eBay

community-team@ebay · ‎12-10-2021

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

Starting 12 October, you’ll see updates to the following categories.

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 22 February 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.

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---Update as of 14 October---

We’re continuing to work through this change and want to thank you for your patience. We also wanted to provide answers to some top concerns and questions:

Why was I charged fees when my listings were moved to a different categories/subcategories?

We determined that a technical issue impacted a small number of listings, which resulted in incorrect charges (including 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.

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 they can take up to a week (i.e., through to 19 October). 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 22 February 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, which has been resolved. You should now be able to see the options to add fitment compatibility when editing your listings.

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---Update as of 21 October---

We apologise for this delayed update. Thank you for your patience while our teams worked to finalise 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 22 February 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.

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

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---Final Update, October 29---

The category changes announced in our Autumn 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 detailed 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 these suggestions into consideration for future updates.

As this project is now complete, this 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 can help is located in the Seller Hub under Active Listings section. There is a drop-down box labelled ‘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. We also ask that you continue to share suggestions on changes you'd like to see going forward here, selecting the Categories and Item Specifics option.

dwjewelleryandboutique · ‎15-10-2021

Is there not a quicker way to revise these listings!

ive managed 73 all day!..still got 212 to do.

So tedious!

I wish they would fix it so when I say NO STONE...I don't have fill in all the boxes relating to diamonds and gems!..

any ideas?..

Anonymous · ‎15-10-2021

Yes there is. Use the bulk editing tool. I did all 2000 of my listings this morning and it took all of about 10 minutes.

Sent from my Huawei phone

paul*tribesandvibes* · ‎15-10-2021

OK, so what does ebay think they are going to do about multi-variation listings? In Jewellery I have several listings where I sell the Pendant on its own, or with a choice of Necklaces in a MVL - so how am I supposed to reflect that in these all-singing all-dancing stupid new item specifics? 🤔

And where is the Pagan & Symbolic check box in Costume Jewellery???? Bring it back! 😠

We all know this is YOUR platform ebay, but this is OUR livelihood!

sterling1952 · ‎15-10-2021

What ebay has done with the abolishment of these categories is shocking. And that is putting it mildly. Ebay allow "Porcelain" in Oriental/Chinese/Japanese but have abolished that word for the UK. WHY?? Disgraceful. There is now nowhere suitable for fine porcelain. Sales have slumped for some sellers even before the categories were changed or retired but there was Christmas to look forward to and the hope that things would improve. Especially for those who hand over good money to ebay for their shops...and many for many years.

And what ruthless timing for this to happen. We have had to battle covid (still do), brexit with all its problems and Christmas is nearly upon us. It is a bad situation and I think a lot of people will not have any faith left in ebay. Will they care?? I still have a little bit of hope in me that they will rectify some of these problems.

wyntersemporium · ‎15-10-2021

I can't do bulk revise, as my laptop can't take it. As soon as I start to do bulk listing the laptop crashes. Waiting fir a new plug to be sent from a eBay seller

sam_in_barbate · ‎15-10-2021

eBay for the main part ignore these boards, so PLEASE, please write to ebay head office, this is the address

Murray Lambell

MD Ebay UK

eBay ( uk) Limited
1, More Place
LONDON SE1 2AF
UNITED KINGDOM

cleaner4coaches · ‎15-10-2021

His current Ebay policy is clearly similar to a certain German leaders of old & we all know what happened to him in the end.

prodigaldaughter · ‎16-10-2021

Ebay team, are you complete imbeciles? Do you have two brain cells to run together?

Your new costume jewellery specifics must have been written by monkeys. OBVIOUSLY an item made of non precious metal and glass/paste/resin will not be certified, will not have metal purity ratings and the 'gems' will not be graded for colour, cut and clarity.

Before you make these sort of idiotic changes, try speaking to some experts. Me, I will be selling on Etsy if this continues.

sam_in_barbate · ‎16-10-2021

Hear hear ") I like to call them Numpties, or Muppets, it kind of makes them seem as daft as they are ")

onlyonewoman · ‎16-10-2021

The trouble is, we can call them numpties, muppets, idiots or whatever other insult comes to mind but the fact is, they are not.

They appear to be, looking at it from our point of view, because they have messed up what was a perfectly good system for selling antiques, collectables and related items. But they are looking at it from their point of view, not ours, i.e. from the ruthless business point of view that believes promoting the sale of brand new retail is better for their business than promoting - even allowing - the sale of antiques and vintage.

Ebay has changed, is changing, will continue to change. If we cling on in the hope that they will restore the old categories, make it possible to browse again, not do away with auctions and not do away, finally, with the possibility of effectively offering for sale any kind of second-hand goods, then we are the idiots, I'm afraid.

Time to wake up and smell the coffee.

It's over.

Ebay's withdrawal from our sector is being executed slowly, piecemeal and without warning but also, indisputably. There will be no U-turn.

Time to establish ourselves on other specialist websites now, rather than cling on to the bitter end here when it might be too late to recover.

andwh_30 · ‎16-10-2021

as Laurel and Hardy would say, "that's another fine mess you've got me into". the only difference is, they were funny, this ain't. are you going to compensate me for the lose of my weekend to sort out your problem? i haven't sold a postcard since Tuesday and the money i get puts food on the table. now i've got to mess around with your mess up and put in duplicate information which is already there. it wouldn't surprise me if shop owners take legal action against ebay. for ebay that'll be a double whammy themselves due to the fact that they're losing revenue over this mess and having to pay out compensation on top of that as well.

if i was a share holder of ebay and i knew about this right now, i would be furious. for me, a weekend is a time to relax but now i've got to sort out your mess. but what's really annoying me is, i've got to put duplicate information in when it's already there otherwise it won't show up in the search results now. who ever thought this up must have been drunk. they have no concept of collectibles what so ever. why meddle in something you don't know about.

it's obvious that the new board members have no experience in collectibles but only in retail like household goods. it seems to me they want to do away with collectibles and antiques and have a Argos type website for everyday goods. it wouldn't surprise me that a very large percentage of there profit is from collectibles and antiques and most of the traffic that goes through ebay is for these items.

most of the time, people that come to buy on ebay already know exactly what they want and as long as the seller has put in the has right specifics, ie, standard size, printed and era if known and a good idea of what the item is in the title, then it was working well. now everything has sunk without trace unless i repeat the new specifics which are already there. i do feel sorry for the shop owners who have thousand of postcards and they have to go through each and every one of them. i hope you're going to compensate those shop owners as you already charge enough for shops as it is. if you think you'll be able to survive without collectibles and antiques, then somebody has advised you very wrong. i think you should look at the figures and you could be very surprised of how much profit you get from these items. it's not like selling a tablet or mobile. they buy it and they don't come back for a couple of years. with collectibles and antiques, the collector comes and looks and buys daily or weekly. they're not here today and gone tomorrow. they're here frequently unlike somebody who buys a mobile. to get everbodys trade up and running again, abandon this nonsence and put everything back to how it was. if it ain't broke then why fix it. just another thought. ebay love to lay down the law when mistakes happen but what happens if by redoing the all the items because of this update and a mistake happens because of it, what will ebay do about it?

but here's the most annoying thing about having to do all these updates. i looked for a postcard which before was easy to find to exactly to what the buyer would look for in the sub categories. now i done a test and now you can't find it once you've ticked all the sub categories to try and find the postcard. ebay, you have made this worse to find items. before it was easy but now, you've made it impossible. please revert to how it was before as sellers and buyers liked the previous system. there's nothing wrong in admitting you're wrong in bringing in this new system, if anything, by doing that, you'll get some respect back from the sellers and buyers.

sam_in_barbate · ‎16-10-2021

Sadly, I agree with all you write, other than switching over to Etsy, are there any other sites that you know of, & not only UK specific? "(((

sam_in_barbate · ‎16-10-2021

Those now running Ebay have been culled from Walmart . I am not making it up, it is there in black & white all over Google "(

onlyonewoman · ‎16-10-2021

I've considered Etsy and Ruby Lane and my research with both is ongoing but I'm far from decided. Selling Antiques looks good but is very expensive. I don't think any of the others would suit me for various reasons.

Right now, I'm just letting the dust settle and will make a decision before the new year.

I'm in a relatively fortunate position in that I'm not too far off retirement. If this had happened even a couple of years ago I'd be frantic with worry and I really feel for anyone here, indeed anyone who is deeply committed to selling their antiques/vintage on ebay and is caught up in this mess.

onlyonewoman · ‎16-10-2021

I've read somewhere online that ebay's shares took a dip this week, presumably because lost sales have affected their bottom line. It'll recover though, no doubt.

andyspostcards · ‎16-10-2021

exactly what i've been thinking. those at the top have no concept in what they're doing and i feel they won't reverse there decisions as they think they know what's best. my answer to that is, read these correspondences about what you're doing. sellers and buyers know best and not board members who haven't got a clue. you only got to look at the share price to see what the city thinks of this. in the long term this will hurt ebay more as the sellers and buyers will go elsewhere. this could even cripple ebay for a very long time while others like ETSY, Ebid and Amazon will reap in the profits from your mistake.

fordedison · ‎16-10-2021

perhaps we should place an advert in the times "WANTED - ENTREPRENEUR TO OPEN UP COLLECTIBLES WEB SITE - potentially lots of eager customers" -- Delcampe is closest to

ebay for some collectibles but is unfortunately based in Brussels and the site is largely Euro based

users - I have used it for postcards but bit like watching paint dry -- but it is a well organized site

altho at times bit wild-west regards postal charges -

coriniumbunny · ‎16-10-2021

I keep having to go into the same listing to do their revisions and then they come back with even more!!! I have a couple wherte they say still need revisions and there are no more boxes I can fill may just let all my listings run out and start from scratch

andwh_30 · ‎16-10-2021

i'm not going to waste anymore of my time with this now. i've just done another search and this time, postcards are coming up as size not specified and yet they are. even when you click on the postcard and it shows standard size in item specifics. what is the use of me wasting my time to do something that doesn't work anyway. i think Frank Spencer would've done a better job at this. this is a total disaster and it'll only get worse for everybody.

winslow-boy · ‎16-10-2021

It seems that ebay has ceased actually working because I am getting no bids. Can anyone explain what is going on? I have been an ebay member for over 20 years and I have never known anything like this. I am reluctant to leave ebay but this would appear to be the best option. This must be one of the biggest commercial disasters that any large company has experienced. Arrange these words into a well known saying - IN YOURSELVES FOOT THE SHOT

onlyonewoman · ‎16-10-2021

I've given this situation further thought and have revised my beliefs somewhat.

I think they will keep the lucrative antiques sector of their business but the sub-categories and the ability to browse are probably gone for good. They want ebay to look the same across the entire site to reflect the way Amazon, Etsy et al are set up, inasmuch as it will be fixed price and finding things by keyword only. Never mind that keyword searches on ebay are pretty random these days and have started to throw up all kinds of things that don't have your keyword in the title.

I still think auctions will become a thing of the past, probably by this time next year or before. They just don't fit with ebay's new, revised business model.

My two cents.

bookery2012 · ‎16-10-2021

changing postcard categories to either Topographical or no topographical has over simplified the postings. Searches want specific location requirement such as the county ,town or village. and this over simplification is reducing the sales in this category....change it back

530116 · ‎16-10-2021

As a work-round to the disappearance of the date-lined categories in china and porcelain, is this possible: could [date-lined pre-1840] or [date-lined 1840-1900] or [date-lined 1900-1920] or similar be consistently added by sellers to the end of the listing titles? For example, "Early Spode cup and saucer, London shape, probably 1810-1825. [date-lined pre-1840]". Then searching "pre-1840" in the porcelain/pottery category would retrieve this and other items previously retrieved using the date-lined pre-1840 pottery/porcelain category. Not an ideal solution, of course. But could this work, perhaps?

rosesandsonnets · ‎16-10-2021

Unwieldy, shortsighted, disrespectful and disastrous changes. This doesn't help buyers or sellers. This drives collectors of antique items to another platform.

linen_to_love · ‎17-10-2021

This really is like living in a parallel universe. All these item specifics, some of which I have done, then revert back to before and are still asking for completion.

I have lost three international orders this week that should have gone through GSP but apparently that "collapsed" as well! I am just trying to revive one now however unfortunately the "Request Total from Your Seller" has disappeared as well.

What a complete disaster this is!

Anonymous · ‎17-10-2021

Ebay not wanting us to combine/discount shipping because they make less
money????

swpb28 · ‎17-10-2021

more complications making it harder all the time to list

Anonymous · ‎17-10-2021

That's exactly it. The app won't allow buyers to request an invoice for combined postage. You have to click on send refund and then postage discount. I had a lady buy a few items last week using the app and her postage was racking up to £19.00 but couldn't request an invoice. I told her to pay for one item with the small parcel rate on it of 3.20 and then use the FREE Collection option on the other 8 items as it wasn't fair for her to pay the p&p upfront on each item and then I would have had to refund the difference. Instead of putting time and resources into this insane item specifics nonsense ebay should have left it the way it was and looked at making the app more user friendly for everyone as 90% of people use the app these days. I've been emailing them on and off since the app was launched about this issue and other problems with the app but it's all fallen on deaf ears and I never get a reply either. Chaotic, out of touch management comes to mind.

Sent from my Huawei phone

linen_to_love · ‎17-10-2021

You could well be right vve, you think very much like I do - is this a "glitch" or is there something more to this, I always go for the latter being the cynic I am!

josephinesdolls · ‎17-10-2021

I sell antique dolls. The catagory has disappeared and all the dolls are lumped in together. Over 1 million items. No buyer wants to trawl through that lot. Madness!

sam_in_barbate · ‎17-10-2021

We are all suffering this absolute madness, & we all have to write to...

Murray Lambell

MD Ebay UK

eBay ( uk) Limited

1, More Place

LONDON SE1 2AF

UNITED KINGDOM

littlethingsuneed · ‎17-10-2021

all get together and protest stopping them from going to work

sterling1952 · ‎17-10-2021

I am sure most of you will have read this diatribe from ebay but, if not, it makes interesting reading as it show you every category which is affected. Just trawl through and you will see just how bad it gets.

Shocking actually.

Also watch the videos on youtube. This is affecting the USA equally as badly and they are as angry as we are.

https://pages.ebay.co.uk/categorychanges/UK_Category_Changes.htm

linen_to_love · ‎17-10-2021

Well it appears everything and I mean everything is changing.

Updating tracking has one of the "new looks"! I wonder why they find it necessary to tinker with every god damned thing.

I have so much stuff to list but I am losing the will to live never mind list.

linen_to_love · ‎17-10-2021

And thats something else "We have looked everywhere and this page is missing" says the little boy in the raincoat!! You couldn't make it up!

Anonymous · ‎17-10-2021

That link you put on is missing now. Click on it and ebay say they can't find the page. Does that mean perhaps that they're going to reverse all the category changes or perhaps just don't want people to see the list of category changes due to the backlash!!!! I wonder 樂樂樂樂

Sent from my Huawei phone

sam_in_barbate · ‎17-10-2021

For more years than I can count, I was able to relist almost all my niche items, being able search my Outlook to find a sold item for me, & away I went, able to add the odd tweek or two, it was child's play, & it must have saved me literally 1,000s of hours of work, simply click on the sold item, up would pop the sold listing, (& we are talking being able to go back years).

Then it became harder & harder to find sold items I could relist from, to be shown instead, "We have looked everywhere that page is missing"...Then one day I realised that eBay had quite simply decided to make this form of access to past sold items void, it made me feel ill, having to start listings from scratch, all painstakingly researched, I have a car-wreck log-jam of items I simply do not have the will to list........ Anyone want more than a few £1,000s worth of priceless vintage smellies ")

fensterladerl · ‎17-10-2021

Hi, I ´m from munich germany and love to collect antique dolls and buy in UK too. Now it is, like in germany, impossible to find them in this big, big basket ....

Will tell you...doll collectors and other collectors have in germany (and think other european countries) the same difficulties as you!!!

Its very sad.....

sam_in_barbate · ‎17-10-2021

Hi,

Thankyou for taking the time to write to us, please, please contact eBay.Germany Customer Support & ask for the address of head office in Germany, you can do this via CHAT just follow the leads from the "Help & Contact" at the top of the page, for it is only if we all do all we can possibly do to sort this out that nothing is going to get solved. Imagine all these fabulous sellers of collectibles, with their buyers unable to find anything? It is a disaster, as you have just found. You could also start your own thread on the German Community Boards.... Go ahead & be a rebel, & do some good for all of us who have helped build eBay into what it is ")

couper1242 · ‎17-10-2021

ebay is killing the goose that lays the golden egg...no wonder people are leaving in droves

dwjewelleryandboutique · ‎17-10-2021

Help!
all my antique ceramics have been moved, where in the hell am I supposed to list these now?...

ive spent 3 days so far correcting eBays fk up, it's ruined my weekend, my sales are nil, not an offer, no questions, nothing, not surprising when everything has been moved. I'm close to tears trying to rectify all this mess,

Bay, you owe compensation for my time, my loss in revenue, and for paying for a shop and service that I'm not receiving, I hope head office see all these upset messages and fine you for causing such a catastrophe of events. It's down right abominable what your doing to peoples livelihoods,.

reverse this or lose everything. I think it's time we took a stand and seek legal action against this.

andwh_30 · ‎17-10-2021

i couldn't agree more. i feel, unless they don't change it back within the next 24 hours, i think it''ll be the end of ebay as we know it. it's going to be interesting to see what the stock market thinks of this tomorrow and that'll determine ebays future i feel. investors can ever make or break a company and the way things are right now, a savvy investor will get out.

katiem_4948 · ‎17-10-2021

I totally agree with you it is time to take a stand against these totally
unnecessary changes

notonasunday · ‎17-10-2021

There is just no way of browsing antique ceramics anymore. Impossible to filter out junk. I can't imagine how the regular traders are feeling. This is the problem when businesses like eBay get too big. Decisions are driven by arrogance and reflect more on imagery and advertising than substance and integrity.

linen_to_love · ‎17-10-2021

Well I have seen it all now. I have just gone into my "Shop" (haven't looked in over a week) to be told, by a huge banner across the top, that we are customising and improving visibility of your shop! Well thank you Ebay but it was perfectly all right as it was. Heaven help us all!

ilminster · ‎17-10-2021

I have notice with all of our messages of concern , that there has been NO Response from eBay

which just goes to prove how little they care about 1000s of small businesses going out of business , its a total disgrace

streetfighter-customs · ‎17-10-2021

have to start shouting on twitter about it

ebay dont like losing face on twitter

so if we all go on twiitter and start complaining then they might listen

sam_in_barbate · ‎17-10-2021

I just learned that eBay have apparently been rolling this out in the USA since March, but it only took hold across the board within the last week or so, it has gutted the USA collectables market, forcing sellers to fill in/tick countless boxes, now adding minutes onto each listing, ebay gloats this is because the new format will be compatable across the board on all computers& hand held devices, if you could see some of the staple USA categories that have now vanished, ie Disneyana, you truly would realise that the lunatics have taken over the asylum.

frog.mug.man · ‎17-10-2021

Over 198 listing saying add item specifics I'm so upset and frustrated there us now no category for ceramics everything is now added under dinner kitchen Ware. For example one of my listings I have is a vintage kitsch ceramic Clown it's now been listed under dinner bowl!!! Ebay please sort this out!

bobbyrocksbazaar · ‎17-10-2021

As Sam says we need to write to:

Murray Lambell

MD Ebay UK

eBay ( uk) Limited
1, More Place
LONDON SE1 2AF
UNITED KINGDOM

I shall do this but I doubt it will make any difference! My antique bears are now lost amongst a load of modern stuff and my antique collectibles don't stand a chance!! I have been with eBay since the beginning and will not be here much longer because even as a buyer (which I am as well as a seller) it takes to much trauling through rubbish to find things!! They will lose buyers AND sellers at this rate and nothing needed to be changed!!!!