Richard Brewer-Hay’s blog hasn’t even launched yet, but already eBay’s corporate PR are intervening to clarify his statements.
Going back to the original CNN/Fortune Small Business piece, I was surprised to read this sentence:
I’ve been reading external blogs since I got here, too, and I think there’s great dialogue going on there. Scot Wingo’s blog eBay Strategies, Only eBay – all these blogs have a dialogue already, but they’re external. I plan to be linking to those blogs from the corporate blog, because I think that the external discussion is important.
What, no Auctionbytes? And unsurprisingly, Ina, Auctionbytes’ editor, thought the same thing.
A comment from eBay Corporate Communications came pretty quickly:
Richard’s point to Fortune Small Business editors about talking with bloggers was within eBay to coordinate editorial content with those authoring blogs that support eBay, PayPal and Skype; not outside bloggers.
As another commenter says, this clarification could do with some clarification. Is RBH supposed to be talking to other bloggers within the eBay group, as PR seem to think, or with those of us who don’t work for eBay, as he seems to think? I’m pretty sure that Only eBay and Scot Wingo aren’t corporate shills for eBay, but maybe PR think different. I think we should be told.
14 Responses
Sue, RBH will have free reign to say what he wants and then eBay corporate communications will run around the net clarifying what he said.
“What he actually meant was…”
I’m always happy to meet someone as cynical as myself, Randy 😉
OMIGOD – TWO of you!!
😯
Of course, if eBay had a few people whose job it was to run around the net dealing with the negative things that people said about them, that might be a much better idea than
corporate shillsin-house bloggers. That way, the customers get to set the agenda, and they feel like eBay are really listening to them.😛 @ Lynne.
Sue, that is a great idea! I would have a lot more faith in the information though if it came from an independent source that had direct access to the company.
So what they need to do is; invite you, me, Ina, Chris and other bloggers to San Jose for a blogger summit and give us access to the decision makers, then we can speak independently about what is going on. 🙂
Randy, I hope JD is reading your comment 😀
Fancy a trip to California Sue? Wonder if they’d make it in the Summer 😀
Yeah, why not 😀
Randy, that is a brilliant idea… I do hope they are watching…
Josoroni, they are watching. 🙂
Stranger things have happened. They just agreed to credit sellers affected by the P&P glitch on the US site. As far as I can remember eBay has never compensated sellers for an error on their part.
There is hope. Maybe they can hold the Blogger Summit in Chicago at eBay Live. (If they don’t cancel it)
If they won’t hold a blogger summit for us, maybe we should hold our own? I know Suzanne (eBay Selling Coach) is going too.
Sue, that is a fantastic idea. We will all be there so it would make sense. Ina, Tamebay, Suzanne, Gary from Auction Rebel, the mystery blogger from OnlyeBay, Wingo, and my self. A star studded group if ever there was one.
eMail me I have some ideas.
YGM 😀