Deceptive listing practices by listing different items in the same auction

[travestytrader]

Hi, I'm a part-time seller, this seems like a good forum to put this in. --

There's a common practice that I'm seeing more and more, I'm not saying it's all from China, but all the listings I've seen doing this so far, have been from China, such as this one: 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/8GB-16GB-Heart-Necklace-USB-Flash-Drive-Memory-Stick-Pen-Storage-Chain-whole...

Bascially by listing several items in the same auction and having the buyer select one from the in-auction drop down menu, one can list one or more higher priced items, in this case $16 and $22 respectively, along with one 0.99c item, and that's great. The problem is, the picture that shows in the search results is never of the 99c item, and therefore when someone types in "usb flash drive" and sorts by price, this one will show up as 99c, with the picture showing the more expensive flash drives; Only when you go into the auction and select the item from the dropdown, is the real cost revealed. 

Now, I don't know if that's technically against the rules, but it's certainly deceptive. This is a low-cost example but I've seen it at a higher level. There's no point in sorting by price, if everyone can just list a piece of string for 99c, so their $300 generator can appear at the top of sorted results. 

What do you think? Thanks. 

[katzcats]

Use the 'Tell us what You Think' link to make your 'opinion' known. Won't help, at all.(BTW)....Have you noticed that auctions are now, called Chinese Auctions? HUH and WHAT? lol.

Have you ever looked at the China sellers' listings and feedback ratings? They are awful with such low ratings yet still allowed to sell. US sellers get canned, restricted for life (indefinately) for a few yuk sales but the China sellers don't.

I can't even go on because it really irks me!!!!!.

[scga912]

It isn't allowed.  It's search manipulation.  It is also considered fee avoidance - link. 

Offering choices

By using listings with variations, sellers can offer variations of the same product in a single listing.

Allowed	Using listings with variations to offer a choice of size, color, and material in items such as clothing and home items
Not allowed	Selling different brands of an item, such as jeans, in a single listing Offering a choice between two entirely different items, such as a watch or pair of shoes Selling items that aren't in similar condition, such as a new and a refurbished laptop, in the same listing

Also, The item(s) much match the category.  That chain isn't an electronic gadget. 

I have seen what you're talking about - it's annoying.

[skullywag64]

Have ran across a few of those myself when looking for cell phone chargers, and agree that it is deceptive.

I wouldn't try doing the same tho....a chinese seller with a gazillion feedback can have hundreds of negs a year (or month!) and retain a 99%+ rating......you or I would sink quickly.

Have no idea if it would do any good, but you can always report the listing with "other" category and explain the issue.

[psunser]

And, Chinese are certainly not the only ones doing it.  I see lots of newbie clothes sellers using the technique to clean out their closets.

[skullywag64]

I personally see nothing wrong with offering a different color or size when shopping for a new article of clothing, but the above is blatant bait and switch, which irks me to no end. I recently spent about an extra hour sorting through that kinda crud finding an item I wanted.....NO WAY would I buy from a seller like that at ANY price.....but there are plenty of suckers who will.

[komokwa]

& there's the answer......don't buy from that kind of listing........move on......& worry about stuff that you think you may have control over !

[ksfranklin]

This practice is so annoying! I'm seeing it more and more from sellers of all locations. It makes sorting by price useless. I wish eBay would do something about this.

[trickedoutsue]

i have gone from selling 400 items a month to about 30 since THE US POSTAL SERVICE has given CHINA FREE or almost free shipping to US. YES CHINA and HONG KONG can print USPS shipping labels! ON top of that they raised our International and domestic rates from affordabel to very high.

I am leaning on that they are trying to kill small U.S. seller. As far a eBay pushing China sales, I guess they make higher fees on a $2 item than they do on a U.S. $12. item (my average prices). International sellers that are undercutting us don't get a 1099 for tax at the end of the year. 

Our government has gone to **bleep** over the last few years! And so has eBay or ChinaBay.

Just trying to supliment my SS

[Anonymous]

Sure glad to know someone else is **bleep** by this obvious, fully-intended deception! Been here since the start, but every day in lots of ways, I'm more and more irritated by eBay.....this **bleep** is just the latest and MOST irritating! And maybe the most irritating part is that there is really no practical way to make them HEAR our frustration.

[bronx-dog]

There is a fine line between HEAR and CARE...

eBay elects to avoid both.

[jimmypager]

Im glad to see this isnt allowed, its ubiquitous now and super irritating--does reporting these seller really not accomplish anything?