eBay’s Social Sharing Struggles: A Symptom of Deeper Tech Issues?
eBay sellers are once again facing frustrating errors with the platform’s social sharing tools, reporting failures when connecting to Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram. This isn’t a new problem. Recurring glitches with this feature, alongside a history of unfulfilled promises regarding seller incentives, raise serious questions about eBay’s commitment to supporting seller marketing efforts and its overall technological infrastructure.
A Recurring Nightmare for eBay Sellers
Reports began surfacing around January 10th, with sellers in the eBay community forum detailing persistent errors. This echoes a pattern stretching back to issues reported as early as June 2025, and even further back. The social sharing feature, launched in 2023, has been plagued with problems from the start. Initial API failures forced eBay to disconnect from Meta and Twitter/X (now X), with only Facebook and Instagram connections being temporarily restored.
Beyond Broken Links: A History of Missed Opportunities
The current issues are more than just an inconvenience. They highlight a broader trend of technical missteps and broken promises. eBay initially touted a final value fee (FVF) discount of 2.5% + $0.30 for sales originating from social media posts, unveiled at eBay Open in 2021. This incentive, designed to encourage sellers to actively promote their listings, was briefly tested in Australia in 2022 but ultimately abandoned without explanation.
Would you post eBay listings to social media for reduced fees?
eBay’s 2.5% FVF social sharing incentive has no official release date, but sellers are already weighing pros & cons.
Meanwhile, competitors like Etsy have capitalized on this opportunity. Etsy’s “Share & Save” program, launched in 2023, offers a 4% fee discount on qualifying social media sales, effectively matching the commission rate eBay originally promised.
The AI Experiment and Its Pause
eBay’s foray into AI-powered video creation for social sharing, introduced in May 2025, further illustrates this pattern of promising innovation followed by abrupt pauses. The feature was quietly shelved in October 2025 as eBay stated they were “re-evaluating marketing tools for sellers.” This raises concerns about the platform’s long-term vision for supporting seller growth through modern marketing techniques.
The Bigger Picture: A Pattern of Technical Debt?
These recurring issues aren’t isolated incidents. They echo concerns raised by activist investor Elliott Management in 2019, who criticized eBay for “constant site glitches and technical misexecution.” Despite promises from then-CEO Devin Wenig to address these problems, and subsequent leadership changes, the platform continues to struggle with fundamental technical stability.
Wenig himself acknowledged the unacceptability of these glitches in 2018, stating he was “pissed off” and promising accountability. Yet, key personnel involved at the time, like current CTO Mazen Rawashdeh, remain in leadership positions despite the ongoing issues. This suggests a potential systemic problem with prioritizing operational and technical excellence.
Future Trends and What Sellers Can Expect
The current situation points to several potential future trends:
- Increased Reliance on Third-Party Tools: Sellers may increasingly turn to third-party marketing tools to manage their social media promotion, bypassing eBay’s native features altogether. This could further diminish eBay’s control over the customer journey.
- Focus on Core Functionality: eBay may prioritize stabilizing its core marketplace functionality over investing in new, experimental features like AI-powered video creation.
- Continued Competitive Disadvantage: Without a compelling incentive program like Etsy’s, eBay risks losing sellers to platforms that actively support their marketing efforts.
- Potential for API Standardization: The ongoing API issues suggest a need for greater standardization and reliability in eBay’s integrations with social media platforms.
Pro Tip:
Did You Know?
eBay’s initial promise of a 2.5% FVF discount for social media sales, if implemented, would have been a significant competitive advantage, potentially attracting more sellers and driving increased sales volume.
FAQ: eBay Social Sharing Issues
- Why is eBay’s social sharing tool not working? The tool is currently experiencing errors connecting to Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram due to ongoing technical issues.
- Is eBay planning to fix the social sharing tool? eBay has acknowledged the issue and stated it has been sent to the Product Team for review, but there is no current timeline for a fix.
- What alternatives are available for promoting eBay listings on social media? Sellers can use third-party social media management tools or manually share links to their listings.
- Will eBay reinstate the 2.5% FVF discount for social media sales? There have been no recent updates regarding the implementation of this incentive.
Do you have any experience with the eBay social sharing tool? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!
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