Vzaar Video for Business Video for eBay Video for Marketing – It’s Just Vzaar!

Posted on March 25, 2009 by Scott Pooler

It's Just Vzaar!

I have been aware of the Vzaar video embed service for eBay sellers and Internet merchants since they started back in 2007. Not being a big user of video though I really did not spend a lot of time checking the company out. To tell the truth, this could be one of my biggest mistakes in the last 2 years!

Video ENGAGE!

Diamond Seller on vzaar - Watch more Videos at Vodpod.

(I apologize to Captain Jean-Luc Picard - I couldn't resist!)

Everyone is now aware of the power of video for product presentations, for engagement of the audience and to more effectively present any service on a website (or in this case any eBay listing) in a fashion that is accepted worldwide. Viewers may not speak your language but a video can explain your product or service to them - it is that effective.

A picture may be worth a 1000 words! What is the extrapolation for video? - a Billion words?

Yet I have not paid as much attention to video as I should have. Frankly I was blithely wandering through life with my own little writers mentality enjoying ignorant bliss. Wow, did I miss the boat on this one!

Jamie Parkins

Jamie Parkins of Vzaar tried to show me the way at eBay Live in Chicago 2008. We met on the solutions floor about, oh... a dozen times it seems. Jamie was actively trying to get my attention for his product and to be honest he had a great story to tell. I listened, I watched and I found it all very interesting but I have to admit something... In the back of my head was what I thought was a huge question about this paid video embed service...

What about YouTube or Viddler? Continue reading “Vzaar Video for Business Video for eBay Video for Marketing – It’s Just Vzaar!” »

Advertising & Promotion and Seth Godin – New Marketing

Posted on October 30, 2008 by Scott Pooler

Last night in my car I was driving and listening to Seth Godin on a podcast....

Seth Godin

Some of you may be unfamiliar with what a "podcast" is or why anyone would listen to one? Podcasts are recordings of events, shows or seminars and/or the occasional sales pitch. Some podcasts are similar to talk radio shows with live callers hosted by a main host and sometimes a co-host.

Today's "radio show" has been moved off of the airwaves and into your iPod or other mp3 device. Thousands of these podcasts are available, mostly for free, in the iTunes store. Far ranging topics are available as podcasts on iTunes and in other places around the Internet. I usually focus on the Internet marketing and ecommerce titles but also download free photoshop training, "This Week in Tech" podcasts from Leo Laport, John C. Dvorak's "Cranky Geeks" financial news and a few more. Topics are plentiful and inspiration is included.

I listen to these podcasts to try and learn something while doing things which would be unproductive otherwise. I have learned a great deal just from this free resource and I have been fortunate enough to forge more than one friendship with people I would never have met because of podcasting. Continue reading “Advertising & Promotion and Seth Godin – New Marketing” »

eBay Live 2008 – Thoughts from Atlanta – John Lawson of 3rdPO.com Speaks Out

Posted on June 27, 2008 by Scott Pooler

EBay Live? Simply not the best it could be

By John Lawson of 3rd Power Outlet (www.3rdPO.com)

I stayed home and evidently many others did too!

Let me back that up and rewind a bit… See for those who don't know me…I wrote a little blog at the end of the last 2 "eBay centric" events prior to this party. You can check them out by going to http://tinyurl.com/59yq8v.

So I would like to add on to that now that the BIG party is over…literally.

Man, after Catalyst and the PeSA/eCommerce summits the stage was set, eBay made a "killing". Lorrie Norrington "nailed the speech", eBay execs came and stood toe to toe, they said "we are listing", "good feedback", "give us a chance", sound familiar?…err shall I go on?

Why, thank you, I think I shall…

The sellers stood up and demanded clarity on changes on feedback, some could not help but protest the real world impact, while others simply whined (you know I am telling the truth). At the end of it all, we felt that something good was blowing in the wind. I got that "Obama" feeling of change, LMAO. It was an Oprah moment with a new since of purpose.

Fast forward to the approach of eBay Live 2008... everybody kept asking me if I were going? I just did not feel like I wanted to go.

But then they announced, No eBay Live 2009, see ya in 2010…WTH? Huh? Continue reading “eBay Live 2008 – Thoughts from Atlanta – John Lawson of 3rdPO.com Speaks Out” »

eBay Live 2008 – Attendance Closing Gala & Food for Thought

Posted on June 23, 2008 by Scott Pooler

Live Gala - Dinner Tables

The image above was taken from inside the closing Gala at eBay Live 2008. Closing Gala presentations from previous eBay Live events have always been a packed, standing room only ticket. This year was different.

The photo above was taken about 1 hour into the closing gala, Chris Issak had not yet taken the stage and people were still eating the underwhelming meal provided by the McCormick Place catering staff. (See Photo Food ). As you can plainly see, several tables are completely empty with glasses of water intact.

Kind of a sad state if you ask me... eBay Live used to be such an event and it was talked about both before and afterwards for weeks. This years eBay Live and all future plans for same, may just fade away... just as it should.

Will there ever be another?

Food for Thought?

The following Image was after the entire line had entered the Gala hall. The image encompasses 1/2 the room...

eBay Live Gala Empthy Room

Jay Berkowitz Interviewed by Janelle Elms OSI Rock Stars at eBay Live- Video

Posted on June 23, 2008 by Scott Pooler

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOhokQRPai8]

Thanks Jay for the very nice plug... And thanks to Janelle and her merry band of OSI Rocks Stars for providing 99% of the excitement on the floor at eBay live... What a positive group of people!

Friendly Face of eBay – Evolving into a New Look – eBay Live 2008

Posted on June 21, 2008 by Scott Pooler

eBay Chairman John Donahoe and North American President Lorrie Norrington put on the friendly face at eBay Live 2008.

(Written from the mezzanine at McCormick Center, above the crowd of eBay Live attendees waiting to enter the closing gala)

This photo, taken during a meet & greet in the eBay chatterbox on the solutions floor is an analogy of the entire event. Lorries expression is open and welcoming and John is just a bit worried (at least in his expression).

Certainly the keynote speech yesterday was an attempt to put a very positive face on the changes at eBay and in many ways it succeeded. Unfortunately it was delivered with the old fashioned hokie eBay standard feel good vibe and was off point on several occasions. Continue reading “Friendly Face of eBay – Evolving into a New Look – eBay Live 2008” »

eBay Live 2008 PESA Round Table – Brian Burke Answers Questions

Posted on June 21, 2008 by Scott Pooler

PeSA ECMTA had one of the largest display areas at this soon to be wrapped up eBay Live 2008.

The PeSA Pavilion at eBay Live 2008 has been a hotbed of activity with numerous new memberships and interesting luminaries stopping by...

During the day yesterday people like Scot Wingo of Channel Advisor and then John Donahoe & Family were spending time in the PeSA comfort zone of its Pavilion.

Brian Burke may not have been quite so comfortable.

One of the events of the day yesterday in the PESA Pavilion was a round table session with Brian Burke of Feedback Fame at eBay. Brian had just recently finished a fully heated feedback session in one of the main conference rooms (read about that session in TameBay or AuctionBytes - I was in with Jay Berkowitz) Yet PeSA had enough clout to get Brian Burke of eBay to come and sit down with any PeSA member who wanted to ask him the occasional question.

As you can see, there were very few shy PeSA members in attendance.

With eBay pulling back from events like eBay Live (recent attendance of an estimated less than 4,000 eBay members). The multiple regional events groups like PeSA and ECMTA organize may become the micro eBay Lives of the future.

PeSA has provided a forum for its members to gain information at eBay Live and in its forums like no other group. And at eBay Live this year, they are the only trade organization who has represented its membership with such commitment.

Thanks to PeSa ECMTA, these members got face to face with Brian Burke. I really do not know if they got the answers they were seeking, but they at least got to ask direct and honest questions.

PeSA asking Questions

Keynote Day – eBay Live 2008 – John Donahoe Tells All

Posted on June 20, 2008 by Scott Pooler

Good Morning...

I am ready to catch my free eBay Live ground transportation to McCormick Center from my downtown Chicago hotel. This morning I am excited to learn what eBay Chairman, John Donahoe will tell us all, but then I am more excited to see my friend, Jay Berkowitz on stage just after the main speech.

The photo on my left is titled "Old Guard returns one last time to eBay Live".

This gentleman was one of the few attendees dressed in the normal eBay Live attire I saw yesterday. I wonder if we will see more of a crowd today?

If you going to the show, please check out Jay Berkowitz's Ten Golden Rules presentation. He is releasing his book just after the speech and I have the very first and only manuscript here in my hands.

The book is titled " The Ten Golden Rules Online Marketing Workbook - Turn Your Website Into a Profit Center". I read the main chapters last night and I have to say, this is real practical advice in a step-by-step workbook guide with real examples and all of the inside secrets for bringing a website into profitability.

Stop by and check out Jay's speech. I think eBay people are all looking for other alternatives to only selling on eBay. If you are one of those people, this information will interest you!

eBay Live 2008 Chicago- Day One – Whew…Think Twice

Posted on June 20, 2008 by Scott Pooler

eBay Live 2008 is underway...

This sign was prominently displayed in the center of the solutions floor... eBay Live... Creating Good?

The good was found between the lines for those who looked, since the lines were short, looking was easier than ever.

The turnout here has been less than expected and less than predicted by eBay. The entire Main Hall Solutions event seems to be under a cloud of quiet, calm. The people who are here, seem to be really interested and intense about business and improving theirs... Vendors are very light and the entire festive atmosphere of eBay Live's of ole is missing in action. No fuzzies and very little promotion of the eBay comic book theme. No super long lines of crowds at the door to register and no problem getting a seat for a cup of coffee.

In the morning ( before I arrived - eBay scheduled a press/blogger meeting for this morning, but they did not inform us media/blogger types until the middle of last week. So, my flight was already scheduled and I missed the big meeting) the news of the meeting was good, at least it appears so... Increased or actually unlimited PayPal buyer and seller protection! Wow, where is the catch on this? I will let you know when I do...

Richard Brewer Hay - eBayInk For those of you who do not know the man on the right, this is the real Richard Brewer-Hay of eBay Ink.

Regular readers of eBayInk will know that Richard is relatively new to the whole eBay "thing". Richard continues to soldier on doing his job and he is doing a great job at that, considering the circumstances and situation thrust upon him with all of the most recent changes in the eBay system.

I would like to give Richard a "Pat on the back" for having come from the outside and really putting his entire being into learning on the run, this crazy ecosystem that is eBay. He has seen all sides of the people and issues involved with eBay and he is still working very hard to accommodate everyone and everything the best way he can.

At eBay Live 2008, I saw Richard in the middle of his second frantic week in Chicago covering first the events and stories coming out of Dev-Con and then attending each and every important session of eBay Live 2008, not only writing articles but also twittering at a unprecedented rate, getting immediate word out about the news coming from eBay Live and Dev Con.

Richard Brewer Hay deserves our respect for his ability to get up to speed with this situation under very stressful and demanding conditions. It is a given that as a corporate blogger, Richard must see the eBay side of the equation first, but from my personal conversations with him, I think he will be moving eBay Ink more in the direction of a real editorial commentary blog about all things eBay - good and not so good.

I would like to appeal to all of Richard's eBay Ink Blog readers, and ask you to think again the next time your inspired to leave a negative comment on the blog. The man is simply trying to do a very interesting and in this period of transition, difficult job.

Think Twice

Enjoy the eBay Live 2008 coverage provided by all of the bloggers, but give the newest and most interesting eBay blog a second chance. Let Richard Brewer-Hay show you how a real blogger does it...

Trading Assistant Journal, Skip McGrath, & iBusinessLogic – Solutions Providers in the Renewed ConsignmentPal Directory

Posted on June 19, 2008 by Scott Pooler

ConsignmentPal - The little big directory for eBay consignment sellers is growing fast!

Regular readers here will be aware that I have helped Linda Miller and her ConsignmentPal directory with the redesign and reinvigoration of this amazing directory. And I am sure glad I did...

ConsignmentPal has not only become the best place to list your consignment or Trading Assistant business (even better than the Trading Assistant Directory, in my opinion) but is now a great place to find real honest to goodness solutions providers, consultants, designers, web developers, and eBay gurus like Skip McGrath (Not an affiliate link).

The press release below is a good indication of the forward thinking and bright outlook Linda Miller brings to the industry with ConsignmentPal (Not an affiliate link). Providing a free directory for all of the eBay consignment, resale and eCommerce marketplace is a very laudable achievement and I think everyone attending eBay Live 2008 should stop by the booth and shake Linda's hand, thank her for all of her hard work and sign up for ConsignmentPal. Tell her Scott Pooler sent you... if you don't happen to catch me manning the booth myself (I think Linda wants me to fill in during the best speeches...huh, not likely! LOL)

See You at eBay LIVE!

Google Standings - Consignment Pal

Continue reading “Trading Assistant Journal, Skip McGrath, & iBusinessLogic – Solutions Providers in the Renewed ConsignmentPal Directory” »

Trading Assistant Journal

eCommerce News & Internet Marketing Commentary by: Scott Pooler

Tag Archives: eBay Live 2008