Heads up - eBay's got a new AI tool in the wild and this one could have some interesting impacts on sellers!
I first saw it when browsing the UK site (which is why these screenshots are for UK), but even though there is not a yet a link in the navigation on the .com home page, I was able to extrapolate the link structure and find it is live on the US site as well and it works pretty much the same way there as in UK.
First, you choose an interest to personalize your feed - for now only clothing categories are available, but eBay says new interests across Home Decor, Collectibles and more are coming soon.
Once you've selected an interest, eBay populates a page with items discovered using AI.
Notice there are no titles or seller details shown, only a price and in some cases a brand name. 👀
It's not entirely clear what would cause the brand name to appear for some items and not others, as all the examples I looked at had the brand name item specific filled in on the listing page.
None of the results shown during this testing were labeled as "sponsored" so it would seem eBay is not yet including Promoted Listings ads in the feature, or if they are, they are not properly designated as such as legally required.
If you click on an item, it does not take you to the item page - it displays a quick view pop up window instead. (Side note - also interesting to note that in the UK, the quick view pop up only has a view details button and does not allow the buyer to go directly to checkout without looking at the listing, unlike the US...maybe a regulatory requirement difference?)
All of the thumbnails displayed in eBay Explore also have the "search visually similar" icon in the lower left corner, and clicking that icon will display more results that also do not show any titles or seller details.
So what do y'all think about the lack of title and seller info and the Quick View pop up?
I can see how this might potentially be useful for buyers to browse and discover items but I have to admit I personally don't really like that it pretty much strips sellers of the benefits of brand recognition for their stores or the ability to stand out with good titles or feedback rating showing in results. 😒
I tested it out using your link. I choose Casual to start. The first thing I noticed is many of the items shown were fall and winter. Lots of puffer jackets and heavy sweaters. I did see one dress that caught my eye and when I clicked on it found it to be out of stock 😒
Then I clicked Update Interests and switched to Classic. That was it end of exploring. I saw this and refreshing the page did nothing.
I understand this feature may not be ready for "prime time", so not surprised by the error.
I think it could be useful for buyers. Especially, for those like me who love to window shop. There was a nice selection of clothing, handbags, and shoes in the little bit that I saw, even if many were out of season. I think I would have bought the dress I clicked on if it were in stock.
@mcdougle4248 wrote:
I tested it out using your link. I choose Casual to start. The first thing I noticed is many of the items shown were fall and winter. Lots of puffer jackets and heavy sweaters. I did see one dress that caught my eye and when I clicked on it found it to be out of stock 😒
Then I clicked Update Interests and switched to Classic. That was it end of exploring. I saw this and refreshing the page did nothing.
I understand this feature may not be ready for "prime time", so not surprised by the error.
I think it could be useful for buyers. Especially, for those like me who love to window shop. There was a nice selection of clothing, handbags, and shoes in the little bit that I saw, even if many were out of season. I think I would have bought the dress I clicked on if it were in stock.
@mcdougle4248 yep, I got that oops message a couple times too but refreshing did fix it for me...and I'll admit it did make me wonder if some of the other "oops" we've been seeing around here the last week or so could be related to eBay trying to add this functionality into the mix with unintended technical consequences.
Great observation about the seasonality and yikes on the out of stock! That would definitely be something the AI should be able to catch and know not to display since that's not likely to be a positive buyer experience.
even if many were out of season
@mcdougle4248
Just to add a bit of levity, can you expand on "out of season". Do you mean fashion from three years ago? OR
not suited to the weather? LOL....where I live there is basically one climate...hot or hotter. Though we had more than the usual reprieve from the normal "hotter" of late, it is likely attributed to climate change (previously known as global warming, except for the fact we could turn off the Air Conditioners in February for a few days) .
I am moving soon to an area that actually has REAL seasons with leaves that fall off trees, and snow. I have no idea what the "fashion" is going to be, and wondering if I should buy those plastic red lobster flip flops on AZ before they cut out the presentation of "non-seasonal" items....LOL. The photo below is not accurate. From actual observations of vehicles that have traveled here from across the state, it is likely Lovebug Season.
Carry on.
@ittybitnot wrote:even if many were out of season
@mcdougle4248
Just to add a bit of levity, can you expand on "out of season". Do you mean fashion from three years ago? ORnot suited to the weather? LOL....where I live there is basically one climate...hot or hotter. Though we had more than the usual reprieve from the normal "hotter" of late, it is likely attributed to climate change (previously known as global warming, except for the fact we could turn off the Air Conditioners in February for a few days) .
I am moving soon to an area that actually has REAL seasons with leaves that fall off trees, and snow. I have no idea what the "fashion" is going to be, and wondering if I should buy those plastic red lobster flip flops on AZ before they cut out the presentation of "non-seasonal" items....LOL. The photo below is not accurate. From actual observations of vehicles that have traveled here from across the state, it is likely Lovebug Season.
Carry on.
😂
We have two seasons: Rainy and Construction.
