eBay charges a small fee relative to the price of the products, and the company does not maintain or manage any inventory of its own, but depends on large volume and low overhead in order to remain profitable. The auction site has also expanded its original vision of merely providing an auction forum to a site where buyers can select a "buy it now" price for many items, and where new items are sold directly to consumers as well as used items. At this point, it is possible to buy items for a few dollars that would otherwise be found at a garage sale, and also entire homes and businesses for millions of dollars. This research examines the marketing strategy of eBay and recommends several marketing approaches that the company should implement in order to realize its long-term strategic objectives.
eBay is a company that could not exist without the World Wide Web, and it greatly expanded the way in which consumers and companies think about the Web. eBay succeeded in creating a new business paradigm at a time when the "dot-com" revolution was well underway. Unlike many of the other companies that came into existence at that time, eBay survived and even thrived in the new electronic market, and did so without establishing a physical brick-and-mortar presence.
Today, eBay has evolved its business model to the point that it not only includes the traditional auction site, but also includes the ability for consumers to "buy it now" without engaging in the auction process. New products are offered on the site as well as used products, and corporate sellers are actively recruited to use eBay as a way to market their products. In this way, the company is providing an additional method of distribution that bypasses not only traditional brick-and-mortar stores, but also corporate retail portals.
eBay has had considerable success with its growth through acquisition strategy, but the company has also been forced to divest a tradition...