GetItNext Blog

eBay Testing Redesign of Item Page - Based on User Feedback

eBay has announced it will be testing some big changes based on feedback they received from eBay Live and eBay Devcon.   This week they will start a 2-month testing cycle.

How will the testing work?
A very small percentage of members will be randomly selected to see one of several new page variants that they’re testing. This means not everyone in the test will see the same designs or features. 

What are the changes they are testing?

• A redesigned item page Description section that will be flex width, not fixed. Based on feedback they heard from 3rd-party developers and sellers they scrapped their original plan to require fixed width for the description area of the item page which would have caused too much disruption to listing templates. With the new design the top section will be fixed width, but the lower Description section will fluctuate in width (as it does today) to accommodate the various types of listing templates sellers use.

• Ability to preview your item in the new item page. Sellers need to be able to see how their items will appear in the new page being tested, so they can make adjustments as necessary. As a seller, if you have an item listed, simply sign in and click the new preview link at the top of your listing to view the item as it would appear in the new design.

Why should you care?
Well maybe the above changes are things you requested at eBay Live and/or will improve your selling experience.  At a minimum it shows they are trying to listen to their users and make changes based on feedback they are receiving.

Here is a link to the official announcement.

A Fortunate Dog Wins eBay Award

Congrats to eBay Seller A Fortunate Dog who was just voted eBay's Best Shopping experience.  A fortunate dog makes it easy for shoppers to find what their looking for, much like GetItNext makes searching eBay easier.  What a great design this store has.  Very simple, large high quality images and well thought out tips categories.  Not only is this a great store its also a wealth of information on dog grooming and pet care.  Check out their about us page which offers tips and makes buyers feel comfortable and safe buying from them. 

Congratulations Karla Addington-Smith and Craig Smith you have a terrific site you can be proud of.

Back in Jersey Minus a Phone and Exhausted After Devcon08

Well I'm back in Jersey after flying back last night from Devcon08.  While my visit to Chicago was short, in a large part due to 5.5 hr delays in Newark Sunday night, I managed to have a great trip.  I was able to meet up with old friends and contacts and make some new ones.  Sorry Ina that I didn't have time to meet up live, hopefully next year.

Unfortunately the trip didn't end on a good note.  Upon entering the airport I discovered my Samsung i-760 mobile PDA was not in my pocket.  After scrambling to cancel accounts and using a lame wifi connection at the airport I discovered once again that I was delayed by continental.  It started with the usual O'Hare delays then Continental fessed up and told us the fuel gauge was busted on the plane.  But hey you should be happy because we are giving out FOOD VOUCHERS.  The stampede ensued to the counter including lots of arguments and griping.  After 45 minutes I strolled over even though I wasn't hungry since I had woofed down a McDonalds extra value meal.  In order to stick it to Continental I decided to use the $12 meal voucher on some barley and hops.  I headed over to Chilli's and ordered a Sam Adams and handed the tender my coupon.  "Sorry sir its not valid on Alcohol...."  Damn continental screwing me again i thought.  All of sudden the chap sitting next to me is like I'll buy his beer, thanks Christopher Pyle from Ascent Media.  He turns to me and is like "I'll do anything to stick it to the airlines", I was like ok thanks.  Handed him my voucher to apply to his meal and we were both happy with the trade.

As I'm strolling back to the gate I hear my name on the intercom.  Hmm did I just win the lottery and get upgraded????  "Matt Williams please report to e92 immediately your plane is leaving".  Friggin continental again, told me to be back at 9:00 and I was 15 minutes early and they were ready to ditch me.  Got on as the door closed, lots of angry stares from the entire plane, and a really pissed off woman who was sitting in my seat and thought it was hers cause I was a no show.  HA!  She wasn't pleased about sitting in the middle seat and kept squirming the entire flight encroaching on my space, killing any chance at a nap.  Arrived back at lovely Newark at 12:30 am and home by 1:30 am.  What a lousy end to a couple of fun, intense days.

GetItNext 2008 Devcon Champion

I received a couple of emails today suggesting that my victory at eBay Devcon, see previous blog Air Hockey Champ, should be taken with a grain of salt (based on the competition).  To my GetItNext team, I challenge ANY of you anytime, any place on the ice, on the table or under the bubble (for those of you non hockey loving people it means, ice hockey, air hockey, bubble hockey).  Yes I agree that beating Ron and Colin is not a big deal but those were the competitors that I faced and I schooled them at their own game.  As of right now the Cup is in Jersey and will remain so for the next year.  So deal with it my northern border, beer loving canuck friends.

eBay Unveils Big Paypal Changes for Sellers at Devcon08

More details on the eBay product roadmap that Adam Trachtenberg covered during his roadmap session.  Here are the high level points that Adam highlighted for upcoming Paypal changes:

• The US will NOT be going to Paypal only
• UK Sellers will have to list offer a paypal option in all listings
• Other countries are still TBD
• Australia Paypal only is targeting for mid July
• Exceptions for certain countries & categories such as vehicles or capital equipment
• 3rd party checkout is still TBD.  eBay is trying to bridge needs of the buyer and seller and needs to figure out the best approach.

eBay iPhone Mobile App Coming Soon

I had a chance to chat with Alan Lewis of eBay about what he's been working on lately.  When I asked  what he's been up to he quickly pulled out an Apple iPhone out of his pocket and started giving a quick demo of a really slick Mobile application developed for eBay users to use with their iPhones.  Alan just got back from unveiling the new mobile app at the Apple Worldwide Developer's Conference. 

After spending a couple minutes checking the app out I have to say it looks like a really slick, fast mobile application that will benefit buyers on the go.  The app won't be available until the App store opens later this summer, the great news is the eBay app will be free to use. 

Attached are a couple of screen caps to provide a visual.  This screen shot is of the my eBay at a glance screen:

This screen shows how buyers and sellers can view/track their items:

eBay To Improve Buyer Experience By Improving Payments

More details on the eBay product roadmap that Adam Trachtenberg covered during his roadmap session.  Here are the high level points that Adam highlighted for an area that impacts sellers in a big way, payments.

Mission: eBay wants buyers to have a consistent safe checkout experience EVERY time they shop.  In an effort to make their payment policy more consistent and similar to what eccomerce shoppers are used to they want to:

• eBay wants to increase buyer confidence
• want to decrease online fraud
  • will be confirming all new seller eBay accounts
• plan to provide safer payment method for buyers
• plan to implement changes to reduce unpaid items

Check back as I will continue posting small snippets as I get time throughout the day, here's a link to all the eBay news from devcon.

Big eBay Changes Announced for Sellers - Shipping

The big theme coming out of eBay Devcon 2008 in Chicago is focusing on improving the buyer experience and this means lots of changes for sellers.  I just left a session with Adam Trachtenberg that covered the eBay Product Roadmap, I'll give you some of the high level points for the first topic that impacts sellers, shipping.  Here are some of the upcoming changes to shipping that Adam detailed:

• Return policy MUST be specified
  • even if you have a no returns policy you will have to list it
  • who pays for ship backs
  • not applicable for certain categories
• Handling time, need to list how long it will be till you ship the product so the buyer has an estimate on how long it will take to receive your product.

One question raised was "can you link the paypal shipping system to eBay shipping.  Adam answered that currently the answer is no.

Check back as I will continue posting small snippets as I get time throughout the day, here's a link to all the eBay news from devcon.

Seth Godin Challenges eBay Sellers to Squidoo For 10 Days

As many people know I am a big Seth Godin fan.  I just blogged about him the other day advising how everyone should make sure to attend his presentation at eBay Live in Chicago.  Well, I have more news on Seth.  Godin’s company Squidoo is offering a challenge to all eBay sellers. 

Seth's challenge to eBay sellers is that if you create 1 Squidoo lens for 10 days to self promote your own eBay listings and/or stores you have a chance to be included in Seth’s speech at eBay Live.  Pretty cool stuff.  The winner also gets an iPod, your lens appears as Lens of the day and mentioned in Seth’s speech.  That outta increase your traffic.

So to all eBay sellers, what do you have to lose?  Self promotion and a chance at a tremendous amount of exposure and a free iPod.  I can’t think of any negatives can you?

Keynote Speakers for eBay Devcon Chicago 2008

This years eBay Developers Conference has a terrific set of keynote speakers.  I'm counting down the days till the conference.  Here's this years list:

• New CEO and President of eBay Inc, John Donahoe
• President of eBay Marketplaces, Rajiv Dutta
• Max Mancini the Senior Director of Platform and Disruptive Innovation at eBay is going to demo Project Echo and new Web services
• Mike Shaver who is the Chief Evangelist for Mozilla
• Adam Gross, VP for Salesforce.com
• Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos

Here's a full list of Bios, eBay Devcon Keynotes