eBay launched a new Ambassador Program that will reward sellers for sharing certain auction listings on social media that subsequently result in a sale.
The Ambassador Program is part of the company's existing eBay Partner Network, which launched in 2008 to replace eBay's previous affiliate program, however unlike ePN, ambassador members will not be able to use APIs, choose which products to promote, or have a rate card. Instead, the Ambassador Program will reward participants for social sharing only certain listings predetermined by eBay, and commission rates will change dynamically.
That sounds fun as an affiliate! Being forced to only share the listings eBay tells you to without knowing how much you'll earn on the sale. Good one eBay!
In 2021, eBay promised sellers a substantial fee reduction for driving sales from their social channels to their eBay store, but the new Ambassador Program is still not enough incentive. Sellers with Shopify or other D2C storefronts would rather share their listings on their own websites to avoid paying eBay a fee altogether.
eBay is planning to announce more details about the ePN Ambassador Program soon, including whether it will require members to also be sellers.