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’s Bitcoin Prank Reveals Popularity of PayPal

April 2, 2014September 17, 2017 Ina Steiner

Online marketplace Bonanza told users it would launch an exclusive new cryptocurrency, “Boncoin,” that was similar to Bitcoin and could be used to pay for purchases. Longtime users familiar with the founder’s sense of humor soon realized the announcement on Read more

Mary Kay Asks Court to Force eBay to Reveal Seller Names

April 2, 2014September 17, 2017 Ina Steiner

It’s another case of big brands looking to stop sellers from listing their products on eBay and other venues. According to the Dallas News, Mary Kay Inc. is asking a court to force eBay to reveal the identity of sellers who Read more

Etsy CEO on 3D Printer Plans: Sewing Patterns of the Future

April 1, 2014September 17, 2017 Ina Steiner

Reinventing America may involve 3D printers, and Etsy sees itself at the forefront of the movement. Forbes invited Etsy CEO Chad Dickerson to speak at its Reinventing America Summit this week where it convened executives, entrepreneurs, academics and elected officials Read more

eBay Signs Retail Chains to Same-Day Delivery Service

April 1, 2014September 17, 2017 Ina Steiner

eBay Now is a same-day delivery service, but not for items offered on eBay.com by its millions of sellers – at least not yet. Instead, the eBay Now service is exclusively for local brick-and-mortar retailers in certain cities: San Francisco Read more

eBay to Drive Traffic to Collectibles in April

April 1, 2014September 17, 2017 Ina Steiner

eBay will be driving traffic to collectibles this month thanks to a new campaign from the eBay Partner Network. The ePN program, as it’s called, will give a financial incentive to affiliates who drive more sales in April than in Read more

eBay Expands Global Shipping Program, Overrides Seller Exclusions

March 31, 2014September 20, 2017 Ina Steiner

eBay is expanding its Global Shipping Program yet again, this time to nine additional countries including some located in the Middle East and Southeast Asia. eBay is pushing sellers to use the Global Shipping Program (GSP) to make their items Read more

PayPal Alerts Sellers of Policy Updates

March 31, 2014September 20, 2017 Ina Steiner

PayPal made changes to its user agreement, PayPal Here agreement, and privacy policy that will go into effect in May. It also made changes to its user agreement that went into effect this week. Previously if you sent a personal Read more

Amazon Raises Fees for Low-Priced Items

March 31, 2014September 20, 2017 Ina Steiner

Amazon is raising fees for low-priced items by placing new minimum referral fees in many categories, and sellers affected by the change call it a significant increase – depending on the category, fees on a $5 item could rise anywhere Read more

Etsy Tests Site Navigation, Expects More Traffic

March 28, 2014September 20, 2017 Ina Steiner

Etsy is kicking off “experiments” in which it will test changes to the design and organization of its site navigation. The news comes on the heels of another announcement in which Etsy said it would begin testing personalization features on its home Read more

Amazon Bookworms Meet the Boob Tube

March 28, 2014September 20, 2017 Ina Steiner

Amazon is introducing booklovers who embraced its Kindle ebook reader to the boob tube. It’s widely believed the company will announce a TV set box top akin to Roku but looking like Google’s Chromecast USB device, possibly at a press Read more