Online auction and economics
Introduction
The online auction occurs as the internet platform for auctioning process. Based on the current technology, everything is moving digital. Thus, in this type of auction, a vast virtual marketplace gets created in which individuals interact for business purposes such as selling, buying, trading, and checking the trending goods (Reddy & Baki, 2018). Online auctioning creates populated and high traffic online marketplace offering interested individuals with the opportunity to starts selling their commodities instantly. According to Reddy and Baki (2018), in such a scenario, people involved in selling never incur upfront costs, absence of distributors of salespersons as well as lack of need to create their websites to start selling. Notably, some of the popular auctioning online sites include Listia, eBay as well as Atomic Mall. The sites possess various similarities and differences that make them competitive in the market places.
Listia
Listia was launched in 2009 for online business and auctioning. To attract more users and customers, the site created rewarding stores. Listia occurs as one of the leading online auctioning sites which can be accessed through computers or by the mobile app. As per Turban, Strauss, and Lai (2016), the website enhances individuals to sell buy or check available products without involving cash. Notably, the site possesses the Listia credits that ensure the facilitation of the trade between the buyers and sellers on the platform (Listia, 2020). Equally, the site customers earn credits in giving the products that they do not require hence acquiring the products that customers demand at that particular moment (Listia, 2020). Furthermore, the site provides the market platform for auctioning process employing systems of biding on each commodity until the end of the auctioning in which the winning individuals happen to be the highest bidder (Turban, Strauss & Lai, 2016). For deliveries, the individuals who listed the products arrange the delivery procedures for the winning bidder, or the winner can pick the goods depending on her of his accessibility.
The site partners with other companies such as Best Buy that employs BBYOpen API to allow users to use the virtual currency to buy the items. The reward store acts as a vital tool for controlling inflation on the site (Turban, Strauss & Lai, 2016). Furthermore, the site partners with Amazon to enhance the supply of the reward stores. On the same note, the platform possesses the options for selling the credits for cash to its users. Qualification for these services depends on the user holding the trusted seller’s badge in which the seller is expected to have a 95% minimum rating for the last twenty days (Turban, Strauss & Lai, 2016). Upon reaching 500,000 credits for the previous one month, individuals can change to cash and payments facilitate through PayPal.
eBay
eBay Inc. occurs as the San Jose, California based multinational e-commerce organization. Currently, the corporation, through its site, occurs as the leading in offering an online auctioning platform (eBay, 2020). Similarly, through its website, the company creates a “consumers-to-consumer and business-to-consumers” marketing platform in which buyers and sellers interact for selling and shopping purposes. According to eBay (2020), the company was founded in 1995 and managed the eBay websites for auctioning objects on which it operates in more than 33 countries around the world. Reinartz (2019) explains that the exit of the site as free for the user hence creating a fundamental point for buying and selling a variety of commodities and services globally. Moreover, the fees only apply for the sellers who list their items for auctioning purposes (Chen, Lai & Yu, 2017). Furthermore, the site possesses various services for its users apart from its initial auctioning styles of sale (Chen, Lai & Yu, 2017). Notably, the website incorporates “buy it now” shopping services facilitated by the ISBN and Universal Product Code for secures business transactions.
For the company to create revenues through its websites during the auctioning procedures, it operates based on the complex structure of fees imposed on the services, listing of the items by the sellers as well as the final value fee after sellers sell their products (eBay, 2020). For instance, the websites charge insertion fees of $0.35 on the sellers listing their commodities, excluding adornments. Furthermore, the site imposes the final fee of 10% to 12% of the entire sale made, which includes the shipping cost as the initial price of the item (Reinartz, 2019). The company has further increased international trade through expansion to countries such as China and India in recent times. On the same note, the site deals with a wide variety of products as compared to other websites offering the same auctioning services. The site extends to sell and buying decor, computers, vehicles, collectibles, appliances, and equipment, to name a few (Chen, Lai & Yu, 2017). The website employs the proxy auctioning style that resembles or is equivalent to Vickrey auction, also known as the sealed bid. As per Reinartz (2019), the company offers shipping services to the buyers through a various mechanism such courier services and express email, but in some conditions, sellers could offer shipping services which depend on the urgency of the buyer.
Atomic Mall
Atomic Mall operates based on the traditional online auction system that resembles other sites such as eBay. According to Steiner (2011), the website works based on zero listing fees. Furthermore, Atomic Mall offers sellers the ability to set fixed prices for their products and import off-sites auctions. Unlike many of the online auctioning sites, Atomic Mall offers the users opportunity with crypto payment (Steiner, 2011). Moreover, the buyers never require to register for shopping purposes as they add various products from different sellers into the checkout cart due to a lack of duplicated listings (Atomic Mall, 2020). Notably, the site deals with multiple categories such as collectibles, tools, sports movies, and TVs, as well as video games (Atomic Mall, 2020). Nevertheless, the websites offer a sealed bid system without a proxy system hence eliminating the issues of “critical mass,” which hinders the auctioning process even at a smaller value.
Similarities
The three online sites have a fundamental similarity in offering the same services to sellers and buyers. For example, eBay, Atomic Mall, and Listia offer the marketing platform for buyers and sellers to interact through the auctioning process. Notably, the named sites allow the sellers to list the products for the auctioning method in which they can determine the prices of the products they offer to customers (Chen, Lai & Yu, 2017). Thus, the sites have limited influence on the pricing of the commodities during the auctioning process. On the same note, the three sites possess various mechanisms to deliver the purchased products to the customers as well as organized pickups for the customers.
Differences
Despite the eBay, Atomic Mall, and Listia providing the same online auctioning services to the sellers and buyers, they have differences. Such differences occur to attracts more customers and users and the addition of competitive values. For instance, eBay offers the delivery services while Listia and Atomic Mall ensure the sellers make arrangements for the delivery services to the buyers and organize the pickups. On the same note, eBay employs the proxy auctioning style that resembles or equivalent to Vickrey auction, also known as the sealed bid. At the same time, Atomic Mall uses a sealed bid system without a proxy system, and Listia uses English auction in which the highest bidder emerges as the winners or the buyer (Chen, Lai & Yu, 2017). Equally, eBay deals with a wide range of categories as compared to the Atomic Mall and Listia. Nevertheless, eBay has more comprehensive geographical operations as compared to the Listia and Atomic Mall.
References
Reddy, G. E., & Baki, M. A. (2018). Online Auctioning System.
Steiner, I. (2011). Atomic Mall Launches Auctions Very Different from eBay-Style Listings. Retrieved 24 May 2020, from http://www.ecommercebytes.com/cab/abn/y11/m01/i03/s01
Atomic Mall. (2020). Atomic Mall – Sell your Items!. Retrieved 24 May 2020, from http://www.atomicmall.com/sell
Chen, K. P., Lai, H. P., & Yu, Y. T. (2017). The Seller’s listing strategy in online auctions: evidence from eBay. Available at SSRN 2004814.
Reinartz, W. (2019). eBay: Transforming an Auction House into a Retailing Platform. NIM Marketing Intelligence Review, 11(1), 54-59.
eBay. (2020). Selling through auctions. Retrieved 24 May 2020, from https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/listings/selling-auctions?id=4110
Listia. (2020). Listia is giving XNK cryptocurrency to 10M users. Claim yours!. Retrieved 24 May 2020, from https://www.listia.com/
Turban, E., Strauss, J., & Lai, L. (2016). Social shopping: Concepts, benefits, and models. In Social Commerce (pp. 127-154). Springer, Cham.