How can you use *competitive analysis datagathered outside of eBay to refine your Promoted Listings bidding strategy and gain a competitive edge?

Competitive analysis data gathered *outsideof eBay can significantly refine your Promoted Listings bidding strategy by providing insights into competitor pricing, promotional tactics, and keyword strategies that are not readily available within eBay's platform. By analyzing this external data, you can make more informed bidding decisions and gain a competitive edge. 1. Pricing Intelligence: Monitor competitor pricing on other platforms (e.g., Amazon, Google Shopping, their own websites) to identify pricing trends and opportunities. If competitors are consistently undercutting your prices on other channels, you may need to adjust your pricing on eBay or increase your bids on Promoted Listings to maintain visibility. If you maintain listings on different sites, and items aren't selling on eBay you can lower your minimum bid. You can then attract more customers by offering that specific listing at a discounted price. 2. Promotional Analysis: Track competitor promotions (e.g., discounts, free shipping, bundles) on other platforms to understand their promotional strategies and identify potential opportunities for your own promotions on eBay. If competitors are offering aggressive discounts, you may need to match or exceed their offers to remain competitive. You can also use this data to inform your timing and targeting of promotions on eBay. 3. Keyword Research: Analyze the keywords that competitors are using in their product titles, descriptions, and advertising campaigns on other platforms. This can help you identify relevant keywords that you may be missing in your own Promoted Listings campaigns. You can also use this data to identify negative keywords to exclude from your campaigns. 4. Product Trends: Use Google Trends, social media analytics, and other tools to identify trending products and keywords in your category. This can help you anticipate changes in demand and adjust your bidding strategy accordingly. 5. Audience Insights: Analyze competitor marketing materials and social media activity to gain insights into their target audience. This can help you refine your keyword targeting and ad copy to better reach your ideal customers. For example, a competitor selling running shoes might emphasize the use of those shoes in marathon training on their social media. Competitive intelligence should be used to establish your unique selling proposition. When you know everything your competitors are doing to sell product, it is easy to determine what they are neglecting to do. You might focus on the sustainability of your product, or offer free socks with your shoes. That makes your product stand out from the product that is already selling well. This external data allows you to optimize your Promoted Listings bidding strategy for maximum ROI. A competitor with listings on more sites might have more reviews than you. If you want to attract customers that are looking for the 'best product' you might need to use a slightly more aggressive bid strategy.