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/.

Bonanza to Collect Sales Tax in Four States, Sellers Take Note

June 5, 2019June 5, 2019 Ina Steiner

Due to a change online marketplace Bonanza is making dealing with sales tax, sellers must take action this month or face suspension or additional fees. Bonanza will begin collecting and remitting sales tax when transactions involve buyers residing in four Read more

eBay Says Sellers Can Offer Free Shipping without a Big Risk

June 4, 2019June 4, 2019 Ina Steiner

eBay issued an announcement urging sellers to offer free shipping, telling them it’s “almost a must-have,” and telling them they can implement it “without taking a big risk.” While the model works for many sellers, many others say its impractical Read more

Etsy CEO Prioritizes Buyer Return Frequency

June 4, 2019June 4, 2019 Ina Steiner

Etsy held its annual shareholder meeting this morning, and it held no surprises. Etsy CEO Josh Silverman gave a brief presentation, and there were no questions from shareholders. (Unlike eBay, Etsy included the Q&A session in its webcast, while Amazon Read more

Amazon Prime Expands Free One-Day Shipping

June 3, 2019June 3, 2019 Ina Steiner

Amazon is expanding the availability of free 1-day shipping through its Prime membership program. On Monday, it announced that “Free One Day” is available to Prime members in the continental US on over 10 million products. That means Prime Free Read more

Top Retailers Get a Boost with UPS ShopRunner Deal

June 3, 2019June 3, 2019 Ina Steiner

It’s hard to compete with Amazon Prime’s free-shipping program, but retailers who participate in the rival ShopRunner program got a boost today from UPS. The shipping carrier is offering members of the UPS My Choice program a free 1-year subscription Read more

PayPal Launches Commerce Platform: It’s Not What You Think

June 3, 2019June 3, 2019 Ina Steiner

PayPal launched a commerce platform today, but it isn’t competing with eBay (or other marketplaces). Rather, it’s a solution for marketplaces, ecommerce solution providers, and crowdfunding platforms, including Facebook Marketplace and BigCommerce. What’s new is how PayPal is bringing its Read more

Amazon Helps UK Sellers with Pop-Up Retail Shops and Training

June 3, 2019July 13, 2021 Ina Steiner

Helping small businesses can help large corporations score points politically. eBay launched a “Retail Revival” program last year, and on Monday, Amazon announced a new program to help small businesses in the UK. Each of the programs from the two Read more

Amazon Buys Its Way into Selling More Advertising

June 1, 2019June 7, 2019 Ina Steiner

Amazon announced today it is acquiring advertising solutions from Sizmek, which shares many customers with Amazon Advertising. CNBC said the deal comes as Amazon is a growing contender to take on the digital ad duopoly of Google and Facebook. Geekwire Read more

eBay Warns Sellers of $350 FedEx HazMat Penalty

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 Ina Steiner

eBay warned sellers that FedEx will begin charging a $350 fee for each incident of a package shipped through FedEx that contains Dangerous Goods or Hazardous Materials that is determined to be noncompliant by FedEx. eBay linked to a page Read more

eBay Is Off to a Great Start in 2019 CEO Tells Shareholders

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 Ina Steiner

The current year is off to a great start, eBay CEO Devin Wenig told shareholders several times during a presentation at the company’s annual meeting this morning. He kept the focus away from eBay’s GMV growth rate and emphasized instead Read more