Bug or terrible new "feature"? Clicking on certain sold items leads to different active item??

[mondex]

As a full-time seller I always check recent sold prices for items before listing.  Recently about half the time I click on a sold listing for a comic (to see the condition details / pictures, for instance), it instead immediately redirects me to an active item I have no interest in.  I understand this may work for some items (although why anyone would go to sold items hoping to buy active versions is beyond me), but its irrelevant for many types of items, such as basically ALL collectibles, which depend on very specific details.  A 0.5 version of a key comic may go for $50 while the 9.8 goes for $1000, so even if I was clicking on sold items to (for some reason) buy active ones, I would have zero interest in what's being shown.  This was just demonstrated when an item I was bidding on as a seller ended around $60 and it immediately redirected me to a $350 one.  If this isn't a bug, I'm assuming it was some bright idea from someone in the marketing department trying to get attention.  I understand experimenting and trying new things, but all you're going to do is annoy the people who are trying to see sold items.

I suppose ultimately its a question of how many impulse purchases you're going to generate that wouldn't otherwise occur VS how much you're going to degrade the experience of the average buyer/seller looking at sold items?  I don't know the answer to that question, but I do know that people go to sold items to SEE SOLD ITEMS.  And if they're looking for an active item, they use this crazy feature called the search bar.

Has anyone else experienced this?

[mam98031]

Yes, this feature was added a while back.  IDK why, it is very annoying.  You have to be very careful and pay attention so you are sure you are actually viewing the Sold item.  If you aren't it says something like View Original Listing.

I Don't like it either.  

[wastingtime101 · Accepted solution]

eBay redirects to active listings because too many buyers were finding items through external search engines and being taken to an item they could not purchase.

Sometimes you'll find a link at the top of the page to see original listing. Other times eBay will annoyingly redirect you to a product page or another listing without offering that link.

But ... if this is happening when you're researching other sold items @mondex , I can't offer a better suggestion than using the Product Research tool instead of sold search.

1. It has more accurate results, takes search keywords more literally.

2. It has more accurate sold prices since it will show offers you can't see in regular search.

3. It will only show successful transactions, not items that were never paid.

4. It will not redirect to another product which is the main problem you're encountering.

5. You can search various time periods, up to the last 3 years.

Yeah, it has some annoying aspects and it's not always obvious when there are multiple pages of results so you have to get used to the tool, but for the most part it's a better option than using regular sold search filters.

https://www.ebay.com/sh/research

[mondex]

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@mam98031 wrote:

Yes, this feature was added a while back.  IDK why, it is very annoying.  You have to be very careful and pay attention so you are sure you are actually viewing the Sold item.  If you aren't it says something like View Original Listing.

They changed it from that, actually.  There is no longer always a link to view the original listing, meaning you can't get to it at all.  In fact, even typing in the address (ebay/itm/itemnumber) will still immediately redirect to an active item.  It only does this a certain percentage of the time, for some reason

[mondex]

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@wastingtime101 wrote:

eBay redirects to active listings because too many buyers were finding items through external search engines and being taken to an item they could not purchase.

But ... if this is happening when you're researching other sold items @mondex , I can't offer a better suggestion than using the Product Research tool instead of sold search.

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That is a good point and makes a little more sense why they'd do it, if that is the reason.  I never had to use Terapeak / the Product Research tool that much, but that seems the best suggestion.

[wastingtime101]

You're correct about them very recently removing the see original listing link in many cases. I started seeing that earlier this week.

The Product Research tool will get you to the original item, but you can also try adding a no redirect tail to the URL when you go direct to the item page, like this:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/ITEMNUMBER/?nordt=true

Hopefully one of those options will work for you. eBay loves wasting our time, forcing us to find ways to work around issues. 

[tobaccocardyahoo]

The major purchase of the EBay search is to find items to buy.

This enhances its primary function.

Inconvenience in using the search to price when you list is viewed as acceptable since Ebay thinks you can get the functionality you need with Product Research, formerly Terapeak. It might work for some sellers.

[wastingtime101]

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@mondex wrote:

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@wastingtime101 wrote:

eBay redirects to active listings because too many buyers were finding items through external search engines and being taken to an item they could not purchase.

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That is a good point and makes a little more sense why they'd do it, if that is the reason.

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It makes sense that's why eBay redirects. It does not make sense that they removed the "see original listing" link.

Speaking as a buyer, if I find something on Google I want to know there was an original listing and that I'm not going nuts trying to find the exact item / photo I saw on Google but it's not appearing on the page where I landed. I want it clear that I'm viewing a different listing.

Most other marketplaces maintain a link to the original listing or put the original listing lower on the page below ads for similar products, and most will put a message up like, "sorry this sold out but here are some other items you might like."

[jg.mason]

It seems to redirect to an active listing if the sold item had a product review rating. In another thread it was mentioned that if you right click on the product review you can get to the original listing, I tried it and that does work.

[mam98031]

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@mondex wrote:

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@mam98031 wrote:

Yes, this feature was added a while back.  IDK why, it is very annoying.  You have to be very careful and pay attention so you are sure you are actually viewing the Sold item.  If you aren't it says something like View Original Listing.

They changed it from that, actually.  There is no longer always a link to view the original listing, meaning you can't get to it at all.  In fact, even typing in the address (ebay/itm/itemnumber) will still immediately redirect to an active item.  It only does this a certain percentage of the time, for some reason

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I have not had that problem nor can I explain why it is happening to you.

[wastingtime101]

Hi @mam98031 , if you want to see this in effect, try these links:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/286128979069/

That listing link is for a sold item which will auto-redirect to the product page linked below with no link to see original listing at the top. Removing the link to see original listing is one thing that recently changed. The other thing that recently changed is we used to be able to avoid the redirect by going to a clean item link like the one I posted above removing all tracking info at the tail that's frequently added. That's no longer the case.

https://www.ebay.com/p/14065723222

Now try this link to the same sold item where I added a no redirect command at the end of the URL so you can see the original listing:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/286128979069/?nordt=true

I hope that helps explain what we've been referring to throughout the discussion.

[redmodelt]

This has been going on for a few years so is nothing new. 

[azazael326]

is it? ive been on ebay a LONG time and until last night i had NEVER had this happen and im seriously annoyed now. i buy a lot of toys and such and had an item i bid on that i forgot i bid on and missed it being outbid. i went to check the item in bid history and was like...wow that went REALLY low, lemme look at it again. and it took me to a "similar" item that was almost 3x the price. wonder what was up, i clicked the bid history link again, saw "see item" link at the top...and once again, taken to the same "similar" item. why in the world would this be a thing? why change this linking to show something TOTALLY different? i get what someone said above, but even that does not make total sense. most of the time you click on a completed/sold auction there is a REASON why you do it. getting google linked and you get a dead auction, ok, at least you can get a feel where to start and can EASILY just search at the top. changing this linking in this way pretty much breaks checking anything sold to see the condition or circumstances. i REALLY wish ebay would stop "fixing" things like this for the worse

[ltldpr]

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@jg.mason wrote:

It seems to redirect to an active listing if the sold item had a product review rating. In another thread it was mentioned that if you right click on the product review you can get to the original listing, I tried it and that does work.

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Excellent information! Thank you for sharing it!

[mam98031]

Maybe it is something they are rolling out or is only in the App.  IDK, all I can say is what I said before.  That is how it presents for me.

I hope that explains what I see.