How do I get listings to show on the UK site and Aust site at the same time

[found-in-australia]

Unreasonably, I am sick of having the goal posts changed every couple of weeks, and being punished for not making unnattainable or unviable standards of selling.

In the same fortnight that I finally got my star ratings up to 5 stars, I lost my Top Rated Seller status on the US site because I am not prepared to spend another $20 or $30 per parcel to add tracking to at least 90% of my USA buyers. Because of this my US site listings are now treated as foreign listings on the Australian site, and will no longer be logged into the main search on Ebay.com.au, only on the supplemental list for "items found from eBay international sellers" - (although they do show if that search is screened for "Australia Only" listings) 

A couple of weeks ago I lost my Top Rated Seller Status on the UK site because I have only sold 94 items to UK buyers.

My auctions in Australian dollars no longer show on the UK site in the main search, only on the supplemental list for "items found from eBay international sellers", while other sellers with Top Rated Seller Status in Australia and not on the UK site show in the main search. I need to know what steps I need to take to get my auctions to show in the same way on the UK site and the Australian site at the same time. If I list items in US dollars and tick "International site visibility" they will show on the UK site, but no longer on the Australian site. Unfortunately this means that currently when I list items that are desirable in both the UK and Australia (such as a Petter engine catalogue that I listed tonight which does not show on the UK site main search), I can only target bidders in one of those countries, while other Australian sellers can get their listings to show on the main search in both countries. I would like to know what standards I now need to achieve to do the same.

I got a negative feedback about 14 years ago, and in Ebay's eyes I am an currently an unsatisfactory seller. I can see no way to acheive a decent reputation on the site and run my business viably as I can not afford to include tracking on international parcels on the type of items that I sell. Ebay seems to have taken steps to fragment the marketplace yet again (and for the first time successfully undermined my business model), so as to reduce competition on auctions. While this is probably designed to punish scumbag sellers like me who (a) sell by auction, and (b) are not able to viably maintain unviable standards (clearly customer satisfaction is not enough), by removing competition on auction listings, prices are reduced and Ebay itself collects lower commissions on sales on their site. Thus instead of achieving growth on the site by having reasonable standards and requirements, Ebay focusses on steadily increasing fees, and punishing sellers by making the standards they require for a decent reputation unnattainable.

I am sick of being punished for being a long term paying customer of Ebay, and the constant changes in standards expected of me (and being treated as an unsatisfactory seller at the time that I finally achieved 5 stars, when I had top rated seller status at 4.9 stars is a really classy way of telling me that I should be doing better), but for now I would simply like to know what I need to do to get my items to show on the UK site like other sellers who also have Top Rated Seller status in Australia but not the UK.

Frustrated,  Kevin

[kopenhagen5]

Sorry i didn't read you whole post, but when you make the listing, there is the option to include a few other sites and one of them is the UK site.

Can't remember if there is a small fee for including other sites, but it will tell you when you tick the box.

[digital*ghost]

For the best chance of having your listings appear in standard search results on the UK site (when listing on the Australian site), you need to quote specific postage separately - it looks like maybe you've selected a worldwide flat rate? 

If so, you'll have to revise the listings, select Flat: same cost to all buyers, then select Choose Custom Location in the dropdown menu. Select the UK and quote the cost, even if it's the same as posting everywhere else. 

Then click Offer Additional Service for any other international postage options you want to offer - you can do this for the US site as well to improve your chance of appearing there, or just select the worldwide flat rate option.

I haven't ever seen the option to tick a box for other sites, but there was an announcement about changes to visibility on OS sites a while back, and this is the only way I know of that gets you visible on the UK site, and increases your chance of being  visible on the US site. 

[phorum_junkie*]

I just logged into the UK site with a UK id and did a search for several of your items, as long as I ticked worldwide yours was usually the only listing on most of them and was at the top on one that had three others.

Not sure what else ebay can do, I don't see how they can make your 'appearance' any higher.

Lack of UK sales probably has more to do with our dire economic circumstances and the poor exchange rate than if you have TRS or not.

[found-in-australia]

Kopenhagen5 said:

"but when you make the listing, there is the option to include a few other sites and one of them is the UK site."

I have used that on the American site since the first day it was introduced, and it was one of the best value "bells and whistles" that Ebay has ever introduced. It must be set in a different way on the Australian listing form - where abouts is it placed on the Australian SYI form, please?

I have tried page search across the Australian form and am not picking it up, so it must be titled differently. On the American site it is called "International site visibility", can you please let me know what it is being called on the Australian site.

Sorry to be so ignorant that I am not even finding it when it is being pointed out to me.

[found-in-australia]

Digital*ghost,

With thanks, adding UK postage separately to my worldwide flat rate postage has not indexed it into the main search at this stage, but that may be because it is an existing auction and that aspect won't re-index.

Phorum-Junkie*,

Ticking worldwide is one step removed from the buyers who do not know to refine their searches (which are surprisingly large numbers), and also one step removed from other Australian sellers with Top Rated Seller status, in Australia only, whose items currently show in the basic search on the UK site.

I have also used the American site up to now, to be able to list in specialist categories which are browsed by American and other buyers who check the categories for items beyond what searching would find, and until now, those items would show up on the Australian site when a buyer here would do a basic search because there is no relevant category on the Australian site. The competition between those two types of bidders on items such as stereoviews, CDV photographs or International Harvester Tractor brochures can push the competition way beyond the prices gotten by accessing only one or the other aspect of the market. I am afraid that being cut from the basic search on either the UK site or the Australian site, depending on where I list, adversely affects competition on some items.

Kind Regards,  Kevin

[found-in-australia]

There is a possibility that I am deemed to be an American seller because I originally registered on Ebay.com and not Ebay.com.au. When I enquired with an Ebay representative in the Philippines recently, I was asked why I was registered on the American site when I live in Australia. When I pointed out that I started selling on Ebay almost two years before there even was an Ebay Australia, she agreed that would be why.

If Ebay's system deems me to be an American seller, then my Australian auctions will not show on the UK site unless I regain my Top Rated Seller status on the US site, which I can not viably do. Simply put, my fault for not maintaining good enough standards of selling.

There must have been a change within 8 months of me registering, as a user I know who registered in July 1998 does have their Australian listings show on the UK basic search and USA basic search, in spite of also not having top rated seller status on either site. The "easy" solution for me, is to establish a new selling ID registered on Ebay.com.au and build up a Top Rated seller status on the Australian site from scratch, and walk away from my current healthy but tainted reputation and ID, and then hope the goal posts are not shifted again.

My fault for lacking the foresight to dispose of my ID before this, or not being prepared to maintain the standards required of US sellers.. 

Kevin

[davewil1964]

I won't comment because I am sick of foreign listings flooding basic searches here and I imagine US and UK members probably feel the same.

[*new2vintage]

There can't be a problem with your DSR's Kevin - they are all 5.0.

[*new2vintage]

Evidently they aren't part of the issue but at least ebay can't penalise you because of low ratings.