I only began selling in earnest on eBay about 6 months ago, but in those 6 months I've had about 1600 sales. I did the math. The best way to minimize losses is to offer (and grant) returns for any reason. 1) When scammers see an open-return policy, they avoid those items- they know the seller understands the system and will immediately grant a full return, negating the scam effort. 2) If you sell enough to qualify as a Top Rated Plus seller, you'll make up the losses on shipping to scammers with a significantly reduced eBay commission. 3) Maintaining your Seller Dashboard stats, and therefore your selling eligibility and status, will become infinitely easier, because you'll never have a case opened against you. "I'm sorry the item was not to your liking, please request a return, seller pays the return shipping". Again, you'll make up your losses on shipping to scamers with the significantly reduced eBay commission. 4) The few scammers I do get now who request 'discounts/partial refunds', I apologize and ask them to submit a return request. 95% of the time, they won't follow through on the return request. And, if they threaten to leave negative feedback unless I give them a 'discount/partial return', I simply refer them to eBay's "Feedback Extortion" policy, which explicitly forbids threatening to leave negative feedback unless the buyer receives ANY kind of monetary return- discount/refund/return.
Believe me, I found all this out the hard way. I used to bicker with eBay reps on the phone about the scammers who opened cases and left negative feedback, and I wasted hours upon hours of my life trying to right the perceived wrongs done against me. Sooo much wasted time and effort. The reality is that we have to take our lessons from the BIG sellers- retailers. Accept a return for any reason and always cede to the customer. eBay is no longer a trading platform, it is an opportunity for individual enterprisers to access the same level customer base as the big retailers. The thing sellers need to understand, is that although eBay offers the option to engage it like a trading platform, for anyone interested in genuinely earning income on eBay, you have to regard it as a business on a professional level. The only way to do so is to become a Top Rated Plus seller who accepts returns for any reason, and reports people who are scammers, but without ever participating in negative interaction with the scammer. Like I said, I learned this the hard way with 2 negative feedbacks in one month. The hardest part is swallowing your pride when you know you're being taken advantage of. I HATE IT. The reason I'm here writing this right now is because I was scammed today- or rather, I allowed myself to be scammed as part of what I have come to accept as regular business losses- a part of the price incurred for the privilege of doing business on eBay.
eBay is a business no different than any other business, and has to focus on growth. It's as simple as that. Any other objective is ridiculous. For eBay to grow, it needs buyers to feel they have the same level of customer protection they would have at any of the big retailers- the customer is always right, and we always grant returns. To be a legitimate seller on eBay, you have to play by these rules. This is the price you pay in exchange for access to hundreds of millions of buyers worldwide. For those sellers opining for eBay to return to its trading platform roots, there's a simple solution- go sell on Bonanza. If you want the privilege of access to hundreds of millions of buyers, you have to maintain the same principals and standards as any other retailer who has access to hundreds of millions of buyers. I know the vast majority of sellers are revolted by this idea, but it's simple business logic. If you want a friendly co-op trading platform, they're out there. The problem is, every item in my eBay inventory is also listed on Bonanza. While I currently average 250 sales per month on eBay (and growing monthly), I've had 4 total sales in 3 months on Bonanza. If you want the privilege of selling on eBay, you have to regard it realistically. You are participating in a business platform which competes against the big retailers- Walmart, Cabela's, department stores, etc. If you're unwilling to accept their proven strategy, you simply won't survive.
Create a completely open return policy.
Never attempt to decline a return, and never accept a discount/partial refund offer.
Never engage in negative interaction with a customer. Politely say, "I am so sorry for your dissatisfaction. Please submit a return request, seller pays the rreturn shipping."
KNOW THE RULES. Feedback Extortion is strictly prohibited.
ACCEPT LOSSES TO SCAMMERS AS ROUTINE BUSINESS LOSSES- it took me 3 months of constant stress to come to terms with this, but anything else is going to result in endless stress, hassle, bickering with phone reps, lost time (and therefore income), and eventually, after enough incidents, eBay is going to restrict your selling to send you a message- you have too many problems with customers and that threatens our reputation and in return, our profitability. And if you don't get the message, well, we all know what the next step is.
