Community Chat, Jan 2 from 1:00 pm PT - General Topics

[alan@ebay]

Happy New Year, eBay Community! 

Join us for the first Community Chat of 2019 here at 1 pm Pacific on Jan. 2nd. We do not have a set topic, so please use the hour to ask us your eBay buying or selling questions.

Chat with you then. 

[mam98031]

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@shielsdeals wrote:

It would be nice if ebay could incorporate a system similar to what other retailers have, like Amazon and Best Buy. That way, we could select what purchases we want to buy without sales tax.

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While I've never had a need to do this on Amazon, what is their process?

[maxoptical]

Hello,  I am a buisness and I ship my products UPS.  Will I and other eBay sellers get defects for not shipping on Dec 24th , UPS had no pick ups on this day?   Here is the schedule directly from UPS.   https://www.ups.com/assets/resources/media/UPS_PeakSeason.pdf

John Norman
Maxoptical

[fern*wood]

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@greatlifedeals wrote:

Happy New Year is this still accurate on the roll out of sales tax collection for 19'?

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It is my understanding that my state (WV) enacted the use tax law starting yesterday,  but I don't see WV on that list.  

[tyler@ebay]

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@greatlifedeals wrote:

Happy New Year is this still accurate on the roll out of sales tax collection for 19'?

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Hi @greatlifedeals - the information on the Help Page is accurate and will be updated as we have any other detail or specifics to share. Thanks!

[tyler@ebay]

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@maxoptical wrote:

Hello,  I am a buisness and I ship my products UPS.  Will I and other eBay sellers get defects for not shipping on Dec 24th , UPS had no pick ups on this day?   Here is the schedule directly from UPS.   https://www.ups.com/assets/resources/media/UPS_PeakSeason.pdf

John Norman
Maxoptical

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Hi @maxoptical - we're aware of this situation and have not yet heard what the impact of this will be. I'll reach out for more details to get them to the right team. Thanks!

[mam98031]

I too had a problem on the 24th with pick up, however mine was with USPS.  They just somehow missed our street all together.  Most likely from temp or fill in workers that weren't familiar with the area.  

Of course my problem isn't anything I would expect Ebay to protect my account on.  I'd like it, but it isn't expected.

[usga-state]

I have a question about the FAQ's and ask seller a question in the communications with buyers settings.

I set up my FAQ's and set my account with the following.

See answers to your FAQ's ............yes

Send you messages on eBay while they're shopping............no

Include a message at checkout when they pay................ No

Share your phone number...............................No

I realize that it is not a popular setting to not allow buyers to send those messages, but I have 5 selling accounts and the vast majority of the questions I get are asking me to lower my prices or asking if I will accept  offers. or an offer with a lowball price.

I will not.  And that is my business and my choice. 

but recently I have been getting these messages on the accounts where I have chosen not to receive messages.

Is there another setting that is allowing these messages to get through? 

I realize that ebay is on board with getting me to lower my prices, accept best offer "Make the sale"  eyes on items, lower your prices,  Item in carts, lower your price, but it is not what I want to do.

If there is a workaround for buyers to still send those questions, please let me know. 

And is there any way to stop the constant messages from ebay encouring me to accept best offer and lower my prices?  (sorry if these questions are not popular or on the bandwagon with ebay wants)

Happy New Year.

[vrykalak]

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@mam98031 wrote:

I too had a problem on the 24th with pick up, however mine was with USPS.  They just somehow missed our street all together.  Most likely from temp or fill in workers that weren't familiar with the area.  

Of course my problem isn't anything I would expect Ebay to protect my account on.  I'd like it, but it isn't expected.

---

The President gave all Federal employees the day off December 24th. So it wasn't just your street.

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

Happy New Year!

One of the questions Bob was asked on the First was about buyers requesting sellers to ship past our stated shipping date. I read Bob's answer, but would like you guys to pass this on to him (and also, I'd be happy to hear any other opinions about this):

Bob, on the subject of buyer requests for late shipping: The question was asked from a seller perspective, and your answer was directed at that perspective. Others have addressed that. I'd like to suggest a different way of looking at this issue. As it stands now, ebay itself has built in a DISincentive for sellers to accommodate the buyer's request. (The ding, and the hassle to remove, if possible, the ding) .

Let's look at this from a buyer and an ebay marketing perspective instead. ebay has stressed the importance of free return shipping, free and fast shipping, etc. As eBay says, these are important in part because they are, in today's world, pretty much "industry standard". But "industry standard" is table stakes, Bob. Sellers accommodating buyer requests for late shipping? I'd guess that's NOT really industry standard (in part, because larger retailers have a shipping "process" that is simply not designed for such requests). It exceeds industry standard. You even developed Guaranteed Delivery because your research shows buyers want to know WHEN to expect their package. But THAT is exactly why eBay SHOULD make it easier for us to accommodate those requests...I, as a SMALL seller, unlike many larger sellers, can do so without much trouble. Part of eBay's value proposition , part of what differentiates ebay from other businesses, is that so many sellers are small sellers who CAN afford to offer "the personal touch" lacking from our larger competitors. We are still the sort of Main Street, Mom and Pop businesses that ebay today champions in places like Akron.

In my experience, buyers are often delightfully SURPRISED to have me say "Sure, no problem" to a late shipping request. I don't do that because I figure they will become MY return buyers , because my inventory is so varied that I have few return buyers.  I do it because I want happy buyers. And happy buyers are good for me, and for eBay.

Making it easy to accommodate such requests would put eBay ABOVE industry standard. It would give ebay good word of mouth advertising from delighted buyers. It would be another way for ebay to differentiate itself from retail behemoths.

You said that sellers get relaitvely few requests, which is one reason eBay doesn't see this as important.  That's numbers Bob, and I realize eBay lives and breathes numbers. Albert Einstein, no slouch at numbers, had this sign on his office wall : "Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts."

Sometimes, numbers don't matter. Sometimes, just doing the right thing is worth it simply because it's the right thing to do.

I want to do the right thing for my buyers, Bob. Do you want to do the right thing for your sellers?

[Anonymous]

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@usga-state wrote:

I have a question about the FAQ's and ask seller a question in the communications with buyers settings.

I set up my FAQ's and set my account with the following.

See answers to your FAQ's ............yes

Send you messages on eBay while they're shopping............no

Include a message at checkout when they pay................ No

Share your phone number...............................No

I realize that it is not a popular setting to not allow buyers to send those messages, but I have 5 selling accounts and the vast majority of the questions I get are asking me to lower my prices or asking if I will accept  offers. or an offer with a lowball price.

I will not.  And that is my business and my choice. 

but recently I have been getting these messages on the accounts where I have chosen not to receive messages.

Is there another setting that is allowing these messages to get through? 

I realize that ebay is on board with getting me to lower my prices, accept best offer "Make the sale"  eyes on items, lower your prices,  Item in carts, lower your price, but it is not what I want to do.

If there is a workaround for buyers to still send those questions, please let me know. 

And is there any way to stop the constant messages from ebay encouring me to accept best offer and lower my prices?  (sorry if these questions are not popular or on the bandwagon with ebay wants)

Happy New Year.

---

Hi @usga-state, we would need to see an example to investigate this further. If you have an item number ready we can reach out via email to get more detais and review. The most likely reason this would happen is that the buyer has purchased from you in the past, thus allowing them to message you moving forward. We can definitely take a look at this and see what might be going on, though!

[shop_giftworthy]

Hi! 

I'm a first timer in the weekly ebay chat.  My question concerns what I call "ghost sellers" on eBay. These are the ebay stores that create listings that are just upcharging another valid ebayer's listing, and don't actually stock anything themselves - the ebayer with the item ends up shipping it to the customer, and the customer thinks the ghost seller who overcharged them took care of their purchase?

It's a deceptive trade practice, and no doubt illegal. It worsens an already flooded market and harms the consumer. The consumer not only pays more than they would have had they found the actual ebayer who stocked the item, but they are under the incorrect impression that the ghost seller gave them good customer service, when the ghost seller took the profit and never touched the product.

In addition to that, ebay is double-dipping on FVF fees by allowing this trade practice to occur. You get one FVF fee when the ghost seller sells the product and another FVF when they drop-ship it off the actual ebayer who stocks it. I believe this double-dipping is also illegal.

I've reported a store last month who attempted to drop ship off my store, and ebay's CSR said they've had multiple reports on them - but I checked today and they are still in business. They have an "anchor" store, and don't stock anything. I cancelled their order when I noticed who it was that purchased the item versus who it was being shipped to. If I would have shipped the product to the end consumer, he would have had the false impression that this ghost seller took care of them and I miss out on the repeat business that I could have generated had the customer known it was me. They don't pay attention to the packing slip in the shipment, they'll look on their ebay purchase history and click on that seller's userID or store icon, and return there to purchase. 

There are many like them, flooding the market with so many listings without an actual product, and not only does that make it more difficult for consumers to find what they want at a fair price, it also decreases the number of views that actual stocking ebayers' listings receive, forcing us to pay "promoted listings" fees to increase visibility - more profit to ebay from a deceptive trade practice.

What is ebay doing to prevent this? All you have to do is view the items that a ghost seller has sold versus the items they bought - and you'll see they are identical.  I really wish ebay would proactively "vet" sellers when they want to open a store, and once vetted, leave us to take care of our customers. 

Thank you

[mam98031]

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@vrykalak wrote:

---

@mam98031 wrote:

I too had a problem on the 24th with pick up, however mine was with USPS.  They just somehow missed our street all together.  Most likely from temp or fill in workers that weren't familiar with the area.  

Of course my problem isn't anything I would expect Ebay to protect my account on.  I'd like it, but it isn't expected.

---

The President gave all Federal employees the day off December 24th. So it wasn't just your street.

---

USPS was functioning, they just missed our street, got other neighbors, just not our street.

http://www.fox5dc.com/news/president-trump-signs-executive-order-giving-federal-employees-off-on-chr...

[divwido]

What are the chances in the coming years of giving us boxes in the listing form to enter data important to the seller but not viewable by the shopper?    Like a place to put purchase date and cost?  Important notes?

[vrykalak]

---

@usga-state wrote:

I realize that ebay is on board with getting me to lower my prices, accept best offer "Make the sale"  eyes on items, lower your prices,  Item in carts, lower your price, but it is not what I want to do. 

---

I am annoyed by those emails, too. 

If someone is watching, or has put an item in the cart, the last thing I want to do is lower the price. 

People "watch" things for many reasons, but if it's to choose which one to buy, and I lower the price, they might just wait to see if I'll lower it again, or make a lowball offer.

If someone has put an item in a cart, to my mind, that means they plan to buy it, at the stated price. I'm only hurting myself if I lower the price at that point.

If an item in my Unsold list had a watcher, I usually RAISE the price before relisting it...and more often than not, it gets snapped up right away.

[alan@ebay]

---

@my-cottage-books-and-antiques wrote:

Happy New Year!

One of the questions Bob was asked on the First was about buyers requesting sellers to ship past our stated shipping date. I read Bob's answer, but would like you guys to pass this on to him (and also, I'd be happy to hear any other opinions about this):

Bob, on the subject of buyer requests for late shipping: The question was asked from a seller perspective, and your answer was directed at that perspective. Others have addressed that. I'd like to suggest a different way of looking at this issue. As it stands now, ebay itself has built in a DISincentive for sellers to accommodate the buyer's request. (The ding, and the hassle to remove, if possible, the ding) .

Let's look at this from a buyer and an ebay marketing perspective instead. ebay has stressed the importance of free return shipping, free and fast shipping, etc. As eBay says, these are important in part because they are, in today's world, pretty much "industry standard". But "industry standard" is table stakes, Bob. Sellers accommodating buyer requests for late shipping? I'd guess that's NOT really industry standard (in part, because larger retailers have a shipping "process" that is simply not designed for such requests). It exceeds industry standard. You even developed Guaranteed Delivery because your research shows buyers want to know WHEN to expect their package. But THAT is exactly why eBay SHOULD make it easier for us to accommodate those requests...I, as a SMALL seller, unlike many larger sellers, can do so without much trouble. Part of eBay's value proposition , part of what differentiates ebay from other businesses, is that so many sellers are small sellers who CAN afford to offer "the personal touch" lacking from our larger competitors. We are still the sort of Main Street, Mom and Pop businesses that ebay today champions in places like Akron.

In my experience, buyers are often delightfully SURPRISED to have me say "Sure, no problem" to a late shipping request. I don't do that because I figure they will become MY return buyers , because my inventory is so varied that I have few return buyers.  I do it because I want happy buyers. And happy buyers are good for me, and for eBay.

Making it easy to accommodate such requests would put eBay ABOVE industry standard. It would give ebay good word of mouth advertising from delighted buyers. It would be another way for ebay to differentiate itself from retail behemoths.

You said that sellers get relaitvely few requests, which is one reason eBay doesn't see this as important.  That's numbers Bob, and I realize eBay lives and breathes numbers. Albert Einstein, no slouch at numbers, had this sign on his office wall : "Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts."

Sometimes, numbers don't matter. Sometimes, just doing the right thing is worth it simply because it's the right thing to do.

I want to do the right thing for my buyers, Bob. Do you want to do the right thing for your sellers?

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Hi @my-cottage-books-and-antiques, 

Thanks for checking it out, I hope that you found the podcast informative. 

I'm happy to share your post with Bob. 

Thank you.