Using eBay Auto Fitment

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 eBay supports a parts compatibility (fitment) solution for automotive parts on the US, UK and German eBay sites.  This new application allows a seller to identify their items so that buyers can shop based on a specific vehicle to find parts for their vehicle.  No longer will sellers have to list each item many different times with slightly different titles, but instead list an item a single time that will associate with each of the vehicles that can use the specific part.  ChannelAdvisor has been working with eBay during the development of the eBay Motors fitment program and has support for Parts Compatibility listings.

In this video you will learn: How to incorporate eBay's Auto-Parts fitment feature into your ChannelAdvisor listings View the Transcript of this Video

Using eBay Auto FitmentRun Time - 4:40

Background on Parts Compatibility (Fitment)

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This functionality allows an item to be listed a single time and associated with all of the different applications instead of the existing model that requires different eBay listings for each of the different possible applications.  The benefits:

• Buyer - Easier discovery process to find the parts that fit their application
• Seller - Listings only need to be submitted per product instead of per product and per application/fitment.  This consolidation of listings can easily save a seller 75% or more on their listings fees while also increasing sales since buyers find the items more easily.

The search engine will automatically add the fitment applications (vehicle information) to the title when generating the search results.  No longer will sellers need to list all of the different applications in separate listings, but can instead combine them together in a single listing and save on the listing fees while still being found based on the various search terms buyers may apply.  Similar to variation listings, these allow for a better buyer experience as well as savings for the seller in listing fees.

Configuring Products to List with Parts Compatibility (Fitment)

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There are three different ways that items can be listed for eBay Motors Fitment:

1. Matching to an existing item in the catalog (US only)
2. Defining the specifications of the product (US only)
3. Listing each of the vehicles supported by the part (US, UK, and DE listings)

Not every category supports all of these models, and only one is necessary when listing an item.  Once configured and submitted with the item, eBay will associate the supported vehicles with the item so that the search will find your items without requiring each vehicle to be listed in the title.  This allows you to focus on describing your items and listing them a single time instead of submitting many different listings with slightly different titles for each of the different years, makes, and models of vehicles that the part supports.  Not only does it make it easier for buyers to find the items they need, but also reduces the number of listings and thus the fees for sellers. 

Eligible Categories

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• eBay US Motors > Parts & Accessories > Car & Truck Parts categories
• eBay US Motors > Parts & Accessories > Vintage Car & Truck Parts categories
• eBay UK > Vehicle Parts & Accessories > Car Parts categories (manual vehicle specification only)
• eBay DE > Auto & Motorrad: Teile > Car & Truck Parts categories (manual vehicle specification only)

As eBay expands support to more categories in the US, UK, and Germany, ChannelAdvisor will automatically be able to submit Parts Compatibililty listings to those categories.

Matching to an existing item in the catalog

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The catalog matching algorithm is based on the catalog of parts eBay has created.  With a simple configuration on the posting template, sellers can automatically have all of their items mapped to the eBay parts catalog and used when items are submitted to eBay. 

When you are configuring your information on the posting template, include appropriate keywords to find the information about your item.  This can be things like manufacturer, MPN, UPC, and other descriptive fields.  If you want to include multiple options, such as the Manufacturer and MPN fields, that can be done by entering both template tags into the field, like:

The fields will be used from the inventory item and applied to eBay as a search to find products in their catalog, just as if you were searching on the eBay website. 

• If you include too much information then that may cause less products to be found
• You will have to determine the most appropriate values based on your inventory information. 

Please Note: This functionality will only be available in categories where eBay has a product catalog available and may not be available for all products.  In that case, one of the other types will be appropriate for your items to have them listed with fitment functionality.

If you have the exact catalog identifier for your products (sometimes called an EPID value), you can enter this on the posting template in the Catalog Product ID field.  This may be helpful if you already have collected the proper catalog items for your inventory items and want to ensure those specific products are used when your items are listed.  You can find the Catalog Product ID field on the posting template which is shown in the image below.

Defining the specifications of the product

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The specifications will be the same as submitted today by item specifics.  If you are not yet submitting item specifics information with your listings, you should start doing so today to ensure your products have the appropriate details and are ready for the fitment functionality when launched.  Item specifics are already available today and can be configured for your listings.  This option is appropriate for parts that are based on the specifications such as tires and rims, and may be suitable for other parts that are not found in the catalog.

Listing each of the vehicles supported by the part

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The manual specification allows you to define the specific vehicles supported by the listed automotive part.  Specification rules are different between the US and UK Fitment sites, so expand the section below that is relevant for your listings.

US Specification Details

US Specification Details

If an item is not found in the catalog of parts available from eBay and the specifications do not describe the part in sufficient detail, then the last option is to individually list each of the year, make, model, and potentially other characteristics for the vehicles supported by the part.  Each possible vehicle option needs to be detailed to ensure that comprehensive options are provided to prospective shoppers.  While there is a limit of 300 compatible vehicles that can be supported, combining several Trim and Engine listings into a single specification will allow you to define your parts comprehensively and stay under the 300 limit.  Parts with more than 300 compatibilities will be rejected, so you can submit more comprehensive lists by only including Year, Make, and Model when sufficient to describe the vehicles.  We have defined a format to configure data and specify this information for eBay in your listings.  To configure manual parts compatibility, your information will need to be in the format:

 

Year|Make|Model|Trim|Engine::Notes

Each line defines another vehicle and the Trim, Engine, and Notes fields are optional and should only be used when necessary.  The pipe is used as a separator between the vehicle information and the double colon marks any notes that should be included.  For example, defining support for all Jeep Cherokee vehicles from 1999-2003 with a special note about the 2002 model year would be in the format:

 

1999|Jeep|Cherokee
2000|Jeep|Cherokee
2001|Jeep|Cherokee
2002|Jeep|Cherokee::Special Note about 2002 model year.
2003|Jeep|Cherokee

 

A more complex option, specifying certain information about some 2003 and 2004 Subaru vehicles could have the format:
 

2004|Subaru|Impreza|WRX STI Sedan 4-Door|2.5L 2458CC H4 GAS DOHC Turbocharged
2004|Subaru|Impreza|WRX Sedan 4-Door::All Engines are supported.
2004|Subaru|Forester
2003|Subaru|Forester|XS Wagon 4-Door::All 2.5L Engines are supported.
 

As you can see, only the Year, Make, and Model are required.  Trim and Engine can be included if needed and any Notes about the fitment can be included to display in the individual listing.  Unless you have a specific need for the Trim and Engine information, it is best to just submit Year, Make, and Model.  There have been a number of issues where minor changes have been applied to the Trim and Engine data by eBay after previous versions were released and user information was no longer valid and started failing.  Because of this, we strongly recommend against using the Trim and Engine values unless absolutely necessary for your item.

Date ranges are supported for the year option, allowing the first example to be replaced with:
 

1999-2003|Jeep|Cherokee

 

The year information will automatically be converted to the appropriate format for eBay when the items are listed.  Either method is acceptable and they can both be used at the same time.  Please note that this will still count as five manual fitment options (one for each of the years included) when submitting to eBay and may cause you to unintentionally exceed the limit of 300 manual fitment options.  Acceptable formats for range-based year data include any of the following:
 

1983-1987 (four digit years as the starting and the ending dates)
1983-87 (four digit year for the starting date and two digit year for the ending date)
1997-03 (four digit year for the starting date and two digit year for the ending date even though it changes centuries)

 

For this information, eBay is using AAIA-compliant (ACES) definitions of the vehicles.  If you know that your items will not be part of the catalog and will have to be listed in this format, it will be to your advantage to research this information and determine how to collect the various vehicle details for each of your items.  You can download the official list of supported vehicles (now available directly from eBay, updated by them quarterly) to ensure that your submissions will be successful.

UK Specification Details

UK Specification Details

The only option for UK Fitment listings is to individually list each of the Make, Model, Variant, and potentially other characteristics for the vehicles supported by the part.  Each possible vehicle option needs to be detailed to ensure that comprehensive options are provided to prospective shoppers.  While there is a limit of 1000 compatible vehicles that can be supported, combining several Body Style and Engine listings into a single specification will allow you to define your parts comprehensively and stay under the 1000 limit.  Parts with more than 1000 compatibilities will be rejected, so you can submit more comprehensive lists by only including Make, Model, Variant when sufficient to describe the vehicles.  We have defined a format to configure data and specify this information for eBay in your listings.  To configure manual parts compatibility, your information will need to be in either of the formats:

 

Car Make|Model|Variant|Body Style|Cars Type|Cars Year|Engine::Notes
KType::Notes

Each line defines another vehicle and the Body Style, Cars Type, Cars Year, Engine, and Notes fields are optional and should only be used when necessary.  The pipe is used as a separator between the vehicle information and the double colon marks any notes that should be included.  The KType value is a special number assigned by eBay that identifies a specific vehicle without requiring the details of Make, Model, Variant, and others to be specified by the seller and is an alternate method to submit the same information.  For example, defining support for all Jeep Cherokee vehicles with a special note about the KJ model would be in the format:

 

Jeep|Cherokee|-- [1980-1986] SUV
Jeep|Cherokee|KJ [2001-2007] SUV::Special note about KJ model
Jeep|Cherokee|KK [2008-2011] SUV
Jeep|Cherokee|XJ [1984-2001] SUV

 

A more complex option, specifying certain information about some Acura NSX vehicles could have the format:
 

Acura|NSX|-- [1990-2005] Coupe|Coupe|R 3.0|1992-95|2977ccm 256HP 188KW (Petrol)
Acura|NSX|NA1 [1995-1997] Targa|Targa|T 3.0|1995|2977ccm 256HP 188KW (Petrol)
Acura|NSX|-- [1990-2005] Coupe|Coupe|3.2|1999-01|3179ccm 280HP 206KW (Petrol)
Acura|NSX|-- [1990-2005] Coupe::All engines are supported.

Using KType values, this would be specified as:

13566
13579
13573
13562::All engines are supported.

As you can see, only the Make, Model, and Variant are required, or you can choose to just provide the KType value if you have it.  Some sellers may find KType easier and others may find Make, Model, and Variant easier to submit and both are fully supported.  KType values can be retrieved from the Master Vehicle List published by eBay. 

• Body Style, Type, Year and Engine can be included if needed and any Notes about the fitment can be included to display in the individual listing. 
• Unless you have a specific need for the Body Style, Type, Year, or Engine information, it is best to just submit  Make, Model, and Variant. 

There have been a number of issues where minor changes have been applied to the Body Style, Type, Year, and Engine data by eBay after previous versions were released and user information was no longer valid and started failing.  Because of this, we strongly recommend against using the Body Style, Type, Year, and Engine values unless absolutely necessary for your item, or to focus on using the KType values instead and avoid any nuanced changes eBay may make to the vehicle specification data.

You can download the official list of supported vehicles (now available directly from eBay, updated by them quarterly) to ensure that your submissions will be successful.

DE Specification Details

DE Specification Details

The only option for DE Fitment listings is to individually list each of the Make, Model, Platform, and potentially other characteristics for the vehicles supported by the part.  Each possible vehicle option needs to be detailed to ensure that comprehensive options are provided to prospective shoppers.  While there is a limit of 1000 compatible vehicles that can be supported, combining several Body Style and Engine listings into a single specification will allow you to define your parts comprehensively and stay under the 1000 limit.  Parts with more than 1000 compatibilities will be rejected, so you can submit more comprehensive lists by only including Make, Model, Variant when sufficient to describe the vehicles.  We have defined a format to configure data and specify this information for eBay in your listings.  To configure manual parts compatibility, your information will need to be in either of the formats:

 

Make|Model|Platform|Type|Engine|Production Period::Notes
KType::Notes

Each line defines another vehicle and the Type, Engine, Production Period, and Notes fields are optional and should only be used when necessary.  The pipe is used as a separator between the vehicle information and the double colon marks any notes that should be included.  The KType value is a special number assigned by eBay that identifies a specific vehicle without requiring the details of Make, Model, Variant, and others to be specified by the seller and is an alternate method to submit the same information.  For example, defining support for all Jeep Cherokee vehicles with a special note about the KJ model would be in the format:

 

Jeep|Cherokee|KK
Jeep|Cherokee|KJ::Special note about KJ model
Jeep|Cherokee|XJ 
 

A more complex option, specifying certain information about some BMW X1 vehicles could have the format:
 

BMW|X1|E84|xDrive28i|2996 ccm, 190 KW, 258 HP|2009/10-
BMW|X1|E84|sDrive18d|1995 ccm, 105 KW, 143 HP|2009/10-
BMW|X1|E84|xDrive18d|1995 ccm, 105 KW, 143 HP|2009/10-
BMW|X1|E84|xDrive25i::All engines are supported.
 

Using KType values, this would be specified as:

32112
32113
32114
34993::All engines are supported.

As you can see, only the Make, Model, and Platform are required, or you can choose to just provide the KType value if you have it.  Some sellers may find KType easier and others may find Make, Model, and Platform easier to submit and both are fully supported.  KType values can be retrieved from the Master Vehicle List published by eBay.  Type, Engine and Production Period can be included if needed and any Notes about the fitment can be included to display in the individual listing.  Unless you have a specific need for the Type, Engine and Production Period information, it is best to just submit  Make, Model, and Platform.  There have been a number of issues where minor changes have been applied to the  Type, Engine and Production Period data by eBay after previous versions were released and user information was no longer valid and started failing.  Because of this, we strongly recommend against using the  Type, Engine and Production Period values unless absolutely necessary for your item, or to focus on using the KType values instead and avoid any nuanced changes eBay may make to the vehicle specification data.

You can download the official list of supported vehicles (now available directly from eBay, updated by them quarterly) to ensure that your submissions will be successful.

This information is configured on the posting template in the new field for Parts Compatibility called Manual Compatibility/Fitment.