March 2012 ChannelAdvisor Same Store Sales for eBay, Amazon, Search and CSE

March 2012 ChannelAdvisor Same Store Sales for eBay, Amazon, Search and CSE:
Note: This is a monthly feature published by ChannelAdvisor highlighting the Same Store Sales (SSS) across our wide range of ~3000 retailers and ~$3b in GMV.  Details on the SSS including methodology and schedule can be found in January's post.
Today we are releasing March 2012 data for Marketplaces (eBay/Amazon), Search and Comparison Shopping Engines (CSE) along with supplemental data.

March 2012 SSS Results 

• Amazon - Amazon came in at a robust  50.7% y/y growth for March.
• eBay -  eBay came in at 22.4%, showing very good signs of growth and setting a new high-water mark.  Details in the eBay section below.
• CSE - Comparison Shopping Engines faced continued pressure, coming in at down 8.8%.
• Search - Search came in at 16.3%.

SSS Chart 
The following chart details the SSS data for March 2011 through March 2012: (click to enlarge)
  

eBay Details
eBay's March y/y SSS 22.4% growth is a new record growth rate for the eBay marketplace and is sure to generate some questions as to what's going on inside of eBay.  To help understand what's driving the growth, here are three additional 'interior' data points for eBay's SSS data->

• eBay auctions - down 20.7% y/y
• eBay fixed-price - up 30.2% y/y
• eBay Motors  (parts and accessories) - Up 37.4%

This is a record growth-rate for the fixed-price format and suggests that eBay's continued focus on trust, large merchants, daily deals, duplicate removal, and merchant quality continue to deliver results.  The eBay Motors category slowed down a tad which is more of a seasonal change vs. anything to be concerned over.  Even at 37.4%, it is a very rapidly growing category and a standout amongst other categories.
Of course, standard disclaimers apply that we have a unique mix (different than overall eBay) of categories and price formats and we skew towards larger merchants, etc.
The eBay results put a great end to a strong quarter and show that eBay is off to a strong 2012.

Supplemental data for Search
The supplemental paid-search details are available in this table:


This month CPC has been down slightly y/y and clicks are up 15% with AOV and CR holding steady vs. last year.  Search did slow a bit in March from an overall SSS perspective.

Conclusions
Based on the March data, the E-commerce world had a very strong Q1, setting us up for continued strength heading into 2012.  At our Catalyst conference we'll be talking about some of the trends that are driving an acceleration in e-commerce growth and you'll be able to hear from the titan's of e-commerce first-hand as well as tons of retailers.  We're really looking forward to seeing everyone on April 16 in Vegas!!
SeekingAlpha disclosure - I am long Amazon and Google. eBay is an investor in ChannelAdvisor where I am CEO.