eBay

fredspremiumcloset · ‎12-18-2017

If, as a seller, you go to site preferences and check the out-of-stock option it has the effect of hiding your item from sold search results. This is designed for multi-quantity listings which are typically always new items. However, people are doing this for their used one-off items from thrift stores for example. They are exploiting the system in order to hide their sold results.

This hurts eBay in this way: if everyone did this, then sellers could not get accurate information when they are buying their goods to resell. I depend on accurate sold search results in order to make my buying decisions to resell on eBay. If I don't have this, then I am buying blind.

Maybe a fix for this is to only enable the option for new items.

Thanks for the consideration.

berserkerplanet · ‎12-18-2017

I don't use it, and am not going to experiment with it, but the eBay information indicates that it is for GTC AND Multiple Quantity items only. So how are sellers using it to cheat with one-off thrift store items? Where did you see evidence that it is happening?

partial*eclipse · ‎12-18-2017

The "Out of stock" option is a Site Preferences option that is automatically applied to all of a seller's GTC listings, even if the quantity was originally set to just one.

https://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/multiple.html#outofstock

fredspremiumcloset · ‎12-18-2017

There are 7000 item stores with one sale per month and over 100 feedback in that month. There is also a youtube video showing exactly how this works (search "ebay ninja store").

berserkerplanet · ‎12-19-2017

I looked at one 4 min video that was a waste of 4 minutes of my life and some of another that was over an hour long and got next to nothing useful (Youtube videos where they blather on are not the right tool for the job when 200 typed words would do a better job of imparting the information.)

I get the jist of some general reasons why sellers would want to hide their solds.

You are correct. eBay should put a stop to it.

It looks to me less like a policy choice, and more like a coding error. There are very valid reasons why 0 quantity GTCs should be hidden from ACTIVE listings search, but no reason for them to be hidden from SOLD and COMPLETED.

If it is a policy decision, it's a stupid one that breeches trust in the marketplace.

resalesbytheseastore · ‎12-19-2017

I am not sure exactly what causes sold listings to not appear. I list quantities of items often, and they do not appear in my sold listings until the last one has sold. This isn't something that I set in my preferences to do, it just happens. Its been that way for as long as I can remember.

partial*eclipse · ‎12-20-2017

@resalesbytheseastore wrote:
I am not sure exactly what causes sold listings to not appear..... Its been that way for as long as I can remember.

@resalesbytheseastore

Yes, that's how it has always worked.

A year or two ago, eBay introduced a site preferences option called "Out of stock" which is the subject being discussed here. It hides sold-out listings. The purpose is so that sellers don't lose their lovely high "Sold" totals on multi-item listings; they can just hide the listing until they restock. But it will also hide a Sold listing that started out with just one item.

fredspremiumcloset · ‎12-20-2017

Is there anything else we can do to bring this to eBay's attention?

calntom · ‎12-20-2017

...

rixstuff · ‎12-20-2017

I dont know about hiding out of stock items but I sell overwhelmingly second hand but use the variation feature all the time - to list 45 pairs of silver earrings, 20 silver bracelets, etc. When one sells, the SYSTEM marks it out of stock, not me. But it is true - it is out of stock becaues the only one I had sold.

berserkerplanet · ‎12-20-2017

If I am understanding this correctly, the Out of Stock setting in site preferences, hides 0 Qty GTC listings from search until they are replenished but keeps them alive - which makes perfect sense to prevent out of stock defects.

What I am gathering is that it also hides any SOLDs on that GTC from search - which doesn't make any sense.

Assuming the above is true, the manipulations come in when a seller of a one off item lists that item as GTC, and turns the GTC option on. When his item sells, it will not appear in search SOLDS to prevent competition from scrutinizing it.

Also done by sellers with multiples of an item, but items are listed one at a time in individual GTC listings one after the other as each item sells, it disappears from eBay, and buyers have no idea what the seller sold the previous copy of that item for since the previous sale isn't searchable. Not sure what the point of that is unless it's to move pricing around wildly to some end. (I also don't know if the items reappear in sold or completed search once the GTC is ended.)

Am I understanding all that correctly?

fredspremiumcloset · ‎12-20-2017

Yes. Ebay's official reasoning behind this option was to allow people who sell a product in quantity like wholesale or private label to be less scrutinized by the competition.
I'm very certain they did not intend it to be used on used one off items from thrift stores.

resalesbytheseastore · ‎12-20-2017

I have never used the option to hide any of my listings. I didn't even know it existed. Yet I still have items that have never appeared in my sold listings. I actually went through some items that were listed as out of stock and deleted them, because I only had one, and may never get one again. Why they went to out of stock after they sold is anyone's guess. It was not something that I opted into, they were listed exactly as any other listing I have made.

rixstuff · ‎12-22-2017

@berserkerplanet wrote:
If I am understanding this correctly, the Out of Stock setting in site preferences, hides 0 Qty GTC listings from search until they are replenished but keeps them alive - which makes perfect sense to prevent out of stock defects.

What I am gathering is that it also hides any SOLDs on that GTC from search - which doesn't make any sense.

Assuming the above is true, the manipulations come in when a seller of a one off item lists that item as GTC, and turns the GTC option on. When his item sells, it will not appear in search SOLDS to prevent competition from scrutinizing it.

Also done by sellers with multiples of an item, but items are listed one at a time in individual GTC listings one after the other as each item sells, it disappears from eBay, and buyers have no idea what the seller sold the previous copy of that item for since the previous sale isn't searchable. Not sure what the point of that is unless it's to move pricing around wildly to some end. (I also don't know if the items reappear in sold or completed search once the GTC is ended.)

Am I understanding all that correctly?

No, this one I get. If you dont have any, why show me an item in search only to not even have it. I would rather skip it and keep going.

berserkerplanet · ‎12-23-2017

You don't seem to get it.

Sold listings being hidden is the issue. Disappearing sold items as if they were never listed. Maybe you don't ever look at sold listings, but most sellers and many buyers do to get valuations on items, see trends, etc.