eBay for Business Awards One Year On – Editors Keys

The 4th annual eBay for Business Awards are open for entries with the grand prize totalling a humongous £20,000 in cash. You have until 11:59:59 on the 4th of September to submit your entry. As we continue to revisit some of last year’s winners, today we look at Editors Keys:

Editors Keys One Year On

Mark Brown, based in Manchester, launched Editors Keys in 2004 after struggling to justify the cost of an editing keyboard. He developed a product that transforms a normal keyboard into an editing one, at a fraction of the price. Mark listed his first batch of 100 items on eBay, which sold out in just one day, to customers in the UK and overseas.

His initial £100 investment has now become a multi-channel business, with turnover of £750,000 last year, with customers including the BBC, ITV and rapper Snoop Dogg.

Mark was the winner of the coveted Innovation Award at last year’s eBay for Business Awards

How did you use the prize money from your award?

Winning the award made us feel very proud, and it also made us reflect on the business and how far we’ve come. We’ve use the prize money to develop new products, including the recording equipment and digital products too.

How has your business grown in the past year since the awards?

We saw a drop at the start of lockdown, but since then there has been a big increase in sales. For example, March to June 2020 we had 60% increase in sales, with a 30% YoY increase. Sales are back to normal levels now.

Did the pandemic impact your business?

It actually improved sales, mainly because of the products that we make were in high demand. For example microphone sales went through the roof, as did video conferencing tools, just because everyone was working from home. We did have a slight issue with getting supplies as each product is made of lots of different parts e.g. Chinese factories closed. But even in these situations we focused on giving great customer service, such as giving out free products for compensation for delay.

Was eBay a helpful lifeline during the pandemic?

Yes, as when stores we usually sell to locked down, and that income stream therefore dried up, eBay was a great way to recoup some of the funds. It is great to have the platform there to reach customers around the world too

What are your future plans for your business?

We’re continuing to focus on growing our digital channels, particularly with the use of
video and growing our YouTube channel. We’re also looking to offer as many title packs
as possible, so video editors can buy the packs direct from us.

Do you have any tips for this year’s contestants?

eBay is a good way to grow your business, ensuring you have good customer support is crucial. We’d also recommend using social media to market your business as well as engage with your customers. For example we use YouTube to offer tips and advice.