Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

Dear eBay Queen:

For years I have sent my customers an email reply to their PayPal payment in order to let them know that their package is on the way. (I know eBay has automated features for this, but I’ve always liked the more personal communication.) Now, all of a sudden, the emails are coming from service@paypal.com rather than from individual email addresses – so, I can’t reply. Is this something new? I also upgraded my store the other day (from Basic to Premium), and am curious if it had something to do with that, instead?

Dana,  Tampa, Florida

Dear Dana:

eBay has a new email policy when it comes to emailing our customers.  I don’t agree with it, and I believe it is hurting the site as a whole, but they have implemented it because a select few people are spamming our customers. Here’s a link to the email policy. http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/rfe-spam-ov.html

On a more positive note, if you use PayPal for your shipping, eBay will automatically put the tracking number in the listing and send it to your customer.  If you don’t use PayPal for your shipping, you can still enter it into the listing and eBay will let your buyer know.

Dear eBay Queen:

HELP! I purchased a beautiful punch bowl set on eBay 5 days ago.  The person only lived 20 miles away, so I asked if I could pick the item up.  This arrangement was ok with her, and I met her in the parking lot of Target, gave her the money, and received the item.

Today, I woke up to a complaint against me on eBay!  She just put a strike against me for non- payment!  How can she do this? I met, paid ($182.99) and picked up my punch bowl.  I’ve already left positive feedback for the transaction.  I emailed the following to her, but have not heard back:

“I am wondering why you filed for an un-paided item strike against me.  Don’t you remember that we met?  I gave you $183.00 in cash.  We joked about keeping the penny!  We talked about how much you loved the bow in my daughter’s hair, and I gave you a card to my Etsy business!  What exactly is going on?  Why are you trying to ruin my reputation on eBay?  Please contact me as soon as possible so we can get this straightened out.”
Do you have any suggestions for me?  What can I do next time so that this doesn’t happen?

Yvette, Edgerton, KS

Dear Yvette:

This is a really strange thing that your seller has done.  I would imagine they have made and error and they do not realize what they have done.  Maybe they had 2 different punch bowls and filed a strike for the wrong person?  My other thought is that eBay has a program in place that they (eBay) automatically file the strikes for sellers when it shows a person has not paid.  Maybe your seller did not mark your item paid, and eBay’s automatic system started the unpaid item strike process.  I can’t think of too many other reasons a seller would file an unpaid item strike.

You did the right thing by emailing the seller.  I would go a step further and look at their completed listings to see if they maybe sold another punch bowl or similar item and were confused if they themselves filed the strike.

If you don’t hear anything from your seller in the next few days, I would contact eBay and tell them what happened.  I’m pretty sure eBay would remove the strike and contact the seller on your behalf.

I’ve never picked anything up myself, but I’ve had plenty of things picked up.  I give the person a receipt with both our signatures on it.  If the item is over more than 200.00 I ask for the person’s drivers license, and I make a photo copy of mine and theirs on the same page.  This way, if there is ever a dispute with PayPal there is proof that both of us were there and the item was received.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item: 200691021974 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page.  Do you collect stamps? Do you like Girl Scouts? Check out this Red and Black omitted Girl Scout stamp set HERE SOLD $975.00

Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul, Kansas.

Dear eBay Queen:

I sell handmade jewelry and key chains. Lately I’ve noticed all kinds of problems with eBay figuring my shipping charges for buyers. Because of this, I’ve received some less than positive feedback and I’ve really taken a hit on my shipping DSR’S. I don’t pad shipping charges to make a profit. I charge actual shipping on my packages, with a $1.00 domestic and $2.00 International handling fee to cover packing materials.

On this last set of auctions I ran, eBay quoted shipping fees which were $1 to almost $5 less than the minimum fee from the post office. Not only that, but in every case my handling fees were not charged. Many of my buyers threw a fit and refuse to pay ACTUAL shipping fees so I canceled 4 sales and refunded them. Each auction I cancelled was for a $2.00- $4.00 sale so apparently these people actually expected me to pay out of my pocket to send them a free item.

I tried to contact eBay about the problem, and all I received was a strange apology and a denial of a problem with eBay shipping quotes.

I swear, eBay just isn’t for me! I can’t seem to do anything right!

Christine

Dear Christine:

Don’t give up! I think I have a solution for you. Since you sell mostly small first class items, have you considered listing your items with a flat rate shipping price? This way your handling and shipping charges are listed upfront for the buyers to see, and you are not relying on eBay to give shipping quotes to your buyer.

I have experienced these errors in shipping on eBay also, fortunately they have only happened once or twice in my 12 years on eBay.

Dear eBay Queen:

I was in the market for some Converse All Star shoes for my kids. I found a seller with TONS of new Converse and emailed them (before bidding) to see if they would combine shipping. The seller told me yes, so I happily bid on a few of their items. The auction ended, and I promptly requested an invoice.

I received my invoice and noticed they did not offer combined shipping and told me they make up the cost of the item, with their shipping. We exchanged a few message (mostly one sided) and the seller only took $1.00 off, so I ended up paying $28.00 worth of shipping. Not wanting to have a bad mark against my eBay account, I paid the seller the next day. Today, I log on and find the seller has opened a “non paying bidder case” on the 3 items I bought from him.

I don’t understand what the problem is. I have tried to contact the seller, but the only option I have seems to be pay the seller. I wanted to see if there are more options past that so I clicked the “pay now button” and got the following error:

“These items are not available for payment. They may be already paid for, over 30 days old, or just currently unavailable.”

So I couldn’t pay this seller, even if that was my only option (which I would not do AGAIN). What are my options and were do I go from here?

George K.

Dear George:

I am really sorry this seller has such poor customer service. Since you paid for the item, and PayPal shows payment was made, follow the instructions in the notification email from eBay. The notification will be responding to the non-paying bidder claim with the reference numbers from PayPal that show your payment to the seller. Your case will close very quickly and in your favor. eBay will instruct him to ship NOW.

The reason your only option right now is to contact seller or pay the seller, and the system won’t even let you pay seller, is that you already did. It won’t let you pay twice, not easily anyway. I would suggest that you email a copy of your response to the seller. The seller most likely has just made a mistake and has lost track of your payment.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 150502145713 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): Do you call it Soda or Pop? Check out this Antique Folwers Cherry Smash Soda Fountain Dispenser. SOLD $2025.00  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;

I’m new to selling on eBay, but not to buying.  I now have a ton of things I’d like to get rid of, and I am looking into the potential of this as a side business to bring in a little extra money.  I’d really like to start out on the right foot and do things properly, but there’s so much conflicting information out there.  I checked out some books from my local library, but they’re relatively old and I assume….useless.  Can you all point me in the right direction?

Where can I find basic information on shipping options, auction management, tips for listings etc?  I’d like to find out what the best options are buy-it-now vs. auction and UPS vs. USPS for example.  I’m just trying to make this the shortest learning curve possible.

Sorry…I know it’s a pain to deal with newbies, but I appreciate any information you could give me.

Betsy

Dear Betsy;

When it comes to books about eBay, I like eBay For Dummies by Marsha Collier (6^th edition) and The Complete Idiot’s Guide to eBay (2md Edition) by Skip McGrath. Both of these books were written by people that are very knowledgeable when it comes to eBay and the books were published in 2009.  They will be missing some of the new eBay rules, but for the most part be up to date.

Another place to check would be in eBay’s Learning Center http://pages.ebay.com/education/ You can watch video’s, check out the tutorials or find a class in your area.

When it comes to shipping, I have found USPS to be best for first class and items weighing 1 to 2lbs. Over 2lbs I ship with UPS.  eBay has a Shipping information page that you might find helpful. http://pages.ebay.com/sellerinformation/shipping/shippingtools.html

Let me know if I can help you on your road to becoming an eBay Seller.

Dear eBay Queen;

I’ve been searching for a Nintendo NES.  I found one on eBay, but there was no description to speak of so I wrote the seller and asked if the item worked.  The seller responded, almost immediately, and told me she had not checked the system, because she did not have a game. She said she would ask her son in law if he would bring a game over and test it out. I wrote her back and asked her to email me to let me know if it worked.  I never heard from her again.

This game system was in my watched items, so on the day it was to end, I went back into the listing and saw there were other questions that had been answered, which stated it did work. Because of this, I bid and won.  She said she’d mail within 4 days of payment.  I never heard a word.  So 8 days after I paid I emailed and asked if she had shipped it. She responded, stating no she had a death in her family, and she could overnight it to me or meet me half way in Lawrence.  (The seller lives in Topeka, and I live in Richmond Ks.).  I thanked her for the offer, and said mailing it would be fine.

It arrived yesterday, in a priority mail flat rate shipping box without ANY padding, newspaper or peanuts.  The post office left outside by my mailbox on the ground. I can not believe she did not make ANY effort to protect the contents of the box! When I opened up the package, the game system was so dirty!  It looked like peanut butter and jelly had been wiped ALL OVER the console!

I cleaned the NES up, and it does work.  I am wondering what kind of feedback should I give this seller. Do you think I should give her a positive or a neutral?  What about the stars for shipping time? She’s been on eBay since 2009, with 32 positive feedback and no negatives. She only has 13 DSR star points.

J Banks; Richmond, KS

Dear J;

This is one of those occasions where I would probably leave no feedback at all, but I would email them and in the kindest way let them know what was wrong with the situation.  You obviously have a new seller, and they need a little bit of guidance on how to list and ship eBay items.  One of the reasons this transaction was not the best it could be was because of the death in the sellers family.  They could have lost someone close to them and they were not really thinking properly when they sent the item to you.

Here’s hoping your next transactions are better!

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 260657104135 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): Do you love war history? Check out these Original D-Day Maps with previously classified information! SOLD $15,000.00 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260657104135

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.