AuctionBytes interviewed Jonathan Cottrell, General Manager of Marketing Solutions at GoDaddy.com, about the new Go Daddy Marketplace that launched on Tuesday. As we reported last week, GoDaddy is charging sellers $4.99/month to list on the site with a 10% commission fee on all sales. The company, known for its domain-name registration and web-hosting services, will process customer payments on behalf on merchants.

AuctionBytes: Where can users find the User Agreement/Terms of Service for the marketplace service?

Jonathan Cottrell: Upon adding a product to their cart and then moving forward to the check out, customers must indicate they have agreed to the following end user license agreement: Link

AuctionBytes: Can sellers cancel their subscription at any time?

Jonathan Cottrell: Yes. There is no obligation to remain a merchant.

AuctionBytes: Do you have customer support for buyers and for sellers?

Jonathan Cottrell: Go Daddy is renowned for its industry-best customer service. As usual with Go Daddy products and services, we offer 24/7/365 LIVE customer service support, whether by phone or email.

That being said, if a buyer had a product-specific question, we may find it prudent to direct them to the seller, as the only information our customer care representatives have is that which the seller has listed on their product pages.

We make all sellers' information available to buyers, as can be seen on the business listings (e.g. see the right sidebar here: Link)

AuctionBytes: Do you have an import tool for sellers to import product listings onto the Go Daddy Marketplace?

Jonathan Cottrell: We certainly do! It's called Quick Shopping Cart (QSC). As noted on our Go Daddy Marketplace offer, sellers can quickly import all their product listings directly from Quick Shopping Cart.

Quick Shopping Cart has been an incredibly successful application that Go Daddy's ecommerce customers have used over the years, and we view Go Daddy Marketplace as just another distribution point for those merchants who use it. Quick Shopping Cart creates a fully-functional ecommerce Web site for companies doing business exclusively online, or brick and mortar stores looking to expand their Internet presence. For more information about Quick Shopping Cart, see: Link

AuctionBytes: How will Go Daddy handle disputes of item not described or item not received from buyers?

Jonathan Cottrell: If a buyer wishes to dispute an item, they can call, enter a support ticket online, or email marketplacedisputes@godaddy.com and our dedicated dispute and compliance staff will contact both parties to gather information and make a decision based on that data.

We also have a returns and refund policy located here that describes what we expect in our transactions.

AuctionBytes: Will Go Daddy accept all types of merchandise and services? Digital content?

Jonathan Cottrell: Currently, we are accepting only shippable products and service contacts, no downloadable content or chargeable services. In addition, we have a list of prohibited items

AuctionBytes: Must sellers reside in the U.S., or can they be located anywhere in the world? Are there other restrictions?

Jonathan Cottrell: Currently, buyers and sellers must reside in the U.S. However, we are working quickly to enable international shipping. This is a high priority for us.

AuctionBytes: Will there be any type of feedback system in which buyers and sellers can leave each other feedback?

Jonathan Cottrell: Certainly. Go Daddy provides avenues for both feedback and contact between buyers and sellers. This includes standard channels, such as comments, and will move toward more unique offerings, such as instant chat and using Go Daddy Customer Manager to inform sellers when their buyers or potential buyers have product questions or want to speak with them about the products they have already purchased.

Beyond that, our developers gather feedback regularly - directly from customer care calls -to make our products and services better and more effective.

AuctionBytes: Can sellers brand themselves?

Jonathan Cottrell: We are definitely not limiting Go Daddy Marketplace sellers from communicating their brand's name, information about their business, where they can be located, etc. In fact, Go Daddy intends to develop additional marketing solutions centered around Go Daddy Customer Manager that will enable our sellers to continue marketing to those customers for retention purposes. Above all, Go Daddy aims to empower our loyal vendors to establish and build their businesses online, and we see Go Daddy Marketplace as another extension of that objective.

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