eBay has announced it will launch "eBay Ink," a corporate blog that aims to offer buyers, sellers, stockholders and others a no-holds-barred view inside the online auction Goliath. eBay has tapped Richard Brewer-Hay, a blogging veteran, to head up the project.
Brewer-Hay was hired away from PodShow in January and has since been ramping up, sitting in on meetings, and reading eBay's existing corporate blogs as well as external blogs about the site. He vows to write unbiased entries about anything and everything related to eBay, from interviews with high-level executives to posts about eBay's efforts to "go green."
While eBay and Brewer-Hay haven't gone so far as to call the effort a direct response to the recent user unrest that led to a seller boycott in February, it's clear the company is trying to be more responsive and proactive with regard to its users' needs and frustrations.
Brewer-Hay admits he's never sold anything on eBay, but says he's a frequent buyer. In fact, he says his New Year's resolution for this year is to search eBay first before buying anything. More importantly, Brewer-Hay resolves to make "eBay Ink" more interactive and frank than any of the company's past or present communication efforts. Visitors will be able to respond to Brewer-Hay's posts, request posts on particular topics, and even suggest questions he will take up the chain of command. He's even floated the idea of setting up conference calls as a means to promote further discussion.
Brewer-Hay has apparently been given an all-access pass within eBay and will have no other responsibilities beyond managing "eBay Ink." He says his posts will go—unedited—straight to the blog, without first requiring internal approval.
Auctiva staff writers constantly monitor trends and best practices of those selling on eBay and elsewhere online. They attend relevant training seminars and trade shows and regularly discuss the market with PowerSellers and other market experts.
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