eBay feedback policy, eBay just don't get it after all these years (That Simple)

[olbonco]

I been in business for over 35 years. If someone has a problem with an item I sold them, they call me on the phone or email, and we take care of the problem. We have over 150,000 sales on eBay since 1998. How can you take care of the problem on eBay if you don't know until they leave you bad feedback. eBays policy can be very simple. No one should be allowed to leave bad feedback unless they have messaged the seller with a problem first. It is That Simple! If a customer leaves bad feedback and does not contact you first to correct the problem, if there is one! Then eBay should be allowed to remove it. It is That Simple! Just because a customer does not like a product, he or she should not leave bad feedback about the product. Doesn't mean it's a bad product just because they think so. eBay also needs to explain to these buyers what feedback is. Feedback is not a product review; it is feedback on your service to the customer. If you are selling new items and you are not the manufacture you might not know there is a problem, until the customer opens product up. So, no message to the seller with their problem, then no bad feedback. We all know eBay has access to all our eBay messages. It is That Simple!

[mam98031]

I don't see that you have any negative fb in the past 12 months.

[umfr.us2014]

I will agree with obonco.  Buyer should not be able to leave negative or neutral feedback without first contacting seller and giving seller a chance to reply.  Another thing I have noticed is that when the seller leaves feedback it is automatically noted as "positive".  Seller should be able to select neutral or negative so the negative feedback shows up in those lines.  Note:  I have had to contact buyer to ask for a revision to feedback or ebay to get them to change.

[mam98031]

@umfr.us2014 

" Another thing I have noticed is that when the seller leaves feedback it is automatically noted as "positive"."

It isn't automatically chosen for us, it is the only option and has been since 2008.  it isn't coming back as it is simply bad for business.  Which is exactly why similar sites don't allow it either.

[kenneth686321]

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@olbonco wrote:

I been in business for over 35 years. If someone has a problem with an item I sold them, they call me on the phone or email, and we take care of the problem. We have over 150,000 sales on eBay since 1998. How can you take care of the problem on eBay if you don't know until they leave you bad feedback. eBays policy can be very simple. No one should be allowed to leave bad feedback unless they have messaged the seller with a problem first. It is That Simple! If a customer leaves bad feedback and does not contact you first to correct the problem, if there is one! Then eBay should be allowed to remove it. It is That Simple! Just because a customer does not like a product, he or she should not leave bad feedback about the product. Doesn't mean it's a bad product just because they think so. eBay also needs to explain to these buyers what feedback is. Feedback is not a product review; it is feedback on your service to the customer. If you are selling new items and you are not the manufacture you might not know there is a problem, until the customer opens product up. So, no message to the seller with their problem, then no bad feedback. We all know eBay has access to all our eBay messages. It is That Simple!

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Why?? 

Do you contact a business before you write a negative review on Google, Tripadvisor, Yelp, Facebook? No. Most people do not. Do you call your Uber Driver or message your Airbnb Host before you leave a negative review? No.

Most people will not message a business before leaving a negative review not unless they have a serious issue. 

So what if you got a negative review?  Chin up! Respond professionally and move on. Don't take it personally. A negative review is not the end of the world. 

[kenneth686321]

I find that Ebay oversells the quality of sellers with their review system. Most sellers have a 98%+ review score. Many even have 100%. That's insane. How many businesses have 5/5 stars on google or any other review aggregator? Very few. 4.5/5 stars (90%) is considered fantastic.  

What's with Ebay sellers having temper tantrums when getting a negative review? You don't see that elsewhere. 

[loose_goose_garage]

I think you hit the nail on the head with the "Feedback is not a product review; it is feedback on your service to the customer."

On amazon you cannot leave a review that is not strictly about the product, regardless of how bad the service was receiving the item, they will take it down/ not publish it.

eBay is the opposite, and all the ratings are about the service/ price of the shipping, communication if applicable and was it as described. As you said if it's a new item, still sealed from factory, how are you to know if there is an issue with it?

[dbfolks166mt]

I find that Ebay oversells the quality of sellers with their review system. Most sellers have a 98%+ review score. Many even have 100%. That's insane. How many businesses have 5/5 stars on google or any other review aggregator? Very few. 4.5/5 stars (90%) is considered fantastic.  

What's with Ebay sellers having temper tantrums when getting a negative review? You don't see that elsewhere. 

     If you think it's oversold for sellers what do you think about the buyers since they all have 100% positive feedback since that is all a seller can leave them. 

[olbonco]

It's not about me it's about the policy. It's that Simple !

[olbonco]

Feedback is not a product review. That is what makes it different from other selling platforms. That is why sellers have gone away from eBay and selling on other platforms, less stressful. If you don't care about your feedback, then your heart is not in your business! When you spend 35 years making a business and some idiot leaves bad feedback and they will not respond to a message you send them so you can find out what was wrong with their order. If they don't message you first to find out the problem, then they should not be allowed to leave bad feedback. It's an old policy that needs to be changed to be fair. It's that Simple!

[olbonco]

Feedback is not a review. It's that Simple!

[olbonco]

You get it, Thanks

[olbonco]

eBays feedback is not a product review. It's that Simple!

[kensgiftshop]

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@umfr.us2014 wrote:

I will agree with obonco.  Buyer should not be able to leave negative or neutral feedback without first contacting seller and giving seller a chance to reply.  Another thing I have noticed is that when the seller leaves feedback it is automatically noted as "positive".  Seller should be able to select neutral or negative so the negative feedback shows up in those lines.  Note:  I have had to contact buyer to ask for a revision to feedback or ebay to get them to change.

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A seller can't leave negative feedback for a buyer and they can't leave a negative comment either.

The buyer should report the feedback for a policy violation.

[luckythewinner]

eBay feedback policy, eBay just don't get it after all these years

I think what you are missing is that some buyers do not want or need the seller to "take care of the problem". They just want to register their dissatisfaction and move on. Especially if the seller is rude or abusive or has threatened them.