Standing on the Fence
A balanced look at what is happening in the Information Technology world and its effects on businesses large and small.
07 Jul, 2006
Ebay bans use of Google Checkout - an Experienced Ebay Seller Perspective
Posted by bknapik 22:50 |
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E-Commerce
In late June Google announced the availability of Google Checkout. Google Checkout is a direct competitor to Ebay's PayPal. Before Google is even given a chance to show its potential, Ebay has taken action to block Google as a payment option for Ebay auctions. Ebay cites that Google does not have proper fraud measures in place. Whether this is true or not is yet to be seen.
As an experienced seller on Ebay, I can say that Paypal does not have excellent fraud measures in place itself. Ebay has the erroneous notion that fraud can only be committed by the seller and not the buyer. Ebay makes it extremely easy to shut down a seller. With a simple form, a buyer can lock a sellers Paypal account, preventing the seller from receiving, sending, and transferring funds. There have been hundreds of reported cases where the seller have been screwed out of money because the buyer was dishonest. Even a tracking number from UPS is not enough to prove a case. This is especially true with high value items such as jewelery or computer equipment. In my opinion, Google has a far better reputation than Ebay. Ebay over the past few years has become increasingly greedy - it is becoming more and more difficult to turn a profit due to the rate increases.
It is quite clear that Ebay is trying to secure its place with Paypal. Google is the only company that can go toe to toe with Ebay. Google has a reputation for offering their services for free and making their dollar on advertising - Google has brilliantly pulled this off again. To quote the Google Checkout Merchant Page
"Process sales for free. For every $1 you spend on AdWords, you can process $10 in sales for free. For sales that exceed this amount or if you don't use AdWords, you can process them at a low 2% and $0.20 per transaction."
This essentially knocks Paypal out of the park. Currently, Paypal wants 2.9% + a $0.30 transaction fee. Google can be free for advertisers or as little as $2% + a $0.20 transaction fee.
I wish Ebay luck with their little restriction, I doubt it will hold. Ultimately, the consumer will decide who wins. Google has the capital, resources, know-how, and reputation to give Ebay a run for its money.
05 Jul, 2006
Getting Listed in Search Engines
Posted by bknapik 00:06 |
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E-Commerce
Many people expect people to just start finding their website out of nowhere. Just like brick and mortar shops, people need to be able to find it. The first step after the launch of a website is to get listed in major search engines. Search engines are the number one way customers locate websites and are the “yellow pages” of the Internet.
The first step is to submit the website to www.dmoz.org. DMOZ is a large directory of websites that popular search engines like Google and MSN use to find new websites. Search engines then go through the new websites and add the new websites to their search results. You must also visit each search engine's website separately and use their site submission form. Some search engines charge to be listed, some charge to be expedited onto their search engine, and some are free. Not all search engines are worth paying for but, Yahoo, for example, is worth the price.
Submitting your website to free search engines, does not guarantee that you will be listed in them. It can take weeks or even months before your website will even start showing up in search results. If you do not see your site listed after 2 to 3 months, feel free to submit again.
So how do you find search engines? There is actually a directory of them at dmoz.org or entering “search engine” into Google will keep you busy for hours. There are even search engines specific to topic and country.
