Do ebay actually care about fee avoidance?

Ms-Money-Penny

I reported a seller last week selling large Lego sets for 99p with £74.00:eek: postage, the listings weren't removed.

Myyrrddyn

terra_ferma wrote: »

How do you know that they have not read the advert properly? Are you guessing or are they telling you?
I'm interested in the connection.

I've kind of stopped paying too much attention at the stars (except making sure they don't go too low) since I've realised they are totally random.
The only really bad ones I've ever had were from someone who left glowing feedback, really good comments, and where all went smoothly. Blocked of course, but god knows what they were thinking....

You can tell that they leave a bad one when they leave neutral or negative feedback saying not as described. Which it is exactly as described it is just that they did not read the advert properly

Crowqueen

Myyrrddyn wrote: »

You can tell that they leave a bad one when they leave neutral or negative feedback saying not as described. Which it is exactly as described it is just that they did not read the advert properly

In your opinion, maybe; in theirs, perhaps not.

terra_ferma

soolin wrote: »

This bit raises a lot of hilarity on the community boards:

Taking actions or using tools to figure out the detailed seller ratings that a buyer left for a specific transaction (DSRs are meant to be anonymous)

As ebay supply the tools (and heavily encourage you to use them) to see where your poor feedback arises. The ebay tools allow you to see where and when detailed ratings were left and in what category.

So ebay tell you to use these tools to identify the ratings and then warn you that if you follow their advice you may have a problem.

Classic

As many times before, I think something and then find that you have already posted it, but much more beautifully put (so I just leave a thank you as you saved me typing it...:))

terra_ferma

mobile48 wrote: »

In doing this I am interested to ask if you broke ebay feedback manipulation rules - see what is states about working out who left you low stars:

http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/policies/feedback-manipulation.html

Looks like I may have, which is really interesting as I found out about the most effective way of doing it through the official eBay boards, where posters give you detailed instructions and many people talk about doing it (using real selling IDs, which doesn't matter anyway because eBay would know all of the IDs).

And I will continute, as I need at least block those who leave + fb and leave 2 or 3 stars with no apparent reason.
My original plan was to use the report to understand what went wrong and how I can improve, but as they have no connection to what has actually happened(delivery times, cost of delivery etc), not much help there.
However I've improved my packing, just in case, although nobody has complained about it, and the only 2 star was for an item that had the manufacture's packaging.

terra_ferma

Myyrrddyn wrote: »

You can tell that they leave a bad one when they leave neutral or negative feedback saying not as described. Which it is exactly as described it is just that they did not read the advert properly

You can if they actually leave a netural or neg, or at least a hint. But most people don't, my worst stars come from really good feedback (recommended seller, I'm very happy, I like the item very much, thank you etc etc).

Even the brief 'OK' 'thank you' result in 5 stars.

But I've given up trying to understand, I have a much more practical approach, just keep them high enough to avoid any hassle.

Crowqueen

The genuine TSFE people are difficult to avoid but have to be catered to. People on the official boards are getting more and more frustrated and I post there less and less. Between buyers not understanding what rights they do have when dealing with private sellers and the people who really are clueless when selling and expect everything from the buyer but aren't happy with the responsibilities they have (particularly the person who runs a large enterprise but keeps moaning about this, that and the other so much so that someone today called her out for posting merely to advertise her shop), makes me appreciate this site and people like Soolin and Terra, people who genuinely do understand the ins and outs of what they are doing .

Keeping to targets seems the best way forward. You're never going to please everyone or have all 5s all the time, I think some people leave 4s for normal sales and leave 5*s for exceptional purchases, but that is reflected in eBay averages. You can learn from any sales that go wrong through your obvious error, but an ostrich head-in-the-sand approach such as "all my items are as described, so any buyer who says otherwise is stupid" isn't advisable as you may miss genuine opportunities to improve service and then end up wondering why you've suddenly been restricted. I sold some duff stamps once and got called out in a positive feedback; I felt embarrassed; likewise, when the DSRs for P&P came in I realised I was charging a bit much for foreign buyers; it's not always the buyer's fault. When my comms star started to dip I started sending out short notes after posting thanking buyers for their purchases, telling them the item had been sent and asking for contact if there was a problem. The stars rose again within a few days and I now do that all the time. It helps not to think of buyers as TSFE or needing "educating" - people know what they're doing with their money and a disappointment often makes a disproportionate impact on the person buying, so what's important is being responsive. I've been pretty lucky but I started up (and will likely end up, since pro selling isn't really for me, I don't think, and it seems hard to sell a moderate amount of private junk without having to register as a biz these days) just a buyer and have always seen things from that POV. At the end of the day I know what I like or expect, so I try when I sell to give that out. I don't even think private sellers should be held to lower standards than pros - after all, it's the same kitty we're all paid out of, and buyers have the same expectations.

I can understand blatant stuff like someone not reading something properly that you have specifically highlighted (e.g. a faulty item sold as faulty and then causing issues later); but in some ways, things happen and you have to take responsibility for your own listings and sales. eBay is a demanding place to sell and we buyers are a tough lot to please because money is tight and you don't want to waste it. I always do my homework with people's feedback and terms and I won't buy from people who treat me as if I am inconveniencing them merely by buying something (e.g. the screeds people write about being a busy mum and only posting twice a week BUT I WANT YOUR MONEY NOW OK, TIMEWASTER?!). That's what is increasingly making me look at Amazon first, given the things I buy, so it's important to look at eBay selling from the consumer's point of view as well.

I wish I knew a few people's selling IDs on here though since I like giving decent people a boost.

forgotmyname

I contacted live help about this seller, And they said they can see nothing wrong with these listings.