Simplx Blog

In July 2009, eBay made an announcement of some changes they would be implementing on their site in the following areas:

• Rewards for sellers delivering great buyer experiences

• Enhanced search presents more relevant listings

• Easier, more profitable selling on eBay

As of October 1, 2009 these changes will have officially gone into effect. Below are just a few of the updates that could potentially affect your listings.

The following bulleted points are taken from that document:

• Optional buyer charges for shipping insurance removed: The insurance option creates the perception that buyers need to purchase shipping insurance as a protection on eBay, an experience they’re not accustomed to on other ecommerce sites. In fact, sellers have always been responsible for their items until they arrive safely in their customers’ hands. That’s why shipping insurance will no longer be included in the purchase flow as either an option or requirement for buyers.  Of course you can choose to purchase insurance on shipments, but not ask buyers to buy insurance separately. In some categories like Antiques, Collectibles, and Jewelry, shipping insurance for sellers is essential. When appropriate, you can include the cost of insurance in your item or shipping price.

• Listing features discontinued: To keep the emphasis squarely on relevance and quality, we’re make changes to available features, retiring some and making changes to others:  Featured Plus, Border, Highlight, Gift services, ProPack and Homepage Featured will no longer be available. These features no longer appear in any listings as of October 1, and sellers who purchased them before that date will be issued appropriate credit.  Featured First will be available only to Top-rated sellers and won’t be displayed when buyers select a different sort order than Best Match.  When sellers purchase Featured First or Bold along with International Site Visibility, these features will be displayed only on the site of purchase to ensure that domestic listings get top visibility.

• New guideline for using the Buy It Now feature with Auction-style listings: The Buy It Now price you set when listing your item must be at least 10% higher than your auction start price for that same item.  All Auction-style listings with the Buy It Now feature listed on or after October 1, 2009 will be required to follow this new guideline.

The above are only a few of the many updates and changes that are coming. Review the full list of the upcoming changes to insure your listings with comply, by visiting the following link:

http://pages.ebay.com/sell/July2009Update/Details/index.html

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