An
eBay branding and holiday campaign rolled out Monday to remind consumers that along with vintage goods, merchants sell new stuff on the site, too. In total, 25 million eBay sellers move $60 billion in
goods each year.
"Come to think of it, eBay." That's the company's tagline for the advertising campaign created by Goodby, Silverstein & Partners that will run through the holiday season.
"It's the most integrated campaign we've done," says Alan Marks, eBay senior vice president of communications.
Marks says as the holidays approach, consumers might need a little reminder that
eBay merchants also sell new merchandise. "The print creatives and TV ads are designed to drive home that point," he says, adding that while the goods are new, most are not necessarily in season. "We
want to remind consumers about the incredible selection of new merchandise that eBay offers -- not only by auction, but fixed prices, too."
During the past two years, fixed pricing has moved in
to take sales from the company's traditional auction model. After eBay announced third-quarter revenue, JP Morgan Analyst Imran Khan published a research note in October explaining that eBay's
marketplace continues to stabilize.
Global active users grew 2% year-on-year in the third quarter, roughly in line with the prior two quarters' growth. Khan writes that goods sold on a fixed
price continue to increase, reaching 56% in the quarter -- up from 51% sequentially.
Driving home that point, seven print ads will rotate through InStyle, Lucky, Popular Mechanics, and
Southern Living magazines. There are five standard banners and three rich media ads, of which one spotlights Chef Mark Sullivan providing instructions on how to cook Moroccan spice chicken. The
ad also offers information on the cookware and utensils.
The campaign also plans to run geographically targeted out-of-home ads; and nine TV commercials, four 15-second and five 30-second spots.
In one 30-second television ad produced by Jon Drawbaugh, titled "Jim/Thought/Holiday/HD," a man in his mother's living room holds a set of knitted mittens. "Let's talk about homemade gifts," he says.
"No one wants them. I know it's the thought that counts, but think harder. How about a snow mobile? It doesn't have to be expensive. Go to eBay."
Aside from traditional print and online ads, eBay
tapped comedic storytellers Jim Gaffigan, Michael Ian Black and Michael Showalter and Kevin Hart for 15 different digital vignettes. Everyone has an eBay story, and these actors share some of their
funny and memorable eBay stories. Some of the ads will reside in rotation on the eBay home page and across the Web, too.