the midden

Glyde

Glyde’s approach is to attract people using a slick, uncluttered Web site that cuts many steps out of the e-commerce process.

Using the site’s catalog of products, sellers indicate the item they want to offer and specify its condition. They do not have to upload a photo or type in a product description. The site suggests the market value; if the seller adjusts the price, they are told how many cheaper items are ahead of theirs in the queue.

Buyers, on the other hand, see only one listing for each product and never learn the identity of the seller. Unlike on eBay, there are no feedback scores, a measure of a seller’s reliability that many online shoppers have become accustomed to consulting.

Behind the scenes, Glyde determines which seller will fulfill a purchase by calculating the best price and the fastest delivery time, and by assessing the quality of each seller, including how responsive they have been in past transactions.

Glyde takes a 10 percent fee on each completed purchase, and charges $1.25 to the seller for the envelope.

Buyers pay by credit card, and Glyde keeps the money until the buyer receives the item and indicates satisfaction with it. “If a buyer’s money is not in the seller’s hands until the buyer is happy,” Mr. Rothman said, “it’s much harder to game the system.”

Glyde Aims to Simplify Online Sales of Used Media - NYTimes.com

Mobile Marketing Turns Some People On, Some People Off

Demographically, consumers who like mobile marketing tend to be young men. They are cell phone-centered and more likely to use social media. On the other hand, those who don’t like mobile marketing tend to be slightly older women who are not as centered around their cell phone or use social media.

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Since June of 2008, the percentage of people who don’t like mobile marketing has increased. 66.8% don’t like text ads (v. 63.5 in ‘08), 60.2% don’t like voicemail ads (v. 56.8% in ‘08) and 59.6% don’t like video ads (v. 56.1% in ‘08). The percentage of people has also increased for those who say marketers need permission prior to sending an ad (58% v. 55.6% in ‘08) and those who think they are an invasion of privacy (52.1% v. 49.5% in ‘08).

“Marketers are excited about the potential of mobile marketing, but they need to beware,” said Gary Drenik. “Cell phones are perceived by consumers as a very personal form of media and unwanted messaging could be interpreted as an invasion of privacy. There is a risk in the mobile space of turning consumers off and have a negative impact on ROI.”

— Big Research