Callum, unfortunately what is common sense to you is not common to all, and I have no way of knowing if it's genuine interest (so why no bid, or question on my listing?) or just folk who don't think to check or cull their watchlist. Why put the effort into making this a feature when time could be better spent on fixing bugs, like the never ending expired listings issue?
That thing about watchlists is so strange. I'm finding my watchlist items keep getting automatically returned to my watchlist if the item is relisted. And I have the same watchers on my listings over and over, so I have no idea whether I have new interest or not. I could write quite a hefty tome about all the bugs they aren't fixing while they make 'improvements' that make the site less and less accessible. Perhaps, as someone else mentioned, there is now an opportunity for a genuine rival. They need only set what what Trade Me was to begin with, and deal with the original bugs, and they'll...
Do Trade Me not care that the expired listings give useful information regarding what listing price might be reasonable or successful? Keeping in mind a successful sale generates income for them....
I can understand why the automatic regeneration of the watchlist when items are relisted might be thought to be useful but I'm hating it. I have no way of knowing anymore whether I have new or continued interest in my listings, or if its just the 'once-off' browsers stuck on my listing for eternity. Surely the old message 'this item on your watchlist has been relisted' was enough for people who were genuinely watching long-term.
If the only advice you get from Trade Me is to fossick around in the help and tips pages, maybe they could reconsider their basic design. How can people have a good experience if nothing is clear, and can only be found if you know the right tricks?