Archive for July, 2009

The NEW Detailed Seller Rating Are Confusing

July 30th, 2009 | Author: admin

Dear eBay Queen;

 
I am not sure what to think about these new eBay changes. They talk about Detailed Seller Ratings (DSR’S), which I barely understood a year ago, and now they are changing the program all together. Do you have any idea what this all means?
 
Carole; Olathe, KS
 
 

Dear Carole;

 
The old DSR program was based on your combined DSR average. The scoring in the old plan included all Detail Seller Ratings you receive from buyers worldwide. In October, this will all change. Sellers will be reviewed based upon how many 1s and 2s they will receive (instead of a combined average), and worldwide buyers DSR will not effect your score.
 
The 1s or 2s you receive can not be more than:
·         3.00% Items as described
·         4.00% Communications
·         4.00% Shipping time
·         4.00% Shipping and handling charges
 
To make sure low volume sellers are not penalized for one low rating, it will take at least four instances of low DSRs (1s or 2s) for the consequences to be applied.
In April 2010, the standards will be stricter. All eBay sellers will be required to meet these requirements in the DSR category:
·         Items as described no more than  1.00%
·         Communications no more than 2.00%
·         Shipping time no more than 2.00%
·         Shipping and handling charges no more than 2.00%

If you do not meet the standards eBay has set, you will be lowered in search standing. If you consistently do not meet these standards, eBay could limit your selling, loss of PowerSeller status and discounts, and in some cases account suspension.

To see your current low DSRs now, go to your Seller Dashboard and click on the link at the top. In October, you’ll be able to track your 1s and 2s on a daily basis on your Seller Dashboard and get insights about what you can do to improve.

 
 

Dear eBay Queen;

 
I have found a 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid for $4,950. I have sent the seller numerous emails asking questions, because this deal seems too good to be true. The seller has been good to work with, and answered all my questions.
 
Originally, I found the car on Craigslist, but the seller moved it to eBay for better protection for both the buyer and seller, (or so they said). The auction has ended, and I didn’t actually see it, but the seller has contacted eBay, asked them to reserve it for me, and had them send me an invoice so I can complete the transaction.
 
I have received the vehicle identification number and ran a CarFax report. Everything seems to check out. The seller told me the reason the price is sooooo low, is because they formerly worked for Ford so they bought it cheap. They have since moved to the UK, and need to get rid of it.
 
The car will be shipping from Virginia, where the car is currently in a shipping container. The $4,950 price includes shipping. The seller has the buyer insurance that supposedly covers $1,000-$50,000 allows you a 7 day period to return it and get a refund if the item is not satisfactory. It just seems too good to be true, what do you think?
 
Thanks for your help,
 
Eric
 
 

Dear Eric;

 
My first impression of this is that you are right; this deal might be too good to be true. 
Your email shows some of the signs of a scam.
·         Why would anyone sell a vehicle for $4950, which has an average resale price on eBay for 13K to 23K?
·         The owners are now out of the country.
·         eBay doesn’t “reserve” items for you.
·         The car is in a shipping container instead of with a relative or friend, where a buyer could go and look at it first hand.
·         The buyers insurance, I’ve never heard of anything like that.
·         The car was originally on Craigslist, and then moved to eBay for “buyer protection”. This seems odd to me, because at that price that vehicle should have sold within its first 15 minutes on any site.
 
I would not go through with this transaction because it really seems like a scam to me. 
 
Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 280371986373 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page). At the fair a few weeks ago, I was wishing they still had carnival glass. Too bad they didn’t have this for prizes! Northwood Poppy Carnival Glass Bowl Sold 2845.90  http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280371986373    
 
Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com.

 

 

Posted in Detailed Seller Ratings, General eBay Help | Tags: , , , , , | No Comments »

Free Shipping, Isn’t Free Every Where.

July 9th, 2009 | Author: admin

Dear eBay Queen

I won an item, and the seller is a bit nuts.  The auction did not say anything about shipping, other than it was FREE.  I won the auction, now she is charging me 15.00 to ship from Canada to USA.  The auction did not say free shipping ONLY in Canada!  What do I do?

I have emailed the seller, and she is nasty!!!  VERY nasty!!  She won’t do a 2nd chance offer to someone else, she won’t cancel the transaction to get her fees back so I don’t get a strike.  This seller is VERY nasty because her husband lost his job. There is only a dollar difference between me and the buyer before me. I don’t understand why she will not do a second chance offer and save the drama. I just want to neg the crap out of her.  Help!

Don’t pay for the item, leave a negative and receive an unpaid item strike. Once you receive the strike, your negative will be removed.  You will then have to appeal the strike in order to get it removed.

 

I realize you don’t want to pay the shipping.  Could there be anyway shipping was mentioned, or a statement in the eBay ad that says; “Shipping only free in Canada”? It can be easy to overlook those statements. 

 

In this situation, I would most likely email the seller again.  Let her know that you don’t want to be a pain, but you want to make sure that you’ve done everything you can to try to work it out. Ask if she has a solution other than you paying for the item.

 

Dear eBay Queen;

I normally sell on eBay however I also buy a few, things a month. Recently I bought a block knife set. The listing said the knife set was new in box, however the box was damaged. When I received the item, there was no way it was new.  Everything was very greasy and 1 knife was missing. I had emailed the seller and she wrote me back.

"You will note that my listing specified that I would not accept any refunds returns or exchanges. The shipping for this item cost me almost 18 dollars. I took a huge loss mailing it to you, and only gained about eight dollars from this sale. You paid $8 shipping.  I can scan and email you the receipt and shipping/delivery confirmation which verifies that I spent about 17.50 on shipping – I don’t have the receipt in front of me right now but it was between 17-18 dollars.

If you want to ship it back to me, I will provide you my address, and you will be refunded the cost of 35.99 less shipping (because I specifically would not accept refunds /returns/ exchanges) which would be about eight dollars. "

This seems UNREAL SHOULDN’T I GET BACK MY FULL AMOUNT?  I think I’m opening a PayPal dispute! If she paid $17 shipping and charge me $7.99 shipping, I don’t think that is my problem! Actually, I would like return shipping charges too!

Block Head

 

Dear Block;

I am really sorry you are having a hard time with this seller.  You should receive your money back without any hassle.  Is the knife set usable? I ask this, because if you file a Not As Described dispute with PayPal, you will not be refunded the return shipping costs.  You will receive the entire amount you paid to the seller, but you will still need to pay to send the item back. 

I realize this is not the news you want to hear.  Your only other option is to work something out with the seller or send the item back and pay return shipping.

 


Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 190316777118 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page).  Summer is here!  It’s time for some lemonade! I bet this would make your lemonade stand the best in town. Taylor 340-27 Slush Lemonade Frozen Drink Machine Mixer.  Sold 1140.00 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190316777118  

 

Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com.

 

 

Posted in feedback, General eBay Help, Negative Feedback, Non-Paying Buyer, Product Help, Shipping, unhappy buyer | Tags: , , , | No Comments »

When’s the Best Time to Sell Michael Jackson Collectibles?

July 4th, 2009 | Author: admin

Dear eBay Queen;
 
I am a huge Michael Jackson Fan. I was ready to sell my collection that dates back to the Jackson 5,  years ago. I was wondering if you thought it would be distasteful to sell the items now, or if I should wait until an appropriate time has past.
 
My collection consists of records; concert t-shirts, ticket stubs, rhinestone glove, signed book, dolls and a few other items. I have 4 of the Michael Jackson dolls from the 80′s that are new in the box, and an autographed T-shirt by all the Jackson 5.  Do you think these will be worth more later, or should I sell them now?
 
Jackson Fan
 
Dear Jackson;
 
I would say there is no time like the present to put your Michael Jackson items on eBay. When I last looked there were 56,800 items with “Michael Jackson” in the title. eBay is even running promotions on their home page promoting Jackson Memorabilia.
 
I checked out the dolls, and I believe they sell better individually. Some of them are selling for almost 500.00 each! When it comes to the signed book and autographed T-shirt, I would try to get a certificate of authenticity on those. This can be done by taking it to an autograph shop or collectibles store. I believe those items will sell higher being authenticated.
 
 
Dear eBay Queen;
 
What exactly is the purpose of the detailed seller ratings?  I have 100% feedback and tonight when listing an auction I got a little warning that one of my DSR’s was below 4.3 out of 5 stars. My shipping time is 4.2 evidently. I ship everything the next day unless it’s Friday then it’s shipped on Monday.
 
I don’t understand what I am doing wrong. Where do I go from here? How will this effect my selling?
 
Kate K.
 
Dear Kate;
 
I believe that detailed seller ratings or DSR’s is part of the decline of eBay.  Since the introduction of detailed seller ratings, eBay has added weight to the feedback system. The DSR rating a buyer leaves can not only affect how other buyer’s see you as a seller, but in some cases whether they see you at all. Since your shipping DSR is 4.2, you are lowered in search results. This means when a buyer uses Best Match to search for an item, yours will be one of the last ones it pulls in search, regardless of when your item ends.
 
The rating range is a 1-5 scale. If a buyer leaves you a 5 you have exceeded their expectations, a 4 you have met their expectations, a 3 you’ve neither met nor made them unhappy. A 1 or 2 star transaction represents a very unhappy buyer.   eBay has said that 4.8 is the top 10% of sellers, but a 4.3 is in the bottom 10% of sellers. That is only a 0.5 variation between the top and bottom. To me this shows the system is flawed, and it is an ineffective tool.
 
When I teach my beginning eBay class, I use the example of my mother and grandmother. My mother would leave 5 stars for almost any transaction. My grandmother would never leave a 5 even if you gift wrapped it and had John Wayne deliver it personally. There is no real system for buyers to know where on the scale to rate you. Some buyers start at 3 and add for very good service, and deduct for poor service. Some start at 5 and only deduct for bad service. There’s no standardized system. According to eBay system buyers should leave a 4.2 rating for a really poor seller and to me that makes no sense at all. 
The best thing to do is to add an insert to your packages. Here’s an example of the insert I use. “Enclosed is your recent purchase from eBay. I would like to thank you once again for your purchase and honoring your bid. If you have any questions please feel free to email me at:   I hope that you will consider leaving us positive feedback and 5 stars for this transaction. 
 
 
(Sorry these photos are so tiny)
 
Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 260436326235 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page).  I looked for one of the more unusual Michael Jackson items to sell. Here is a Michael Jackson Signed Surgical Mask. Sold $6,600.00 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260436326235 
 
Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com.
 
 

Posted in feedback, General eBay Help, Negative Feedback, Product Help | Tags: , , , , , , , | No Comments »
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