Archive for January, 2011

Dear eBay Queen:

I received an offer yesterday afternoon around 2:00PM, I accepted the offer at soon as I checked my email at around 4:00PM.  Here’s a little background information on the item I was selling: It was a
pair of designer jeans. Buy it Now was $499 and he offered me $300. I charged $35 shipping from Canada to USA, which I think is reasonable given the value of the item and next day shipping, etc. I had everything listed for my item – detailed measurements of the size, several pictures, etc. I accepted the buyer’s best offer of $300.  I received this message from the buyer on eBay after accepting an offer on the item I was selling:

I’ve done a little checking, and I think these are my options but I’m not 100% sure.  I’ve been selling on eBay for a few months, so if I have this wrong, please let me know.

·         Do as he says – I'm not sure I would get back my eBay fees since I agreed to cancel – so I won't do that.

·         Follow steps of the resolution center of unpaid item – not sure what happens in this case – best case scenario I get my eBay’s fees returned. – Can I leave a bad feedback afterwards in this case?

·         Tell the buyer that didn't pay I will cancel his transaction AFTER he gives me positive feedback. This way, I cancel the transaction and leave him negative feedback. I don't want to leave him negative feedback as he'll give me negative feedback for NO reason.

Have you ever had a situation like this before? What is the best method? I think doing the second idea is probably best, but the third one may be even better.

Thank you for all your help!

Woody, Ottawa, Canada

Dear Woody:

Well, it’s that time of year. Buyers seem to be a bit strange in January.  Your problem is a common one, I can almost guarantee that.  The buyer should have waited for you to accept or deny the offer they placed.  What probably happened is the buyer made several offers, and some other seller accepted the offer before you accepted his.

Here is eBay’s help page on unpaid items. http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/unpaid-items.html

Here are your options as I see them:

·         You can file an unpaid item dispute requesting the buyer pay for the item. If the buyer didn't pay, you will be credited for the final value fee.  If the buyer does not respond to the case within the allotted time period, he will not be able to leave negative feedback.

·         You can mutually cancel the transaction.  This is where you and the buyer both agree to end the transaction.  The buyer will not have to pay, and you will receive your final value fees back.

Once the case is closed, eBay’s Trust and Safety is automatically alerted. They will note the unpaid items on the buyer's account, which can lead to limits or suspension of their account.

I need to tell you that you can not leave a buyer negative feedback on eBay. It is also against eBay policy to tell the buyer to “leave positive feedback before you will agree to cancel the sale.”  This is considered a form of FEEDBACK EXTORTION and will get you in serious trouble with eBay.  I usually won’t mention feedback at all when dealing with a buyer, unless they mention it first.  I do have selling friends that have no problem talking about feedback.  If your buyer does leave a negative or neutral feedback, you can always leave a "Follow Up" feedback and put in it; "Buyer canceled purchase after making offer."

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 230572362929 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): It’s cold outside and you need a blanket!  Check out this 1880’s Antique Lone Star Quilt made in Pennsylvania. SOLD $2400.00  Check it out HERE 

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

Dear eBay Queen:

Two weeks ago I received an email from eBay accusing me of using another account to bid on my own auction. I forget the actual term they used for this process. My issue is, I didn't do it so how do I prove that to eBay? Granted it was just a warning, but if I can be falsely accused once, why not again and then possibly have my account suspended?

Do you have any ideas or suggestions for me?

David

Dear David:

eBay has lots of ways to figure out if someone is shill bidding, or bidding on their own auctions.  If you truly didn’t bid on your own auction, could any of your family members have bid using your ID?  Have any of your friends or family logged onto their eBay accounts from your home or computer?  If so, this could be a way they have linked your account to someone else.  Using a public computer could be the answer.  I don’t know all of the ways that eBay has to track shill bidding; I do know that they do have some pretty sophisticated ways to check up on people.

Since you just received a warning, I would probably just let it go.

Dear eBay Queen:

I have found a super good drop shipper who has a large variety of good products to sell, and the items are priced reasonably. Doing some research, I found that they sell the items a little cheaper then I can because of their listing fee breaks, etc.

Thank you.

Drop Shipper

Dear Drop Shipper:

This is a good question. I am not crazy about drop shipping, mostly because I feel I am putting my business in the hands of someone else.  In this day and age of eBay shipping, time is VERY important. Drop shippers ship on their time, not yours.

I really think most of these sellers are not drop shipping, but buying their items wholesale, in large quantities.   When you buy your merchandise in bulk, most wholesalers will give you a huge discount.

Here are some ways I believe you can be above the competition no matter what the price of your item is:

·         Keywords are important. Make sure you use descriptive words in your title and descriptions.

·         Market to your past customers.  Don't underestimate the power of this. Get a list of customers-sell to them.

·         Avoid highly competitive products. Do your product research-remembering to focus on "small niches" & hard-to-find things to sell on eBay.

·         Make your auctions look professional; don’t overload them with unnecessary information and rules.

·         Always mention that you ship instantly within 24 hours. This will give you an edge over most sellers.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 230572362929 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): Are MLK items still collectible? Check out Martin Luther King Jr. 1929-1968 Felt Banner Pennant from 1960’s SOLD $100.00     http://cgi.ebay.com/Martin-Luther-King-Jr-1929-1968-Felt-Banner-Pennant-60s-/230572362929

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

Dear eBay Queen:

Two weeks ago I listed an item. The winning bidder did not pay, so I filed a non paying bidder dispute. The case was closed with an unpaid item strike.

This morning, I got the following message from that bidder: "I am going out of town tomorrow morning for a week, which is before your action ends. If I win this item, can you wait until the week of January 24^th for me to pay for it, or do you have a buy-now price?"

The auction never had a Buy-It-Now and of course I am not going to end it early. I am really tired of this poor item getting won and not paid for. I am leaning toward just blocking this person, canceling his bid and being done with this buyer. What do you think?

Leslie

Dear Leslie:

What is your gut instinct?  Do you believe they will pay?  I know how annoying it is to have a buyer not pay.  I would probably wait it out, the auction isn’t over yet, and your newbie buyer may not even end up as the high bidder.  Most people who do not intend to pay would not communicate with you like this buyer has.  Chances are they will make good on their bid.

Dear eBay Queen:

I shipped a Priority box on the 15th (received payment Saturday; shipped Monday); tracking shows it will be delivered today, the 17th. I use third-party software to manage my transactions, so eBay never knows if I've shipped something. I sent the buyer the tracking info (via direct email) and have no reason to think there's a problem.

I know you may wonder why I don't just follow eBay's request and upload the tracking info. Well, it's not easy to explain, but I've been managing my sales on my own computer for all these years, and I like to think of my buyers as MY buyers — they seem to appreciate the personal communication and one-on-one customer service, and I think they probably get a little annoyed by eBay's/PayPal’s canned emails full of links to this and that.

Rebecca; Olathe, KS

Dear Rebecca:

I received a few of those emails on a Sunday, when the buyer paid on Saturday!  My shipping policy is that I ship within 24 hours.  The problem with eBay’s new shipping notification system is that it doesn’t seem to recognize that 99% of all post offices are not open on Sundays.  You can turn off those notifications if you do not want to receive them.  They are generated from eBay and not by the buyer.

You are completely within your right as a seller to keep taking care of your buyers the way you always have.  I don’t think there is anything wrong with that, and felt much the same way you did.  I called eBay to complain about the notifications and explain to them how it would be impossible for me to ship an item on a Sunday.  The customer support person explained to me how if I would enter the tracking information for my items during that 24 hour period I promised to ship, the buyer would not be allowed to leave anything less than 5 stars on my shipping time DSR.  This little tidbit totally changed my mind, and we now package and make labels within that 24 hour promised shipping time period.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 280610977454(enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): How much is an 8 year old teddy bear worth? Check out this Disney Duffy Bear 2003 Valentines Day Hidden Mickey SOLD $2550.00     http://cgi.ebay.com/Disney-Duffy-Bear-2003-Valentines-Day-Hidden-Mickey-/280610977454

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