Other Options of Note


Although the main options associated with creating a new listing have already been discussed, that is far from the end of the matter. eBay offers an extensive list of additional options in an attempt to cater to different listing types and different sellers. Many additional request parameters carry additional charges for some or all auctions, so it's important to present accurate listing fees when additional parameters are included.

Setting a Reserve Price

eBay allows sellers to set a reserve price above of the item's starting bid. This will, for example, allow a seller to start the bidding on a new iPod at $0.99 with a reserve price of $80.00. This is designed to generate a lot of interest, and hopefully bids, while still ensuring a minimum price for the item. The reserve price is not revealed to bidders during the auction process; if the winning bid of the item is below the item's reserve price, the seller is under no obligation to sell the item. An additional fee is associated with listing an item with a reserve price; however, it is refunded if the item is sold successfully.

Continuing with the previous example, the following code will set a reserve price of $14.99:

 $queryInfo["Item"]["ReservePrice"] = "14.99"; 

Setting a Secondary Category

eBay has many, many, many categories, and in some circumstances an item may belong in several categories. The video example used thus far could (if shipped along with the book) be listed under both the DVD & Movies ð DVD and Books ð Textbooks, Education categories like this:

  $queryInfo["Item"]["PrimaryCategory"] = array();  $queryInfo["Item"]["PrimaryCategory"]["CategoryID"] = "617";  $queryInfo["Item"]["SecondaryCategory "] = array();  $queryInfo["Item"]["SecondaryCategory "]["CategoryID"] = "2228"; 

Enhancing the Listing

eBay is a very competitive marketplace, and it offers sellers a few methods to draw attention to their listings to differentiate themselves from other sellers, at a cost. The enhancements available (as they would appear in the API call) are as follows:

  • Border — Places a border around the listing in search and category listings

  • BoldTitle — The title appears in bold in search and category listings

  • Featured — Listing appears as a Featured Plus item

  • Highlight — Listing is highlighted in a different color in listings

  • HomePageFeatured — Listing is featured on the eBay homepage

  • ProPackBundle — Includes Bold, Border, Featured, and Highlight

The code to accomplish one of these listings is quite easy:

 $queryInfo["Item"]["ListingEnhancements"] = "BoldTitle"; 

Adding Application Data

The API gives you the opportunity to tie a piece of information to a specific listing that eBay isn't going to use anywhere on its own. It will, however, return the information if you request data about the specific listing. This is most frequently used to match a listing to a specific record in a local database (think primary key). Adding the attribute is as easy as ever:

 $queryInfo["Item"]["ApplicationData"] = "23113131231"; 




Professional Web APIs with PHP. eBay, Google, PayPal, Amazon, FedEx, Plus Web Feeds
Professional Web APIs with PHP. eBay, Google, PayPal, Amazon, FedEx, Plus Web Feeds
ISBN: 764589547
EAN: N/A
Year: 2006
Pages: 130

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