Packed it in on eBay...

1. 61

   paradigmsearchposted 10 years ago

   Gave it up and removed my remaining eBay capsules. I guess my hubs just aren't suited for them. Might give it another shot if the Buy It Now option becomes available though.

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      Glenn Stokposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I removed my eBay capsules too. I used to get something from it when they had paid for value clicks. For those who don't know, a value click meant that even if someone was outbid and lost, we still got paid a little because that bid pushed up the final price, and eBay got a higher sales fee.
      
      But now they dropped that method and only pay us for purchases done in that same click.  If they bid and win an auction later, it's no longer included as a purchase via our click.  So with that change, my eBay payments dropped to zero.
      
      In some cases I found the same products on Amazon and replaced eBay capsules with Amazon capsules. Doing really well with that.

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         wildernessposted 10 years agoin reply to this

         That makes three of us - I have only 3 hubs left with an ebay capsule.  One for the picture and two for items not sold on Amazon.
         
         The heck with eBay - when they took my measley 25 cents per day for a hundred ads, they lost me.

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      2. 91

         L.M. Hoslerposted 10 years agoin reply to this

         What is the limit on e-bay & Amazon capsules per hub? Also if you are not doing any e-bay capsules are you allowed to put extra Amazon capsules in their place?

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         1. 95

            Glenn Stokposted 10 years agoin reply to this

            The limit is not per hub, it's per word. You need 50 or more words for each Amazon or eBay product, or any combination.

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            1. 91

               L.M. Hoslerposted 10 years agoin reply to this

               So if my hub is 500 words, then I can use 10 capsules. Am I understanding that right? That seems like a lot.

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               1. 95

                  wildernessposted 10 years agoin reply to this

                  It is a lot, and very seldom a reasonable figure to use.

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                  1. 91

                     L.M. Hoslerposted 10 years agoin reply to this

                     Thanks for the reply. I guess they would consider it overly promotional to use that many. Is that right? I still have a lot I am trying to figure out.

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                     1. 84

                        Marisa Wrightposted 10 years agoin reply to this

                        HubPages has a rule, and it's one Amazon or eBay capsule per 50 words.  Stay within that rule, and it won't be considered overly promotional.
                        
                        Use as many capsules as you need.  I'm in the middle of compiling a list of books about male dancers.   Each book will have a short "blurb" and an Amazon capsule.  In most cases I'll only just make the 50 words.   That will be a lot of Amazon capsules, but it's OK because each one is useful and relevant to what the reader is looking for. 
                        
                        That's the acid test, really - can I put something in this capsule that's going to help my reader?   If not, then there's no point in including it, because it won't sell anything anyway.

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                        1. 91

                           L.M. Hoslerposted 10 years agoin reply to this

                           Thank you for that information. It was really helpful.

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                        2. 95

                           wildernessposted 10 years agoin reply to this

                           An excellent example of lots of useful capsules.  I've done the same with other lists as well, though I still think such hubs are rare.  It is the exception, not the rule, that large numbers of ads are useful and reasonable.

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                           1. 32

                              Writer Foxposted 10 years agoin reply to this

                              I have a Hub with 45 Amazon Products and 2 eBay listings.  Google likes that Hub.

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                           2. 84

                              Marisa Wrightposted 10 years agoin reply to this

                              It's not often we disagree, Wilderness, but on this occasion I do.
                              
                              HubPages has a limit of 1 capsule per 50 words. That was imposed post-Panda and was seen as a severe restriction at the time!   Remember how many Hubbers left, because they felt they couldn't make money at that level?   
                              
                              Now Hubbers are self-imposing far lower levels of advertising, on the premise that Google doesn't like ads or doesn't like affiliate marketing.   It's bunkum!  Google hates ads above the fold, and it hates "thin affiliate" pages, which are pages full of ads without content.  If you have lots of content you can have lots of ads - as Writer Fox says.
                              
                              There's no need to create some artificial limit with Amazon or eBay capsules because they limit themselves, if you apply the right criteria.  While you're writing a Hub, ask yourself, "what products will my readers need to achieve this goal/solve or clarify this problem/finish this project?"   Often you'll find only two or three, so that's your limit.  But if you find 50, and you've got 2500 words, there is absolutely no reason not to show all 50.

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   2. 93

      SpaceShantyposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I did make a simliar post in another forum thread but here it is again.
      
      You can add ebay Buy It Now items and I have had a few sales recently.
      
      You need to seach ebay for a popular related item, (look for amount of items sold from that listing) then in the ebay capsule enter the sellers id and in the seach box enter the item title, this will display the specific item in your Hub.  Just  entering a general seach term in to the ebay capsule will show any old result, usually used auction items with poor quality pictures.

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      1. 84

         Marisa Wrightposted 10 years agoin reply to this

         I know you can find Buy It Now items by picking a specific seller and item, but what happens when that item expires?   Are you looking for sellers whose items have longevity and if so, how do you work that out?  Or are you just checking your Hubs regularly for lapsed ads?
         
         If you can find similar products on Amazon, you're still likely to do better there - because on eBay the buyer has to complete the purchase within 24 hours.  Whereas on Amazon, they only have to put it in their cart - they can come back up to 90 days later and complete the purchase, and you still get your commission.

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         1. 93

            SpaceShantyposted 10 years agoin reply to this

            Yes only use professional ebay sellers, if they sell an item in the hundreds or thousands why would they stop?  I guess you could check every few months, the same as with an Amazon item, there may be a newer, better or more recent version of that product available.
            
            I know most people will do better with Amazon but this post was about eBay capsules/items.  I understand that Americans in some states can't become an Amazon affiliate and must do with eBay.

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            1. 84

               Marisa Wrightposted 10 years agoin reply to this

               My whole goal with HubPages is to passive income, so my aim is never to have to look at old Hubs again, unless they're unfeatured.   I used to use specific products on Amazon but now I use very specific keywords instead. 
               
               Yes, I know this is about eBay but for some people it is an either/or situation so I thought it was worth mentioning.

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2. 90

   dwelburnposted 10 years ago

   I have all Amazon capsules on my hubs. Never used eBay. Good to know I made the right choice. Thanks for that.

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3. 90

   jansharesposted 10 years ago

   I still left a few, waiting for a miracle. It can't hurt.

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4. 88

   Rock_njposted 10 years ago

   Give Amazon a try.  I have had limited success with Amazon.  Just chose relevant products.

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5. 93

   vocalcoachposted 10 years ago

   Been thinking about removing eBay capsule.  After nearly 4 years and not a dime - it's time.

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   1. 76

      ologsinquitoposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I was going through many of my articles adding more eBay items when this change happened. Needless to say I've been removing them.

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6. 93

   Sue Adamsposted 10 years ago

   When did the change occur? I still made 2 figs from eBay in December 2013. Expensive items highly relevant to content still seems work for direct sales so I wouldn't remove eBay capsules. See also:
   http://hubpages.com/forum/topic/119657#post2532670

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7. STAFF

   Paul Edmondsonposted 10 years ago

   Ebay and Amazon are often misused.  For example, it's rarely appropriate to add a product to a recipe or to add a shopping item that is just tangentially related to the content.  It's a good signal that they should be considered for removal if they don't perform well. 
   
   We have seen manual actions from Google on some surprising pages.  One I remember getting flagged as spam (manual action by google) was a story of a women dealing with a personal family issue and she added a few products that would help her relax (bath soap) if I remember correctly.  I was a bit surprised Google would do this, but they seem to assume the worst in these situations.

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   1. 84

      Marisa Wrightposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Actually that makes sense to me, because the soap could be seen as an irrelevant link since the page was not about hygiene.  It's not a special rule relating to ads, it all comes under the heading of "irrelevant links" and Google does seem to be coming down hard on them these days.  A bit too hard by the sound of things!

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