eBay has finally decided to start putting some of the ‘extra’ properties they got with the $2.4 Billion purchase of GSI Commerce almost two years ago. In that acquisition eBay became owners of nine marketing companies (ClearSaleing, e-Dialog, FetchBack, M3 Mobile, MBS, PepperJam Exchange, GSI Media, Silverlign and True Action). Up to this point they’ve largely left them alone, but according to news from late last week, that is all changing.
eBay announced that they will be combining these nine companies into one comprehensive marketing agency which they will call eBay Enterprise Marketing Solutions. The company will be focused on helping companies develop complete multi-channel strategies and campaigns for digital display, email, mobile, attribution, SEO and database CRM information. Offering all of these solutions in one place, they hope, will attract brands which are tired of having to work with multiple companies to achieve their online marketing goals.
Reuben Hendell, eBay VP of marketing solutions, said, “What we’re doing now is we’re really moving from having nine separate but interrelated marketing companies, and what we’ve done over the last four months is really design a structure and an organization that takes these nine different companies that makes them one company.”
While eBay might be making their big push into the marketing and advertising world a little late, they might be just the thing to shake up this fragmented industry. There are dozens of ad networks, automation firms, multi-channel display sites and other companies offering ‘all-in-one’ solutions for marketing. eBay will obviously bring with it the deep pockets and innovative technologies which they are well known for.
Even companies like IgnitionOne, which will be a competitor to eBay Enterprise Marketing Solutions seems to think this might help spur innovation. Will Margiloff, the founder and CEO said, “The fragmentation of online advertising is stifling innovation. This is a problem for everyone in the online advertising ecosystem because we’re all feeding the industry increasingly indulgent treats; marketers are navigating the technology landscapes instead of focusing on strategic initiatives and leveraging data insights more effectively.”
What overall impact eBay will have in the marketing industry, and whether or not brands will take their marketing business to eBay remains to be seen. It seems clear, however, that consolidating the nine companies into one focused firm is a smart move.——
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