Ebid advertisement in the united states

[AustinComics]

I will spare all the details of how 'I switched over from feebay, etc...' and get right to the point of Ebid's presence here in the US.

I'm not sure if Ebid does any type of advertising in the States, but I have yet to see any in the time that I've joined. Since being a member, I haven't seen or heard any TV ads, print ads, radio ads - I haven't seen any mention of Ebid on any other websites. Correct me if I'm wrong in saying that Ebid is based in the UK - so any marketing is probably not going to be done in the States? I don't know.

I found Ebid only after Googling the words 'online auction sites'. I ended up at a page that ranked auction sites - at least 15, none of which I even heard of. Of course Ebay was ranked #1 - but EBID is RANKED #2!! I think that is great considering who EBID stacks up against.


So what led me to Ebid was quite frankly the site ranked us as being the site with the best fee structure based on the amount of features available. So Ebid was essentially ranked as the best bargain. here you get plenty of bang for your buck.

Since being here on EBID now for 5 months my biggest question is DOES EBID DO ANY AMOUNT OF ADVERTISING? At all? In the UK? In the States?
Granted, I understand that keeping overhead low passes the savings on to the Sellers, and users of EBID, but it would be nice to see some sort EBID mention outside of these gates.

If anyone reads my other posts you will see my take on plugging EBID and individual EBID shops. I am not a passive seller waiting for EBID to do all the work ;-) I belive in AGGRESSIVE self-marketing. I blog about my niche (comic books) and visit dozens of comic book blogs and forums, leaving my signature everywhere I go - purely to drive traffic directly to my Shop. My blog even has big bold EBID stickers that can be clicked on.

Now - of the 6 sales that I had in the 4 months I've been here, I asked each of the Buyers how they found me. They each said that they Googled the product they were looking for and my Ebid store came up as a search result. So they joined Ebid just to buy from my shop. I asked if they had heard of Ebid prior to that and they said 'No'. Hmmmmm..

I have yet to see ANY MENTION of Ebid material outside of the walls of Ebid. I have yet to 'bump into' another Ebid Seller outside of here.

I did however, recently see a print ad for an upstart site called BooBoo or BooCoo - some ridiculous name lol - bottom line, they ran a gigantic Sunday paper ad that caught my attention and led me to their site!
So that led me to wondering, 'Will I/We EVER see an Ebid advertisement anywhere, at any time???'

I don't know what sort of marketing strategies are place here at Ebid, if any. But I do know that the holiday season is coming up and even with a recession, people will be looking to spend some money.

Either way I will continue to use my shop as I have been and drive traffic to my store AND Ebid as such. If I had the money to I would probably run at least ONE GIGANTIC EBID AD in my local paper just to get more web-traffic! hehe

Has any other users seen EBID ads?

SOLUTION: I never post/rant without offering my own solution!
As I mentioned I believe in AGGRESSIVE self-promoting. I will be printing out Ebid/Grand Central Comics magnets - maybe a few hundred - and passing them out next year at

San Diego Comic-Con International 2011!

* http://www.comic-con.org/ *

In the world of comic books and fan-related stuff, this is THE granddaddy of ALL conventions! Hundreds of thousands of people - including A-List Hollywood actors - swarm the San Diego Convention Center for 5 days to discuss ALL THINGS COMIC BOOKS. I

It is an incredible expereince and you best believe I will be handing out Ebid stickers/magnets like crazy!!!

So there is ONE solution for advertising - trade shows! Until that awesome weekend comes (next July) I will be focusing on stuffing my store with as much product as I can!

thats all I have, folks. As always - good luck to all!
.

[iwiw60]

Personally I don't think that advertising in newspapers, mags, etc., would get the results wanted. I do think that it would behoove eBid to advertise online much more than it does at present...I mean deluge the internet with it. Gosh, I remember waaaay back when e*ay was blossoming into the giant they are, the internet was bombed with ads...you saw them on your email home page, you saw them on tons of web sites, just about every web page out there. They were "clickable" ads and it sure did work for them. I also recall back in the day when they had a little 'gadget' one could download that would let you know when an auction you were either interested in or bidding on would pop up in your lower right-hand screen letting you know...it was great! Over the years they discontinued it, but maybe it's time eBid took the reins and followed suit?? Just my 2¢...

[crafters_corner]

Personally I don't think that advertising in newspapers, mags, etc., would get the results wanted. I do think that it would behoove eBid to advertise online much more than it does at present...I mean deluge the internet with it. Gosh, I remember waaaay back when e*ay was blossoming into the giant they are, the internet was bombed with ads...you saw them on your email home page, you saw them on tons of web sites, just about every web page out there. They were "clickable" ads and it sure did work for them. I also recall back in the day when they had a little 'gadget' one could download that would let you know when an auction you were either interested in or bidding on would pop up in your lower right-hand screen letting you know...it was great! Over the years they discontinued it, but maybe it's time eBid took the reins and followed suit?? Just my 2¢...

You have made a valid point which is often forgotten, iwiw: Feebay was once an embyonic auction site and, through aggressive advertising, became the giant (ogre) it is today. Of course we have to do our bit instead of sitting back and moaning about the non-appearance of sales, but it would be helpful if eBidplayed a part in advertising their site.
I requested an eBid car sticker but this has not been forthcoming. Surely the cost of sending every new member a sticker would not be too prohibitive? And this would be a good way of advertising the site at car boots etc.
In spite of the lack of advertising, I have done well in the short time I have been here. But it would be nice to be able to leave Feebay behind and put ALL my eggs in one basket

[MagnetsAndHangers]

You have made a valid point which is often forgotten, iwiw: Feebay was once an embyonic auction site and, through aggressive advertising, became the giant (ogre) it is today. Of course we have to do our bit instead of sitting back and moaning about the non-appearance of sales, but it would be helpful if eBidplayed a part in advertising their site.
I requested an eBid car sticker but this has not been forthcoming. Surely the cost of sending every new member a sticker would not be too prohibitive? And this would be a good way of advertising the site at car boots etc.
In spite of the lack of advertising, I have done well in the short time I have been here. But it would be nice to be able to leave Feebay behind and put ALL my eggs in one basket

I would hazard a guess and say even that would cost upwards of £300,000 - £400,000.
based on 3/4 million members - postage/packing to all of them plus cost of stickers.

Not exactly an amount to be taken lightly.

[crafters_corner]

I would hazard a guess and say even that would cost upwards of £300,000 - £400,000.
based on 3/4 million members - postage/packing to all of them plus cost of stickers.

Not exactly an amount to be taken lightly.

Gosh! Hadn't really done my maths before posting that.
You have a point!

[stylusman]

ok well how about this, everytime someone wins a buddy points auction whatever it is they have won. it comes free with a roll of ebid sticky tape ? I always wear my ebid tshirt out and about and now have a second one and am constantly having poeple asking me about thesite. If you consider if you package your next order and use the sticky tape who would see it. potsman, post office people when you take it into the shop for delivery, post office sorters surely it has to be worth thinking about. I have had around 17 people join by clicking on my links and that only within a month

[FirstGreenIsGold]

I print off an eBid label when I print my shipping label. :-)

[terry5732]

I see no point in advertising a venue. Products sell, not stores.

[stylusman]

yeah but the more people that join or the more traffic the more items will sell

[Naturelady]

I have a bumper sticker on my truck. I wear my t-shirt. I also put "Your ebid.net order is enclosed" on every package. Links via email. And just talking to everyone who seems interested. Also a lot of kind people through this forum have web pages and let members put their links on them. If ebid spent tons of money on advertisement, I am afraid they would have have to raise prices on members just like eb*y did. I am happy with ebid and think with time it will only get better.