Ads on eBay remain unpopular wth sellers

eBay’s Director of on-site advertising recently posted an update on the progress and future plans of the auction site’s use of on-site advertising.

by Helen Leggatt

For over a year the debate about advertising on eBay has been raging. While eBay believe that “displaying some types of ads to the right people at the right time would benefit buyers by providing them with greater opportunities to find what they were looking for”, many traders believe the ads are causing potential buyers to be drawn away from the auction site.

Some critics think the move is tantamount to leasing a store and the landlord posting adverts for competitors within that store. More believe that the attraction to eBay isn’t so much improving the user experience but more to do with the millions of dollars to be made from advertising. In Q2 2007, eBay's advertising revenue almost doubled compared with the same period last year.

pesa%20logo.jpg The Professional eBay Sellers Alliance (PeSA), a group of influential eBay sellers, has been concerned about the inclusion of ads for some time. "Having those ads on the Web site we view as very negative. Encouraging people to leave eBay can never be good for the seller who is paying to be on the marketplace," said Jonathan Garriss, PeSA's executive director.