Tag Archives: Dear eBay Queen

Dear eBay Queen: Will Disclaimers Help My eBay Business?

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Dear eBay Queen:

Maybe it’s the heat of the summer here in Arizona, or maybe it’s just I’ve had all I can take with eBay.  It seems like lately all I get are complaints from buyers.  I receive one negative and one neutral feedback.  One states: “Didn’t ship fast enough” the other states:  “I didn’t know this was used.”  I responded to both of them, and I did ship the item same day, and the other item was clearly marked as vintage/used.  I received a message the other day from a buyer that had NO IDEA the “Depression Glass dishes I sent her were USED.”  And no, that was not from the person that left negative or neutral feedback.  I am on a Facebook eBay group, and one guy was talking about putting a disclaimer in his listings.  I’m thinking of doing the same thing, except update it to fit me.  This person KNOWS exactly how I feel.

Here is my disclaimer for my listings it is a mixture of the Facebook guy and mine.  I want to know what you think of it.

“Hi! I want you to be so happy with your purchase.  Here recently, I have had a rash of people leaving bad feedback.  I have this eBay business because I want to make a little money to help my family.  I’m not really a professional at this business, but I’m not a slouch either.  I learned from my parents and grandparents about antiques and collectibles.  Almost everything I sell is USED.  Buy USED it’s good for the environment!

Since the items are 20 to 100 years old, they are probably not in new condition. I am not an expert, but I do know a thing or two about antiques.  Sometimes I may miss something, but I do stand behind my products.  Keep in mind that it may not look like you want it when you are holding it in your hand.
Recently I had a buyer complain that her item had dust on it.  REALLY?  Wipe it off! I live in Arizona, the great Southwest! We have wind here and desert- like dirt.

When I buy these items at auctions, estate sales, flea markets or garage sales, I don’t ask the history behind the piece.  All I know is where I purchased it, and sometimes I do not know that!

I’ve had people ask if my items come from a non-smoking home.  I do not smoke, but my roommate smokes outside, and my attached garage (where the items are stored) is not only attached to my duplex, it’s attached to the neighbors.  That idiot smokes.  So sometimes my stuff might smell like smoke.  And again I don’t know the history of the stuff that I pick for all I know, they could have come from Joe Camel’s personal man-cave.

What I can promise is that if you have any questions or would like a picture at a different angle please feel free to ask questions BEFORE bidding and I will do everything in my power to help you.”

Do you think I should correct anything?  I thought it was nice enough. What are your disclaimers?

CTG

 

Dear CTG:

I think you can get those negative and neutral feedback removed. Call into eBay immediately and ask for the feedback to be reviewed.  Explain how you shipped the same day, and how you stated in your title, item specifics and description that the item is vintage/used.  I bet they will be removed for you.

I think it is best to have simple service disclaimers.  Such as: “I ship Monday through Friday!” Or: “We have the best question response time on eBay!”  Try to avoid the negative.   Although the smoking comment was witty, I think it would be best to say something like.  “I do not smoke, but my neighbor that I share storage space with does. Sometimes, that smell may be attached to the items I sell.”

I have found that long disclaimers turn buyers off. I would avoid those at any cost.

 ebaypiratebook

Strange eBay item of the Week: Item #:201594230454. It’s been quite a while since I looked for a book on eBay. It’s a book full of facts about pirates! Pirates Exquemelin Alexadre Olivier Bucaniers of America or A Lot 247 SOLD$5800.00.

 

 

Dear eBay Queen: I’ve Got a Buyer Making Crazy Demands and Feedback Extortion. What Do I Do?

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Dear eBay Queen:

I sell Fat Heads and Foam Heads on eBay and my web store.  I rarely have any issues.  I received a message from the buyer saying at about 1:00 AM on Sunday morning saying this isn’t what his son wanted – can I cancel?

Around 3:30AM on Sunday morning I receive a second message that says:  “Don’t worry about cancelling.  My son has decided that HE IS going to University of Florida and he does need not only one, but two foam heads.

I packed the items up to ship on Tuesday July 5th, and I receive a third message this morning saying that this was supposed to be shipped yesterday! (The day he told me to cancel.)

I sent a message to the buyer and told him it is Sunday evening and tomorrow is the 4th. I also let him know I sent him an additional invoice, (which he has not paid) and packed the one foam head he did pay for to ship out.

I then receive his 4th message: “What are you talking about lady?  It’s buy one get one on the gator heads!  Why should I have to pay for a second one?”

5th message “Ok so I’ve thought about this. I won’t adding to you feedback percentage.  I will be taking away from it. This is quite possibly the worst transaction I’ve ever had on eBay!  Go ahead and send out the *1* gator head.  I will be returning it as soon as it arrives.  I will also be tearing it up. It will be unrecognizable when you get it back. I can’t stand idiot sellers like yourself you think you can take advantage of people like me.  You won’t even live up to the standards that are in your own listings. I will be returning your product and I will never do business with you again. You give me no other option but to return the item and give you very bad feedback thanks for wasting my time.”

I know I shouldn’t have done it, but I responded.  I tried to be nice.

“I am sorry there must be some kind of misunderstanding; I have reviewed my listing, and nowhere does it say buy one get one free.  I will refund your money immediately. I am very sorry for the confusion.”

He responds.   “Please send it to me anyway.  I must have confused you with another seller.”

What should I do?  He’s threatened to give me negative feedback AND tear up my product.

CLA
Dear CLA:

WHOA! Talk about someone that can’t make up their mind!  Here is how I look at it.

If you send it to him:

  • He could be happy with it and leave you positive feedback.  He may have confused your item with another seller.
  • He could be unhappy with the product, and do exactly what he said.  Tear it up and send it back, and don’t forget the negative feedback.

You could refund his money:

  • He might leave negative feedback
  • Turn you in as a non-selling seller

I am pretty sure no matter what happens, the negative feedback will be removed, because he did clearly use feedback extortion.  Normally I would say to call in and report this to eBay, which wouldn’t hurt, but I don’t think they will be able to do anything until your buyer does something. I think I would probably send the buyer’s item out and wait to see what happens.  You have enough crazy emails from this guy to show you did nothing wrong.  If the worst happens, and he tears the foam head up and returns it, you have proof in his messages he said he would do this

acegasoline

Strange eBay Item of the Week: Item #252402698841. It is hot outside! Old advertising thermometers are highly collectible. Ace High Gasoline Wil Flo Motor Oil Thermometer Porcelain Very Rare Advertising SOLD: $2716.00.

Dear eBay Queen: Let Me Show You How to Cancel an eBay Transaction

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Dear eBay Queen:

March 29th  I purchased a Nintendo DS XL for my granddaughter.  I figured out about 10 minutes after I bought it that it was not the newest model. I messaged the seller to let them know that I wanted to cancel the transaction, and I received this message from them:

“Geez lady! I’m not selling this stuff for my health! Shouldn’t you know what you’re purchasing before you purchase it! I don’t really want to cancel the transaction.  Why don’t you purchase it and sell it yourself?  I see you are a seller!  That’s probably what you are going to do anyway since you got this one so cheap!”

I didn’t respond, I just paid for the item, and went and bought my granddaughter the one she wanted on Target.com.  Later in the day the seller sent me this message:

“Way to go! You’ve paid for the item.  I’ll ship it out in the next couple of days.”

I received the Nintendo DS that I purchased from the eBay Seller, and I immediately put it on eBay, and sold it for $20.00 more than I paid!

This last week a buyer purchased a Fiesta sugar, creamer and coffee pot from me on eBay.  They messaged me this before she paid:

“Hi, I have been wanting to complete my set for years.  I just found out my daughter in law purchased a set for me for Mother’s Day.  Would there be any way that I could cancel this transaction?  If not, I completely understand. I had no idea that my daughter in law would do something this wonderful for me.  I guess she does listen to me when I talk!”

I messaged the buyer back telling them no problem, and then I cancelled their transaction.  The buyer sent the following message to me:

“Thank you so much! I was so afraid to write you.  I buy a few things a month on eBay, and I’ve never asked to cancel a transaction. I have heard some nightmare stories from other people about how sellers are not nice to buyers.  You have changed my mind.  Thank you so much for doing this for me.  I really appreciate your kindness, and I will be looking at your other Fiesta Ware items.”

I’m a seller, and I understand it is disappointing to lose a sale, but why are other sellers so rude?

Jill

Dear Jill:

It is disappointing to lose a sale, but it is more disappointing to lose a customer.  I think you did the right thing on both issues.  What kind of feedback did you leave the seller that was rude?  I think I would have said. “Tried to cancel purchase. Seller refused. I sold for more money.”

Thanks for being a good example of what a buyer and seller should be on eBay.

 

Dear eBay Queen:

I sell mostly children’s clothing, and I ship them in either Tyvek or plastic bags.  A buyer sent me a message saying they cut the shirt when the opened the package, and asked I would replace it.  I told her I was sorry, but I could not replace the item.  She responded with this:

“What kind of seller are you? The envelopes you use need a scissor to open the package, so it is your fault that I cut the package! You need to use different envelopes or fold your products better. I think you should give me a full refund, or at least split the costs with me. I will NEVER buy anything from you. I will tell all my friends not to buy anything either!  You can guess what kind of feedback comment you will be giving me.”

What should I do?  Do you think I should actually give this woman back her money?  I called eBay, and I was told that what she said was feedback extortion and if she leaves the feedback they will remove it.  They did not give me any advice about the refund.

CP
Dear CP:

I would not give her back her money.  She admitted she cut the item when she opened the package.  If she had not admitted to it, and just said there was a cut in the item when she received it that would be a different story.  You would be forced to refund her money.

In a situation like this I would block her, and watch for her negative.  Once she leaves it call eBay and they will remove it.

spidermancomic

Strange eBay Item of the Week: Item #281747980393: Comic books are really collectible.  When it’s the right one, it’s worth a lot of money.  Check out this one! Amazing Fantasy #15 CGC 4.0 SS Stan Lee Signed 1st Appearance of Spider-Man!  SOLD: $85000.00.

 

Dear eBay Queen: A Blocked Buyer is Threatening to Bombard Me with Negatives

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Dear eBay Queen:

I’m not sure what to do about this. I had a potential buyer message me and tell me that they tried to buy a pair of shoes from me, and they were told *I* as a seller would not sell to them. I wasn’t sure what they were talking about, and I went did a bit of research, and figured out that I blocked them a couple of years ago, for leaving me a negative feedback. I messaged them and said the following:

“Thank you for letting me know you were unable to bid. I did some research, and I see that you left me a negative feedback on April 21, 2013 regarding a pair of shoes that you bought. The feedback stated ‘Took 5 days to arrive. Won’t refund Shipping.’ I sent you an email and asked if you would be willing to remove the negative, because I sent your shoes in less than 24 hours of your payment. You responded that you ‘would not unless I refunded your money and let you keep the shoes.’ I was unable to do that, so I kept the negative, and blocked you.

Today I reviewed the feedback you leave other people on Toolhaus. I see that you still have an issue leaving negative feedback for unsuspecting sellers. At this time I am really not interested in selling to a person that gives negatives so freely. Thank you for your interest.”

I guess that was the wrong thing to do, because that made this person FREAK OUT. She sent me back a crazy email that says:

“Oh, REALLY? So now you get to decide if I can buy on eBay? What is the world coming to these days? Who died and made you the eBay Queen? It’s a good thing you don’t know who I really am! I can get my friends to buy your crappy shoes and lame gifts and see if their experience is good. And before you send me a message about how I can’t do it, Just Wait.”

I guess I should not have responded to this lady. Who knew she would react that way? I’ve contacted Seller Support about this, is there anything else I should do?

Linda P.
Dear Linda:

Well, normally I would tell you to message her back and explain to her that you are NOT the eBay Queen, but you know who is ;). With this lady I would not respond. If you have contacted eBay support by phone, I would say that is all you really can do.

I hope that she does not follow through with her threats, and if she does, eBay handles it swiftly.

 

Dear eBay Queen:

I’m really frustrated. I bid on a cute leather jacket with fringe, and 2 days later I found the same jacket in the color I really wanted. It had a buy it now, so I bought it. I told the first seller that I no longer wanted their jacket, and they told me I needed to cancel my bid. I thought it was enough that I told them, so I didn’t do it. Well, come to find out they have filed a non-paying bidder against me. I’m pretty ticked about this. I called eBay, and they told me I would need to pay for the item, or work it out with my seller. I DON’T WANT THE ITEM! Why do I have to do work it with the seller? Just re-list it. Is there something I can say to this seller that will keep me from getting a strike against my account?

 

GLD

Dear GLD:

eBay is really the final authority on this. If you haven’t messaged the seller yet, it wouldn’t hurt to message them and ask if they would cancel it. The worse thing they can do is say no.

 

 

Strange eBay Item of the Week: Item #371384898461. You can find very unique pieces of jewelry if you look on eBay. I found these just by searching for pearl earrings. Designer Trianon 18K Yellow Gold Carved Shell Turquoise Pearl Earrings SOLD: $2698.98.