How soon?

soolin

sgh1976 wrote: »

Looking at the ones where I have a NPD open the communication has gone

Day of purchase - Invoice
2 days later - ebay have sent the buyer a purchase reminder
4 days later - NPD opened, so thats another reminder sent.

So, first 4 days they have had 3 reminders plus the fact the actually know they purchased it.

I agree. I think by constantly sending begging little emails and pleas for payment we are treating buyers as though they are really stupid. I like to think that using ebay requires a certain level of intelligence, and that buyers don't need daily constant reminders.

However, I am often proved wrong

StacFace

soolin wrote: »

Really- you would suggest threatening a buyer with a strike is a good idea?

No - it's never a good idea to threaten them. However there is nothing wrong with a polite reminder. Remember that in this example you have already asked for payment within x days (in the listing) which they have ignored - so it's perfectly reasonable to say (in a polite way) that if you are ignored again then you will open a case against them.

ebay say it is reasonable to open a case on day 4 and I do tend to agree. I suppose small sellers with a lot of time on their hands could babysit their buyers through the 'difficult' process of actually paying what they buy, some of us prefer to run a business and treat our buyers as though they are adults and know what they are doing.

I'm not saying 4 days is an unreasonable timeframe, I'm saying that opening a case against them when you haven't even informed them you're expecting payment now is very rude and unreasonable. If you're not going to tell your buyer when you want payment how do you expect them to ensure they make that payment on time? "Payment within 7 days" is something I often see on listings and I'm sure this leads many adults to believe this is the norm and so think nothing of bidding on an auction ending 5 days before they're due back from holiday, for example. You could at least send them a polite message rather than an accusation so they know this really isn't the case.

soolin wrote: »

If you are a frequent buyer then you will know how many reminders you get about items being unpaid via the system.

I tend to pay pretty quickly so don't get reminder emails but regardless of this I wouldn't consider an automated message from eBay a proper reminder. All this does is remind you that you won and need to pay, there's nothing about when to pay or any indication that the seller is requiring payment within a set timeframe. If I was unable/preferred not to pay for a few days for some reason and got an automated email from eBay I'd just delete it as I already know I need to pay. If I got one from the seller themselves saying they want payment within x days, however, then I would respond by arranging to pay earlier or messaging them if that's not possible.

I still cannot see why setting your own time limit and reminding the buyer of that time limit is in anyway helpful at all? If a buyer is incapable of understanding how ebay works- ie you bid you pay, then they are not going to be savvy enough to read a sellers auction blurb asking them to make payment in xx days.

It's helpful because it lets the buyer know exactly what is expected of them. Like I said before I would have no problem believing someone thought it was norm to pay within 7 days, if you put in the item description that you actually want payment within 4 days (or 48 hours if you want to open a case if payment is not received on day 4) then they've got no reason to believe that's the case.

techspec

I just send a total update after 4 days - then file NPB after 7. I don't bother emailing them - as they usually take it the wrong way.

I needed some money urgeng today - so on saturday i reduced some items to giveaway prices - and sold way more than i needed.

But NONE of them have paid yet - and i've had to use my credit card to get the cash - which i never do. Sods law.

Wish i could cancel the sales now - they got a bargain:rotfl: