as well the ability to contact toll free numbers with any questions or problems a customer may come across. Ebay also offers a variety of different promotional options for someone wishing to sell items on the site, they offer the ability to apply for either a credit card or business Paypal debit card, which not only provides money-back rewards for the customer for any purchases or transactions made, but also provides a safe, smooth, worry-free guarantee for the customers personal information.
Finally, placement is obvious to how Ebay caters to its' customers, Ebay is purely a web-based company, so the company can be accessed by anyone, anywhere in the world, making their services available to all their target consumers.
www.paypal.com
Ebay educates sellers in negotiating and finding the best price for selling an item in the marketplace, benefiting not only the seller and buyer, but the company as well. Ebay's costs to sell an item online are unbeatable compared to that of other smaller online trading/auctioning sites. The price of posting items online is extremely attractive to anyone looking to sell an item online, whether it be an automobile or a screw driver. The website also allows the seller to determine the price of shipping for any given item allowing to maximize profit in this area as well.
Ebay offers a wide variety of items, from electronics to furniture to automobiles, and allows for any buyer to be able to easily purchase and process safe transactions through their affiliated payment company, Paypal. Although Ebay does not have a material product, their valuable intangible product is the low-cost advertisement "space" any person interested in selling an item can use for a reasonable fee to showcase their item(s) nationally or internationally. Since Ebay reaches millions of people on a daily basis, it is nearly the only online trading/auction website that most customers will look to nowadays.
Ebay is brilliant when it comes to promotion, when asking anyone that does frequent or infrequent online purchasing or web surfing, you can almost guarantee that they have visited Ebay's site at least once in their travels. Ebay promotes itself through other online sites, magazines and most importantly word of mouth, which is probably the companies most valuable promotional method. When researching online trading websites, most people without a question will immediately look to Ebay as their source for various reasons. The costs of posting an item are the lowest online has to offer, the safety of the transactions are attractive to many customers or potential sellers, and the large spectrum of differently priced items entices a variety of people all over the world. Ebay is the one auction site you could search for a "toe nail clipper" and find several listings for both new and used items. Ebay provides exceptional live online help to customers, as well the ability to contact toll free numbers with any questions or problems a customer may come across. Ebay also offers a variety of different promotional options for someone wishing to sell items on the site, they offer the ability to apply for either a credit card or business Paypal debit card, which not only provides money-back rewards for the customer for any purchases or transactions made, but also provides a safe, smooth, worry-free guarantee for the customers personal information.
Finally, placement is obvious to how Ebay caters to its' customers, Ebay is purely a web-based company, so the company can be accessed by anyone, anywhere in the world, making their services available to all their target consumers.
www.paypal.com
Ebay's Mission Statement
"Ebay's mission is to provide a global trading platform where practically anyone can trade practically anything."
http://ebay.about.com/od/gettingstarted/a/gs_whatisebay.htm
In September of 1995 Ebay was developed by a software developer who was merely trying to sell a used/broken item he no longer needed, this initial transaction was the beginning of what we know today as Ebay, an international marketplace where just about anyone can buy and sell used or new goods, work or non-working items for various prices. Ebay has proven it's ability to not only become the largest online site to monitor safe trading between buyers and sellers all over the world but also has been able to develop a user-friendly site that merely anyone can use.
Ebay positions itself as not only a site to buy and sell goods, but to shop, collect and potentially even open a small or large scale online trading business for individuals.
www.ebay.com
http://ebay.about.com/od/gettingstarted/a/gs_whatisebay.htm
In September of 1995 Ebay was developed by a software developer who was merely trying to sell a used/broken item he no longer needed, this initial transaction was the beginning of what we know today as Ebay, an international marketplace where just about anyone can buy and sell used or new goods, work or non-working items for various prices. Ebay has proven it's ability to not only become the largest online site to monitor safe trading between buyers and sellers all over the world but also has been able to develop a user-friendly site that merely anyone can use.
Ebay positions itself as not only a site to buy and sell goods, but to shop, collect and potentially even open a small or large scale online trading business for individuals.
www.ebay.com
Hello!
Hello! My name is Erica and I will be following Ebay as my company for my marketing project. Hopefully I can help you learn a little about the world of online buying and selling! Please feel free to leave any comments.
Thank you!
Thank you!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
