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/.

Online Sellers Protest Changes to USPS Mobile App

November 30, 2015August 2, 2017 Ina Steiner

The US Postal Service updated its iPhone app on November 20th, and users are complaining about problems with the new version. One of the biggest complaints – users say the process of scheduling a pickup is now so laborious that Read more

Black Friday Bump in Sales Is Real

November 30, 2015August 2, 2017 Ina Steiner

Some people might be skeptical about the hype around Black Friday given the fact it feels more like a week or more of sales rather than one day. ComScore data shows that shoppers continue to like shopping on the day after Thanksgiving – and Read more

Brief Outage Strikes PayPal Ahead of Cyber Monday

November 30, 2015August 2, 2017 Ina Steiner

Online shoppers were unable to pay for items on eBay and other ecommerce sites early Sunday morning due to an outage at PayPal. Attempts to pay or login to the PayPal website resulted in error messages, with many users reporting Read more

Message for Sellers Using Zen Cart Shopping Cart

November 27, 2015August 2, 2017 Ina Steiner

Merchants who use the popular shopping cart Zen Cart received some serious news this week. A security firm issued an alert on Wednesday warning of a serious vulnerability that could be exploited by hackers. On Thanksgiving Day, Zen Cart issued Read more

USPS Warns Online Shoppers to Beware of the Grinch

November 27, 2015August 2, 2017 Ina Steiner

Front porch shopping, as mail theft is called in these days of online shopping, is such a problem that the US Postal Service issued an advisory called “Holiday Shipping Security Tips,” asking people to report suspicious activity to local police Read more

How PayPal Chargebacks Can Come Back to Bite You

November 27, 2015August 2, 2017 Ina Steiner

A reporter for a television station in Las Vegas warned viewers about a “PayPal loophole” that could prove costly for people selling on eBay. Consumer advocate Michelle Mortensen looked into the case for a local woman who sold a boat Read more

eBay UK Adds Support for Courier Tracking

November 26, 2015August 2, 2017 Ina Steiner

eBay requires sellers to do their best to upload tracking information to its system, and in the UK, eBay is now integrating with shipping couriers to help them do that. eBay is introducing an on-time delivery metric that will go into effect Read more

What Fraudsters Will Be Shopping For on Cyber Monday

November 26, 2015August 2, 2017 Ina Steiner

Fraudsters have discerning taste, and will be “shopping” online on Cyber Monday with everyone else. A fraud-prevention solution provider analyzed its data and came up with the 20 most targeted items. Not surprisingly, Rolex watches and Louis Vuitton handbags made Read more

Sellers Deal with Third eBay Outage in a Month

November 26, 2015August 2, 2017 Ina Steiner

Sellers were unable to complete basic selling tasks on eBay on Wednesday morning as the site experienced the third outage in the past month. Things ground to a halt in the early morning hours the day before Thanksgiving – with Read more

eBay Promotion with Cap on Fees Results in Confusion

November 25, 2015August 2, 2017 Ina Steiner

eBay is running a promotion in which it is capping the Final Value Fee for sellers on up to 100 items. One version of the promotion caps the FVF at $5, the other at $10. The promotion is resulting in Read more