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Ina Steiner is co-founder and Editor of EcommerceBytes and has been reporting on ecommerce since 1999. She's a widely cited authority on marketplace selling and is author of "Turn eBay Data Into Dollars" (McGraw-Hill 2006). Her blog was featured in the book, "Blogging Heroes" (Wiley 2008). She is a member of the Online News Association (Sep 2005 - present) and Investigative Reporters and Editors (Mar 2006 - present). Follow her on Twitter at @ecommercebytes and send news tips to ina@ecommercebytes.com. See disclosure at EcommerceBytes.com/disclosure/.
What does Optiseller do? When eBay first announce item specifics, I had assumed that it would provide an organized way to build listing descriptions. I had no idea that anyone would define item specifics as an afterthought. Would adding item specifics help narrow searches more effectively? As far I have not seen much positive effect.
Did item specifics create more challenges than benefits in the Stamps category? The Scott catalog enumerates properties that define a catalog number for every listed stamp. Did eBay create an official Item Specific for catalog number? No, they did not.
Using catalog Item Specifics, it was possible to create listings based on Scott catalog attributes. Once captured in Excel, there was no need to enter the data a second time if another stamp with the same catalog number was listed. Condition attributes related to production or subsequent handling were entered for each stamp. Catalog Number, format, quality, grade, and condition attributes define stamp value.
What did eBay do? They did not define Grade and Condition values consistent with usage in the Scott catalog usage, adhered to by most stamp dealers. They also failed to define open ended values for attributes like Denomination or Color. I knew there was a problem when eBay sent a message suggesting that a “red orange” stamp be listed as “orange” for better visibility. Is visibility more important than credibility? What if a buyer orders the “orange” stamp and returns it because it is “red orange”?
A bad situation had already been made worse when eBay eliminated Item Condition from the Stamps Category not long after item specifics were first announced. I recall the meeting between eBay and the 2004 American Philatelic Society in Sacramento where Item Condition values of “Unused” and “Used” were agreed to by eBay. After some later technological changes, the Stamps category lost Item Condition definitions. Only a few eBay sellers know how to populate Condition Description at the beginning of the listing description. After catalog number, condition is the most important determinant of price in the Stamps Category. How do sellers effectively market stamps on eBay without eBay support of a catalog number item specific and item condition?
Where does Optiseller fit in all of this? If Item Specifics are defined before the listing is created and priced what is left to discover? What can well-informed sellers learn about their listings that they do not already know? Will Optiseller help sellers produce better quality listings? Or is the objective stay in sync with the eBay search engine regardless of search effectiveness? Will buyers more easily find what they want? Will buyers stop searching by catalog number in the Stamps Category? Will they give up searches ordered by price for “Best Match”? Probably not.