Module 4 of 4

Dealing with marketplace challenges

A marketplace blocked or refused your listing. Where do you start, and how do you find the real cause?

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Resolving errors always starts at the log

A marketplace only accepts what meets its rules, and every marketplace has its own. You won't learn them all, and you don't need to. When a listing is blocked or refused, OneSila logs what happened, and most of the time the log tells you exactly how to fix it.

This module teaches you one routine: read the log, fix it in OneSila, resync. And what to check when the log isn't clear.

In this module you learn to

Spot a listing with an issue, and tell what state it's in.
Follow one routine for any marketplace problem.
Open the log, and use How to fix.
When the log isn't clear, check the three common causes: something missing, a mapping, or something the marketplace doesn't accept.
Know when to refresh, and when to contact OneSila support.
Avoid the moves that make things worse.

Did you know? Three out of four marketplace errors come down to one of these three things:

The product misses something the marketplace needs.
A value isn't mapped, or is mapped wrong.
The marketplace doesn't accept what you send, like a size it doesn't use.

Most of the rest is a quick fix on the product, like a name that's too long or a missing EAN.

This module builds on Sending products to your sales channels (module 3) and on Properties, Rules & Mapping.

The routine

One routine for every problem

This is how the OneSila team solves marketplace problems too. Keep this page next to you.

Spot the error. The listing shows Action required, or the marketplace refused it. Page 4.

Open the log. Sync history, for that product on that channel. Page 5.

Read it, and click How to fix. It tells you what happened, why, and what to do. Pages 6 and 7.

Fix it in OneSila. Not on the marketplace.

Resync once. Then read the log again. A new error? Back to step 3.

Still not clear? Look your error up in the common errors in “Common errors, and where to look”. Then contact OneSila support, with the product, the channel and the full message.

Step 1

What a listing with an issue looks like

It all starts with understanding and identifying. Before you fix anything, know which product, on which channel, and what state it's in.

Right after you send

You add a product to a channel, or resync it. The channel's row on the product's Channels tab shows its status. Under a problem, the reason is written out.

Failed, with a system error — Completed, Processing, Action required and Failed. The document icon is the listing, the tag is the price.

Status	What it means
Action required	Something in your data. You can fix it: start at the log.
Rejected by external approval	The marketplace refused it. Read why in the log, fix, resync. Not every marketplace gives the full reason: sometimes a talk with your account manager there is what gets it approved.
Pending external approval	The marketplace is reviewing it. Wait.
Failed · System Error - contact support	Not in your data. Contact OneSila support.

Tip To see every listing with an issue at once, go to Integrations › Assignments, or your channel's Products tab, and filter on Action required and Failed. Click Create dashboard card, and your dashboard shows them each day.

Step 2

Where to find the log

Every product has a log per channel: Sync history. You open it with the clipboard button at the end of the channel's row.

On the product

Open the product, go to its Channels tab, and click Sync history in the channel's row.

From a list

In Integrations › Assignments, or your channel's Products tab, every row has the same clipboard button. Handy when you're working through a filtered list.

A row in Assignments, with its Sync history button — A listing with Action required in Assignments. The orange Resync button next to it means it needs a resync.

Right product, right channel A product has a log for each channel it's on. Two Amazon accounts, two logs. Open the one for the channel that shows the problem.

Step 3

Reading the log

Sync history shows what OneSila sent, what the marketplace answered, and how to fix it.

Sync history of a listing with Action required, with How to fix and Retry — A listing with Action required. The Listing card says what to do, with How to fix and Resync right below it.

In Sync history	What it shows
Listing	The listing's status, and the latest message. Resync sends it again.
Recent · Show full log	What OneSila sent, and what the marketplace answered, newest first.
How to fix · Find help	How to fix opens the guide for a known error. No guide for it yet? Find help searches the help library for you.

System Error - contact support as the message? That one isn't in your data. Contact OneSila support.

Step 3

Using the resolution guide

This is where most problems get solved. Click How to fix in the log, and a guide opens next to it, written for that exact error.

The resolution guide next to the log — The guide for the error in “Reading the log”.

In the guide	What it tells you
What happened	The error, in plain words.
Original marketplace error	The marketplace's own message, word for word.
Cause	Why it happened.
Recommended fix	What to do in OneSila. Do it, then resync once.

More than one way to solve it? The button says View 2 solutions, and you pick the one that fits. Open full guide shows the whole page. No guide for this error yet? Find help searches the help library for you.

Their words, yours

Attribute, aspect, item specific = property
Option, allowed value = select value
Browse node = category
Variation theme = what makes the variations
GTIN = EAN

In Chinese? Use a translator.

Common errors

Common errors, and where to look

Every marketplace words its errors differently, but most come down to a handful of causes. These are the ones we see most. The log isn't clear, or there's no How to fix? Find the line that looks like your error, and go to that page.

The log says something like…	Look at
Missing information, even when it's filled in	The product misses something. Switch the inspector to that channel to see what. Page 9.
Not mapped, or custom values not allowed	A value isn't mapped. Page 10.
It works some days, not others	A value is mapped wrong: twice, differently per account, or changed in the meantime. Page 11.
Not allowed for variations, or the wrong category	The marketplace doesn't accept it. Page 12.
Value rejected, though it's on their list	It depends on another property's value. Page 12.
Too long, too short, missing EAN or barcode	A value on the product itself. Fix it on the product, then resync.
System error, try again later, too many changes	The marketplace's side. Wait, then resync once. Page 13.
None of these	Page 13.

Three out of four errors come down to the first three causes. That's why the next sections go through them one by one.

Common cause 1 · Something missing

The product misses something the marketplace needs

The most common case: the marketplace says a property is missing, but you can see it's filled in. Usually you're looking at the wrong rule. The Default one, while this channel has a rule of its own. Or the other way round. Or another channel's rule altogether: eBay's, while the problem is on Shein.

Real case Shein kept saying a property was missing. It was filled in and mapped. The cause: the product type had a Shein rule of its own, made before the property was added. The Default rule had it, the Shein rule didn't. Adding it to the Shein rule and resyncing fixed it.

First ask: am I looking at the right one? Which channel failed? Look at that channel, and at that channel's rule. eBay's rule says nothing about Shein. And the Default rule says nothing about a channel that has its own.

How to check

On the product, switch the inspector to your marketplace. It now checks this product against that channel's rule.

The product's Properties tab shows which rule it uses: Rule · Default, or Rule · your channel.

Open that rule. Is the property in it, and is it Required, Optional, or in the configurator?

Watch out: be cautious changing a shared rule to fix one product. It changes every product of that product type. Adding a property? Consider adding it as Optional first: it shows, but blocks nothing. More info: Properties, Rules & Mapping, module 2.

Common cause 2 · Mapping

A value isn't mapped

Some marketplace fields take any text: there, your value goes out as you wrote it. Others only accept their own list: there, a value you haven't mapped blocks the listing. The log says it isn't mapped, or that custom values aren't allowed.

Real case Everything worked for months. Then eBay changed its size field: it stopped accepting your own text, and only took sizes from its own list. Sizes that went out as written before were now blocked, until they were mapped to eBay's values.

How to fix

Go to the channel's Select Values tab, find the value, and map it to the marketplace's value: the same way you mapped during the import. Then resync the product.

The Select Values tab of an eBay channel — The Select Values tab: each marketplace value, and the OneSila value it's mapped to.

Remember: a new value needs mapping on every marketplace you sell on.

Common cause 2 · Mapping

A value is mapped wrong

Something can be mapped, and still be wrong: mapped to the wrong field, mapped twice, mapped differently on your second account, or changed by someone in the meantime.

Real case An eBay listing failed some days, and worked on others. The cause: the OneSila value XXL was mapped to two eBay values, XXL and 2XL. eBay only accepts 2XL. Sometimes OneSila picked the right one, sometimes not. Unmapping the old one fixed it.

Look from the marketplace's side too

On the channel's Select Values or Properties tab, search for the value or field. You see every marketplace entry with that name, and what it's mapped to in OneSila. Or filter on OneSila Value or OneSila Property to see everything mapped to yours.

Searching Blue on eBay's Select Values tab: three eBay fields, one mapped — Searching "Blue": eBay has it in three fields. Only Colour is mapped.

The rule to keep One meaning, one property, one mapping. And check each account on its own: two Amazon accounts each have their own mapping.

Common cause 3 · Not accepted

The marketplace doesn't accept what you send

Your product rule links to a marketplace category, on the channel's Product Rules tab. That category decides what the marketplace accepts. Your setup and theirs don't always overlap the way you expect.

eBay's Product Rules tab: marketplace categories and the OneSila rules linked to them — Each marketplace category, and the OneSila rule linked to it.

Variations are where it bites

In OneSila, a property in the configurator decides the variations: size, colour, style. But each marketplace category allows only some fields for variations.

Real case A product varied by style. eBay refused it: its category didn't allow style for variations. Forcing it didn't help. The fixes that work: pick a category that allows it, sell it as separate products, or use a field the category does allow.

Values that depend on each other

Some marketplaces only accept a value together with the right value of another property. A size, for example, can be valid on its own, but not with the size system or target group you picked. The error names the value it rejects. The fix is often in the other property, so check what goes with it.

Step back Fighting the same errors and the same mapping again and again? Then the cause is probably your structure, not OneSila or the marketplace. One product rule is likely trying to cover too many marketplace categories at once. Properties, Rules & Mapping, module 2, shows how to size your product types.

Still stuck

When the log doesn't get you there

Nothing is missing, the mapping is right, and the marketplace accepts what you send. And it still fails. Then it's usually one of these.

The message points the wrong way

Some marketplaces name a symptom, not the cause. Amazon, for example, can say a property is missing, then that its value is wrong, while the cause is another property. eBay can complain about a word like "lot" in your description, while the real issue is the price gap between variations. Read the original marketplace error slowly, to the end, and check the guide. Still makes no sense? Contact OneSila support.

The marketplace changed its requirements

A category suddenly asks for something new, or a field you mapped is gone. Refresh what OneSila knows: Refresh rule schema on the channel's Product Rules tab. Changed a mapping? Map its values there too.

It's the marketplace's side

eBay says "system error, try again later". Shein asks you not to change prices so often, or can't load its own requirements. There's nothing to fix in OneSila: wait, then resync once.

Something on the marketplace itself

A policy or account setting on the marketplace is off. The message usually names it. Fix it there, then resync.

Contact OneSila support Send the product, the channel, and the full message. That's all support needs to start.

Watch out

Moves that make it worse

These came up again and again in support. Each one turns a small problem into a bigger one.

Fixing it on the marketplace itself. OneSila sends its own version next time, and your fix is gone, or clashes with it.

Ad-hoc rule changes for one listing. A rule is shared, so a quick change lands on every product of that type. Think about the whole catalogue first. Marking properties Required just to get one listing through usually holds back the rest, or brings in requirements from another category.

Forcing a value to get it through. Giving every variation the same value, or bending a value to fit, only moves the problem.

Removing and re-adding a product to speed things up. Changes not showing fast enough? Taking a product off a channel and adding it again can break reporting, lose reviews and ranking. Only do it on purpose, never to hurry a change.

Your turn Open Integrations › Assignments, filter on one of your marketplaces and on Action required. Pick one product, open its Sync history, and take it through the routine in “One routine for every problem”.

Check yourself

8 questions

Pick one answer for each. You'll see right away if it's right, and why.

1A listing shows Action required. What's your first move?

Show the answer

Right answer: C. Open its Sync history, read the message, and click How to fix. Most of the time, the log tells you what to do. Fix it in OneSila, then resync once.
2Shein says a property is missing. On the product, it's filled in. What do you check first?

Show the answer

Right answer: B. Whether Shein's own rule has the property, with the inspector set to Shein. "Filled in but missing" usually means you're looking at the Default rule, while the channel has a rule of its own.
3You add a new value, Sage, to your Colour property. A marketplace now blocks the listing. Why?

Show the answer

Right answer: A. Sage isn't mapped for that marketplace yet. New values need mapping on every marketplace. Map Sage on the channel's Select Values tab, then resync.
4An eBay listing fails some days and works on others. What do you suspect?

Show the answer

Right answer: C. A value mapped to two eBay values. Sometimes the right one is picked, sometimes the wrong one. Search the value on the Select Values tab, and keep one mapping.
5Your product varies by style. The marketplace refuses the variations. What's the likely cause?

Show the answer

Right answer: D. The marketplace's category doesn't allow style for variations. Each category allows only some fields for variations. Pick another category, a field it allows, or separate products.
6A listing shows System Error - contact support. What do you do?

Show the answer

Right answer: B. Send support the product, the channel and the full message. A system error isn't in your data. Resyncing again (A) won't fix it.
7A product is under review on a marketplace, and it looks wrong. What do you do?

Show the answer

Right answer: C. Fix it in OneSila, and resync once. The product comes from OneSila, so you fix it there. Fix it on the marketplace instead, and OneSila sends its own version the next time it syncs: your fix is gone.
8Shein says Brand is missing. You open the product's eBay rule: Brand is in it, and Required. What now?

Show the answer

Right answer: C. Check Shein's rule: eBay's rule doesn't count for Shein. Always look at the channel that failed, and at its own rule. Comparing with another channel only sends you the wrong way.

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