2026 Annual Planning: Marketing Insights for Revenue Opportunities
Summary: The discussion is titled "Jahresplanung 2026: Marketing-Insights für Umsatzchancen" and focuses on marketing strategies and opportunities for increasing revenue in 2026. However, no specific details are provided in the initial post, and there are no responses yet.
How do you achieve forward-looking annual planning for 2026 that lets you spot demand peaks, seasonal sales opportunities, and new marketing trends early - without last-minute stress? That's exactly what this podcast episode is about.
Host Isabell talks with Matthias Neubauer, Head of Seller Development at eBay Germany, about eBay Advertising's 2026 Marketing Trends Calendar and how online retailers and eBay sellers can use it specifically for their business, marketing, and assortment planning.
The 2026 Marketing Trends Calendar is based on real eBay market data from October 2024 to September 2025. It shows when demand is particularly high in individual categories - a clear advantage for data-driven sales and campaign planning. New this year are category-specific calendars for Fashion, Electronics, Motors, and Toys & Collectibles.
In this podcast episode, you'll learn:
- how to use the Marketing Trends Calendar specifically for assortment, budget, and resource planning
- why successful eBay Advertising starts before the demand peak
- why optimized listings are the basis for greater visibility and higher sales
In addition, it covers key growth strategies for 2026, including international selling on eBay, eBay Live as part of a successful multi-channel strategy, and the potential of Refurbished and Recommerce.
**Important links**
- Marketing Trends Calendar (https://www.ebay.de/sml/marketing-trends-kalender-2026?utm_source=marketing_trends_calendar&utm_medium=content&utm_campaign=mtc_2026&utm_content=download_page&utm_term=podcast)
- eBay Live (https://www.ebay.de/ebaylive/seller)
- eBay for Business on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/ebayforbusiness.de/)
- eBay for Business on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/ebayforbusiness_deutschland/)
- More info on the eBay podcast “Alles top. Gerne wieder!” and our podcast hosts (https://www.ebay.de/verkaeuferportal/news/podcast)
** Chapter markers **
- 00:00:00 to 00:03:37: Intro
- 00:03:37 to 00:04:08: Annual planning
- 00:04:08 to 00:07:26: Marketing Trends Calendar
- 00:07:26 to 00:10:17: Peaks & Ads
- 00:10:17 to 00:18:50: Seller voices
- 00:18:50 to 00:28:43: Trends 2026
- 00:28:43 to 00:32:41: Growth
- 00:32:41 to 00:33:37: Outro
Matthias: It helps a bit to structure yourself, maybe also makes life a bit easier. If I think about it now: I'm a seller who's been selling the same assortment for years. Maybe this year there'll be one or two occasions where he says, okay, maybe it's worth thinking about expanding my assortment, maybe asking about other product categories and selling on eBay.
Isabell: Hello and welcome to "Alles top. Gerne wieder!", the eBay podcast about retail and eCommerce. My name is Isabell Butterwegge, and today it's all about trends and peaks in 2026. And so that you can identify the trends that are important for your business this year, we've brought along the 2026 Marketing Trends Calendar, which we designed specifically for this year. And I'm not here alone, I've also invited Matthias Neubauer. Matthias is Head of Seller Development at eBay Germany, and we've also shared the stage together quite a few times, which is why I'm especially happy that you're here today. Hello Matthias, first of all.
Matthias: Hi Isabell.
Isabell: Maybe you can briefly explain what Head of Enterprise Development actually means to start with.
Matthias: Isn't that totally self-explanatory? Probably not. With eCommerce companies, people are always very creative when it comes to titles. I'll try to explain it a bit more practically. So basically, my team and I take care of account management. We support the largest and strategically most important sellers for eBay 360 degrees. That means from the little issues that may occasionally come up at eBay - very, very rarely, of course - to solving them, all the way to joint business planning. And always with the goal of strengthening business on eBay together and growing together. And right now it's mainly sellers from the Electronics and Collectibles categories. And I'm especially excited because this is a first for me today, even though we've sat together on the podcast before. Because today it's the first time I'm fully grown-up here.
Isabell: Fully grown-up means you've now been with eBay for 18 years.
Matthias: Yes, well. We didn't practice that beforehand. Exactly. Right.
Isabell: Yes, very nice. So an anniversary right away, which we can celebrate along with the episode. Exactly. Today we're talking about annual planning, Matthias. And that sounds a bit like New Year's resolutions too. Did you start 2026 with a resolution this year as well?
Matthias: I gave it up a few years ago. Honestly, because I never stuck to it. So I didn't set any really good resolutions.
Isabell: I have to say, I'm absolutely a planning person myself. I love lists, I put everything on to-do lists, shopping lists, etc. What about you privately? Do you plan annually too? Do you plan everything out? Or is it more spontaneous at your place?
Matthias: Well, I'd say it depends on who you ask. Especially. I'll use vacation booking as an example. We love going on holiday and as often as we can. We just book quite spontaneously. So early-bird discounts weren't invented for us. It's sometimes like, what are we actually doing in the summer? And two weeks before, we book Crete. Somehow. Okay, I always tell myself it's so late again that it gets cheaper because some allotments are still free. Honestly, I've never checked whether that's actually the case or not. So I think we're good customers of all the travel portals and travel agencies. They probably mostly like it when we book there. But that makes it sound like I don't plan anything at all. It's not quite like that, I'd also say that especially at work I'm more structured and try to plan a quarter somehow. At eBay, we always think about planning one quarter at a time, but always with the willingness to react spontaneously as well. Because flexibility is, I think, very, very important in eCommerce.
Isabell: That's actually a good keyword already, probably something to take away for today's episode. Then let's take a look at how you can approach the whole thing more strategically in a business context, to basically take advantage of something like early-booking discounts. We work continuously to support our sellers as well as possible, especially your team too. And a few years ago we already developed the Marketing Trends Calendar. Those of you who've been listening for a while may be familiar with it. But maybe you can briefly summarize again what it actually is.
Matthias: Sure, gladly. I actually prepared a bit today, yes. This is the fourth calendar we're releasing. I knew we'd released a few. This is now the fourth. And like every year, it's meant to help you sellers on eBay, of course. To know certain demand peaks in advance, to plan for them, and then also to identify relevant buying occasions for this year. I still need to get used to thinking about 2026 on the radar, maybe to be a bit of inspiration. To look beyond the edge of my own plate a bit. I mean, when you've been doing the business the same way for years, you always say I already know everything, same for me really. Probably the same for many of us, but maybe there are one or two trends that you don't have on your radar. And I think that's exactly where the Marketing Trends Calendar can be very, very helpful. And what's new in this fourth year is that for the first time we'll also create four versions, and bring them for four different categories on eBay. That's the Fashion category, everything with a plug, so Electronics. The third is around Auto Accessories, Parts, Motors, and then the fourth for Toys and Collectibles, collecting and rare items.
Isabell: Super cool. So that means in each calendar I also have category-specific events and trends that I should take into account, and can then use the calendar a bit more strategically for my inventory.
Matthias: Exactly. I nodded now, but that doesn't help in a podcast. Yes, that's exactly right.
Isabell: Yes. What data basis is this calendar created from?
Matthias: So these are actually real eBay data underlying it. If I remember correctly, it should be a time span from October 24 to September 25. And we simply looked at how demand developed in certain product categories on eBay. And the percentage values you then see in the Marketing Trends Calendar show demand above the respective monthly average. If it says 32%, then that's 32% higher than the monthly average otherwise.
Isabell: That's also very easy to put into context. You just said that often sellers, or you notice it yourself too, can become a bit blind to their own business when they keep dealing with the same things. So how exactly can this calendar help me plan this year?
Matthias: If you say, Isabell, that you're a totally structured person and love lists and all that, then this is probably exactly right for you. It helps a bit to structure yourself, maybe also makes life a bit easier. If I think about it now: I'm a seller who's been selling the same assortment for years. Maybe this year there'll be one or two occasions where he says, okay, maybe it's worth thinking about expanding my assortment, maybe asking about other product categories and selling on eBay. I think a second aspect would be resource planning too. So when do I need to expect maybe having more people in my warehouse because some big demand is coming? Of course, it also makes sense to think about marketing measures, our advertising. When do I block which budget for which topic? And in the end it's supposed to take away a bit of the stress.
Isabell: Since you just mentioned advertising measures. If I find out in the calendar that trend XY or a peak is coming my way, how should I plan my advertising budget then? Exactly at that time? Or better beforehand? Or maybe afterward? Yeah.
Matthias: Good question. Yes, so actually start a bit earlier. So if Carnival starts, for example, then maybe you should start 1, 2, 3 weeks before by advertising it with basic ads or premium ads or store ads with us, to give yourself a bit of an advantage. In eBay search then maybe increase the budget a bit more during peak season. So when it's really about everyone searching for fun Carnival stuff. By the way, I'm not a Carnival person at all. I'm from Berlin. So you don't really need to show that to me here. Yeah. Then let it run out a bit again.
Isabell: We always say you should only promote a well-optimized listing, which means the listing should already be optimized beforehand. So I can basically make a note for myself: about six weeks before I want to sell, I should ideally start revising my listings at the latest, so I can promote them right on time for peak season. Correctly summarized?
Matthias: Super perfectly summarized.
Isabell: Okay, Matthias, we've introduced a new segment in our podcast. Our podcast is called "Alles top. Gerne wieder!", and inspired by that we've introduced the new segment "Alles top, Gerne nie wieder!". With a view to trends, even if you draw on learnings from previous years, what do you never want to hear in 2026?
Matthias: Can't do it, or we've always done it that way and it works anyway, kind of thing. Maybe also a bit: I'm personally someone who actually prefers continuity, even after 18 years at eBay. Yes, of course. I've done many different things at eBay and still want to remain open a bit to new things, to innovations, to new trends. To be less skeptical, to give things a chance maybe. That doesn't mean blindly chasing every trend, but still keeping a certain healthy common sense, while also giving new things like shopping a chance and saying yes, this live shopping on TV is kind of 15 or 20 years old. At least, at least. Yes, I was trying to make myself a bit younger. Yes, but why shouldn't it also work online and just try it and take a certain risk?
Isabell: Matthias, besides your expert opinion. Today we've also asked some sellers who will share a few more tips with us during this podcast episode. But before we get started, one more question for you out there. Which topics interest you most this year? What would you like to hear an episode from us about? Feel free to leave us a comment wherever you're listening right now and tell us more about it.
Lisa: Hi, I'm Lisa, founder of Second Life Fashion. I've been selling secondhand fashion for women and men on eBay for over ten years. When it comes to annual planning, what's especially important to me is staying very close to actual sales and making my decisions based on collected data. Especially in the secondhand sector, I don't plan classic collections like fashion labels do, but instead I go by what really sells well. True to the motto: the bait has to taste good to the fish, not the angler. A very concrete example from our purchasing. I regularly look at which sizes sell the fastest. And for us, that's clearly larger sizes. So this year we will consciously focus our procurement on that. I also plan very carefully financially. At the start of the year I always do a budget plan for the whole year and set clear guardrails. For example, on the marketing side, where you can really spend an incredible amount of money. Instead of constantly running campaigns, I plan very specific periods in which I spend money, but I also deliberately allow quieter months completely without paid advertising. That keeps my costs low and the business stable. And what has become most important to me over the years is my focus. I only set myself a few big topics per year and I've learned that you don't have to do everything at once to be successful in the long term.
Meroda: Hello, I'm Meroda and I'm the owner of fashionfouvintage and we actually also have an eBay account with the same name. At the start of each year, as a team, we always ask ourselves a bit: What do we actually want to achieve this year? Which topics do we want to focus on? And what's important for us, for example, is that we also work very agilely. That means on the one hand, we always look a little at what topics are maybe currently happening in the media, but also at what topics might come to us through our community. And then we actively and regularly feed that into our planning. What's also specifically important for us is that I travel a lot, and we always plan very early on which trips will take place on the one hand, but also which stories we can build around them. And what's also important is: what can we give back to the community? For example, I was recently in Tokyo for three weeks, and what happened there was that we had a lot of order lists. We conducted interviews on site, we took the community with us into the warehouses. They helped me choose what we could take with us and what would eventually be back in Berlin for the big drops. And that's really about working very closely with the community. And a third thing we focus very strongly on is thinking very specifically about which events and happenings we might want to visit this year and, above all, how we get access to them. On the one hand, of course, we question our network: what influencers, industry contacts, or maybe business partners have we already worked with and have a connection to? And we strategically expand that for ourselves too, and maybe think about which points of contact are still missing and what we can actively do there? And otherwise, of course. If you look at which tools we use, it's nothing earth-shattering, but important tools nonetheless. On the one hand, we look at Instagram Insights, we work a lot with TikTok Creator Search Insights and see okay, what trends and reach analyses can we use for ourselves? And otherwise, CapCut is also a tool we use regularly internally.
Thomas: Yes, thank you very much for having me on the eBay podcast today. My name is Thomas from nesatec. We are sellers on eBay and market products from our joint partners such as manufacturers and brand owners on eBay in the area. And the topic fits pretty well, namely planning 2026. What big points are coming up for us? And the main topic, or what? For us, growth is super important. Over the last two years we've invested heavily in the site. More than €2 million has gone into a new office, new logistics, and a completely new refurbished process to refurbish products such as household appliances or robotics products, for example. So, super exciting. And then, for example, we also built a content studio for ourselves where we can now record our own content. So not just take pictures, but actually make videos. But I'll come back to that later. So quite a lot of investment has gone in. We now need to grow a bit, or want to, and we're looking forward to it and are fully convinced we'll do it. One point maybe: if you go into detail, there are three main points, and one of them is to gain more partners, to win manufacturers, brand owners, who don't just want a listing on eBay, but who also need experts at their side. Today we buy the products from our partners. And then we work out a strategy together: How can we be successful on eBay? And that's, on the one hand, eBay offers a lot of possibilities and we can make this and the content a bit better now. We can record videos, and what we can also do today is offer much, much more products. That means the goods that come back from customers, which is completely normal in eCommerce, we reprocess ourselves and market them. That means our manufacturers and partners no longer have anything to do with it. So that's a major point through which we want to grow. The second point is specifically about refurbished products. We are experts in the field of smartphones, tablets, refurbishing. We have our own. So we have a second company, that cares, and it repairs the products properly, goes really into depth, takes them apart - we can do that there. And we're now building up that expertise too. Or we have now also built it up in other product categories, for example household appliances. If I take a robot vacuum cleaner, for example, a robot vacuum cleaner has very different requirements than a smartphone. You have to work with dust exposure and so on. You can't tell employees: here, make the thing clean and then they don't get black lung, more or less - that doesn't work. So we built special facilities to be able to do that. Just as an example. That's the second area we want to grow in. And the third area is live shopping, which I find extremely exciting. That's something eBay is very focused on right now too. And I also see potential there, as I said, for products that require explanation or products where the USP isn't immediately obvious, to promote them via videos - what is a live event. We built a studio especially for that. We can now do that too, and then we want to grow. We offer that to our partners. And yes, we're really excited about it and looking forward to implementing it together with eBay. Thank you very much!
Rene: Thank you so much for the invitation. And yes, today I want to give you my top three topics. Who am I anyway? I'm Rene, from Austria, and I've been selling on eBay for ten years. Or rather, yes, my YouTube channel RMK. And today I'll go through the three topics. The top topics that are very, very important for my annual planning. Of course. Number one: since we focus very, very heavily on live shopping, it's sourcing and liquidity planning too. Why? Because Pokémon new goods are very, very expensive, and that's why we're already making sure we buy more stock, we've made a very, very large purchase that we naturally won't sell through for another three, four, five, six months. But perhaps that's a small tip worth taking away: if you only ever buy what you can sell in the next two weeks, then especially with Pokémon you may end up with no goods left and won't be able to go live anymore. Important to say as well: you also have to plan liquidity well. That means if you buy everything now, but then you don't have any money left for fixed costs and so on, then it gets relatively critical. What is our target? We want to make around €1 million in revenue this year with the shop, or with eBay Live. It looks very, very good. We're currently on March 26 as of the recording, and we're actually right on track. What I also want to push more is Instagram. Social media fell a bit by the wayside last year because we had very, very much to do. That's why we've now brought in an editor who has been cutting the shorts for us for about a month and a half now. And also important: the main point for us this year is simply eBay Live, where, for example, with the Vertical tool we can cut out funny scenes. Or funny points, or good pulls of course. That means we've also installed the Vertical tool in the live stream. So we can record the videos in portrait orientation and it makes things much, much easier. So those are the top three points that are very important to me. Of course, eBay Live, liquidity planning, or also getting hold of the goods. And the last point is definitely doing even more social media. We're very, very big, but we simply do too little, and there's still a lot of hidden potential there.
Isabell: We've just been talking about Carnival, which is very predictable and happens again every year. It's easy to plan for. But there are also a few trends or moments every year, shall we say, that aren't recurring. What kind of trend types should I be dealing with?
Matthias: Yes, good question. I'd say there are basically three categories of how you can think about trends. We already talked about one of them: the plannable events, Christmas, Easter, all those things, they come every year, Carnival somehow keeps coming back. In certain regions too. I think that's the first: the plannable events. Then there are maybe, what's the best way to say it, anticipatable events. So the Winter Olympics are taking place in Italy this year. The FIFA World Cup is just around the corner, the Darts World Championship just ended. There's also an ever-growing hype around that, especially in Germany. It also definitely matters when new albums come out, new releases, new car models. That's all relatively anticipatable. Yes, exactly. And maybe a few funny events happening this year too. So on May 25, there's, I don't know if any of you know this, in England they do the Cooper Hill Cheese Rolling where people go up the hill and then they roll a wheel of cheese down. And I think you have to arrive before the cheese gets to the bottom. They break bones and all sorts of things there, but are then totally proud if you get to the bottom before the cheese. So I have no idea if we have any cheese sellers among us, but that might be an event to say, okay, maybe we put food in general in the spotlight. Knee pads or knee pads too. Also good. Yes, very good. I was at an ice hockey game recently and they kept showing ads for the chiropractor. I thought that was pretty practical too. Yes, so at the end of August, for example, the Air Guitar World Championship takes place in Finland. Who hasn't always dreamed of becoming air guitar world champion?
Isabell: Well, tricky to sell.
Matthias: Yes, that's true. You got it. Yes. And then at the end of October there's also the Dachshund Race and Dogs World in Munich. So the Pets and accessories topic is also a big one. So there are an incredible number of events and occasions that fall into this area and can be anticipated.
Isabell: Yes, and then there are also always trends that arise very spontaneously through social media. You already talked about flexibility and spontaneity at the beginning of the episode. How do I deal with that as a seller?
Matthias: Yes, I don't think you have to jump on every trend. And not every trend makes economic sense for yourself either. Yes, I mean, just look at how old I am. Somehow. Six seven. Yes, that's kind of going around right now or was probably already going around. No idea. That's why people buy clothes with a 67 on them maybe? Don't know. I have. A few days ago I read that Taylor Swift drank some wine from a French winery in some documentary about her. It's sold out. Nobody can buy that wine anymore. Those are things you can't predict. I think it's always important to put it into context a bit. Is this somehow in my business area, or is it just a nice trend that I watch from the sidelines? Yes, right here in Germany, as we're recording the podcast, it's the dead of winter. Yesterday I wanted to buy that extra fluid for the car windshield. Yes, a bit late, yes. So de-icer. So some things you can kind of foresee, others just happen.
Isabell: Yes, yes, absolutely. I think the only tip there is probably for our sellers, when they list offers, to always keep an eye on a baseline so that everything is ready to go at any time, so they can have the flexibility that a trend needs.
Matthias: Nothing is worse than offering it on eBay and then you don't have any stock left, no availability, and people buy it and you have to cancel the transactions. That's not so good either. So a certain amount of planning and maybe being a bit more conservative at times is certainly helpful there.
Isabell: Yes, you've already given a few very, very good and funny examples of trend moments for this year. And as you just said, we've created this calendar for different categories. Maybe we can go through the categories a bit and see what's coming up this year, what you might not immediately have on your radar. Let's maybe start with Fashion. We're still at the beginning of the year, and the Fashion Weeks are kicking off again right away. Yes, and then the Met Gala and the Oscars are coming up this year too. I don't know if you're still following that, but of course those are moments, especially in the luxury segment, that you should definitely keep on your radar.
Matthias: Well, there's a reason why I do the podcast and not video. Yes, so Fashion and me, okay, yes, but what comes to mind again as a sports fan is the World Cup, USA, Mexico, I don't even know. Canada, North America, let's say Central and North America. Of course the topic of merchandise, all the jerseys, flags, etc. will certainly go through the roof again. What I've also noticed is that the Queen would actually have celebrated her 100th birthday this year. So I have no idea if something might happen in the direction of Royal Vintage. That could definitely be possible too.
Isabell: And then there are always moments, of course, especially in Germany, where FIFA then takes place in the Electronics category, and something I think you can already firmly plan for is that Apple will have its keynote again in the fall, where new products are presented, and then there are a few more in the Collectibles category too.
Matthias: Maybe one more thing on Electronics, because that's a bit of my specialty. CES in Las Vegas has just taken place, and I don't know if I can say this, but I saw this amazing new Lego brick that reacts to distance, that reacts to situations, like whether the car is driving, crashes, and then emits sounds or signals somehow. I found that pretty impressive, for example. Lego bricks, Lego bricks, the new generation of Lego bricks. So not just snapping them together anymore, but interactive, basically. It was just presented. I found that very, very exciting, for example. Something else that's still coming up this year, I think, is 20 years of gaming consoles. Yes, so Nintendo Entertainment System. The older ones among you still know it as NES and Gameboy. There may be a few more things coming out of that. Yes, otherwise, as just mentioned, great Collectibles, Gamescom happens every year, Comic Con is coming up! Pokémon release is definitely and.
Isabell: In March a new Pokémon game is coming out for the Nintendo Switch.
Matthias: Okay, I have a Switch at home. Okay. Yes.
Isabell: You can make a note of that too. Yes, good. Yes. And then in the Motors area. I think you already mentioned it earlier. Of course. New model launches. But isn't Formula 1 too?
Matthias: Formula 1 usually kicks off in March, I think. Australia is usually Melbourne, the first Grand Prix. The international motor show is there. Essen Motor Show is coming up! Right now, with this weather, I don't like talking about summer tires, but at some point, summer tire change, then winter tires again, etc.
Isabell: Then of course people will be buying pool pumps and garden tools again. Yes, exactly. So we see a huge range from A to Z. Very, very much coming up this year in all categories. In addition to the seasonal occasions, of course. What role does it play in annual planning that I look at historical sales data again, so I look at what happened in previous years?
Matthias: Exactly. I think data is always the basis for all business decisions. You shouldn't just be guided by trends. I think most sellers on eBay also have a lot of experience. Yes, there are various tools. Product research can somehow be used.
Isabell: We now call it product research. But the functionality is exactly the same.
Matthias: Then let's call it product research. Exactly, that stays fixed and doesn't change. More or less. Exactly. So yes, data are of course always important for making a decision. Everyone knows that. I don't even need to mention it. But it's not worth chasing every trend if you can't get the inventory, or only at poor purchase prices, and then the goods arrive far too late. And the trend is already over again. Then that doesn't really help either.
Isabell: I think where historical data can also help is a bit with forecasting, which you can also do with the calendar. So if I know summer is always my peak, I should, as you just said, make sure my stock is filled accordingly in summer. And I think it was last year when we recorded an episode together with DHL about peak season planning. At that time it was about the Christmas season, which of course can be the big peak for many categories. And the recommendation was also given that you should talk to your contact at the shipping provider early, because they of course also need to prepare for the fact that more packages will be sent then. Should we summarize everything again, what we've said? Which points should I take into account for annual planning?
Matthias: Well, use the calendar, yes. Depending on the area you're in, of course look at historical data, try to find a good balance between long-term planning and staying flexible. In other words, being able to react to trends that aren't predictable. Think early about when you need which resources in your warehouse, maybe in marketing, and block marketing budgets in time. So that when demand is highest, you don't maybe have any marketing budget left at all. And I think putting all that in a healthy and sensible context.
Isabell: And what additional growth levers could I use this year to scale that even more?
Matthias: Yes, so here in Europe we have the big advantage that we're basically a large single market. Schengen area. I myself just bought ski racks for the ski vacation from an Italian seller on eBay. That's also pretty cute. It will certainly be translated with an eBay tool, eBaymag I'm guessing, and of course it's not standard High German, but you somehow understand each other. Then it's just fun communicating with them. They're very on top of things. Being transparent. Where is my package right now? It still hasn't arrived, but so far everything makes a very, very good, very, very good impression. So I think the topic of cross-border trade, also beyond Germany into other countries, can open up relatively easily new markets and new sales. That's one thing that comes to mind. Well, then eBay Live. Yes, we really announced eBay Live big here in Germany at the end of last year. It really got going there at Comic Con in Stuttgart. I've used it quite a few times myself now. I think as a buyer, it's most fun on the phone. It feels a bit like back to the roots, namely: I can follow the auction. I don't want to lose the auction here. It's not just auctions, but mostly at first. And then you have the whole screen on your app and see people bidding, writing comments, the seller explaining something. That's really fun.
Isabell: And eBay Live combined with a peak moment obviously makes total sense as a seller too.
Matthias: Exactly. And I think it's just that on eBay Live we firmly assume it should become a completely normal, integral part of a multi-channel strategy. It's already very, very big in other markets. The topic of live commerce, live shopping. I'm firmly convinced it will also find its sweet spot in Germany. And what I personally think, because I've also spent a lot of time dealing with the topic of refurbished, basically reconditioned products, is that it's of course much easier to explain in a live session exactly where, for example, the scratch on the screen of the iPad or Samsung Galaxy Tab is. Than if you just see it as a product image. You can also respond to questions from potential buyers, and you can also explain again how you as a seller do the refurbishing. So I think eBay Live can be a big, big positive lever for the topic of refurbishment.
Isabell: And I also think in general, if I think about how I can further scale my business this year, Refurbished and preloved items are generally also a good lever that you should definitely think about if you haven't done so before.
Matthias: Exactly. We can also mention the eBay Recommerce Report 25 again. I think there are a few good things in there too.
Isabell: We can add that to the show notes? Yes, and then you also said targeted marketing measures. So we have more marketing options than just just advertising.
Matthias: You know your way around that really well, don't you?
Isabell: I know my way around that well too. Yes, but everything I can also control through the seller cockpit, from discounts, quantities, discounts, coupons, etc., I can offer a lot there in my inventory too without directly financing advertising. Of course, in combination with advertising and listing optimization, I think that's the ultimate strategy. Let me summarize: you just said to sell internationally, also from Germany, to see eBay Live as a fixed part of the multi-channel strategy, to get involved in refurbishment and recommerce in general, and to make full use of the complete marketing portfolio. Do you have any final strategic advice you'd like to share?
Matthias: Now it gets difficult, but for the sellers who are supported by my team or by other teams, by my colleague or my two colleagues. Talk to your account managers, talk to your account managers. They're exactly there to work with you on strategic annual planning, to create a business plan. So the advice I can give is, you're in the best hands there.
Isabell: Yes, and I think if I were to add anything, you already said it too. It makes total sense to sit down once at the start of the year and think: When do I need which budget, so that by the end of the year I can still finance everything I want to finance. I think the episode has shown: those who recognize early when demand is coming can definitely act more specifically, use opportunities, and take advantage of all trends and peaks, while of course also maintaining flexibility to stand up to the competition. Matthias, a huge thank you to you for your experience, your insights, and all the tips. And if you want to dive even deeper into the eBay Marketing Trends Calendar 2026, you'll find all the further info and links as always with us here in the show notes. And until then, thanks for listening and see you next time on “Alles top. Gerne wieder!”.
Matthias: Thank you very much.
Isabell: Hello and welcome to "Alles top. Gerne wieder!", the eBay podcast about retail and eCommerce. My name is Isabell Butterwegge, and today it's all about trends and peaks in 2026. And so that you can identify the trends that are important for your business this year, we've brought along the 2026 Marketing Trends Calendar, which we designed specifically for this year. And I'm not here alone, I've also invited Matthias Neubauer. Matthias is Head of Seller Development at eBay Germany, and we've also shared the stage together quite a few times, which is why I'm especially happy that you're here today. Hello Matthias, first of all.
Matthias: Hi Isabell.
Isabell: Maybe you can briefly explain what Head of Enterprise Development actually means to start with.
Matthias: Isn't that totally self-explanatory? Probably not. With eCommerce companies, people are always very creative when it comes to titles. I'll try to explain it a bit more practically. So basically, my team and I take care of account management. We support the largest and strategically most important sellers for eBay 360 degrees. That means from the little issues that may occasionally come up at eBay - very, very rarely, of course - to solving them, all the way to joint business planning. And always with the goal of strengthening business on eBay together and growing together. And right now it's mainly sellers from the Electronics and Collectibles categories. And I'm especially excited because this is a first for me today, even though we've sat together on the podcast before. Because today it's the first time I'm fully grown-up here.
Isabell: Fully grown-up means you've now been with eBay for 18 years.
Matthias: Yes, well. We didn't practice that beforehand. Exactly. Right.
Isabell: Yes, very nice. So an anniversary right away, which we can celebrate along with the episode. Exactly. Today we're talking about annual planning, Matthias. And that sounds a bit like New Year's resolutions too. Did you start 2026 with a resolution this year as well?
Matthias: I gave it up a few years ago. Honestly, because I never stuck to it. So I didn't set any really good resolutions.
Isabell: I have to say, I'm absolutely a planning person myself. I love lists, I put everything on to-do lists, shopping lists, etc. What about you privately? Do you plan annually too? Do you plan everything out? Or is it more spontaneous at your place?
Matthias: Well, I'd say it depends on who you ask. Especially. I'll use vacation booking as an example. We love going on holiday and as often as we can. We just book quite spontaneously. So early-bird discounts weren't invented for us. It's sometimes like, what are we actually doing in the summer? And two weeks before, we book Crete. Somehow. Okay, I always tell myself it's so late again that it gets cheaper because some allotments are still free. Honestly, I've never checked whether that's actually the case or not. So I think we're good customers of all the travel portals and travel agencies. They probably mostly like it when we book there. But that makes it sound like I don't plan anything at all. It's not quite like that, I'd also say that especially at work I'm more structured and try to plan a quarter somehow. At eBay, we always think about planning one quarter at a time, but always with the willingness to react spontaneously as well. Because flexibility is, I think, very, very important in eCommerce.
Isabell: That's actually a good keyword already, probably something to take away for today's episode. Then let's take a look at how you can approach the whole thing more strategically in a business context, to basically take advantage of something like early-booking discounts. We work continuously to support our sellers as well as possible, especially your team too. And a few years ago we already developed the Marketing Trends Calendar. Those of you who've been listening for a while may be familiar with it. But maybe you can briefly summarize again what it actually is.
Matthias: Sure, gladly. I actually prepared a bit today, yes. This is the fourth calendar we're releasing. I knew we'd released a few. This is now the fourth. And like every year, it's meant to help you sellers on eBay, of course. To know certain demand peaks in advance, to plan for them, and then also to identify relevant buying occasions for this year. I still need to get used to thinking about 2026 on the radar, maybe to be a bit of inspiration. To look beyond the edge of my own plate a bit. I mean, when you've been doing the business the same way for years, you always say I already know everything, same for me really. Probably the same for many of us, but maybe there are one or two trends that you don't have on your radar. And I think that's exactly where the Marketing Trends Calendar can be very, very helpful. And what's new in this fourth year is that for the first time we'll also create four versions, and bring them for four different categories on eBay. That's the Fashion category, everything with a plug, so Electronics. The third is around Auto Accessories, Parts, Motors, and then the fourth for Toys and Collectibles, collecting and rare items.
Isabell: Super cool. So that means in each calendar I also have category-specific events and trends that I should take into account, and can then use the calendar a bit more strategically for my inventory.
Matthias: Exactly. I nodded now, but that doesn't help in a podcast. Yes, that's exactly right.
Isabell: Yes. What data basis is this calendar created from?
Matthias: So these are actually real eBay data underlying it. If I remember correctly, it should be a time span from October 24 to September 25. And we simply looked at how demand developed in certain product categories on eBay. And the percentage values you then see in the Marketing Trends Calendar show demand above the respective monthly average. If it says 32%, then that's 32% higher than the monthly average otherwise.
Isabell: That's also very easy to put into context. You just said that often sellers, or you notice it yourself too, can become a bit blind to their own business when they keep dealing with the same things. So how exactly can this calendar help me plan this year?
Matthias: If you say, Isabell, that you're a totally structured person and love lists and all that, then this is probably exactly right for you. It helps a bit to structure yourself, maybe also makes life a bit easier. If I think about it now: I'm a seller who's been selling the same assortment for years. Maybe this year there'll be one or two occasions where he says, okay, maybe it's worth thinking about expanding my assortment, maybe asking about other product categories and selling on eBay. I think a second aspect would be resource planning too. So when do I need to expect maybe having more people in my warehouse because some big demand is coming? Of course, it also makes sense to think about marketing measures, our advertising. When do I block which budget for which topic? And in the end it's supposed to take away a bit of the stress.
Isabell: Since you just mentioned advertising measures. If I find out in the calendar that trend XY or a peak is coming my way, how should I plan my advertising budget then? Exactly at that time? Or better beforehand? Or maybe afterward? Yeah.
Matthias: Good question. Yes, so actually start a bit earlier. So if Carnival starts, for example, then maybe you should start 1, 2, 3 weeks before by advertising it with basic ads or premium ads or store ads with us, to give yourself a bit of an advantage. In eBay search then maybe increase the budget a bit more during peak season. So when it's really about everyone searching for fun Carnival stuff. By the way, I'm not a Carnival person at all. I'm from Berlin. So you don't really need to show that to me here. Yeah. Then let it run out a bit again.
Isabell: We always say you should only promote a well-optimized listing, which means the listing should already be optimized beforehand. So I can basically make a note for myself: about six weeks before I want to sell, I should ideally start revising my listings at the latest, so I can promote them right on time for peak season. Correctly summarized?
Matthias: Super perfectly summarized.
Isabell: Okay, Matthias, we've introduced a new segment in our podcast. Our podcast is called "Alles top. Gerne wieder!", and inspired by that we've introduced the new segment "Alles top, Gerne nie wieder!". With a view to trends, even if you draw on learnings from previous years, what do you never want to hear in 2026?
Matthias: Can't do it, or we've always done it that way and it works anyway, kind of thing. Maybe also a bit: I'm personally someone who actually prefers continuity, even after 18 years at eBay. Yes, of course. I've done many different things at eBay and still want to remain open a bit to new things, to innovations, to new trends. To be less skeptical, to give things a chance maybe. That doesn't mean blindly chasing every trend, but still keeping a certain healthy common sense, while also giving new things like shopping a chance and saying yes, this live shopping on TV is kind of 15 or 20 years old. At least, at least. Yes, I was trying to make myself a bit younger. Yes, but why shouldn't it also work online and just try it and take a certain risk?
Isabell: Matthias, besides your expert opinion. Today we've also asked some sellers who will share a few more tips with us during this podcast episode. But before we get started, one more question for you out there. Which topics interest you most this year? What would you like to hear an episode from us about? Feel free to leave us a comment wherever you're listening right now and tell us more about it.
Lisa: Hi, I'm Lisa, founder of Second Life Fashion. I've been selling secondhand fashion for women and men on eBay for over ten years. When it comes to annual planning, what's especially important to me is staying very close to actual sales and making my decisions based on collected data. Especially in the secondhand sector, I don't plan classic collections like fashion labels do, but instead I go by what really sells well. True to the motto: the bait has to taste good to the fish, not the angler. A very concrete example from our purchasing. I regularly look at which sizes sell the fastest. And for us, that's clearly larger sizes. So this year we will consciously focus our procurement on that. I also plan very carefully financially. At the start of the year I always do a budget plan for the whole year and set clear guardrails. For example, on the marketing side, where you can really spend an incredible amount of money. Instead of constantly running campaigns, I plan very specific periods in which I spend money, but I also deliberately allow quieter months completely without paid advertising. That keeps my costs low and the business stable. And what has become most important to me over the years is my focus. I only set myself a few big topics per year and I've learned that you don't have to do everything at once to be successful in the long term.
Meroda: Hello, I'm Meroda and I'm the owner of fashionfouvintage and we actually also have an eBay account with the same name. At the start of each year, as a team, we always ask ourselves a bit: What do we actually want to achieve this year? Which topics do we want to focus on? And what's important for us, for example, is that we also work very agilely. That means on the one hand, we always look a little at what topics are maybe currently happening in the media, but also at what topics might come to us through our community. And then we actively and regularly feed that into our planning. What's also specifically important for us is that I travel a lot, and we always plan very early on which trips will take place on the one hand, but also which stories we can build around them. And what's also important is: what can we give back to the community? For example, I was recently in Tokyo for three weeks, and what happened there was that we had a lot of order lists. We conducted interviews on site, we took the community with us into the warehouses. They helped me choose what we could take with us and what would eventually be back in Berlin for the big drops. And that's really about working very closely with the community. And a third thing we focus very strongly on is thinking very specifically about which events and happenings we might want to visit this year and, above all, how we get access to them. On the one hand, of course, we question our network: what influencers, industry contacts, or maybe business partners have we already worked with and have a connection to? And we strategically expand that for ourselves too, and maybe think about which points of contact are still missing and what we can actively do there? And otherwise, of course. If you look at which tools we use, it's nothing earth-shattering, but important tools nonetheless. On the one hand, we look at Instagram Insights, we work a lot with TikTok Creator Search Insights and see okay, what trends and reach analyses can we use for ourselves? And otherwise, CapCut is also a tool we use regularly internally.
Thomas: Yes, thank you very much for having me on the eBay podcast today. My name is Thomas from nesatec. We are sellers on eBay and market products from our joint partners such as manufacturers and brand owners on eBay in the area. And the topic fits pretty well, namely planning 2026. What big points are coming up for us? And the main topic, or what? For us, growth is super important. Over the last two years we've invested heavily in the site. More than €2 million has gone into a new office, new logistics, and a completely new refurbished process to refurbish products such as household appliances or robotics products, for example. So, super exciting. And then, for example, we also built a content studio for ourselves where we can now record our own content. So not just take pictures, but actually make videos. But I'll come back to that later. So quite a lot of investment has gone in. We now need to grow a bit, or want to, and we're looking forward to it and are fully convinced we'll do it. One point maybe: if you go into detail, there are three main points, and one of them is to gain more partners, to win manufacturers, brand owners, who don't just want a listing on eBay, but who also need experts at their side. Today we buy the products from our partners. And then we work out a strategy together: How can we be successful on eBay? And that's, on the one hand, eBay offers a lot of possibilities and we can make this and the content a bit better now. We can record videos, and what we can also do today is offer much, much more products. That means the goods that come back from customers, which is completely normal in eCommerce, we reprocess ourselves and market them. That means our manufacturers and partners no longer have anything to do with it. So that's a major point through which we want to grow. The second point is specifically about refurbished products. We are experts in the field of smartphones, tablets, refurbishing. We have our own. So we have a second company, that cares, and it repairs the products properly, goes really into depth, takes them apart - we can do that there. And we're now building up that expertise too. Or we have now also built it up in other product categories, for example household appliances. If I take a robot vacuum cleaner, for example, a robot vacuum cleaner has very different requirements than a smartphone. You have to work with dust exposure and so on. You can't tell employees: here, make the thing clean and then they don't get black lung, more or less - that doesn't work. So we built special facilities to be able to do that. Just as an example. That's the second area we want to grow in. And the third area is live shopping, which I find extremely exciting. That's something eBay is very focused on right now too. And I also see potential there, as I said, for products that require explanation or products where the USP isn't immediately obvious, to promote them via videos - what is a live event. We built a studio especially for that. We can now do that too, and then we want to grow. We offer that to our partners. And yes, we're really excited about it and looking forward to implementing it together with eBay. Thank you very much!
Rene: Thank you so much for the invitation. And yes, today I want to give you my top three topics. Who am I anyway? I'm Rene, from Austria, and I've been selling on eBay for ten years. Or rather, yes, my YouTube channel RMK. And today I'll go through the three topics. The top topics that are very, very important for my annual planning. Of course. Number one: since we focus very, very heavily on live shopping, it's sourcing and liquidity planning too. Why? Because Pokémon new goods are very, very expensive, and that's why we're already making sure we buy more stock, we've made a very, very large purchase that we naturally won't sell through for another three, four, five, six months. But perhaps that's a small tip worth taking away: if you only ever buy what you can sell in the next two weeks, then especially with Pokémon you may end up with no goods left and won't be able to go live anymore. Important to say as well: you also have to plan liquidity well. That means if you buy everything now, but then you don't have any money left for fixed costs and so on, then it gets relatively critical. What is our target? We want to make around €1 million in revenue this year with the shop, or with eBay Live. It looks very, very good. We're currently on March 26 as of the recording, and we're actually right on track. What I also want to push more is Instagram. Social media fell a bit by the wayside last year because we had very, very much to do. That's why we've now brought in an editor who has been cutting the shorts for us for about a month and a half now. And also important: the main point for us this year is simply eBay Live, where, for example, with the Vertical tool we can cut out funny scenes. Or funny points, or good pulls of course. That means we've also installed the Vertical tool in the live stream. So we can record the videos in portrait orientation and it makes things much, much easier. So those are the top three points that are very important to me. Of course, eBay Live, liquidity planning, or also getting hold of the goods. And the last point is definitely doing even more social media. We're very, very big, but we simply do too little, and there's still a lot of hidden potential there.
Isabell: We've just been talking about Carnival, which is very predictable and happens again every year. It's easy to plan for. But there are also a few trends or moments every year, shall we say, that aren't recurring. What kind of trend types should I be dealing with?
Matthias: Yes, good question. I'd say there are basically three categories of how you can think about trends. We already talked about one of them: the plannable events, Christmas, Easter, all those things, they come every year, Carnival somehow keeps coming back. In certain regions too. I think that's the first: the plannable events. Then there are maybe, what's the best way to say it, anticipatable events. So the Winter Olympics are taking place in Italy this year. The FIFA World Cup is just around the corner, the Darts World Championship just ended. There's also an ever-growing hype around that, especially in Germany. It also definitely matters when new albums come out, new releases, new car models. That's all relatively anticipatable. Yes, exactly. And maybe a few funny events happening this year too. So on May 25, there's, I don't know if any of you know this, in England they do the Cooper Hill Cheese Rolling where people go up the hill and then they roll a wheel of cheese down. And I think you have to arrive before the cheese gets to the bottom. They break bones and all sorts of things there, but are then totally proud if you get to the bottom before the cheese. So I have no idea if we have any cheese sellers among us, but that might be an event to say, okay, maybe we put food in general in the spotlight. Knee pads or knee pads too. Also good. Yes, very good. I was at an ice hockey game recently and they kept showing ads for the chiropractor. I thought that was pretty practical too. Yes, so at the end of August, for example, the Air Guitar World Championship takes place in Finland. Who hasn't always dreamed of becoming air guitar world champion?
Isabell: Well, tricky to sell.
Matthias: Yes, that's true. You got it. Yes. And then at the end of October there's also the Dachshund Race and Dogs World in Munich. So the Pets and accessories topic is also a big one. So there are an incredible number of events and occasions that fall into this area and can be anticipated.
Isabell: Yes, and then there are also always trends that arise very spontaneously through social media. You already talked about flexibility and spontaneity at the beginning of the episode. How do I deal with that as a seller?
Matthias: Yes, I don't think you have to jump on every trend. And not every trend makes economic sense for yourself either. Yes, I mean, just look at how old I am. Somehow. Six seven. Yes, that's kind of going around right now or was probably already going around. No idea. That's why people buy clothes with a 67 on them maybe? Don't know. I have. A few days ago I read that Taylor Swift drank some wine from a French winery in some documentary about her. It's sold out. Nobody can buy that wine anymore. Those are things you can't predict. I think it's always important to put it into context a bit. Is this somehow in my business area, or is it just a nice trend that I watch from the sidelines? Yes, right here in Germany, as we're recording the podcast, it's the dead of winter. Yesterday I wanted to buy that extra fluid for the car windshield. Yes, a bit late, yes. So de-icer. So some things you can kind of foresee, others just happen.
Isabell: Yes, yes, absolutely. I think the only tip there is probably for our sellers, when they list offers, to always keep an eye on a baseline so that everything is ready to go at any time, so they can have the flexibility that a trend needs.
Matthias: Nothing is worse than offering it on eBay and then you don't have any stock left, no availability, and people buy it and you have to cancel the transactions. That's not so good either. So a certain amount of planning and maybe being a bit more conservative at times is certainly helpful there.
Isabell: Yes, you've already given a few very, very good and funny examples of trend moments for this year. And as you just said, we've created this calendar for different categories. Maybe we can go through the categories a bit and see what's coming up this year, what you might not immediately have on your radar. Let's maybe start with Fashion. We're still at the beginning of the year, and the Fashion Weeks are kicking off again right away. Yes, and then the Met Gala and the Oscars are coming up this year too. I don't know if you're still following that, but of course those are moments, especially in the luxury segment, that you should definitely keep on your radar.
Matthias: Well, there's a reason why I do the podcast and not video. Yes, so Fashion and me, okay, yes, but what comes to mind again as a sports fan is the World Cup, USA, Mexico, I don't even know. Canada, North America, let's say Central and North America. Of course the topic of merchandise, all the jerseys, flags, etc. will certainly go through the roof again. What I've also noticed is that the Queen would actually have celebrated her 100th birthday this year. So I have no idea if something might happen in the direction of Royal Vintage. That could definitely be possible too.
Isabell: And then there are always moments, of course, especially in Germany, where FIFA then takes place in the Electronics category, and something I think you can already firmly plan for is that Apple will have its keynote again in the fall, where new products are presented, and then there are a few more in the Collectibles category too.
Matthias: Maybe one more thing on Electronics, because that's a bit of my specialty. CES in Las Vegas has just taken place, and I don't know if I can say this, but I saw this amazing new Lego brick that reacts to distance, that reacts to situations, like whether the car is driving, crashes, and then emits sounds or signals somehow. I found that pretty impressive, for example. Lego bricks, Lego bricks, the new generation of Lego bricks. So not just snapping them together anymore, but interactive, basically. It was just presented. I found that very, very exciting, for example. Something else that's still coming up this year, I think, is 20 years of gaming consoles. Yes, so Nintendo Entertainment System. The older ones among you still know it as NES and Gameboy. There may be a few more things coming out of that. Yes, otherwise, as just mentioned, great Collectibles, Gamescom happens every year, Comic Con is coming up! Pokémon release is definitely and.
Isabell: In March a new Pokémon game is coming out for the Nintendo Switch.
Matthias: Okay, I have a Switch at home. Okay. Yes.
Isabell: You can make a note of that too. Yes, good. Yes. And then in the Motors area. I think you already mentioned it earlier. Of course. New model launches. But isn't Formula 1 too?
Matthias: Formula 1 usually kicks off in March, I think. Australia is usually Melbourne, the first Grand Prix. The international motor show is there. Essen Motor Show is coming up! Right now, with this weather, I don't like talking about summer tires, but at some point, summer tire change, then winter tires again, etc.
Isabell: Then of course people will be buying pool pumps and garden tools again. Yes, exactly. So we see a huge range from A to Z. Very, very much coming up this year in all categories. In addition to the seasonal occasions, of course. What role does it play in annual planning that I look at historical sales data again, so I look at what happened in previous years?
Matthias: Exactly. I think data is always the basis for all business decisions. You shouldn't just be guided by trends. I think most sellers on eBay also have a lot of experience. Yes, there are various tools. Product research can somehow be used.
Isabell: We now call it product research. But the functionality is exactly the same.
Matthias: Then let's call it product research. Exactly, that stays fixed and doesn't change. More or less. Exactly. So yes, data are of course always important for making a decision. Everyone knows that. I don't even need to mention it. But it's not worth chasing every trend if you can't get the inventory, or only at poor purchase prices, and then the goods arrive far too late. And the trend is already over again. Then that doesn't really help either.
Isabell: I think where historical data can also help is a bit with forecasting, which you can also do with the calendar. So if I know summer is always my peak, I should, as you just said, make sure my stock is filled accordingly in summer. And I think it was last year when we recorded an episode together with DHL about peak season planning. At that time it was about the Christmas season, which of course can be the big peak for many categories. And the recommendation was also given that you should talk to your contact at the shipping provider early, because they of course also need to prepare for the fact that more packages will be sent then. Should we summarize everything again, what we've said? Which points should I take into account for annual planning?
Matthias: Well, use the calendar, yes. Depending on the area you're in, of course look at historical data, try to find a good balance between long-term planning and staying flexible. In other words, being able to react to trends that aren't predictable. Think early about when you need which resources in your warehouse, maybe in marketing, and block marketing budgets in time. So that when demand is highest, you don't maybe have any marketing budget left at all. And I think putting all that in a healthy and sensible context.
Isabell: And what additional growth levers could I use this year to scale that even more?
Matthias: Yes, so here in Europe we have the big advantage that we're basically a large single market. Schengen area. I myself just bought ski racks for the ski vacation from an Italian seller on eBay. That's also pretty cute. It will certainly be translated with an eBay tool, eBaymag I'm guessing, and of course it's not standard High German, but you somehow understand each other. Then it's just fun communicating with them. They're very on top of things. Being transparent. Where is my package right now? It still hasn't arrived, but so far everything makes a very, very good, very, very good impression. So I think the topic of cross-border trade, also beyond Germany into other countries, can open up relatively easily new markets and new sales. That's one thing that comes to mind. Well, then eBay Live. Yes, we really announced eBay Live big here in Germany at the end of last year. It really got going there at Comic Con in Stuttgart. I've used it quite a few times myself now. I think as a buyer, it's most fun on the phone. It feels a bit like back to the roots, namely: I can follow the auction. I don't want to lose the auction here. It's not just auctions, but mostly at first. And then you have the whole screen on your app and see people bidding, writing comments, the seller explaining something. That's really fun.
Isabell: And eBay Live combined with a peak moment obviously makes total sense as a seller too.
Matthias: Exactly. And I think it's just that on eBay Live we firmly assume it should become a completely normal, integral part of a multi-channel strategy. It's already very, very big in other markets. The topic of live commerce, live shopping. I'm firmly convinced it will also find its sweet spot in Germany. And what I personally think, because I've also spent a lot of time dealing with the topic of refurbished, basically reconditioned products, is that it's of course much easier to explain in a live session exactly where, for example, the scratch on the screen of the iPad or Samsung Galaxy Tab is. Than if you just see it as a product image. You can also respond to questions from potential buyers, and you can also explain again how you as a seller do the refurbishing. So I think eBay Live can be a big, big positive lever for the topic of refurbishment.
Isabell: And I also think in general, if I think about how I can further scale my business this year, Refurbished and preloved items are generally also a good lever that you should definitely think about if you haven't done so before.
Matthias: Exactly. We can also mention the eBay Recommerce Report 25 again. I think there are a few good things in there too.
Isabell: We can add that to the show notes? Yes, and then you also said targeted marketing measures. So we have more marketing options than just just advertising.
Matthias: You know your way around that really well, don't you?
Isabell: I know my way around that well too. Yes, but everything I can also control through the seller cockpit, from discounts, quantities, discounts, coupons, etc., I can offer a lot there in my inventory too without directly financing advertising. Of course, in combination with advertising and listing optimization, I think that's the ultimate strategy. Let me summarize: you just said to sell internationally, also from Germany, to see eBay Live as a fixed part of the multi-channel strategy, to get involved in refurbishment and recommerce in general, and to make full use of the complete marketing portfolio. Do you have any final strategic advice you'd like to share?
Matthias: Now it gets difficult, but for the sellers who are supported by my team or by other teams, by my colleague or my two colleagues. Talk to your account managers, talk to your account managers. They're exactly there to work with you on strategic annual planning, to create a business plan. So the advice I can give is, you're in the best hands there.
Isabell: Yes, and I think if I were to add anything, you already said it too. It makes total sense to sit down once at the start of the year and think: When do I need which budget, so that by the end of the year I can still finance everything I want to finance. I think the episode has shown: those who recognize early when demand is coming can definitely act more specifically, use opportunities, and take advantage of all trends and peaks, while of course also maintaining flexibility to stand up to the competition. Matthias, a huge thank you to you for your experience, your insights, and all the tips. And if you want to dive even deeper into the eBay Marketing Trends Calendar 2026, you'll find all the further info and links as always with us here in the show notes. And until then, thanks for listening and see you next time on “Alles top. Gerne wieder!”.
Matthias: Thank you very much.
0 comments
