Improve your seller performance to avoid limits on your account

girlwiththesuninherhead

Hi

I have been under scrutiny with ebay for a little while now with regards my personal ebay selling performance.

I have been flagged on postage costs and also dispatch time. In the past there was an issue with my communication.

Approximately 95% of my listings start at 99p and most have a BIN at either £2.50 or £3.99. It's old magazines and football programmes that make up the majority of my sales. I am unable to offer free p&p on these items due to the fact I would make very minimum profit when taking into consideration ebay and paypal fees.

I also work full time and sometimes spend a lot of time on the road. I have indicated that all items will be posted within 5 working days and to be fair I do try to post a couple of times a week. If I am unable to post within in this time (it has happened a couple of times over the past year due to illness) I contact all of my buyers and let them know, I give them an alternative postage date and the option to cancel their purchase with an immediate full refund. The vast majority are more than happy to go ahead with the sale no matter how long it takes to receive their item.

I have a section on every one of my listings pages and explain the postage times and also that I add a small amount (50p) to each order to cover my packaging materials costs.

I do not charge extortianate postage costs, I weigh each different item separately, calculate the costs and add my 50p.

I fully communicate with my customers and let them know when their item has been posted when my item has been marked as dispatched. I used to 'batch mail' after each trip to the post office to let them know that their item had been posted but the facility to 'batch email' was removed from ebay over the past year or so.

I am worried about this situation now as ebay is my only other source of extra income and it suits me as I can work on it every night and usually do.

My feedback is 100% positive at over 1500 comments.

I tried to contact ebay via email tonight but was only given the option to call them on a 0845 number which, quite frankly, is not possible at the moment.

Any help with regards this would be massively appreciated.

I am so tempted to individually email all future customers to confirm the information that is already on the listings page to give them an opportunity to cancel the order if they aren't 100% happy with my timing and postage costs.

I have seen many other sellers charge over £1 more postage than me for selling exactly the same items and also charge way over my BIN prices too and they are selling way more than I am.

Anyway, it's late, I'm a bit annoyed and I have a rotten day at work tomorrow but at least tomorrow's Friday's Eve - every cloud and that!!

Cheers

girlwiththesuninherhead

VungTauShip

Try to write a personal letter & attach to the package when you send out the item. I'm sure your buyers would appreciate it & leave good feedback.

No_Eye_Deer

Your posting times is where you are suffering in my opinion.

I can see that you put in your listing that posting is a problem, but that's not your buyers problem to be blunt. You may send an email at the start, but even so your buyers will be watching for the 'your item has been posted' email.

If that comes 4/5 days after paying (or even later in the cases of illness) with no further contact, then sorry, your coms and posting stars will suffer (and probably other stars, just because they are marking negatively).

You have to remember that when they mark your stars, days, weeks, or even a month after, they are asked to mark honestly.

keys_2

Do you post First or Second Class ?
I have found that sometimes posting first Class for say 1-2 weeks at a time [ preferably on the lighter items } sometimes helps in the overall outcome if you usually post second class . However i do understand sometimes this just works out that you are just breaking even - but does pay in the long run

Is there no way you can pop to the post office say one day in the week on your dinner break - that way most parcels will arrive before the next weekend - so buyers don't feel they have waited that long ?

charlies_mum

I sell postcards (amongst other things) and received 6 low stars and lost my TRS for charging 19p to cover packaging. I was the cheapest on Ebay for postage (apart from free postage) but when I spoke with Ebay cS they said my charges were well within their accepted parameters, but my customers 'opinions' were that my P & P was too expensive.

I now offer free p & p on postcards, and after 12 months have finally just got my TRS back.

johnnyboyrebel

I still cannot fathom how a customer can place an order knowing full well what they are paying then state afterwards the postage was too much. It makes no sense. It's ebays fault for allowing a buyer to mark you on postage. It's one of the mist irrelevant parameters to ask them to grade.

macfly

A football program will fit in a post box. Get some stamps and post straight away. If you're on the road you will pass hundreds of them.

wileycat

macfly wrote: »

A football program will fit in a post box. Get some stamps and post straight away. If you're on the road you will pass hundreds of them.

You can't just carry them all around with you all the time, in case one sells!
I do travel with work sometimes, and do sometimes have to get someone else to print and send the items so I can guarantee my post within 48 hours window. I've always got access to e-mail (phone and laptop) so just have to live with that.

macfly

Well you could actually, they aren't that big. But that wasn't what I was suggesting. If someone is away from home for days at a time, then internet sales would seem to be the worst way to sell.

lovinituk

girlwiththesuninherhead wrote: »

I have indicated that all items will be posted within 5 working days and to be fair I do try to post a couple of times a week.

I do not charge extortianate postage costs, I weigh each different item separately, calculate the costs and add my 50p.

These are probably the main 2 reasons. Unfortunately, whether its right or wrong, fair or unfair, customers demand fast and cheap postage on ebay these days. A lot of customers don't read listings and customers who use mobile ebay apps are not presented with the full description unless they specifically select it - I would imagine most don't.

5 days + transit time is far too long for many ebay buyers - they want it asap. Also if the postage shown on the front of the package is less than what you have charged them, many buyers won't like that. I know its not fair, but the buyer can hit your DSRs if they don't like and it happens all the time.

I've said this a thousand times, but sellers need to adapt, post quicker and charge less for postage - if they don't (or can't) then they just won't survive on ebay any more.

yeslek

VungTauShip wrote: »

Try to write a personal letter & attach to the package when you send out the item. I'm sure your buyers would appreciate it & leave good feedback.

this annoys the hell out of me
its as if the seller is sucking up for good feedback

johnnyboyrebel wrote: »

I still cannot fathom how a customer can place an order knowing full well what they are paying then state afterwards the postage was too much. It makes no sense. It's ebays fault for allowing a buyer to mark you on postage. It's one of the mist irrelevant parameters to ask them to grade.

agreed
I mean, even with the ebay postage cap's I'm still on 4.7 on postage and its not like I can offer free postage when many items only sell at 99p. I'd be at a loss.