eBay

ajs_coins_and_alchemy · ‎06-05-2024

Alright, there was some back and forth on this before, and I'm going to raise the issue again.

Why, oh why, has eBay decided for us sellers, that a buyer on your Blocked Buyer List should automatically be blocked from messaging you? This is a horrible idea.

Don't tell me it's "redundant" or for my "convenience". Empower me, as a seller, to make my own decisions. This feature makes us have to choose between protecting our accounts from "problematic" buyers and providing good customer service to the aforementioned.

When buyers report a problem with their order, sometimes the reality is that the buyer is the problem. This is a situation where we, as sellers, should be able to protect ourselves and disable this buyer's ability to continue to purchase from us, while maintaining the ability to communicate with them and provide good customer service for their existing order. However, eBay has decided for us, that we can only choose one or the other.

It's very simple ...

-Give us the ability to choose whether we want to block messages from all buyers on our BBL or not.

-(I believe we already have this ability, but if not...) Give us the ability to block messages from individual members, if we need to cease all communication with them.

When a buyer shows me they are a problem, I BBL them immediately, and I forfeit any ability to continue to provide good customer service to them. It is unfortunate that eBay thinks they know better, and makes these sorts of decisions on our behalf .... Give me one good reason why

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@wastingtime101I'm tagging you on this because I know you felt pretty strongly about this, and it's sad to see this issue continues many months after we last discussed it.

fern*wood · ‎06-05-2024

I have pretty much stopped using the BBL. It's usefulness was iffy to me to begin with, and with the recent changes, I feel it could do more harm than good. First of all, all a buyer has to do to bypass a block is use a different ID. Plus with the blocking of messages, it prevents working with a problem buyer which will cause even more of a problem. Both instances could end up with bad feedback and ebay seems to not protect us from that now either.

monster-deals · ‎06-05-2024

@ajs_coins_and_alchemy wrote:

Why, oh why, has eBay decided for us sellers, that a buyer on your Blocked Buyer List should automatically be blocked from messaging you?

Blocked buyers can still figure out how to message you

tobaccocardyahoo · ‎06-05-2024

Anything which makes it harder for a blocked buyer to message me is a good thing.

If I could NARU most of them I would. Some are crooked, some have only stolen my time. Some have affected my mood and attitude.

I get to decide when to block them, and once I have, I have no reason to get any message from them.

brightlightbookseller · ‎06-05-2024

They can use a different ID, but the old loophole that existed for blocked user accounts to still contact you was closed with the semi-recent changes. Now, if you block them, they won't be able to send you a message via any method with that user account.

@ajs_coins_and_alchemy, I'm not sure if the settings on this page still actually affect whether buyers can contact you: https://www.ebay.com/bmgt/buyerrequirements

According to this page: https://www.ebay.com/bmgt/BuyerBlock

"If you don't wish to sell to certain eBay members, you can put them on your blocked list. Members on that list will be unable to bid, buy, make an offer, or send you messages on any of your listings until you remove them from the list."

(Emphasis in original.)

ajs_coins_and_alchemy · ‎06-05-2024

@monster-deals wrote:
@ajs_coins_and_alchemy wrote:

Why, oh why, has eBay decided for us sellers, that a buyer on your Blocked Buyer List should automatically be blocked from messaging you?
Blocked buyers can still figure out how to message you

@monster-deals .... Are you talking about creating another account to message you and harass you? I've had that once before. I'm talking about buyers who message you and don't know or don't realize you aren't getting their messages and then think you're ignoring them. Inability to communicate impedes providing good customer service.

ajs_coins_and_alchemy · ‎06-05-2024

@tobaccocardyahoo wrote:
Anything which makes it harder for a blocked buyer to message me is a good thing.

If I could NARU most of them I would. Some are crooked, some have only stolen my time. Some have affected my mood and attitude.

I get to decide when to block them, and once I have, I have no reason to get any message from them.

That's great @tobaccocardyahoo , let's enable all blocked buyers to message sellers, and we'll give you (and everyone else who wants to use it) a little tool or button that says "Don't let any blocked buyers message me" and you can carry on your merry way.. I'm still waiting for someone to provide a reason why we sellers should not be enabled and empowered to make our own decisions in this matter....

ajs_coins_and_alchemy · ‎06-05-2024

@brightlightbookseller wrote:
They can use a different ID, but the old loophole that existed for blocked user accounts to still contact you was closed with the semi-recent changes. Now, if you block them, they won't be able to send you a message via any method with that user account.

Yes, the ability to use a different ID is true regardless of the changes or settings. This is for nefarious reasons or intents. A problematic buyer to whom you want to continue providing good customer service to is not a nefarious buyer, because who wants to provide good customer service to a nefarious buyer?

@brightlightbookseller wrote:

@ajs_coins_and_alchemy, I'm not sure if the settings on this page still actually affect whether buyers can contact you: https://www.ebay.com/bmgt/buyerrequirements

Nope, no difference. I have all my setting in such a way that a buyer would be able to contact me, outside of eBay's overriding, overreaching, overbearing policy that decides for me if BBL'ed buyers can contact me or not. I don't remember who but I worked with someone a while back on a test of this set up and we proved no matter what a BBL'ed buyer could not message a seller no matter what your settings were.

I am all for things that increase convenience or improve efficiency, but I absolutely can't stand when business decisions are made for me upon things that should be solely up to my preference. This policy only does harm, not good. Don't tell me that sellers who want no messages from BBL'ed buyers can't be bothered to click a button. Fine, auto-check the box for everyone, and let anyone who does want buyer messages to go uncheck the box. Don't inconvenience the sellers who want to continue the status quo but don't disable those who prefer the change.

tobaccocardyahoo · ‎06-05-2024

@ajs_coins_and_alchemy

Just what we need another option for sellers to have, that will probably default the wrong way for more than 50% of the sellers, so that you can be a pen pal to your blocked buyers.

ajs_coins_and_alchemy · ‎06-05-2024

@tobaccocardyahoo wrote:
@ajs_coins_and_alchemy

Just what we need another option for sellers to have, that will probably default the wrong way for more than 50% of the sellers, so that you can be a pen pal to your blocked buyers.

Oy vey, seriously? I'm not saying eBay is perfect, and if they set the default setting "wrong" then shame on them. I'm sorry that the wants, needs and desires of autonomy that others have inconveniences you so much

pjcdn2005 · ‎06-05-2024

I agree that we should be able to decide for ourselves whether we want blocked buyers to be able to message us. When we did have the option, I chose not to use it so blocked buyers could always contact me and that never caused me a problem. If sellers like @tobaccocardyahoo don't want to have a blocked buyer contact them that's fine, but others should have that option.

monster-deals · ‎06-05-2024

@ajs_coins_and_alchemy wrote:
Inability to communicate impedes providing good customer service.

I don't want to talk to or provide customer service to anyone I have blocked.

It's why I blocked them.

Looks like they fixed the feature as bright light says.

must be fairly recent.

ajs_coins_and_alchemy · ‎06-05-2024

@monster-deals wrote:
@ajs_coins_and_alchemy wrote:
Inability to communicate impedes providing good customer service.
I don't want to talk to or provide customer service to anyone I have blocked.

It's why I blocked them.

Looks like they fixed the feature as bright light says.

must be fairly recent.

Ahh, ok. Yeah, I may block someone but still want to provide some form of customer service in the form of helping them with a return. Honestly, sometimes the buyer is just not very bright. I may want to be polite and provide customer service, but not sell to them again because they have a habit of buying the wrong items because they don't read. You know, someone that isn't a jerk but is just a bit dim-witted. I don't want to pay for their mistakes (returns).

The "fixed" feature is not that recent, definitely was discussing this last fall, I believe it changed like September 2023? If not before then? I know it was a hot topic back then. I'm all for fixing loopholes, I mean if we say "don't let blocked buyers contact us" then don't let there be loopholes, but don't make it so we can't choose for ourselves.

I feel like eBay acts like a hammer and everything looks like a nail (some would argue eBay doesn't fix anything, but what they do "fix" they often over-do or just screw it up).

richard1rst · ‎06-05-2024

@ajs_coins_and_alchemy wrote:. I'm still waiting for someone to provide a reason why we sellers should not be enabled and empowered to make our own decisions in this matter....

Simple. If they are on my BBL then they are/were a problem so I have already made my own decision. They are on my BBL because I DO NOT ever want to hear from them again.

"Laissez-faire capitalism (AKA The Great Material Continuum) is the only social system based on the recognition of individual rights and, therefore, the only system that bans force from social relationships." ~ Ayn Rand