Neutral feedback because of no returns

[shopkiger]

Hi all, 

I got a neutral feedback today that says "no returns & it didn't fit" 

It's in my description that I do not accept returns but I usually do anyway when someone asks. If she would have just reached out I would have accepted a return or even sent another item free. I will usually go out of my way to fix any problem.

Should I even bother to try to have it removed & can a buyer leave a neutral or even a negative because you don't accept returns?? 

It's not a big deal & i'm not going to lose sleep over a neutral. It just seems like it would be unfair for a buyer to leave a neutral feedback because a seller doesn't accept returns when they are aware of that.

[sweetpieces4you]

And I think You Missed The Boat by Announcing to the World You Accept Free Returns Next to All of Your Listings !! 

[odie200412]

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@shopkiger wrote:

Hi all, 

I got a neutral feedback today that says "no returns & it didn't fit" 

It's in my description that I do not accept returns but I usually do anyway when someone asks. If she would have just reached out I would have accepted a return or even sent another item free. I will usually go out of my way to fix any problem.

Should I even bother to try to have it removed & can a buyer leave a neutral or even a negative because you don't accept returns?? 

It's not a big deal & i'm not going to lose sleep over a neutral. It just seems like it would be unfair for a buyer to leave a neutral feedback because a seller doesn't accept returns when they are aware of that.

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Make sure when you call to ask for a Feedback Specialist.  The original CS person might say they can handle it then tell you no but insist on a feedback specialist.  They know what is going on and are able to remove the incorrectly given feedback.

[kathieskorner]

If you normally accept returns if asked and they are not a big deal, then why do you not offer them in your listings? 

Because I don't want buyers to purhase an item with the idea that they can easily return it.  I'd rather lose a sale than deal with a return.  Fortunately I don't sell many clothes.  

[fern*wood]

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@sweetpieces4you wrote:

And I think You Missed The Boat by Announcing to the World You Accept Free Returns Next to All of Your Listings !! 

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You can choose to accept returns without making them free.

[the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth]

I don't see how any seller can sell women's clothing without a return policy. All the women I know try on multiple items before choosing the one that fits best. Shoes too. 

You can compare jeans from the same company in the same size and they will be totally different measurements.

[city*satins]

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@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:

I don't see how any seller can sell women's clothing without a return policy. All the women I know try on multiple items before choosing the one that fits best. Shoes too. 

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And conversely I don't see how any clothing seller can offer FREE returns.

Currently I have gone back to accepting returns but not on lingerie.  

[the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth]

I agree with that. Buyers should have to pay return shipping unless the item is SNAD. 

[shopkiger]

Yes I am aware of all of this. I've been through it. I don't understand where this is coming from though because this is not my issue or the reason for this post.
The fact that the buyer never asked for a return & left neutral feedback because I don't is the problem. It's not exactly fair for ebay to give us the choice if we want to accept returns (SNAD excluded) or not but then allow buyers to leave neutral or negative because we don't.

[shopkiger]

I don't have a free return policy. Usually when buyers ask me to return the item despite the fact that I do not accept returns they always pay for the return shipping.

[shopkiger]

That's why you should provide measurements in the listing. When I'm buying I always check measurements or ask if they're not provided & i've never recieved an item that doesn't fit. Unfortunately some buyers do not know their measurements & buy anyway knowing that a seller doesn't accept returns & wants to blame the seller. All they have to do is measure one of their favorite tops or jeans & compare to measurements in the listings.

[mam98031]

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@shopkiger wrote:
Yes I am aware of all of this. I've been through it. I don't understand where this is coming from though because this is not my issue or the reason for this post.
The fact that the buyer never asked for a return & left neutral feedback because I don't is the problem. It's not exactly fair for ebay to give us the choice if we want to accept returns (SNAD excluded) or not but then allow buyers to leave neutral or negative because we don't.

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You want something to be a requirement that is not a requirement currently.   Sellers have asked for many years that Ebay require a buyer to at a minimum contact a seller via email and give the seller a reasonable amount of time to respond before the buyer can leave any negative or neutral FB.  Ebay has never agreed to accommodate this request.  They don't want to infringe on the rights of the customer to leave FB without impediment.

The fact that the buyer never requested a return yet states that in the FB they left for you is probably the best thing they could have done for you as you should be able to get it removed by contacting Ebay.

[shopkiger]

I think we all want that to be a requirement & I realize it is not. But exactly as you said, ebay removed the feedback because it does state in the listing that I do not accept returns & she didn't open a case or request a return.

[mam98031]

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@shopkiger wrote:
I think we all want that to be a requirement & I realize it is not. But exactly as you said, ebay removed the feedback because it does state in the listing that I do not accept returns & she didn't open a case or request a return.

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I'm very glad that worked out for you and that is as it should be.

BTW, why have a No Return policy when with the statement you have in your descriptions, you are actually offering a 30 or 60 day [your choice] return policy with buyer pays shipping.

As you know, no return policies turn away some buyers as they don't like it.  Some it may make them be more cautious when purchasing, trying to make sure they read everything so they can make an informed decision and less likely to have the need of a return.

But with your statement that you do process SNADs [which of course you have to anyway with a No Return policy], having a 30 or 60 day return policy with buyer pays shipping may sit better with some buyers that you are currently not reaching.  You do lose the ability to deny a properly filed buyer's remorse return, but you will be able to still require them to pay for return shipping and if you have separately stated shipping you can withhold the original shipping from the refund.

Just asking!

[shopkiger]

I gave accepting returns a try for quite a while about a year ago. When I accepted returns it seemed like most items were being returned for the reasons that the item didn't fit. I was okay with it at first but it didn't make sense to take the extra time to take measurements just to have so many items returned because it didn't fit. I've always provided measurements to prevent returns for that reason but the returns were coming in like crazy so I decided not to do it anymore. There wasn't enough of an increase in sales for me to deal with the hassle. Now I encourage buyers in the description to double check measurements since there is a no return policy. Unfortunately, a lot of buyers don't know their measurements or don't read the full description. I guess it just seems to work for me to have a no return policy & lose a few sales than to have more sales but have to deal with so many returns. When I do have a buyer message me & politely ask for an exchange or return if they pay return shipping charges I usually always agree to it. I certainly don't want the negative feedback. Every time I get a negative feedback my sales decline tremendously.
It didn't work out when I offered free shipping either cause that ate into the profits so much & offers started to get lower & lower. I decided to start charging buyers shipping again as well.
I still like to change things up a bit & experiment from time to time so I'm sure I'll try again some time in the future with free shipping & returns.

[mam98031]

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@shopkiger wrote:
I gave accepting returns a try for quite a while about a year ago. When I accepted returns it seemed like most items were being returned for the reasons that the item didn't fit. I was okay with it at first but it didn't make sense to take the extra time to take measurements just to have so many items returned because it didn't fit. I've always provided measurements to prevent returns for that reason but the returns were coming in like crazy so I decided not to do it anymore. There wasn't enough of an increase in sales for me to deal with the hassle. Now I encourage buyers in the description to double check measurements since there is a no return policy. Unfortunately, a lot of buyers don't know their measurements or don't read the full description. I guess it just seems to work for me to have a no return policy & lose a few sales than to have more sales but have to deal with so many returns. When I do have a buyer message me & politely ask for an exchange or return if they pay return shipping charges I usually always agree to it. I certainly don't want the negative feedback. Every time I get a negative feedback my sales decline tremendously.
It didn't work out when I offered free shipping either cause that ate into the profits so much & offers started to get lower & lower. I decided to start charging buyers shipping again as well.
I still like to change things up a bit & experiment from time to time so I'm sure I'll try again some time in the future with free shipping & returns.

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Free shipping should NEVER affect your profits negatively.  Free shipping does NOT mean you don't charge the buyer for shipping.  It means you roll the cost of shipping into the price of the product.  No business can actually get free shipping, carriers always charge for their services.  You just misunderstood how to structure your business when using this option.