Ebay's new UPC policy... (1 Viewer)

[mikemiller1955]

Ebay is now requiring a UPC code section filled in on all new ads...

http://community.ebay.com/t5/Archiv...have-quot-UPC-quot-codes-in-the/td-p/19345187

without the UPC section filled out...they will not accept the ad...

it will be declined until this slot is filled out...

you can enter..."does not apply"...

as most...or none I know...of the toy soldier sets have a UPC code...

and that works fine...

it's not a problem for me...as I don't list much...

but I have a friend that uses Auctiva on Ebay...

and he has over 5,000 listings that need to be individually changed...

for him...it's a nightmare...

it's takes a few minutes to do...not hard...but still...it takes a lot of time to do 5,000 of them...

hate to gripe...but man...it seems like Ebay just keeps making stupid rules...

 

[mikemiller1955]

Ebay is also requiring a "brand name" in the slot before accepting the ad...

for those people/companies that list 1,000+ products...

that's a whole lot of work to re-do all those ads...

extremely time consuming...

I think it would be a good bet to short Ebay for their next quarter...

they are going to lose a ton of commissions because a lot of ads won't go up timely...

call your broker now...^&grin

 

[Phantom Warrior]

We already put in the brand name of toy soldiers in the heading/description such as King & Country or Britain's. So do most products

Terry

 

[mikemiller1955]

We already put in the brand name of toy soldiers in the heading/description such as King & Country or Britain's. So do most products

Terry

I do too Terry...

but along with the "UPC" scan code...
they also want the "brand name" listed in the "item specifics" section...

as in the example below...

Item specifics:

Condition: Used
Brand: John Jenkins Design
Recommended Age Range: 15-100
Material: Lead
Gender: Boys & Girls
Soldier Type: French Indian War
MPN: unknown
JJD VM-05
Type: Figure
Country/Region of Manufacture: Hong Kong

 

[jazzeum]

Why is the brand name an issue? I have always done that to draw more buyers. I think sellers should be doing that anyway.

 

[mikemiller1955]

Why is the brand name an issue? I have always done that to draw more buyers. I think sellers should be doing that anyway.

like Terry says...
the brand name is usually in the listing description...
at least mine are...

that is...
if they have a brand name...

some stuff I make by hand...
and write..."handmade...

and if you don't know the brand name...
you just write "unknown"...

listing the brand name and the UPC info is not an issue if you're listing a new ad...
2 simple steps...

but now...
you can't just bulk relist an old group of ads that didn't sell...
until you fill in these 2 boxes...
Ebay won't accept it...

and that...is an issue...
a major issue for big sellers...

some people list 1,000's of items...
and if they don't sell...
they can no loner just do a bulk re-listing of the unsold items...

you can't do that now until these 2 fields are addressed with a reply...
every single ad has to be revised with these fields addressed now...
or they won't accept it...

it's a labor intensive nightmare for these big sellers to revise 1,000's of ads......

 

[thebritfarmer]

Ebay are just going to bury themselves before long. I very rarely use eBay anymore. I have never sold through eBay just purchased, something which I do little of nowadays. Postage is just to expensive.

 

[BLReed]

I like it. Use Google to find the UPC. Then search by the UPC.
Works on Amazon also. Avoids the also-rans and foreign knock offs.
Searched on Google by UPC and got 117 sources for the specific item. Some
by Vendors I hadn't considered. On Amazon one item. On eBay 8 listings.
Searched on eBay by name I got 87 items. Mostly by Sellers using a name to
get your attention for a different product. Re-enforces "truth in advertising."
When searching, add "new" or "used" to the UPC to narrow down further.
Also works with ISBN.

Search engines use algorithms to help identify matches. UPC in the algorithm
helps progressive and successful Sellers. Not so much with Sellers that should
have stuck to a weekly Garage Sale to get rid of junk.

 

[Phantom Warrior]

Tough for the bulk sellers. They are the group that ebay caters to with no thought for the occasional seller. I think it's ebay management along with the bulk sellers who ruined ebay for the little guy.

If ebay had half a brain, they could have made the new rules apply to just new listings and not to re-listings. Very easy to do with a computer given that the re-listinggs are already identified on the system

Terry

 

[BLReed]

Ebay are just going to bury themselves before long.

That's what was said back in 1998.

Postage is just too expensive.

Not within the U.S. A bargain to receive something from coast-to-
coast in 2 to 3 days. Wait until you go to Florida or Arizona for the Winter.

 

[Toy Soldier Brigade]

Tough for the bulk sellers. They are the group that ebay caters to with no thought for the occasional seller. I think it's ebay management along with the bulk sellers who ruined ebay for the little guy.

If ebay had half a brain, they could have made the new rules apply to just new listings and not to re-listings. Very easy to do with a computer given that the re-listinggs are already identified on the system

Terry

eBay does not want the occasional seller. They are trying to compete with Amazon. There aren't enough "little guys" to keep their shareholders happy. They are constantly trying to push eBay stores. That's how they want everyone to sell in the future. I have a love hate relationship with them.

Love:
The exposure and traffic you get.

Hate:

The total disregard for sellers rights. All they care about for some reason is the buyer.
Fees are totally out of control, and they are suppose to go up again !
Charging final value fees on shipping. They want everyone to ship for free.
Buyers constantly offering lowball insulting offers for items. If I wanted to sell for that price I would have listed it for that price.
Buyers constantly trying to get free shipping, again insulting !
Idiots who do not read your item description, get the item, and just leave insulting negative feedback without even contacting you first. Some people are too stupid to even be around computers.
The increasing number of DEADBEATS who just refuse to pay or contact you after they buy your item.
If you have a problem with them, good luck with so called eBay customer service. You will be on the phone with someone in another hemoshere.

So this latest UPC requirement does not surprise me in the least. Just one more step in the elimination of the casual seller.

If you sell enough items soon it will be cheaper to build your own site with a live shopping cart system. And pay for search engine optimization of your site. I really can not compute how anyone can make a living selling on eBay with all of the above. I basically just use them as a clearing house for old goods.