__

2 - eBid

A Popular Auction Site Like eBay

eBid is another online auction site like eBay that allows you to easily buy and sell anything and is definitely the best eBay alternative. eBid currently accepts sellers in over 20 countries but allows buyers from over 100 different countries. eBid offers its own PPPay payment method but does also support PayPal, Moneybookers and Google Checkout. On eBid you can list any basic auction for free, meaning you are only charged if you make a successful sale. eBid offers a number of membership levels; Buyer (free), Seller (free but requires verification) and Seller Plus (annual fee) which allows you to setup up to 5 stores and unlocks a number of other premium features to make selling easier. If you are looking for another popular auction site like eBay to grow your online business then try out eBid. eBid is also great for buyers with an average of over 5 million listed sales live at any time.
_______________________________________________________________

3. eBID.net
A Website Like eBay based in the UK

eBid, currently a Google Marketplace Partner and founded in the United Kingdom in 1998, has grown into a formidable eBay competitor. Its listing of almost 5 million products spread over 14 thousand categories as well as its growing membership (composed of both buyers and sellers) has made eBid among the most promising Ebay alternatives. Just like eBay, eBid's program includes auction-style listings and fixed-price listings of almost every item you can think of (legal, of course). For sellers, listing an item is free and eBid only charges a fee whenever an item is sold in its marketplace. Furthermore, eBid has a paid membership option that's catered for the the professional sellers. Payment methods acceptable to eBid are: PPPay (eBid's in-house payment processor), Skrill Moneybookers, Google Checkout and Paypal. If you want to give eBid a try, check out its website - eBid Official Website
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

eBid

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.(April 2009)

eBid Ltd.

Type

Private

Industry

Auctions

Founded

London, England UK (1998)

Headquarters

Surrey, England UK

Key people

Gary Sewell & Mark Wilkinson, Co-founders

Products

Online auction hosting,Electronic commerce PPPay,

Website

www.ebid.net

eBid is an online auction website founded in December 1998. eBid operates in twenty-three countries where it allows sellers, United Kingdom, United States of America,Canada, Australia, Ireland, Belgium, Austria, Italy, France, Germany, Spain, Netherlands,Denmark, H ong Kong, India, Norway, New Zealand, Portugal, Sweden, Singapore, South Africa, Brazil, Malaysia and lists to buyers in over 100 Countries. eBid uses its own online payment service PPPay[1] to allow for buyers and sellers to pay each other in Euros and Pounds Sterling, although members are not restricted to using this form of payment:Paypal, Google Checkout and Skrill (Moneybookers) are also accepted payment methods. Listing a basic auction on eBid is free and a zero or small percentage final value fee is paid on selling your item. The domain ebid.net has 8 million page impressions a month and attracts around 60,000 visitors a day (15m unique visitors yearly) alexa.com ranking.[2] Currently eBid has 3 membership levels available for new members, Buyer (free) buyer only, Seller (free but requires credit/debit card verification) occasional seller, final value fees are 3%, Seller Plus+ subscription based membership aimed at professional sellers with a recurring fee, payable every 7,30,90 or 365 days, OR a one off lifetime payment (currently 99.99 or 49.99 if taken within first 24 hours of joining). Seller Plus+ members can open up to 5 shops free. For a basic auction Seller Plus+ members pay no fee, for a gallery one they pay 2% fvf. Options like BIN only auctions & Run until Sold, are also available for free. Buddy Points Members can earn Buddy Points when they buy, sell or enlist new members. These points can then be used in Buddy Auctions to bid on items from eBid t-shirts, hats and golf umbrellas to cameras, monitors, kindles and household electrical items. Methods of Earning Buddy Points: Referring a Buddy 1.00 points Your Buddies Upgrading to SELLER 2.00 points Your Buddies Upgrading to SELLER+ 5.00 points You Making a Bid Meeting Reserve 0.50% of reserve price (max 5.00 points) You Winning by Bidding 1.00% of final bid (max 5.00 points) You Purchasing Using BuyNow 1.00% of BuyNow price (max 5.00 points) You Gaining Positive Feedback 0.50% of final bid OR BuyNow price (max 5.00 points)
Contents

[hide]

1 Auctions

o o o o o o o o

1.1 Auto-extend Auctions 1.2 Featured Auction 1.3 Gallery Auction 1.4 Free Auctions 1.5 Platinum Auctions 1.6 Gallery Auction 1.7 Run Until Sold 1.8 On first bid

2 References 3 External links

Auctions[edit]
Auto-extend Auctions[edit]
If the seller has this turned on it will extend the length of the auction by 60 seconds if there is a bid within the final 60 seconds of the auction. This option is only available to Seller Plus+ users.

Featured Auction[edit]
If the seller selects this method then the item will be at the top of the relevant section for 30 days. Featured listings cost from zero to 1.00 in your local currency, however the final value fee is zero

Gallery Auction[edit]
Gallery auctions are only for seller + status. The listing of Gallery auctions is free, they get a thumbnail and up to 5 free pictures. When a Gallery auction is successful then a 2% final value fee is incurred. Gallery auction is the most popular auction type. Gallery auctions can have a run time of 3+ days

Free Auctions[edit]
The listing of free auctions is totally free, but Basic Sellers do not get a picture thumbnail on the results page, but you still get up to 5 free pictures. If a free auction sells then it incurs a 3% final Value Fee. Free auctions can have a run time of 3+ days

Platinum Auctions[edit]
Platinum auctions are only for seller status. There is a listing fee of 0.05 or 0.05 in local currency normally. The platinum auction gets you a thumbnail picture and if it sells you pay a final value fee of 3%. Again platinum auctions can have a run time of 3+ days. These listings can be set to Auto Repost up to 10 times.

Gallery Auction[edit]
Gallery auctions are only for seller+ status. There is no listing fee for standard auctions, but unlike the free auction above, a gallery picture is shown in the results. If a standard auction is successful then a final value fee of 2% is charged. Run time of standard auctions is 3+ days. As with the Platinum Listing, these listings can be set to Auto Repost up to 10 times.

Run Until Sold[edit]

A "Run Until Sold" auction is one where the item is listed until it is sold. This type of auction appears near to the bottom of the search results. This type of auction does not have a countdown time. These listings show at the bottom of Search Results, so careful thought should be take when using this type of listing.

On first bid[edit]
On first bid auctions only start after the first bid has been placed, with a minimum duration of 3 days.

_________________________________________________________________

10. uBID.com
Formed in 1997, uBid, based in Itasca, Illinois, USA, is a popular eCommerce site that offers a diverse array of over 5 million products (brand new, used or refurbished) in dozens of categories that cover consumer electronics, computers, home and garden, jewelry, watches, televisions and everything else that can be sold legally. Just like eBay, these goods are sold directly by uBid and its pool of certified third-party merchants through auction listings or fixed-price listings. With over six million active members, uBid has become one of the popular online marketplaces where millions of merchants and buyers converge. uBid Official Site - Start Bidding or Selling Now

About uBid.com uBid.com, a majority-owned operating company of CMGI, Inc., is a leading online auction and e-commerce site offering brand-name products to both consumers and small- to mid-sized businesses through live-action bidding using sophisticated auction technology. The companys Internet auctions feature a rotating selection of brand name computer, consumer electronics, housewares, sporting goods and memorabilia, jewelry, apparel, appliances, art, travel and events, home improvement products and off-lease computer equipment. uBid.com is committed to providing all customers with the highest-quality auction experience on the Internet and offers supplier warranties on most consumer products. uBid.com also meets Better Business Bureau Online standards, which give customers the confidence and security to bid safely online. For more information, visit the companys Web site at www.ubid.com.
This release contains forward-looking statements which address a variety of subjects including, for example, the expected benefits of the agreement between uBid and TechSmart.com and the expected ability of uBid to offer and sell TechSmart products. The following important factors and uncertainties, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements: uBids success depends on the continued and increased acceptance of its website and the Internet as a medium; consumer preferences for the products offered by uBid may change rapidly; and increased competition and technological changes in the markets in which uBid competes. For a detailed discussion of these and other cautionary statements, please refer to CMGI's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including CMGI's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year. uBid and ubid.com are trademarks of uBid, Inc. All other products and services mentioned may be trademarks or service marks of their respective owners.

uBid.com E-Commerce
Name: Lecturer: Course: Date: uBid.com E-Commerce Introduction uBid.com is an online marketing business that is owned by uBid holdings.uBid.com was founded in 1997 as a marketplace that provides goods from manufacturers to the consumers through the internet at prices lower than the market price and wholesale prices at fixed and auction options. The company has an estimate of 1 million square foot distribution center for handling customers well, and still has a customer care center to respond to customer needs and queries. The site sells to consumers new, refurbished and overstocks merchandise such as computers and electronics, cell phones, house appliances and many more. Online marketplaces have become instrumental sites for consumers who are constrained by time and have little time for shopping. More still, the site offers business-to- business sales for many businesses. The company collaborates with other firms for growth and 2000 CMGI agreed to buy it out (Bloomberg News, 2000). The growth of internet is further driving the growth of such sites where there are more such as Amazon and eBay. This has led to competition that keeps businesses reviewing their strategies to remain competitively active in the market. Since the use of such sites is growing, it is up to the e-commerce sites to improve their strategies and output to serve more customers and venture into new markets other than their current boundaries.

Chicago, IL -

June 9, 2005

Online auction provider, uBid, Inc. announced the introduction of a new auction format called Mega Auctions. Themed auctions featuring an assortment of well recognized popular branded items, Mega Auctions contain more units per item over a longer period of time than typical uBid auctions. As a result, consumers have more time to get involved in the bidding process and more products to bid on. This week, uBid is launching its first "Sizzling Summer" themed Mega Auction featuring brand name items from Lexmark, Sony, Remington, HP, Onkyo and more. The number of units per item in this Mega Auction ranges from 9 to over 400 giving consumers substantial opportunity to win. "Mega Auctions provide our customers with more chances to win and save," said Tim Takesue, uBid, Inc. EVP of Merchandising & Business Development. "These Mega Auctions contain a lot more items than you'll find in other companies' auctions. And they're filled with popular products like LCD projection TV's, digital cameras, printers, apparel, tools, toys and stereo receivers," he said. The launch of Mega Auctions reflects uBid's commitment to innovative new auction products and features that provide value for its customers and are consistent with its position as "The Marketplace You Can Trust."TM uBid, Inc., part of the Petters Group Worldwide family of companies, has recently stepped up its new product development efforts starting with the launch of new uBid Travel. Several new auction categories, enhancements and upgrades are also planned for introduction throughout the remainder of the year.

About uBid, Inc. uBid is a leading brand name auction marketplace that offers consumers and businesses manufacturers merchandise at below wholesale prices. Founded in 1997, uBid has swiftly emerged as a major force in the e-commerce world. Formerly owned by CMGi, today, uBid is a member of Petters Group Worldwide, uBid specializes in providing customers with savings on items from leading brands. In addition to uBid's own product listings, uBid features uBid Certified Merchant listings in which consumers will find items listed by uBid approved businesses. With more than 5 million registered users, uBid is committed to providing its valued customers with the highest quality experience on the Internet and offers manufacturer warranties on products. For more information, visit the company's web site atwww.ubid.com.
"Editors Note: This product has been removed from viewing as part of this site because it does not accept auction listings u nless you are a professional retailer. You can still read our original review below, but TopTenREVIEWS is no longer updating this products information."

uBid is significantly different from the other online auction sites reviewed. uBid.com is unique in that it doesnt rely on members to post products and items. Most items available are excess inventory items sold new through uBids warehouse or affiliate manufacturers, distributors or resellers. Therefore, all products are shipped from legitimate businesses. This approach has its benefits and downfalls. On the one hand, buyers are further assured that the item they are bidding on is legitimate. However, because the auction sellers are professionals, getting an extra good deal is unlikely. Also, you are less likely to find unique antiques being sold through uBid.

Features:

Categories
Computers & Office

Desktops Laptops PDAs & Handheld PCs Monitors Drives Servers Printers Scanners Computer Components Networking Accessories Software

Jewelry & Gifts

Mens Watches Womens Watches Bracelets & Anklets Charms Costume Jewelry Earings Beads & Gemstones Necklaces Pendants & Lockets Rings Men Other Jewlery Gifts & Occasions Cigars

Sports, Toys & Hobbies

Sporting Goods Memorabilia Toys Games Trains

Models Radio Control Stuffed Animals Binoculars & Telescopes

Consumer Electronics

Apparel

Digital Cameras Video Home Audio Portable Electronics Car & Mobile Audio Televisions Phones & Pagers Cameras & Optics Speakers Other Electronics

Womens Clothing Womens Shoes Womens Accessories Mens Clothing Mens Shoes Mens Accessories Girls Boys Infants

Everything Else

Real Estate Constuction Electronic Components Farm Healthcare Industrial Supply & MRO Laboratory Equipment Metalworking Printing & Graphic Arts Restaurant Retail Test Equipment Education & Learning Everything Else

Music, Movies & Games

Movies Music Musical Instruments Video Games

Books

Home & Garden

Tools Kitchen & Dining Kitchen Appliances Bedding Bath Home Decor Art Furniture Lighting Windows & Floors Storage & Organization Household Appliances Housekeeping Garden, Lawn & Patio Food & Wine Luggage Baby Gear Pet Supplies Gifts & Celebrations Crafts

Collectibles

Coins & Stamps Collectibles Antiques Art Books, Movies & Music Dolls & Doll Houses Militaria Pens & Writing Instruments Pottery & Glass Sports

1.

ToysuBid

Holdings

Since 1997, uBid.com has been a top auction and fixed price marketplace offering new, overstock, closeout and recertified products covering more than 25 categories. Our 6 million members love us because they know theyll find bargains on everything from Toys to Televisions - great merchandise that comes only from approved manufacturers and other certified sellers.One area uBid.com excels in is being able to offer BIG DEALS on some of the coolest technology and electronics around. You'll find products from Apple, HP, Lenovo, Dell, Sony, Samsung, Microsoft, NEC, Epson, Phillips, Kodak, Panasonic, Canon, LG and more.Weve got great partnerships with top manufacturers and certified resellers and our dream team of merchandising whizzes uncovering the best bargains for our customers!uBid.com also powers a sister site called RedTag.com, where we feature a Daily Deal, Flash Sales and other fixed price promotions.Like us on Facebook and Follow us on Twitter

and Pinterest at uBidDeals! SpecialtiesOnline Retail Marketplace, Auction Style Listings, Fixed Price Merchandise

uBidby Steve Encell and Si Dunn

The online auction site uBid.com turned eight years old in 2005. It bills itself as the largest online business (only) to consumer marketplace. The site specializes in closeout, refurbished, and end-of-life products, as well as new products. Thanks in part to some defections from eBay, uBid now has more than 3,000 business partners auctioning a wide array of merchandise that ranges from tile saws and jewelry to pet supplies and refurbished computers. On uBid, most bidding starts at a dollar, and often, no reserve prices have to be met before the item can be won. It also posts shipping charges up front.

The New uBid Late in 2002, when fraud was running rampant in the online auction industry, uBid discontinued the ability for everyday consumers to sell on uBid due to counterfeit, stolen and generally untrusted offerings. The uBid site announced: Even though we agree with the basic premise that all humans are fundamentally good, a few can ruin it for everyone. Now uBid lets only Certified Merchants post merchandise for auction. To become a Certified Merchant, a manufacturer, distributor, or reseller must apply to uBid and prove that they have been in business for at least a year. There is also a $99 application fee, and the approval process includes a Dun & Bradstreet report, credit checks, and verification of trade references. Merchandise specialists procure most of uBid's auction items, and the company is an authorized dealer of many of the products it posts for auction. It offers manufacturer's warranties, optional extended protection plans, and a return policy on certain brand-name merchandise. Site personnel occasionally make random purchases from uBid auctions to help monitor service quality. The company does not ship to addresses outside the United States, and it accepts only two types of payment: credit cards and debit cards. Interestingly, uBid operates a million-square-foot warehouse and a call center with more than 200 operators. The call-center operators support customer needs for all sales, whether shipped from one of our approved suppliers or directly from our warehouse in Naperville, Illinois, according to uBid. All payments are handled in -house, to minimize the chances of fraud and identity theft. Your payment information never goes outside of uBid, the auction site promises. Getting Started To learn more about buying and selling on uBid, click on the Help link on the site's main page. This will open the Welcome to uBid Help page.

Going, Going, Gone The Going, Going, Gone feature guards against a practice known as bid sniping. Some buyers love to bid snipe, while others absolutely hate the practice and consider it unfair. What is bid sniping? Bid sniper software lets buyers watch an auction until its final seconds. Then the software places their bid at the last moment, when no time is left to top it. The Going, Going, Gone feature automatically extends an auction's closing time if there are bids received within the final ten minutes. The auction continues until no more bids are received in a ten-minute period. Bid sniping aficionados hate uBid, of course, but potential winning bidders often aren't happy with Going, Gone, Gone, either. They have to watch the end of the auction closely and decide whether to bid higher or bail out if the listing is pushed into overtime. There are no limits on how many times the ten-minute ending period can be restarted by new bids.

- uBid
A Site Like eBay With A Mixture Of Auction and Fixed Price Shopping

uBid has many similarities to eBay making it a great eBay alternative. uBid doesn't allow individual sellers but does allow approved business sellers. These listings from businesses are combined with uBid's own products which you can bid on or purchase for a buy it now price (just like eBay). Because uBid approves all sellers you can be sure that all sellers are legitimate businesses, making uBid one of the safest sites like eBay. uBid specialises in excess stock along with refurbished consumer electronics including home appliances, phones, laptops and computers. If you are looking to get some low price consumer electronics in a safe and reliable environment then consider browsing the collection of products available on the uBid website. uBid - Official Website

uBid Commercial by uBidCommercial | video info

WeBidz
An Easy To Use Website Like eBay With No Selling Fees

WeBidz is another site like eBay that focuses on reducing fees allowing you to keep more profits from your online auction. WeBidz has no listing fees or sales fees unlike eBay making it a great alternative for start up a business. The only WeBidz fee is to become a verified seller ($5) which is generally recommended if you plan on selling on the site. WeBidz also offers free store fronts allowing you to easily create a WeBidz branded store to promote and sell your products. One of the biggest strengths of WeBidz is in its massive amount of search options allowing buyers to easily find what they are looking for based on price, location, keyword, brand or particular seller. WeBidz also offers unique wanted advertisements that you can create if you can't find a particular item. WeBidz packs all the features that you would come to expect from an eBay alternative and thanks to the low fees and strong website traffic starting your own online commerce business couldn't be easier. WeBidz - Official Website

Webidz.com
Webidz was introduced in 2005, and despite a slow start, it now has a large amount of regular sellers and buyers along with thousands of active auctions and listings. They offer zero fees on all auctions with a choice of featured upgrades from just a few dollars. A $5 registration fee is required for all new sellers, which could be seen as a downfall, however, this keeps scammers and fakes away from the website as the fee is used to verify seller accounts.

Summary:
Webidz offers a safe and user-friendly auction site for doing business. With plenty of features and selling tools, this site has everything you need to sell your wares. However, with a small customer base, you will not have access to as many buyers as you get with other sites. At the WeBidz online auction site, you will find an affordable platform for selling and buying anything online, from electronics to antiques. Basic listing fees are free on this auction website, including upfront listing and final sales fees. To set up your seller account, you will have a one-time seller verification charge of $9.95 so that the site can verify your identity. This safety feature keeps unethical sellers from setting up accounts under false names and helps ensure a safe marketplace for buyers. With no listing or final auction selling fees, you can use marketing tools like listing enhancements without breaking the bank, and you can list your items in more than one product category. Costs for enhancements vary from $0.05 to $0.15 per product and the picture gallery allows you to upload four product photos at no cost. To upload merchandise on the website, you just follow the instructions as you go. There are boxes designated for product information including item descriptions and prices. You can even decide what types of payments you are going to accept and create your own refund policy. Buy-it-now options are available if you would rather sell your items at a fixed-price rather than auction-style listings. Be aware that the WeBidz community does not have as large of a membership base as other online auction sites, which means you may have fewer customers than you would on comparable sites.

WeBidz uses a feedback system that allows buyers to rate their experience with specific sellers. It is listed under a category titled reputation and this is where buyers can view a seller's customer service score. This rating system encourages sellers to provide high-quality products and customer service. WeBidz has moderators on staff to help settle disputes between buyers and sellers. That means you have support when a buyer files a claim against you. An email address is located on the company website and WeBidz provides a FAQs page and community forum for additional assistance. There are no telephone numbers or live chat services, so you will not be able to have real-time conversations with representatives. As a result, we found it difficult and time consuming to find answers to our questions. Our company has been a supplier/wholesaler to many online sellers for many years. We have heard many stories of grief regarding profit margins when selling in online auctions. We have lost many customers/resellers because they were actually losing money after paying all their fees to eBay and PayPal. After years of seeing dreams washed down the drain, we decided to build an alternative website where basic listing is free and the final value fees are affordable. Therefore, if a user's item does not sell, they pay no fees.

WeBidz Auctions

Description: WeBidz Auctions is an eBay Alternative Auction Site. Buy or sell with our online auction community today. Bid low to get your next great deal. Free auction listing is a great alternative to eBay. WeBidz is an online bargain shopping mall with thousands of online auctions at bargain prices. Keywords: auctions, auction, online auction, online auctions, online bargain shopping, shopping, computer, bid, buy, sell, bidding, sale, classified ad, classifieds, want ads, trading cards, memorabilia, sporting goods, music, dolls, comics, antiques, jewelry, ebay alternative, ebay, bargain prices, bids Tags: webidz, auctions, buy, sell, online, auction, items, silver, view, black, bid, usd,new, feedba ck, start, ebay, site, bargain, iphone, time, folding, apple, travel,alternative, watch, leather, tri m, shopping, white, alarm, april, users, great, seller,brand, left, brushed, art, ipad, apple,

Webidz.com
Content Revalency: Title: 100.00% Description: 41.18% Keywords: 50.00% | Document size: 95,401 bytes

Alexa rank: #167,044 Quantcast rank: #34,445 More info: Whois - Trace Route - RBL Check

WEBIDZ.COM - Site Location

Country/Flag City/Region/Zip Code Organization United States Lenexa, KS 66215 Codero

Internet Service Provider

Codero

WEBIDZ.COM - Domain Information

Domain Registrar Registrar URL Whois server Created Updated Expires Time Left Status DNS servers WEBIDZ.COM [ Traceroute RBL/DNSBL lookup ] ENOM, INC. http://www.enom.com whois.enom.com 19-Oct-2004 18-Oct-2013 19-Oct-2014 280 days 15 hours 19 minutes clientTransferProhibited NS1.WEBIDZ.COM 198.50.199.28 NS2.WEBIDZ.COM 198.50.199.28

WEBIDZ.COM - DNS Information

IP Address Domain Name Servers 69.64.83.114 ~ Whois - Trace Route - RBL Check ns1.codero.com 64.150.179.21 ns2.codero.com 216.55.130.43 mail.webidz.com 198.50.199.28

Mail Exchange

Site Response Header

Response Server Date Content-Type Cookie HTTP/1.1 200 OK Apache/2.2.3 (CentOS) Mon, 18 Apr 2011 04:44:29 GMT text/html PHPSESSID=0543kpnonpsp69r8hp6uv65573; path=/

Etsy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Etsy

Web address

Etsy.com

Commercial?

yes

Type of site

E-commerce

Registration

Required to buy or sell

Created by

Robert Kalin, Chris Maguire, Haim Schoppik, Jared Tarbell

Launched

June 18, 2005 in Brooklyn, New York City, USA

Revenue

US$500 million (2011)[1]

Alexa rank

135 (January 2014)[2]

Etsy
Sell Your Handmade Products On This Site Like eBay

Etsy is one of the newest sites like eBay that focuses on selling handmade products. Items sold on Etsy are predominantly focused on art, clothing, jewelry, accessories, craft supplies and toys. Etsy allows you to easily create your own store front (which you can customise) and also allows users to easily list their products for a small flat fee. One strength of Etsy is that Etsy listings perform well in search results, helping drive more traffic to individual products or stores. If you are looking to buy/sell handmade or vintage products then Etsy should definitely be on the top of your sites like eBay to try.
Etsy is an e-commerce website focused on handmade or vintage items, supplies, as well as unique factorymanufactured items under Etsy's new guidelines, released in October 2013. These items cover a wide range, including art, photography, clothing, jewelry, food, bath and beauty products, quilts, knick-knacks, and toys. Many sellers also sell craft supplies such as beads, wire and jewelry-making tools. All vintage items must be at least 20 years old.[3] The site follows in the tradition of open craft fairs, giving sellers personal storefronts where they list their goods for a fee of US$0.20 per item.[4] As of August 2013, 30 million users are registered on the

website and by the end of 2013, projections of one million sellers and over US$1 billion in total annual transactions have been announced.[1]
Contents
[hide]

1 History 2 Main Features

o o

2.1 Selling 2.2 Buying

3 Operations 4 Ethos 5 Competitors 6 Controversy

o o o o

6.1 Privacy 6.2 Ecologica Malibu 6.3 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) 6.4 Cause crafting

7 References 8 External links

History[edit]

Etsy staff at work, July 2010

Art in the Etsy office in Brooklyn.

The site was launched on June 18, 2005, by iospace, a small company composed of Robert Kalin, Chris Maguire and Haim Schoppik. The initial version had taken two and a half months to build.[5] Later Jared Tarbell joined the team. Former NPR executive Maria Thomas joined as COO in 2008, was promoted to CEO and left Etsy in December 2009. Robert Kalin resumed his role as CEO from December 2009 until July 2011.[6] Investors include Sean Meenan, Spencer and Judson Ain, Union Square Ventures, and founders ofFlickr and Delicious.[7] Kalin said that he named the site Etsy because he "wanted a nonsense word because I wanted to build the brand from scratch. I was watching Fellini's 8 and writing down what I was hearing. In Italian, you say 'etsi' a lot. It means 'oh, yes.' And in Latin, it means 'and if.'"[8] In Etsy's first year, it attracted attention for frequently adding new tools and functionality to the site to help sellers gain exposure and traffic, including Adobe Flash-based visualizations and a taxonomy of categories with tags.[9] Etsy passed $1.7 million in sales in May 2007. [10] On July 29, Etsy had its one-millionth sale and anticipated its two-millionth sale would occur mid-December 2007. In November 2007, buyers spent $4.3 million purchasing 300,000 items for sale on Etsy, an increase of 43 percent from October 2007. [4] In June 2007, it expected to be profitable by the fall,[11] but in December 2007 it was not a profitable company.[12] In January 2008, Etsy received an additional $27 million in funding from Union Square Ventures, Hubert Burda Media, and Jim Breyer.[13] In February 2008, trouble at eBay, including a strike by some dissatisfied sellers, brought speculation that Etsy could be an increasing competitor.[14] At the same time, however, some Etsy sellers expressed unhappiness with how Etsy was handling complaints about stores.[15] At the time, a comparison of the two websites included complaints that on Etsy, items are difficult to find, the interface "feels slow", and the buying and selling process is United States-centric.[16] Other reviewers enjoyed using Etsy's specialized search options,[17][18] including the "Shop Local" tool.[19] In July 2008, Rob Kalin ceded the position of CEO to Maria Thomas.[20] Some longtime Etsy employees left the company in August 2008, including founders Haim Schoppik and Chris Maguire.[21] In September 2008, Etsy

hired Chad Dickerson, who formerly worked at Yahoo!, as Chief Technology Officer.[22] The company acknowledged concerns about vendors selling other people's work as their own.[23] In April 2009, users organized an "etsyday" promotion on Twitter that brought extra attention to the site.[24] As of May 2009, it had approximately 60 employees and sales of $10 to 13 million per month, [25] possibly boosted by consumer interest in cheaper and more personalized goods due to the United States recession.[26] In March 2010, Kalin said that the company is profitable and "plans to go public, though not until at least next year."[27] In December 2010, Etsy said it had seven million registered users and predicted $400 million in transactions for the year, and that it would continue to focus on a personal community feel as it grows larger, as that is part of what distinguishes it from eBay.[28] In 2010, Etsy saw revenues increase from $180 million to $314 million, which fell short of the $400 million prediction.[29] In March 2011, Etsy "introduced a Facebook-style social networking system called People Search...to help buyers and sellers connect with each other and become friends". By doing so, Etsy made any past purchase with feedback easily searchable, which caused many complaints. Etsy then made changes to the site to better guard information regarding users' purchases.[30] In July 2011, Chad Dickerson, CTO since September 2008, became CEO, upon the firing of Rob Kalin. In April 2012, a newspaper article about Etsy covered its fraud detection efforts;[31] Etsy had been criticized in the past for inconsistently applying its rules about items having to be handmade.[32] Later in April 2012, the writer of Regretsy, a popular blog, did independent research into a specific featured vendor, Ecologica Malibu, and found evidence to accuse the vendor of being a reseller, which would be against the Etsy Terms of Service.[33] The vendor asserted that it was in line with the Terms of Service, stating that the shop had simply failed to identify itself as a "collective" that included the work of several individuals, and many Etsy community members posted on the Etsy forum expressing unhappiness with the action (or lack of action) taken by Etsy.[34] As of June 2012, the vendor's account is no longer active on Etsy.[35] In May 2012, Etsy raised $40 million in Series F funding, and announced the company had become B Corporation certified.[36] This funding is partly going toward expanding Etsy in international markets, including France, Germany, and Australia.[37] On October 1, 2013, Dickerson held an online Town Hall Meeting to announce that Etsy would now permit factory-made goods and drop shipping, provided the seller either designed or hired designers of the items, disclosed to Etsy their factory, disclosed that they used factories and took "ownership" of the process. In that meeting and afterward, Etsy claimed the meaning of the word "handmade" should be redefined to encompass factory made.[38]

Main Features[edit]

Selling[edit]
A variety of products are sold on Etsy, including arts supplies, handmade products and vintage pieces. Vintage pieces can only be listed if they are a minimum of 20 years old. In order to sell products on Etsy, users must create a username and have the option to create a shop name. The username cannot be changed once created. Creating a shop on Etsy is free, however each listing that is posted in the shop costs $0.20. Each listing will remain on the shop's page for 4 months, or until someone buys the product. The sale prices of products are determined by the shop owner, but Etsy claims 3.5% of the sale price of each listing. Shop owners are sent a bill at the end of every month containing the fees they owe, and they have until the 15th day of the following month to pay the Etsy bill.[39]

Buying[edit]
Searching for products to buy on Etsy is generally intuitive and simple. On the homepage, potential buyers can type a product description into the search bar,[40] or they can "Browse" through a list of options on the left side of the homepage, which include Art, Home & Living, Jewelry, Women, Men, Kids, Vintage, Weddings, Craft Supplies, Trending Items, Gift Ideas, Mobile Accessories, and more.[41] Alternatively, buyers may choose from a list of categories by clicking on the "Categories" link under "More Ways to Shop". This will bring the user to a page of over 30 categories, each containing sub-categories.[42] When a buyer views a product, he/she can view the positive percentage feedback of each seller to determine the reliability of the shop. Once a buyer finds a product he/she would like to buy, he/she clicks "Add to Cart", and that product is added to his/her virtual "Shopping Cart". The buyer may then continue shopping or purchase the selected item. In order to purchase items, buyers must have an account with Etsy. The account is free and can be integrated with Facebook. The total product and shipping costs are shown to the user prior to entering payment information so the user knows exactly how much is being paid. Sellers choose which payment options to offer buyers; options include credit/debit cards and PayPal, among others. [43]

Operations[edit]

Etsy Labs community workspace area.

Etsy is popular as a side-business[44] as well as a place to buy goods made from recycledand upcycled materials,[45] along with less expensive or more unusual versions of mass-produced items.[46] The unique nature of many of the items for sale is part of their appeal to some shoppers.[47][48] Product photos on Etsy tend to be editorial or artistic instead of commercial catalog style.[49] Sellers can add tags to their products to help buyers find them,[50] and buyers can choose to search for items available locally.[51] Etsy staffers publish lists of featured items.[52] Etsy makes money by charging a listing fee of 20 cents for each item and getting 3.5% of every sale, [53] with the average sale about $15 or $20. Most sellers are women[11] who tend to be college-educated and in their twenties and thirties.[25] Individual Etsy sellers decide which payment options to offer buyers; these options may include credit card, check,money order, PayPal, bank transfer, and Etsy gift card.[54][55] Etsy sellers range from hobbyists to professional artists who use the site to make a living.[56] According to artists who have developed their Etsy stores into their primary jobs, scaling up production of handmade items can require more than full-time work,[57] especially during the holiday shopping season.[58] Etsy's main office is located in DUMBO, Brooklyn, and it has hosted open crafting classes in the "Etsy Labs".[59] The site's technology, customer support, marketing/PR, business, and communications teams operate out of this office. Etsy Labs has a workspace that provides equipment and donated materials where members gather to make items, take and teach workshops, and attend special events.[4] Etsy also has an office in Berlin.[60] In April 2012, Etsy announced that it was taking steps to hire more women engineers to improve the gender balance of its team, as a website with majority women users but few women engineers. [61] Etsy was one of the main members of the Handmade Consortium, a 2007 effort to encourage buying handmade holiday gifts.[12] Etsy has partnered with the retail chain West Elm to sell some Etsy products in its stores.[62][63] In December 2012, Etsy opened a temporary holiday storefront in SoHo, New York City.[58]

Ethos[edit]
In an August 2013 interview, CEO Dickerson emphasized the importance of human interaction and meaning from creativity in regard to his perspective on Etsy. Dickerson described the website as "a platform that provides meaning to people, and an opportunity to validate their art, their craft", and after spending time with Etsy users, Dickerson learned that "all commerce is about real human interaction". Dickerson also provided a summation of Etsy that is a further reflection of the company's relationship- and meaning-based ethos: "At the end of every transaction, you get something real from a real person. There is an existential satisfaction to that."[1]

Competitors[edit]

Etsy has been compared to "a crafty cross between Amazon and eBay",[10] and to "your grandma's basement".[64] Etsy also has a number of direct competitors. DaWanda, based in Germany, focuses on growing in European countries.[65] ezebee.com, based in Switzerland, is a global competitor, but also caters to freelancers and professionals [66] Bonanza (formerly Bonanzle and 1000 Markets[67]) is based in the United States and focuses on clothing and fashion, Zibbet and MadeIt which are based in Australia, iCraft is based in Canada,[68] and Artfire is based in the United States.[69] Tindie is based in Portland, Oregon, and focuses on technology and electronics.[70] Asked about competitors, Etsy's European CEO said, "As far as I am concerned, the more people highlighting the value of supporting micro-producers and buying handmade and vintage directly from them, the better."[71]

Controversy[edit]
Privacy[edit]
In an effort to add social networking features to Etsy, the company implemented features in 2011 that allowed users to search other users' buying histories and to trace their purchasing transactions. Etsy thought that this feature would allow Etsy users to connect to individuals with similar buying and/or selling histories and an automatic opt-in was applied to all users without the attainment of prior permission. Users of the service raised concerns over the feature's violation of privacy rights, but an official response was not released by the company.[72]

Ecologica Malibu[edit]
In April 2012, Etsy users began demanding the removal of Ecologica Malibu from the website due to the shop's use of a wholesale manufacturer. Users complained that Ecologica Malibu's practice was contradictory to the anti-big business values of Etsy.[73] CEO Chad Dickerson responded in an Etsy blog post: Much of the information we learn from investigations cant be shared with the larger community out of respect for the privacy of the seller being investigated, so there is a natural divergence between what the community sees when they report a seller and what we see as we go deeper on the case. [T]here are times when available public evidence suggests that a violation of our policy is clear, and our investigations find that its actually not the case.[74] Many users are still not contented by Dickerson's response.[75]

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)[edit]

In May 2012, the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP contacted Etsy in regard to the sale of racist memorabilia. Etsy's site policy states that sellers cannot post "Items or listings that promote, support or glorify hatred toward or otherwise demean people based upon: race, ethnicity, religion, gender, gender identity, disability, or sexual orientation; including items or content that promote organizations with such

views";[76] however, Etsy allows users to sell Gollywog Dolls and posters portraying African-Americans in a negative light.[77] When Etsy was contacted by The Grio, an NBC-operated African-American news site, Etsy's Adam Brown replied: We encourage our members to report or flag items or sellers they feel are not compliant with Etsys marketplace policies, which they can do via a link on every listing or shop page...We cant comment on private communications or on specific cases".[78] A petition was on the Change.orgwebsite by Raquel Mack that asked potential supporters: "Please help us tell Etsy to follow their own policies and stop profiting off of PROHIBITED ITEMS". The petition was sent by email to Dickerson and Brown on February 28, 2013, but, as of November 2013, an official response has not been received.[79]

Cause crafting[edit]
Etsy sellers promote items related to particular causes. In October 2012, an Etsy seller raised concerns over other sellers who use causes as a way to promote their products without actually supporting or making a donation to whichever cause they are using.[80]Etsy's "Do's and Dont's" page contains a section that explains the rules regarding the matter, but they are not strictly followed.[citation needed] During Breast Cancer Awareness Month, pink-colored items were advertised as part of Etsy's "Tickled Pink" campaign. Many sellers donated the full price of items to the cause, but others did not donate any portion of the proceeds from their sales, including items that displayed Breast Cancer Awareness logos or themes. A person living with breast cancer published a blog post in October 2012 in which she complained about Etsy's conduct.[81]