Promoted Listings Advanced

[katzrul15]

Have read thru this a couple of times.  

Will this mean that PLs as we know them now will essentially be worthless/not effective?

A little concerning as we use PLs quite a bit currently.  Not certain our budget can work for the PL Advanced or that I have a "daily" budget for PL Advanced?

Thoughts?  

How Promoted Listings AdvancedBETA works

Promoted Listings AdvancedBETA is based on a cost-per-click model. You start by deciding how much each keyword and click is worth to you. Next, you bid to target placements at the top of eBay search results. Top placements show your listings to buyers right when they’re looking for your items across all experiences on eBay, including desktop, mobile, and the eBay app.

With this new type of campaign, you’ll be able to:

• Bid for the top slot in search using keyword and budget controls, and pay per click.
• Select the keywords that matter to you.
• Set a daily budget for additional control.

To set up your first campaign, go to the Seller Hub Marketing tab. You can create a new campaign within the Advertising dashboard by following these simple steps:

1. Name your campaign.
2. Choose dates and a daily budget.
3. Name your Ad Group.
4. Add your listings and keywords to the Ad Group.
5. Select a maximum cost-per-click for the keywords, displayed as “CPC bids” in the tool.

Review your campaign after you complete these steps.

Top tips

• Use features like suggested keywords and bids to help you set up effective campaigns.
• Include high-quality listings in your campaign with complete and accurate item specifics and great photos for the best chance of gaining high visibility. In addition to your bid, factors including keyword relevancy, listing quality, competition, and daily budget determine whether your ad will appear in the number one position.
• Use the daily budget feature to manage your ad spend.

You can also use both Promoted Listings Standard and Advanced together to help achieve maximum visibility for your ad placements across the eBay network, and utilize both budget approaches for your ad spend.

Coming later this month—Promoted Listings AdvancedBETA

Starting at the end of this month, Promoted Listings AdvancedBETA will be available to all eligible Promoted Listings sellers. If you’re eligible, you’ll be able to opt in to Promoted Listings AdvancedBETA to start bidding for the highly coveted top spot in the search results, as soon as it’s accessible.

All existing Promoted Listings campaigns will automatically be renamed Promoted Listings Standard campaigns, without you having to do anything. The only changes will be to the name and attribution logic.

[nuclearomen]

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@katzrul15 wrote:

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@nuclearomen wrote:

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@katzrul15 wrote:

Thanks for sharing that.

Surprised e-Bay is targeting the "masses" for this.  I think that is a mistake.

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no, that is "genius" - more free money for ebay, baiting is the game today, and people will bite it hook line and sinker, I would say they are accomplishing their mission. 

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Oh, I get it......but my pocketbook is closed on this issue currently.  The more I read, The more this is not what makes sense.

My concern is that "new-er" Sellers will try this for the Holidays and search and promotions will be so messed up for ALL of us, not just those who decide to PAY to PLAY.

If you go back to my 1st post (OP) - this was my concern all along.  This will change the Promoted landscape, regardless. 

Anyone who thinks Promoted Standard will still work, be viable is not thinking this thru.

To do this right at the Holiday ramp up is disheartening. 

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i hope more and more (new-er) sellers do this, then lose ton of $$ and screw up search so bad, it's unfixable, and then ebay can sit there and figure out to correct the mess they made. It's already a mess...OK, i mean much more of a mess then already is. If sellers did what I suggested two years ago, which was boycott these Promoted Listings all together we wouldn't be in this mess with 5 different PL choices for ebay to rob sellers blind and make free money from virtually every single member they have selling. But no, no one wanted to hear that, "let's do it!" - no one wanted to listen that that was "just the beginning" it was going to keep changing, and it did, every quarter, now where are we? Oh, let's all bid on search spots + charge every time someone clicks it... oh, wait, we can make it even worse, lets make one for auctions too!... the real question is, what's coming next seller update for PL? All should be worried. 

[calculus314]

Very interesting article. It shows Ebay's customers down by 2% and sellers up by 5%. So Ebay will lose fees as the 2% left , yet want to get more from the sellers. The fees and store price are enough for me. If you have an item that is priced right, it may never sell. Amount of other items, scarcity, new item price (that is dropping on many items) effect sales. It isn't just "lower the price" or find items with a better margin. If you paid $20 for an item and it sells for $40, OK. But when there are 30 other of the same item, advertising won't help. Not when that item just isn't moving at that time. So lower the price. Fine. But consider after 13% fees, store fee and packaging, a 20% profit is not worth it. Neither is me bidding against another seller for the "right" to buy a better spot in the search. Might be great for an item that has 300 of the same item, like the imported Alibaba crowd.

[collectorkp]

Want to make sure I have this right.

If you create an advanced promo and say have an advanced promo category that includes BOTH listings of say "apple seeds nib" and "watermelon seeds nib" and you use BOTH keywords for "apple" and "watermelon"... Does your "watermelon" keyword try to get you clicks on your "apple seeds nib" listing? Or is it trying to get you clicks on only items that match / are relevant to your specific listing titles? In other words, is the check for match done at the item level or the campaign level?

Need to know so I know how specific I have to be on my campaigns. Most of my items have minimal overlap in keywords. velvet@ebay 

[velvet@ebay]

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@collectorkp wrote:

Want to make sure I have this right.

If you create an advanced promo and say have an advanced promo category that includes BOTH listings of say "apple seeds nib" and "watermelon seeds nib" and you use BOTH keywords for "apple" and "watermelon"... Does your "watermelon" keyword try to get you clicks on your "apple seeds nib" listing? Or is it trying to get you clicks on only items that match / are relevant to your specific listing titles? In other words, is the check for match done at the item level or the campaign level?

Need to know so I know how specific I have to be on my campaigns. Most of my items have minimal overlap in keywords. velvet@ebay 

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Hey @collectorkp! If I understand what you're saying, using the watermelon seeds nib keyword will not get you clicks for apple seeds nib listings. That buyer would be searching for watermelon seeds so we'd focus on serving them up watermelon seed listings. I hope that helps! If not though, please give us a little more detail surrounding what you're trying to determine for your Promoted Listing Advance (PLA) keywords. In the meantime, I can give you some places to go to learn more about the PLA feature and how it works: 

Seller Center

Help Hub

PLA Community Group

[singular-source]

I've always thought, because it's one and done, promotions/campaigns were pointless.  This item can sit here for a year and I don't really care.  Wondering if PLS would help now.  Man I've got a lot to learn.  I just have not taken any of this seriously, it's just a hobby right now.  I had a successful full time store back in the day.  150k sales in the first year.  I want to get back into this.

[katzrul15]

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@nuclearomen wrote:

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@katzrul15 wrote:

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@nuclearomen wrote:

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@katzrul15 wrote:

Thanks for sharing that.

Surprised e-Bay is targeting the "masses" for this.  I think that is a mistake.

---

no, that is "genius" - more free money for ebay, baiting is the game today, and people will bite it hook line and sinker, I would say they are accomplishing their mission. 

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Oh, I get it......but my pocketbook is closed on this issue currently.  The more I read, The more this is not what makes sense.

My concern is that "new-er" Sellers will try this for the Holidays and search and promotions will be so messed up for ALL of us, not just those who decide to PAY to PLAY.

If you go back to my 1st post (OP) - this was my concern all along.  This will change the Promoted landscape, regardless. 

Anyone who thinks Promoted Standard will still work, be viable is not thinking this thru.

To do this right at the Holiday ramp up is disheartening. 

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i hope more and more (new-er) sellers do this, then lose ton of $$ and screw up search so bad, it's unfixable, and then ebay can sit there and figure out to correct the mess they made. It's already a mess...OK, i mean much more of a mess then already is. If sellers did what I suggested two years ago, which was boycott these Promoted Listings all together we wouldn't be in this mess with 5 different PL choices for ebay to rob sellers blind and make free money from virtually every single member they have selling. But no, no one wanted to hear that, "let's do it!" - no one wanted to listen that that was "just the beginning" it was going to keep changing, and it did, every quarter, now where are we? Oh, let's all bid on search spots + charge every time someone clicks it... oh, wait, we can make it even worse, lets make one for auctions too!... the real question is, what's coming next seller update for PL? All should be worried. 

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@nuclearomen 

It has been a long 18+ months for everyone.  2021 for some Sellers (not all) has apparently not been so great on here, but Sellers slogged thru the Spring Update and slogged thru the item specific changes, massive category changes, managed payments.......

Okay.  Some call this progress.  Okay.

I'll just say it - sales after all the changes if you sold primarily in those categories affected has been NOT FUN.  My bank account says so.

So here are - at the precipice if you will of 4th quarter - less than 2 weeks away.  This is solely about e-Bay making money in the 4th quarter, not about any of us making money in the 4th quarter. 

And before anyone says "what's new?"........don't bother.  Yes, I know how dumb it has been to stick it out and slog along thinking if I just slog a little bit further.......

I should thank e-Bay.  Our Halloween sales are so carpy that I sent 2 huge boxes to FBA last week in desperation and today is Monday and between Saturday, Sunday and today, we have sold almost everything Halloween we sent, so we sent 3 more boxes today.  Sad when being the loyal golden retriever makes you the idiot.   

[nuclearomen]

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@katzrul15 wrote:

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@nuclearomen 

This is solely about e-Bay making money in the 4th quarter, not about any of us making money in the 4th quarter. 

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Of course, it's always about ebay, nothing else. But ebay can't make more money like they use to, so every quarter they do changes with what makes them money... Promoted Listings. PLA is exactly for this purpose, beyond promoted listings where they get more if something sells, now, they just get more, doesn't matter if item sells or not and they call that "generating growth" by ensuing charges for nothing they are in turn telling the share holders "we will have increase revenue per quarter, every quarter now" 

Sure, others may see it differently, but as someone who has worked for several large corporations and companies over the years I see it as what it really is. Has zero to do with sellers and helping them sell, it has everything to do with ebay securing revenue.  

[katzrul15]

@nuclearomen 

Has zero to do with sellers and helping them sell, it has everything to do with ebay securing revenue.  

But could be so easy to be about "both". 

[nuclearomen · Accepted solution]

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@katzrul15 wrote:

@nuclearomen 

Has zero to do with sellers and helping them sell, it has everything to do with ebay securing revenue.  

But could be so easy to be about "both". 

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IMHO no, PLA is way too complicated for your typical run of the mill seller to even understand. I don't say this in way to say that people are dumb, but PLA is a type of advertising that was developed (not by ebay, but employed by them like so many others) to basically rip clients off. It's easy money, for doing nothing, and requires no real investment from the company offering it, no, zero potential loss involved for them. Once someone clicks that option to do it, sets up their campaign, whether they understood it at all, set it up correctly or not etc... they are charged and agree to the terms of being responsible for payment and, it doesn't matter, because ebay will take those funds owe for it directly from sellers MP account or take it directly from their bank. Just as with goggle running such things, investors of these had no control, no real proof their ads were shown at all. Now not going to say that is the case here, you can easily check if the ad is being displayed on search. But still, in the end, it's designed to make them money not the seller. Seller can make money from it, but look ahead, not soul to the moment. What happens over the next months prior to next seller update to PL. How bad does search become due to PLA, how much sales have been cut from sellers due to the impact of them with popular items, everyday items. Items like I sell, no worry, it's a specialty niche that won't be impacted at all or very little. There are tons of things to ask and think about, can't possibly list everything but for a starting point. 

Let's ponder things in more simple manner. Ebay could eliminate all types of PL and leave only PLS and still make millions (billions potentially) every single quarter without fail, lose or risk. When those items sell ebay makes more in FVF percentages per sale/category. The profit is 1% to idk - how much willing to elect? Selling fees went up, after we were told they would not in MP, only took less then a year for them to do that. In any case, sale happens on PLS, ebay makes more based off what seller if willing to give extra for that sale. Seller makes money cause they sold the item - assuming they were smart and priced their item right - in general sale will make profit for seller. Everyone wins. PLA - the only who win is ebay, they get the fee no matter what, no lose, no risk for them. Seller risks everything, they are paying for the CPC's they are electing a budget, unless they end the campaign that money is ebay's from the moment they start it.

[bimm_corp]

@mrgoodlite 

>they are running it every night thru the overnight money market sweeps and making a little $ off of your $. 

Always amazes me how the syncopates religiously quote chapter and verse on how eBay doesn't make any money on the "float". NO financial entity lets money sit around idle. I always ask "Do you really believe everything eBay says?" and never get a straight answer.

[bimm_corp]

@mr_lincoln 

@katzrul15 

>e-Bay shows them 6 others, usually cheaper or whatever, of the exact same thing. Goodie. Got them to my listings and now e-Bay wants to show them the Seller Buffet selling against me/you.

And eBay wants  PLA users to bid for the privilege of doing so. SUCH A DEAL!

[bimm_corp]

@katzrul15 

>Surprised e-Bay is targeting the "masses" for this.

Imagine what might happen if Sri Lankan sellers go big on PLA.

[gjs_16]

What it seems everyone is missing, it's not about "affording" it...

It's about not going broke, here's the problem:
As pointed out, if a $10 item takes 97 clicks to sell and one bids 5 cents per click that means that $10 item must now be priced near $16 (because FVF's too) in order to earn the same profit as was earned with the $10 item, thus the cost gets passed on to the buyer(s).

Do you think?
And yes, I understand buyers WILL pay more for better service, that much I do understand.

But do you really think buyers will take long to catch on to the fact they're getting ripped off via paid search results?

[flyingmvp]

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@bimm_corp wrote:

@katzrul15 

>

Imagine what might happen if Sri Lankan sellers go big on PLA.

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I don't want to imagine it happening, I want to see it happening 😂. 

It would be the first ever war declaration of a nation against an online flea market platform. 

[flyingmvp]

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@gjs_16 wrote:

But do you really think buyers will take long to catch on to the fact they're getting ripped off via paid search results?

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Buyers nowadays know where to get their $10 items,

They can order it and get it to their doorstep in less then 48 hrs, 24 sometimes,

Delivered by a blue vested Transit/Sprinter driver...