The value of marketplaces for an ecommerce site. Amazon and Ebay compared
Marketplaces are virtual places that act as intermediaries between sellers and buyers.
They offer sellers, visibility among a high number of potential customers and allow buyers a wide choice of products to purchase at favorable prices.
Integrating an online store to marketplaces provides effective solutions to all those who need to better manage multichannel sales.
Such platforms are capable of becoming valuable allies in internationalizing and selling abroad and simplifying all aspects of logistics and warehousing.
The seller chooses to sell its products on marketplaces for:
- Gain more visibility among an audience of millions of users;
- Start selling without too much investment;
- Increase sales and turnover;
- Test the performance of a given product in one or more European markets;
- Have constant support from the marketplace;
- security and anti-fraud systems
Users researching and purchasing products online are interested for the following reasons:
– ease of searching for desired products at a competitive price;
– security of receiving products in a timely manner;
-ability to view reviews left by others
– protection in the sales and shipping process.
Among the marketplaces, the most widely used are: Ebay e Amazon.
SELLING ON AMAZON: DATA AND SERVICES OFFERED
Amazon’s data
Amazon, considered the Google for e-commerce, is the world’s first and innovative online marketplace.
– 3 million products shipped per day;
– 54 million customers are members of Amazon Prime. Pact an annual fee to obtain benefits that this status entails.
The most welcome benefits are: free one-day shipping, free returns, and the security of receiving the product quickly;
– 857 million in profit on total revenue of $30.1 billion.
The data are for the secondquarter of 2016;
– 31% increase in sales year-to-date.
Services offered
Amazon offers four types of services: sales, logistics, sponsored products, and handmade.
1- SALE.
Amazon allows companies to sell their products on the platform consisting of five national marketplaces-Italy, France, Spain, Germany and the UK.
Allows you to create and manage a product catalog, sales conditions and shipping costs.
Companies can define the sales plan best suited to their needs.
If the seller estimates making fewer than 40 sales per month, it is convenient to choose the Basic Account. If, plan to exceed 40 sales per month, it is preferable to adopt the Pro Account.
2- LOGISTICS.
The way it works is simple: you send your inventory to an Amazon logistics center located close to your customers, where the products are stored in extreme security.
Amazon will take care of packing and shipping them to their destination.
Thanks to the European logistics network, they can be shipped throughout the European Union and be part of the Amazon Prime program. You can often take advantage of free shipping. Plans and rates vary according to the type of product and the sales channel and location of one’s inventory.
3- SPONSORED PRODUCTS
Over 20 thousand marketers in Europe use Sponsored Products to drive traffic to their products.
Operation is easy and convenient:
-you choose a keyword, deciding the maximum amount per click you want to spend
-Amazon will determine the winner based on the bid and relevance of the ad.
The visualizations are free. If the ads get a click, you have to pay.
4- AMAZON FASHION & HANDMADE
If you are an artisan and want to sell your handmade products to millions of customers, you can create a custom store window.
A showcase with your story, skills, and product catalog and start selling and making yourself known.
SELLING ON EBAY: DATA AND SERVICES OFFERED
Ebay’s data
Ebay is the marketplace for gaining visibility to a company’s business.
– 169 million active buyers globally in 2016 compared to an estimated 159 million in 2015;
– 1.1 billion listings on the marketplace versus 800 million in 2015;
– 16 billion in the first 6 months of 2015 for ecommerce from mobile, up from $28 billion in transactions generated in 2014
– 4.5 million active buyers and 26 thousand professional sellers in Italy in 2014;
– 70% of Italian professional sellers sell abroad.
In the first quarter of 2017, their export volume reached $49 million.
The top 3 destinations are Germany, the United States and France.
Services offered
1- SALE.
The platform allows people to sell their products.
You can choose the formula you want:
- Online auction: involves receiving bids on one’s item for sale that will be awarded to the highest bidder within a specified time frame.
- Buy it now: allows you to purchase the product at a set price.
You can manage international sales and expand your business and increase profits.
2- LOGISTICS.
Regarding logistics, an essential component of every transaction, Ebay tries to help sellers and provides the Shipping Manager.
The Shipping Manager is a reliable service with special rates agreed upon with major shippers.
The platform, integrated with sales history, makes it easy to monitor all shipments from one central panel.
Use of the software is free and secure. Seller pays for shipments made.
Neikos Web Agency Solution
The staff of Neikos Web Agency can support you in systems integration of your ecommerce site to Amazon and Ebay.
The purpose is to ensure that the vendor does not miss the opportunity to enter the electronic marketplace.
If you are interested in learning more and want to know in detail all the features of the two marketplaces,contact Neikos.
