posted on May 24, 2003 04:21:50 PM new
Hello... hello
I really HATE to keep asking the same question the same way but there MUST be an easier way! If there is not, I will have to stop using the store and find another solution.
Last night and today I have uploaded 3 batches. I did double entries... one to auction and one to the inventory on EVERY item.
This is ludicrous ! ! It takes me twice the time. I just cannot believe that this was done without thought for your customer\'s being taken into consideration! True, it may have fixed something I personally don\'t use because I am small. But Gosh! your small customers need to be considered too!
I haven\'t seen one post that said, \"I have all the time in the world; so do please, make things more difficult and time consuming!\"
I still think there is something in the program that hasn’t been found or mentioned that would make this at least as easy as it was before!
Can I uninstall 5 and reinstall the old version and NOT up grade!
I am serious. This is not a petty gripe. It makes my work twice as long and difficult.
I am really a Vindeo cheerleader as you know but I will have to take the time to look for a new home if this can’t be resolved. I just don’t have the time to do things twice.
You can tell how upset I am about and maybe because I\'m one of the little guys... you don\'t care. This is really a stress thing!
posted on May 24, 2003 05:02:18 PM new
Hello Paula,
There is no way to get a listing into online inventory in SM Pro 5.0 other than to create a separate Store item. I am sorry that you find this cumbersome, and I'll provide the link so that you can re-download SM Pro 4.2. You do not have to upgrade - just click "no" when it asks if you want to auto-update.
Please remember to select the "save to disk" option when downloading, and I would also recommend uninstalling SM Pro 5.0 before you do this. I do not know if the files created in SM Pro 5.0 are backwards-compatible with earlier versions.
posted on May 24, 2003 05:32:03 PM new
Hi Diana
Thank you for responding.
It isn't just me Diana. If you read several previous remarks, one of which was never answered, there are others who feel as I.
This cumbersomeness, as you call it, was planned? That is how it sounds. I am serious in asking this question.
I teach Vendio at the local college for adult education and I feel, that if this was in fact planned, maybe I shouldn't be promoting this to other small dealers.
posted on May 28, 2003 11:57:32 AM new
Hello again
Gee, I can't tell you how much I hate being spoken down to and then ignored!
I know you are the answer givers in this situation and that someone else made the decisions to make these changes BUT it is very obviously a big problem.
If there is some justification for this type of inconvenience, maybe it would be easier to follow but as it stands now I am spending 3x the amount of time listing and I can't afford that and my previous question is still unanswered.
I am a venido cheerleader and teach adults how to use this software.
I need to determine if I should teach the old software or the new 5.0... I can hear the questions now. Please respond with something.
Thank you
Paula
PS... it really isn't good policy to ignore someone who is already upset!
posted on May 28, 2003 02:57:43 PM new
Hello pgmeunier,
We are not ignoring you or talking down to you, I apologize if that is the perception.
SM Pro 5.0 was designed with the thought that your inventory could be saved offline in batches and uploaded as needed. The option to upload an auction listing with every synch was resulting in multiple duplicate inventory items being created, and more or less clogging online inventory to the point that it is virtually useless to many SM Pro users.
Is there a specific reason why you are uploading auction items to online inventory, rather than saving your inventory offline?
posted on May 28, 2003 04:32:26 PM new
Thank you for replying Diana and addressing some of my concerns. The previous message requesting that they (concerns) be addressed was posted 4 days ago and no one had responded.
So I am sure you can see that the being ignored feeling had a reason.
I also apologize for my temper showing. I admit I am a loud squeaky wheel. I also know that I usually end up with results.
Now, all that being said can we please have a discussion on this?
You’re telling me that people were uploading to inventory and their store simultaneously causing one item to be in the store & one item to be an inventory when there was really only one item. Is that correct?
If the answer is yes, that is what I was doing, also. I kept one item in the store for two reasons, 1-this assured me that my photos would not be deleted prior to the item selling; 2-it put the item in the store for people to see. I also had one item in inventory so that I could launch an auction whenever I wanted. I have 400+ items in my inventory. A small amount, I'm sure, compared to some of your other customers. At any given time, 70-100 or more items are usually on auction. There are some items such as my caftans that I keep in the store all the time & launch maybe once a month. My reasoning behind all of this is: if an item doesn't sell, I don't have to worry about the photos being deleted if I don't get an auction launched for a while. If they were not in the store, and in a week or two I had forgotten that it need to be relaunched (because we can't track... or I should say, I can't track what is launched or when without taking considerably more time) the images would be deleted.
Before, I imported inventory into pro, drag and dropped into a batch, chose to have it in the store also, uploaded. Now, I must import my inventory, copy too a batch file (by drag-and-drop)… at this point you have made things easier, because I don't have to edit each item before it goes into the batch and can be saved… then I have to copy all of the items I have just put in as an auction or I can drag-and-drop and put the them all in the store in the same batch. This is a duplication of work, however, that would be okay, except now I have two reedit everything that went into inventory so that it can be launched as an auction. Or you get the idea of what I'm doing.
So from my perspective, people who were adding items to the store and inventory simultaneously and didn't realize that they had one to many of the items, now have the problem solved… sort of. They still have to go into the inventory item and edit it before it can be launched.
I think, sometimes is gets confusing.
Is it possible to simply launch an item into inventory retaining your eBay information?
I must get this straight in my head before I can teach it. Fortunately, we do have some time.
Is it possible that this is a step towards a more complete system & week as can't see it from our perspective?
Maybe, I am missing something that would make this easier.
posted on May 28, 2003 06:08:20 PM new
Hello Paula,
From what you have described, it seems your main concern is the images being deleted.
I want to make sure you fully understand the system, as it seems we can easily work around this issue.
1. If you upload an item to inventory, even if it is not active the images will not be deleted. If they are the same images attached to an auction, for example, and the auction ends - as long as that inventory item exists the images will remain in your account.
2. You do not need to list an inventory item for an auction to appear in your Store. All auction items are automatically imported into your Store within 2 hours of launching them. In fact, if you do not have multiples of an item, you should not list an auction item and a Store item - this puts you at risk for selling the same item twice.
3. Noting the above, if you upload an auction item and a Store item from offline, this will result in both the auction and the Store items appearing in your Store.
4. If you want to relist an auction, there are other methods you can use. For instance, you can relist the item from unsold items in Post-Sale (this will result in your ability to collect an insertion fee credit from eBay on the first relist.) You can also just reupload an item from your saved SM Pro batch rather than launching it from online inventory.
I hope this will help. Have I covered your concerns? Please let me know if not.
posted on May 28, 2003 07:29:00 PM new
Hi Dianna
Maybe I see some light thanks to your thoughtful reply.
Let me think about this for a day or so and see if I can get it straight... that may sound strange but sometimes I just need to think out all the angles.
I have been reading the "manual" I downloaded and was thinking of doing a little rearranging to what my mind is a logical order and use it to build the next class around...
I thought that images were deleted in 90 days if they were not in the store front. The other thing is that the few sales I have had in my store have been bad sales... only one has been paid for in the last year and the most hits I get is maybe on a good month 100. I specialize in plus size clothing which is very hard to find. Most of my items are now new as I have found wholesalers and yet the store is not producing....
I was considering dropping the store but I have a website and the store here at vendio is about 1/3 of my web site. The rest is about me/policy/contact and eBay auctions...
I will be back in a couple of days... If you have any additional helpful thoughts I would appreciate hearing from you.
Thank you again
Paula
www.nybaglady.com
posted on May 30, 2003 11:07:15 AM new
Hello Paula,
I apologize - I was incorrect when I stated that if an item exists in inventory the images would be retained whether they are in your Store or not. I have clarified this with engineering, and in order for the images to be retained the item must appear in your Store. So, to ensure that the images are not deleted after 90 days, you would need to upload them as active Store items. If the item is removed from your Store, however, the images should not be deleted as that item will have been flagged as a Store item.
I apologize for the confusion. Please let me know if there are any other points that I can help you with.
First let me ask about this line in your response...
"If the item is removed from your Store, however, the images should not be deleted as that item will have been flagged as a Store item."
Please do not take offense, are you sure this is correct?
I have found a work around that seems to be less time consuming.
I copy the auctions I have uploaded before they list. I then edit the copies to put them in inventory and the store. It is still cumbersome but it works.
The reason I do not use the off-line inventory is there is no synchronization of numbers. If there were it would be ideal!
Currently, keeping track of my inventory is my biggest problem.
posted on June 11, 2003 09:24:53 AM new
So auctions not appearing in online inventory after upload is actually a new feature?!? I thought it was a glitch.
