Even though eBay has made e-commerce simple enough to woo even non-technical sellers, not everyone is a devotee of the site. Enter electronics giant Circuit City, which is aiming to reduce the hurdles of time and effort for selling on eBay, through its newly launched TradingCircuit service.
Similar to efforts like those of AuctionDrop, Circuit City's TradingCircuit leverages the physical locations of a handful of Circuit City stores to provide a one-stop service for people or small businesses who lack have the time, skill, or merely the inclination to put their ware up for sale on eBay by themselves.
How it works
The concept is simple and nearly foolproof -- if you're willing to work within the guidelines of the arrangement. Gather up the items you want to sell and take them to TradingCircuit. Staff there will house the items, photograph them and write descriptions, then post them on their TradingCircuit eBay site. When the item sells, they will pack, ship, and collect payment -- then send you a check.
However, at present, TradingCircuit is being piloted at eight Circuit City locations in Atlanta and Pittsburgh. If successful, the program could be expanded at the beginning of next year.
To participate, items must accept a starting bid of $0.99 -- helping to ensure that it will be sold at some price level. Sellers can specify a reserve price for their items, but TradingCircuit then requires up-front fee of $20 to cover their costs of handling and return shipping, in case the item isn't sold.
TradingCircuit makes money when an item sells -- the service takes a 35 percent cut of the final sales price for items that fetch $500 or less, or 25 percent for any amount over $500. In addition, charges for eBay's listing fees and any payment fees come out of the proceeds. On the plus side, as with most eBay sales, the buyer pays for shipping.
Will it fly?
TradingCircuit's management is committed to making the concept work for both Circuit City and for its customers. Their initial locations in Atlanta and Pittsburgh have been operational for less than two months, but so far the results are encouraging.
"We're very happy with our results so far, but will hold off on opening new locations unstill early next year," said TradingCircuit general manager Franz Gilbert. "We do everything we can to make sure our customers come back, and many of them are making us a regular Saturday morning stop. They bring their items to us on their way to the Goodwill drop-off."
Gilbert said customers are using TradingCircuit to sell a variety of items, ranging from miscellaneous items found in their basements, all the way up to Picasso paintings. In fact, one TradingCircuit location customer is an artist who uses them as his distribution "gallery" -- dropping off his work, and letting the staff photograph the items, put them online, and handle the rest of the transaction.
He added that because of Circuit City's existing infrastructure, the TradingCircuit service was a natural for the electronics chain and its customers.
"This is what 'clicks and mortar' was meant to be," he said. "We have the infrastructure and locations in communities across the U.S. and internationally. The Circuit City stores are set up to accept products through their customer service counters, and we have full shipping facilities."
While it's available only in two markets at present, expansion of the program is contingent on new Circuit City locations opening -- and on gleaning some intelligence from the company's initial efforts.
"The fact that we're waiting for some Circuit City stores to be constructed gives us the luxury of running with our current locations and figuring out how to build the business," Gilbert said. "We're also finding out if and how does the TradingCircuit operating model 'help' a poor [store] location. Does it bring traffic to the location that it didn't previously get?"
Limited offering
With only eight locations, judging results may be premature -- but the enthusiasm on the part of both TradingCircuit's management and customers could prove sustainable. TradingCircuit itself is staffed by three to five full-time employees, who oversee the actual eBay selling process.
"We want to be sure there is a concentrated focus on our [online] business," Gilbert said. "By employing our own dedicated staff, we know their attention isn't going to be drawn away by the traditional Circuit City business."
Circuit City has some entrenched competition in the eBay drop-and-sell space -- AuctionDrop, an early mover in the industry, recently struck a deal with UPS that gives it access to thousands of UPS Store locations.
However, Circuit City wagering that its own national footprint and established back-end infrastructure will help it stay competitive. Currently, Circuit City operates in 158 markets, with 602 standalone "superstores" -- and five mall-based locations.
But before they are willing to leverage the chain's nationwide clout, Circuit City execs say they're concentrating on understanding the business and making growth decisions based on the experience they gain.
"This business is so totally transparent, you can literally watch how we perform by watching our vendor ratings and our sales," he said.
Scott Koegler is a contributor to eCommerce-Guide.com.
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