Protect your feedback profile â and your reputation â from the proverbial slings and arrows of disgruntled eBayers.
In most cases, negative feedback is unnecessary. And Iâm sure that if you just received negative feedback, youâll agree in a heartbeat.
But the reason that negative feedback is unnecessary is that itâs usually avoidable. Complaints are usually lodged for one of the following reasons:
A buyerâs expectations werenât met. A buyer will leave negative feedback for a seller if the item doesnât arrive quickly, if the item isnât in as good condition as promised, or if the seller isnât responsive to emails.
All of these are avoidable: see [Hack #39] and [Hack #70] for tips to effectively prevent customers from being disappointed, both before and after the sale.
But itâs important to note that sometimes thereâs only so much a seller can do to please a customer. For this reason, sellers must also do everything possible to convince their customers â especially inexperienced ones â to communicate any problems or concerns to the seller before they go ahead and leave feedback.
If youâre the seller, probably the easiest way to do this is to include a note inside all your packages with your email address (and phone number, if applicable) and the assurance that, if the customer has a problem, youâll do everything you can to make the situation right. Sometimes the note alone is enough to make the customer happy.
Deadbeat bidder. A seller will leave negative feedback for a bidder who doesnât pay. If youâre a bidder, you can avoid this by quite simply not bidding when you donât intend to follow through and purchase the item. Sellers can usually prevent deadbeat bidders from bidding on their auctions â or rather, prevent bidders from becoming deadbeats â by following the tips in [Hack #54].
Communication breakdown. One of the most common causes of failed transactions â and the resulting negative feedback â is one partyâs inability to email the other. See [Hack #8] for a variety of solutions.
Retaliation. A single negative feedback comment will often result in a reciprocal retaliatory feedback. Unfortunately, this is human nature, and thereâs not much you can do about it. Whatâs worse, though, is that many eBay members donât leave negative feedback where appropriate out of fear of retaliation. See [Hack #5] for an approach that may work in this situation.
Any buyer or seller who lets another member get away with murder, simply for fear of retaliation, does the entire eBay community a disservice. Anyone who tries to blackmail you by threatening to leave negative feedback can be suspended for doing so; see SafeHarbor for details.
Tip
It might ease your mind to know that in all my years of using eBay, not a single deadbeat bidder who received negative feedback from me has ever retaliated. Not once.
It goes without saying that there are some very simple things you can do on an everyday basis to avoid negative feedback, and most of them involve simple etiquette. For example:
Be friendly, even if youâre not in a friendly mood.
Write in complete sentences.
Respond quickly when someone emails you.
Be patient, and donât panic if you donât get immediate responses to your emails.
Be forgiving and understanding, especially with new eBay members. Take a little time to educate newbies rather than penalizing them for their inexperience.
Sellers: treat your customers like gold. Understand that when you have a bidderâs money, they can get anxious, suspicious, and downright demanding if you donât reply to their emails quickly.
Buyers: sellers arenât employed by you, so be nice. Courtesy, gratitude, and patience will go far.
Be diplomatic, even if it means sometimes swallowing your pride.
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