Ebay sellers: Are you having more problems with buyers now?
By jillbeth
@jillbeth (2705)
United States
August 19, 2008 7:31am CST
When I heard about the ebay policy changes regarding feedback, I wasn't too concerned because I've been fortunate enough not to have any buyers from h*ll. In the 3+ years I've been selling, I've only had to file two unpaid item reminders, and with a feedback score of almost 700 at the time, I didn't think that was too bad. I wasn't doing any active selling during the changes, but started up again in June. Within the last month I had to send two more unpaid item reminders, and I had a buyer ask me to cancel her bids because she didn't like who she was bidding against (I guess).
So maybe this is going to present a problem for me, after all. I'd like to know if other sellers are beginning to have more problems with buyers since this policy change. Are buyers taking advantage because they know they have the upper hand now? I don't understand this new policy, since the sellers are the one making money for ebay! I had not planned to leave ebay, but now I am seriously thinking about it.
Sellers, please give me your views on this feedback policy change, whether you notice an increase in buyer issues, and how you are handling it.
1 person likes this
7 responses
@shooie (4984)
• United States
19 Aug 08
My husband buys and sells on ebay. He isn't having problems with buyers but he has problems with sellers and oh boy does he get mad and lord help em when he does a feed back. Like just resently he did a bid on hot wheel motorcycles and thing about my husband is if he wins he pays that moment he wins or with in less than 24 hours. He bid and won the hot wheels and it took that seller almost 4 weeks to get that stuff to him. I personally don't do much in there so I don't notice the changes when they make them. I mainly buy. I read real well on the item before I decide I am going to bid so I don't have to ask to have my bid pulled.
1 person likes this
@jillbeth (2705)
• United States
19 Aug 08
Yeah, buyers don't want to have to wait, they want their item shipped right away! I usually try to get them in the mail in a day or two, but sometimes circumstances don't allow that. The few items I've bought have always been shipped in a reasonable amount of time, if perhaps not too quickly!
The person who asked to have her bid cancelled didn't seem to have any issues with the item itself, but with the other bidder. The other bidder had a feedback score of one, and 0% feedback score, since she had only made one purchase and it had been almost two years ago. I don't have any problems selling to someone like that. But the one who asked to have her bid cancelled was in the business of selling the item that she was buying from me. I had several in a lot and I think she just wanted to get them for a cheap price so she could make some money. I don't have any problems with that either, but I felt she was trying to turn me against the other bidder. She said she didn't want to "play games" with the other bidder. Her attitude really got me PO'd. I decided I didn't want to do business with someone like that and blocked her.
@shooie (4984)
• United States
19 Aug 08
gotta love bidders like that. oy vey. but as far as shipping 3 to 4 weeks is wayyyyyy to late to hold and then send. He didn't expect it next day or even the next few but he shouldn't have had to wait as long as he did and she didn't have any excuse when he IM'd her. She just did send it
1 person likes this
@Pigglies (9329)
• United States
21 Aug 08
I haven't tried selling after these changes yet, but when I saw that change I remembered how I've had quite a few buyers that didn't pay and at least I was able to give them negative feedback.
I think buyers should be able to get negative feedback because otherwise, like you say the seller doesn't have much influence in their activities once they've won an auction.
Yes, I've seen the feedback thing abused before where people buy an item and it is broken or never arrives, and then they leave bad feedback so the seller gives them bad feedback. But there should be some way that eBay's system could evaluate that. For example, if a buyer leaves bad feedback and then the seller leaves bad feedback, that could set off a trigger that sends an email to an eBay employee who can quickly look at those situations and decide if the bad feedback was warranted or just retribution.
1 person likes this
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
19 Aug 08
I haven't sold a lot since the changes but I have had a few auctions up. Some for higher end items. I have not had any problems. I have been using ebay for probably close to 8 years and I have only had 3 bad buyers.
1 person likes this
@jillbeth (2705)
• United States
19 Aug 08
That's a pretty good record! I've read lots of horror stories on the forums, but I think those sellers who treat their buyers right, get good buyers! And you can usually tell just from the way the listings are written which sellers you should stay away from (like the ones who threaten negative feedback before you've even considered bidding on their item, I find that very rude and won't do business with those sellers). Thanks for your response.
@irisheyes (4370)
• United States
19 Aug 08
I think eBay should have curvature of the spine from bending over backwards for buyers. I've been selling on eBay off and on (mostly off these last few years) for ten years. It's very curious but the less buyer's pay and the more that the site leans over backwards for them, the more dissatisfied they get. Now is an especially nasty time for sellers because of the economy and it's exacerbated by the one sided market place on eBay.
Fortunately, I also sell on Amazon, Abe & Alibris so I can stay away from eBay for long periods. Since I sell mostly books and the other sites are fixed price and not auctions, my business isn't suffering that much. I just tend to avoid eBay altogether these days.
1 person likes this
@faln_angel1205 (1192)
• United States
19 Aug 08
No probs with buyers or sellers here, at least no mroe than usual. I jsut listed about 14 items, and recently sold some handheld video game systems and had no probs there either. Sorry if you are having probs..dont give up..ebay is a great place.
1 person likes this
@TheNeverMan (44)
•
19 Aug 08
This new system is totally in the buyers favour and open to abuse. I have not traded on ebay for awhile, but as its the best place to trade will have to bite the bullet and see how it goes in winter when i start selling again.
@jillbeth (2705)
• United States
20 Aug 08
I am still doing a few auctions, my busy season is in the spring and summer months when there are the most local auctions (I do self-storage unit and estate auctions and find some great ebay stuff that way). But I have never had an real problems until the last few months.
@stcherry (37)
•
20 Aug 08
I have been with Ebay before. The problem I had with buyers was the fact that wanted to use escrows accounts to pay for the items and I wouldn't comply. I guess I need to go back and read the policy because I had not been on Ebay for long time because I that particular issue. But what is going on? I just put something up to sell yesterday. Did you make a good living off of Ebay. I am not getting concerned because the was my alternative because everything else was falling through. How concerned do I need to be?
