Since eBay's acquisition of Internet telephony company Skype last Fall, "click-to-call" and "pay-per-call advertising" have become widely-used buzzwords. The Skype hype increased with eBay's partnerships with Yahoo in May and Google in August to develop click-to-call advertising technologies (http://auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y06/m08/i28/s00).
Click-to-call buttons enable shoppers to click on a button and get connected to a seller by voice, at no charge to the shopper. The shopper is already at the seller's website or eBay listing, and click-to-call provides a higher degree of customer service.
Click-to-call is not to be confused with pay-per-call advertising, designed to attract shoppers, in which sellers place click-to-call buttons in advertisements. They pay only when someone actually clicks through and makes a call. The concept is similar to "cost-per-click" (CPC) advertising where the advertiser only pays when the visitor clicks on the ad, as opposed to "CPM" where the advertiser pays every time a visitor views the ad.
eBay began allowing sellers to include Skype buttons in certain listings on the US site in June 2006, after having run tests internationally earlier in the year. SkypeMe buttons allow buyers to reach out to sellers through the Skype Internet phone service, so buyers can speak directly to sellers about the items they have listed on eBay. Sellers first need to download Skype software onto their computers. eBay limited the initial test to certain categories:
- Automotive GPS devices
- Camera and photo lenses and filters
- Wired networking routers
- Skype devices
- VOIP / Internet telephony
- Diamond solitaire rings
- Real estate (residential, commercial)
- Manufacturing and metalworking
- Beds
- NBA basketball cards
- Silver coins
- Lost in Space collectibles
- Radio control toys
- Cars and trucks
On November 1, eBay expanded the list to additional categories (http://pages.ebay.com/buyandsell/skype-viewitem/index.html).
eBay has long been concerned about off-eBay transactions (which it calls "fee avoidance") and has traditionally tried to limit shopper-seller contact to email that goes through the eBay system. eBay prohibits sellers from including URLs, hyperlinks, and links to live-chat windows from auction listings. Here's what eBay allows sellers to include in listings:
- Telephone numbers
- Email addresses
- Text references to Skype names (but not links to Skype connections)
- SkypeMe buttons limited to categories spelled out in eBay's new policy
However, in a recent interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, eBay CEO Meg Whitman said she was not concerned about SkypeMe buttons in listings taking transactions off eBay. "Our belief is that most people are basically good and that you actually will close that transaction online. There's protection to you by closing that transaction online. But if it actually increases the velocity of trade on eBay or off, then our users are better off and we will ultimately be better off " (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/11/19/BUGPUMEPAG1.DTL).
In 2004, ThinkingVoice was the first to provide a click-to-call button in eBay listings
(http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abu/y204/m04/abu0117/s03). ThinkingVoice's CallActivator service is a click-to-call service that uses regular phone lines, and does not require VoIP services like Skype. Shoppers can click on an eBay seller's CallActivator button to bring up a form. They place their information, including their phone number, along with a question if they like, and submit it. At that point, ThinkingVoice calls the seller on the phone number of their choosing (which can be changed any time), then puts them through to the shopper.
eBay sellers who receive calls while sitting at their computers can see which item the shopper was looking at when they clicked on the CallActivator button, which gives the seller context and may shorten the duration of the call.
ThinkingVoice CEO DC Cullinane said 45,000 businesses use CallActivator and place click-to-call buttons in online ads, auction listings, newsletters and email signatures. But he doesn't see eBay click-to-call as a growth market, in part because eBay sellers "are not about talking to the customer." There is some acceptance for certain categories where there is a higher price point and more complexity, he said.
"I would be surprised, even if they jam it down their throats, if even 5 percent of the eBay community used (Skype buttons)," he said, adding that he would expect eBay to expand their categories to include more services in order to attract likely advertisers. Cullinane does sees pay-per-call advertising as a growth opportunity, and said his company is doing some innovative deals with online and offline businesses that can serve up targeted shoppers.
Sellers Say,...
eBay seller Keith (thebidkahuna) said he used Skype long before eBay acquired it. "I have a Skype button in my eBay store but have not had one person use it..... Though it may help on a personal service level. I have Skype working through an "actiontec" box which allows me mobility around my home with a cordless phone so I am not glued to the computer."
eBay PowerSeller Adam Hersh, President of Adam Hersh Auctions (http://www.adamhershauctions.com), said he has not used Skype in his listings yet because his average selling price is too low to justify it. But, he said, "The PPC (Pay-Per-Call) program could be nice for my higher priced items or my wholesale division. For a $9.99 poster, it wouldn't really be worth the phone sale."
Ralf VonSosen, Vice President of Marketing for Infopia Inc., said he is starting to see some interest in Skype from his merchants. Infopia's Marketplace Manager is a software solution developed specifically for retailers selling online and through traditional brick-and-mortar stores. VonSosen said retailers can view phone services like Skype as a way to extend the relationship with customers, to gain repeat business and more loyalty. But, he said, what is "economical" will vary by retailer, depending on their sales volume and whether they have a call center established.
VonSosen said he is not aware of any Infopia merchants who are currently using a calling or chatting solution to proactively drive sales. "We do have customers who are using a live chat and call center (small) to answer questions and provide support. HiFi SoundConnection and Saberpoint are examples of companies utilizing the chat. Dallas Golf is utilizing an 800 number as well." The net result, VonSosen said, is that "tools like this will make it economical and allow merchants to utilize CRM (customer relationship marketing) practices in their online selling."
Many sellers have expressed an unwillingness to deal with customer phone calls, saying they already spend a great deal of time responding to email inquiries. Other sellers were enthusiastic about using Skype until getting "Skype spam." eBay seller Martha set up Skype, but said the "freebee" headphones she got at eBay Live did not work with her computer, so she put Skype on the back burner. "In the meantime I have had several Skype contacts from China and India (spam - I don't even know how they got our "number") so that has also made us rethink actively using Skype with eBay. We get enough Spam emails without having to deal with Spam phone calls!"
Survey Says,...
In September of 2006, AuctionBytes conducted an online survey of its readers. A total of 1225 people completed the survey. AuctionBytes asked respondents what features they included in their ecommerce/Storefront listings so customers could reach them, then asked what features they included in their online-auction listings. Email addresses topped the list, followed by a wide margin by telephone numbers and Website URLs. In addition:
- On ecommerce sites and Storefronts, only 5% include instant messaging or text messaging, and only 2% included click-to-call buttons such as SkypeMe buttons.
- For auction listings, 2% include instant messaging or text messaging, and 2% include click-to-call buttons such as SkypeMe buttons.
Survey respondents were primarily US-based (88%); reported the value of all items sold on online-auction sites in the last 12 months equaled $50,000 or less (79%); and reported items most frequently listed for sale were collectibles (21%), clothing, shoes & accessories (10%), books (9.5%), home & garden (6.1%) and jewelry & watches (5.6%). More information about the survey is available on the AuctionBytes.com website (http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abu/y206/m09/abu0175/s02)
eBay Says,...
When eBay announced its acquisition of Skype in September 2005, CEO Meg Whitman told analysts in a conference call that she expected Skype to help accelerate commerce on eBay in four ways:
- accelerating existing categories, like used cars;
- penetrating new categories that are more complex, hi-touch, like new cars, real estate and personalized services, through alternative lead-generation;
- monetizing new marketplaces like Kijiji, Shopping.com, Rent.com and Mobile.de through pay-per-call and helping to differentiate those marketplaces from the competition;
- expanding eBay's global footprint into emerging markets like India, China and Russia, which are typically characterized by gray markets, low levels of trust, a culture of haggling, and price sensitivity, as well as facilitating cross-border trade.
When asked recently how the integration was going, eBay spokesperson Hani Durzy said adding Skype to eBay was beginning to do exactly what eBay expected - helping buyers establish more trust with sellers to complete more transactions. "Although it's still early, we see opportunity in the Skype Me buttons, particularly on higher priced categories like motors, jewelry, and electronics where buyers often have detailed questions for sellers." Durzy said eBay continues to gather feedback from the community to improve functionality.
Other Players
In addition to adding SkypeMe buttons on listings in certain categories on eBay, online sellers can add the Skype click-to-call feature on their own websites. Other click-to-call services include those from ThinkingVoice (http://www.thinkingvoice.com), Ingenio (http://www.ingenio.com), and eStara (http://www.estara.com), which also provide pay-per-call ad services.
RingCentral (http://www.ringcentral.com) provides click-to-call as part of a total telecommunications package for small businesses that includes Virtual PBX, auto-attendant, voicemail, Internet fax and call forwarding (http://origin.ringcentral.com/features/ringme.asp).
Other types of buyer-seller communication include live-chat features and instant messaging.
Meebo.com now offers MeeboMe, a widget that sellers can insert directly into their ecommerce listings so shoppers are not taken away from the product while communicating with the merchant (http://www.meebome.com).
However, eBay's public relations department had yet to state by press time whether such services were allowed inside eBay.com listings.
Case Study: ShoeWallet.com
Brian Ouellette sells shoewallets, which have an average retail sale price of $9.99. Shoewallets are special wallets that securely fasten to shoes, enabling the wearer to carry cash, keys and credit cards. Ouellette has his own website, ShoeWallet.com (http://shoewallet.com) and has been selling on Amazon for 2 years. He is currently in the process of rolling out an eBay Store.
In addition to selling directly to consumers, Ouellette receives orders from retail stores averaging 25 to 100+ units. Ninety percent of his revenue comes from corporate customers like Fox Sports and Southwest Airlines, which order 1,000 or more custom branded units at a time. The average such order is 6,500 units, with an average sale of $17,000.
Ouellette began using RingCentral after Shape Magazine featured his shoewallet in 2004, and he didn't have an 800 phone number. With four part-time helpers (Ouellette handles 95% of the workload), and with all phone calls and click-to-calls going to him, he needed a system to help him stay organized and accessible. With RingCentral, Ouellette said all click-to-calls are logged, so he can go back to check the records of shoppers who have called. RingCentral captures voices messages as WAV files, and those are kept in the logs, allowing Ouellette to listen to them far in to the future. RingCentral also files all incoming faxes as PDFs that can be accessed over the Internet.
When he is travelling, as on a recent trip to Italy, he can access his click-to-call logs using his laptop. He also likes the fact that RingCentral forwards his phone calls, including click-to-call calls, to any phone, and he can change the designated phone anytime, as frequently as he wishes.
Ouellette includes a RingCentral "RingMe" button on his Website contact page. He said the average online order from individual consumers on Amazon.com and ShoeWallet.com is 1.5 units. However, average orders from ecommerce consumers who use the RingCentral button to speak to him are 3+ units.
The only challenge with click-to-call in Ouelette's opinion is that consumers may not have familiarity with how it works. "Customers aren't quite sure how to use it if they haven't seen it before," he said of the RingMe buttons.
"You want as many points of contact as possible," he said. And his Contact page shows how many options he gives customers: a web form, an email address, a regular phone number, an 800 number, a fax number, and RingCentral's RingMe click-to-call feature (http://www.shoewallet.com/contactus.html).
The return on investment on his time by offering phone support is "extremely high," Ouellette said, "since at the minimum we average over $29.97 on an ecommerce order done via a call (twice as high as straight online orders) on up to over $17,000 for a custom branded Shoewallet order. This investment more than pays for itself time and time again." In addition, he said, custom, branded shoewallet inquiries and orders come in initially via the 800 number - about 90 percent of the time.
Conclusion
eBay is not releasing results of the limited SkypeMe click-to-call integration into eBay.com. While plenty of eBay sellers appear underwhelmed with the concept, there may be categories where the functionality will prove to be a success, and results may vary geographically.
However, it appears click-to-call functionality elsewhere on the Internet is already achieving some success. This may be due in part to the selling model on eBay. Margins are often much tighter, and sellers may view spending time speaking to eBay shoppers by phone less productive than shoppers on their own ecommerce sites. Size of sellers' businesses may also play a role. A September Wall Street Journal article entitled "Marketers Embrace Click to Call" stated that among the biggest users of click-to-call are big retailers, "which like the technology because it helps reduce the number of uncompleted sale transactions."
eBay sellers may want to run their own tests before drawing conclusions about click-to-call functionality, since so many factors relating to their own individual businesses would affect the return on such an investment of time.
Related Links
eBay Acquires Skype Internet Telephony Company
http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y05/m09/i12/s00
eBay Links Policy and Its Effect on Skype
http://auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y05/m09/i13/s05
eBay Introduces Skype Functionality on its U.S. Site
http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y06/m06/i14/s08
