Ecommerce has many different facets and intracacies. When this idea first was concieved, the question then became can it be done? Can 4 podcasters with different concepts and ideas truly discuss differing viewpoints as it relates to internet business. Truth be told, we don’t know. However the thought of conducting an internet radio program based on a roundtable discussion format is intriging.

Our first planning tele-meeting was scheduled for 30 minutes and ran one and a half hours! This is just the beginning!

Marlene, Walt, John and myself will be discussing important topics for ebusiness in 2009 and beyond. In addition to the round table type format, we will be accepting questions from our listeners. Our listeners are encouraged to either call in or submit their questions in the chat room.

Those wishing to ask questions during this one of a kind program MUST be registered on Talkshoe.com. It’s free and only takes 1 minute. We will be unable to accept questions from “GUESTS”

WHEN: Thursday March 19th 2009 2 PM ET

WHERE: www.talkshoe.com/tc/30067

The participants of this unparalled event will be:

The Lady

Marlene Gavens known around the internet as The Savvy Seller is host of Tips From The Top, recognized by Anita Campbell as one of the Top 100 Small Biz Podcasts for 2009.

Marlene Gavens, aka ‘The Savvy Seller’, is a social media / internet marketing strategist and eBay Certified Business Consultant (one of only 30 world-wide). 

In addition to podcasting, blogging & teaching the ‘official’ eBay classes, Marlene develops  internet marketing programs for both online & offline (brick & mortar) businesses. These programs focus on establishing an internet presence for the business as well as the developing & implementing an internet marketing strategy for customer acquisition & retention.

Marlene’s website: www.the-savvy-seller.com

The 3 Jerks

Walt Kolenda, AKA AuctionWally is the host of  The AuctionWally podcast and Brainstorming Bonanzle internet radio podcasts. Walt, a licensed auctioneer in Mass. since 1995, has over 25 years experience in the antiques and collectibles marketplace. Walt also sells online and is a contributor to The Examiner and other publications.

The AuctionWally podcasts have also been recognized as one of the Top 100 Small Biz Podcasts for 2009.

Walt does live auctions, appraisal days and charity events, and you can find him at www.Auctionwally.com

 John “ColderIce” Lawson

John Lawson, Founder and CEO of the online urban clothing store 3rd Power Outlet (http://www.3rdPowerOutlet.com) and author of business blog ColderICE.com (http://www.ColderICE.com), John Lawson has been growing and changing his business with the continuously shifting world of e-commerce since he began selling a few used IT books online for extra money in 2001.

Now that he has not only established himself as an eBay Platinum PowerSeller and eBay Certified Education Specialist but also successfully navigated his business through the dot com bubble burst, Lawson is turning his focus to teaching, speaking, and consulting.

John is also the host of the BS Walks When Money Talks podcasts heard every Wednesday at 1:14 PM ET

Dave “McButtons” White

I began selling online in 1997. In 1998 I quit my full time job as a Paramedic to work full time on my online business. As a natural progression I began doing educational classes and consulting for other internet marketers.

In 2000 I was invited to instruct at eBay University, and did this for nearly the next 2 years. I am a former eBay Educational Specialist and former PowerSeller.

I began ebay & Beyond: Basics To Business radio in February 2007 because I saw a need to provide internet marketers with the truthful information they need to be successful in the online marketplace. ebay & Beyond has also been recognized as one of the Top 100 Small Biz Podcasts for 2009.

ebay & Beyond: Basics To Business can be heard live every Monday 1-3 PM ET on Talkshoe.com.

The ebay & Beyond website is: www.basicstobusiness.com

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New Day And Time For ebay & Beyond: Basics to Business

Well the really huge announcement on our second anniversary show was of  course the change in day and time for the program. That’s right, effective February 9, 2009 ebay & Beyond: Basics To Business will be heard Mondays from 1-3 PM EST. The change comes with some trepidation, but the concensus seems to show that weekdays are better for this type of program. In addition to the day and time change, new voices have been added! Joining Scott Pooler of iBusinesslogic as contributing co-hosts to the program are Kat Simpson owner of Kat’s Kloset and Melinda Jackson owner of GalleriaGifts. Adding these two new voices in addition to Scott to the program brings differing viewpoints and experiences to our listeners which adds depth to the show!

A Plethura of Prizes Given Away

A huge number of sponsors and listeners provided us with gifts to give away on our second anniversary and for this I will be eternally grateful!

Scott Pooler of iBusinesslogic.com and Merchantrun-globallink.com provided one of our lucky listeners with a basic installation of a premium Wordpress based website along with 6 months of free webhosting and 30 minutes of telephone instruction on how to use the site. The winner, Beth Cherkowsky was truly a very happy camper!

Mark Bradshaw was the winner of the 12 month Bonanzle.com Premier Membership. Mark and his wife Jan currently sell on Onlineauction.com under the user ID stubsinc.

Tim Selaty from Knockoutsoftware.com joined us on the program to announce the release of the Knockoutsoftware.com package of KO scripts and Tim gave away a Platinum Level Package of the Knockoutsoftware and a website design to Elizabeth Metz known on Onlineauction as MetzyMom.

Other prizes included autographed books from Jay Berkowitz author of The Ten Golden Rules of Internet Marketing, The eBay Business Desk Reference from Marsha Collier well known educator and author of the eBay For Dummies Series, a scrapbooking package from Marlene Gavens The Savvy Seller, several hats from Trent and his wife Jodie AAA Iowa Art, Gifts and Antiques under the eBay seller ID of tjwindart and Storepromoter.info

While it seemed like all we did was give away prizes, we were able to discuss some other breaking news which includes the announcement from Scott Pooler of the launching of Merchantrun-globallink.com. Merchantrun has been prominent in Asia and Europe and now is available in the US. Merchantrun allows eBay sellers to manage inventory and list on eBay’s 21 international sites at very reasonable rates. Scott also announced a special promotional incentive of $24.99 in credits to be used on the Merchantrun-globallink site for a limited time.

News Flash

In conjunction and with the assistance of  Tim and Tim of TLSwebsolutions.com creators of the Knockoutsoftware.com I am proud to announce the debut of Promoteyourauction.com. This site will feature the Knockoutsoftware as well as begin promoting individual and corporate listings on the internet via video streams.  Now ecommerce sellers will have the opportunity to spotlight their items on whatever venue they sell from. We anticipate beginning this service on March 2, 2009 at 12 Noon ET and every Monday following. We believe the technology allows us to promote these items visually in a way that will increase traffic and sales for those utilizing the site! Many thanks go out to Tim and Tim for all their hard work in the site development and integration with the AuctionKO scripts! Watch for additional information the coming days!

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One of the most frequent questions I field in my ecommerce courses is ” Can the small seller still get in and make money on the internet or is it too late?” The answer in my mind is a resounding YES, however this answer comes with caveats.

The route that many of us “old timers” took back in the late 90’s and early in the new century has become much more crowded and even gridlocked as we have moved into the new century and beyond. Back in the day as the popular saying goes, there was very little competition. The number of available venues could literally be counted on one hand. Sites such as eBay (and a FEW others) allowed the Mom & Pop sellers to market to the world and build a worldwide business. As we moved into the new century, established businesses began to take notice of the internet and the trememdous opportunities it offered to commerce. 

The small sellers began facing tremendous competition as traditional Brick and Mortar (B/M) businesses started to realize the internet was not a fad, but a viable and yes necessary marketplace.

Today the Mom & Pop, as well as small and medium sellers face tremendous competition from the corporate world. To be successful, the “little Guys” must be competitive in all aspects of ecommerce marketing. From price to shipping to service and selection, the small seller needs to do it better than the corporate competition.

eBay is changing direction from the small seller to corporate accounts. Yes eBay can still be used as an integral part of marketing, but certainly should not be the only venue or channel used.  Amazon.com  offers a great marketing channel for larger businesses with quantity of merchandise but does not really fit those with low quantity numbers or the onsey twosey seller. Overstock.com  is offering a similar service but again is more focused towards quantity sellers.

Many new marketing channels are now working hard to attract disenchanted small ebay sellers who have been disadvantaged by the eBay search changes or don’t fit into the Amazon.com type model. In order to begin a new business on the internet, sellers will have to do their research. They need to know their product, the demand for the product, and the best venues from which to market from. Knowledge is power, and having the knowledge to make an intelligent decision on how best to market your items will provide the small seller the best opportunity to succeed.

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While some unhappy sellers on the site have begun the second round of the boycott, again eBay says that the boycotters actions will not change the course the site has set. While I personally do not think that a boycott is the answer, certainly those participating are unhappy and looking for other venues to market their products.

To that end, Onlineauction.com sellers have organized wht they are calling the “RUMMAGE SALE” which began on the same day, May 1st, as the eBay Boycott. The rummage sale is being conducted by the sellers to gain exposure to the Onlineauction.com site. I checked this morning while writing this and there are over 6300 items in the rummage sale category which the site set up just for this event. All items in the rummage sale start at $0.99 and are in auction format. To recognize and assist the sellers in their endeavor, Onlineauction.com has purchased and donated 2 new Dell laptop computers and placed them into the Rummage Sale. All proceeds from these items (the laptops) will be donated to St. Judes Hospital.

In full disclosure, Onlineauction.com is an advertiser on our radio program ebay & Beyond: Basics to Business, however that is certainly not the reason I am posting this. I am posting this to point out that all business owners, Brick and Mortar or virtual, must make the correct decision for their business. Like I said, I don’t believe the eBay boycott will be effective. What I do believe is that if a marketing channel does not fit your business model, then you as a business owner need to make the decision to either change your business or make a change.

And that’s my Final Value of the day.

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