Can ebay plz suspend the NEED for a UPC on new products Until ebay can recognize them all?
I am tired of not being able to list something as new, just because the UPC I have on the product isn't recognized by ebay's system. I have put a UPC into a search bar on ebay before, and it brings up listings, but when I put it into the listing creator, it comes up as not found, and then wont let me list the item until I put in a valid UPC. I'm reading the UPC right off of the object, I know the UPC, it's just the listing creator that doesn't, so please don't make it a requirement to enter a UPC on new items, if you don't have all the UPC's available yet.
P.S. I now know the five zeros trick, but still, why should I have to leave the real UPC out of my listing just because the system doesn't know it? How is that helpful?
Maybe I'm missing something here?
quicksilverdiecast
·3 years agoI have run into this often and found a workaround that and here is how to do it so the controlling search engines outside of ebay grasp the info.
When you begin listing you item with the CORRECT UPC and ebay does not recognize it, in the specifics area where you enter the UPC to begin with simply leave it as does not apply and further down where you can create you own specific info box, add one that states CORRECT UPC, as if you enter just upc ebay won't let that happen(you have to be creative and think outside the box) once you create that specific info box simply add the CORRECT UPC and presto google and/or others will pick it up for exposure...
sailinship
OP3 years agoNow that was helpful. I didn't think of that, thank you.
duffy4444
·3 years agoThe following may or may not apply to the UPC you have:
How many numbers are there in the UPC? If there are only 11 numbers instead of 12, the UPC is not complete. So when entering the 11 numbers, add a "0" at the tail end. Then try it. If that doesn't work, add a "1" at the tail end, try again, and keep going thru "9". The UPC will eventually stop and be accepted at the correct added last number.
This has worked for me nearly every time I've gone to the extent for finding the correct UPC. A pain, I know, but if the UPC is that important to you and your listing, this will probably work IF THERE ARE ONLY 11 NUMBERS instead of 12 in the item's UPC.
If the above does not apply to your number, just add "Does Not Apply", and that should be sufficient to allow you to continue with your listing.
Good luck!
Cheers, Duffy
sextons-sweet-deals
·3 years agoBack around 2005 eBay noticed brand name listings being sold as new. I assume some were counterfeit. eBay worked with major brand companies to help stop the fakes being listed & sold. The UPC was then generated as a requirement if item is being sold as NWT.
Today 2023! The UPC does not seem to be required, but if you have one, enter it! It may show no match, but it should still show up. If it does not show up, try a second attempt. It should go through.
If UPC still fails, post a photo of the tag showing the UPC in your listing.
ms.rodriguez*
·3 years agoI list mainly diecast and for the last year, virtually every new Hot Wheel has a new UPC number. Ebay insists that it's wrong. In the past, Mattel did not have so many new UPC number. For me, the best solution is to skip it. I have never ever looked up an item by the UPC anyway. It's wrong for ebay to insist on this number and then they do not accept it.
sailinship
OP3 years agoI think a lot of the Listing specifics that they require are problematic. Espeically the ones that make it difficult to list lots. I think that they are trying to control what we buy and sell a little too much lately. I want to be able to search for what I want and find it.
I think ebay is following the Amazon model, which itself follows the Wal-Mart model, of selecting two or three brands of a particular good, and pushing that. I can't stand Amazon's search engine and I very rarely buy from them, and that rarity is increasing every year.
Whatever is going on, I'll just work around it somehow. Adapt or die.
quicksilverdiecast
·3 years agoThat is one I have run into also and I just revert back to Mattels old standard UPC numbers which will indicate it is a mattel Hot Wheels product. Some of the very early HW upcs while are correct by Mattels standards and are accurate get bounced for not being accurate...lol In which case I think Mattel knows what the UPC they generated applies too....regardless of what other's think is accurate...
1786davycrockett
·3 years agoAs I have mentioned on previous threads in years past, both UPC and ISBN numbers are not "written in stone": due to the finite limitations on numerical variations in both code numbers, both UPC and ISBN numbers are frequently delisted for discontinued and/or obsolete products, and re-listed for new and/or redesigned products.
In addition, identical UPC and/or ISBN codes are often used to identify many different items which may fall into a similar series, but which are not identical to each other (such as Hot Wheels or action figures).
One of the jobs which I held for 13 years was at a large, nationwide chain of bookstores. Every week or so, the lead personnel were handed computer print-out sheets of discontinued book, stationery, toy, puzzle, statuary, coffee mugs, and so on, sometimes over 20 pages long, with over 30 ISBN and/or UPC numbers on each page. Our job, of course, was to hunt down each of the items, box them up, and return them to the publishers and manufacturers. And these were all UPC and ISBN codes that the publishers and manufacturers were discontinuing, some of which to be re-listed for ENTIRELY new items at some future date.
Thus, it should not be surprising to any of us anymore, that some of these UPC and ISBN codes are not falling neatly into the narrow confines of eBay's coding system, since the individuals who created that system in the first place had NO clear concept of what these codes even meant, nor how they were originally created, nor how often they are discontinued and re-used.
All of which makes ANY workarounds frustratingly necessary.
sailinship
OP3 years agoAlso very helpful and something I already knew. I've seen many, many UPC's that were reissued. I did not know however, that things were sent back to distributors due to it, that's odd. Thanks again for the information.
1786davycrockett
·3 years ago@sailinship
"I did not know however, that things were sent back to distributors due to it, that's odd. Thanks again for the information."
Depending upon the item, the distributor may send it back to the manufacturer (and then the manufacturer will figure out a way to either recycle the item, or send it off to a discount house, or even destroy it). Sometimes the manufacturer will simply bundle up a huge lot of miscellaneous items, and auction them off to wholesalers at cut-rate, below-cost prices.
The bookstore chain where I worked would everyday ship huge boxes of books back to the distributor, who would then send them back to the individual publishers. Many of those books would be dumped as lots, then, on book warehousers, who would then sell the books (under new ISBN numbers) to retail booksellers, or discount catalogues -- and many of them just caught a ride on the "returns merry-go-round," and wound up right back in the store, but on the discount shelves, with a new ISBN label slapped over the old ISBN number.
retro_entertainment_collectibles
·3 years agoThere's manufacturer UPC and sometimes stores use their own internal UPC's against an internal database.
There is no defacto database of every UPC or EAN that's ever existed. UPC/EAN is important to search engines and price competing engines around the net. Some general search engines will completely reject product w/o a UPC and some match against database (Google to be one) and will reject any false UPC. They build product confidence on several factors one being how many times a UPC come up matching from multiple venues. Google and Bing both (as will others) also will block content whereby they see an originator page(s) consistently falsing UPC or EAN, its better not provide it at all in those circumstances.
Some people may for example see a significant drop in aggregate traffic as search engines external of eBay suppress a listing, listing(s) or all listings by say a specific vendor. I built webstores for several people who I tried impress upon them be accurate, at least two did not do so and they're entire eCommerce sites were suppressed, blocked from search engine spidering regardless of the sitemap submit.
Amazon had HUGE problems with people making up UPC's for new product that was actually already product listed. People did so because they didn't like the "Race to the bottom" pricing.
"Oh gee, look low price is $7.00 and high price is $25 with 22 vendors between... I'll just make a new one and list at $20." Was a disaster from Amazon's database and they just started terminating any seller who did so with no possibility of appeal. Just done.
Whilst most organic traffic within the site doesn't likely search via UPC or EAN the exact opposite is the case for external shopping databases where they qualify items based on UPC or EAN. One of the reasons external search engines use UPC/EAN as a primary or secondary index key in databases is also related to locating counterfeit items and pressure has been placed on search engines by government to do just that.
I can also tell you in chargebacks it can also play factor, been there done that back in the day w/ my own merchant account. Was CRAZY. See some software titles come out in a box and then be delisted and a new release occur, jewel case budget release. Sometimes UPC be different sometimes reused by the manufacturer. We used to have to note in big capital red letters the UPC match against said items in our webstores or any chargeback was indefensible REGARDLESS of which one they ordered! So they order the boxed one at whatever, $25 and the fact the jewel case one have the same UPC at $9.99 no matter what, loose the chargeback, bam $50 atop it in fee's. Was maddening!
monster-deals
·3 years agoI have never had that problem nor heard of it.
I just tried to replicate the problem and couldn't and we do a lot of barcodes
sailinship
OP3 years agoWell, factors, many factors, what are you listing, how etc. It happens to me, that's a fact.
monster-deals
·3 years agoNever once since 1997 and I have, between 3 accounts, over 100,000 items sold.
sailinship
OP3 years agoWell, it happened to me, several times. Maybe it's just that I needed to add zeros as was just remarked. I didn't know that. I just entered the UPC as it was on the package and then they would come up unrecognized. I don't use a scanner btw, I just type them in.
brightlightbookseller
·3 years agoWe simply type in "N/A" for a UPC or ISBN that doesn't exist and it allows us to move on.
pargran3
·3 years agoFor something being listed as new?
brightlightbookseller
·3 years agoWe almost never list anything as new, so that part I can't confirm. I can't imagine the ISBN/UPC requirements being different (it's a required field either way), but I don't know for certain.
sailinship
OP3 years agoN/A does not work if you are trying to list something as new.
1786davycrockett
·3 years ago@sailinship
"N/A does not work if you are trying to list something as new."
So don't list items as "New" -- list them instead as "Like New."
And then enter "Does Not Apply" in the UPC or ISBN space. You'll receive a message that "Does Not Apply" is not recognized as a UPC/ISBN number; but go ahead, and click on "Enter," and continue with your listing.
sailinship
OP3 years agoThank you, but that solution doesn't work for me. Some of the things I sell will be made completely invisible if not marked as New. There are many things that people will hit the "New" box for, or just pass by any that aren't new, especially if the price is the same as those that are marked New. I appreciate you chiming in, but changing the truth about an item to manipulate a defect in ebay's listing procedure is not really going to help.
1786davycrockett
·3 years ago@sailinship
"I appreciate you chiming in, but changing the truth about an item to manipulate a defect in ebay's listing procedure is not really going to help. "
Please excuse me for "chiming in."
sailinship
OP3 years agoThat wasn't an insult, I was just saying thanks for posting, but that's not really a solution.
brightlightbookseller
·3 years agoJust tested, and in the Books category at least, N/A worked fine with an item being listed as Brand New. Must be a category specific option if it's not accepting that for your items.
slippinjimmy
·3 years agoWhere are you entering the UPC? Is it in the Item Specifics that it's not recognized?
sailinship
OP3 years agoYes, and if it doesn't recognize it, SOMETIMES, the black line that surrounds that rectangular input space becomes red. When it's red, it wont let me list unless I put in something it recognizes. Sometimes the five zeros trick works, sometimes it does not.
evelyb30
·3 years agoI had similar hassles with two rolls of wallpaper. Floral. They were brand new, sealed from factory. I copied the bar code right off the package and then the listing wouldn't go live, and ultimately contacted eBay for Business... who didn't know what was wrong either. I had to list without a bar code and revise listing. It was an oddball brand but back 10 years ago that's what eBay was FOR - selling the unique bits you couldn't find elsewhere. Not any more; now they like mass market commodity stuff. (Oh and shoes and sports cards.)
anjofak
·3 years agoWe used to list dvd,Blu-ray, games And books using the barcode scan..but then a few months smooth sailing all of a sudden they all started showing up in the missing specifics list always the barcodes and other specifics changed or missing..
We Just started using the dose not apply tab, something obviously corrupted in there.