I hope everyone had a good week last week. My time away with my family was unbelievable (it’s 1:30pm on my first day back and I miss them already!) and our first family vacation as the four of us will be something I remember forever.

I’m still getting back into the swing of things here and looking forward to sharing more info and news as we head into the second half of 2009.

Before I do though, and at the risk of running two “enough-about-you-what-about-me?” blog posts in a row, here is a video interview from the TWTRCON I attended last month talking about corporate blogging, Twitter, and social media policies for corporations.

Cheers,
RBH

Cheers,
RBH

I was fortunate enough to finally get to meet Scot Wingo of Channel Advisor at the eCommerce Summit a few weeks ago. Although we only chatted briefly, he did promise to take part in a special “5 Minutes with…” feature for Ink. True to his word, he obliged last week and I’m happy to share the results with you now. Enjoy.

Cheers,
RBH

5 Minutes with… Scot Wingo

Full Name: Scot Wingo
Nickname: scotrover on eBay
Official Title: CEO and Co-founder
What You Really Do: Work to keep ChannelAdvisor on the cutting edge of ecommerce
Your First Day on eBay: I believe it was in mid ‘97, my account says ‘99, but I started a new one then.
Education/Schooling: I have a Computer Engineering background with undergrad from the University of South Carolina and Masters from NC State University
Interests: Personally - I pretty much spend non-work time hanging out with my kids – sports, ballet, Gymboree, etc. I’m also a huge Star Wars fan. Professionally – I love the ecommerce space and am more recently really interested in the various social network sand platforms.
Favorite Quote: “Do or do not… there is no try” - Yoda
Most memorable eBay experience: Post 9/11, there were many charity auctions and at ChannelAdvisor we helped run many of them raising millions of dollars. We also invested quite a bit to support GivingWorks and have brought tons of GMV through that platform and on to a host of charities.
Most recent eBay purchase/sale: A classic Nintendo 64 system for my son’s bday (shhh)
Favorite Albums: (I like more current stuff): Silversun pickups – Swoon, Only by the Night – Kings of Leon
Favorite Movies: Make mine sci fi: Star Wars, Terminator, Matrix, Spidey
What You Wanted to Be Growing Up: Luke Skywalker

Fill in the blanks:

I should have _not stayed up so late working__ yesterday.
I wish that I could _spend more time talking to customers. eBay sellers are a great bunch – smart, hard-working and very entrepreneurial_________.
The first thing I do when I get to work is: Play ball with my dog, Kit.

Some additional Q’s

Congrats on what I hear was another successful Channel Advisor Catalyst. For those unable to attend, what were the 3 main takeaways?

1. Dinesh did a great job explaining where eBay is going and admitting they had made some mistakes. That was a refreshing message.

2. The recession has hit everyone hard, but the survivors are going to come out stronger.

3. This is a great time to take share in ecommerce. If you are growing at > 5% y/y you are taking share – think about how to ratchet that up.

I receive emails and comments from folks with regularity, stating that they miss the “old eBay”? What do you miss about it? What don’t you miss?

I think of eBay as the original social network [editor's note: couldn't agree more. This is something I relay repeatedly when asked] . There was always an ecommerce element, but eBay built a great social graph around affinity groups. For example, I collect a very specific type of comic book art. 5-10yrs ago on eBay there was a lot of auctions going on, lots of discussions around this and the site was much more open. I could follow what other buyers were doing, track the sellers more closely, etc. That intersection of true-auctions, affinity groups and the social graph was special and that has left eBay.

Would you be interested in contributing to Ink in the future? Recommend individuals both inside and outside the company I should be interviewing?

Sure

What’s the elephant in the living room that I’m not addressing? Is there one? Many?

Too many to go into ;-)

Happy Monday everyone! Even though I’m out on holiday this week, I did manage to line up some pretty fun, interesting posts for you while I’m out.

The first involves a pretty cool eBay promotion currently taking place at Times Square. Stuart Elliott captured the essence of the event in his blog post on Friday. Essentially, eBay, with the assistance of Monty Hall and Mario Cantone, is taking over Times Square for 3 days this week hosting our own version of Let’s Make a Deal called “Let’s Make A Daily Deal.”

For those unable to play in-person in New York, you can play along at home by visiting ebay.com/dailydealgame. You can follow the live updates from the event on Twitter by following @ebaydailydeal.

Even though I’m unable to attend the event and away from a PC this week, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to sit down on the phone with both Monty Hall and Mario Cantone to do a celebrity version of our regular feature: “5 Minutes with…” So, without further ado, here we go…

5 Minutes with Monty Hall

Full Name: Monty Hall

Nickname: With a name like Monty, you don’t need any other nicknames.

Education/Schooling: I grew up in Winnipeg, Canada and got a Bachelor of Science from University of Manitoba. I worked at the radio station through college so when I graduated I went straight into broadcasting and decided to stop pursuing my career in medicine.

Interests: My main interest is in charities. I have raised over $1 Billion in the last 60 years for charity. If it hadn’t been for my celebrity, I would never have been able to raise that kind of money. I became the international chairman for life of the Variety Club. I’ve been involved in charity work since I was a child because my mother was very involved in it.

Why did you want to participate in this event?: I’ve always felt eBay was a legitimate and reputable company and I like to do things with businesses like that.

Favorite Quote: Wow. That’s a tough one. I never quote Shakespeare or George Bush. I usually quote my mother a lot. She always said if you’re going to speak or present publicly, make them laugh and make them cry… nothing in between.

Most memorable eBay experience: Both of my daughters are huge eBay fans. One of my daughters came to me saying she had found a comic book published in the 1940’s called “Monty Hall of the US Marines”… it had nothing to do with me, it was a play on words ffrom the Marine’s Hymn “Halls of Montezuma”. She bought the book for me on eBay. (I think I may sue the US Marines for using my name/likeness… just kidding).

Do you read any blogs?: I read three papers every morning over breakfast - cover to cover. After I’ve spent 3 hours reading my papers every morning, I don’t have any time to read blogs.

Are you a sports fan?: Huge. I used to commentate sports. I broadcast the first international game out of New York (The Polo Grounds) between Scotland and Argentina. I also played soccer for my college.

Favorite Albums: I don’t have a favorite album but I have a favorite song - Where or When. I serenaded my wife to that song and anytime I enter a ballroom now, they play that song. I sang it to her then, I sing it to her now (when I sing it to my children they tell me to be quiet).

Favorite Movie: John Ford’s How Green Was My Valley

What are you most looking forward to about doing the show this week? I love getting back into this environment and having it in Times Square, live on the jumbo tron, with all that pedestrian traffic will make it even more exciting.

5 Minutes with… Mario Cantone

Full Name: Mario Cantone

Nickname: People just call me Mario… although a few friends used to call me “Tiny” when I was in school because of my height. Not since though. Just Mario.

Education/Schooling: I went to Emerson College, Performing Arts. It was a fantastic experience because I was part of the Emerson Comedy Workshop with some great personalities, including Denis Leary. Amazing times.

Interests: I love the dining experience. Everything about it. From the food, to the pairings. I just love culinary artistry.

Most memorable eBay experience: I bought a Norma Desmond cigarette holder a while back. I don’t smoke, I just wanted it. I love the Buy it Now feature for the instant gratification but there’s also something exciting about winning an auction at the last minute.

Most recent eBay purchase/sale: I saved $55 buy shopping on eBay for a complete 17-volume collection of H.R. Pufnstuf

Favorite Albums: Sarah Vaughan’s Brazilian Romance

Favorite Movies: All About Eve and Raging Bull

Is this your first time ever hosting a live game show? What are you excited most about?: It is my first time. I love that it is in Times Square in New York. The energy is going to be great. I like the fact that it is live which will free it up - we won’t have to adhere to 23 minute time limits like on TV.

Fill in the blanks:

I should have __run longer_____ yesterday.

I wish that I could ____be more patient (but that’s impossible)_____.

The first thing I do when I get on stage is: it’s different every time.

In the meantime, thanks so much for your support, trust and readership over the past 15 months. I am excited to build on what we’ve accomplished when I get back.

Cheers!
RBH

Bottom line, the whole team over there - Delyn, Max, Adam, Laura, Kumar (I could go on) - put on another fantastic agenda and the feedback from those in attendance that I talked to was overwhelmingly positive. Great job to everyone who had a hand in making this year’s Developers Conference such a success.

Presentations

If you check out my preview blog post from earlier this week, you can access hyperlinks to PowerPoint presentations of every session over the past two days.

Keynotes

A thorough breakdown of the opening keynote on Wednesday, can be found here.

The second day of opening keynotes maintained the theme of “building your business with us”, and welcomed four notable Silicon Valley venture capitalists to share their insights on funding, business trends, and good business practices. Lorrie Norrington followed the panel discussing eBay’s future. Here is the full breakdown of the second day of keynotes.

For the most comprehensive coverage of the two-day event, please visit the eBay Developer Blog. It has everything from breakdowns of each session, to video interviews with attendees and employees. There’s a lot of content there, so I give you advance warning of getting sucked in - but if you have the time, it’s well worth the deep dive.

Finally, I would have been remiss if I didn’t take advantage of getting a few minutes with Max Mancini, Senior Director of Platform and Mobile for eBay.

Cheers,
RBH

5 Minutes with… Max Mancini

Full Name: Massimiliano Mancini
Nickname: Max
Official Title: Senior Director, Platform and Mobile
What You Really Do: Run eBay’s Platform and Mobile businesses, including the developers program, the technical product management team for our new platform initiative, the technical documentation team and eBay’s mobile team.
Your First Day at eBay: December, 2003
Education/Schooling: BS in Computer Science (Mathematics) and MS in Engineering Management from Santa Clara University
Interests: Cycling, Sailing, coaching Lacrosse
Favorite Quote: “Be careful what you ask for, because you might get it” — unknown
Most memorable eBay experience: Train conducting (??)
Most recent eBay purchase/sale: A righting bucket for my 16ft Hobie Cat sailboat, which I dropped in the ocean on my first outing 4 days after I got it.
Favorite Albums: Who buys albums?? If I had to pick it would be AC/DC “Back in Black”
Favorite Movies: Transformers, and not because of the eBay references.
What You Wanted to Be Growing Up: Software Engineer

Fill in the blanks:

I should have “gone to sleep earlier” yesterday.
I wish that I could “have more time”.
The first thing I do when I get to work is “say good morning to my co-workers”

However, before I do, I wanted to give a shout out to a group of individuals that work incredibly hard but seldom get the public recognition for it. Our interns. When Sarah Fleming joined the Internal Communications team last year, she was with 150 peers taking part in Intern orientation for eBay. She graduated from Santa Clara University last weekend and is ready (or at least thinks she is) to head out into the “real world.”

I managed to get a few minutes with Sarah before I head out and wanted to share my “5 Minutes With… Sarah Fleming.” On a personal note, I want to thank Sarah and all of the interns that have been part of the program this year. Your contributions are significant and I like to think that we’re continually learning something from each other - you’re a big part of the eBay family here.

Cheers!
RBH

5 Minutes with… Sarah Fleming

Full Name: Sarah Elizabeth Fleming
Nickname: Intenlicious
Official Title: Internal Communications Intern
What You Really Do: I provide communication support across Marketplaces and PayPal and write a whole bunch of iWeb stories. I’ve become known as the “contest queen” because the two biggest projects I’ve managed here have been contests; the internal Photo Card contest and the PayPal Living the Brand video contest. I also do a lot of event coordination and run the North America Marketplaces Brown Bag sessions in San Jose.
Your First Day at eBay: June 23, 2008
Education/Schooling: Graduated from Santa Clara University on Saturday, June 13 with a BS in Economics!!
Interests: Singing, microfinance, photography, traveling, and now skydiving- I went 3 weeks ago and it was awesome!!
Favorite Quote: Every day is a gift. That’s why they call it the present.
Most memorable eBay experience: I used Skype a lot when I lived in Florence, Italy last year. Every time I think about Skype it reminds me of all the great times I had in Italy and how I was able to share those memories with my family. And the best part was that I could actually see their reactions all thanks to Skype video chat. These are the types of memories I will never forget.
Most recent eBay purchase/sale: I just bought the book “Australia for Dummies”. I’m planning a trip there next year so I figured it was time to start educating myself on where to go and what to see. And I got a great deal on it with free shipping!
Favorite Albums: AC/DC Back in Black. Just saw them in concert for the first time and am going again in September. Best concert I’ve ever been to, hands down.
Favorite Movies: Super Troopers, Pride and Prejudice (the BBC version, of course), and Up - I just saw it for the second time and cried for a second time. Yes, I know it’s a kids movie, but it was beautiful.
What You Wanted to Be Growing Up: I’ve always wanted to be a country singer. My mom is a professional opera singer so I’ve been exposed to music my whole life. I used to put on shows for her, making up songs and pretending to sing like her. I still think it would be a great job and I’m not done growing yet, so you never know!

Fill in the blanks:

I should have __studied for finals_____ more.
I wish that I could ___travel everywhere_______.
The first thing I do when I get to work is ___pour myself a very large cup of coffee and take in the silence before everyone in my row gets here_____

I have also included links to the presentations for each session (when available) so I hope that helps too.

I will be tweeting live from the conference @ebayinkblog and you can follow all the discussions coming out of the conference by referring to the #ebaydevcon hashtag. (A breakdown of hashtags and their usage on Twitter can be found here).

Wednesday, June 17 (all times PT)

* Keynote 9:30 - 11am

* eBay Product Roadmap 11:30am - 12:20pm
(other options are: “It’s All About the Money;” “Improving the Profitability of eBay Retailers;” and “Hosted Buttons and the Button Manager API“)

* The eBay Selling Manager Application Opportunity 1:30 - 2:20pm
(other options are: “Large Merchant Services;” “PayPal Platform: The Next Generation;” and “SEO 101: Tips and Tricks for Search Engine Optimization“)

* Embracing the Economy of Open 3:30 - 4:20pm
(other options are: “Driving Business with PayPal;” “Building compelling applications using the new eBay services;” “Data Powered Selling Manager Applications“)

Thursday, June 18

* Keynote 9:00 - 10:30am

* Search and Best Match - What’s Coming in 2009 11:00 - 11:50am
(other options are: “The Future of Securing the eBay Marketplace;” “Embracing the Economy of Open;” “Feedback Forum: eBay Selling Manager Applications”)

* Feedback Forum: eBay & PayPal Trust and Safety 12:30 - 1:20pm
(other options are: “Improving seller efficiencies on eBay;” “eBay Product Roadmap;” “When Creativity isn’t enough, try murder“)

* Supporting Multi-Variation Fixed-Price Listings in Your Application 1:30 - 2:20pm
(other options are: “Determining Demand and Managing your Tools;” “Best Practices for PayPal Integration;” “Feedback Forum: Developers Program Business and Product”

Cheers,
RBH

From the post...

What are reserves?
Rolling reserves are very common in the payments industry, so some of you may have already experienced them with your merchant accounts. For those of you who are unfamiliar with rolling reserves, here’s how it works. PayPal may require that a small percentage of some of our sellers’ payment volume be held in their account for a period of time, sort of like a security deposit to cover future chargebacks and reversals.

We’re requiring reserves for a very small percentage of our sellers – currently less than 1%. To determine when to place a reserve, we look at a number of factors that may increase the risk of chargebacks or reversals – things like industry categories that have higher-than-average chargebacks, or sellers who are new to PayPal (where we’ve historically seen a higher instance of chargebacks or reversals). We reassess risk factors periodically, and if we determine that the risk has gone down in certain seller segments, we will release the reserve.

Given what I’ve seen written online already, I have a feeling these reserves will be met with mixed responses. Even though I do understand the reasoning behind them, one could ask the question why hold funds when sellers need access to them more than ever? The counter point I guess is that in the current economic environment, at a time when other financial companies are turning some merchants away, PayPal is still providing a cost-effective payment service, and making it very easy to get set up.

That said, what do you think?

Cheers,
RBH

I wanted to double check the details around the eBay DevCon later this month, and noticed that the keynote speaker lineup is pretty impressive. In addition to speeches and presentations by John Donahoe, eBay President and CEO; Mark Carges, CTO and SVP of Global Platform at eBay; and Lorrie Norrington, President of eBay Marketplaces; the conference also boasts the following Silicon Valley visionaries and venture capitalists:

- John Hagel, Co-Chairman, Deloitte Center for the Edge
- Mark Gorenberg, Managing Director, Hummer Winblad Venture Partners
- Rob Hayes, Partner, First Round Capital
- Sergio Monsalve, Partner, Norwest Venture Partners
- Ravi Mohan, Managing Director, Shasta Ventures
- Charlene Li, Founder, Altimeter Group

Looking at the schedule, the only problem I seem to be faced with is determining which of the tracks to attend at a given time. For those of you unable to go, take a look and let me know which presentations are of most interest so I can live-blog from those via Twitter.

I’ll be live-blogging all day June 16 and 17. Let me know if you’re attending so we can connect.

If you haven’t registered yet, you still can do by clicking here.

Cheers!
RBH