Neat Trick for Ebay... Anyone knows what eBays policies say about it?

[JavierAlonsoMartin]

Good day everyone,

Just saw a neat trick sellers on aliexpress are using, and thought it would be great to implement for some of us on eBay

They basically add a variant to their items, that has the cheapest price possible to set (on aliexpress 2 cents, on eBay it would be $1).

Then disable the variant.

This way you item ranks first when ordered by lowest price... but the actual prices are much higher than 2 cents / $1 in case of eBay

Was wondering if someone knows if this is covered in eBays policies.


Thanks!

[phaz0rz]

People have been doing this on Ebay for years. This is actually one of the tips I got from the guy who turned me to on ecommerce years ago. I don't know if it's against Ebay's rules, but it's not a very good marketing technique. I stopped making listings like that a long time ago because it doesn't work very well. You would do 10x better with a single item (not multi variation) listing which ranks high.

[mirza93]

Originally Posted by phaz0rz

People have been doing this on Ebay for years. This is actually one of the tips I got from the guy who turned me to on ecommerce years ago. I don't know if it's against Ebay's rules, but it's not a very good marketing technique. I stopped making listings like that a long time ago because it doesn't work very well. You would do 10x better with a single item (not multi variation) listing which ranks high.

I thought it was the other way round.(multi variation>single)
Would you say it's better posting loads of listings with different variables(e.g:quantity)?

[JavierAlonsoMartin]

Originally Posted by mirza93

I thought it was the other way round.(multi variation>single)
Would you say it's better posting loads of listings with different variables(e.g:quantity)?

I am intrigued in this too, would appreciate if you could answer.

Why do single listings do better than multiple in your case? Also 10x better in terms of what? Sales I assume, right?

Also, what are you referring to with doesn't work well, less visits, attracts wrong buyers, less sales, gets worse positioning in best match...?

Thanks a lot in advance

[phaz0rz]

Originally Posted by mirza93

I thought it was the other way round.(multi variation>single)
Would you say it's better posting loads of listings with different variables(e.g:quantity)?

I can't speak for all sellers, but in our particular niche single item listings do better than multi variation. Our niche is extremely flooded and we still do very well with the technique we've developed. I actually do exactly what you described. I have multiple listings in my stores for different quantities of the same item, and also for different variations of the same item. In my personal opinion, having more active listings increases your visibility and therefore increases your chances of making a sale.

[MM78]

Originally Posted by phaz0rz

I can't speak for all sellers, but in our particular niche single item listings do better than multi variation. Our niche is extremely flooded and we still do very well with the technique we've developed. I actually do exactly what you described. I have multiple listings in my stores for different quantities of the same item, and also for different variations of the same item. In my personal opinion, having more active listings increases your visibility and therefore increases your chances of making a sale.

Agree, I've tried Multi-variation and single listing....by far the single listing has done me better.

[phaz0rz]

Originally Posted by JavierAlonsoMartin

I am intrigued in this too, would appreciate if you could answer.

Why do single listings do better than multiple in your case? Also 10x better in terms of what? Sales I assume, right?

Also, what are you referring to with doesn't work well, less visits, attracts wrong buyers, less sales, gets worse positioning in best match...?

Thanks a lot in advance

All of the above.

They do 10x better in terms of sales and visibility, because you're a lot more likely to be seen with more listings. I also wholeheartedly believe that simplistic (mobile optimized), uncluttered listings rank better in best match search results. Almost all of our listings show up on the first page.

[idds]

Originally Posted by phaz0rz

People have been doing this on Ebay for years. This is actually one of the tips I got from the guy who turned me to on ecommerce years ago. I don't know if it's against Ebay's rules, but it's not a very good marketing technique. I stopped making listings like that a long time ago because it doesn't work very well. You would do 10x better with a single item (not multi variation) listing which ranks high.

I can see how this would also just piss off a buyer, doesnt seem hard to see thru the tactic.

[MM78]

Just a side note, as a buyer...when people use this trick of making a multi-variation with a really low price then when you select the actual product and get another price....it pisses me off because I feel tricked and usually will not buy from that seller but that's just me.

[Play]

Originally Posted by MM78

Just a side note, as a buyer...when people use this trick of making a multi-variation with a really low price then when you select the actual product and get another price....it pisses me off because I feel tricked and usually will not buy from that seller but that's just me.

Visibility in search ranks has a lot to do with click to sales ratio. If your using low prices to clickbait buyers (like MM78), then not only will they be furious, they wont buy. This in turn will reduce your listing rank.

It's a poor practice in my opinion. On the other hand if used correctly, MVL works a treat (at least for my niche). I am usually always top 5 in listing ranks.

[mirza93]

Thanks guys, a bit of an insight. My business has been abysmal during August and September and I think this might help