Ebay trading vs. Own online-shop
Many Ebay powersellers see the potential of creating their own online-shop and manage the transition or set up a shop parallel to their business on Ebay. What sound like a very good plan doesn’t necessarily mean that it is going to be a great success. This article shows the five obstacles that online merchants have to overcome to be successful.
Obstacle Nr.1: Operating distance
In January 2008 Ebay Germany had 17.6 Million “unique visitors”. There is not a second platform that can present products of such a variety. Experienced online traders know the problem of creating traffic for your shop. Every single visitor has to be generated through search engine optimisation, search engine marketing, affiliate programs, online advertising and offline advertising that can be very expensive. Most of the shops lack operating distance and high profile and because of that revenue.
Obstacle Nr.2: Technology and Usability
Online traders often change their shopsoftware, because their old software is not up-to-date anymore or doesn’t fulfil the necessary requirements. The costs of software, programming and design will have a serious impact on the profit of the shop. The ordering process at Ebay is almost flawless and there’s a high probability that an order will be generated through it. Shop owners have to work on that themselves or have to pay external service providers.
Obstacle Nr.3: Legal issues
The legal situation in E-Commerce is difficult and complicated. While an Ebay powerseller benefits from the regularly update Ebay standard clauses and guidelines, the Shop owner has to rely on always being up to date.
Obstacle Nr.4: Execution of orders
With the Ebay tools and ERP systems the backend of the business can be organized professionally. Orders and requests from customers are handled and executed professionally. A shop owner has to choose the right solution for himself and then start optimizing it to fulfil his needs. Apart from the high costs, is a lot of effort for optimisation and further development.
Obstacle Nr.5: Innovation
An online shop has to redefine itself regularly and has to have a sense for innovation in e-business. If there is a new way of product presentation, videos, customer feedback or payment method the shop has to implement these as soon as possible to be up-to-date. A shop owner has to inform himself about the latest developments on fairs, conventions and specialized magazines. An Ebay Powerseller can rely on Ebay when it comes to innovation.
Which way you go in e-business is up to you and also depends on your personality. And of course the kind of products you want to sell. Plus there are a lot of traders that successfully use both channels to sell their products. So now it’s up to you.
For more tips on online trading also read:
- 5 Key success factors for your online shop
- 10 essential tips for designing an email newsletter with impact
- 5 steps to maximize your online-sales in any economy
- Shipping information for international online retail
For the original german version of this article click here.
