Updates are happening to some item specifics and category structures

[community_team]

--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. 

[hisherhobbies]

Unbelievable ..did the Biden/Kakala admin take over Ebay too?  2021 ,the  year of self destruction. 

why the hell did Ebay think it was a good idea to get rid of all these subcategories that made it EASIER for buyers to find something theyre looking for..not to mention the hell they just created for sellers . Now ,not only are items listed in incorrect categories..we also have to go back and fix all the item specifics.  Lets Go Ebay 

[wrong66]

Your political reference is NONSENSE. 

[abfabvintage]

You are correct. Sheila took care of the community board issues. Yes, Alan and Doug were involved in 2019 and they set up a Chat with the structured data people. What I cannot find is that hundreds of pages where sellers submitted their fixes. There needs to be an organized separate Post or platform where all things can be organized/summarized with replies from the E reps on what they fixed and won't fix. And giving out that IS support email like they did before never worked. 

[velvet@ebay]

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@lotzofuniquegoodies wrote:

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velvet@ebay wrote:

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@dhbookds wrote:

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@jamsionline wrote:

When are they going to fix the problems with multi-variation listings? Ever since the category changes we have been unable to edit the variations in our multi-variation listings. This is not due to receiving an error message or page - the link and page to edit variations is simply gone. We cannot change prices and we cannot change inventory levels. Already we have had items that we needed to mark as out of stock but couldn't that subsequently sold. Our suppliers have also increased prices, but we are unable to adjust the prices of these items. At best, we are making a fraction of the profit we should be making on these sales. At worst, we are losing a significant amount of money. And again, our hands are tied because it isn't even as though we can put these listings out of stock because we cannot edit them! 

I have contacted customer service by phone and by chat multiple times in the last 10 days. Each time they insist that the problem will be fixed soon and yet here we are. I have been told that the volume of complaints is what will determine when this will be fixed. If anyone else is experiencing issues with multi-variation listings, please send customer service a chat or give them a call and let them know including a listing number. I know it may not make any difference, but it is the only thing we can do at this point. 

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velvet@ebay 

We are getting more than a few "problems" like this one reported........could we get a pinned thread for Revision Problems to see how widespread stuff is?  I started to start one.......but Khoros will move it to the Tech board.......and the traffic there is minuscule compared to the selling board.........and sellers are the ones who will encounter the problems........

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I appreciate the idea @dhbookds and I've passed it on. I'm also reaching out about the multi-variation issues @jamsionline noted and I'll follow-up with whatever I can find out. 

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velvet@ebay 

Is the team working on addressing Mixed lots and how they are affected by item specifics with all the recent changes? It makes creating a mixed lot  listing next to impossible.

-Lotz

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Hi @lotzofuniquegoodies! If you can give me some details about what you're specifically running into, including the category and a few example listings (item numbers if you don't mind sharing a few here) so they can attempt to recreate the issue, I'd be happy to pass this on for a closer look. 

[velvet@ebay]

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@jamsionline wrote:

When are they going to fix the problems with multi-variation listings? Ever since the category changes we have been unable to edit the variations in our multi-variation listings. This is not due to receiving an error message or page - the link and page to edit variations is simply gone. We cannot change prices and we cannot change inventory levels. Already we have had items that we needed to mark as out of stock but couldn't that subsequently sold. Our suppliers have also increased prices, but we are unable to adjust the prices of these items. At best, we are making a fraction of the profit we should be making on these sales. At worst, we are losing a significant amount of money. And again, our hands are tied because it isn't even as though we can put these listings out of stock because we cannot edit them! 

I have contacted customer service by phone and by chat multiple times in the last 10 days. Each time they insist that the problem will be fixed soon and yet here we are. I have been told that the volume of complaints is what will determine when this will be fixed. If anyone else is experiencing issues with multi-variation listings, please send customer service a chat or give them a call and let them know including a listing number. I know it may not make any difference, but it is the only thing we can do at this point. 

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Hi @jamsionline! I was asked to get a few pieces of info from you so they can try to recreate what you're experiencing and work on a solution. They say they need the listing categories, a few example listings (item numbers if you don't mind sharing a few here) and the aspect you are trying to edit the variations on. If you don't feel comfortable including a few item numbers here, let me know and I can send you a message to reply to.

[rougherdiamond]

Still no sales since the changes I think etsy is calling

[somanypcs]

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@abfabvintage wrote:

If you remember, for the October 15, 2019 fiasco, eBay reps did set up a specific thread where sellers could list what needed to be fixed. Wasn't it Sheila that ran it? Can't remember, but there were pages and pages from sellers and eBay reps would report whether fixed or to be fixed. This went on until  late Jan 2020 where they just closed it up with no summary of what was still open, but said they would keep working on it, but never did. I know this because my 3rd party listing program was never fixed, with my manager waiting for the eBay fixes to this day. 

This time they need to create a "platform" that lists the Category name where people can input per category problem rather than being all over the place. Best thing they did in 2019 was to roll back the program to prior October 15, 2019 to get people through the holidays. Didn't do that here. Just forged ahead like bulls in a china shop.

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@community_team @velvet@ebay

[maaland]

That's right --- sellers should explore other online selling platforms.  Ebay no longer corners that market.  The recent category changes (elimination of subcategories) is disastrous for both buyers and sellers.  Sales will fall, which means Ebay's revenue will fall.  Then -- and only then -- will the company possibly take a long, hard look at these disastrous October 2021 changes.  

[serendib_storelk]

This was really helpful for many of my unanswered questions. Thank you!

[maaland]

You hit the nail on the head.  "RIP Ebay" says it all.  Perhaps the company will a long, hard, look at these disastrous October 2021 changes (the elimination of subcategories) when their revenue starts to fall.  Which it will.

[replacementradios]

11 days and counting, eBay... Return options are still missing for many of the categories I use in eBay Motors. If I edit a listing for quantity (back to 1) in those categories, it removes ALL previously stored return options, changing the listing to "Seller Does Not Accept Returns." Yet I get 'penalized' for listings set up that way? Not to mention how it scares some potential buyers away...

If I change the listing to a category for which return options appear, all my previous Item Specifics entries are lost. So I have to copy them to the side and paste them back in. And I shouldn't have to. I've already went through all that effort once...

I don't understand why you would even have a programming routine to skip return options...ever!!  The seller should always be presented with the return options selections, regardless of what is being sold or in what category. So whatever conditional logic you have in the programming that could allow those options to be skipped, you need to delete it. Always, always, always present the return options selections to sellers when they're creating/editing a listing. 

This is a catch-22 that you've created eBay. Please fix it asap!

[somanypcs]

Whom do we contact if we want answers to questions about the category a listing is in and/or questions about one or more of the item specifics, particularly soon-to-be-required item specifics?  

[jamsionline]

Hello. I have included some example listings and their categories below. I am attempting to update the prices and quantities available for each variation. I am not able to do either of those things since there is no secondary page for me to edit the variations themselves. Editing the prices and quantities on the regular revise listing page does not work for these since they are multi-variation, so I am unable to make any changes to the listings at all. As stated previously, we have already had out of stock items sell because we were unable to mark them as out of stock, and are selling items and losing money because we are unable to update prices so this is a significant problem for us. 

Several of our listings that are impacted are in the following categories: eBay Motors > Parts & Accessories > Car & Truck Parts & Accessories > Engines & Engine Parts > Engine Rebuild Kits

• 133173803546
• 133453981200
• 133173807215

Another example of an impacted listing is in a slightly different category: eBay Motors > Parts & Accessories > Car & Truck Parts & Accessories > Engines & Engine Parts > Pistons & Rings

• 133046999627

Although I have posted these here, I would also appreciate a message from you as it is somewhat difficult to find these responses. Thank you for your time.  

[mmwalzer]

So, today I found items that are still showing the old "Dolls and Bears" category. Does that mean my items are just floating around out there?  I tried to change the category to the new crappy category, but it doesn't even offer it when I search the categories. I thought they were done?

[somanypostcards]

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@mmwalzer wrote:

So, today I found items that are still showing the old "Dolls and Bears" category. Does that mean my items are just floating around out there?  I tried to change the category to the new crappy category, but it doesn't even offer it when I search the categories. I thought they were done?

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What is the new "Dolls and Bears" category?  How did you find out about the new category?  Did eBay send you a message about the category change or did eBay announce it, and if so, where?