2011 Spring Seller Update
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Fashion enthusiasts are searching and browsing on eBay for clothing, shoes and accessories by key details such as style, size, size type, brand, condition and format. They're also creating personalized fashion profiles based on these details. Including item specifics can help get your listings in front of more buyers and increase sales. Item specifics will be required for all new and revised listings in fashion categories starting July 20.
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Highlights
Take Action
Best Practices
Required item specifics by category
Frequently Asked Questions
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Highlights |
- New and revised listings in Clothing, Shoes & Accessories categories must include the following item specifics: Brand, Style, Size Type and Size. To stay one step ahead of the competition and boost your sales, add all of them now to your listings using the eBay suggested values. Starting July 20, new and revised listings without the required item specifics will be blocked.
- New color treatment—item specifics values for both Color and Shade—will help establish consistent color across categories. Color and Shade will not be required (updated from original announcement). However, sellers are highly encouraged to provide details on both aspects. Specifying color will enable buyers find your items when searching for items by color.
- Search and browse improvements will help buyers navigate to the most relevant items and make a quicker purchase decision.
- Category updates in Clothing, Shoes & Accessories simplify the listing process for sellers and category navigation for buyers.
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Take Action |
- Use the look-up table to view required item specifics by category and exceptions.
- Review category and item specifics changes to see how these changes will impact your existing listings and the way you list. Edit listings if needed to ensure proper categorization and item specifics. Use one of the following eBay tools to help update active listings:
- Sell Your Item (SYI)
- Turbo Lister
- Blackthorne
- File Exchange
- Selling Manager/Selling Manager Pro
- Bulk edit and relist
Tips and tools to edit listings
- Update your existing listings (including Good 'Til Cancelled listings) to include item specifics and get your listings in front of more buyers. You can generate a report using Advanced Search in Selling Manager/Selling Manager Pro to identify and edit listings (individually or in bulk) that do not include the required item specifics.
- Watch a demo on adding item specifics to existing listings.
- NEW! Please note that Color has been removed from the list of mandatory item specifics. Size, Size Type, Style and Brand are still required. However, we recommend that you add Color and use the eBay recommended values to increase the visibility of your listing.
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Best Practices |
- Use eBay suggested item specifics values or custom item specifics when listing items.
- Continue to fully describe your item in the body of your listing and make sure this description is consistent with the item specifics values you choose.
- Provide plenty of photos that complement the description and item specifics. You can add up to 12 photos per listing. Photos are free for eBay Store subscribers, including zoom and enlarge with Picture Pack.
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Frequently Asked Questions |
To make it faster and easier for buyers to search and browse, the Clothing, Shoes & Accessories category structure is being updated and sellers will be required to use item specifics. Buyers can refine their search by Brand, Style, Color, Size Type and Size earlier and find relevant items faster.
To make the category structure more intuitive, eliminate redundancies, and offer a more retail-like shopping experience, starting April 4 some categories will be rolled up, removed, or added and some lower sub-categories will be elevated. Get details
Listings will automatically be moved for sellers as part of the process. Category changes can involve an introduction of a new sub-category (category being expanded) or the removal or collapse of a sub-category. The listing, based on where it currently resides, will be moved accordingly. Listings in a collapsed category will be moved up to the main category. Listings in an eliminated category will be moved to a single "new" category. See category changes for a list of the categories that are affected. You should review your listings in the impacted categories and make adjustments as needed.
Example: "Suits and Blazers" will be split into two categories in April. Your listings will be moved to either Suits or Blazers based on the item information in the listing. You may want to review your listings and revise those you feel would be a better fit in a different category.
See tips and tools to edit listings.
The old category structure offered these specialty sizes as both categories and "Size Type" filters. The inventory that surfaced depended on whether the seller chose, for example, Petites as a category or as a Size Type creating an inconsistent shopping experience for buyers. Under the new streamlined category structure, the information from the Size Type item specific will be used to surface the inventory in the location(s) where it is relevant.
Requiring item specifics will help buyers find relevant items faster when they filter search results and/or apply Fashion Shopping Profiles. Buyers consider brand, style, color, size type and size (along with price, condition, etc.) when they're shopping. These essential details about an item will surface the most relevant listings in search results. Sellers should see an increase in items viewed, number of bids, and items sold as a result of this new requirement.
Starting July 20, 2011 all new and revised listings in Clothing, Shoes & Accessories categories must include the following item specifics: Brand, Style, Size Type and Size. Required item specifics may vary by category. Starting July 20, new and revised listings without the required item specifics will be blocked. See the look-up table to view the required item specifics by category and exceptions. Item specifics will be required for Good 'Til Cancelled listings upon renewal starting in early 2012.
Brand, Style, Size Type and Size will be required in Clothing, Shoes & Accessories. The exact item specifics required will vary by category and there are some exceptions. For example, the size item specific required for shoes, will differ from size measurements needed for handbags. Use the look-up table to view required item specifics by category.
Required item specifics will be identified with a green asterisk. You'll be required to provide this information before you can list your item. Starting July 20, if a required item specific is not provided, you'll get an error message asking for the required information before you can proceed with your listing.
See the look-up table to view the required item specifics by category.
We're encouraging sellers to start adopting the required item specifics as soon as the new values are available starting April 4, 2011. You can use one of the following eBay tools to update active listings:
- Sell Your Item (SYI) form
- Turbo Lister
- Blackthorne
- File Exchange
- Bulk edit functionality updates coming in April will support item specifics
- Selling Manager/Selling Manager Pro—updates in May help you find and update listings that do not include required item specifics
See tips and tools to edit listings. You may need to download the latest version of any tool (such as Turbo Lister) in order to list or revise items with the new values.
You can use Advanced Search in Selling Manager/Selling Manager Pro to run a report to see which of your active listings are missing required item specifics. To get the report, search item specifics "are required and not specified."
If the item specifics are common to all your variants, you will be able to revise your listing to provide the required item specifics. However, if the required item specific is being used as a variation for your listing, you will need to end your listing, relist and then edit your listing. Due to the nature of multi-quantity listings and unique variants, bulk editing of item specific variants is not available. Watch a demo on adding item specifics to existing listings.
The "Color" item specific will have pre-defined values. For this item specific, "Enter your own" value will not be displayed in the drop down list. Other item specifics will be open. Although we’ll provide a recommended list of values, and highly encourage sellers to use that list of values, you’ll be able to enter your own value if you choose to do so. Sellers and buyers will be able to send eBay suggested values for the Color item specific by emailing taxanomy@ebay.com.
Existing listings, if left untouched, will not be impacted. However, new, revise, and sell similar listings will be required to provide the required item specifics for the respective category. If the required item specific information is not included when you go to list your item (revise, relist, sell similar), you will not be able to submit the listing until the required information is provided.
The Size Chart and Handbag Measurement Guide will be available in the listing flow in April. You can get to them by clicking on the question mark icon next to the Size item specific.
Example of Size Chart
Handbag Measurement Guide
Item specifics for both Color and Shade will be added to help establish consistent color across categories. Sellers are highly encouraged to provide details for both item specifics. However, they will not be required. Color is the primary color family. For example, "Blue" will become "Blues. Within the "Color" bucket, "Shade" offers expanded gradients of color and allows sellers to provide their own specific color or designer color. When searching for items, buyers will see color swatches as well as text describing the color of an item.
Example: You will be able to specify "Blues" as "Color" and "cornflower" as "Shade."
The current focus is on making eBay a destination for buyers to find great fashion at great prices. We also continue to explore ways to optimize the experience in other categories.
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