Big online stores tend to be geared to hunters: seek, find, buy. Bang! But more and more people, especially women, prefer to “stroll” online and exchange views with others. A problem for the eBay marketplace. In response the brand launches a real innovation on ebay.de, allowing people to put together their own themed collections like “catalog pages” which they can then promote within their own communities.

A chance to present themselves and provide inspiration: eBay collections. To start with, a few thousand photo bulletin boards with the Germans’ favorite items were expected. But within just a few weeks there are more than 200,000. And since then, 60,000 are being added every month.

The accelerator: an effective lifestyle PR campaign and what is probably one of the biggest blogger activation waves anywhere. And the best thing is, customer and multiplier activity is already a major element of communication. Countless media reports – because many journalists are part of the wave themselves, having created their own collections and presented them to readers.

Prelaunch: First, bloggers, lifestyle journalists and celebrities are convinced about eBay collections and enabled to create their own. This work begins many months before the actual launch. Hundreds of bloggers – including ALL lifestyle, fashion and tech-style bloggers in Germany with powerful reach – are tactfully approached and won over. Celebrities are acquired and countless influential fashion and lifestyle journalists involved. So even before launch, the number of eBay collections grows.

Launch: Several events celebrate the launch – blogger and VIP events, journalist discussions, etc. Further, all influencers with powerful reach – who by now have already created thousands of eBay collections – are assisted in promoting their collections among their readers, communities and fans. Others then “get the bug” to create and publish their own collections. Individual collections are presented in magazine, TV and newspaper features. This in turn motivates others to do the same. The result: epic momentum.

At launch, inspiration is provided by not only the expected few thousand personally designed collections but no fewer than 200,000 (!). Incredible dynamism! And it continues. Around 60,000 are added every month. It gives rise to hundreds of features and articles – in high-circulation magazines and newspapers and on TV. There’s also a huge buzz on the social web – with an enormous number of posts and tweets advertising individual collections. Total reach: an unbelievable 600 million. And the number of resulting purchases rises rapidly. Products from celebrity collections are always sold out quickly. eBay has a hard time constantly arranging fresh stock. But crucially, people’s attitude to eBay starts to change noticeably. eBay is seen as more inspiring than ever before. And the number of women being won over by Germany’s favorite items is constantly rising.