eBay

gurlcat · ‎07-08-2025

A few days ago I purchased a couple of Airtag collars for my cats, and I did the shopping with 'avoiding a dropshipper' as one of my criteria, even above 'price'. Today the package arrived, and sure enough it's clearly from a real eBay seller who had the items on-hand and packed them herself, very tenderly and with a thank-you card and invoice, and shipped fast, from the actual location cited in the listing. The collars are really nice too, but I specifically wanted to praise the seller. So I was disappointed to find that the feedback comment prompt was for the item, with all the suggested 'relevance' factors pertaining to that (including 'Condition' -seriously? for a NEW item?).

Of course you can still write whatever you want, but those suggested prompts are there for a reason. The more of them you 'check off' in your comment, the higher it will go in the results sorted by relevance. So if you really want future shoppers to know some great (or awful) things about the seller OR item, you have to aim for the AI's understanding.

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Whereas, I could say a thousand nice things (er, up to 500 characters) about the seller and my experience....

Oh and by the way, if the seller was horrible, selecting 'Negative' doesn't change the criteria either. The prompts are still about the item.. So if the seller didn't ship for several days, then cancelled the order, then wrote nasty stuff in message replies, etc., they are also treated as "irrelevant" criticisms.

But here's what I don't understand. -What determines whether the buyer is prompted to describe the item (essentially an item "review") or their experience (essentially seller feedback)? I might have assumed the former is for new items and the latter is for used. But nope, here's the feedback prompt for a brand new clothing item I purchased.

So if it's not new vs. used, then what is it???? Item category?

ittybitnot · ‎07-08-2025

So if it's not new vs. used, then what is it???? Item category?

@gurlcat

Thank you for pointing out the two different screens. I really hadn't noticed that, but wished I knew this morning when I did leave feedback as I would have paid closer attention.

Basically it doesn't matter since whatever you type in that box is displayed on the seller's feedback page anyway whether you are responding to "more about this item" or "more about your experience". What "green checkmarks" that appear are related to key words you type in the box in either case.

A few months back when eBay was "requiring" some sort of product review in order to leave feedback at all, whatever was typed showed up on the seller's feedback page anyway as if it were a summary of the transaction just the same. That kind of forced product review "quietly" went away as far as I can tell.

It was sort of stupid.... "Tell us what you love about this item". LOL...Good lord, it is a box of paperclips nothing to 'love'.

gurlcat · ‎07-08-2025

@ittybitnot wrote:

Basically it doesn't matter since whatever you type in that box is displayed on the seller's feedback page anyway whether you are responding to "more about this item" or "more about your experience".

Yes the comments get displayed but the question is where on the page (or which page). The default view is sorted by Most Relevant, which can be changed to Most Recent but I would suspect the average shopper doesn't notice that.

So a buyer could give all kinds of very relevant feedback but that very same day their comments might be on page 5 or something, under many other (older) ones that are just weighted as "more relevant" because those buyers happened to satisfy whichever prompts the AI "wanted" them to.

ittybitnot · ‎07-08-2025

So a buyer could give all kinds of very relevant feedback but that very same day their comments might be on page 5

@gurlcat

That is correct. When eBay first went to this "relevancy" (aka most relevant) display, it was explained that some bot/algorithm would select the relevant items from 'feedback left' over the last five years. Since that time, eBay has in many cases disallowed one to easily click on "feedback" and get to the page that has the most important information (even if you have to change the relevancy sort to most recent). By most important, I mean the page we get here when clicking on a member's feedback number unless you hit the 'snafu' where you can't get there at all unless you use a workaround.

From a listing now you get a list of the seller's "forced relevancy" with a "see all feedback" button at the bottom. Selecting the button might just get you another list of 'relevant' feedback as chosen by eBay, and again until it actually goes to the correct page or one knows to look at the top to see the small print on the right of the page for the "classic" view. The classic view is the only page where one can see a member's country of registration, most recent feedback, feedback left for others and a decent 'sold' history. This has always bothered me since it is like eBay doesn't want you to see the all the red donuts, or that the "Top rated seller" is from China with a few hundred negs a week.

tobaccocardyahoo · ‎07-08-2025

It is generally accepted that feedback is erratic, unimportant and unreliable as used by many buyers, not only on Ebay.

Seems like an attempt to nudge the minority of buyers who actually leave FB to address some more objective aspects of the transaction.

The use of the relevance algorithm is another attempt to put lipstick on a pig.

Somethings cannot be fixed. Some people will not accept that because they actually have some goals they can meet using FB which are unlikely to be widely shared. And FB is a part of Ebay culture which is prized by some Ebayers, and unimportant to the mass of the people who buy online.

Although only a minority of Ebay buyers leave FB (especially positive FB) they are an order of magnitude more than leave FB on other marketplaces.

The EBay MBG and credit card disputes removed the raison d'etre for FB.

12345jamesstamps · ‎07-08-2025

Leaving feedback of a purchase reminds me now of like when I was writing an essay in my college days.

This is why less and less buyers leave feedbacks these days.

And this why I get a neutral feedback...'good stamp'.

So many buyers do have a hard time even doing the simplest grading of a purchase.

gurlcat · ‎07-08-2025

@tobaccocardyahoo @12345jamesstamps

My question is about the 2 types of feedback "templates" (for lack of a better word) that eBay gives to the buyer to fill out. One asks them to talk about the item and the other asks them to talk about their buying experience. I'm trying to figure out what factor determines which of those 2 the buyer sees when they click 'Leave feedback.' Do you know the answer?

a_c_green · ‎07-08-2025

@gurlcat wrote:
@tobaccocardyahoo @12345jamesstamps

My question is about the 2 types of feedback "templates" (for lack of a better word) that eBay gives to the buyer to fill out. One asks them to talk about the item and the other asks them to talk about their buying experience. I'm trying to figure out what factor determines which of those 2 the buyer sees when they click 'Leave feedback.' Do you know the answer?

Speaking for myself only, I definitely don't know the answer; I'm just guessing, but my first thought was that the choice between prompting about the seller vs. prompting about the product might be triggered by some contents or details of the listing, such as whether it's classified as New or Used, and maybe some other inputs as well: e.g. number of Item Specifics filled in, length of description text, whether it was seller-drafted or AI-written, number of photos, etc.

12345jamesstamps · ‎07-08-2025

It probably has to do with what is sold...edible or used on something vs. items not to put in use.

I have the item not put in use for anything.

estate_echoes · ‎07-08-2025

Can't answer the question... but can help you think inside the box....

gurlcat · ‎07-08-2025

@a_c_green wrote:
@gurlcat wrote:
@tobaccocardyahoo @12345jamesstamps

My question is about the 2 types of feedback "templates" (for lack of a better word) that eBay gives to the buyer to fill out. One asks them to talk about the item and the other asks them to talk about their buying experience. I'm trying to figure out what factor determines which of those 2 the buyer sees when they click 'Leave feedback.' Do you know the answer?
Speaking for myself only, I definitely don't know the answer; I'm just guessing, but my first thought was that the choice between prompting about the seller vs. prompting about the product might be triggered by some contents or details of the listing, such as whether it's classified as New or Used, and maybe some other inputs as well: e.g. number of Item Specifics filled in, length of description text, whether it was seller-drafted or AI-written, number of photos, etc.

It's definitely not 'new' vs 'used.' As I said, that last screenshot was for a new item, same as the cat collars, but one asks about 'item' and the other about 'experience.'

estate_echoes · ‎07-08-2025

@gurlcat wrote:
@a_c_green wrote:
@gurlcat wrote:
@tobaccocardyahoo @12345jamesstamps

My question is about the 2 types of feedback "templates" (for lack of a better word) that eBay gives to the buyer to fill out. One asks them to talk about the item and the other asks them to talk about their buying experience. I'm trying to figure out what factor determines which of those 2 the buyer sees when they click 'Leave feedback.' Do you know the answer?
Speaking for myself only, I definitely don't know the answer; I'm just guessing, but my first thought was that the choice between prompting about the seller vs. prompting about the product might be triggered by some contents or details of the listing, such as whether it's classified as New or Used, and maybe some other inputs as well: e.g. number of Item Specifics filled in, length of description text, whether it was seller-drafted or AI-written, number of photos, etc.
It's definitely not 'new' vs 'used.' As I said, that last screenshot was for a new item, same as the cat collars, but one asks about 'item' and the other about 'experience.'

I have one new item, a speaker, and it has "item". 96.8% feedback.

Repeat buy for the "experience"? Or maybe a higher rated, better feedback seller?

tobaccocardyahoo · ‎07-08-2025

Of course we don't know the answer.

Nor are more than two Ebay employees likely to know the answer.

But we do know why they are wasting time and money on this issue.

gurlcat · ‎07-08-2025

I like your style. But my baby-having is done, and come the next Ice Age anyone seeking my thoracic cavity for warmth would surely find my cats already in there, claws out.

But it so happens that I already did exactly what you're suggesting:

BUT CHECK THIS OUT. -Even with all that (and being just today, and my inclusion of a photo) my feedback still did not place at the top, rather 8th or 9th from the top. But look what the top 6 are: Identical comments from one buyer, all 1-6 months old ..... and you notice something else?

Yes, the buyer's praise is actually more 'experience'-oriented than item-oriented! So what's up with that?!!!

But wait, it gets weirder ....

I actually purchased two of these collars, so I opened my yet-unused feedback page for the second collar, to play around with. And guess what? -It was an EXPERIENCE one!

But wait, THERE'S MORE!!

I accidentally closed that tab, then when I reopened it again, it was an ITEM one!

So ........ apparently it's either meant to be random, or it's very drunk.

estate_echoes · ‎07-08-2025

@gurlcat wrote:
I like your style. But my baby-having is done, and come the next Ice Age anyone seeking my thoracic cavity for warmth would surely find my cats already in there, claws out.

But it so happens that I already did exactly what you're suggesting:

BUT CHECK THIS OUT. -Even with all that (and being just today, and my inclusion of a photo) my feedback still did not place at the top, rather 8th or 9th from the top. But look what the top 6 are: Identical comments from one buyer, all 1-6 months old ..... and you notice something else?

Yes, the buyer's praise is actually more 'experience'-oriented than item-oriented! So what's up with that?!!!

But wait, it gets weirder ....

I actually purchased two of these collars, so I opened my yet-unused feedback page for the second collar, to play around with. And guess what? -It was an EXPERIENCE one!

But wait, THERE'S MORE!!

I accidentally closed that tab, then when I reopened it again, it was an ITEM one!

So ........ apparently it's either meant to be random, or it's very drunk.