eBay requires that listing titles stay within a maximum of 80 characters. This can be an issue if some of your product titles exceed this limit. However, simply changing your product titles can be time consuming and affect the titles of listings you have on other marketplaces.
Instead, you can use Custom Product Attributes to create an alternative title attribute just for eBay and preserve the original product title. You can also use a Product CSV file to add this custom attribute to your products and shorten your new titles in bulk.
1. Creating a Custom Product Attribute
To create your new custom attribute, go to Settings > Custom Product Attributes. Give your Custom Product Attribute with a name at the top of the page and click "+ Add" when you're done.
In the example below, the attribute name is "eBay Title."
2. Export product data to a CSV file
Next, you'll need to add the new custom attribute to your products. The quickest way to do this is by exporting your products as a CSV file and adding to them in bulk.
Navigate to Settings > Export Data. From the export page, click "All Data" in the "Products" row.
A pop-up will appear asking if you would like to filter your product export by category or tag. It's recommended that you don't use any filtering for this export.
Click "Export Products."
You will receive a notification once your Product Export is complete. Click on the envelope icon to find the notification and click the "download" button within the message to download your CSV file.
3. Add the custom product attribute in the CSV file
Once your CSV file is downloaded, open the it using Excel or Google Sheets. The file will contain all standard product data columns plus a column for your new Custom Product Attribute. In the example below, the column is "AS", but this will vary depending on whether or not you have existing Custom Product Attributes.
Click on the Custom Attribute cell located in the fourth row from the top.
Once this cell is selected, you'll need to add a formula to the field located above your data. The formula will be:
=LEFT(C4,80)Press "Enter" and a shortened product title will appear in this cell.
Next, hover your cursor over the bottom-right corner of the cell so that it turns into a plus sign (+). Click and hold on this corner and drag it down to the bottom of the column so that all of your SKUs are highlighted.
Doing this will add the formula into each cell, providing each product with an eBay title that has been truncated to be 80 characters (or fewer).
NOTE: It's recommended to double-check your truncated titles to make sure that any titles cut off at the 80 character limit don't abruptly end. This will require some manual editing.
Once you're done, save your CSV file.
4. Import your CSV file
Go to Settings > Import Data. From the import page, click "CSV File" in the "Products" row.
Click on "Choose File" to upload your CSV, then click "Upload File." The import time can vary depending on the size of your file and how many SKUs you have. You will receive a notification once the import is complete.
Once your import is complete, it's a good idea to confirm that your new Custom Product Attribute has been added correctly. To do this, simply open a product and navigate to the "Custom Attributes" tab.
5. Mapping your custom attribute using eBay Templates.
Now that all of your products contain a custom eBay title field, you just need to make sure that this field is correctly mapped when creating new eBay listings. Your eBay listing title field should now always contain the custom "eBay Title" attribute.
Navigate to Settings > Listing Templates & Recipes > eBay.
Edit the existing Title & Description template or create a new one by clicking " +Add new Title & Description Template."
Remove the
{{name}}value that's in the "eBay Title" field.Click on the "Insert Product Attribute" dropdown. Scroll down to the "Custom Attributes" section and select your Custom Attribute for eBay titles.
The title field should now contain {{ebay_title}} , which will map your Custom Product Attribute to this field whenever this Template is used to create eBay listings.
Once you're done, click "Save" or "Save & Close."
Any live listings that contain this template will now automatically update. Going forward, you can use this template to create new eBay listings or publish drafts you may have that are returning title errors.