Top Rated Sellers should get a A LOT more discount on selling fees
I have 100% positive feedback and am a Top Rated Seller . But I get no meaningful discount on the hefty fees ebay charges. I am far lower risk than the typical ebay seller. I also resolve issues on my own without needing to involve ebay support. But still I pay basically the same fees as everyone else. There is a tiny discount if I chose 1-day shipping and handling. But that is very hard for me since this is a side business outside my day job. So the tiny savings aren't worth the hassle.
42 comments
thisisall1word
OP2 years agoSurprised by all the ebay apologist responses. TRS is not just doing what you are supposed to be doing. That logic would make sense if Ebay required everyone to be TRS. Fact is almost anyone can sell their junk on ebay. Just look on craigslist or facebook marketplace. 95+% of sellers there are greedy and delusional . Those same folks sell on ebay and drive up the fees because of their high dispute rates.
Now it is possible the fees are high due to something else. I suppose bad sellers will burn themselves in the foot with Ebays money back guarantee.
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoWhat makes a TRS different then a seller that isn't a TRS?
mam98031
·2 years agoI must have missed something. I did not read any posts where anyone Apologized for Ebay in any way. Are you considering those that may not agree with you to be "apologist"? If so why? Is your opinion the only opinion acceptable to you?
inhawaii
·2 years agoThere is nothing wrong with the OP thinking/hoping/wishing/wanting an additional discount.
I think I should have got a additional discount for being best seller on ebay 2019.
pls-consignments
·2 years agoHow many buyers actually look for the badge instead of feedback? TRS is just an eBay incentive to minimize work and liability for eBay.
As a buyer, I'm interested in what the buyer says about the seller in feedback.
Feedback is a universal standard for most online marketplaces, and used by most buyers. Although I'm a TRS, you won't find any gold stars on my refrigerator.
heckofagame
·2 years agoThis seller is Top-Rated Plus. Should this seller get a bigger discount?
nobody*s_perfect
·2 years agoTR-Plus is a listing status, not a seller status. The TR-Plus badge is put on listings that offer 1-day handling and 30-day free returns. A Top Rated Seller could have some listings which are TR-Plus and others that aren't, such as if they choose a longer handling time for some items.
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoWhat makes you less risk then the typical seller?
You're not doing anything different then a lot of sellers that are not a TRS.
thisisall1word
OP2 years agoAccording to you people with high credit scores should be treated by lenders the same as those with low credit scores?
TRS is like a high credit score. My guess is less than 20% of Ebay sellers are TRS. Hence, there should be some reward for this by lower fees. My understanding is a big part of the fees are because of fraud and deceitful practices by greedy sellers.
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoIt doesn't take much to be a TRS.
Lending people money is a lot different then selling on Ebay.
thisisall1word
OP2 years agoLending money is the same principle as selling on ebay. Ebay is an escrow for your funds to make sure both parties are safe. They are performing a service that is basically the world's second oldest profession.
Hence why I feel sellers with high levels of honesty deserve much lower fees than the rest. If all sellers are already honest then why are the fees so high?
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoJust being a TRS doesn't make you any more honest then any other seller.
I've seen TRS sellers with thousands of negative feedback.
Apparently their buyers were not very happy, do they deserve cheaper fee's?
TRS is something Ebay gives you and I bet a lot of buyers don't even pay any attention to it, they look at sellers feedback, received and given.
mam98031
·2 years agoNO the Top Rated status has nothing to do with "credit scores" or anything like it. It has to do with number of transactions sold, customer service and all the other stats that Ebay tracks us on that you can see in your Seller Dashboard. Credit is not among the stats.
https://sellerstandards.ebay.com/dashboard?region=US
Rewards on Ebay are NOT always shown in lower fees.
"My understanding is a big part of the fees are because of fraud and deceitful practices by greedy sellers." And where did you get that information? Please share it. Links are best. Or are you just assuming this to be true.
thisisall1word
OP2 years agoA credit score evaluates how much of a risk a person is to the bank. In similar fashion the metrics for TRS also correlate to how risky a seller is to ebay. Folks who provide a top notch customer experience are the reason people keep using this site.
Ebay has a horrible reputation among average Joes who think every seller is out to cheat them. So not only is TRS or some similar metric low risk for Ebay, it also means they provide repeat business that Ebay needs to thrive.
But I know you are an Ebay apologist and will bark back that I don't know what I am talking about..
mam98031
·2 years agoI would say that is an incorrect opinion. There are some buyers that certainly feel that way but there are more that don't. Otherwise this site would have folded a very long time ago.
I've made NO apologies for Ebay. There is no reason to apologize for Ebay. You want a program on Ebay to work differently than it does. Your opinion is that it means something that should be more highly rewarded. I get all that. It however is simply not how Ebay currently handles the program. It isn't any more complicated than that.
If you prefer, I can tell you what you want to hear, however there would be no truth to it. For whatever reason you feel compelled to be rude to those that don't agree with you. That says much more about you than anything else.
thisisall1word
OP2 years agoOf course I am aware of how Ebay currently handles the program. Are you saying it is perfect the way it is and nobody can question it? That is my impression of your responses, hence, the term "Ebay apologist"..
In addition to banks and credit cards, insurance companies also provide meaningful discounts to "low-risk" clients. So what I am proposing is nothing unheard of.
mam98031
·2 years agoAre you just looking for someone to be disagreeable with? Your impressions of my responses would be completely incorrect. There does not appear to be a way to have a civic conversations, so I'll leave you to it.
buyselljack2016
·2 years agoBeing top rated is just basically doing what any seller should do, with a very modest sales level.
It is not a great achievement that should be highly rewarded.
TR is basically not much more than a gold star in kindergarten.
I have been a TRS for . I sell. eBay sends me money. We're good.
ETA for future readers.................... as I have been advised TRS has not been around that long,........................ but as per the dates provided down thread............I have been TRS since inception. It is not a great achievement or lofty goal.
carlmarxx
·2 years agoTRS /TRS+ hasn't been around for 22 years . It was started around 2010 . so TRS/ TRS + has been around on ebay for about 14 years.
buyselljack2016
·2 years agoOK, thanks for the correction. Just that I've been top rated for as long as I can remember. (seemed like longer)
chapeau-noir
·2 years agoMight have been thinking of the old power seller stats.
buyselljack2016
·2 years agoOr, I just wasn't thinking 🤣 (that's been confirmed to have happened)
inhawaii
·2 years agoI agree with you.
Top rated sellers should get more discount.
I am going to continue wishing top rated sellers get more discount.
brightlightbookseller
·2 years agoAs the famous Jayne Cobb once said, "If wishes were horses, we'd all be eating steak." (Ponder the meaning of that phrase!)
mordecai8614
·2 years ago"Don't make no ruttin' sense"
mam98031
·2 years agoYou said "hefty fees". Have you compared the fees Ebay charges vs other similar sites? While Ebay isn't the cheapest, they my no means are the most expensive. You also will always want to take into consideration the traffic on other sites. Lower fees mean nothing if you aren't getting sales.
Like most things in life that offer a discount for this or that, it is a tiered structure. The bigger the store level you have the higher the discount on the FVF is.
You don't currently run enough listings to have any size store and make it work for you financially. But as you grow, when you get to a Basic store level, that is when the discount level starts. Then just keep growing to increase your store size so you move your discounts along.
As someone else has mentioned, since you are TRS, if you set some or all of your listings to have a 1 day handling time and a 30+ day free return policy, you can earn a 10% discount on the FVF for any sale from a listing that qualifies for TRS+.
It takes time to grow your business. Good luck.
slippinjimmy
·2 years ago@mam98031
The same discounted fees apply to any Store level Basic, Premium or Anchor doesn't matter the discount is the same.
There are also a number of Categories where there is no discount at all for a Store. I almost exclusively list in Media, Store or no Store the rates are exactly the same.
monster-deals
·2 years agoWe used to but ebay said we demanded to burn our money in a pit called promoted listings and they listened.
...no seller ever demanded their discount get cut in half in order to pay for what we were already supposed to be getting.
luckythewinner
·2 years agoTop Rated Sellers should get a A LOT more discount on selling fees
Why? All it takes to be Top Rated is:
Some would argue this is a pretty low bar.
mordecai8614
·2 years agoThis. OPs post screams entitlement
adamcartwright
·2 years ago@luckythewinner
Why? We all know the requirements to be a TRS.
But some sellers go beyond that by never using eBay resources on claims and disputes.
They handle everything on their own -- and still have 100% feedback.
That's the point.
mam98031
·2 years agoYou seem to think that is an option. Whether or not to have your claims and disputes ran through Ebay or not. It isn't an option on most transactions, most buyers that want to open a claim do so without ever contacting their seller before hand.
Some sellers can do everything the right way and still run across a buyer that no matter what you do, you aren't going to make them happy. Sometimes it just seems like the luck of the draw.
But you are right, those sellers that offer superior customer service will typically fair better than those that do not.
rosszonebricks
·2 years agoEvery seller dreams or hopes of having to pay less fees.
That said, any increase in discount you'd have to assume they would just make the requirements that much more difficult.
dhbookds
·2 years agoI'll go you one better..............they should get better placement and recognition...............
heckofagame
·2 years agoIf you are top rated and ship with 1 day and have 30-day free returns, you get a 10% discount on fees.
adamcartwright
·2 years ago@heckofagame He said he can't offer 1-day handling and 30 day returns because this is a side business.
And many sellers here are running side businesses.
The valid point is that sellers -- big or small -- who don't use up eBay resources with claims and disputes should get a discount regardless of handling times and returns policies.
heckofagame
·2 years ago@adamcartwright I disagree. Top Rated Plus seller status is not a participation trophy. There needs to be a reward for above and beyond.
adamcartwright
·2 years ago@heckofagame That was exactly my point.
And I don't believe OP is even talking about TRS+, but just being a TRS.
ryanrobyn
·2 years ago10% discount will be quickly negated by free return of items after the buyer uses them
heckofagame
·2 years ago@ryanrobyn I find that the 10% discount more than covers any returns that may occur.
monster-deals
·2 years agoI bleed money like a stuck pig for the unfortunate month I tried free returns.
There is no discount high enough that I would do that again.
Now when the discount was 20% before promoted listings I definately second that sentiment.
mam98031
·2 years agoWow, I'm sorry you get so many of these that it causes this issue. Sincerely, that is sad.
FYI on an INAD all sellers, no matter their stated return policy pay for return shipping per the rules of Ebay. That includes a seller with a No Return policy.
Most transaction however do not end in a return. I am sorry you seem to be dealing with more than the norm.