eBay is 86ing its old search engine in favor of its newer one. Up until this point, users have been able to choose the one they prefer, but according to eBay the majority are using the new one, so you can kiss the old one goodbye.
“Last year we introduced new search technology that makes it faster and easier to find just what you’re looking for on eBay,” explains Senior Director of Finding Jeff King. “In a nutshell, it looks at a multitude of details in listings to deliver more of the results you want. It makes it easy to browse and narrow your selection, and lets you choose how you want to see the results. With the new auto-complete feature it even ‘anticipates’ what you’re typing in the search box. Get a closer look and some great tips for searching.”
King says that 90% of eBay users are using the new search engine and that they will be retiring the old one in April. He also says that the response from the community has been great.
But as Sue Bailey at TameBay points out, eBay’s U.S. discussion board paints a different picture. People have called the new search slow and clumsy and called the “opt out” feature it’s best one. King says those who have opted out will get reminder messages as April approaches.
As Far as Sellers Are Concerned…
eBay is continuing to expand opportunities to use product details in listings. King says it’s one of the best ways to boost your exposure in the new search.
After a round of complaints, MarniSue (at the eBay discussion board) of the eBay Classification Team says the following changes have been made to the search experience (changes not limited to these):
– Adding the Tabs back into the experience
– Updating Advanced search to require less scrolling and an additional search button
– Changing the sort for the Search Expansion
– Integrating the search Expansion more closely to the search results
– Including stores by default in the BIN tab
– upgrading the left side of the page to make search options more discoverable
– Returning the Global search bar to the very top of the page
– Adding related searches to the new search experience
– Reducing pageweight to make the experience more agile & increasing the loadtime of the page
– Adding opt out to the top of the page consistently
– Fixing issues with Size, Brand, Condition & Color as reported by the community
– Amending the identical listing policy:Link
– Adding the store & powerseller icons to the sellers other items page
– Showing the watch items link by default in the search results
– changing the way sort & view operate from hover over to drop downs
Please share your thoughts about the new eBay search with us. Which version do you like better?
