Yesterday for the first time in the UK some eBay users started to see the new eBay Feed. It is currently a test, so don’t worry if you can’t see it. We thought it worthwhile for a quick refresh of what’s in store and if you already have the Feed how to get the most out of it.
First off the common misconception – I’ve heard a lot of eBay users say that they’re not interested in the Feed and want to do their own searching and browsing. Others complain that eBay only show them what they’ve already looked at, which for sellers is often the type of products that they sell, not what they want to buy. That’s not how the Feed works.
The second thing to understand is that the Feed is individual to you. Unless someone has exactly the same interests as you then your Feed will be totally unique made up of items specifically of interest to you.
The Feed is essentially a image based representation of your saved searches on eBay. You enter the search terms that are of interest to you. You refine the search terms by category, format, condition and price. eBay then displays products that you’ve specifically told eBay you are interested in and each time and new matching item is listed on eBay they add it to your feed.
The Feed is really a tool for buyers – I can understand why it’s of limited interest to sellers. However the feed should help sellers of the more interesting products on eBay, not the run of the mill Outlet type products we’re all too used to seeing. Unless you particularly want to follow Ed Hardy Hoodies you won’t see them. If instead you’re interested in stamps from a certain period, collect thimballs, want to find the latest JLS memorabilia to mourn their splitting up then you can. If you have more interesting tastes than those listed that’s a good thing… it means your personaly Feed will be a lot more interesting to look at than the one I just created as a test!
The great thing about the feed is that it’s going to highlight products from sellers who perhaps would never have a shot at getting their products on the eBay home page. I remember a time when fifty quid would buy you a post on the eBay Home page and an absolute bargain it was too. Next month however one of the last places in the world to offer the .
The Feed certainly won’t do any harm to those buyers (or sellers) who wish to search, browse and research. However for the buyers who want to see a home page without the latest home page takeover from an Outlet and prefer to see products they’re actually interested in it’s a good thing. Who knows, more people might even buy more from you!
6 Responses
I was hit with this today and to be honest it looked a right mess, amateurish even. I had items showing that I had either already bought, searched for and/or viewed a long time ago (some more than 12 months ago), with lots of similar items to mine showing from my competitors (…maybe I had looked at their listings at some point in the past?)
If eBay think that’s going to entice me to buy more then they need a re-think, I couldn’t get rid of the page quick enough (…it went on forever …sigh).
You are correct to say this is probably not for sellers, but I would add that it’s probably not for buyers either.
I think this is a fascinating advent for eBay. And don’t forget they don’t do anything without careful measurement and analysis. Or that which hurts the bottom line across the board.
The feed has been tested stateside for over 6 months, so it must work in some sense. It’s a massive departure from what has been the norm for a decade. They are also taking a hit on homepage ad revenues… that is big news.
I think it’s clever and innovative but remain unsure. eBay must know that this does something positive for them, changes something. Otherwise they would have ditched it.
“It is currently a test, so don’t worry if you can’t see it”
I think I’ll cope. 😀