So, why would you use Optional Site Wide Fields instead of Category Specific Questions? There are a couple of reasons. Optional Site Wide Fields are a quick way to implement "extra questions" across your entire site, rather than just a single category. The most significant difference, however, is that Optional Site Wide Fields can be displayed on browsing results pages. What this means is that these fields can be turned on to display in the Listing results tables, as their own column, while visitors are browsing the site, thereby displaying additional pertinent data in the table. Even better is the fact that this "new column" is "sortable". You will be able to sort the column alphabetically, or numerically, depending on the values displayed for that Site Wide Optional Field.

Another great feature of Optional Site Wide Fields is that they can be set up to be used as "cost fields". In other words, you can set up these questions so that the Seller can specify additional costs be automatically added to the final cost of the item. For instance, the default software uses one of these fields for "Shipping and Handling" fees.

There are, however, a couple of drawbacks to using Optional Site Wide Fields compared to Category Questions. First of all, there is a limited number of these fields as shown on the "Fields to Use" page, whereas with "Category Questions", you have no limit to the amount you can set up. Secondly, setting up "Optional Site Wide Fields" requires a great deal more work. This is because each of those fields is tied directly to a specific piece of text that is associated with every page Optional Fields can show up. Therefore, that text must be changed on every single page individually.

For example, let’s say you designate for "Optional Site Wide Field 1" to be used, and you are going to use it on an "automobiles only" listing site. So you set up a "prevalued dropdown" with ten different colors, give it a name (i.e. "exterior color"), and then select that name from the available choices on the "Site Wide Optional Field 1" selection criteria. In doing this, you are telling the software to display that field’s associated text on every page that "Site Wide Optional Field 1" is located. So, unless you access every page containing "Site Wide Optional Field 1" and change its corresponding, it will still display the system default text of "site wide field 1", instead of what you really want it to display, "exterior color".

We recommend that you first set up all of your Optional Fields, and then access each page text and change all of them at the same time. The following list shows a listing of the pages you will need to access:

• PAGES MGT > BROWSING LISTINGS > LISTING DISPLAY PAGE
• PAGES MGT > BROWSING LISTINGS > BROWSE CATEGORIES
• PAGES MGT > BROWSING LISTINGS > BROWSE FEATURED LISTINGS TEXT ONLY
• PAGES MGT > BROWSING LISTINGS > NEWEST LISTINGS PAGE
• PAGES MGT > BROWSING LISTINGS > SELLERS OTHER LISTINGS
• PAGES MGT > BROWSING LISTINGS > SEARCH AND SEARCH RESULTS
• PAGES MGT > PLACE NEW LISTING > LISTING DETAIL
• PAGES MGT > USER MANAGEMENT > EDIT LISTING DETAILS

Remember, if you do not access each of the above pages and update the text for the Site Wide Optional Fields you are using, your page results will look something like this:

site wide field 1:          red

instead of what you really want:

exterior color:              red