Stephanie Tilenius

On behalf of all of us at eBay, I'd like to begin this update by saying thank you. Thank you for your business. Thank you for your input and ideas to help us evolve eBay for the benefit of sellers and buyers. Thank you for your great inventory and your commitment to delivering great service.

We're well aware that sellers of all sizes deliver the deals and quality experiences that bring buyers to eBay and keep them coming back. That's why we're taking new steps to reward great service, bring you more sales, increase your profitability, and help you succeed.

As announced in April, in the spirit of partnership, eBay is now consolidating changes that impact your business into two or three major releases a year, with two months advance notice. This post introduces the second and final major release of 2009. Most of these updates will launch between September 22 and October 1, 2009.

1. Rewards for sellers delivering great buyer experiences
   
   
   • New way to look at DSRs
     • Avoid getting low DSRs - 1s and 2s. Buyers have different ideas about what constitutes a high rating, but most leave a 1 or a 2 only when they experienced a significant issue with their transaction. eBay will be shifting focus from average DSRs to the number of low DSRs as a more accurate measure of customer satisfaction.
     
     
   • PowerSeller program update: rewarding quality over quantity
     • Starting in October, a new eBay US Top-rated seller status will be added to the PowerSeller program to recognize and reward sellers providing great buyer experiences to US buyers based on the new way to look at DSRs (very few 1s and 2s). US Top-rated sellers will receive the highest PowerSeller Final Value Fee discounts (20%) on eBay.com and eBay Motors listings, as well as increased visibility in search results for Fixed Price listings, exclusive access to purchase Featured First and a prominent Top-rated seller badge on item pages on eBay.com and eBay Motors. The US Top-rated seller badge will be tested in search results pages this summer, starting on eBay.com. The current PowerSeller icon will no longer be displayed on buyer-facing pages including item pages on eBay.com and ebay Motors. On eBay.ca, Top-rated seller status changes to will not be made at this time, but Canadian PowerSellers are eligible for US Top-rated seller status based on transactions with US buyers.
     • All sellers with 100 or more annual transactions and at least US$3,000 annual sales with US buyers who meet the requirements for US Top-rated seller status will be invited into the PowerSeller program and can start receiving US Top-rated seller benefits in October.
     • Next April, the PowerSeller program will also include a requirement for sellers based on the new way to look at DSRs (very few 1s and 2s), including a new discount structure based on rates of 1s and 2s on DSRs.
     • Meanwhile, the current PowerSeller discount structure will continue until April 1, 2010 to give sellers 8 full months to keep their current discounts while they adjust business practices to qualify for the new discount structure.
     
     
   • New minimum standards for all sellers whose listings appear on eBay.com:
     • Starting in October, there will be a new minimum standard for all eBay sellers based on the number of low DSRs (1s and 2s) received from US buyers. The minimum standard will be more strict in April, 2010. Canadian sellers will need to adhere to this standard in order to list on eBay.com, or to list on eBay.ca and make their items available to the US.
     • A new Selling Practices policy will define guidelines for professionalism and accuracy in all aspects of listings and transactions.
     • Optional buyer charges for shipping insurance will no longer be allowed.
     
     
   • Updates to the Seller Dashboard: You can now see a snapshot of your low DSRs (1s and 2s) from US buyers and standing toward the new US Top-rated seller requirements updated monthly through a link at the top of your Seller Dashboard. In October, you will be able to see daily updates on low DSRs from US buyers, as well as all buyers.
   
   
   

2. Enhanced search presents more relevant listings
   
   

   • Best Match changes on eBay.com: Best Match, eBay’s default sort order, will look at listing’s recent sales in relation to the number of recent impressions it received as a key factor for Fixed Price listings. An “impression” is any time a buyer sees a search results page that includes the listing.
     
     
   • In addition, single quantity and newly listed Fixed Price items will be given exposure in Best Match even though they have no sales history. These listings will be given initial impressions based on the performance of similar listings. This change will improve the exposure of new Fixed Price listings that are relevant to buyers.
     
     
   • Auction-style listings will still get a boost in exposure as they are about to end. To keep auctions enticing, Auction with Buy It Now listings will be required to have a BIN price at least 10% higher than the auction start price.
     
     
   • Several features will be discontinued including Featured Plus, Border, and others to save you money and keep the focus on relevance.
     
     
   • Product pages are rolling out to more buyers, so list with product details to make sure your listings are included.
   
   
   

3. Easier, more profitable selling on eBay
   
   

   • eBay dispute resolution for buyer claims is expanding on eBay.com to make the process faster and easier for sellers and buyers.
     
     
   • Buyer communications will be faster and easier to manage with enhancements to My Messages and streamlined post-transaction emails.
     
     
   • Get more control over international ship-to locations.
     
     
   • Upload tracking information for more carriers.
     
     
   • Editing listings, even multi-quantity listings with a sale and listing descriptions, will be faster and easier.
     
     
   • Category and Item Specifics changes are now consolidated with the rest of updates. Find out if there are changes to your categories.
     
     
   • Stores subscribers—now you can put all your Fixed Price listings on vacation.

Get more details on all these updates.

You’re also invited to:

• Take part in one of several upcoming eBay.com webinars on Tuesday, July 28 and Thursday July 30.
• Join me and other leaders from eBay and PayPal in a Town Hall meeting on eBay.com on Wednesday, July 29.
• Talk with members of my staff during the next two days on a special eBay.com discussion board we’ve set up for this purpose.

Again, thank you for partnering to make eBay a thriving, successful marketplace.

Sincerely,

Stephanie Tilenius
Senior Vice President & General Manager, eBay North America

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	***Original: A Message to Sellers from Stephanie Tilenius: Summer 2009 Update***
	27 July, 2009 | 11:35 Stephanie Tilenius On behalf of all of us at eBay, I’d like to begin this update by saying thank you. Thank you for your business. Thank you for your input and ideas to help us evolve eBay for the benefit of sellers and buyers. Thank you for your great inventory and your commitment to delivering great service. We’re well aware that sellers of all sizes deliver the deals and quality experiences that bring buyers to eBay and keep them coming back. That’s why we’re taking new steps to reward great service, bring you more sales, increase your profitability, and help you succeed. As announced in April, in the spirit of partnership, eBay is now consolidating changes that impact your business into two or three major releases a year, with two months advance notice. This post introduces the second and final major release of 2009. Most of these updates will launch between September 22 and October 1, 2009. Rewards for sellers delivering great buyer experiences New way to look at DSRs Avoid getting low DSRs—1s and 2s. Buyers have different ideas about what constitutes a high rating, but most leave a 1 or a 2 only when they experienced a significant issue with their transaction. eBay will be shifting focus from average DSRs to the number of low DSRs as a more accurate measure of customer satisfaction. PowerSeller program update: rewarding quality over quantity Starting in October, a new eBay top-rated seller status will be added to the PowerSeller program to recognize and reward sellers providing great buyer experiences based on the new way to look at DSRs (very few 1s and 2s). eBay Top-rated sellers will receive the highest PowerSeller Final Value Fee discounts (20%), as well as some eBay.com specific benefits: increased visibility in search results for Fixed Price listings, exclusive access to purchase Featured First and a prominent Top-rated seller badge on item pages. The Top-rated seller badge will be tested in search results pages this summer, starting on eBay.com. The current PowerSeller icon will no longer be displayed on buyer-facing pages including item pages on eBay.com. On eBay.ca, we will continue to show the PowerSeller icon for the time being, until the Top-rated seller badge is added in the near future. All sellers with 100 or more annual transactions and at least US$3,000 annual sales who meet the requirements for Top-rated seller status will be invited into the PowerSeller program and can start receiving Top-rated seller benefits in October. Next April, the PowerSeller program will also include a requirement for sellers based on the new way to look at DSRs (very few 1s and 2s). PowerSellers that don’t have Top-rated seller status will get 5% Final Value Fee discounts. Meanwhile, the current PowerSeller discount structure will continue until April 1, 2010 to give sellers 8 full months to keep their current discounts while they adjust business practices to qualify for the new Top-rated seller status. New minimum standards for all sellers whose listings appear on eBay.com: Starting in October, there will be a new minimum standard for all eBay sellers based on the number of low DSRs (1s and 2s) received. The minimum standard will be more strict in April, 2010. Canadian sellers will need to adhere to this standard in order to list on eBay.com, or to list on eBay.ca and make their items available to the US. A new Selling Practices policy will define guidelines for professionalism and accuracy in all aspects of listings and transactions. Optional buyer charges for shipping insurance will no longer be allowed. Updates to the Seller Dashboard: You can now see a snapshot of your low DSRs (1s and 2s) and standing toward the new Top-rated seller requirements updated monthly through a link at the top of your Seller Dashboard. In September, you will be able to see daily updates. Enhanced search presents more relevant listings Best Match changes on eBay.com: Best Match, eBay’s default sort order, will look at listing’s recent sales in relation to the number of recent impressions it received as a key factor for Fixed Price listings. An “impression” is any time a buyer sees a search results page that includes the listing. In addition, single quantity and newly listed Fixed Price items will be given exposure in Best Match even though they have no sales history. These listings will be given initial impressions based on the performance of similar listings. This change will improve the exposure of new Fixed Price listings that are relevant to buyers. Auction-style listings will still get a boost in exposure as they are about to end. To keep auctions enticing, Auction with Buy It Now listings will be required to have a BIN price at least 10% higher than the auction start price. Several features will be discontinued including Featured Plus, Border, and others to save you money and keep the focus on relevance. Product pages are rolling out to more buyers, so list with product details to make sure your listings are included. Easier, more profitable selling on eBay eBay dispute resolution for buyer claims is expanding on eBay.com to make the process faster and easier for sellers and buyers. Buyer communications will be faster and easier to manage with enhancements to My Messages and streamlined post-transaction emails. Get more control over international ship-to locations. Upload tracking information for more carriers. Editing listings, even multi-quantity listings with a sale and listing descriptions, will be faster and easier. Category and Item Specifics changes are now consolidated with the rest of updates. Find out if there are changes to your categories. Stores subscribers—now you can put all your Fixed Price listings on vacation. Get more details on all these updates. You’re also invited to: Take part in one of several upcoming eBay.com webinars on Tuesday, July 28 and Thursday July 30. Join me and other leaders from eBay and PayPal in a Town Hall meeting on eBay.com on Wednesday, July 29. Talk with members of my staff during the next two days on a special eBay.com discussion board we’ve set up for this purpose. Again, thank you for partnering to make eBay a thriving, successful marketplace. Sincerely, Stephanie Tilenius Senior Vice President & General Manager, eBay North America
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