eBay

movieman630 · ‎03-02-2023

I was sick recently and it came on so sudden that when my shipping day came around I had several orders that needed to be shipped. I had no time to think about "Time Away" functions.

If ebay wanted to help sellers what would really be helpful (Especially in the age of covid-19) would be an "Emergency Delay Function". Something where if a SUDDEN onset emergency hits a seller can suspend sales and also automatically notify buyers that their items "shipping will be delayed but that if they wish to cancel the transaction and get a full refund they are welcome to do so."

This would allow the seller an easy way out of worrying about ebay punishing them for not shipping on time while also protecting the buyer from having to wait for something. If the buyer doesn't like waiting they can get a refund no questions asked and the seller doesn't have to deal with buyer abuse.

A function like this is long overdue. There's no reason why we can't have something like this when emergencies hit all the time for any and all reasons.

Just a suggestion for ebay of a function that would ACTUALLY HELP SELLERS! How about something like that for an update instead of just telling us how we're going to pay more fees?

movieman630 · ‎03-02-2023

@dhbookds wrote:
That's exactly the problem with people today. No empathy for others.

And some might say..........that's exactly the problem with people today........they can't take responsibility for running their own lives.......

I do take responsibility for "running my own life" HOWEVER if ebay is my "business partner" and I say to them "Hey, I'm in the hospital, need to shut down for a week" they shouldn't say. "That's not my problem" and just walk away. They SHOULD SAY "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. How can I help?"

I can't help that I have to rely on ebay's platform and "rules of the game". So when the part of my business that's RUN by Ebay is effected. I really can't take responsibility for when that "relationship" breaks down. See to ebay we're just numbers. But in that respect ebay has a responsibility to us to help us, not hinder us.

harafkac0 · ‎03-02-2023

I unfortunately have to agree with the abuse scenario, and please read through before you reply...

Just casual observation over the past decade or two has shown me that every single feature that can be abused, will be abused, and by the vast majority of sellers.

The vast majority...

Look at variation listings, where there is variable pricing...

Most every last one of those is abused.

They will list a $100 widget in a listing for $10-$120 because they cleverly included a $7 charging cord as the very first option (and of course it's $10 and not $7)... The $100 widget itself is the $120 option and what makes it so annoying is these listings show up HIGH on the "lowest price first" type of search.
Not to mention every single one of those listings sells overpriced items (at least in terms of lowest priced).
There is more, there is so much more, wise guy sellers are like a plague of locusts around here.

yuzuha · ‎03-02-2023

@rosszonebricks wrote:
If you are sick and can't ship for a single day, just take the ding(s) for late shipping. And of course, just don't take 'sick days' that often and your metrics will be fine.

Or just set your handling time to allow for that sort of thing. I have chronic migraines; there will be times when I just can't ship on a given day, so while I usually try to ship the next day, there will be times when I simply can't do so. That's why I have a three-day handling time-- to give myself a bit of a buffer so that I don't HAVE to ship the next day if I have a migraine.

luckythewinner · ‎03-02-2023

@movieman630 wrote:
That's exactly the problem with people today. No empathy for others. Sorry but I'm not running Wal Mart. I don't live by the mantra the "customer is always right". I'm not here to bend over backwards to "Deliver" even at the expense of my own health.
If you do not want to honor the commitment you made to both the eBay community and to your buyers, you should probably look into setting up your own website where you can delay shipping whenever you want without any repercussions.

movieman630 · ‎03-02-2023

Name a way in which it would be beneficial for a seller to "abuse" the emergency option?

Mandatory, you make no sales during this period. All listings are shut off.

All "pending shipping" orders are now at the mercy of the buyer. If they choose they get refunded in full at your expense.

So HOW could someone "abuse" that and benefit? It's literally a function that you can use to "shut off" your store. People come here to make money right? To SELL right? So how does NOT SELLING benefit a seller?

It doesn't. It benefits a person who is UNABLE to sell. As I said previously. If I could have cancelled and refunded my orders when I was sick instead of ship them I would have. I would have been giving over $1000 in refunds. I was that sick. I'd rather have given $1000 in refunds then process those orders that day. But I didn't want to hurt my store and reputation. So I suffered through it.

My option, allows for you on THAT day. To declare a state of emergency and shut off your sales, and notify your pending orders that you're having an EMERGENCY! They can refund or wait. It's up to them. That's not a function someone will willingly "abuse". You can't benefit from that.

movieman630 · ‎03-02-2023

I already have a 3 day handling time. Didn't help me when the day I had to ship came around and I was still sick.

dhbookds · ‎03-02-2023

Movie...........I do not mean this disrespectively.......I understand you are upset...... But you just don't seem to "get" that you do have the tools to handle a situation you describe..... IF you designate someone to handle things, give them the links.......if they aren't capable of shipping.....extend the handling time and ship as soon as you can BEFORE the handling time is up......etc....... before something terrible happens.

Ebay is committed to buyers that sellers will service their accounts according to what the seller has chosen.... 1 day shipping up to 30 day shipping. If a seller can't figure out how to do that.....that really is a seller problem....... They have 24 million or so sellers........to expect them to respond to each seller that has a problem with an individual solution is asking too much.........especially since you seem to want them to contact your buyers, cancel your sales (or not?).......the complications could be endless, beyond the simple "press a button".......

luckythewinner · ‎03-02-2023

@movieman630 wrote:
Maybe you have the type of business that a "friend or relative" can just fill in for you. But some of us who deal in "niche" products have to rely on our own expertise to fill orders and can't just ask a "friend or relative" to fill in for us. Much the same way that I wouldn't expect a friend of mine who's an electrician to ask me to fill in for them when they're sick.

Your fill in does not need to run your business.

He or she only needs to shut down your store immediately and ship any existing orders.

If your business has an inventory system that links a listing to an item, they should be able to fill a day or two of orders.

If you do not have your inventory organized, they simply need to cancel the orders for Out of Stock.

movieman630 · ‎03-02-2023

"Honor the commitment"

So tell me... How is the person having Emergency heart surgery supposed to "honor the commitment" to ebay and the customer?

What's the point of even using the word "Emergency" if it has no meaning?

"Business is Business" I'd hate to work for someone like you. You sound like the type of person who would make their employees work through a life threatening storm. "Get back to work"! Labor laws were created for people with that attitude.

@luckythewinner wrote:
@movieman630 wrote:
That's exactly the problem with people today. No empathy for others. Sorry but I'm not running Wal Mart. I don't live by the mantra the "customer is always right". I'm not here to bend over backwards to "Deliver" even at the expense of my own health.
If you do not want to honor the commitment you made to both the eBay community and to your buyers, you should probably look into setting up your own website where you can delay shipping whenever you want without any repercussions.

luckythewinner · ‎03-02-2023

@movieman630 wrote:
So tell me... How is the person having Emergency heart surgery supposed to "honor the commitment" to ebay and the customer?

By having a backup plan where someone steps in to shut down your eBay store and ship your outstanding orders (or cancel them if your inventory is not organized).

iamalwaysright · ‎03-02-2023

I know this isn't the OP's intention, but basically your Sick Day Button will be seen as a "Get out of Jail Free Button" to many sellers. It's a nice concept though. Bad apples ruin it for everyone.

dhbookds · ‎03-02-2023

That's not a function someone will willingly "abuse". You can't benefit from that.

Sure you can..........I'm out of stock.......If I admit that, I will put my account in jeopardy, so I'll claim illness to try to delay (or cancel the sale) so I won't get dinged.......

movieman630 · ‎03-02-2023

AGAIN! Not every business is easy to run! I'm the only one who can fill my orders. Nobody else can step in and just "fill in". They'd have to know everything I know. Not possible.

You're not making an argument against a quick way to do this. You're making an argument FOR a quick way to do this. Which is what I'm talking about! You hit ONE BUTTON for Emergency shut down. DONE! You're in the clear. You're protected.

You don't need to make it someone else's responsibility to run your business!

iamalwaysright · ‎03-02-2023

@movieman630 wrote:
Again, You're all missing the counter point. Your buyers can all cancel and get refunded during that "emergency period" if they want. So if you abuse it, your opening yourself up to cancelled transactions and refunds.

Too many abusive non-ill sellers, this would still be a very good trade to keep their accounts in good standing. It takes more work, but your description of a "emergency shut down button" can be DYI-ed. People have talked about it. It's not as intuitive because you make it yourself. But that's what will separate yourself as a seller from the "less-experienced".

I don't think many don't see the importance, we all do. It's a great concept, but it isn't refined enough to handle the riff-raff. Maybe brainstorm and build off your original idea to make it better.

luckythewinner · ‎03-02-2023

Name a way in which it would be beneficial for a seller to "abuse" the emergency option?

1) A seller is out of stock, and waiting for his supplier to replenish his stock.

2) A seller is out of stock, and one more defect will put him into Below Standard so he wants the buyer to ask for a cancellation instead of taking the out of stock defect.

3) A seller knows he is going to miss his shipping time while on a weekend vacation, and does not want to lose Top Rated Seller status.