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Seller Levels
Summary: In the discussion, momtoabeautifuldaughter has been experiencing issues maintaining their Top Rated Seller status on eBay due to delays in shipping items on time, despite generating shipping labels promptly. inceptions clarifies that eBay does not downgrade store levels but rather seller ratings, suggesting extending handling times if shipping is consistently late. Additionally, wooden_flower provides insight into how high defect rates from seller cancellations and unresolved cases can impact seller status, advising momtoabeautifuldaughter to calculate sales needed to improve their status and consider promotional strategies like discounts to increase sales and rectify the defect rate. The discussion emphasizes the importance of maintaining accurate handling times and managing sales effectively to avoid restrictions from eBay.
I have been a Top Rated Seller for over a decade, but since last December I was flagged for not sending items in timely fashion. I printed the shipping label the very same day or the next business day, but my biggest issue is getting items out the door. I live a good 10 to 15 minutes away from the nearest post office, but at least many buyers I deal with mostly understand my concerns in not shipping on time.
My question has to deal with regressing of seller levels:
When one goes from Top Rated to Below Standard, what strategies have other sellers used to get back on track? At least, money isn't an issue as I posted this. Those who are downgraded from Starter to Basic Store subscriptions, I would have to figure out which items would be best to list since the 250 free item limit will be not around--at least until my seller metrics improve this coming Christmas.
Thanks in advance for any advice.
momtoabeautifuldaughter
Mentor4 months agoIf you are struggling to ship within your promised 1 business day handling you need to extend that.
wooden_flower
Mentor4 months ago@petencharlie
A high late shipment rate will not cause you to go below standard, it will only cause you to go from top rated to above standard. Below standard is caused by 2 types of defects - seller cancellations and unresolved cases.
Your dashboard will show you what type of defects you have, the monthly breakdown will show you when they happened. When is important so that you can calculate how many sales you need to get your defect rate below 2%.
The 6/20 evaluation will be for June 2025 through May 2026, so you have only a few days to impact those numbers. So you should also figure out what you need to sell in June 2026 so that your July 2025 - June 2026 sales total gets you to below 2%. You need to work on getting back to above standard now - if you stay below standard, eBay will start restricting your sales. By the holidays you won’t be able to list much at all, if anything.
Since you still have a store, you might consider running a buy one get one x% off - this is the fastest way to increase the number of items sold.
I assume you mean you’re going from a basic store to a starter store, not the other way around. The starter gives you 250 insertions (the same as you get wth no store), the basic has 1,000 insertions or more in certain categories. The advantage to keeping the starter store as opposed to no store is the sales tools, and that additional insertions are slightly less .30 compared to .35 each).
Good luck.
inceptions
Mentor4 months agoHi @petencharlie
I've never heard of eBay downgrading a seller's store level. What eBay downgraded was your seller rating. They may have also put a limit on the number of items you can list.
https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/selling-policies/seller-standards-policy?id=4347&st=3&pos=1&query=Seller%20standards%20policy&intent=top%20rated%20seller&lucenceai=lucenceai&docId=HELP1272
If you can't ship within your 1-day stated handling time, then you need to extend your stated handling time. Buyers count on sellers to state an accurate handling time so they know when to expect their packages. Don't expect them to "mostly understand" when you don't.
I suspect that most sellers on eBay have to drive more than 10-15 minutes to get to the post office. You also have the option to schedule carrier pickups.