Ebay sellers requesting feedback

[Laurajean1014]

As a seller, I always leave positive feedback AFTER it is left for me. My father also sells on Ebay, and I have told him to do the same. He used to leave it right away after receiving payment, but every once in awhile you run into a 'crazy' Ebayer who knows you left positive feedback for them already and will try to pull something. It is a shame you have to think this way, but there is that ONE person out of 100 or even 1000 who is dishonest or a 'pain'.

Then why discriminate the majority or good buyers for one nut? Also, if you show the transactions on eBay they can retract the negative feedback.....

 

[Laurajean1014]

I don't sell very often, every once in a great while. I used to leave feedback right away after they paid. I had to stop because I left more feedback than I was getting, for every 4 I left, I would get one in return. Not so good when you have very few "stars" to begin with. Lots of good transactions but nothing to show for it.

That's the way many ebayers feel - and eBay looses $1.6 million transactions a year because of it.

 

[DMRick]

The backbone of eBay? Most people think it's a farce, myself included. The way it is now, it's pretty meaningless. A non payer, can leave a neg..how fair is that? Sure, I could respond to it, but most people just look at the figures, not the actual feedback.

Until I hear from the buyer by the way, I don't know if the transaction went well. Who knows why a person feels compelled to leave a neg if all went well. Some have commented that they leave a neg, once they see the shipping cost on the package (not to me, but on ebay boards). Even though they knew the shipping before they bid, they decided it was too much, and left a neg, even though the transaction went well. Or in another case, even though the auction gave the size of an item, the person decided it was smaller than they thought. There are lots of reasons people leave negs..especially if the seller has already left a postitive. Like I said earlier, we can all decide when to leave it...and it doesn't make one of us worse than the other.

I know there are some "nuts" out there, but why would anyone want to leave negative feedback if the transaction went well? Most people are happy to leave positive feedback - that is the backbone of eBay..............

 

[DMRick]

That's the way many ebayers feel - and eBay looses $1.6 million transactions a year because of it.

Where are these figures from..that ebay loses all this money because people are not selling because they aren't getting feedback?

Lots of good transactions but nothing to show for it.

Sure you have something to show for it..the money you were paid. The feedback is just a pat on the back. I prefer the moola!

 

[DMRick]

As an eBay buyer, I thank you for your integrity and courage.

I hardly think that just because someone decides when is a good time for them to leave feedback, and it is when the auction is completed, means they don't have integrity. I am a good, honest eBay seller. I decided I would rather not deal with the buyer who holds my feedback hostage (see how we can all see things differently?). I'm in business for myself, and I get to decide what is best for me. Doesn't make me a bad person. Courage? Because someone leaves feedback first? I'm not getting that at all. I have 4 negs, one I earned. For me, it works out much better to have the time to work with someone who might not be satisfied..although it's seldom been a problem. I sell personalized items. Once in a while a mispelling might happen (and that is seldom a problem..I'm using this as an example). I would rather have time to work with the client, replace the item, than have a quick neg put on my record. By waiting until the auction is completed to leave feedback, I'm able to "save" the mistake. The feedback left for me, once I've been able to show our great customer service, is what convinces me, that for us, the best time to leave feedback is once the the auction is over. If you prefer to leave it once you have payment, that's fine for you. It doesn't make people who don't agree with you less of a good business person, or a bad person without intergrity.

 

[Laurajean1014]

Where are these figures from..that ebay loses all this money because people are not selling because they aren't getting feedback?

Read it in Barron's in February.



Sure you have something to show for it..the money you were paid. The feedback is just a pat on the back. I prefer the moola!

Do you get much repeat business?

 

[Laurajean1014]

I hardly think that just because someone decides when is a good time for them to leave feedback, and it is when the auction is completed, means they don't have integrity. I am a good, honest eBay seller. I decided I would rather not deal with the buyer who holds my feedback hostage (see how we can all see things differently?). I'm in business for myself, and I get to decide what is best for me. Doesn't make me a bad person. Courage? Because someone leaves feedback first? I'm not getting that at all. I have 4 negs, one I earned. For me, it works out much better to have the time to work with someone who might not be satisfied..although it's seldom been a problem. I sell personalized items. Once in a while a mispelling might happen (and that is seldom a problem..I'm using this as an example). I would rather have time to work with the client, replace the item, than have a quick neg put on my record. By waiting until the auction is completed to leave feedback, I'm able to "save" the mistake. The feedback left for me, once I've been able to show our great customer service, is what convinces me, that for us, the best time to leave feedback is once the the auction is over. If you prefer to leave it once you have payment, that's fine for you. It doesn't make people who don't agree with you less of a good business person, or a bad person without intergrity.

That is your opinion and I have mine.

 

[DMRick]

That is your opinion and I have mine.

Exxactly..but it doesn't make either of us bad eBays.

Do you get much repeat business?

Yes, we have a large repeat business. Why wouldn't we? When feedback is left really doesn't seem to bother many people. Mine is left automatically, by vrane, and I seem to be renewing them often, when I run out of points, so a lot is left for me, and I leave a lot. I've been told that the average amount of feedback left is about 50%..I haven't paid attention, so I have no idea if we are in that amount. As I said, I have 4800 feedbacks and only 4 negs. They seem to like us, judging by how many reorder, and some of our clients have been clients for years (and we've sold to several diser's as well!). They buy direct and from our website, or I believe I'd have even a much larger amount of good feedback. We're very happy with how we run our business (we have a Higher Being we report to, and we like to make Him proud), and our buyers and clients leave very nice feedback. We also have a website, that has been very successful selling the same items. We have been able to put up less and less on eBay, saving fees, and clearing more profit. Hubby and I are both retired and this makes up for the dent we took in our paychecks (we have retirment pay now) retiring in our early 50's.
I like running my own business..the best part is, we can decide what works best for us. Any of you here, can decide what works best for you. If you prefer leaving feedback as soon as a buyer pays, then good for you. I don't personally care when someone leaves it, but I do know what works best for us, and that's what we'll stick with.
I know another person said you could just get another name, if you get too many negs, however, we worked long and hard to have name recognition, and would rather stay with the name we have. I like having the opportunity to work with an unhappy client and make them a happy client, rather than share negs, and run.

 

[DMRick]

Where are these figures from..that ebay loses all this money because people are not selling because they aren't getting feedback?

Read it in Barron's in February.

You read in Barron's that people are not selling and ebay lost 1.6million this year, because other people won't give them feedback? Because of feedback? I can think of lots of reasons people would stop selling, but not leaving feedback wouldn't do it for me. Do you have the exact quote on that? If not, I guess I'll have to get myself over the library, as I don't think my hubby kept the past issues. I definately missed that about the feedback. I'm glad I'm not that into the feedback, that it would bother me if someone didn't leave it.

 

[DMRick]

Then why discriminate the majority or good buyers for one nut? Also, if you show the transactions on eBay they can retract the negative feedback.....

eBay seldom does this..the other person would have had to leave a website, or swear or something similar. eBay has a help page that gives the few reasons they would delete a neg. They do have a program where the two of you have to agree, but if they left a neg, in most instances, they won't agree to remove it. You can pay Square Trade, but most don't want to buy their way out of a neg. It's a faulty system, and hopefully is on it's way to being fixed. I much prefer Yahoo's feedback system.

 

[ceecee]

As a seller, although I don't request feedback from my buyers, I do not leave feedback first for 2 reasons: 1) Payments that bounce because of insufficient funds or possible fraudulent activity.

That happened to me last year. I left positive feedback, then Paypal took back the payment (two weeks later) due to fraudlent activity. The person got the item and positive feedback and I lost $. This payment had cleared and the buyer was verified and confirmed address. I tried to resolve this with Paypal to no avail.....they were still "investigating fraudulent activity" So just because a payment clears doesn't mean anything.
On several (or more) occasions people have complained about an item I have sold them not working, box wear, etc (I sell 90% new sealed items). When I tell them to return the item....I never hear from them again. Several people went so far as to say they never received an item when I had delivery confirmation they suddenly "find it" a neighbor had it, the son brought it in from the mailbox, etc.

 

[ksjayhawkfan]

I dont see on ebay, but I do buy. So as the buyer, I leave appropriate feedback first, when I get the item. To me that is the end of the transaction. I hope that the seller then leaves me appropriate feedback. I occasionally remind them if they dont leave anything after about 2 weeks if I pay with paypal. But if I pay with a money order, I see no reason not to leave the feedback.

 

[DiscussDisney]

When I tell them to return the item....I never hear from them again. Several people went so far as to say they never received an item when I had delivery confirmation they suddenly "find it" a neighbor had it, the son brought it in from the mailbox, etc.

LOL...This is EXACTLY what happens to me. It always amazes me how people find it after you send them an email showing the item was delivered. I have heard so many different excuses. I even had one buyer that claimed non-receipt on a rather large item, so I called her local post office, spoke to her carrier, and he remembered he gave it to her in person (it was a large box). I guess the carrier spoke to her because I never heard from her again.

 

[eileenkeeney]

Thanks for sharing your experiences. As a rule, I will leave feedback first. I guess it's the emails asking for it first that irk me.
... [stuff deleted]
Jeannine

I have the same feeling about this.

I am o.k. with leaving feedback first (as either a seller or buyer).
I NEVER leave feedback until transaction is complete:
- as a buyer, I have recieved the item and I consider the transaction closed.
- as a seller, I know the item has been recieved, and the buyer considers the transaction closed.

At this point, why should either party expect that the other party will leave feedback first.

If I made the rules, one party would not be allowed to see the feedback from the other party, until both parties left feedback, or until the feedback window had expired.

The only time I hesitate to leave feedback first (as a buyer) is when the seller indicates that they expect this from me.

Recently I have been too lazy to nofiy each seller when an item arrives, but I have been leaving feedback indicating the item arrived.
If this is the only thing I do, to notify a seller that the item has arrived, then I really can not expect them to leave me feedback first.

I still have one feedback that I have not left, because I have hessitated to tell the seller that they mis-represented the item.
(They sold me some material, they listed as pink striped Denim, but was really a very lightweight cotton.)
It may be beyond the feedback window at this time.

One time, I hadn't left feedback, nor had I emailed the seller, and the seller emailed me to ask if I had recieved the item, and if everything was o.k.
I realized that I had recieved the item, and had just been lazy (or busy) and had failed to get back to them.

 

[eileenkeeney]

The backbone of eBay? Most people think it's a farce, myself included. The way it is now, it's pretty meaningless. A non payer, can leave a neg..how fair is that? Sure, I could respond to it, but most people just look at the figures, not the actual feedback.

Until I hear from the buyer by the way, I don't know if the transaction went well. Who knows why a person feels compelled to leave a neg if all went well. Some have commented that they leave a neg, once they see the shipping cost on the package (not to me, but on ebay boards). Even though they knew the shipping before they bid, they decided it was too much, and left a neg, even though the transaction went well. Or in another case, even though the auction gave the size of an item, the person decided it was smaller than they thought. There are lots of reasons people leave negs..especially if the seller has already left a postitive. Like I said earlier, we can all decide when to leave it...and it doesn't make one of us worse than the other.

Feedback does have some value, however it is time consuming to find the negatives and neutrals, to see exactly what they say.
It is a major mistake to just look at feedback numbers, and not read the negatives. eBay should make it easier to find the negatives.
A negative, due to not noticing shipping that is clearly stated in an auction, is a negative worth ignoring.
A negative due to non-delivery is something to consider.
A negative due to a seller's lack of willingness to help track a lost package is something to consider.
If a seller has only one negative (or only from one buyer) and has a response (to their own feedback) that can be believed, I take that into consideration.

Often a high volume seller will have a percentage over 99, and still have a track record of multiple complaints per month.

Sometimes it is how a seller responds to the negatives others leave them, that causes me to not want to deal with that seller. I have seen some very unprofessional responses to feedback.

Sometimes I read the feedback of the person who leaves the negative, to get an idea of who is credible. I have seen cases where the person leaving the feedback was the obvious problem.


Last night I made the mistake of buying, without first reading the feedback. While the seller had over 99%, there are obvious problems in the feedback.
After I recieved an email from the seller, accusing me of multiple things that I did not do, that made no sense to me, I then checked their feedback.
I had pointed out that their listings had contradicting shipping information for multiple purchases, but agreed to still pay the shipping amount they had put in the invoice. I even submitted the pay pal payment for the full invoice amount, so there is no question about my willingness to pay the sellers desired shipping amount. But I thought the seller should know, that they had contradicting information in their listings.
I didn't expect a response accusing me of making multiple payments (which I did not), canceling payments (which I did not), and waiting two weeks to complain (which I did not).
I had never purchased from this seller before last night. My pay pal records showed one single payment, and no payment cancelations.
This is not the first time I have pointed something out to a seller, and had them jump to the defensive and start accusing me of things.
In all cases where this has happened there were clues in the feedback that there might be a problem.
Now my biggest concern is actually getting my items.

I strongly suggest that people take the time to actually read feedback comments, and then if there is a question, read the comments of the person leaving the negative feedback.

 

[DMRick]

Feedback does have some value, however it is time consuming to find the negatives and neutrals, to see exactly what they say.
It is a major mistake to just look at feedback numbers, and not read the negatives. eBay should make it easier to find the negatives.

*Snip*

I strongly suggest that people take the time to actually read feedback comments, and then if there is a question, read the comments of the person leaving the negative feedback.

But they don't, so until such a time, it's made easier, I don't care for the feedback system, and think it's useless. I myself, never bother to look at the individual feedback of someone who has over a few hundred and maintains a 99%. I've bid on the one cent guys cd auctions and he has a ton of negs..but he's sold thousands of cd's, had a ton of repeats, and has a lot of great feedback. He's got a great percentage, and I"m always pleased with what I buy.

No one would leave feedback, if it was blind feedback, IMO. I'd like it to be, where once you settle your differences, it could be removed by the person who leaves it.

I'm very happy with my feedback. We like to keep our customers happy and satisfied. No one looking at mine, would see any hidden problems. eBay selling and buying is very individual. Each person can run it however they want, I don't think either giving upon payment or waiting for satisfaction can be called wrong. eBay suggests you leave it at the completion. It's up to what makes you comfortable to decide where the completion is.

 

[paladin]

I have never bought or sold on Ebay, but I find the ebay threads interesting to read. I have noticed all of the comments on feedback and it sounds like it has no meaning at all, since it seems to be used as a carrot and stick type of thing (you scratch my back; I'll scratch yours). It certainly doesn't make me want to rush out and try Ebay, since I would be afraid that I couldn't trust someone even if they had excellent feedback.

 

[Foladar]

Personally, a "positive" feedback from the seller should be left after payment in a great amnt of time. I've paid within seconds after the auction, yet the seller does not give me the feedback deserved.
I lived up to my end, paid in a great amnt of time, etc. Do yours.

 

[DMRick]

Personally, a "positive" feedback from the seller should be left after payment in a great amnt of time. I've paid within seconds after the auction, yet the seller does not give me the feedback deserved.
I lived up to my end, paid in a great amnt of time, etc. Do yours.

As mentioned, there are different opinions about this. This is your opinion. Mine is that until I know you rec'd your item and are happy with the auction, it's not the completion. Luckily, eBay lets us decide when the completion is for ourselves. We all run our own businesses, and can decide for ourselves. One person saying it should be one way, doesn't make it so. It's up to the individual. This has been discussed for years, and still some people leave it upon payment, and some people upon when they believe completion is. Either way that people decide, is fine for me.

 

[DMRick]

I have never bought or sold on Ebay, but I find the ebay threads interesting to read. I have noticed all of the comments on feedback and it sounds like it has no meaning at all, since it seems to be used as a carrot and stick type of thing (you scratch my back; I'll scratch yours). It certainly doesn't make me want to rush out and try Ebay, since I would be afraid that I couldn't trust someone even if they had excellent feedback.

The problem with ebay isn't so much the good feedback. It's allowing people who never paid for their item (or as others have mentioned some lie about the condition or say it never arrived, so they can do a paypal chargeback), to leave a neg for a seller that is a good seller. Both sellers and buyers have to have some trust, because of these bad incidences. These are some reasons I prefer to wait until the auction is completed before leaving feedback.