If you are interested in buying or selling online, you have probably heard of eBay. Even if you have never given this any thought, you are probably familiar with the fact that eBay is the number one auction website in the world. In addition to being the leader in the online auction industry, the site is also one of the most visited across the board. As you can imagine, a site of this size has a lot of pros and cons. While there are some people who love everything that eBay does, many others are constantly annoyed with the changes and updates that the company makes. Design
One of the major benefits of eBay is its design. Although this has changed several times over the years, the company never goes overboard. No matter what page of the site you are visiting, and there are millions of them, you should not have any problems with navigation. Starting from the homepage, you will notice that everything is laid out in an easy to follow manner. With “sign in†and “register†buttons at the top of the page, it is easy for you to get started. Directly below these links you will find a search box that will allow you to find exactly what you are looking for.
As you scroll down the home page, you will have the ability to search based on categories. If you do not know what you are looking for, this is the place to start. Finally, there are several “out of the way†links at the very bottom of the page. They include links to live auctions, policies, downloads, forums, and much more.
Marketing
eBay is one of those sites that continues to grow due in large part to word of mouth marketing. With that being said, the company does spend quite a bit of money on getting the word out. For instance, eBay is always running new commercial spots. As of late, these have become even more prominent on major networks across the country. Obviously, any company with the budget for television marketing must be doing something right; and eBay is no exception.
Content
eBay is not a site that is driven by traditional content in an article format. Instead, the content on the site is more or less listings of products that are being sold. There are millions of products being sold on eBay day in and day out. The listings for these items make up the vast majority of the site. This is not to say that eBay has no traditional content, because there is some. But when it comes down to it, the main goal of eBay is not to provide information, but to offer a marketplace for buying and selling.
Stats
In 2007, eBay generated revenue of approximately $7.67 billion. As you can see, this is no small company. Since day one, eBay has been expanding both its profits and its membership base. While the company has run into some issues with members as of late, it is safe to say that it will continue to grow over the next few years.
Although traffic statistics can change by the day, Alexa.com has eBay ranked as the 21st most visited site in the world. This equates to millions upon millions of visitors on a daily basis.
Cons
As of late, eBay has been catching a lot of heat from members over recent fee hikes. Although the company has to make money somehow, many members are quite disappointed that fees continue to rise. This is not the first time this has happened, and many feel that if eBay does not slow down that they are going to jeopardize losing a large chunk of its member base. As the price of the fees increase, the amount of profit that sellers make on each sale drops.
There is no denying that eBay is one of the most innovative companies in the world. They keep things simple, yet they are always looking for ways to improve. As long as the company continues on this path, they will always have millions of people who are interested in buying and selling.
