Responding to negative feedback.

[inhawaii]

I've had a handful of negative feedback in my 20+ years on ebay.

I know it's not the end of the world, but this one really makes me and the product look bad.

Of course it was left without contacting me first.

I already reached out to the buyer with an apology.

I already refunded the buyer in full. 

I already submitted a very kind feedback revision request.

I'm just waiting to see how that turns out.  

I'm just thinking about how i'm going to respond to this negative  I welcome any suggestions.

This is what i've got so far. I'm just wondering how to piece it together,

what to add, what to leave in and what to leave out.

"I'm sorry about the issue with your item."

"I wish you would have contacted me that there was a problem before leaving this feedback."

"I've sold hundreds of these without any problem or complaint."

"I've issued you a full refund including shipping."

"

[stainlessenginecovers]

Remember; response feedback needs to be short and sweet as to not make it any larger than it already is. 2nd; when you do respond, the buyer is notified and they get to re-respond and with 500 characters you never know what they will say. 

Myself; I just let it be. The positives will wash it away and anyone checking will see that you have many more positives than this one neg. 

In a few days, it'll get buried and 2 weeks it'll be on the 2nd page. 

I got 5 negs that all said the same thing. "this grill does not fit at all". I emailed him "I don't sell grills, so was this meant for someone else?"  His response was to give a feedback on the 6th and Final Item he missed the first time and negged it saying 'bad quality'. I again- messaged him (he never attempted to return anything and was over $300 sale) and he responded "The items are of bad quality".

Moral of the story: Don't poke the bear. 

[tapi-szem]

This is very true.

If you look up the reviews for Joy on Fragrantica, the most recent one says it smells like urine and metallic, while rancid is mentioned in another review. Others smell floral bouquets. I think your buyer is just in the former group.

A certain rose perfume smells like dill pickles to me.

Also, some people who had COVID say that when their sense of smell came back, things smelt different than before.

[m60driver]

For such an inexpensive item just offer a full refund without need to return, hopefully in exchange for removing the neg.  Otherwise just ignore it and move on.

[mi-294]

reply saying

- My apologies, full refund was send , thank you -

nothing more nothing less

my policy is to not reply to feedback, but is up to you

[fab_finds4u]

That was my mom's favorite parfum. It gagged me. But then some vanilla parfums smell like cigarette smoke to me. My nose is jinxed!

[popblox]

I wouldn't reply to the fb, issue a refund, or send a revision request without trying to contact them first. I usually send an apologetic "How can I help?" email and wait 48 hours. If they respond, I would go from there. If they don't, I would reply to the fb:

"I'm so sorry you purchased a perfume without knowing if the scent was compatible with you. Luckily it was just a sample size, but I'd still be more than happy to resolve the issue to the best of my ability if you'd be willing to contact me. Please let me know how I can help."

Yes, it's slightly condescending, but it's factual - obviously you're not the manufacturer and leaving a bad review for you on a product they decided to buy is ridiculous. And eBay absolutely won't remove any "smell" related neg/neu fb anymore (they used to, but that's over).

[krazzykats]

I have boxes and boxes of old Avon decanter-type colognes, etc.  Most are in original boxes and contain varying amounts of the original fragrance.  Some look to have never been opened.  I have been advised to maybe sell the decanters, but dump the fragrances, mainly due to this issue. 

Old scents can smell really, really, nasty.

[vintagecraze50]

In addition to the kind feedback revision request you could offer them a discount on anything else they want as well. I had one like this and they did revise the feedback.

[vintagecraze50]

Also, you have a wonderful track record and great feedback from others so do not let this one upset you too much.

[bigdeals.etc]

---

@inhawaii wrote:

I've had a handful of negative feedback in my 20+ years on ebay.

I know it's not the end of the world, but this one really makes me and the product look bad.

Of course it was left without contacting me first.

I already reached out to the buyer with an apology.

I already refunded the buyer in full. 

I already submitted a very kind feedback revision request.

I'm just waiting to see how that turns out.  

I'm just thinking about how i'm going to respond to this negative  I welcome any suggestions.

This is what i've got so far. I'm just wondering how to piece it together,

what to add, what to leave in and what to leave out.

"I'm sorry about the issue with your item."

"I wish you would have contacted me that there was a problem before leaving this feedback."

"I've sold hundreds of these without any problem or complaint."

"I've issued you a full refund including shipping."

"

---

Here’s the perfect reply “It’s not the perfume that smells bad. It’s most likely just your upper lip.”

You’re welcome.

[coastaltechsolution]

@bigdeals.etc 

Thanks, I needed that laugh today 😂🤣😁

[maxine*j]

Maybe something along the lines of:

"I am sorry that this smelled bad to you.  I have issued you a full refund, including shipping.  I will look into this, as yours is the first complaint I have received after selling hundreds of these."

I think that, without being snarky, it gets across the idea that something can smell bad to one person but not to hundreds of others. 

=

[katzrul15]

@inhawaii 

Extreme heat or cold can alter a fragrence's composition.  Where was it shipped to?  Left outside all day in a mailbox in heat or severe cold?

[coastaltechsolution]

@katzrul15 

was the label on the bottle marked "May smell like Poo" ? 

[babclassics]

---

@inhawaii wrote:

 I'm sorry about the issue with your item."

"I wish you would have contacted me that there was a problem before leaving this feedback."

"I've sold hundreds of these without any problem or complaint."

"I've issued you a full refund including shipping."

"

---

The second and third line, I would leave out.

 Then add another line:

I will be sending you a feedback revision request hoping that the full refund will allow you to give more positive feedback.

Also I have sometimes offered a discount or send a coupon if it was me who really screwed up, but in this case I don't think that would be perceived as positive.