Hi Community,
I have already posted this information in a few other threads, but I'm inclined to post it here as well in case another user stumbles across this thread while looking for information on the same issue.
The reason that several users are seeing images in their listings disappear now is because we had suspended our service that permanently deletes images that have been marked as deleted since early June and we just started it up again a little over a week ago. As a result, images that were marked as deleted and moved to the Deleted Images page as long ago as the beginning of June are just starting to get permanently deleted.
From what I have seen, the most common reason that users are accidentally deleting images in active listings is because our system can only make an association between an active listing and an image if that listing was a direct post or relist done through Auctiva for which the images were placed in the image management section. There is messaging to warn users about this on the Manage Images page and the introduction to the image deletion wizard, but we are working to make the messaging more clear based on the feedback we have received.
If you still have images on the Deleted Images page within your account, those images will also be permanently deleted soon. Therefore, it may be a good idea to go through your Deleted Images page and restore any of the images listed there that are still being used in active listings or closed listings that you plan on relisting.
Unfortunately, it is not possible for us to restore images that have already been permanently deleted. However, if these items have not received bids and can still be revised, you should be able to restore the images within the description of them by reuploading the images during the process of revising each one via the following process:
1) Locate your listing in your Saved Listings folder, make any necessary changes (reupload images), and save.
2) Click the "<HTML> icon to the right of the item on your "Saved Listings" page
3) Select All and copy the html in the popup window.
4) Locate the item on eBay and click the "Revise Item" button.
5) Scroll down to the "Description" section and then click the "HTML" tab above the description editor.
6) Delete the existing description HTML, paste the copied HTML in its place, and save your changes.
Once you have done that, if you also need to restore the header/gallery images in the listings, you should then be able to do so by revising them via the following process:
1) Visit the item on eBay.
2) Right-click the image you’d like to make your new header/gallery image and click “Properties”
3) Copy the image URL, which begins with http://...
4) Click the “Revise your Item” link at the top of the auction page.
5) Click the “Add Pictures” button.
6) Delete the text(if any) in the “Enter URL…” field(if any) and replace it with the copied URL.
7) Click the “Insert Pictures” button and save your changes
Revising your listings in this manner will cause the scrolling gallery to be removed from them however we are able to add that back from our end. If you end up revising some of your listings in this manner and you would like us to add the scrolling galleries back to them, please feel free to contact our customer support team using the form on the following page of our site: http://www.auctiva.com/help/requesthelp.aspx
-Mike