eBay

community_team · ‎10-12-2021

--Final Update, October 28--

The category changes announced in our Fall Seller Update have been completed.

Now that all category changes are complete, while you might still see some adjustments to searches, it is okay to update or edit your listings without concerns of losing data or having it moved again.

We appreciate your feedback on this roll-out. We'll continue to adjust the process based on the input we’ve received here, and we'll take all of these suggestions into consideration for future updates.

As this project is now complete the post is being locked from further comments.

Resources and observations

We’ve heard from you that updating your Item Specifics in time for the February 2022 requirement date may be a challenge.

A useful tool that may help is located in the Seller Hub under Listing>Active. There is a drop-down box labeled ‘Download’ which will generate an Excel document for ‘Missing Required or Recommended Item Specifics’. You can read more about this tool here.

Should you come across any inaccuracies within the new Item Specifics we ask that you report those directly to sdsupport@ebay.com so our team can investigate. Outside of that, please share suggestions as to changes you'd like to see going forward here, selecting the Categories and Item Specifics option.

---Update as of October 19th---

We apologize for this delayed update. Thank you for your patience while our teams worked to finalize category changes.

All listings have been moved to their final destination categories. You may now proceed with checking your categories, revising items, and updating item specifics where needed.

Some item specifics have been renamed, and the value you originally provided has been copied over to the new item specific, so you don’t need to re-add these item specifics. We encourage you to update your listings with item specifics that are showing as “Required Soon.” These will become required on February 22, 2022.

All other item specifics are either Recommended or Optional. Learn more about item specifics.

Some categories were retired and replaced by product-based categories. You and your buyers can still find the items you’re looking for. Simply browse to the product category of your choice and use the filters to refine your search.

More information about key category changes:

Dolls & Bears. The categories based on Brand/Material/Theme/Character/Franchise/Product Line/Type of doll have been retired. Former categories have been replaced by left-hand navigation filters in the new Dolls & Doll Playsets category. You can access the filters by browsing to the product category of your choice and using Brand/Vintage/Material/Theme/Character/Franchise/Product Line/Type filters to refine your search.

Pottery & Glass. The categories based on Brand/Origin/Production Style/Production Technique have also been replaced by filters. You and buyers can now filter by the Brand/Origin/Production Style/Production Technique/Time Period Manufactured.
Postcards. The categories based on Location/Theme/Subject have been retired and replaced with two main categories for Topographical and Non-Topographical postcards. The former categories have been replaced by left-hand navigation filters in the two new main categories. For example in Topographical Postcards, you can filter by Country and Region.

Jewelry & Watches. The categories based on Main Stone and Metal Type have been retired and replaced by product-based categories under Fine Jewelry. Use the filters for Main Stone and Metal to refine your search.

---Update as of October 14th---
The work continues on this move and is progressing according to plan. We are on track and anticipate all category changes for your listings to be complete by end of day tomorrow (10.15). Thank you for your patience while our teams implement these changes.

---Update as of October 13th---

We continue to work through this change and thank you for your patience as our teams work through it. We wanted to provide answers to some top concerns and questions:

Why are Gallery Plus fees being charged for items that were previously free?

We determined that a technical issue impacted a small number of listings, which resulted in incorrect charges (including Gallery Plus, subtitles, and insertion fees) for some sellers. The issue has been fixed and we will be crediting impacted sellers as quickly as possible. No calls to Customer Service are necessary as credits will be issued automatically.

The eBay Standard Envelope shipping option is grayed out and I can’t select it. When will the issue be resolved?

The eBay Standard Envelope shipping option issue resulted from the category changes update and has been resolved. eBay Standard Envelope is now available in applicable categories if your item meets the established criteria.

Should I edit my listings if they’re in the wrong category, have been moved to another category, or have wrong or missing item specifics?

No. Recent category changes require updates to many thousands of servers and data changes to nearly every aspect of our platform. This level of adjustment takes time, which is why we asked for your patience while the process runs. We expect most data updates to be completed within 48 hours, but can they take up to a week (i.e., through Oct. 19). After that, if you have an item specific in mind that you think would work well for your listing, please consider adding it as a custom item specific.

Why isn’t my item coming up in search?

The category change update is still in process. We anticipate search issues will resolve when we complete most data updates during the next 24-48 hours.

There are more item specifics now than ever before. Do I need to fill in all of them?

No. Item specifics that you have already filled in will be maintained as the category moves are completed during the next week. In addition, new soon-to-be-required item specifics are being added and will become required by Feb 22, 2022. As always, the more item specifics you fill out, the better visibility your listing has to buyers.

For Parts & Accessories, when will fitment/compatibility charts start working again?

There was an issue with parts compatibility not working properly as the category changes rolled out that has been resolved. You should now be able to see the options to add fitment compatibility when editing your listings.

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We’re updating some of our categories and item specifics to make your listings easier to find.

Starting October 12th, you’ll see updates to the following categories. Learn more about category changes →

Collectibles & Art

Jewelry

Musical Instruments

Parts & Accessories

Sporting Goods

As these updates go into effect, you may see temporary impacts to your listing experience or to the visibility of listings in the affected categories.

This is a result of listings transitioning to the updated item specifics and category structures. Your affected listings should return to normal within 48 hours, though you may see irregularities on some listings for up to a week. We recommend checking your item specifics and categories in affected listings after these updates are complete.

These updates also include new item specifics in the above categories, which will be required February 22, 2022. Starting today, these item specifics will be available as you list, with the “Required Soon” tag. Learn more →

Keep an eye on this page over the coming days—we’ll be sharing up-to-date information on affected categories and listings, and answering any questions you have.

somanypostcards · ‎10-14-2021

The problem is a plethora of item specifics, many of which do not apply or are redundant or of no interest to buyers. If sellers enters any value for ALL the questionable item specifics, then buyers will see way too many item specifics, most marked "N/A" or "I don't know." Too much useless information is a bad thing for a number of reasons. Here are just four:

1. Buyers will not see the important item specifics if they get buried amid all the ridiculous clutter of item specifics that are extraneous, duplicative, not applicable, or obvious without entering an item specific value.

Examples: Unit of Sale when 98% of the time a single item is being sold. Region and State containing identical values.

2. As more buyers move to smart phones to both browse and make purchases, too much room taken up by way too many item specifics being shown on the phone's small screen will turn off the buyers. Over on the Buying discussions a number of buyers have already attested to this.

3. It will take sellers much longer to list items, and many of the item specifics are difficult to understand what a valid entry is. Examples:

In postcards: "Circulated" has 2 values: Yes or No. eBay's information when the "i" is clicked says: "Whether an item has been circulated." When I Google "circulate" it says "pass or cause to pass from place to place or person to person." 100 year old postcards are probably ALL circulated, so why have this item specific?

"Original/Licensed Reprint" has 2 values: Original or Licensed Reprint. I might or might not know if an item is a reprint. Even if I know it is a reprint, I likely do not know if the reprint is licensed. Should I just enter "I don't know" which provides a potential buyer with no useful info and more clutter?

4. If a seller misunderstands an item specific or uses Sell Similar and fails to update ALL the plethora if item specifics, , it makes it easy for fraudulent buyers to open INAD cases.

dhbookds · ‎10-14-2021

Ebay has said NOT to fill in IS that don't apply to the item........

gurlcat · ‎10-14-2021

(Mostly) jewelry seller here. --So as of the approximate 48 hour mark, I have mixed feelings, or at least not quite as freaked out as I was at first. Just scrolling down my Active items page, I see that promotions have been restored to most of my jewelry listings, I assume meaning those listings have all "landed" in whatever category they were sent to. But I notice that a wholllllle bunch of them now have higher promoted ad rates than I would have ever set them at. So editing all of those is one task I definitely have ahead of me. Then, looking at a sampling of the listings, I see they have made it so we are forced to make some tough choices about how to categorize pre-owned jewelry. For example, I often sell vintage gold and sterling pieces, and there used to be a Fine>Vintage & Antique nesting available. Now the first sub-category under Jewelry and Watches includes both Fine and Vintage/Antique. So in other words, I have to decide which is the more important selling point, and that's a doozy.

Reminds me of the stupid policy they had about oatmeal at my elementary school for breakfast: sugar OR cinnamon. Come on man.

As for whackadoodle MIS-categorization, so far the only one I've found is a wristwatch, categorized as Parts>Wristwatch bands (when it's a the whole thing, running and all). So then I'm wondering if that's how I accidentally categorized it, that's how it's been all this time, and that's why it hasn't sold. I suspect I'll be having a lot of these gaslit moments, and I won't be the only one.

And what matters most: I've sold NO jewelry in 48 hours. I've sold a few of my other items in my much leaner-variety other categories, but not a single piece of what I have the most listings in, by far.

lotzofuniquegoodies · ‎10-14-2021

@dhbookds wrote:
Ebay has said NOT to fill in IS that don't apply to the item........

What has never been fixed after many requests is either to note something is required when creating/modifying a listing (An ACTUAL error message) or Do not show tab which IS included with the tool. In most cases trying to find 100's of listings can be very time consuming and updating accurately especially for anything that is not in box very difficult.

-Lotz

PS. eBay is able to give you an error message when you list with a non applicable/duplicate shipping option. System will not let you complete the listing without correcting.

cadmium24 · ‎10-14-2021

I sell art on eBay, for over 20 years now. The "Prints" category is pretty much gone, for a week now. This change began prior to October 12, around October 7. If I click on "Art Prints" at the very top of any of my listing pages, I should be seeing all the prints listings, from all sellers. What I'm seeing is blank boxes. I had eBay call me, and I reported it. The customer service rep said she was seeing the same thing, and on her personal account (and, she was probably in the Philippines). On my "Paintings" listings, if I do the same and click at the top of any of my listings to see all the "Paintings" on eBay, they are there, but eBay has eliminated searching by "date of creation" (age). I can no longer search by "1800-1899", "1900-1949", etc. That change started on October 12. I'm a buyer and a seller on eBay. If I can't search for what I want, like circa 1920's paintings, then nobody can. This means no sales -- how can anybody buy something if they can't search for the kind of thing they want, right? Is eBay really going to put me out of business? If so, how about significant financial compensation to tide me over until I can find employment and a new source of income? This is REALLY BAD. Any helpful or practical suggestions? This isn't a just a complaint - It's a PROBLEM. Thanks, ~Chris

Anonymous · ‎10-14-2021

@cadmium24 wrote:
I sell art on eBay, for over 20 years now. The "Prints" category is pretty much gone, for a week now. This change began prior to October 12, around October 7. If I click on "Art Prints" at the very top of any of my listing pages, I should be seeing all the prints listings, from all sellers. What I'm seeing is blank boxes. I had eBay call me, and I reported it. The customer service rep said she was seeing the same thing, and on her personal account (and, she was probably in the Philippines). On my "Paintings" listings, if I do the same and click at the top of any of my listings to see all the "Paintings" on eBay, they are there, but eBay has eliminated searching by "date of creation" (age). I can no longer search by "1800-1899", "1900-1949", etc. That change started on October 12. I'm a buyer and a seller on eBay. If I can't search for what I want, like circa 1920's paintings, then nobody can. This means no sales -- how can anybody buy something if they can't search for the kind of thing they want, right? Is eBay really going to put me out of business? If so, how about significant financial compensation to tide me over until I can find employment and a new source of income? This is REALLY BAD. Any helpful or practical suggestions? This isn't a just a complaint - It's a PROBLEM. Thanks, ~Chris

You are now experiencing what every self-employed business owner has gone through that is now out of business because of horrible government mandates that are unjust and illegal. Ebay is doing the exact same thing to their sellers. It is criminal what I am seeing taking place and so many are just going right along with it. I'm not surprised given what I've also seen taking place in the world the past two years. Good luck to ya, it won't be found here on Ebay.

kilyana78 · ‎10-14-2021

velvet@ebay.com
tyler@ebay.com

I specifically counted how many subjects are in Non-topographic postcards category now. 237! Yes, two hundred and thirty-seven!
I don't understand, how will this help the buyer? Who will view such a list? While you read all it, you will forget what you were looking for. It's inconvenient! There were excellent gradations of categories with subcategories. Now it's a mess.
And now, please, think about how much time the seller needs to revise all items? This increases the time of listing at times!
Traditionally, postcards on all trading platforms, such as Ebay, are the second most popular category of items after stamps. This is not 1,000, not 10,000 items, but millions! As a result, we got an inconvenient catalog structure for buyers, an increase in the time for listing and a lot of manual work for revise by sellers. Ebay cut own profit. Instead of putting up thousands and thousands of new postcards, sellers need to revise listings what worked perfectly.
I agree that the categories need to be revised. The world has changed a lot since 1995. There were mobile phones, robot vacuum cleaners, car rear-view cameras and a lot of things that we didn't realize 10 years ago. But the collecting category is one of the most conservative. Certain themes in postcards, glass, toys that have been collected for decades by buyers from all over the world.
Why Ebay break it? Why Ebay cut own profit? Why waste sellers' time on meaningless manual work? 237 subjects in one category! Poor buyers, poor sellers.
I am devoted to Ebay with all my heart, but I and all my colleagues are just at a loss.

sagelakescollections · ‎10-14-2021

I don't really see the purpose of the pottery & glass category since they made the changes. You could just as well be listing in the collectibles, home decor, or home and garden categories, since the subcategories are similar and so are a lot of the item specifics. It reminds me of how Etsy arranges their categories, with tags instead of IS. Searching for vintage there is the pits...you kind of have to know some tricks to actually find what you are looking for, as they throw in everything in anyway related to what you are searching for.

valeries_trunk · ‎10-14-2021

It isn't just a PROBLEM! It is a FIASCO! I just went on 1 of my listings for an antique glass water set for $349.99. Happened to se this on my listing. "Want to know how to get this for $299.99? Click here". Takes me to a coupon code for $50.00 off. Gee, I didn't put that there. eBay, quit messing with my life!

Buy it now price:

$349.99

-$50.00Discount amount:

Your price:

$299.99

or

$50.00 off of your best offer

Enter code at checkout to redeem. Hurry, your coupon expires Nov 12, 2021. Terms and conditions apply.

MCCONCFZXWHJ677M

For coupon details and terms, go to My eBay Summary

valeries_trunk · ‎10-14-2021

Check your items, people! This discount is on many of my glass listings. In some cases it is much more than I would accept as a Best Offer. I have no intention of giving a discount like this!

bidatzeldas · ‎10-14-2021

WHEN IS EBAY GOING TO FIX THE ITEM SPECIFICS TECHNICAL PROBLEM / ISSUES
ITEM SPECIFICS DO NOT APPLY.....ITEM SPECIFICS MIGHT BE GREAT FOR NEW ITEMS.....BUT NOT FOR ANTIQUES....ANTIQUE GLASS IS NOT A PRODUCTION LINE....19th CENTURY LAMPS DO NOT HAVE ELECTRIC LIGHT BULBS, CORDS, LED CAPABILITIES, AND ARE NOT DISNEY CHARACTERS...
ITEM SPECIFICS VANISH, ARE GONE WHEN RELISTING ITEM...... ALL THE 34 PLUS ITEM SPECIFICS ARE GONE...
SELLING ON EBAY USED TO BE FUN AND USER FRIENDLY..TODAY IT IS PAINFUL

lotzofuniquegoodies · ‎10-14-2021

@bidatzeldas wrote:
WHEN IS EBAY GOING TO FIX THE ITEM SPECIFICS TECHNICAL PROBLEM / ISSUES
ITEM SPECIFICS DO NOT APPLY.....ITEM SPECIFICS MIGHT BE GREAT FOR NEW ITEMS.....BUT NOT FOR ANTIQUES....ANTIQUE GLASS IS NOT A PRODUCTION LINE....19th CENTURY LAMPS DO NOT HAVE ELECTRIC LIGHT BULBS, CORDS, LED CAPABILITIES, AND ARE NOT DISNEY CHARACTERS...
ITEM SPECIFICS VANISH, ARE GONE WHEN RELISTING ITEM...... ALL THE 34 PLUS ITEM SPECIFICS ARE GONE...
SELLING ON EBAY USED TO BE FUN AND USER FRIENDLY..TODAY IT IS PAINFUL

eBay programmers are also under the impression that everything now being is Bluetooth. Sorry. This is not the case. Just went to list a collectible bear. System was suggesting capacity. Fortunately "HUH?" is acceptable. 😉

-Lotz

optimum723 · ‎10-14-2021

Not sure why this is considered a reply to my situation. I was notified that 5 of my listings did not include item specifics. These were relisted items that included all item specifics. I accessed these listings and all the item specifics information (that I included) were gone. Why??

herway · ‎10-14-2021

Yes I also noticed that the suggested promoted percentage is higher in the new categories. Ebay is chipping away at my profit bit by bit, I am really not surprised.

First they started charging full commission on total sale amount, including item price, shipping cost and even sales tax. I do not even know if charging commission on sale tax is legal, it certainly is not ethical IMO.

stainlessenginecovers · ‎10-14-2021

Yes, charging the way they do is completely ethical. Processors have been charging on the total at the register since credit cards were being processed.

Suggest promotion percentages is just that- suggested and in no way forces anyone to do anything.

My categories suggest 4%, 6%, 8%... I do 1% so that I'm on all others listings that don't do promoted and my items are on my listings where it states 'other promoted items'.