Weekly Community Chat, July 19th @ 1pm PT - General Topics

[alan@ebay]

Hi Community, 

Please join us here for our weekly Community chat at 1 pm Pacific on Wednesday 7/19. There isn't a set topic this week so feel free to ask us your eBay buying & selling questions. 

Talk to you then!

[duchess-at-speakeasy]

Where does eBay publish a complete list of countries associated with the GSP (both U.S. and UK)?

While I don't currently employ the GSP, I would like to know which international destinations are on the list and whether I can be selective.  That is, can I block certain countries and limit GSP sales to a limited number of countries?

~~C~~

[ittybitnot]

seller central

[tyler@ebay]

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@mendelsons wrote:

@mendelsons wrote:

So what is the deal with descriptions, why are we making listings with descriptions if ebay is just going to hide them and show other items to buy in the space that was occupied by the description field.

We do enough returns as it is and if your hiding desciptions not only on moble platform but pc platform as well -  this is going to get worse.

Hi @mendelsons - the shortened description display is a test that is being run to look at buyer and seller experiences and how that corresponds to sales conversion. It is for a small portion of member accounts, and is not a permanent change. Thanks!

Is there a way to opt out of this "test" ?  I have noticed Amazon starting pushing their descriptions down farther on the page offering similar or like items, is this eBay attempt at something similar ?

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There is not a way to opt out. It should be a several week duration after which it will revert back to the display you're used to. 

This is a test specifically looking at the sales conversion rates and traffic of buyers across the site on the PC, similar to the mobile test of this feature that was done last year. Thanks!

[bigmotormania]

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@duchess-at-speakeasy wrote:

Where does eBay publish a complete list of countries associated with the GSP (both U.S. and UK)?

While I don't currently employ the GSP, I would like to know which international destinations are on the list and whether I can be selective.  That is, can I block certain countries and limit GSP sales to a limited number of countries?

~~C~~

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I will second this. 

There are certain cases where it would be cheaper for my buyers for me to simply ship PMI than to use the GSP.

I prefer the GSP because it provides tracking to countries where tracking seems to just drop off the face of the earth, but for the countries that I know are more... "trustworthy" when it comes to tracking and customs, I would prefer to be able to use normal international shipping instead of the GSP.

I use the GSP as a kind of insurance, unfortunately that insurance for me is also extremely expensive for my customer.

[critter_mama_2007]

thanks, i just sent an email.

[alan@ebay]

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tyler@ebay wrote:

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@gaugewireandcable wrote:

Does eBay plan to get ahold of images that violate policy? I've reported the same seller for 5 years for images with borders and text like free shipping and images of American flag. I believe it's search and browse manipulation but no matter how many time I report it nothing happens so I'm hard pressed as to why I should follow the rules while my competition has an unfettered advantage? If you look in a category like cell phone covers you'll see every other listing with an image violation, they aren't hard to find. So does eBay have an active policy to find and stop this? Even when reported it takes a back seat to other seller violations so I'm just frustrated and hope you could shed some light on this. 

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Hi @gaugewireandcable - we do have a photo policy (http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/picture.html) that does not allow  for user added text, borders, etc and want to hear about those that you find that aren't in line with the policies. I'll reach out to you directly for a  few examples that I can review to see what I can find out. Thanks!

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@gaugewireandcable

I'll also add that images with text/borders will not appear in Google Shopping results. Best to keep your images clean and clear to maximize SEO. 

[Anonymous]

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@bigmotormania wrote:

Hello, Alan.

I have an inquiry in regards to the IPR thing.

Considering only one of my items is actually over $1000, I was curious since I haven't actually been able to ascertain exactly how this works.

So, if an item from a seller like myself (small seller) is less than $1000, then it's eBay that requires the IPR, yes? Meaning I cannot remove this IPR at all, period.

My reasoning for asking this is if I were to start doing lot sales of multiple types of small items (motorcycle parts; o-rings, specialized nuts and bolts, gaskets, piston rings etc) which are generally cheap, but I put them up for say, $15 for a lot of 20 items, for example, and then I get a buyer who wants to purchase for example, 10 lots, but they cannot combine them because eBay's IPR won't allow for them to request an invoice, then that certainly poses a problem, yes?

Basically what I am asking is, is this an absolute requirement, is this how it works, and if the answer to either of those questions is "yes" "for the most part" "pretty much" "something like that" "it can be summed up that way" "essentially" "indeed" "quite so" "basically" or any answer along those lines, is eBay doing anything to fix buyers not being able to use the cart to request an invoice for multitudes of these items?

Thanks.

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Hi @bigmotormania - Your buyers are able to request an invoice through the cart when your item automatically qualifies for IPR. If your buyers are asking for more lots than you have in the listing, you shouldn't be including those on an invoice after purchase. Instead, you'll want to list the number of quantities you have available so buyers can select how many they'd like to purchase ahead of time.

[Anonymous]

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@mam98031 wrote:

I have a question relating to the Ebay catalog pics.  

There is a series of perfumes that I can't seem to carry on Ebay.  If I post them sometime in the near future I will get a Vero violation for my pics.  Granted they are stock photos provided by my supplier, but they are the SAME photos that MANY other sellers use, yet in the years that have followed this problem, they are all still using them and apparently not having any problems in doing so.

Now in Ebay's catalog are many of these same pics that I got in trouble for using.  How and why is this happening.  Why can Ebay and other sellers use the pics, but I'm not allowed.  It makes no sense to me.

This is all regarding to a line of perfumes produced by Bond No. 9.

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A VeRO related listing removal would be due to the direction we received from the rights owner. I recommend reaching out to the rights owner using the contact information provided when your listings were taken down to discuss these other listings that you feel may be in violation. They also may be authorized by the rights owner to use these photos, as the rights owner can designate authorized resellers as they see fit.

[alan@ebay]

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@bigmotormania wrote:

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alan@ebay wrote:

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Hi @timemachine777

We completely rewrote our guidelines in October 2016; there are no current plans to rewrite them again. 

I wouldn't agree that they're "draconian." We have thousands of active users in our Community each day who do not experience post removal or moderator action.

Our team has a duty to keep all users in the Community safe, and posters in the Community have a duty to ensure that they adhere to our usage guidelines when posting. 

The eBay Community Team regularly meets with the Lithium moderation team to review all moderation action taken. 

We do not enjoy moderating, but having a safe and enjoyable environment is very important to us. 

If you ever have concerns with moderation action taken on your ID, you can contact me via Private Message, and I will personally review the situation. 

Thanks. 

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I would note that subjectivity has been seen as a factor in the moderation of messages, it seems some messages get removed when they were simply stating fact, but other extremely toxic and hostile messages were allowed to stay, for reasons unbeknownst to myself.

This might be where the word "draconian" came from in regards to how some of the policies work.

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My ask is that you bring these to my attention. I appreciate it being brought up now, but without examples, I am kinda in the dark. 

Please PM me with more info if you have it available. 

Thanks. 

[Anonymous]

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@duchess-at-speakeasy wrote:

Why does eBay want to discourage multiple purchases from a single seller by imposing IPR on items valued under $1000?

As a buyer, I specifically look for opportunities to add 2 to 25 items to the shopping cart and then request a total from the seller.  If I have to pay for each item separately and pay full shipping, I will stop buying on eBay.  Keep in mind that these are individual listings (auctions and fixed-price), not a single multi-quantity FP listing.

Also keep in mind that sellers with a variety of merchandise -- ranging from a few ounces to 5 lbs. or more -- cannot establish a generic add-on rule for combination orders.  Each order must be custom-quoted based on weight, size, class of mail and compatibility to a specific destination.

As a seller, I encourage buyers to add 2 or more items to the shopping cart and request a revised invoice.  When buyers cannot do so, I lose business.

Does eBay really want to chase away buyers and send sellers to other shopping sites?  It certainly seems so!

~~C~~

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Buyer's should still be able to use the cart to request a total from a seller. Additionally, if you have your shipping preferences set up, the discount will automatically apply when the items are added to the cart. Have you had any specific reports from your customers that they were not able to use the cart? Can you give more details on these situations? I can suggest that when the cart is not an option for some reason, that you work with your buyer to create a custom listing for them with the items they wish to purchase and the discounted shipping amount.

[tyler@ebay]

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@a_c_green wrote:

I'm trying once again to get a response to my question regarding what appears to be a new mandatory setting of the Immediate Payment Required flag for BuyItNow items.

I understand its benefits, especially for newbie sellers with high-scam items, but why can't it be implemented as an option whose default setting is On? That way it can still benefit newbie sellers who may not even realize it's there, while still allowing experienced sellers to waive it or turn it off for listings where doing so will help them, such as when offering items often purchased in groups or quantities from separate listings.

We already have more than enough anecdotal evidence that the required IPR setting is a major hindrance in those situations. Why must it be welded in place with no option for the seller to suspend it for selected items?

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Hi @a_c_green - I want to make sure you feel that your question is addressed, so here goes:

Your suggestion is a good one. Currently that's not the way it has been planned, but feedback like this is valuable and is definitely something we share regularly to see changes in the future. 

[vrykalak]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@dhbookds wrote:

Relative to the Immediate Payment required by Ebay on items less than $1000.......has that rolled out completely now.......so we can remove our seller IPR to enable the cart "ask for invoice", if we want? 

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This has not yet rolled out to 100% of sellers. You could test out your listings with a friend or collegue to see if those without immediate payment required by yourself are being pushed into this automatically. If so, then you are a part of the test and could uncheck the IPR box when listing for eligible items.

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Where is the IPR box? I would definitely like to uncheck it.

[scribe.adept13]

This is very good to know. As a buyer, last night I shopped around eBay just a little (not really looking for too much in specific), popped into an interesting listing and saw such a mess! The poor seller's listing had been completely taken over by "sponsored" listings of other sellers - had to do significant scrolling to find the actual description for the item I was viewing.

~M

[Anonymous]

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@ittybitnot wrote:

to see if those without immediate payment required by yourself are being pushed into this automatically. If so, then you are a part of the test and could uncheck the IPR box when listing for eligible items.

If a seller does not choose the IPR, and it is determined by the procedure you suggested that ebay IS requiring the IPR,  there is no IPR box to check to get rid of "pushed in automatically".   

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Hi @ittybitnot - Apologies for any confusion. The suggestion mentioned by Trinton is specific to those sellers who want to use IPR and are in the test. If you want to use it and you're involved, you won't need to check the box any longer.

That said, you are also correct. If you're in the test, you won't have the option to opt-out of this feature.

[alan@ebay]

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@lintbrush* wrote:

The amount of old topics being revived is extremely high.  

Maybe if the search and start a topic areas were reversed?  or simply the Start a Discussion button needs to be in a more prominent area.   I'm thinking many of the new members to the community don't realize it's a search bar.  It doesn't say Search. 

I'm sure some of the original posters for old threads are perplexed and possibly put off by the emails telling them they received a reply to their posts. 

I know it's frustrating to me as an active answerer.  The new poster on an old thread might not get an answer because their post is lost at the bottom, and the responders are often responding to the OP.

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Hi @lintbrush*

Agreed! Archiving is needed. 

The good news is that we're about to embark on that journey - soon all topics that haven't had a reply for 6 months will be moved to archive read-only boards. 

Thanks.