12-10-2019 04:38 PM
Join the Community team here at 1 PM PT on December 11th for our Weekly Chat with eBay Staff. We don't have a set topic this week, so please bring any general questions you may have on buying or selling.
The chat will be open for questions from 1-2 pm PT, at which point we'll close thread. While no additional questions can be submitted after this time, we'll continue to work on responding to any queries that may still be unanswered.
If you're new to the chat, welcome! Simply Reply to this post with your question from 1-2 PM Pacific Time and we'll be happy to look into it for you.
*Please note that we're not able to address account-specific queries. Questions regarding your account should be direct to eBay Customer Service.
12-11-2019 01:54 PM
tyler@ebay wrote:
@mam98031 wrote:
tyler@ebay wrote:
@joshuatreeimports wrote:Hello! I was wondering if sellers are responsible for items with tracking showing they were delivered, but the customer claims were stolen after delivery. How far beyond successful delivery does a seller's responsibility extend?
Hi @joshuatreeimports - in a situation where tracking confirms that the buyer's shipment was delivered to their address you are protected from Item not Received requests (we would find them in your favor if they were escalated). Thanks!
Just to add a little more to this so no one gets confused. The item has to be shipped to the ship to address on the PP payment notification [if you are NOT in MP] for this seller protection to apply in both Ebay and PP.
In Ebay, they allow us to be notified by the buyer after the payment of an address change as long as that notification happens within M2M. So if we comply we are fine in Ebay and still covered. But NOT in PP. PP does not acknowledge or accept that change.
Hi @mam98031 - this was good advice, but it is a bit outdated. At this point in time we ask you to ship to the address used at eBay checkout regardless of what a buyer puts in messages, checkout details, or sends to you privately. This helps ensure our policies are consistent with other financial institutions and to avoid setting you up for repeated rounds of disputes through various services (the 'eBay to PayPal to Credit Card' loop).
It's still up to you if you want to fulfill a buyer's request, but if you're wanting to maximize your eBay protections, if a buyer asks you to ship to an address other than the one they chose at checkout you should cancel the transaction as Buyer Requested/Problem with Address and have them purchase again. Thanks!
Well DANG!!! Now that is an IMPORTANT tidbit that should have been announced to sellers. I understand why Ebay would do this, but if you don't inform sellers you changed something this important, how the heck are we to know??? But we sure as heck will be responsible to adhere to a rule change that we know nothing about.
And now in a world where PP no longer refunds fees on any type of refund happening due to an Ebay transaction for those of us not in MP, this gets even a little expensive for a seller to do. We will have to cancel the transaction in the hopes the buyer will then repurchase using the proper address for shipping. That cancellation cost the seller a little money each time that we can't get back. An option to let the buyer know that we can change the address but there will be a 3.5% fee for the process would work. That just allows us to recover the PP profit. My extra time for the transaction, I just see that as part of my job. But on buyer requested or buyer required cancellations, we should be able to charge the buyer a modest fee just to cover the fees from PP.
Now I'll go back to something I've been asking for, for years. And exception report. When Ebay changes a policy in any way or adds a policy. A simple month exception report would be enormously helpful.
12-11-2019 01:54 PM
Repeat request: "Pre-owned" should be allowed as a Condition code in all categories, but especially in Collectibles, most of which are not NEW (by eBay's definition) nor USED (by any definition).
"Pre-owned" is allowed as a Condition code in many categories, but so far not in any Collectibles category (AFAIK).
12-11-2019 01:54 PM
12-11-2019 01:54 PM
As a SELLER who sells both CONTEMPORARY and VINTAGE CLOTHING ITEMS, I have taken note that there is a new check box for VINTAGE/Yes or No.
This raises questions as to which category will be seen more--the Specialty/Vintage Clothing or the regular clothing category.
12-11-2019 01:55 PM
tyler@ebay wrote:Hi @mam98031 - thanks for this (and to everyone who grabbed screenshots!). I'll send this up to see if this was an intentional removal and if there's a way to get that info a different way.
Until/unless they de-activate it you can use this link- replace "ebayidhere" with the current user name.
https://contact.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ReturnUserIdHistory&requested=ebayidhere
12-11-2019 01:56 PM
Hi @mam98031 please first make sure your Chrome spell check is enabled:
From there, you can add eBay, ebay, Ebay, etc to your Chrome spell check list.
12-11-2019 01:56 PM - edited 12-11-2019 01:59 PM
I have found over time that listing in any SUITS/SUIT SEPARATES category gets very little traffic. That's a problem.
It's as if no one wants to search for a blazer or suit in those categories--vintage or contemporary. They want to search for separates only.
12-11-2019 01:57 PM
@maxoptical wrote:
I see the same thing, I sort distance closes to me and it shows California sellers stating they are zero miles from my Pennsylvania zip code. For example this seller is not in my little town of Downingtown, PA yet this is what eBay is showing me.
Hi @maxoptical, I'd love to get the URL for the screenshot you have shared so I can get this reported appropriately. If you already have the email address for our team, feel free to send this information over to us for review. If not, start a thread on the Technical Issues board and @mention a member of the team so we can look into this with you.
12-11-2019 01:57 PM
This is a fast and dirty example of a listing of mine that doesn't show up in search results without jumping though hoops. I have better examples, but those take time to explain. I will try to post in the technical issues room later.
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=e5540&_sacat=0&_sop=15&rt=nc&LH_BIN=1
My listing 123880194904 doesn't show up in that search as a result. It hides that particular one because it is for "parts or repair" which annoys me. Yet at the same time the site is more than happy to show miscategorized replacement parts that consistently get listed in the laptops category.
12-11-2019 01:58 PM
I would appreciate knowing when, if ever - will eBay once again allow the seller to list by what shipping method they need and have the buyer make a decision between the options offered - not just what eBay wants the buyer to see, regardless of seller preferences? eBay appears to believe that the buyer is not intelligent to make this choice for themselves. Thank you.
12-11-2019 01:58 PM
ebay doesn't have my back, they have hidden rules and pull the rug out from under me.
12-11-2019 01:59 PM
@mr_lincoln wrote:
@golfingaddict Awesome post ... I want to see the answers to your questions as well. I have my first Free Returns happening right now, awaiting the Buyer returning the item.
Scenario: Buyer's reason - Changed their mind.
They needed a DC motor train and bought an AC motor train as stated in the claim. However, "AC" was specified in the Item Specifics.
Its a vintage electric 2 piece train (powered and non-powered diesel locomotive set). If it is returned in the same condition I shipped it in and I can resell it then I will refund the sold amount MINUS unrecoverable PayPal fees, pre-paid return shipping label and I will not refund their original shipping cost ... I view this as a remorse return. I also will expect protection against any potential "less then Positive" feedback.
If it is returned with damage or the original box has more damage then when it was shipped I will make a different decision on how much to refund.
This Buyer will be put on my BBL even though Buyers in this category often will buy more then once, a Buyer who makes this kind of mistake is lacking some knowledge ...
Sold item was over $ 159and won on an Auction.
Hi @mr_lincoln, I need to clarify that sellers must follow the guideline table here when giving partial refunds. If the item you receive back is in the same condition you shipped it in, then a full refund must be given to the buyer.
12-11-2019 02:00 PM
Hi everyone, thanks so much for joining us today. We've locked the chat from further replies and will continue to work on responding to any outstanding questions 👨
12-11-2019 02:02 PM
@my-cottage-books-and-antiques wrote:
I asked about this last week, didn't get a reply. Will try again. Where can I see the new TV and video ads for eBay? ARE there any? I don't see anything new on the ebay YouTube channel. Hard for ebay sellers to compete when the airwaves are flooded with ads from competing platforms. Can you point me to any new ads? I don't watch a lot of TV, so maybe I'm just missing them....I DO see the Holiday Chill type ads on the YouTube channels, but they are two months old.
Hi @my-cottage-books-and-antiques, I've messaged our marketing friends to see what they can share with us. I'll update you when I know more.
Thank you.
Alan - eBay Community Manager
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12-11-2019 02:05 PM
@vrykalak wrote:
@fern*wood wrote:
I'm curious as to why sponsored/promoted listings circumvent my choice of search criteria? I usually search highest + shipping first. So as I go down the list, out of nowhere, these sponsored listings pop up completely out of order, totally disregarding my search option. I find it confusing and annoying.
I am fairly sure it isn't just promoted listings that show up inappropriately in Search results.
eBay's search engine used to be far and away the best in the universe.
Now its results are (annoying at least and) outright wrong in many cases.
I have been asking for years: give users a switch they can toggle, saying "don't show me any results that don't reflect all my search terms"...to no avail.
If you have three search terms, and get too many results, then add a fourth term, the number of results SHOULD decrease. In fact, the number of results can double, triple, or more when you add a search term. That's ridiculous.
Hi @vrykalak, the options to filter search results are available in the Advanced Search page. Filtering with the options on the left side of the screen is another way to fine tune search results based on the criteria selected.