Negative consequences to using Vacation Mode?

[printm73]

I'm trying to figure out how this works. I haven't been on a vacation for over 10 years and now I finally get to have one, but I worry that being away for almost 2 weeks can hurt my account. Few things I'm unsure of:

1. Can customers leave negative feedbacks for taking long to process exchanges or returns while I have Vacation Mode turned on? A bulk of my sales are apparel and size charts seem to not help much for a lot of people so I expect an increase in returns.

2. Can I get dinged on any cases that are open while I'm away? I prefer not to have to check my account every day while I'm out of the country.

3. Do my search rankings drop while being away?

Thanks in advance.

[reallynicestamps]

1.) When you turn on Vacation Mode, also make your listings invisible. You can't ship them so why make promises you can't keep.

2.) You can still get new Disputes while you are away. If you cannot respond to these you will need to arrange for a trusted and intelligent person to cover for you.

3.) Your listings are invisible which is a Good Thing. When you turn off Vacation Mode it takes up to 24 hours for your listings to re-index, so you could do it the day before you return, if you are a very organized person.

[inhawaii]

Is vacation mode only available if you have a store?

[reallynicestamps]

Yes.

If the seller does not have a Store, the easiest way to deal with time away is to close all the listings (including auctions if they will end while the seller is away*).

The listings will go to the seller's Unsold list and rest there for 60 -90 days.

There is no refund on fees when listings are closed early.

When the seller returns, she can relist with a click  or two.

Fees will be charged for the relisted items. **

*Or pack the items that have bids and take them along. Ship them when they are paid. This doesn't work well if the Vacation is actually a hospital stay.

**If you have used your 50 Free for the month and come back when the listings would still have been live, you will be charged 35cents for each relisting. If you come back after those 50 Free would have expired, you are on to the next month's 50 Free.

[thevintagesilvershop]

For the length of time you’ll be away, I’d make my listings invisible. If you leave them up and available for sale, you MUST change your handling time. If you do not ship within your stated handling time, your account will get killed. 

As far as cases, etc., being opened for previous items sold?  I’ve never known vacation mode to protect you from any of that. Ebay is a hard master and expects you to respond to cases no matter what. About the only time I’ve seen them relax any of those rules is if your area has been in a natural disaster of some sort. So, even if you are out of the country, I’d check once a day to make sure you respond to problems. If you don’t respond to cases or returns, your account could also be severely impacted. 

[nobody*s_perfect]

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@printm73 wrote:

... 

1. Can customers leave negative feedbacks for taking long to process exchanges or returns while I have Vacation Mode turned on? ...

2. Can I get dinged on any cases that are open while I'm away? .....

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1. Yes

2. Yes

The vacation settings available to Store subscribers have a very limited function. The basic setting just puts an "Away" message at the top of your listings.  It has no effect on your handling time -- you are expected to ship within the handling time shown in the listing.  So most sellers also activate the block on sales of fixed price listings, which also blocks them from showing up in searches.

 Vacation settings have no impact on transactions that happen before you turn them on. 

[jakescameras]

i TRIED TO TURN OFF MY VACATION SETTINGS AND I GAVE UP AFTER SEVERAL TIMES WITH NO RESPONSE. I LATER FOUND OUT I HAD TO GO TO "MY messages" "AND THEN "SETTINGS" TO GET GET THINGs WORKING AGAIN!

[forgottenape]

you can reindex them yourself faster. sometimes it pays to hit vacation mode for an hour or so then turn it back on. oops did I say that out loud?

[mcdougle4248]

@printm73

You may want to check out the Weekly Chat with ebay staff from Wednesday.  Concerns about cases being opened while on vacation was addressed.  If I remember correctly, the eBay staff response was on page 2.

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Weekly-Chat-with-eBay-Staff/Community-Chat-Jan-16-from-1-00-pm-PT-Gene...