Can you at least make the link at the bottom of the page larger and more prominent? I see this change already on some pages and to me it can be easily overlooked and the buyer may not see the "Ask a question" link. I can see buyers scrolling through a listing and then missing the link.

THANK YOU !!!

I understand the principle of this move, but I think it would be a page design feature that should be left up to the seller. I have not minded getting questions from buyers even if the info was in the listing. I would rather they ask the question than give up in frustration and go to another site where it's easier to figure out how to get info from a seller. I have found as both a seller and a buyer, that constant site changes reduce my desire to use a site, whether it eBay or another website. I question the sense of implementing this change prior to the holidays when seasonal buyers will be returning to the site and may become frustrated with eBay due to the changes and then go elsewhere to purchase. Whenever I get surveyed by companies from whom I have purchased online, I am almost always asked to rank the "ease of using the site". To me, being able to quickly located the link to ASQ and shoot off an email is an essential design feature that makes a site "easy" to use. This image shows what has happened to a few other sites traffic prior to the holidays and I think introducing a change like this prior to the holidays will contribute to a further decline in eBay's traffic at that time.

Hi kjlyonsdesign,

Thank you for your feedback.

We are testing moving the link at the bottom of the page. The link is already being seen in this new position by about a quarter of buyers now. If it continues to be successful in reducing questions and setting the right buyer expectations upfront without negative impact on purchases, it will be launched for all buyers by the end of 2010

Thanks,
Shina

The reduction of questions is because buyers can't find the link anymore.

If only sellers would write good descriptions, then I wouldn't have to ask Qs. Many don't list measurements, colors, dimensions, etc.

Scrolling down is not my idea of a good experience.

The sellers that want this are the mega sellers who get too many questions from pesky buyers and don't want to staff up to answer them. I have learned not to bother asking mega sellers Qs. I either buy or I don't, because their listings are usually all the information they have. This is true of a lot of retail sites as well. If QVC listing doesn't answer a particular inquiry, calling them will not get the answer either.

So while this might help mega sellers in reducing unwanted Qs they cannot answer, it makes the rest of us buying from the smaller seller annoyed.

Yes - hiding a buyer's ability to contact me is foolish, both before and after a purchase/winning bid. Post-purchase, is it better that the buyer just open a dispute to contact the seller? So that it will count against the seller?

Is there a screenshot of where it will be?

I know that no one at eBay thought the shipping information would be hidden when it was moved to be under a tab, but sure enough, lots and lots and lots and lots of people don't ever see it, now that it's there. All they see is what's at the top of the listing.

"I've found that many newer buyers don't even know to scroll down the listing"

Yes - thus in my mind, hidden. That's why I'm wondering if there's a screenshot so I can at least see what it will look like.

could it be that ebay is admitting that buyers are not reading the listings?

The reason it is most likely used by 1/4 of the buyers is because they were forced as I was to look over the entire listing page to locate the ASQ link. I hate IT~! I myself read the description BEFORE asking a question, and if the answer is not there then and only then do I contact the seller.

What would it hurt to have the link back where it was at the top as well as at the bottom of the page after the other questions asked? I always read through these as well before asking a question if they are shown on the listing. Or, better yet have the ASQ at the top and IF there are other questions asked then have it go to the bottom where the answers are, if there are no answers then go to the ASQ page.

The sellers wonder why sales are down, it is all these changes that are making it more and more difficult for us buyers (see my post here on the search and new category flyouts associated with it!).

Shyanne