eBay to Add Links to Your Competitor's Similar Items to Some Item Pages

[amy]

An announcement that only helps eBay. 

***Item Page Change -- For New Buyers Finding eBay Through Search Engines*** 

January 23, 2006 | 03:52PM PST/PT


As Bill Cobb mentioned in his letter last week, we’ve recently made several technical changes to allow search engines (such as Google, Yahoo and MSN) to include eBay item pages in their search results. As part of this effort, we also need to help any new buyers -- who arrive at eBay through a search engine -- understand eBay and the breadth of product that is available.

This week we’re making a change to the top of the item page that only people visiting eBay from a search engine will see. This change adds a “welcome” message, a link to learn about eBay, and two links to additional items. We hope that giving new buyers the help and guidance they need when they first arrive to the site will turn them into successful members of the eBay community. To see an example of what this will look like to buyers arriving from a search engine, please click here.

**Item Page Change -- For Buyers Finding eBay Through Search Engines**
robby@ebay.com View Listings | Report Jan-23-06 15:47 PST
Hi everyone,

My name is Rob, and part of my job is to help bring users to eBay.

We’ve recently allowed search engines (such as Google, Yahoo, MSN, etc...) to crawl eBay item pages and include the item pages in their search results (see Bill Cobb's letter about Investments in Advertising here). As part of this access, we’re slightly modifying item pages for users who come to an item page from a search engine. The change adds a welcome message to users, a link to learn about eBay, and two links to find additional items. This information will only be shown to users who come directly from a search engine to an active eBay item page, not to users who find an item page from another eBay page. We’re going to make an announcement about this shortly, and I’ve provided a screenshot example of the change below.



The goal of this change is to improve the eBay experience for search engine users, especially those who find an item on a search engine. It’s important to note that these users may be new or inexperienced users of eBay and thus require some additional help to be successful. What’s more, having come to an eBay item solely through a search engine, these users have only a small idea of everything that is available on eBay – having seen only a limited number of items and results selected by that search engine rather than the full set of eBay results. We’re hoping that this change addresses these issues – providing the needed help and guidance to search engine users to help turn them into successful members of the eBay community.


Thanks,

Rob Cross

eBay Marketing

sample page with new links: http://forums.ebay.com/db1/thread.jspa?t...1000201412&ssPageName=CMDV:AB

[Anita]

I saw that recently.  I thought the items were going to be similar items THAT seller was selling.  Nope. 

[iron_chick]

Wait . . . that gets an extra 

[iron_chick]

Wow.  I apparently touched a nerve - both with sellers and eBay - when I posted that on the Stores Board. 

[amy]

Wow, a Pink response in 39 minutes. 

http://forums.ebay.com/db2/thread.jspa?t...2000073393&tstart=0

[iron_chick]

[quote author=amy link=topic=2320.msg8245#msg8245 date=1138072641]
Wow, a Pink response in 39 minutes. 

http://forums.ebay.com/db2/thread.jspa?t...2000073393&tstart=0
[/quote]

In MY thread, the invisible poster's!! 

Do they have some sort of filter that alters pinks when certain words/links are posted?  That seems like an awfully speedy response for after business hours in eBay land.

[bargainbloodhound]

This information will only be shown to users who come directly from a search engine to an active eBay item page

Last year our eBay store traffic reports showed the majority of visitors--over 60% came from outside off ebay search engines since we didn't list anything but store inventory items last year .The percentage who found us through eBay search was under 25% most months.

scuttle my eBay SEO keywords (think "how now brown cow")

I'm thinking more along the lines of changing our eBay store keywords to porn, viagra, gambling, so I can be sure they'll find our web store items first. 

[iron_chick]

Oh, BBH . . . I like your idea even better. 

[iron_chick]

TWO PINKS!! 

[bargainbloodhound]

I decided to just go with a simple period: . as a keyword.  I never noticed before now that eBay automatically adds the phrase "all at low prices" to the meta description.

<meta name="description" content=".: - - all at low prices"><meta name="keywords" content="">