The "New Ebay" Post Covid-19

[know2seecrets]

       Remember when you could call Ebays Cust Service and discuss issues with Buyers Etc....You were able to articulate "Eactly" what the Remedy would be after you & rep reviewed the facts!!!...Now it seems Just finding the portal to get a message sent thru to some living body is rough...And if you do get there Not all of the choices are there  on the pull-downs.....I guess there are alot of sellers asking how long this is going to last with no phone Contact with Rep(Stores do have them)...The Bad news is alot of "Large Companies" are not hiring back many employ positions because they have found a way to make more $$$$$...So you've been a great Seller for ten/Twenty years helping put Ebay on the map...and now "Here we are"......So I hope things can change and if Cust Service returns hire the People in the USA Right?.....Before when You could get thru to a Rep you were most likey speaking to someone in another Country that didn't speak as clearly as they should....Having to repeat yourself over & over & Over...Most are really nice & wanting to do a great job.....And last the Neg Reviews left for sellers!!!.....It seems  the case that some buyers want to get "Payback" or they just don't  care if they tell the truth about WHY THEY LEFT NEG FEEDBACK.....You wonder who's calling the balls & Strikes when you do get thru via message...and when you do get a reply in a message from Cust Support they say "Dont worry its not going to count against you" just make a note in reply to feedback reasons they are wrong....WOW!!!!....."I SAY"  remember all these things when they debit your bank account each month for fees Etc.

[donsdetour]

Ahh Back when..

Well support and eBay has become questionable.

Even the site map is a joke.

I do wounder where the old eBay went????

One could find info and get problems easily solved or told why not....

[mr_lincoln]

@know2seecrets   A system that is really really programmed well and functions to near perfection is a low cost operation not requiring a lot of phone tech support ... as to the FB system, it needs to be canned, its outdated, it's juvenile and biased towards Buyers (since 2008) ... it serves as an unwritten threat that Buyers can hang over Sellers' heads ... Sellers know this ...

[pburn]

It's difficult to discern exactly what you're concerned with after reading your post--is it an issue with your ability to contact customer service? Is it an issue with customer service reps are hard for you to understand? Or is it the one negative feedback comment you've received out of a sea of positive feedback?

I looked at the negative feedback comment your buyer left for you about a grip on a club. The buyer left a calm, brief, well-composed comment. You replied with a nasty insult. Perhaps that's why sellers can't leave feedback for buyers anymore?

You have done yourself more damage with your insulting reply than would have ever been done by the negative alone. You had a PERFECT opportunity to reply with a measured comment like, "Ad explained there was no grip included. Sorry for confusion."

By the way, professing my complete ignorance about golf clubs, what is a ""New Cleveland Bell style grip?" I tried a couple of internet searches with that phrase and variations of it and couldn't come up with anything . . .

[know2seecrets]

     Nasty?...Insult?....Interesting that you focused on the Feedback concerning My ad out of all the issues I mentioned...If the fella that bought my club would have asked before buying I would have given him a heads up on what that meant......Infact if he/buyer would have just emailed me and said I made an error not knowing what a "Bell Style grip Was" I would have given a refund gladly.....He would have his money back and I wouldnt have a untruthful Neg feedback.....professing my your ignorance about golf clubs...you got that right....Try goggling just a Bell grip/Bell style grip.....This style has been around for at least 100 years.....Most today have paddle style grips and or Pistol style grips......Nasty because I said "Buyers lack of Knowledge about what "Bell" really meant?...Really

[know2seecrets]

I agree with your words, however I think there are issues that require a Cust service Rep....I think when discussing a problem with issues Seller& Buyer & Cust Serive rep learn something that can be of use down the Road....Thanks

[femmefan1946]

So the problem was that the customer did not understand what he was buying and was unable to find the Resolution Centre, so , like  too many buyers used the easy to find Feedback page instead.

And rather than contacting him, which as an experienced seller you do know how to do, you lashed out with a Response blaming him for his ignorance.

If you had contacted him, even after the feedback and offered a Refund on Return, even if you politely told him that this was Buyer Remorse  and you would not be paying for the return shipping, the buyer could have had the FB removed, you would have your club back for resale and the whole problem disappears.

Well hindsight is 20/20 but angrily insulting a customer does not go over well with future buyers.

Personally, I think FB should be retired perhaps in favour of a running total of successful transactions/total transactions.   It's a 20th century relic.

I agree about Customer Service. I am really sick of having to explain to minimum wage Utaha clerks with ghastly drawls  that I am not in the USA , I don't use the USPS , and that we have a different legal system here.  I am much happier when I get  one of the trilingual Filipino reps who may have a slight accent but knows that there are other countries in the world and probably has a cousin working in Winnipeg.

[pburn]

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@know2seecrets wrote:

     Nasty?...Insult?....Interesting that you focused on the Feedback concerning My ad out of all the issues I mentioned...If the fella that bought my club would have asked before buying I would have given him a heads up on what that meant......Infact if he/buyer would have just emailed me and said I made an error not knowing what a "Bell Style grip Was" I would have given a refund gladly.....He would have his money back and I wouldnt have a untruthful Neg feedback.....professing my your ignorance about golf clubs...you got that right....Try goggling just a Bell grip/Bell style grip.....This style has been around for at least 100 years.....Most today have paddle style grips and or Pistol style grips......Nasty because I said "Buyers lack of Knowledge about what "Bell" really meant?...Really

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I know the truth hurts, and we tend to want to lash out at those who hold a mirror up to us, so I forgive the tone of your reply.

As I said in my earlier post, it was difficult to figure out the point of your post. It seemed to be sort of, well, "all over the board," so to speak. Perhaps you could try to parse it in order to make exactly what you're looking for more clear.

As I asked in my earlier post, are you having difficulty contact eBay customer service? Many companies have limited telephone customer service reps available due to the COVID-19 pandemic if they can't provide a safe environment for employees (social distancing, sanitation services, etc.) That really shouldn't be a surprise to anyone.

• You can email customer service via Help & Contact.
• You can participate in "chat" via Help & Contact.
• You can request a call-back via Help & Contact.
• You can send a private message via Facebook: www.facebook.com/ebayforbusiness
• You can contact them via Twitter: www.twitter.com/askebay

Concerning eBay outsourcing some of their customer service requirements, many companies do that, as well. Labor costs are high in the United States, but less so in many other countries. As a for-profit business, it would not be unusual for eBay to try to keep overhead low by sourcing their labor at the best price possible. This goes on in all kinds of industries and has for decades. Why would one expect eBay to be any different in trying to maximize their bottom line?

Now, on to you not being able to understand the customer service reps, I can't help you there--in my job, I speak with non-native English speakers all over the world. I think they do a pretty dang good job, since English is a second language for them. I assume you speak a second language, right? And when you speak to native speakers of that language, they might have a hard time understanding you, too. It's been said that "people don't speak with an accent, people hear with an accent."

Okay. So. I've covered why there is limited availability for eBay's telephone reps. I've touched on your inability to figure out how to contact customer service. I've explained why eBay might use foreign-based customer service reps. I've presented another perspective on non-native English speakers. And I've already made my position clear on your feedback issue.

Did I miss anything?

P.S. Hard to insult me about my lack of knowledge of golf club grips when I was the one who admitted it! LOL! And I did try "goggling" it. 

[conniedecember]

We need a phone # to talk to a Live Person

[fashunu4eeuh]

Since it has been brought up, I took a look at your feedback. Both your responses to the neutral and the negative feedback aren't optimal. It is normal to be angry at a buyer who complains publicly, but as sellers to the general public, we should be prepared to deal with it without shooting ourselves in the foot. And leaving an angry retort in place of a well-thought out response is shooting oneself in the foot. Prospective buyers reading those comments might conclude that if they have an issue with the transaction, you won't be helpful in working it out. Poor feedback can be completely disarmed by a comment showing concern as opposed to angry and insulting. In fact, the most valuable real estate on eBay is the seller's follow-up comment. I hate to see that opportunity squandered by an ill-advised remark.

[mam98031]

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@mr_lincoln wrote:

@know2seecrets   A system that is really really programmed well and functions to near perfection is a low cost operation not requiring a lot of phone tech support ... as to the FB system, it needs to be canned, its outdated, it's juvenile and biased towards Buyers (since 2008) ... it serves as an unwritten threat that Buyers can hang over Sellers' heads ... Sellers know this ...

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It's like that on other sites too, not just Ebay.  However I would love for Ebay to drop buyer FB all together just like other sites have done.  It has no meaning anymore.

[chapeau-noir]

Only it's not 'post' Covid - it's mid-Covid, and with fall and flu season around the corner THE BEST IS YET TO COME!!!!

(I have to agree, though - there are plenty of USians who would right now be delighted with some kind of paying work, even phone jockey for eBay. I'd sure as heck do it since even courtesy clerk positions have hundreds of applications).

[mam98031]

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@chapeau-noir wrote:

Only it's not 'post' Covid - it's mid-Covid, and with fall and flu season around the corner THE BEST IS YET TO COME!!!!

(I have to agree, though - there are plenty of USians who would right now be delighted with some kind of paying work, even phone jockey for eBay. I'd sure as heck do it since even courtesy clerk positions have hundreds of applications).

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It isn't that simple, or shouldn't be that simple.  Unless the goal is just more CSRs.  Untrained CSRs.  We have enough of those.  It cost time and money to properly train a CSR.  And with how complex and plentiful Ebay's policies are, that is a lot of work learning them.

[wesk_36]

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@fashunu4eeuh wrote:

Since it has been brought up, I took a look at your feedback. Both your responses to the neutral and the negative feedback aren't optimal. It is normal to be angry at a buyer who complains publicly, but as sellers to the general public, we should be prepared to deal with it without shooting ourselves in the foot. And leaving an angry retort in place of a well-thought out response is shooting oneself in the foot. Prospective buyers reading those comments might conclude that if they have an issue with the transaction, you won't be helpful in working it out. Poor feedback can be completely disarmed by a comment showing concern as opposed to angry and insulting. In fact, the most valuable real estate on eBay is the seller's follow-up comment. I hate to see that opportunity squandered by an ill-advised remark.

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I agree with this. Your post is very succinct.

As a buyer, when considering a purchase, I often place more weight on the seller's response to a negative than the negative itself. The OP's response lacks tact imo, but it isn't as bad as some I have seen that made me hit the back button.

[femmefan1946]

If there is one thing the pandemic has taught us, it is that "unskilled" work is rarely unskilled.

And that "entry level" jobs are some of the most important to keep an economy functioning.

It is interesting to note that Belgium has had no elected government for pver 590 days, and is doing just fine with only the bureaucracy ("deep state" to some anarchists) dealing with day to day functions like pensions, international trade, education, infrastructure, medical care and the legal system.