eBay

Anonymous · ‎08-20-2021

Not here to rant but I think something's wrong with the search engine. Did a search for cookbooks. Check the photo. That's not a cookbook. Has anyone else noticed search problems like this?

eburtonlab · ‎08-20-2021

Sponsored listings do not need to match your search criteria to appear in a search, and if they do appear, such listings do not sort according to your sort criteria -- their positions in your search are determined by the terms of the sponsorship.

You can claim that is something wrong with eBay's search algorithm, but unless you can show that the seller did not choose for that listing to appear for that particular search, eBay may still consider that the search is working as intended; inserting sponsored listings at the top and bottom of the search is expected behavior -- though in most cases the connection between the search terms and the sponsored listing is more obvious.

Perhaps it represents a problem with the promoted listing algorithm, or perhaps the seller was not picky about which searches their sponsored item appears in.

https://pages.ebay.com/seller-center/listing-and-marketing/promoted-listings.html

View Best Answer in original post

popblox · ‎08-20-2021

Yes, constantly. Drives me nuts, but it's not near as bad if you use quotes around your keyword.

eburtonlab · ‎08-20-2021

I could not find that exact sponsored listing using that search, but I found a similar listing for Beauty & the Beast when searching for cookbooks. Note the item specific for genre:

In that particular case, the search is working as advertised, but the seller has apparently included random item specifics that do not apply to the actual item for sale (see also, title, topic and author). The search can only use the information it is given -- "garbage in, garbage out" as they say.

Sponsored listings can appear in search results due to specific keywords or categories being searched, even if the listing does not meet the criteria for the original search (although why a seller would want their listing to appear in an unrelated search escapes me). Active sponsored listings can even appear when searching completed items, in some cases.

Note that it is often possible to filter out such sponsored listings using an ad blocker, though eBay sometimes changes how sponsored listings work, and it can take time for ad filters to be updated and begin blocking them again.

sextons-sweet-deals · ‎08-20-2021

might be that the seller listed in the wrong category. Possibly selected to "sell similar" on one of their active listings and forgot to revise the correct category.

nobody*s_perfect · ‎08-20-2021

@eburtonlab wrote:
I could not find that exact sponsored listing using that search, but I found a similar listing for Beauty & the Beast when searching for cookbooks. Note the item specific for genre:

In that particular case, the search is working as advertised, but the seller has apparently included random item specifics that do not apply to the actual item for sale (see also, title, topic and author). The search can only use the information it is given -- "garbage in, garbage out" as they say.
...

Here's the listing in question. I don't see anything misleading in the item specifics.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/294265384084

meme6253 · ‎08-20-2021

Yes It Happens Quite Often, Sometimes It's The Seller At Fault, & Other Times I Have NO Idea!

farmalljr · ‎08-20-2021

@nobody*s_perfect wrote:
@eburtonlab wrote:
I could not find that exact sponsored listing using that search, but I found a similar listing for Beauty & the Beast when searching for cookbooks. Note the item specific for genre:

In that particular case, the search is working as advertised, but the seller has apparently included random item specifics that do not apply to the actual item for sale (see also, title, topic and author). The search can only use the information it is given -- "garbage in, garbage out" as they say.
...
Here's the listing in question. I don't see anything misleading in the item specifics.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/294265384084

I DO. It's in the cookbook genre. It's not a cookbook. This isn't a problem with eBay, it's a seller listing error.

eburtonlab · ‎08-20-2021

Here's the listing in question. I don't see anything misleading in the item specifics.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/294265384084

It is a sponsored listing, so it does not need to match your search criteria to appear in the search results, it just has to match some seller-chosen keyword or attribute. The seller is paying eBay for search placement in the form of a portion of the sales proceeds.

Possibly the seller wanted it to appear when searching a particular category such as Children's Books which has since been removed, so it appears when searching Books in general.

coolections · ‎08-20-2021

Nothing went wrong. Once you get to the page you showed us you have one more step. On the left side of the screen check the box that says cooking. Also the seller could have chosen the wrong category.

Anonymous · ‎08-20-2021

Maybe but that's not how it works, IMO. You do a search for cookbooks, you get...cookbooks. Not Beauty and The Beast. Plus, it's in the right category in the listing. Other than that, doing a search for an item, then having to refine the search in the right category to get the right results, is daft. Above all, Beauty and The Beast shouldn't be at the top of the search results.

nobody*s_perfect · ‎08-20-2021

@farmalljr wrote:
@nobody*s_perfect wrote:
@eburtonlab wrote:
I could not find that exact sponsored listing using that search, but I found a similar listing for Beauty & the Beast when searching for cookbooks. Note the item specific for genre:

In that particular case, the search is working as advertised, but the seller has apparently included random item specifics that do not apply to the actual item for sale (see also, title, topic and author). The search can only use the information it is given -- "garbage in, garbage out" as they say.
...
Here's the listing in question. I don't see anything misleading in the item specifics.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/294265384084
I DO. It's in the cookbook genre. It's not a cookbook. This isn't a problem with eBay, it's a seller listing error.

I meant, "here's the listing from the original post," not "here's the listing from eburtonlab's post." Here are the item specifics for the "Beauty and the Beast" book. No mention of cookbook anywhere in the item specs or the listing description.

Anonymous · ‎08-20-2021

So the search engine is a little messed up.

maxiebel · ‎08-20-2021

Yep......the same thing is happening to me.

Never had this problem before "the new and improved categories" that ebay put in place recently.

I buy and sell vintage items and now all kinds of **bleep** shows up when I search for anything.

I can search for vintage Halloween items......and half of the results will be Christmas. How does that have ANYTHING to do with Halloween!

Vintage Halloween items are the fastest growing and becoming the largest vintage collectible in America.

Before Ebay "IMPROVED" their categories, sub categories made it easy to search and find what you were looking for.

Now, I have to slog through hundreds of non-vintage items and so much garbage that doesn't even belong in the search I submitted.

And after much complaining from "many buyers".....the fact is EBAY DOESN'T CARE and is totally disinterested in your my feedback or anyone else's.

Ebay is on a mission to DUMB DOWN buying and selling to achieve some kind of goal that I have yet to grasp.

It is so frustrating to try and find the kind of things I used to search for that I just have to quit. Along with many other frustrated buyers......which means your customers "can't find" what you are selling easily.