Slight Ebay Rant - Maybe some regular ebayers can help me out.

[mamalle]

If you would of bought from me- I would leave feedback as soon as you pay. that is what I giving feedback for. Im not going to try and hold your feedback hostage. I never understood that either but oh well Im not a huge seller..

 

[DMRick]

I think it's important, to keep it in mind, that when you leave feedback, it's up to each person, to interpret what eBay says. I read what eBay suggests as a good time to leave feedback, to be when the sale or buy is completed. We are each allowed to do feedback as we wish, (and if we wish) and what makes sense for us. For me, as a buyer, I give it when I get the item, and I'm satisfied. As a seller, when the buyer is satisfied. In my case, it actually has to wait until they leave it, because I use vrane, and they respond to positives. Waiting until knowing the buyer is satisfied, would give me a chance to fix any problem they may have, and turn a possible bad sale, into a positive one...and for us, that's what it is all about...that each sale be a positive experience...and judging by my high return of feedback and return buyers, they have been.

If you would of bought from me- I would leave feedback as soon as you pay. that is what I giving feedback for. Im not going to try and hold your feedback hostage. I never understood that either but oh well Im not a huge seller..

 

[mamalle]

I think people with higher feedbacks do that too. granted my feedback isnt the highest but its perfect for the last 4.5 years that I have either sold or bought on ebay.. Im also the person that isnt going to inflate my shipping cost and ship as soon as I get payment.

 

[DMRick]

I don't think it depends on the amount of feedback you have, but when you decide, as eBay suggests, when the sale is completed. I'm not sure what you mean by you being the person that doesn't inflate your shipping cost...do you think that those of us who wait until the sale is completed, gouge our buyers with excessive shipping costs? I've never inflated my costs to ship, and in fact should prob charge more. We ship within two business days, at the latest..often the same or next day, and that is with personalized items.

I think people with higher feedbacks do that too. granted my feedback isnt the highest but its perfect for the last 4.5 years that I have either sold or bought on ebay.. Im also the person that isnt going to inflate my shipping cost and ship as soon as I get payment.

 

[!@#$%]

My feedback is 100% on one account, and 99.7 on the other. It only takes a couple seconds to add a trouble buyer to a block list. (actually, its like 3 seconds top.) As far as nonpaying bidders... ive had MORE than enough. Usually first time or low feedback ebayers.
I wasnt implying that you *personally* are lazy. Just its easier to just not check. That statement was directed towards sellers in general. Myself included because sometimes I let them slip. And often times the ones I let slip are the ones that try to pull a quick one on me. I didnt mean to sound "harsh" i was trying to sound monotone...

 

[!@#$%]

Overall, Ive had awesome luck on ebay. Actually 90% of my problems arent with the buyers, its with ebay and paypal. But I think the reason ive had such good luck is because I watch my auctions closely, AND check feedback.
I once had your same philosophy. You know the saying... a few bad apples... a handful of headaches can change your point of view.

A LOT of the troubles on ebay revolve around WHAT you sell. Comic books and "teenage" items like PS2 games and car audio get me the worse luck. While professional career oriented items (like CCTV or specialized construction items) rarely ever give troubles.
Kids clothes... never again.

 

[famofsix]

I have thousands in my block buyers list. I cancel dozens of bids every year. Like you said: Feedback is more important to sellers, because buyers check OUR feedback MUCH more. So I check almost EVERY buyers feedback, and if they have LEFT lots of negative feedback, they are retracted and blocked. "I dont understand. Why did you cancel my bid???" "Because your what I consider a bad risk. You complain through feedback, rather than trying to work it out with the seller." I personally think more sellers should check their buyers feedback LEFT FOR OTHERS, AND recieved. Its a two way street. END QUOTE

I bought a doll on ebay that was described in pristine condition. It arrived with gooey red stuff on it, stuffing coming out of the neck area, and marks not in the description and one eye was lazy. I emailed the seller. She already left me a positive so I tried to work out a deal since I paid more for it thinking it was in pristine condition like she said. I think it also said "like new" in the category part too. It was her first sale so I tried giving her the benefit of the doubt. She was rude in her emails and told me maybe I should buy dolls at the store if I wanted a new doll. I left her a nuetral for not describing the item properly but I really wanted to leave a negative but I was afraid to do it in case other sellers thought I was lying. I could have gone and complained through paypal but it was not worth the hassle to me.

 

[mamalle]

it was a general statement that I stated in regards to ebay practices. Im not in their " high seller" catergory but I do like to treat buyers in the way I would like to be treated- to me prompt payment along with prompt feedback should be a given, along with reasonable shipping/handling charges..

 

[DMRick]

I think we all feel that way. Just because we don't agree on when the transaction is completed, and hence give feedback, doesn't mean we don't give good, fast service, with reasonable shipping costs. The good part about eBaying, is that we are individuals and able to decide individually what eBay means by leaving feedback at the completion. I personally feel they mean when the sale is completed, and the buyer is satisfied. Some think it means as soon as the buyer pays. Either way will work, and it's up to the individual to decide which works for them. Neither is a "bad" way...and if one way works better for you, then that's how you should do it.

it was a general statement that I stated in regards to ebay practices. Im not in their " high seller" catergory but I do like to treat buyers in the way I would like to be treated- to me prompt payment along with prompt feedback should be a given, along with reasonable shipping/handling charges..

 

[!@#$%]

What is excessive shipping actually?

I hadnt planned on saying anymore here, BUT As far as shipping...
I know epay (on purpose) is enforcing new rules against shipping gouging, but as BOTH buyer and seller; people need to look at the whole picture on this one!
So what is excessive shipping?
It varies. If you bid on a penny item with $25 shipping KNOWING the item is going to cost $25 shipping and KNOWING the item is well worth the $25 total, whats the big deal? YES, I fully understand the "its not fair to the other sellers" but i also FULLY UNDERSTAND that MANY buyers wont bid if shipping is "actually the item price", so to me its up to the buyer. My wife has bought several items from a foreign seller who specializes in Kingdom Hearts (Disney) jewelry. She places a $1.01 bid, when she KNOWS it will bring more than that, and she waits for her second chance offer, which she ALWAYS gets, and she buys it. Do we complain about the excessive shipping? HECK NO! She got a deal. We dont care because we understand the politics behind the transaction. I dont care that i paid $12.00 shipping for a tiny envelope and a postage stamp, because I'm happy with the total price. I knew HIS terms.

Theres MANY MANY MANY huge dealers there who do this on every auction. They have massive stores. Ebay will NOT stop them, they value them too much. Dont get me started on this one; I can give MANY examples of some of ebay's pet sellers who are breaking ALL ebays rules. Nothing done (despite being turned in hundreds of times) because they are making ebay LOTS of money.
My point is you look at the item price, and the shipping price. You add the two together. Thats your ACTUAL price. If you are willing to give that much REGUARDLESS OF THE SLANT you bid, and you should be satisfied. You DONT bid on an item with FIXED excessive shipping then complain. It just shows your stupidity. Now let me be clear on this. IF the shipping price is CLEARLY STATED in the auction, and IF the seller DOES in fact charge EXACTLY WHAT the auction said, you have NO reason to complain PERIOD. (BTW, i'm not yelling... I'm putting stress on certain important words).
IF the seller DONT quote S&H, and IF YOU dont ask, your fault too. You should have asked. NOW, if seller CHANGES the quote, he DESERVES negative feedback. IF he says in description "Buyer pays ACTUAL shipping charges" and he charges you $18.00 for a bubble mailer, hes crooked, but like I already said, if you KNOW the shipping before bidding, you have no reason to complain, no excuse, and no argument. The seller determines the terms, not the buyer. If you dont agree, just dont bid. Theres other auctions.

 

[DMRick]

...and I hate to respond, since this is really a thread about feedback..however, I don't think the people here are talking about the .99 item and $25 shipping. That is who I think eBay has been going after, because it affects their bottom line..they don't get end of listing fees. I always look at the total price when I'm bidding..however, I'm usually careful to not buy from someone with the $25 shipping (when actual shipping is $1.11, because if there is a problem, Paypal doesn't include the shipping in the case of a chargeback.

I think (although I don't agree), that some people think any amount over the post office cost is excessive. Some people don't charge anything for the packing materials, and some of those people don't think it's right to get back the labor of packing, and the gas to the post office. They say it's the cost of doing business. I like to get back all of my costs of doing business. Ebay doesn't have a problem with that.

It just shows your stupidity. Now let me be clear on this. IF the shipping price is CLEARLY STATED in the auction, and IF the seller DOES in fact charge EXACTLY WHAT the auction said, you have NO reason to complain PERIOD. (BTW, i'm not yelling... I'm putting stress on certain important words)..

Some people feel they have the right to complain, after they get the item, and see just how little it did cost to ship. They may not have realized that before it arrived. I don't think the people are stupid, just because they didn't realize the shipping was excessive, or they assumed it was coming a faster way, because of the stated shipping. Should they have asked? Sure, but that just makes them human, not stupic.

 

[themooch]

Okay - I don't bid a whole lot on ebay - In fact before this past week I had feedback of 15 (100% positive - but still). I am a good ebayer. I read the whole listing and try to be online when an auction I have the potential of winning ends. I usually pay with 5 - 30 minutes of the auction ending. Why is it that I can pay and yet the seller holds off on giving feedback. Granted one I'm waiting on is just from today and that's understandable. But I have one where I have communicated with the seller after the auction end - paid immediately and still no feed back. Are sellers waiting to give feed back after the buyer does? As a seller what is there to wait on?? The person paid and is waiting on their item. Is it just me - Is there something I'm not getting? A buyer pays - seller leaves feedback - what more can you do besides pay and pay quickly. As a buyer I wait until I receive the item and try to leave feedback immediately. Is it because I still have so few that I'm even noticing??

I have found that many wait to make sure you don't leave negative feedback for them. This happens to me all of the time. Lately, it seems that it is more uncommon for anyone leave feedback simply because I have paid for my auction item. I have had sellers wait to leave feedback more than a month after I have received my item and posted feedback.

 

[!@#$%]

Should they have asked? Sure, but that just makes them human, not stupic.

Its one thing to be human, its another to fail to do your part then destroy someone elses feedback because you failed to do your part.
As I mentioned once before, I LOVE to "feedback surf". From one negative to another to see exactly what others are getting neg feedback FOR. Sometimes you (while feedback surfing as I call it) will stumble upon someone with hundreds of negative feedbacks.
I have patterned my auction rules and policies around what others get negative feedback over. Kinda the psychology of negative feedback if there were such a thing. Hey, ITS FUN! But SOOOOO many people leave negative feedback because they JUST DIDNT READ THE DESCRIPTION. I would bet you that 85% of all negative feedback was centered between TWO little problems... 1)Buyer disagreed with STATED shipping AFTER seeing ACTUAL shipping. 2) Buyer didnt read description. I too agree with you that there ARE shipping costs. Printer ink is DARN EXPENSIVE!!! I built a building just for my boxes and storage. It wasnt cheap. I gotta make ALL of that back and SHIPPING is where its done at. (its already been made back, just pointing it out). I will say too, that there are 2 sides to every story, but it appears the seller just gets the bad end of the stick all the way around. Many buyers just dont want to think of common sence things like UPS broke it and its their loss because THE BUYER refused to pay that $1.30 for insurance. I see that one a lot too. Like I put in my descriptions... I package well, but if UPS drops a piano on it you'll be glad you paid a few bucks for insurance.
Now onto another topic... a customer told me the other day that they saw on the news that Ebay is fixing have a HUGE price increase. Can anyone confirm this? I already feel like 1/3 my sale goes back to billionaire Meg. If they keep raising rates it will have to be considered a charitable donation!

 

[!@#$%]

Like I put in my descriptions... I package well, but if UPS drops a piano on it you'll be glad you paid a few bucks for insurance.

Quoting myself...
I make it mandatory for insurance now. One buyer bought a digital camera. I put in the description that the local post office was becoming BAD about losing packages and I highly recommended insurance. (I had lost 3 that month!!! All crossed the post office counter) he STILL refused to pay that $2.40, and when he never got it he did a chargeback to paypal and I lost my camera, the listing fees, paypal fees, AND all the sale money. It took about 100 harassing phone calls before Paypal finally got sick of me annoying them and gave me my money back.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

I make it mandatory for insurance now. One buyer bought a digital camera. I put in the description that the local post office was becoming BAD about losing packages and I highly recommended insurance. (I had lost 3 that month!!! All crossed the post office counter) he STILL refused to pay that $2.40, and when he never got it he did a chargeback to paypal and I lost my camera, the listing fees, paypal fees, AND all the sale money. It took about 100 harassing phone calls before Paypal finally got sick of me annoying them and gave me my money back.

Why should the buyer pay for insurance when paying with PayPal? If the item is not received, and the seller failed to ship using a method with online delivery confirmation, then the seller WILL lose an item not received claim every time. As a seller, it is stupid not to make delivery confirmation mandatory on every single eBay purchase (and it is required for PayPal seller protection) and insurance required on every high priced item sold. I am surprised that you did not learn this lesson after your first package was lost.

If you could not prove that the camera you sold was delivered to the buyer, then of course you lost the claim. I do not believe that PayPal gave you back the money just because you made 100 harassing phone calls. Either you are wrong, or you have not provided all facts of the story.

You didn't lose the PayPal fees either, they would have been credited back to your account.

 

[jessica52877]

Ebay rates just went up this past week or maybe it has been a few weeks, it took place in August and I noticed it this week in my listings.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

You must be speaking of STORE fees; this fee increase was announced months ago.

 

[Luv'sTink]

I always leave feedback for sellers but have quite a few who have not left it for me. I feel they don't because they hold it hostage and then just forget or figure they don't have to because I left a positive for them already. I dont care for the whole feedback thing.

I have never left anything but a positive, only had one problem and the seller worked with me to correct the problem.

 

[va32h]

I think (although I don't agree), that some people think any amount over the post office cost is excessive.

YES! It was this attitude, among other things, that led me to leave Ebay. I would charge a whopping $1.25 handling fee, clearly stated in the listing, and people would complain.

Does disneyshopping.com charge exact postage when they ship orders? NO.

Do people write to disneyshopping.com and call them scammers and demand a refund? NO.

I created my own website, where I can charge whatever the heck I want for shipping, and amazingly enough, people are buying, and they are not complaining.

For some reason, buyers have a hard time seeing Ebay sellers as businesses - which is what most of them are. If a seller waits a month to leave feedback - maybe he does a huge volume of sales, and that's the most efficient way to handle it.

The point is - when you buy an item, you are supposed to pay for it. That's the definition of buying. When I pay for my groceries at Albertson's, they don't put a green dot on my forehead so all the world will know I've paid. Paying is expected. You don't need a pat on the head for doing what you are supposed to do.

Feedback is nice. But presumably, you are shopping on ebay for actual products, not praise.

 

[DMRick]

I just don't get this "hostage" bit. I don't hold anyone's feedback hostage. If you had a problem with my item, I'd happily exchange it. Heck, I just gave someone a whole new order (after she left great feedback), because she was unhappy with the way the number 7 looked..but said she understood, that's what it looked like with that font. I shipped her a whole new order to Canada..just because I wanted her to be happy. Customer service is the important thing to us, not some feedback that means diddly.

I just wait until the sale is completed (and IMO that's when it's over..the buyer has it, everything went well, everybody is happy), and then feedback is given..no hostage taking there. Feedback just isn't that important to some people..so maybe that's why they didn't return yours. Getting your product in a timely manner..that is what the sale should be about. I'm not selling feedback.

I always leave feedback for sellers but have quite a few who have not left it for me. I feel they don't because they hold it hostage and then just forget or figure they don't have to because I left a positive for them already. I dont care for the whole feedback thing.