A new logo, mobile apps and same-day delivery? This ain’t your momma’s eBay anymore. OK so your mom doesn’t use eBay and neither do you, but with the changes the online juggernaut recently announced, it wouldn’t hurt to join this party late.
On Oct. 10, eBay announced it would be making some serious changes to streamline its user experience. The home page will be called “feed,” eliminates the time- consuming monotony of scrolling through pages of desired products by taking a direct visual approach. Products will be displayed in columns of photos, including those recommended by users. The layout of this feature resembles Pinterest. The biggest announcement is eBay’s new same-day delivery service. Paired with a new mobile app called eBay Now, shoppers will be able to place orders on the go and have them delivered the same day. According to San Jose Mercury News, the delivery service was tested in the Bay Area for a couple months and will be available in other parts of the U.S. soon.
San Diego State kinesiology senior Sabrina Bujas likes that the waiting process has been eliminated.
“I’m not an online shopper, but it makes me more interested because I don’t like the waiting process,” Bujas said. “If I’m going to go and get something, I want to be able to have it that day or the next.” Business management junior Amanda Matson thinks the mobile app is a smart move for the company and will improve customer accessibility.
“Everyone is consumed by their phones,” Matson said. “I think a lot of people get caught up in online shopping because they can just keep looking at stuff.”
Not all students are ready to jump on the “eBandwagon.” Business management senior Victoria Sand said she will continue to shop in stores.
“I like to touch stuff before I buy it,” Sand said.
The collaboration and use of user data by websites is a growing trend. In many cases, including “feed,” sites take user data and base product suggestions from it. “I think it’s cool,” Sand said. “The fact that they can go through your browser is a little weird … but I think it’s a good use of resources for them. As a business major, I think it’s a good thing that they’ve tapped into.”
Some students, however, think it is more than just a little weird.
“I don’t like it at all,” Summer Nash, a recreation and tourism management junior said, “I think it’s weird. I feel like I’m being stalked.”
Regardless of what you think about the company’s specific changes, there is no doubt that online shopping is becoming more popular in the U.S. Bujas said the convenience of online shopping increases the pressure on physical retailers.
“The more accessible things are, people tend to gravitate towards that because everyone is so busy with school and work … it could have a negative impact on stores that you have to actually go to,” Bujas said.
According to an article on internetretailer.com, a survey conducted by the National Retail Federation reinforces Bujas’ point.
It predicts that 51.8 percent of U.S. consumers will shop online for their holiday gift needs, which is a 46.7 percent increase from last year. It will be interesting to see if eBay’s changes put some extra cash in developers’ pockets this holiday season.
