"ebay will allow links to non-transactional sites from your "about me" page

what is a non-transactional site? I am getting a website together (not ebay) to see some items – can I mention my website name in the about me page? I will be putting a few items on ebay but questioning all this.

Sorry we missed each other at eBay Live – I ran in to a couple people who said "You just missed Jim!" Anyway, was reading through this post and I have some info/clarifications that I've been able to get from eBay through the Certified Provider program (WhatDoISell.com is an eBay Certified Provider). This information is public and authorized for communication, by the way!

1. Links to additional photos or pages describing the item will continue to be allowed. (As long as nothing is being sold on the page or there are no links that lead off that page.)

2. Video in listings hosted by approved sources (such as YouTube) will continue to be allowed.

3. Off-eBay links are not allowed in Classified ads.

4. Phone numbers and Skype chat are still allowed in listings and your About Me page.

As a side note, a very small percentage of sellers provide phone numbers in their eBay listings, yet it is a great sales and conversion tool (if you have the ablity to staff the phone)so for those who have been thinking of adding phone support to their eBay business model, the summer is a great time to try it before moving into the busy holiday season.

Also, for anyone who is looking for more info – we've just released a 90 minute audio training product that includes a 21 page step-by-step workbook on all the current and upcoming eBay policy changes (including clarifications, analysis and new strategies) at http://www.policychanges2008.com

Lisa

[[reply from Jim]]: it's looking like that WON'T be allowed once ebay starts enforcing the rules. They haven't started enforcing rules from May yet though so who knows…my instinct is that eBay will be banning all opt-in forms anywhere on eBay, although they have said nothing about it on the about me page yet.

1. I know that ebay said that you couldn't put links and email addresses anywhere in your listings or 'about me' page—what about directing people to your site by including the UNIQUE name of your product in your listings or 'about me' page, without trying to make it seem like you're selling it—just mention it? This would require SEO keywords, but your keywords could be the title/name of your product as long as the title/name is unique so it would be at the top of the google results or the only result there for those exact keywords.

2. Or like I've stated earlier use an ebay ad including a phone number that they call and on a voicemail message leads them to your off ebay site.

Just 2 ideas that I think are a little easier than more listings/selling an infoproduct on a CD and keeps your competition from seeing EXACTLY what you're doing on ebay. Tell me what you think, are the ideas stupid or not viable?

Thanks for posting my comments and giving me the chance to respond!

[[reply from Jim]]: I'd be questioning the integrity of the "lumper" not me…I run a 100% clean shop open to all audits of any kind. When the ideas work you don't have to make things up. People use the ideas I write, they go on to succeed and then they sometimes send in thank you notes. It's CRAZY…I know…who'd a thunk it…?

Reminds me of an old saying…"the nice thing about always telling the truth is that you don't have to remember what you said."

Darn "lumpers"…what a lazy job they've got…who has time for "lumping" anyway? Can you get paid to do that?

Wise man say "always question the lumper not the lumpees."

I'm having too much fun with this…I'd better stop before I get lumped in with sarcastic people.

[[reply from Jim]]: of course we are all ears when someone has a good idea. I never claimed to have a lock on all creative eBay ideas…I just collect good ideas as a hobby!

I completely agree… the rules are not easy to know, understand, or digest. I do my best to explain them in my blog, and we'll be doing a webinar next week. I WILL be covering how to get ready for future changes. Someone on the phone just asked me how to keep up with these things… I can only do as much as I can do, especially considering I'm not eBay staff!

We're now doing our RocketPlace conference twice a year to help people. People can follow my blog at aswas.typepad.com or my twitter at twitter.com/aswas. We'll hold webinars more often if we find that helps.

I'm doing everything I can to keep getting new and veteran eBay sellers all the info I can once I know things are real and not rumours.

[[reply from Jim]]: happy to post your comments and get you some publicity for a fine effort as we try to DO EBAY'S JOB FOR THEM. Hopefully I'll win you over some day to see that I'm not such a bad guy after all too. (I'm still not sure if you think I made up all my testimonials – you are the only one to ever say something like that to my knowledge…takes guts, but I'm still happy to let you pick any one of them and follow up on it for yourself if you'd like.)

That class was taught by me and Cliff Ennico. We're not eBay staff, and we have no reason to apologise for what the rules are. We're only trying to help, and you might want to thank us for helping you and other sellers know what you didn't know.

[[reply from Jim]]: Thanks for the great class – that's not sarcasm, I mean it. I learned a ton as did the room full of people that were there.

It's sort of scary though that a guy (me) who makes a living by attempting to keep up with eBay policy had so many questions though!

Here's the real issue to me: What's the plan to get the info from your class out before July 1st to the other 4 million active sellers that didn't attend eBay Live?

If that question makes sense to you then you'll get my point.

The very fact that the class was so needed is evidence that there have been too many changes too fast. I hope you can see the irony of needing a class at eBay Live that is all about all the rules we all keep breaking…as if it's our fault as sellers that the rules are pouring out of eBay faster than anyone can possibly keep up with! I found myself educating several eBay employees on their own policies during the weekend.

A suggestion to eBay: Next year instead of a class that teaches us how to stop breaking rules how about a class that tells us what policy changes are coming and how to prepare for them.

I am new to your book and eBay business in general. I also got turned on to another eBay book recently. Not to give anything away for your competition, but it has the word annilation in it.

I am not new to Internet Marketing but I was getting stale and decided to check out eBay further. I also became a member of the eBay affiliate program through CJ. Then lo and behold, all heck broke lose.

eBay took their affiliate program in house and messed up many people apparently. The forum at the eBay affiliate site is full of unhappy campers. Apparently some of eBay's bigger partners get to play by a different set of rules and commission hi jacking through the use, in part, of enlarging eBay pictures is acceptable to eBay.

Now according to your readers, eBay is messing with the sellers. Boy I sure picked a good time to decide on an eBay business and to become an affiliate to send my comic book visitors to.

You are one of the experts, so I will heed what you say, but it sure seems all of a sudden eBay is going to heck in a hand cart. And Yahoo & McAfee have entered the fray of falsely accusing some business websites of spamming, etc because their new software gives false positives. And they don't care. Seems like the big dogs are starting not to give a darn about us little guys and are just rolling over us because it is much harder for us to develop any clout against them.

Yes eBay has some major traffic, but it seems the time is now ripe for someone else to start a business site to offer the services that eBay does. Are you up for it Jim? I will support you.

Anyway, thanks for letting me vent and thanks for your book. Although now I have to go back to the begining of the new revision. I was well into the last revision. Take care.

Dave

[[reply from Jim]]: I've been on eBay for nearly 10 years now. There has ALWAYS been some hurdles to overcome and there have always been new policies that aren't necessarily in our favor as sellers. I remember when eBay told us years ago that we couldn't link to external websites from within our auctions any longer. You should have seen the moaning and groaning…but those that stayed creative and paid attention went on to thrive. It's a simple matter really – there are 84 million active eBay users. you can either get in front of them with an offer or you can do something else, but nearly anything else you do won't get you the kind of exposure you can get on eBay for just about any product.