For over a decade eBay has been one of the world’s leading online retailers. It was one of the few brave companies that took the initial risk in online investment and has survived the trials and tribulations to become one of the world’s most renowned online services. As technology begins to develop however, online giants such as eBay are making a shift towards mobile retail and as a mobile retail, eBay has once again emerged as a major player. So what makes them so successful?
One of the main differences in eBay’s approach as a mobile retailer is its overall business approach. For years, eBay has employed a growth strategy that has seen them buy out many companies in order to merge features and technologies. Recently eBay completed the acquisition of GSI Commerce, a leading provider of ecommerce and interactive marketing services. With this acquisition and the numbers of others like this, eBay CEO John Donahoe states, “What is common about all of our assets is that we partner with retailers and we do not compete with them, and we believe retailers are looking to partner with someone, not be concerned about competition.”
Mr. Deepak Thomas general manager of eBay Classifieds, San Jose, CA. refers to eBay’s efforts to integrate recent acquisitions, “There are several new acquisitions that have come on board and what we are doing in mobile is bringing all that to the core experience as well.” For example, in December last year eBay completed the acquisition of Critical Path Software, which builds applications for mobile phones and desktops. This acquisition reflects on one of eBay’s biggest mobile successes. EBay’s mobile revenue reached around $2 Billion last year and was driven largely by Smartphone and iPad applications, such as an application for their major market, fashion that allows customers to try on sunglasses virtually. By making successful acquisitions and adopting new technologies, eBay are able to push the envelope on some of their most successful mobile aspects, increasing the “core experience” that Mr. Thomas speaks of.
As part of eBay’s focus on the “core experience” of their mobile network they employ a “mobile first” strategy. That is to say, that when they launch a new brand, eBay tries to gauge what is vital and locate all other information or gateways on a mobisite somewhere where users can access it without it cluttering the page or detracting from the overall experience. To further the company’s focus on consumer experience Mr. Thomas talks about the thinking that goes into creating content for mobile and that mobile applications are the primary focus when releasing a new brand. “We take the most popular Web site features and try to grind that in,” he said. “You have to be very judicious about what those features are, then take them and make them work on mobile.”
A great deal of eBay’s success with ecommerce and mobile has come through its ability to convert several fragmented and often local markets into global ones at a relatively low cost to its users. eBay’s ability to combine so many successful retailers at a low cost has seen a wealth of customers register for their services and more especially their mobile applications. In time, eBay’s focus on developing mobile technologies will surely see them surpass major rivals such as Amazon.com and unquestionably enter a league of their own.
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