CitiGroup analyst Mark Mahaney said eBay's key goal going forward is to enhance "revenue per listing" (RPL). Mahaney issued a research note on Tuesday after hosting meetings with eBay's CFO Bob Swan and Marketplaces President John Donahoe (as well as with Yahoo CEO Terry Semel and CFO Sue Decker).
Mahaney said according to the executives, the steps eBay will take to enhance RPL include removing unproductive listings; driving higher conversion rates; and generating higher average selling prices. It will also increase its non-listing revenue from such areas as its Shopping.com comparison-shopping site.
In addition, Mahaney said eBay's primary focus in 2007 is on improving the user experience by focusing on search/findability, reducing excessive shipping costs and continuing to implement Trust & Safety initiatives. Mahaney spoke about eBay's operating margins and mentioned that eBay expects that product development "should see continued leverage as eBay further utilizes offshore R&D capabilities."
http://www.citigroup.com
