Sponsored similar listings above my product description?

[inhawaii]

Am i seeing this right? Two rows of sponsored similar items just above my product description? 

WOW!  When did this happen?

That's like the potential customer is interested in my item, but ebay says "are you sure you wouldn't want to buy one of these instead?" 

[slippinjimmy]

Started quite a long time ago as I recall, I wasn't active on the site from Last July to early November, they were showing like that by the time I returned.

[dhbookds]

Even longer ago than that............I'd say 3-4 years.............

[go-bad-chicken]

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@inhawaii wrote:

Am i seeing this right? Two rows of sponsored similar items just above my product description? 

WOW!  When did this happen?

That's like the potential customer is interested in my item, but ebay says "are you sure you wouldn't want to buy one of these instead?" 

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In my experience I have found that whether eBay shows the 2 Sponsored Listing carousels vs the 1 Sponsored Listing carousel is often times either category dependent or dependent on the item itself. Because sometimes there is 1 carousel and sometimes there are 2 carousel.

What determines whether 1 carousel or 2 carousels are shown, I have no idea? Only eBay knows how the sausage is made, and they aren't talking.

[picknparley]

Yup, it's like walking into Walmart BUT K-Mart, Rite-Aid and Target have tables of items set out for you to buy before you get into Walmart.

It's NO WONDER there are so many buyers who say "what description"? It's being buried under high price sponsored items. 

[cynthealee2]

It USED to be if you did promotions (either pay eBay to promote, or sale type promotions) that would take that top spot and they could see your other items for sale... now that's stuck at the bottom.

[gwzcomps]

It has been like that for a while. I find it annoying and in bad taste on eBay's part. Luckily I personally am running an adblocker so I don't see them when I am trying to buy stuff 😛

[andrew547]

I feel for ya...if I remember right. It's been quite a while.

Google started doing this in 2004. They called it "sponsored links". They were clearly listed as such, with markings that distinguished them from the normal search results. They were highlighted. They had different fonts, and a different background color.

Funny how those "sponsored links" above the organic results are no longer 2, but 5..and they no longer appear different from the real, actual search results below them.

And by "funny", I mean pass me another drink.

[gamersbaystore]

Its been this way for a long time now, and its a big reason a lot of sellers went bust this past few years. The competition is tough, especially when ebay makes us compete with others directly in our own listings.

The really good news is those similar sponsored listings more often than not don't show up for users who use ad blockers, which is the majority of internet users today.

There's a few things you can do to get around it for those who don't use ad blockers. One is to have multiple promotions going. In this case, ebay will show more of your own items vs. your competitors.

Here's an example:

Notice the buy 2 get 1 free promotion. The trick now is to add a second promotion, like a percentage off discount. Then ebay will fill in the top spot above the description more often with your items instead, but not on every page load. The top slot will then alternate between the "More from this seller" promotion and similar promoted listings.

Running multiple promotions you can hog up a lot more of the page real estate. Its not a perfect solution, but it helps a lot.

[coolections]

Not sure where you've been for the last couple years. Been that way for a long time now. It's a good thing for some and a terrible thing for others depending on how you compete with others.