Part A
Visit ebay.com and look at the many types of auctions available. What are the top 3 market opportunities you would pursue based on the goods and auction community in evidence at eBay? Discuss in detail.
The different types of Auctions available in Ebay are :

Normal Auctions.
These are the bread-and-butter of eBay, the auctions everyone knows: buyers bid, others outbid them, they bid again, and the winner gets the item. Simple.
Reserve Auctions.
Reserve auctions are for sellers who don't want their items to sell for less than a certain price - a concept you'll know about if you're familiar with real auctions. They work just like normal auctions on eBay, except that the buyer will be told if their bid does not meet the reserve price you set, and they'll need to bid again if they want the item. If no-one is willing to meet your price, then the auction is cancelled, and you keep the item.
Fixed Price ('Buy it Now') Auctions.
Buy it Now auctions can work in one of two ways. You can add a Buy it Now button to a normal auction, meaning that buyers can choose either to bid normally or to simply pay the asking price and avoid the whole bidding process. Some sellers, though, now cut out the auction process altogether and simply list all their items at fixed price. This lets you avoid all the complications of the auction format and simply list your items for how much you want them to sell for.
Recently, eBay added a twist to fixed price auctions: the 'best offer'. This means that buyers can contact you to negotiate a price, which could be a good way to get sell some extra stock at a small discount.
The only downside to reserve and fixed price auctions is that you pay a small extra fee to use these formats. In general, it is more worth using reserve auctions for higher-priced items and fixed price auctions for lower-priced ones - but remember that you can combine the two formats.

Multiple Item ('Dutch') Auctions.
These are auctions where you can sell more than one of a certain item. Dutch auctions can be done by bidding. Buyers bid a price and say how many items they want, and then everyone pays the lowest price that was bid by one of the winning bidders. If you have trouble getting your head around that, then don't worry - everyone else does too! These auctions are very rare.
Reserve price auctions
In a reserve price auction, you're able to set an undisclosed minimum price for which your item will sell,thereby giving yourself a safety net. Using a reserve price auction protects the investment you have in an item. If, at the end of the auction, no bidder has met your undisclosed reserve price, you aren't obligated to sell the item and the high bidder isn't required to purchase the item.
For example, if you have a rare coin to auction, you can start the bidding at a low price to attract bidders to click your auction and read your infomercial-like description. If you start your bidding at too high a price, you might dissuade prospective bidders from even looking at your auction, and you won't tempt them to even bid. They may feel that the final selling price will be too high for their budgets.
Everyone on eBay is looking for a bargain or a truly rare item. If you can combine the mystical force of both of these needs in one auction, you have something special. The reserve price auction enables you to attempt — and perhaps achieve — this feat.
The fees for a reserve price auction are the same as those for a traditional auction with one exception. eBay charges between $2.00 and $100.00 for the privilege of running a reserve price auction. If the reserve price is $200.00 or more, the reserve price fee is 1% of the reserve price (with a maximum of $100.00). When your item sells, you get that money back.
The reserve price auction is a safety net for the seller but often an uncomfortable guessing game for the prospective bidder. To alleviate buyer anxiety, many sellers put reserve prices in the item description, allowing bidders to decide whether the item will fit into their bidding budgets.
You can't use the reserve price option in a Dutch auction.
Restricted access auctions eBay won't allow certain items to be sold in no restricted categories, so you must list them in the Adult Only area of eBay. eBay makes it easy for the user to find or avoid these types of auctions by making this area accessible only after the user enters a password and agrees to the terms and conditions of the area.
Items in the Adult Only area are not accessible through the regular eBay title search, nor are they listed in Newly Listed Items.
Anyone who participates in Adult Only auctions on eBay, whether as a bidder or a seller, must have a credit card on file on eBay for verification.
Do not attempt to slip an adult only auction into a no restricted category. eBay doesn't have a sense of humor when it comes to this violation of policy and may relocate or end your auction. eBay might even suspend you from its site.
Private auctions
Bidders' names are often kept private when dealing in the expensive fine art world. Likewise, to protect the innocent, eBay private auctions don't place bidders' names on the auction listing. No one needs to know just how much you choose to pay for something, especially if the item is rare and you really want it.
As a seller, you have the option (at no extra charge) of listing your auction as a private auction.
The private auction is a useful tool for sellers who are selling bulk lots to other sellers. It maintains the privacy of the bidders, and customers can't do a bidder search to find out what sellers are paying for the loot they then plan to re-sell on eBay.
A great option for sales of items that are a bit racy or perhaps for purchases of items that may reveal something about the bidder, the private auction can save you the potential embarrassment associated with buying a girdle or buying the tie that flips over to reveal a racy half-nude female on the back.
Although the private auction is a useful tool, it may intimidate the novice user. If your customer base comes from experienced eBay users and you're selling an item that may benefit by being auctioned in secret, you might want to try this option.

Part B
Choose an E- Commerce website and asses it in terms of seven unique features. Which of the feature does the site implement well and which feature poorly in your opinion. Provide your detailed findings and suggestions for improvement.
FLIPKART : * Inventory vs Marketplace : Flipkart has operated mostly on the inventory model and though they seem to have pivoted to a marketplace model with WS Retail as their backend, it pretty much feels like an inventory model. * Hands on Understanding of Customer : Flipkart has been around in India for a comparatively long time and based on their recommendations, they seem to understand the Indian customer very well. Also, they have been pioneers of concepts like Cash on Delivery. * Understanding of Prices and Competition : Flipkart always tries to put the best price for the day to as many products in different categories * Brand Recognition and Trust : In terms of people who are in Tier 2 cities and youth, it is probably Flipkart that is more known than other competitors * Logistics : India is notorious for its infrastructure and Flipkart has built its own delivery arm. * Payments, Ecosystem, Experience etc – Flipkart is the pioneer in this area * It is easy to search for products * High resolution images with zoom viewer helps us to visualize the products in a minute. * We can also compare products. * They also provide free shipping on many products. * They also provide reviews received by sellers by putting stars against the products. * They show their products in a well-defined arrangement. * They also recommend similar products and related items. * It also offers multiple payment option. * It provides us product at cheaper rates or at a discounted price. * One can also see his browsing history.

Suggestions for Improvement:

* Checking out procedure could be a little simpler.

* Providing cash on delivery for local products.

* More payment options.

* A little less cluttered view.

Part C

While surfing on the web, visit at least two different sites and make a list describing all different marketing tools you see being used. Which one you feel is the most effective and why?
OLX : * OLX has a wide range of Paid, Owned and Earned media. * Social Networking sites create more awareness. * Earned media helps OLX to know customer perspective * OLX’s owned media separately classifies all major cities. * It helps to connect buyers and sellers directly. * Owned media like mobile apps helps OLX’s customer for easy access to website * Earned media:- Forums, Fan pages, Review articles helps to get +ve & -ve aspects as per customers’ view.
FLIPKART :

* Word of mouth (initial marketing even now they want to satisfy customer so they come back for more) * Good use of SEO * Good use of SEM * Ads at proper places and use pay per click to pay for ads * Very easy web interface * Payment convenience * Cash/card on delivery * EMI –by targeting price sensitive customers * Wallet – Customer can recharge money online and purchase then and when needed those entering details always is rectified, target heavy purchase and luxury customer * Customer conversion rate is so high more than 70% * Personalization of the user page * Product recommendation with your previous purchases