Author: Ina Steiner

Ina Steiner is co-founder and Editor of EcommerceBytes and has been reporting on ecommerce since 1999. She's a widely cited authority on marketplace selling and is author of "Turn eBay Data Into Dollars" (McGraw-Hill 2006). Her blog was featured in the book, "Blogging Heroes" (Wiley 2008). She is a member of the Online News Association (Sep 2005 - present) and Investigative Reporters and Editors (Mar 2006 - present). Follow her on Twitter at @ecommercebytes and send news tips to ina@ecommercebytes.com. See disclosure at EcommerceBytes.com/disclosure/.

USPS Launches Ecommerce Platform ‘Santa’s Gift Shoppe’

November 18, 2024 Ina Steiner

The USPS is launching a seasonal ecommerce platform powered by Toys”R”Us called Santa’s Gift Shoppe. The online shop is exclusively for people who wish to donate gifts for USPS Operation Santa (“letter adopters,” the Postal Service calls them). USPS Operation Read more

USPS to Raise Package Rates in January: Ground Advantage to Rise by Average of 4 Percent

November 17, 2024November 17, 2024 Ina Steiner

The cost of sending Priority Mail packages will rise by about 3.2% on average beginning January 19, 2025. The generally well liked USPS Ground Advantage service will rise an average of 3.9 percent, the Postal Service announced on Friday. As Read more

Etsy to Kick Off Seller-Sponsored, 2-Week Holiday Sale

November 14, 2024November 14, 2024 Ina Steiner

Etsy is promoting a holiday sale that kicks off next Wednesday, November 20, though it’s not subsidizing the discounts – sellers must put items on sale in order to have their listings promoted as part of the Etsy sale. The Read more

Amazon Haul to Compete with Temu, Shein – and 3P Sellers

November 13, 2024 Ina Steiner

Amazon launched a low-cost store called Amazon Haul that pundits had predicted as its response to Temu and Shein. But sellers who list products on Amazon could see some impact as well, since all of the under-$20 items are backed Read more

eBay’s Lowest-Price Sort Function Is Broken

November 12, 2024November 12, 2024 Ina Steiner

eBay is not displaying the lowest-price items when a shopper sorts their search results by “lowest price plus shipping,” and an eBay moderator confirmed on Tuesday that the problem was caused by a glitch. The eBay moderator acknowledged the issue Read more

Amazon Tells Buyers to Use Original Boxes for Returns

November 12, 2024 Ina Steiner

Amazon has a new returns feature and advised sellers who fulfill their own orders to update their product dimensions and weight for Amazon prepaid return labels. But sellers pushed back, asking what good it would do since buyers often use Read more

eBay Shipping Changes Take Effect on November 11

November 10, 2024 Ina Steiner

eBay sellers will see a few shipping changes take effect on November 11, 2024. FedEx and UPS have both updated their peak season surcharge structure for items shipped through eBay Labels. And eBay continues to roll out changes to eBay Read more

Will eBay.com Attract More Chinese Shoppers by Accepting Alipay Payments?

November 8, 2024 Ina Steiner

eBay will now accept payments from Chinese shoppers through Alipay, an affiliate of Alibaba. Beginning this month, Chinese buyers will have the option to check out with Alipay, “enjoying a seamless, convenient, and familiar payment experience,” eBay announced this week. Read more

USPS Ground Advantage Stars in Holiday Commercial

November 7, 2024 Ina Steiner

The USPS kicked off a new TV commercial for the holiday season on November 6, 2024, called “The Holiday Ride.” The 30-second commercial shows postal workers accepting packages in a Post Office, charging up new electric delivery vehicles, and delivering Read more

eBay Adds Halo Sales Attribution to Ad Reporting

November 6, 2024 Ina Steiner

eBay is changing the way it reports “halo” sales in its advertising reports as of today, November 6. There are no new fees, only changes in how eBay reports sales resulting from sellers’ ads. Until last year, eBay had only Read more