eBay

golden.lion.trading · ‎01-03-2023

First of all, i want to give thanks to all the helpful people on these boards. I started selling on eBay on the 4th quarter of 2021 and have been checking here almost every day since. Lots of questions have been answered.

Now the issue at hand. I’m about to have a heart attack, and need some help understanding how the defect rate for TRS is calculated. I took about 70 packages from the long weekend sales to the post office this morning, I usually scan at the SSK, but today the machine was not working, the counter employees refused to scan my packages and made me put them in a cart where they usually let people put already pre-paid packages. I drop them at about 9AM this morning and not a single package is showing as scanned.

Say I have 70 packages with defect because of this. Will I’ll be in for a nightmare with eBay trying to explain this? How do I know if this will take me out of the TRS status? I checked the eBay explanation of the defect percentages, but having a hard time understanding it.

714ricki · ‎01-03-2023

Take another look at the tracking scans in the morning & enjoy your sleep. The USPS scans are a bit slow to upload. However, you should see the initial scans in the morning with hopefully the first scan with the date that your dropped off the parcel.

Recommendation, try printing out your shipping labels in bulk on ebay & printing out a scan sheet. Then take the scan sheet & all your parcels to the USPS & have them scan the Scan Sheet & receive all of your parcels. That will trigger an automatic scan of all of your parcels. If the scan sheet isn't an ioption for you & the kiosk is down again, then find an alternate USPS office with a kiosk machine. Other alternative, increase your handling time to two days to allow for kiosk problems or scan delays. Just to cover all your basis, next time also ask to speak to the local Post Master about their scan policy.

Yes, you would have a problem explaining 70 parcels with a late scan. However, you can offset that by shipping on time with a scan from this point forward. You will be OK!!!

Hang in there!

golden.lion.trading · ‎01-04-2023

Thanks for the quick reply. You were right, their system seems to be slow, packages are showing initials scans at about 6PM yesterday.

I will change to 2 days handling, I did 1 day for the holidays, but it is a lot of work and pressure. On the scan sheet, I wish there was a way to get it without using bulk shipping, I have not found a way to organize packages without the chance of getting confused with the labels.

heckofagame · ‎01-04-2023

Ebay says this:

"You'll be recognized for on-time shipping if tracking shows your item was either shipped within the stated handling time or delivered by the estimated delivery date."

Once you generate labels, they show as shipped. As long as they arrive by the estimated date, you are good to go.

brightlightbookseller · ‎01-04-2023

Actually, if you look at the metrics page, it indicates that items are considered late if they are not scanned within your handling time frame. That said, it doesn't give you a defect if that item is received on time, I believe, so you're correct on that part and it can nullify any late scans.

As others mentioned, though, the scans are just sometimes slow to update, but will still show the correct date of the scan when they do, so sometimes an item will be showing late because the scan hasn't registered, but then update and will disappear from the late packages numbers.

a_c_green · ‎01-04-2023

@heckofagame wrote:
Ebay says this:

"You'll be recognized for on-time shipping if tracking shows your item was either shipped within the stated handling time or delivered by the estimated delivery date."

Once you generate labels, they show as shipped. As long as they arrive by the estimated date, you are good to go.

True, although getting an in-network scan (usually an Acceptance scan) within your Handling time will keep you good if the package ends up arriving late at its destination. I always focus on getting the package scanned at Acceptance time (even a provisional scan from the Self-Serve Kiosk will suffice for eBay purposes), because that much is under my control; I can't control whether it will arrive on time.

In the OP's case, those 70 packages really need a SCAN sheet, because it's a bit much to expect 70 individual Acceptance scans at the counter, and 70 packages will easily clog the SSK drop chute before even half of them have gone in. (You also have the risk of getting a punch in the nose from all the people behind you who were waiting to use the SSK, and now have no means of using the drop chute because it's clogged.)

dhbookds · ‎01-04-2023

Question on the scan sheet...........seems like I remember that it now can add in all labels as you print them throughout the day in bulk shipping? If so.......couldn't you actually print a label at a time to prevent having to handle 70 labels at once (and possibly eliminate the switch label problem)?

1tuna · ‎01-04-2023

I am a drop an go shipper, into the bin and out the door I go.

ebay is quite lenient with late scans and so forth.

i never really thought of scanning them in myself. I see folks doing that but since it does not really count for insurance I skip it, I dont insure either.

i also am not a tracking checker.

I have absolute faith in the USPS with my 2100 first class packages a year

they get scanned when they get scanned and that is good enough for me

its hard to improve my dashboard stats

@golden.lion.trading

Germantown proud Germantown strong
up the whiskey hickon
moving right along
19144

mycheaperstuff · ‎01-04-2023

Although I agree with the advice to wait until tomorrow to know if the packages were scanned, and to chill because of "spilled milk", the facts about what happens to your metrics is at best incomplete.

There are two factors in seller standing metrics relating to tracking and on time handling. If your package doesn't get some kind of scan before midnight on the day handling expired, your mailing is late. Period.

You will get the ding on late shipment rate for every buyer of the 70 that does leave you 5 star feedback for shipping speed. How many of your buyers leave feedback? How many of those leaving feedback rate you with stars?

You could provide good customer service and influence those 70 people by writing to say, "sorry, although your package was shipped on time, it was not scanned; I expect it will still arrive on time..."

You will get the ding for "tracking uploaded on time and validated." Period.

In my experience, contacting eBay to explain is pointless. The only exceptions to these metrics is a widespread cause for not getting the scan, like a natural disaster, and then only if you are on the cusp of being disqualified from TRS.

THAT is why a conscientious seller uses package pickup or stands in line.

As to how the percentage is calculated.

a) Look at your dashboard to see if the metric for each of these two factors is one year or three months. It can be different.

b) The percentage is the number of defects divided by the number of transactions eBay says there were in the period. eBay is not consistent, or not always right in their counting of a transaction in one month or the next. Nothing to do about it.

c) I thought the count was transactions as the dashboard says. But a late scan on one of my packages yesterday shows they use number of listings. (A multiple listing order with combined shipping counted as 2 defects.)

The boards can help, but there is no substitute for KNOWING the rules yourself by reading everything you can on the dashboard and policy pages.

sapphire_studio · ‎01-04-2023

After you do bulkshipping You can hit back And see a list of all the inventories sold and the buyers addresses. They will be in the exact order that the labels printed ( With the exception of International packages being at the end of the labels)

You just have to go down that list and match the item that sold to the name/address and because it's in the same exact order it's pretty easy you're mostly just confirming.

I've never mixed up labels with bookshipping not even once. It's so fast as well, Especially if you use a thermal printer.

You can bring multiple scan sheets too if you Want to do all your labels every evening and you're bringing it on a Monday after a weekend.