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eBay HTML Survival Guide (continued)

Our test case with HTML tags

By Aron Hsiao, About.com

To remedy the problem listing shown on the previous page, our hypothetical seller has now changed the listing text he or she submitted to eBay to use HTML tags. The text he or she entered into the listing form now looks very different. I've made the HTML tags bold to help you to spot them.

<b>Great new Sigma 24mm lens</b><br><br>
Focal length: <b>24mm</b><br>
Minimum aperture: <b>f/1.8</b><br>
Aperture blades: <b>9</b><br>
Front cap: <b>included</b><br>
Rear cap: <b>included</b><br>
Compatibility: <b>Canon EF</b><br>
Condition: <b>Like New</b><br><br>
Buy this great lens using Buy It Now and I'll throw in an extra lens carrying bag and lens cleaning cloth. It's a great deal!<br><br>
<b>Shipping Terms</b><br>
Shipped via UPS 3-day service to anywhere in the lower 48 states.<br>
<b>Guarantee</b><br>
Guaranteed for 30 days, refunds or exchanges with advance notice only.<br><br>
<i>Thanks for bidding!</i>

Though in its raw HTML format the text is a little confusing, you'll see that the result that eBay displays to the buyer has now become much, much better.

The Improved Result

To remedy the problem listing, our hypothetical seller has now changed the listing text he or she submitted to eBay using just three of the HTML tags we discussed. The text he or she entered into the listing form now looks like this:

Great new Sigma 24mm lens

Focal length: 24mm
Minimum aperture: f/1.8
Aperture blades: 9
Front cap: included
Rear cap: included
Compatibility: Canon EF
Condition: Like New

Buy this great lens using Buy It Now and I'll throw in an extra lens carrying bag and lens cleaning cloth. It's a great deal!

Shipping Terms
Shipped via UPS 3-day service to anywhere in the lower 48 states.

Guarantee
Guaranteed for 30 days, refunds or exchanges with advance notice only.

Thanks for bidding!

Can I Use HTML Anywhere Else On eBay?

Not really. In particular, you can't use HTML tags in your item titles or subtitles. Being able to use HTML in your listings proves a great deal of flexibility, however, and if you decide to get really fancy, you might try your hand at learning some of the myriad other tags in HTML.

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