Revising A negative to another negative
Just received my first neg since 1989 for buyer's oversight in throwing out a part with the packaging and being too embarrassed to admit it. He never contacted me - ever, and it appears it has happened before with another seller. I requested a feedback revision and he revised the neg to another neg and left a nasty comment. I thought buyers could only revise from neg to neutral or positive and neutral to positive. Is that not the case any more?
22 comments
fashunu4eeuh
·3 years agoHi @lgustaf
i scoured all the feedback policies to be sure, and there is no rule a buyer must improve the rating when handling a feedback revision request. So i don’t believe you can employ or attribute a policy violation to the buyer’s revising a negative for another negative. I am very sorry. Keep in mind that one neg out of thousands of glowing reviews is no danger at all to a seller’s reputation.
You are a long-time successful seller. This negative feedback will not be a reflection on you. (Your comment left to the neutral feedback was excellent.) I hate to admit that i agree with some other posts. Your comment left in this case is on the borderline of helpful.
Tight restraint when leaving a follow-up comment on a poor rating is best. I know such a neg as yours stings and outrages one’s sense of fairness, making it all the harder not to react personally affronted.
Whatever a buyer states, it is possible for a seller to shoot himself in the foot by leaving a comment potentially more damaging than the negative. A seller who remains even-tempered, non-blaming, avoids defensiveness or anger in his comments will assure future buyers of the seller’s customer service skills when an issue arises. A future buyer will evaluate the seller’s response much more carefully than they ever will a buyer’s poor rating. Sometimes a well-crafted reply to an unhappy buyer can improve one’s standing.
One last thought, I have been a seller for 15 years and a buyer 5+ more than that on my primary ID. I say this so you will know where i am coming from. Rather than trying to offend, the posters here are imparting what knowledge and experience they have to edify and help fellow sellers with an issue. So i hope you will accept such advice in the spirit of community in which it is given.
Good luck and wish you well.
nobody*s_perfect
·3 years agoExactly; it has always been possible for the buyer to change only the comment, and leave the negative rating in place. In fact, I might have once heard of a neutral being changed to a neg by a particularly annoyed buyer!
lgustaf
OP3 years agoIt was not that way years ago.
ten_o_nine
·3 years agoNext time, reply to a negative with positive, don't sound like a person, sound like a business, just my advice.
bonjourami
·3 years agoDo you tell your buyers that the cork will be wrapped separately? And to tell viewers to just 'look at his feedback left' is pointless, only you can see his id.
inhawaii
·3 years agoRemember that your feedback will be seen by potential future buyers.
A simple...
"The cork was included in your order. If you are not happy please return for a full refund."
... would have been much better
lgustaf
OP3 years agoThat wasn't my question. and returning for a full refund won't change the feedback and it won't get the bottle back as sent if he threw out the packaging with the cork, making the bottle unsellable. The buyer must have been happy enough to KEEP his item.
inhawaii
·3 years agoI wasn't talking about the cork, the bottle, a return or a refund.
I was simply saying that you're response doesn't make you look too good.
As long as YOU are happy with it that's all that matters.
BTW: As someone else pointed out, we can't see the buyers feedback left for others.
lgustaf
OP3 years agoAgain. Can a buyer revise a neg to another neg?
slippinjimmy
·3 years agoYes then can, they always have been able to which is why you should always make sure the buyer is willing before sending the revision.
lgustaf
OP3 years agoActually, that is NOT true. I've been selling since 1998, it since it's been so long since I've had a bad feedback, that I had no idea the rules has changed.
And BTW: buyer negged another seller for the same issue. I even include a message with my Thank You card to contact me FIRST if there are any issues, so I can try to address the problem. NOTHING. NADA. This is very rude, IMHO, although I never said it.
slippinjimmy
·3 years agoHow do you know that the revision policy has changed? Did you ever try to revise negative feedback comments you left without changing the rating and were blocked from doing so?
lgustaf
OP3 years agoBecause that was how it was.
lgustaf
OP3 years agoAre you a seller or just here to create controversy? I came with a question. I think i'm done with this community.
lacemaker3
·3 years ago@lgustaf, actually @slippinjimmy is correct about this.
When eBay first introduced the ability to revise negative feedback, there was discussion on the boards about this. One of the regular responders decided to test it, and found that it was in fact possible to revise a neutral or negative feedback to a negative.
It shocked a lot of people that someone would actually do that, but it answered the question definitively.
fern*wood
·3 years agoAre you sure it's revised? I thought it was notated as revised if indeed it was. Maybe they just ignored your request.
When did you write that follow-up? I'm not crazy about it and I doubt it would inspire a buyer to want to revise.
slippinjimmy
·3 years agoI don't think the feedback itself shows that it was revised, it does show at the top of the feedback page, the OP's feedback shows this:
lgustaf
OP3 years agoThe feedback was revised a neg to a neg. The original neg said "came with no cork". I responded. No way. The cork was in the packaging, the buyer never contacted me and likely simply threw it away with the packaging.
lgustaf
OP3 years agoYes, the cork was included, carefully wrapped with the packaging. I sold 8 bottles, all with corks. On most I removed the cork to make the bottle shorter and easier to safely pack. It used to be a buyer could only revise up, not neg to neg. Is that not the case anymore?
slippinjimmy
·3 years agoUnless it's REALLY obvious, it would be easy to miss it when separate especially for an item that no doubt had lots of extra padding and void fill.
slippinjimmy
·3 years agoFor the future, if you are going to send a revision request you need to make sure IN ADVANCE that the buyer is interested in revising their feedback.
One question, was the "cork" included when you shipped? If it was, was it in the bottle or packaged separately?
ms.rodriguez*
·3 years agoDo you have an email from him where he admits that he threw out the cork? If yes, contact Ebay via Facebook. Explain what happened. This revised negative says that you did not provide the cork. It's an obvious lie. Do this ONLY if you were not rude or nasty to the buyer. Ask the folks on Ebay facebook if they can remove the negative since the buyer is a liar. Hopefully they will remove it or at least remove the comment. Sometimes they will do just that.
If that is the case, just move on. In a year, it will drop off. I read some of your other feedbacks and I would still buy from you.