eBay

phanoto · ‎09-20-2019

Many buyers like to know what to expect when buying on any website. Therefore, it would be best if buyers knew what to expect about getting feedback from sellers.

Just about all sellers know that feedback for buyers is not useful for letting other sellers know that a buyer acts fairly and is honest, or that the buyer is unfair and dishonest. Therefore, it is logical that sellers would want to leave feedback in such a way that displeases the smallest number of the seller's customers.

Sellers can use the following facts to decide when to leave feedback and what to say in the feedback in order to displease the smallest number of customers:

1. Fewer buyers are displeased by the seller leaving feedback before the buyer receives the item.

2. Fewer buyers are displeased by the seller thanking the buyer in the feedback or by saying something nice about the buyer. Other sellers know that the good things said about a buyer in feedback do not indicate how fair and honest the buyer is.

3. When more sellers leave feedback soon after payment is received, buyers will leave feedback for a larger percent of their purchases from other sellers.

Comments that are often made which are true but have nothing to do with what is the best way for sellers to use the feedback program for buyers:

1. Leaving feedback is voluntary.

2. Buyers do not need more feedback after they get enough to cause sellers to be comfortable selling to them.

mat-461393 · ‎01-21-2020

Because some sellers can think for themselves

phanoto · ‎02-02-2020

Someone said:

"As soon as I know the customer is satisfied, then I leave them FB....this seems to be the most logical approach."

My comment:

It would be the most logical thing to do if the purpose of feedback for buyers is to give positive feedback just because the buyer is satisfied.

If I was the seller and if I gave positive feedback only to my customers who were satisfied, it would require a lot more of my time. Only about half of my customers indicate that they are satisfied by leaving positive feedback for me. So, I would have to email the other half to ask them if they are satisfied.

Since that would take so much time, and my customers would prefer a "thank you" instead, I think I will continue to use feedback for buyers the way my customers prefer.

7606dennis · ‎02-02-2020

@phanoto wrote:
Someone said:
"As soon as I know the customer is satisfied, then I leave them FB....this seems to be the most logical approach."

My comment:
It would be the most logical thing to do if the purpose of feedback for buyers is to give positive feedback just because the buyer is satisfied.

If I was the seller and if I gave positive feedback only to my customers who were satisfied, it would require a lot more of my time. Only about half of my customers indicate that they are satisfied by leaving positive feedback for me. So, I would have to email the other half to ask them if they are satisfied.

Since that would take so much time, and my customers would prefer a "thank you" instead, I think I will continue to use feedback for buyers the way my customers prefer.

If the buyer hasn't indicated that they were satisfied with the transaction either by leaving you positive feedback or sending you a message indicating it, I would consider them not to be interested in feedback enough to bother with it. I would not email or message them to ask anything. If they had a problem they would most likely have let you know already.

By the way, I always suggest thanking the buyer for his business long before it is time to leave feedback.

"It is an intelligent man that is aware of his own ignorance."

magicjohnsonsvariety · ‎02-02-2020

@phanoto wrote:
Someone said:
"As soon as I know the customer is satisfied, then I leave them FB....this seems to be the most logical approach."

My comment:
It would be the most logical thing to do if the purpose of feedback for buyers is to give positive feedback just because the buyer is satisfied.

If I was the seller and if I gave positive feedback only to my customers who were satisfied, it would require a lot more of my time. Only about half of my customers indicate that they are satisfied by leaving positive feedback for me. So, I would have to email the other half to ask them if they are satisfied.

Since that would take so much time, and my customers would prefer a "thank you" instead, I think I will continue to use feedback for buyers the way my customers prefer.

I sure there's no doubt your customers love your premature feedback...after all, it makes them look good even if they are rotten.

If all you you want to do is thank your customers....what I do is hand write "Thank you" on every packing slip....works better and it's not permanent.

If a buyer later turns out to be rotten, which happens sometimes, I may not be able to take back the handwritten "Thank you".....but at least I didn't give them factually incorrect positive FB that forever shows on their account.

mr_lincoln · ‎02-02-2020

@phanoto

1. As a Seller I leave FB while the label is printing out, then its done, I optimize my time and I don't have to worry about doing it in the future. After almost 5 years of Selling FB that Buyers leave has been consistently between 55% and 60% regardless of the product mix I have had over all that time. Once I ship FB is out of my control, I don't ask for it or hint about it, etc. If it happens great, if not great.

2. As a Buyer I leave FB shortly after I open the package. If there is an issue I address it with the Seller prior to leaving FB but I would NEVER mentioned FB in any negotiations.

The current FB system is unbalanced leaning more towards Buyers then Sellers. Prior to 2008 that was not the case. Moving forward from here the system should probably be scrapped and replaced with something else ...

Regards,
Mr. Lincoln - Community Mentor

phanoto · ‎02-21-2020

A seller said:

If the buyer hasn't indicated that they were satisfied with the transaction either by leaving you positive feedback or sending you a message indicating it, I would consider them not to be interested in feedback enough to bother with it.

My comment:

Yes, many buyers feel the same way about feedback for sellers. If the seller doesn't leave feedback, the buyer assume that the seller does not desire more positive feedback. That explains why sellers who do nor leave feedback do not receive as much feedback from their customers.

There are other reasons why some buyers will not leave feedback first.

soh.maryl · ‎02-21-2020

Or perhaps done away with entirely and not replaced with anything at all?

phanoto · ‎03-08-2020

SOMEONE SAID that he/she does not want to give a buyer feedback before the buyer has received the item because it would make the buyer look good even if the buyer does something really bad to cheat the seller. MY OPINION is that another positive feedback for a bad buyer would not cause the buyer to look better. The reasons are: (1) All of the feedback the buyer has received is positive, and one more positive will not cause the buyer to look better; (2) Seller's do not pay any attention to the statements other sellers have made about the buyer. If sellers read anything, they read the buyer's "feedback left"