If you look at the chart of eBay drop-off consignment stores we created in 2003, you'll notice that nearly 45 percent of the services included in that chart no longer have accessible domains, have merged with other services, or have changed their business model (http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/pages/consign). A lot has happened since David first wrote about the concept of eBay drop-off stores in 2000, and its viability continues to be a hotly debated topic.
In a recent NewsFlash issue, we reported that iSold It, a company that franchises eBay drop-off stores, has stopped accepting applications for new stores. The company's CEO said it is focusing its energy on helping existing franchisees succeed. And some readers will also remember the sale of NuMarkets that we reported on in February.
Despite the challenges, Snappy Auctions CEO Debbie Gordon believes in the concept and says it's all about execution. She's agreed to write about success factors for drop-off stores for Vendor Monday, a weekly Newsflash column with contributions by marketplaces and vendors who serve online sellers.
You can read my comments on the AuctionBytes Blog, and you are welcome to add your own two-cents to the discussion:
http://digbig.com/4smnp
As we reported on Friday, Google has launched its Checkout service in the UK. It came as a surprise that they launched in the UK before Canada, but it may be due to regulatory issues, as it seems Google is eager to roll out internationally - more in tomorrow's AuctionBytes Newsflash newsletter.
We're two days from the deadline for filing taxes in the US. (Sorry.) A company called Sagefire has recently released a tool that enables sellers to download two years worth of sales data from eBay (http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y07/m04/i09/s01). eBay itself only makes historic transactional data accessible for the most recent 90 days.
We're also a month away from impending postal rate changes in the US. According to a recent AuctionBytes survey, 77 percent of eBay and online sellers are concerned about higher shipping costs when new USPS rates go into effect in May, and 26 percent are concerned that postal tools they use may not be ready when the changes go into effect.
You can read the full results of the survey in today's issue, where you will also find an article from Lissa McGrath on two ecommerce hosting solutions - Ecrater and OSCommerce - and the usual columns, including a Critique My Site column featuring "The Dumb Dog."
It's supposed to be Spring (though you might not know it if you live in New England!), and today's Collector's Corner column celebrates kites.
Thanks for reading.
About the author:
Ina Steiner is Editor of AuctionBytes.com and author of "Turn eBay Data Into Dollars" (McGraw-Hill 2006). She has a background in marketing and research in the high-tech and publishing fields. If you have story ideas, comments or questions, send them to ina@auctionbytes.com.
