Question:
<<Feedback is about the transaction, which isn’t usefully complete until Acceptance or resolution of dissatisfaction. Unfortunately the screwed-up system on eBay has rendered feedback almost worthless in my opinion. I think feedback is about whatever you want it to be about. If it makes you more comfortable to wait until the item is received and follow-up by leaving feedback, then that’s the right thing for you. I leave feedback when I get payment. I figure that the buyer is taking a big risk in sending money to me — a total stranger. I reward him/her by leaving him a good comment. Plus I’m too lazy to keep track of it later. I’ve got 100% positive so this method hasn’t hurt me any. As for the situation at hand, I’d just leave positives. Some will notice and reciprocate and some won’t. Maggie
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As for the situation at hand, I’d just leave positives. Some will notice and reciprocate and some won’t.
What colour star have you reached with this method out of interest? Mike
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As for the situation at hand, I’d just leave positives. Some will notice and reciprocate and some won’t. What colour star have you reached with this method out of interest?
Well, I’m no power seller. I’ve got 1,067 unique feedbacks (1,134 altogether) and a red star. And as I’ve said, this is my method. I’m not saying it’s right for everybody. Maggie
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- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – <snip Thanks for all the replies, certainly food for thought. As a seller I use vrane.com to return all the feedbacks I get automatically, mainly because most of my customers leave feedback first without emailing me to tell me they have received their goods. I do leave feedback first for the bidders that request it and have already confirmed safe receipt of the goods. The ones that I have no contact with once the goods are dispatched I dont leave feedback for. <snip Let me get this straight. These 100 people that you were going to "politely" ask for feedback from were primarily people you haven’t left feedback for either? Forget about it being rude, that just moves it over into the downright obnoxious category, no matter how you word your email. Someone asking someone else to leave feedback when they haven’t left it themselves is going to be incredibly offensive to a large number of buyers. Have you considered that some of these people may not be leaving you feedback because you didn’t leave them feedback?
Begging for feedback is exactly the same as a waiter shitting on your table. See http://www.tinaja.com/glib/ebaybuy.pdf — Many thanks, Don Lancaster Synergetics 3860 West First Street Box 809 Thatcher, AZ 85552 Please visit my GURU’s LAIR web site at http://www.tinaja.com
Response:
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – As for the situation at hand, I’d just leave positives. Some will notice and reciprocate and some won’t. What colour star have you reached with this method out of interest? Well, I’m no power seller. I’ve got 1,067 unique feedbacks (1,134 altogether) and a red star. And as I’ve said, this is my method. I’m not saying it’s right for everybody. Maggie
Eventually it will not be right for you either. Even slow learners sooner or later see the light. NEVER leave feedback until after the buyer reports receipt of the item! Doing anything earlier is a serious disservice to other eBay sellers. — Many thanks, Don Lancaster Synergetics 3860 West First Street Box 809 Thatcher, AZ 85552 Please visit my GURU’s LAIR web site at http://www.tinaja.com
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NEVER leave feedback until after the buyer reports receipt of the item! Doing anything earlier is a serious disservice to other eBay sellers.
I disagree. Maggie
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I wait till I ship (it makes my bookkeeping easier) but other than that I do the same thing you do. Doing it this way, I’ve managed 1898 feedback, 1556 unique, and all positive.
What percentage of returned positives do you get out of interest? Mike
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Let me get this straight. These 100 people that you were going to "politely" ask for feedback from were primarily people you haven’t left feedback for either?
I don’t leave feedback before the buyer confirms safe receipt of the goods by email or telephone – these outstanding feedbacks from people who haven’t been in touch since payment – if they don’t confirm successful receipt of the goods then I don’t leave them feedback, as I cant be sure the transaction is "complete". I’m thinking it would be better to leave feedback anyway even though I haven’t had any contact with them, read the end of the post. going to be incredibly offensive to a large number of buyers.
I can see it being cheeky, but offensive? Its not like I insulted their mothers! Mike
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Over the past 3 months I see I’ve got over 100 bidders who haven’t yet left me feedback. Would it be considered rude if I email them asking them if everything was OK, and politely asking them to leave me feedback for the transaction? Mike
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something like: Over the past 3 months I see I’ve got over 100 bidders who haven’t yet left me feedback. Would it be considered rude if I email them asking them if everything was OK, and politely asking them to leave me feedback for the transaction?
Ooh, you just poked the hornet’s nest with a stick! Expect a long-running thread on this one. Short answer: depends. Some people think it’s fine, and some people think it’s rude. The ones who think it’s fine will probably leave you feedback, and the ones who don’t will probably ignore you or leave you less-desirable feedback. Personally I’d be fine with it as long as it was just ONE e-mail; I recall one poster who sent three or four asking for feedback, which I think is obnoxious. -Bertha — I was playing poker the other night–with Tarot cards. I got a full house and four people died. – Steven Wright
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Over the past 3 months I see I’ve got over 100 bidders who haven’t yet left me feedback. Would it be considered rude if I email them asking them if everything was OK, and politely asking them to leave me feedback for the transaction? Short answer: depends. Some people think it’s fine, and some people think it’s rude. The ones who think it’s fine will probably leave you feedback, and the ones who don’t will probably ignore you or leave you less-desirable feedback. Personally I’d be fine with it as long as it was just ONE e-mail; I recall one poster who sent three or four asking for feedback, which I think is obnoxious.
Yeah, I don’t ask for feedback. I don’t think it’s rude, I’m just too proud to beg, like that guy in the Bible. (Sorry, God. Working on it.) But, if people ask me, I don’t give them rotten feedback or anything. Some people have a feedback request as a standard in their "I paid you" message. Bonita
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"Mike" wrote Over the past 3 months I see I’ve got over 100 bidders who haven’t yet left me feedback. Would it be considered rude if I email them asking them if everything was OK, and politely asking them to leave me feedback for the transaction? Mike
No: it’s a great idea. You’ll probably get at least one neutral, and, if you’re ~really~ lucky, someone will neg you for your feedback-fishing. link
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<snip Thanks for all the replies, certainly food for thought. As a seller I use vrane.com to return all the feedbacks I get automatically, mainly because most of my customers leave feedback first without emailing me to tell me they have received their goods. I do leave feedback first for the bidders that request it and have already confirmed safe receipt of the goods. The ones that I have no contact with once the goods are dispatched I dont leave feedback for. <snip
Let me get this straight. These 100 people that you were going to "politely" ask for feedback from were primarily people you haven’t left feedback for either? Forget about it being rude, that just moves it over into the downright obnoxious category, no matter how you word your email. Someone asking someone else to leave feedback when they haven’t left it themselves is going to be incredibly offensive to a large number of buyers. Have you considered that some of these people may not be leaving you feedback because you didn’t leave them feedback?
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My policy has been that I leave Feedback as soon as the buyer has paid for the item, even before I ship it.
Which is fine, as long as the train stays on the rails. I feel at this point, they’ve done their part and I’m happy to reward them for it. I don’t think the buyer should be judged for what happens after that.
Including? * charge-back on CC * has PayPal reverse the payment * does stop-payment on check or MO * claims item never arrived, when it did * item DOES go missing, you refund, buyer goes postal anyway * refuses delivery (had it happen) * pulls a bitch&switch * other Buyer-From-Hell scenarios Feedback is about the transaction, which isn’t usefully complete until Acceptance or resolution of dissatisfaction. Feedback is about the participants, and there’s lots more participation yet come at the point you get paid. This does not mean Buyer-Posts-1st, just that buyer reports Acceptance. Buyer can post FB second, or never, but I want any "issues" to be as settled as they are likely to get before I (as seller) post FB. — Regards, PO Box 248 Bob Niland Enterprise which, due to spam, is: 67441-0248 email4rjn AT yahoo DOT com http://www.access-one.com/rjn Unless otherwise specifically stated, expressing personal opinions and NOT speaking for any employer, client or Internet Service Provider.
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– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – <snip My policy has been that I leave Feedback as soon as the buyer has paid for the item, even before I ship it. I feel at this point, they’ve done their part and I’m happy to reward them for it. I don’t think the buyer should be judged for what happens after that. So far so good….only 48 feedbacks but 100% rating. JonBonGuitarMon I wait till I ship (it makes my bookkeeping easier) but other than that I do the same thing you do. Doing it this way, I’ve managed 1898 feedback, 1556 unique, and all positive.
Same here. I leave feedback and mark the item "shipped" as the last part of my bookkeeping routine. 1551 positives. 1330 are from unique users. No negatives. Like Richard, I have a couple of converted neutrals — plus one neutral from an early transaction where the buyer later posted a positive to make up for it (you could do that then). Kris
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We could re-open the frequent discussion on WHY seller-first, but the point is the bottom line. Sellers with a buyer-1st policy are going to get dramatically less FB, and likely lower bids (if the bidders detect the policy).
Thanks for all the replies, certainly food for thought. As a seller I use vrane.com to return all the feedbacks I get automatically, mainly because most of my customers leave feedback first without emailing me to tell me they have received their goods. I do leave feedback first for the bidders that request it and have already confirmed safe receipt of the goods. The ones that I have no contact with once the goods are dispatched I dont leave feedback for. Apart from NPBs and one or two arsey customers who I’ve had difficulties with due to misunderstandings/unreasonable expectations, the rest I am confident have received the goods and are happy with things. I don’t understand why some people find it offensive being asked for feedback (the tipping the waitress argument doesn’t work for me), though I do recognize a fair percentage object to it, so would like to see if a different approach would be wiser. Which of the following would be best? A) Left them all positives and hoped a couple would notice and return them out of curtsey B) Left them all positives, then emailed them thanking them for their business and informing them I’ve left good feedback C) Do nothing at all and forget about the outstanding FBs Mike
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Like most sellers, we wait until the buyer has received the item, is happy with it, and leaves the appropriate feedback for us.
My policy has been that I leave Feedback as soon as the buyer has paid for the item, even before I ship it. I feel at this point, they’ve done their part and I’m happy to reward them for it. I don’t think the buyer should be judged for what happens after that. So far so good….only 48 feedbacks but 100% rating. JonBonGuitarMon
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<snip My policy has been that I leave Feedback as soon as the buyer has paid for the item, even before I ship it. I feel at this point, they’ve done their part and I’m happy to reward them for it. I don’t think the buyer should be judged for what happens after that. So far so good….only 48 feedbacks but 100% rating. JonBonGuitarMon
I wait till I ship (it makes my bookkeeping easier) but other than that I do the same thing you do. Doing it this way, I’ve managed 1898 feedback, 1556 unique, and all positive.
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Over time, you will find that you will receive feedback from between 1/3 and 1/2 of all transactions.
That’s a very low return. As a seller, we never leave feedback first.
But it’s consistent with this ill-considered policy. Like most sellers, we wait until the buyer has received the item, is happy with it, and leaves the appropriate feedback for us.
So even if the buyer sends an email saying: delivered, complete, undamaged, as-advertised, you still won’t post FB first? My policy is: Seller posts FB first, but only after buyer indicates Acceptance. When I’m a buyer, I make a point of sending a delivery report and indicating acceptance. Any seller who expects me to also post FB first will never get FB. And if they have buyer-1st in the auction terms, or on their About-Me page, or merely evidence of it in their FB timing, I won’t even bid. We could re-open the frequent discussion on WHY seller-first, but the point is the bottom line. Sellers with a buyer-1st policy are going to get dramatically less FB, and likely lower bids (if the bidders detect the policy). — Regards, PO Box 248 Bob Niland Enterprise which, due to spam, is: 67441-0248 email4rjn AT yahoo DOT com http://www.access-one.com/rjn Unless otherwise specifically stated, expressing personal opinions and NOT speaking for any employer, client or Internet Service Provider.
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I never mention feedback in email, except perhaps to say: "and I’ve done the same for you" if they email to say they’ve left Pos. FB needs to be deferred and de-emphasized.
Quite right. If a seller asks me for feedback, and I find they have not already given me feedback, I *always* neg them for harassment. If they have left feedback, I’ll ignore the request – or tell ‘em they’re stupid if I can be bothered. I always leave feedback, as buyer and seller – but I’ll leave what I want, when I want to. Feedback is entirely optional, and not a tool for pushy sellers to blackmail buyers with. Ooooh I feel better now! — Andrew eBay Weirdities http://www.real-pubs.com/ebay-stuff/
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Never ask for feedback. Over time, you will find that you will receive feedback from between 1/3 and 1/2 of all transactions. It is not a requirement to do so. As a seller, we never leave feedback first. Like most sellers, we wait until the buyer has received the item, is happy with it, and leaves the appropriate feedback for us. If the buyer is not happy, we expect him to contact us so that we may try and resolve any issues which have arisen. We do not expect to receive a negative from a buyer simply because he was having a bad day, or because he did not receive his parcel as quickly as he thought it should arrive. Many newbie buyers have no idea when to expect an item. With feedback comments left for us from 5000+ unique members, we have just 4 negatives, and 3 of those were in retaliation of us filing a NPB reports, so we must be doing something right. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – … over 100 bidders who haven’t yet left me feedback. Would it be considered rude if I email them asking them if everything was OK, Fine. … and politely asking them to leave me feedback for the transaction? Not fine. Asking for feedback is "asking for it" Keep in mind that "no feedback" can itself be a form of feedback. So your post-auction "FB debtors" might be: 1. People who wanted to Neg you, but didn’t [yet]. 2. People who wanted to Neuter you, and didn’t [yet]. 3. People who wanted to NOT leave feedback, and thought the deal was done until you bothered them. 4. People who wanted to leave Positive, and forgot, but will be offended if you ask (yes, they exist). 5. People who wanted to Positive and forgot, and will be delighted to oblige. Asking for feedback from people in categories 1-4 is somewhat risky, as you never know quite what they’ll do. How can you tell which category they’re in? You can’t, really, although you can form some estimated from their earlier emails and the FB they’ve left to Others. If they were already less than fully satisfied, ASKING may not push them in the desired direction. As a seller, I don’t worry about people who do provide delivery report, but never post feedback. I do worry about people who never tell me if the item arrived complete/undamaged and at least as-advertised.
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I do worry about people who never tell me if the item arrived complete/undamaged and at least as-advertised.
Do you proactively contact them to ask if everything is OK? jc
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I do worry about people who never tell me if the item arrived complete/undamaged and at least as-advertised. Do you proactively contact them to ask if everything is OK?
I specifically ask them to confirm delivery in my delivery notice – sent after I see the carrier’s delivery report. This is usually the last email I send. If I hear from them first, I don’t send it. Just before that is the shipment notice, with tracking # & estimated delivery. I tell them I’ll send a delivery notice unless I hear from them first. That note also asks them to communicate if there are any concerns. If they clicked any of the links in the auction terms, they’d go to my AboutMe page, and if they see the FB topical link there, they’ll see that my policy is Seller-Posts-1st, but only after Acceptance. I don’t assume they see this. I never mention feedback in email, except perhaps to say: "and I’ve done the same for you" if they email to say they’ve left Pos. FB needs to be deferred and de-emphasized. I might add that probably 95% of my buyers have posted FB. If a seller is seeing less than 80%, they need to re-examine their auctions, their terms, their emails, their attitude, and perhaps even the type of item they sell. I’m constant tweaking everything. Already have a couple of changes planned to make future auctions even more bidder-friendly. — Regards, PO Box 248 Bob Niland Enterprise which, due to spam, is: 67441-0248 email4rjn AT yahoo DOT com http://www.access-one.com/rjn Unless otherwise specifically stated, expressing personal opinions and NOT speaking for any employer, client or Internet Service Provider.
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… over 100 bidders who haven’t yet left me feedback. Would it be considered rude if I email them asking them if everything was OK,
Fine. … and politely asking them to leave me feedback for the transaction?
Not fine. Asking for feedback is "asking for it" Keep in mind that "no feedback" can itself be a form of feedback. So your post-auction "FB debtors" might be: 1. People who wanted to Neg you, but didn’t [yet]. 2. People who wanted to Neuter you, and didn’t [yet]. 3. People who wanted to NOT leave feedback, and thought the deal was done until you bothered them. 4. People who wanted to leave Positive, and forgot, but will be offended if you ask (yes, they exist). 5. People who wanted to Positive and forgot, and will be delighted to oblige. Asking for feedback from people in categories 1-4 is somewhat risky, as you never know quite what they’ll do. How can you tell which category they’re in? You can’t, really, although you can form some estimated from their earlier emails and the FB they’ve left to Others. If they were already less than fully satisfied, ASKING may not push them in the desired direction. As a seller, I don’t worry about people who do provide delivery report, but never post feedback. I do worry about people who never tell me if the item arrived complete/undamaged and at least as-advertised. — Regards, PO Box 248 Bob Niland Enterprise which, due to spam, is: 67441-0248 email4rjn AT yahoo DOT com http://www.access-one.com/rjn Unless otherwise specifically stated, expressing personal opinions and NOT speaking for any employer, client or Internet Service Provider.
Response:
Over the past 3 months I see I’ve got over 100 bidders who haven’t yet left me feedback. Would it be considered rude if I email them asking them if everything was OK, and politely asking them to leave me feedback for the transaction? Mike
Yes, it would be rude. It would be akin to a waitress at a restaurant asking that you leave her a tip. There’s no way that you can do this politely, because asking for it isn’t polite in the first place. Feedback is voluntary, no one has any obligation whatsoever to leave any feedback for anyone. I leave it for my buyers because I feel it’s polite, but there isn’t any eBay rule requiring people to be polite. Keep one other thing in mind, some of those 100 buyers might not have been 100 percent happy, but might not have been irritated enough to leave a negative feedback. Do you really want to ask those people to leave you feedback? There have been a few posts here over the years where people asked for feedback, and the buyer responded with a negative. The most notable was several months ago, the person had bought something like 30 items, wasn’t happy with the way he was treated, but decided to let it slide. He started getting pestered for feedback, and he responded by leaving a string of negatives for the seller. It put the seller out of business. If you do a search through google, you’ll find the thread.
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